Page 79 of Fast Kill

When she stepped out of the bathroom she smelled coffee brewing. She found Logan in the kitchen, his back to her as he fiddled with something on the counter while balanced on his crutches. He looked over his shoulder at her, his smile warming her from the inside out and making her bare toes curl against the laminate floor. The man turned her inside out with a single glance.

“You look better,” he said, turning to face her with a mug in one hand. “Feel better?”

“A bit.” He looked fine, as though he’d never been stabbed a few hours ago. God, if Dillon had hit him in the lung or kidney…

“Here, it’s decaf.” He handed it to her.

“Thanks.” Its warmth seeped through to her hands almost instantly. “How are you feeling?” The emergency staff had taped a long bandage over his stitches to help protect them.

“I’m good. Go sit down on the couch and make yourself comfortable. I’ve got a surprise for you.”

That got a tiny smile out of her. And she wasn’t going to refuse the offer to go veg on the couch for the rest of the night. “Okay.”

She settled herself on his leather sofa and stretched her legs out, letting her entire body relax. Every so often pictures from today would appear in her head without warning, bringing with them that sickening avalanche of guilt and despair. She kept fighting them off, but wasn’t sure how much longer she could keep the emotions at bay.

Logically she knew she’d done the right thing. Dillon had given her no choice, and there was no way of knowing whether he’d planned to let her go or not. The chances were low, though, and torturing herself about it now was pointless. As scared as she’d been to fire at him, she’d been more afraid of losing Logan.

“I was going to pick some of this up on my way to see you tonight, so I had Charlie grab it for me on the way over,” Logan said, somehow crutching his way over with a bowl balanced in hand.

She took it with another smile. “More ice cream?”

“Not just any ice cream. This is dark chocolate with huge chunks of creamy peanut butter in it. All organic.”

“Oh, so then it’s good for us,” she joked. It felt so freaking good to make a joke, even a dumb one.

He pointed his spoon at her. “Exactly.” He sank down next to her, held her gaze for a long moment and then held his spoon out toward her. “So, by the way. Thanks for hitting what you aimed at today.”

Startled, she blinked at him. “I…”

He raised an eyebrow and waited.

“You’re…welcome.” She had no idea what else to say.

With a nod, he gestured with his spoon again and she tapped hers against it. “Cheers.” Then he let out a soft laugh and shook his head. “You keep surprising me, Taylor. And damn, I gotta say you’re the most badass accountant I’ve ever met.”

His teasing was a relief, but she still blushed. “I was scared to death.”

“And that makes what you did even braver.”

She shook her head, the words pouring out of her now. “I haven’t fired a rifle in probably three years. Charlie dragged me down to the range last time I had to qualify with my sidearm, for practice before my test. I’ve never been good with a rifle. I didn’t have my glasses on and when I fired that first time I thought for sure I’d hit you instead of him.” Thank God she’d been standing close enough that she couldn’t miss even with her bad eyesight.

“Well, you were right on target when it counted, and that’s all that matters.”

The utter admiration and respect in his eyes touched the lonely, empty spot deep inside her, and filled it to overflowing.

She swallowed against the sudden tightness in her throat. Emotions roiled inside her, threatened to burst out of her mouth in a tumble of words she wasn’t sure he was ready to hear yet. That he owned her heart. That she didn’t want to be without him.

“Thanks for letting me stay here, and Nimbus too.”

He made an offended sound and frowned at her. “Iwantyou here, Taylor, I hope you know that.”

She met his gaze again, and a pang shot through her, hitting a hidden place she hadn’t even known existed. It hurt, but it was a sweet, piercing pain that took her breath away.

He wanted her here. Wanted to be with her.

That word echoed in her head, tumbled around and seemed to click into place, aligning a column in her brain that had never balanced before.

Wanted.

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