Club Destiny 1 Conviction (41 page)

“I heard. Congratulations. I
think it was a smart move.”

Of course he did. Now he wouldn’t
have to worry about what others thought about their relationship. If they still
had one.

More than a little doubt had
crept into her thoughts in the last few days, when she realized she couldn’t be
the woman he wanted her to be. He’d probably walk away as soon as he realized
she was much better suited to the plain vanilla sex than the carnal debauchery
that they had engaged in recently.

“What else did you think about,
Sam?” Logan took a step forward, crowding her, making the room seem unusually
small all of a sudden.

“Plenty.” She told him, taking a
step back.

“I’m waiting.”

He was playing hardball, and Sam
had the sudden urge to wither, to give in and just give up. But, she couldn’t.
She didn’t want to be owned, to be dominated.

Was it getting hot?

“I need to go change, then I’ll
make dinner, and we can talk some more.” She told him, needing a minute. Or
ten.

“Go change, but we won’t be eating
here. We’ve got to get to happy hour, at least make an appearance.”

Happy hour? Right. She’d heard
about Larry’s successful project launch, but she hadn’t intended to go to happy
hour.

“Go change, Sam. I’ll wait here.”

Not sure what else to say, she
turned and fled to her bedroom, closing the door behind her. Since there wasn’t
a lock on it, she knew she wouldn’t be able to keep Logan out if he wanted to
come in, but she hoped he’d take the hint.

Sam changed, pulling on her most
comfortable jeans, the pair that rode low on her hips and made her ass look
exceptional, if she did say so herself. Since it wasn’t quite cool, but not
warm either, she grabbed a short sleeve chocolate brown t-shirt that molded to
her body.

Normally when she attended
business functions, she would have donned a skirt, but tonight she needed some
fortification. Having Logan to contend with, Sam couldn’t afford to feel
intimidated.

Grabbing her Dr. Marten’s from
her closet, she pulled on the heavy boots, giving her an inch in height and a
hefty dose of confidence. She needed every ounce she could get when it came to
dealing with Logan.

Taking an extra ten minutes, Sam
brushed her teeth, freshened up her makeup, and pulled her hair back in a
ponytail. This way, Logan wouldn’t be able to plunge his fingers into the
strands, an action that always made her knees weak. Feeling a little stronger,
she came out of her room to find Logan once again sitting on her couch, but he
wasn’t alone.

“Sam.” Luke acknowledged her, his
tone gentle, with a hint of amusement in his eyes.

“Luke.” She replied, then looked
at Logan. It was a wonder she could tell them apart, but something in the way
Logan looked at her told her exactly who was who. “What’s going on?”

“Nothing.” Logan assured her,
standing. “You ready?”

Hoping he was referring to the
happy hour, she nodded her head, grabbing her purse from the bar. Based on the
intensity in his gaze, there was no way he would let her back out now,
regardless of whether his brother was there or not. Logan waited for the two of
them to precede him out the door, allowing him to lock up behind them. She
seriously should ask for her key back.

Sam glanced to Logan’s car,
wondering if she should just follow them in her own car. At least then she’d be
able to sneak out if things got too hot.

“We’re taking Luke’s truck
tonight.” Logan said, apparently reading her mind.

Damn.

Logan opened the passenger door
for her, the front passenger door, not the back. Sam glanced inside realizing
there wasn’t a console separating the driver’s seat from the passenger.
Instead, there was one long bench seat and a sense of doom came over her.

“I’ll just ride in the back.” She
offered.

~*~*~

“Get in.” Logan instructed,
putting his hand on the small of her back. She wasn’t going to get away so
easily. And if the little wildcat thought her outfit would deter him from what
he had in mind, she was ill advised. Giving her a little encouragement, he
urged her inside the truck, her delectable ass hovering right in front of him,
tempting him. He restrained from touching her. At least for now.

The questions in her eyes told
him Sam had made some decisions while she was away. Some decisions that she
shouldn’t have made. Some decisions he would soon be overriding. But not just
yet. He’d let her think she had it all figured out for now.

Once inside the truck, Sam busied
herself with her seatbelt, doing her best to keep equal distance between
herself and both him and Luke. Logan smiled to himself.

He knew what she was up to. She’d
run off to San Antonio, an unlimited amount of time to think about what had
happened between them over the last few months and decided she was the good
girl she pretended to be.

It was her M.O. Sam tried to
convince herself she cared what other people thought of her. She portrayed a
strong, independent, by the book woman who controlled every aspect of her life.
In many instances, she was.

However, she was also tempted by
the idea of
not
being in control. Since Logan tempted her self-control,
made her forget who she was trying to be, she was attempting to put some
distance between them.

Well, he wouldn’t have any of
that shit. Not now. Not ever.

The dark, libidinous side of Sam
was something Logan was drawn to, just as much as the strong, controlled,
professional side. From what he’d learned, she wasn’t one without the other.
She seemed to have forgotten that. Or she had purposely decided that wasn’t the
case. Tonight he’d show her differently.

Luke punched the gas, peeling out
of the parking lot, and Sam gripped the dashboard, her eyes wide with shock.
She hadn’t seen this side of the brothers yet. Sure, she’d been privy to the
dark hunger they both nurtured down deep, but she hadn’t yet seen the
possessive, no holds barred side. When Logan called Luke, filling him in on
what he suspected, his brother had been more than happy to help teach her a
lesson.

Tonight she’d get a taste of how
Logan genuinely felt. If she thought he gave a shit what other people thought
about him, she was dead wrong. Sure, he was a private man, keeping the details
of his personal life to himself and the mere few who penetrated his inner
circle.

Today, when he’d heard Abigail’s
little pep talk, he’d decided it was time to show her, and anyone else who
wanted to threaten what he considered his, exactly how he felt about their
failed attempts to interfere.

He hadn’t thought he’d have to
involve Sam in his plan, but when he’d tried to call her earlier in the day,
only to get her voicemail when he knew damn well she was sitting in her office,
not doing a damn thing that couldn’t be interrupted, he realized she needed a
small reminder of how he made her feel.

If there was an ounce of doubt in
his mind that what Sam was contemplating was truly what she wanted, Logan would
have backed off, willing to give her anything; including a toned down version
of their recent sexual activities. Bringing Luke over had been a test, and just
as he suspected, when she’d set her sights on him, The longing in the
chartreuse depths of her beautiful eyes had flashed like a beacon.

A few minutes later, Luke pulled
the monster of a truck into an empty space in front of the small bar. It was a
second later that Sam was fidgeting with her seatbelt, anxious to get out of
the truck. He waited patiently until she turned toward him, apparently expecting
that he would be climbing out already. When she looked up into his eyes, he
grinned, unable to hide the hunger he felt for this woman.

Reaching around, he looped her
ponytail around his hand, tilting her head back before claiming her lips. Her
sharp intake of breath was quickly silenced when he slammed his mouth down on
hers, his tongue seeking what she’d knowingly deprived him of for the last two
weeks. Her body tensed, but only for a second, then her hands slid up the front
of his shirt, her fingers grabbing onto the cotton, pulling him closer.

He smiled into their kiss. That’s
what he thought.

When Luke leaned closer, one hand
snaking around to cup her breast, Sam broke the kiss, the incredulous look in
her eye making Logan smile more.

“We can’t…” She choked out, her
face flush, lips swollen from his kiss.

Logan waited for her to complete
the sentence.

“Logan,” her voice lowered to a
whisper, “what will people think?”

“I don’t give a fuck what they
think. The only person I care about is you. And that means that we’re going to
go inside, act like the regular couple we are and spend a few minutes with the
people we work with every day.”

“But –”

“But nothing. Let’s go.” Logan
wasn’t going to give her a chance to argue with him. Heaven knew Sam could come
up with all sorts of excuses.

Logan climbed out of the truck,
helping Sam out behind him. As they walked toward the bar, he took her hand in
his, linking their fingers. Luke had already gone inside. After all, they
weren’t here to put on a public display or to air their personal preferences.
That was no one’s business but their own. Sam just didn’t have to know that.

~*~*~

Sam didn’t know what to think,
but she was nervous as hell as they walked inside the dimly lit bar.

She immediately located a group
of people she recognized, some calling out their hello’s to Logan as they
entered. A few even offered her a greeting, which she returned in kind. Logan
left her momentarily to get drinks from the bar, while Sam tried to locate a
table. By the time he made his way back to her, Sam was sitting at a small
table with Deanna and Alex.

Strangely enough, being outside
of the office with Logan just seemed… normal. Not anything like she expected.
Though she wasn’t sure when she started believing that she was walking around
with a sign that announced to the world her sexual preferences, or those of her
two lovers. Glancing over at Luke, she realized that’s exactly what he was.

Her lover.

“How’s it going?” Logan asked
when he approached, talking to Alex and Deanna.

“Good, man.” Alex stated. “Did
Sam tell you the good news?” Alex asked, glancing between the two of them.

Sam hadn’t mentioned anything to
anyone other than Logan, unsure how Alex planned to make his announcement.
She’d tied off with Xavier, but she hadn’t had a chance to catch up with Alex
afterward.

“She did. Congrats, man. You’ve
got yourself one hell of a V.P. She’s going to take you far.”

Sam was humbled by the
compliment, feeling her face heat from his kind words.

“Don’t I know it? I’m looking forward
to all she has to offer.” Alex responded, giving Sam a sexy grin.

Her imagination must be running
away with her because she was conjuring up sexual innuendos where she knew
there weren’t any.

Right?

Surely not.

Sam knew from some of the stories
told around the office that Logan and Alex were friends; they’d been known to
go out and party from time to time. But he wouldn’t… Sam shook off the image,
turning her attention to her friend.

“I’m guessing you know what’s
going on?” Sam asked Deanna.

“I heard. Congratulations. I’m
just happy you won’t be leaving us.”

“We’re all happy about that.”
Logan agreed. Tipping his bottle back, he took a long pull on his beer, never
taking his eyes off of Sam. She couldn’t resist smiling at him, probably her
first of the evening.

His answering grin sent tingles
down her spine. For two weeks, she attempted to convince herself that her
feelings for this man bordered on the normal. As she looked at him now, she
knew they were anything but normal.

Just a look from him made her
heart beat harder in her chest, her blood run hot, her palms itch to touch him.
It had been two long weeks since he’d done anything more than the soul
scorching kiss he’d planted on her in the truck. From the look in his eyes, he
was planning to do so much more than that.

God, she was a mess. An emotional
roller coaster barreling off of the tracks.

“When are you going to make the
announcement?” Logan interrupted her thoughts, his question directed at Alex.
“I think there are a few people who might be really interested to hear what’s
going on.”

Deanna sent him a questioning
look, but Logan only smiled. That’s when Sam noticed Abigail and Tricia walk
into the bar, followed closely by Larry. Sam couldn’t hold back the chuckle.
She knew exactly who Logan was referring to and a part of her was anxious to
see the look on their faces. Not that she was ever one to want to rub something
in, but the rumors those three were spreading had turned vicious quickly.

She’d heard so many different
variations in the short time she’d been back today.