Page 18 of Logan

“What?” The screech she emitted was a sound she almost never used, but it seemed as though he managed to pull it from the depths of her lungs.

Handing her a burner phone, he said, “Use this. Only when you have to.”

She held out her hand, palm up, and demanded, “Give me my phone.”

“No. I can’t trust that you won’t forget and use it. While we’re here, you can’t have your personal phone in your possession. It’s just a precaution. And you need to get your things out of this room and into the bedroom across the hall.”

At that, she blinked, her mouth hanging open. “Why? My things are already in the closet and drawers.”

“I need the room on this side.”

Standing in the hall, she watched as he set his bags onto the bed she’d slept in last night. “The rooms are the same size,” she argued, following him into the bedroom and grabbing the handles of his duffel bag, attempting to lift it. Barely able to budge the heavy bag, she grimaced as he swiftly moved in, putting his hand on the top.

“Don’t,” he ordered. “Don’t touch my things.”

Whirling around with her hands now on her hips, she huffed. “Seriously? I normally wouldn’t consider touching someone else’s property, but you’ve enteredmyroom, putting your bag onmybed, not to mention you stolemyphone!”

“I’m taking this room,” Logan declared once more, his tone firm. “I need to be in this one.”

Stepping closer, with her hands clasped together in front of her, Vivian attempted to calm by taking a deep breath before letting it out slowly. “I will not leave this room without you giving me a reason. A good reason. You may be in charge of this assignment, but you owe me the courtesy of talking to me. You need to?—”

“I need to be on this side because it faces the neighbor’s house.”

Her mouth snapped closed as her eyes darted to the window, knowing the neighbor’s house was in view or would be if the blinds were open. “Oh,” she muttered. Turning, she found him staring at her. Swallowing audibly, she complained, “If you had just said so to begin with, I would have understood.”

He scrubbed his hand over his face, sucking in a deep breath. “I’m sorry, but I’m not used to having to explain myself.” Moving to his bag, he unzipped the duffel, pulling out some sweats and running shoes. Moving silently around her, he stepped into the bathroom, shutting the door firmly behind him, leaving her standing in the middle of the bedroom.

A moment later, he walked out of the bathroom, bypassed her, and headed down the hall. She hurried after him, calling out, “Where are you going?”

“Running.”

“But why now? We need to talk about what we’re doing! I’m not sure when I need to?—”

Turning on his heel, he faced her, and she skidded to a stop.

“Vivian.” He said her name as though it pained him to do so. “We will talk, but not now. I’m going for a run, and you’re going to get your things set up in the other bedroom. It’ll be late when I get back. Don’t wait up.”

Her jaw dropped. He placed his forefinger on her chin and lifted, shutting her mouth.

“And Viv? Get used to this, ’cause as of right now, Iamyour boss.” With that, he turned and walked out the front door, closing it behind him.

Fifteen minutes later, Vivian found herself going between the two bedrooms, transferring her clothes from one to the other. She hadn’t been told how long this assignment would last but had been told to prepare for a few weeks. As she put the last of her things in the chest, she slammed the drawer in frustration. It became stuck, and she shoved all her weight against it with her hip, crying out in both anger and pain. Stepping back, she sat on the bed, blinking back tears.

Glancing out the window, she saw the sky as the sun set, much earlier than she experienced in California. The beautiful, ever-changing colors over the deep green of the fir trees held her spellbound. Realizing this bedroom was gifted with the glorious sunsets and didn’t suffer from the glaring morning sun made it the better room even though they were the same size.He couldn’t have known that…he wasn’t being nice…just demanding. And now I look like an idiot for standing up formyself when I wouldn’t have had to if he’d just come out and explained things to begin with.

Hours later, Logan had still not returned. Walking back into his bedroom to make sure she had all her possessions, she looked at the bed, his large bag still sitting on the quilt. Heaving a sigh, she thought of the sheets that needed to be changed since she’d slept on them last night. Standing next to the bed, she grabbed the handles of his bag once more, struggling just to lift it. Indecision moved through her, but she decided to take some of his clothes out so she could move the duffel.He didn’t mind taking my phone!

Burying the feeling of guilt, she unzipped the top and reached inside to lift out a pile of clothes. Her fingers hit cold metal, and she snatched them back as though burned. Sucking in her lips, she hesitated before her curiosity got the better of her. Leaning over, she peered inside, seeing two guns in holsters, and another one partially visible underneath some clothes. Her breath left her lungs in a whoosh, and she plopped down heavily on the bed as her thoughts tumbled.

Lightheaded, she began to breathe deeply, acknowledging that nothing was going the way she thought it would.I thought I’d share a house with some nice man who would just sneak in next door, do his thing, get some samples for me to test, and then we’d be out of here. Guns? Weapons? And who knows what else is in that bag?

Jumping up, she bent over the bag again and fixed the handles the way they were before she began her ill-fated sheet changing. She stepped back and looked at the bed before letting out another sigh. Glancing around, she hurried out ofhisroom.

11

Logan walked back into the house, locking the door securely behind him and turning off the porch light that Vivian must have left on for him. Staring at the lock, he knew he needed to add extra security since she’d be on her own a lot.

While running, he’d taken the time to report to LSIMT, receiving some good-natured teasing about how he must have known about Vivian, which was why he was so keen on being the one to take the lead in the mission. He’d allowed his Keepers their laughter, but he still couldn’t stop the gut clench that occurred when he thought of how this mission was already off the rails.

---