Cowboy Truth: Cowboy Justice Association #3 (19 page)

He let her go and walked to the other side of the island. He couldn’t trust himself to touch her right now. He was halfway between kissing her senseless and turning her over his knee.

Ava crossed her arms protectively over her chest, looking scared and unsure. “I’m sorry. I do have a high opinion of you. Really.” She must have seen his disbelieving look. “But I know you don’t do relationships. Right? Tell me you weren’t going to say that this morning.”

Logan spread his arms out wide, feeling helpless. “You know what? I have no fucking idea what I was going to say this morning. And you know why? You didn’t give me a chance. You ran before we could talk. But I know what I want to say now. So here it is.” He paused to make sure she was listening. Really fucking listening. This shit was important. “Last night meant something to me. You mean something to me. You’re right. I don’t do relationships. At least I haven’t in the past. But something changed last night. And I can’t believe you didn’t feel it too.”

His tone was angry and his stomach tight with frustration. If she couldn’t see that he was different then this wasn’t going to work at all.

Shit, he didn’t even know what “this” was but he knew it was something he couldn’t pretend wasn’t there.

She was wringing her hands together. His words had hit their mark. She was shaken and finally showing her emotions. “I’m not your type,” she insisted, her voice thick.

Holy fuck.

“Apparently you are!” This time he did yell. He’d managed to stay patient and calm up until now, but that statement blew it all to hell. “I feel more for you—way more—than I’ve ever felt before. So you must be my type. Shit!”

“You never said anything!” Ava shouted back and shook her finger at him. “How was I supposed to know?”

Logan threw up his hands. “Hell if I know! I just figured it out myself. You’re the woman. Aren’t women supposed to know shit like this? As for telling you, I did.”

She grabbed a dishtowel from the counter and threw it at him, hitting him in the chest before falling uselessly to the floor. “You never said anything!”

“I didn’t say it with words. I said it in bed,” Logan seethed. He’d never understand women if he lived to be a hundred. Actions meant more than words to Logan. He’d shown her last night. Words hadn’t been necessary. People lied with words all the time.

Her eyes went wide and her mouth formed a perfect “O”. “You mean with sex?”

He shrugged and shook his head. “We didn’t have sex and you know it. We made love. I showed you with my body.”

“I didn’t know. I don’t know the difference.” Her voice was a whisper. “How was I to know?”

Logan’s anger seeped out of him like air inside of a balloon. Ava was truly puzzled and distressed. Of course she wouldn’t know how it was different for him. But she should have known it was different for her.

“Are you like that with every man you go to bed with?” he challenged, trying to make her see that what he did was more important than what he said.

“No.” She shook her head. “I haven’t been with that many men. But no. That’s why I was so upset. You have to understand. It had never been like that for me before. I felt so—”

“Exposed.” Logan finished the sentence for her. She nodded in agreement. “I felt the same way, honey. But I didn’t run out the door the minute it was over.”

Tears started to slide down her cheeks and Logan’s heart felt like it was being ripped out of his chest. He never wanted to see her cry. “Aw, honey. No tears. I’m not worth crying over.”

In two strides he was across the room wiping her cheeks with the hankie his mother had taught him to carry in his pocket. She sniffled and batted at his hands.

“Wait. Logan, what are we going to do about this? What does this mean?”

“Hell if I know,” Logan answered, handing her the white square of linen. “You’re the smart one. But we need to figure this out together, not apart. That much I know.”

She swiped at her eyes and her little chin lifted as if ready for battle. “I won’t share you with other women. If you’re with me, well, then I’m the only one. I won’t let you hurt me.”

“I sure as fuck don’t want you with another guy,” Logan snarled. The thought of Ava doing the things they’d done together with anyone else made his head hurt. To his utter surprise a smile bloomed on her face.

“Really? Would you be jealous?” she asked, hope written in her expression.

“Yes,” he answered with finality. He didn’t want to discuss it, for fuck’s sake.

“So…we’re a couple?” The innocent question set off a cacophony of warning bells in his head but he ignored every one of them. He couldn’t do his usual disappearing trick with this woman. If he tried he knew he’d be back eventually apologizing and asking for another chance.

“A couple of fucking idiots,” he groused. “We need to talk more about this but I have to get to work.” He grabbed his hat and jammed it on his head. “I’ll take you to dinner tonight and then we’ll continue working on the case.”

“We still have to talk more.” Ava sighed and tugged at the belt on her robe.

“We do,” Logan agreed. “But we can do that tonight. Just know that last night wasn’t a one night stand.”

“I’ve never had one of those in my life.”

“You still haven’t.” He nodded and pulled open the front door. They did have more talking to do but the important point had been made this morning. She wasn’t like everyone else. “I’ll pick you up at seven, good girl.”

Swinging up into his truck he headed for the station. He was halfway there when the reality of everything he had on his plate hit him. He had a murder investigation, a new-found family, and now a relationship. A real one.

What the fuck was he supposed to do with that? He’d screw it up for sure.

*   *   *   *

Logan was finally sitting down for lunch after a morning of chaos. As soon as he’d walked in the office this morning he’d received a call from a local rancher about possible cattle rustling. He’d spent the last four hours getting statements and collecting evidence. From what Logan could see it appeared to be more of a prank than anything. Sometimes the young people drank too much beer and played hide and seek with cows, trucks, and even lawn ornaments.

He sat heavily down in his chair and opened up the styrofoam container that contained his lunch. He’d ordered whatever the special was today at the diner and it looked like he was in luck. The smell of pot roast, potatoes, and carrots in a rich gravy wafted up from the tray. There was a side of their sour cream mashed potatoes and one of their homemade dinner rolls.

Score.

He wolfed down the meal in record time washing it down with a soda from the small refrigerator in his office. Jillie stuck her head in the door, back from her own lunch.

“You had a couple of calls while you were out. Wade Bryson and Griffin Sawyer.”

“Thanks. I’ll call them back.”

Logan would call Griffin right away but Wade would have to wait. He’d already dodged several calls from Wade, Lyle, and Aaron. Logan knew he would have to talk to them eventually but that didn’t mean he had to do it today. Tomorrow or the next day would be soon enough.

Jillie closed the door as he knew she would when he told her he was returning a phone call. She might not be the greatest secretary in the world but she understood him. Or at least she understood the way he worked. She didn’t try and tell him what to do and she wasn’t nosy about ongoing investigations.

He punched in Griffin’s number and pressed the speaker button. The phone rang a few times before his friend picked up.

“Sawyer.”

“Hey, heard you called this morning.” Logan stuffed his lunch into the trash can and snagged another soda.

“I did. I have some information for you. Hold on. Let me get into my office where we can talk.”

Logan heard some voices and then the click of a door closing. “Are you at the sheriff station?”

“I am and it’s a madhouse here. Shit, now I know why I only do deputy training once a year.”

Logan laughed as he pictured the usually calm and quiet Griffin tearing his hair out over a couple of rookies. “How many do you have?”

“One, and it’s more than enough. He’s a nice enough guy but he can’t remember anything from one day to the next. Of course that might have something to do with the fact that he’s staring at his phone ten hours a fucking day. He appears incapable of speaking with his voice. Yesterday he texted me a question. He was sitting next to me in the truck. I don’t think he’s going to make it.”

“Has he been through the academy?” Logan asked.

“Are you kidding me? He wouldn’t have lasted a day there.”

Logan shook his head and grinned. “How many days has he lasted with you?”

“Ten. Ten long fucking days. Shit, I’m tense just thinking about him. Let’s change the subject.”

Everyone knew Griffin liked his town quiet and uneventful. His preference was to go fishing when things were boring.

“So tell me what you found out.”

“Interesting stuff. When I asked my government friend about Bill Bryson he knew exactly who I was talking about. It appears that Bryson wasn’t above using dirty tricks and bribery to get what he wanted. My friend said that Bryson was known for getting zoning changed on a whim and putting competitors out of business. Apparently they’d have a run of extremely bad luck.”

Griffin’s words went straight to the pit of Logan’s stomach. How had this gone on for so many years and not a whiff of trouble in Corville? He really needed to look at those old files in the attic.

“What about George Bryson? Did your guy say anything about him?”

“Funny you should mention that. I asked about him and my friend knew nothing. It was like George Bryson didn’t exist within Bryson Development. So I looked up the articles of incorporation. George Bryson isn’t on them. Anywhere. He doesn’t have any piece of the family business.”

Now they were getting somewhere. Logan had assumed George hadn’t inherited because he had a fortune of his own. It now looked like he’d been kept out of the business, maybe deliberately.

“I don’t suppose you did any research on George?” Logan asked.

Griffin chuckled. “Actually I farmed that out to Reed but he called me this morning. Good old Uncle George doesn’t have a pot to piss in. He has his own business which was set up with an injection of cash from brother Bill. According to Reed’s sources George loves women, booze, and the ponies. Not necessarily in that order. He spends it as fast as he makes it.”

“Expensive hobbies,” Logan replied. “If he thought he would inherit, it might be a motive for murder.”

“If he thought he would inherit,” Griffin agreed. “Did he have any reason to believe that?”

Logan didn’t know but he intended to find out.

“I’ll bring him in for questioning. This is the first lead I’ve had. Thanks for helping me out. I’ve been combing through financial statements for days. Sometimes police work is boring as hell.”

“Glad I could help. It’s nice to work on something other than cattle rustling and petty vandalism. I’ll email you all the details so you can read through it. Let me know if there’s anything else I can do.”

Logan tapped the desk, indecision warring inside of him. He sighed and gave in, knowing he was going to regret this. “Actually there is one more thing.”

“Name it, man.”

Son of a fucking bitch, he hated this shit. “I need some advice. About a woman.”

Laughter erupted on the other end of the phone and Logan had to take it off speaker, picking up the receiver.

“Women? I thought you had every woman for five hundred miles panting after you. Since when do you need advice?”

“Stop fucking laughing, asshole. I’m serious about this. I don’t need advice about women. I need advice about
a woman
. And about relationships. Shit, I’ve never been in one. I like this woman and I don’t want to fuck it up.”

Griffin choked and coughed a few times. “A relationship, huh? That’s some serious shit. I’m not sure I can help you. I’ve never been in love. I have dated a few women seriously.”

“I didn’t say I was in love.” Annoyed, Logan almost slammed down the phone. “I said I liked her.”

“Oh. Maybe you should call Tanner. Or Seth. They might know what to do. But it can’t be all that difficult. Millions of men are in them and they seem to do okay. From what I’ve experienced women don’t expect very much. Just don’t stick your dick where it doesn’t belong and buy her flowers. You’ll be fine. Don’t over think it.”

“You have a point. If Seth and Tanner can do it then it can’t be all that tough.” Logan was sure both of his friends had screwed up a time or two.

“Be sure to tell her she looks nice. Women like that. Even if she looks like she’s been dragged through a hedge, be sure to say it,” Griffin offered.

“I can do that. You’re right. I just need to relax.”

“If things start to go south, just fall back on what you know. That’s what I’d do.”

What Logan knew? He knew how to make her scream when she came. It would certainly stop any talk about feelings and the future, that was for sure. Griffin was onto something here.

“Thanks. I’ll let you go. I need to set up an interview with George Bryson.”

“Keep us in the loop, man. See you.” Griffin rung off and Logan set the receiver back in the cradle.

He should have known better than to ask his friend for advice but a desperate man did desperate things. He needed to show Ava he could be faithful without making her think about forever. Logan was in no way ready for that kind of commitment.

He would make sure Ava understood. He wanted her, wanted to be with her. He simply couldn’t make any promises about the future.

Logan wasn’t the husband and kids type.

Chapter Fifteen