Bad Boys of Red Hook [2] You're the One (38 page)

He looked like crap. Like he hadn’t slept in weeks. Like he’d lost weight. He looked like she probably did.

He stepped closer. Her crossed arms brushed his chest and his scent wrapped around her like a warm blanket. “Skye, it’s you I want. You’re the one I love. You’re the
one I need. You’re the one I can’t seem to live without. What I’ve been doing since you left can’t be considered living. I love you, Skye. I can explain everything. Please, sugar, I’m begging you. Just give me another chance. I’ll spend the rest of my life trying to deserve you.”

Her legs didn’t seem to want to hold her up anymore and she sank onto the chair. “But you were with Payton. I saw you. Kelly even asked you if Payton was your fiancée. You told me it was over.”

Logan went to his knees and took her hands in his. “It was. I swear. My boss just asked that we not announce the breakup until after the competition. If we won, he wanted the story to be about the wine. Skye, you have to believe me. I didn’t know Payton was going with us. Honest to God, if I had known, I never would have agreed. I don’t think Payton’s dad realized what she would do. Hell, even I was surprised.”

“You kissed her. I saw it.”

“I know that’s how it looked. I’m sorry. But technically, she kissed me on camera. I couldn’t very well push her away.”

“So if some guy just came up and kissed me senseless, you’d be fine with that?”

“No, I’d have to kill him.”

“And I’m supposed to just trust you’re telling me the truth?”

“I fully expect you to make me grovel for a long, long, long time. Patrice even offered to give you tips on how to torture me.”

“Wow, you must be really desperate. That woman has moments of pure evil genius.” If Logan were a dog, he’d win the national championship for begging, hands down.

“Skye, you make my life worth living. Please come
back home. Marry me. Make a family with me—a real family of our own. I made an offer on that property. Just say the word and we can make our dreams come true.”

“What about Nicki?” The tortured, raw look in his eyes stole her breath and she had the urge to wrap her arms around him.

“The test came back negative. I love her and I always want her in my life. We’ll see about the rest.”

“Is Slater her father?” She remembered watching them walk away—remembered thinking that Nicki looked like a miniature female version of Slater.

Logan shrugged, closed his eyes, and squeezed her hand. When he opened his eyes again, they looked glassy, filled with pain.

“I’m sorry. I know how much you love her.”

“That hasn’t changed. She might not be my daughter, but she’ll always be my kid. I gotta tell you, though, in one day, I thought I lost both of you. God, Skye. I don’t ever want to feel that bad again. Please don’t give up on us. Please don’t give up on me. Marry me.”

Skye looked over at her mother.

Mary Margaret Maxwell gave Skye a thumbs-up. “Well, dear, he certainly has the begging and groveling part down. I think he shows promise.”

Jack turned to his wife. “Mary Margaret, what is going on?”

“Shush, Jack. Logan’s proposing to your daughter.” She looked over at her sons. “And I’ll not have you wearing out your knuckles on your future brother-in-law. He’s got too pretty a face.”

Skye looked at Logan and the background faded and blurred—only Logan’s face remained crisp and clear and solid. “Do you want a piece of chocolate cake?”

Logan looked over at her brothers and then back at Skye. “Is that a yes?”

She nodded and couldn’t hide the stupid grin on her face. She threw her arms around him, gave him a kiss that she intended to be chaste, but the moment his arms came around her, she didn’t care that she was in the middle of the dining room at the club, she didn’t care that her parents were three feet away, she didn’t care that the sphincter police were probably sharpening their knives.

“I’ll take that as a yes.” Logan rose to his feet and signaled the waiter. “Can we get two pieces of chocolate cake to go?”

Skye didn’t bother hiding her grin before turning to the waiter. “And don’t forget the whipped cream.”

Logan sat on a hard plastic chair and watched Nicki inspect a litter of puppies—what she was looking for was a mystery. She’d repeatedly told him she knew what she was doing. He figured it wouldn’t hurt to let her take the lead—after all, this was new to him. He didn’t think she could do any worse than he would.

The lady who set them up in the adoption room said the puppies wouldn’t be large—she said they were a beagle mix—but the size of their paws had him questioning her knowledge. Apparently the whole litter had been found in a box beside a Dumpster. They were cute as hell—all ten of them. They had big brown eyes, a short coat, white with brown spots, long brown ears, and feet too big for their little bodies.

Nicki stood beside his chair, leaning against him. “You see that one pushing all the others around?”

Logan nodded. “Reminds me of Francis.”

She laughed and nudged him. “Mr. Francis is like a big teddy bear, but this puppy—he’s too aggressive. He’s out.”

“How do you know?”

“I read about what to look for when adopting a puppy on Yahoo. I’ve done research.”

He was glad one of them had.

Nicki pulled a squeaky toy out of her pocket, and tossed it. Two of the puppies ran away; the others went to play. “Those two are too skittish.”

“Okay. Three down, seven to go.”

Then she sat on the floor and let the puppies crawl all over her. She picked them up one by one. After holding every one of them several times, she stopped and smiled and pushed herself to her feet while holding a puppy in her arms. “I found him!”

“Him?”

“D.O.G. needs a boy to play with. And look at this one—he’s chubby and cuddly and he doesn’t have a problem lying in my arms with his belly up.”

“Why would he have a problem lying on his back?”

“The article said that when you pick out a puppy, if it struggles when you hold them like this, they’re either too timid or too aggressive. Look at this little guy—he loves to cuddle and he likes being touched. He played with the toy and he didn’t spook earlier when I clapped. Besides, he loves me.”

“That’s not much of a test, Nicki. Everyone loves you.”

Nicki held the puppy to her chest. “I know. It’s something I have to learn to live with. But this little one—he’s special, just like Skye.”

The attendant knocked on the door and stepped in. “Have you made a decision?”

Nicki held the puppy tighter and he burrowed into her neck. “We’d like to adopt this one.”

“Okay. You’ve already filled out the application and
everything is in order, so all you have to do is pay the adoption fee and you can take your puppy home.”

Two hours later they parked Pop’s Jeep in front of the Crow’s Nest.

“Logan, tie the ribbon around his neck in a big bow.”

“Do I have to? He’s going to look like a sissy.”

“No, he’s not. He’s going to look like a present, silly. It’s blue. He’d look like a sissy if the ribbon were pink.”

Logan reached over the seat back at an awkward angle, tied the big blue ribbon around the puppy’s neck, and did his best to make a bow that didn’t look like crap. He had to admit, the kid had picked well. For a pup, he was nice and calm. They’d walked all over PetSmart filling up a grocery cart, buying bowls, toys, collars, leashes, puppy food, and even a sweater, until the little guy planted his butt on the linoleum floor and refused to walk any farther. Logan picked him up and the pup fell asleep in his arms—which made it a little difficult to pay the bill, but they’d managed.

Nicki unbuckled her seat belt and bounced with the puppy in her arms. “Come on. Skye’s probably wondering what happened to us.”

“Okay, let’s go. I’ll come back later and get the rest of the stuff.”

*   *   *

Skye stood in Pete’s kitchen, picked up the frying pan, and gave the string beans she sautéed in garlic and olive oil a toss. She turned the heat down and counted the plates she’d need to set the table and placed them on the counter.

Nicki and Logan had been gone for hours, and before they pulled their disappearing act, they’d been whispering behind her back. She didn’t know what they were up to. “Pete,
when did you say Logan and Nicki would be back?”

Pete looked up from his paper and smirked at Bree and Storm. “I didn’t.”

“I can see you, you know. What’s going on?” The three of them eyed her like some kind of science experiment.

Bree strolled into the kitchen and stole a string bean out of the pan. “Don’t worry. It’s not as if Logan’s going to do anything stupid like teach Nicki how to drive.”

Skye opened the oven to check the standing rib roast. It was almost done. “I should hope not. Nicki’s only ten. She’s not even tall enough to reach the pedals and see over the dash—heck, she’s not even old enough to sit in the front seat. Why would he teach her to drive?”

“I have no clue, but that didn’t stop Storm.” Bree rolled her eyes and shot Storm a disapproving glare.

He came into the kitchen and wrapped Bree in a bear hug. “You’re never going to let me live that down, are you?”

“Nope, I plan on holding that stunt over your head for the rest of your life. I’m going to get as much mileage out of that as humanly possible.” She kissed his cheek and returned her attention to Skye. “Logan’s the responsible one. I don’t think you have anything to worry about.”

Still, Logan and Nicki had been gone all afternoon—she missed them. She’d been home a little over a week and this was the first time she and Logan had been apart for more than an hour. They’d moved into Bree’s old one-bedroom apartment over the bar, across the hall from Pete’s, and planned to stay until they finished renovating the warehouse. The plans were done, and the construction had begun, but it would still be months before they’d be
able to move into their loft above the brewpub they were opening.

“How is the construction coming?”

Skye shrugged. “Good, I guess. Right now, it just looks like a big mess to me. Rocki is having a great time supervising the construction workers. She’s forever running over there delivering lunch, coffee, and God only knows what else. She has a new fascination for men in tool belts.”

Slater, who had been sitting on the couch behind his ever present laptop, grumbled something.

Skye pulled the potatoes off the stove and dumped them into a colander to mash. She gave Bree a knowing look and the two of them tried not to laugh at Slater. When she returned, he’d apologized to her for being an ass. He was still sporting the bruises from his discussion with Logan. He’d been great ever since. Whenever Rocki was around, Slater seemed incapable of keeping his eyes off her, and Rocki didn’t seem to realize Slater even existed. Every other man, sure, but to Rocki, Slater seemed invisible. “Storm, Slater, would you two put a few leaves in the table? Rocki, Francis, Patrice, and the girls should be here any minute.”

Slater put his laptop on the coffee table and shot off the couch. “Rocki’s coming to dinner? Why?”

“Because she’s practically a part of the family, and I thought it might be nice for you two to get to know each other better.” Men were so clueless.

Slater shrugged and Bree pushed Storm out of the kitchen to help.

There was a commotion in the hall, but Skye didn’t bother looking—she was too busy taking the canapés out of the oven.

Bree slid beside her and took the tray from her. “I’ll deal with this. I think you’re needed in the living room.”

“I am?”

Just then Nicki ran into the kitchen. “Skye. Close your eyes and follow me.”

“How am I supposed to follow you with my eyes closed?”

Nicki grabbed her hand. “I’ll lead you. Just keep your eyes closed or you’ll ruin everything.”

Skye gave Nicki a hug. “Okay. Just don’t let me run into a wall.”

“I promise.”

Skye closed her eyes and let Nicki lead her into the living room. “You better make this quick, Nicki. I have to mash the potatoes. Bree, can you take the roast out of the oven to rest?”

“Sure thing.”

Skye heard the door open and the sound of Logan whispering to Nicki. She couldn’t keep the smile from her face. She’d been wearing it ever since they’d gotten engaged. She shifted her engagement ring on her finger. It still felt weird—weird but good.

Logan stepped closer—even with her eyes closed, she knew it was him.

He pulled her into his arms, standing behind her, and kissed her temple. “Okay, open your eyes.”

“Surprise!” Nicki yelled, and bounced on the balls of her feet.

Skye was looking at Nicki’s bouncing, so it took her a second before she saw the little puppy wearing a big bow that was almost as big as he was, sitting at Nicki’s feet. “You bought another puppy?”

Logan tightened his hold around her waist. “He’s for you. You’ve
been missing Pepperoni so much, we thought you’d like to have a puppy of your own. Do you like him?”

Nicki picked the puppy up and held him out to her. “He’s so small.”

“Let’s hope he stays that way. The lady at the SPCA said he was a beagle mix, but I have my doubts. Look at the size of those paws.”

Skye held him close, and the little guy nuzzled her neck, and she rubbed her chin against his bony head. Yeah, she was in love. She drank in his puppy scent and did her best to blink away the tears, but that wasn’t working too well.

Nicki’s face crumbled. “You don’t like your present?”

“No, I love him.” She stepped out of Logan’s embrace and pulled Nicki into a hug. “He’s precious and perfect and sweet. Just like you.”

“But he’s a puppy.”

“He certainly is. Nicki. This is the best present I’ve ever been given. Thank you.”

“I picked him out just for you. I researched it and everything, so he’s going to be the best dog ever—next to D.O.G., that is.”

Francis, Patrice, Rocki, and the girls all piled into the apartment and the volume rose, but it didn’t seem to bother the puppy, who was happy to watch the proceedings from the comfort of Skye’s arms. “I’ve never seen such a cuddly dog—not that I’ve had much experience, but the only time Pepperoni was cuddly was when she was half-asleep.”