Blind Ice (Razors Ice Book 5) Page 9

  Was it a mouse?

  A lot of help Cassidy proved to be, Julia thought bitterly.

  Veronica was absolutely no help at all. “Ardilla, ardilla,” she repeated.

  Julia had a knack for picking up foreign languages in school and tried to place the word along with its definition.

  Ardilla.

  “Squirrel!” Julia exclaimed, excited that she remembered and then bewildered at why one would be inside of her apartment. “He must have come in through the doggie door,” she murmured.

  She went to the door and held it open, hoping the ardilla would head toward it and out into the great wide open.

  * * *

  When Veronica reassured Julia—which she pronounced as Who-lia—that the squirrel had indeed scampered out the door, everything returned to normal inside Julia’s little apartment. Veronica carried out her duties and when everything was clean, she went to the coat closet to retrieve her purse.

  “The boys got their school pictures back yesterday…” The tail end of the sentence waivered when it dawned on her that she wouldn’t be able to show them off to Julia like she had the rest of her friends and clients.

  “I bet they are very handsome,” Julia reassured her.

  Veronica nodded, knowing Julia couldn’t see that either. “Sí. Guapo, Miss Who-lia.”

  “Describe the photos to me.” Julia took a seat on the arm of the couch, hoping to put Veronica at ease.

  Veronica cleared her throat as if she was preparing to give a speech to congress. “Javier is in cinco grade this year. He looks so grown up...”

  There was love in her voice as she described her children and Julia could picture their fresh faces smiling into the school photographer’s lens.

  Julia swallowed down the bitter taste of jealousy. She could never get a man to stick around long enough to even think about having children. She tried to picture Gabe with children, but all her mind’s eye could see was him hunched over his desk, buried beneath his work. If he didn’t get out once in a while, VINCE would be his only form of offspring.

  Veronica prattled on about her children, slipping from English to Spanish and back again, while Julia tried to remind herself of all the things she did have.

  * * *

  Even though she knew athletes made a pretty penny, Kate still couldn’t help but be surprised at the size of Logan’s house. It was everything Kate expected it to be. New, modern, lavishly large…

  And surprisingly empty. He supposedly had a roommate, but by the looks of the sparse décor, the guy hadn’t brought much to the literal table.

  The house was a bit dramatic and pretentious for her taste. She didn’t need a fancy address in Pacific Hills to give her prestige. She preferred the warm hominess of her bungalow to the shiny marble floors and cathedral ceilings of Logan’s house—even if it did sit on a golf course and have beautiful landscaping.

  She liked how she had transformed her house into a home by filling it with personal touches and comfortable furniture. The only seating in Logan’s massive living room was a futon-like sofa bed that didn’t exactly scream “sit on me!” and a leather recliner that had seen better days. But she didn’t mention her feelings about the place and just smiled when he showed her the oversized modern kitchen.

  When Logan’s arms snaked around her and he started nibbling seductively at her neck, the sparse décor was forgotten and Kate melted into his strong embrace.

  And then she caught sight of the mini grand piano in the corner. She pulled away from Logan to take a closer look. The piano was white, just like his car, with silver hardware and vase legs. In this house full of high-end amenities, it was the one thing she had an instant connection with.

  “You have a beautiful piano.” Her fingers itched to touch the keys even though it had been a decade since she’d played. It was just like riding a bicycle, right?

  As often as she’d played during her childhood, Kate could never play as well as Julia. But it hadn’t always been that way. She remembered sitting for hours and playing for her younger sister. Julia pouted when Kate had to stop because her fingers started cramping up. Kate had taken lessons, but didn’t feel the connection with the music like Julia eventually did. When Julia kept begging her to play, Kate finally convinced her to learn how to play for herself.

  “But I can’t read the music, Katie,” she had whined. Losing her sight had presented more challenges than any teenage girl should have to deal with.

  “Just remember it or make up your own. It doesn’t matter.”

  Their mom got tired of Julia banging away on the piano, so she bought her a keyboard with headphones so that Julia could play as long as she wanted without disturbing the rest of the household. Kate never thought of it as a disturbance though. As long as Julia was happy, she didn’t mind the noise.

  Kate swatted away the memories and sat down on the bench. It was difficult to indulge in scenes from the past when Logan was running his tongue around the shell of her ear and making her shiver.

  “The decorator brought it in, claiming it would give the house ‘character,’” he explained.

  “Do you play?”

  “No. You?”

  “A long time ago.”

  He gestured to the keys. “Have at it.”

  So Kate played for him. A choppy version of “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” and then what she could remember of “When the Saints Go Marching In.” The piano was slightly out of tune, but Kate didn’t care. It was the most beautiful sound in the universe.

  While she was playing, Logan bent down and kissed her neck. Her fingers stilled as his lips traced a lazy path around to her ear.

  “Keep playing,” he whispered.

  He reached down and stroked his fingers up and down her arms as she continued. She misplayed a few notes when he breathed hot breath into her ear, but he didn’t seem to notice the break in the melody.

  Kate stopped and swung her leg over the bench and straddled it. Logan lifted her onto his lap and she circled her arms around his neck.

  They made their own music on the padded bench that afternoon. A blend of heavy breaths, suckling noises, and the sound of bodies joining as one. Soft moans and murmured words of pleasure replaced the song from the piano.

  Later, they found themselves on the floor, the plush carpet biting into elbows and hipbones.

  “Your roommate isn’t going to come in and see my bare ass, is he?” Kate asked, stretching her leg out, mimicking a compromising position.

  “Nah,” Logan answered, grabbing onto her leg. “He’s in Sacramento visiting his girlfriend. So flexible, Kate,” he remarked.

  “Julia and I do yoga.”

  He smiled, picturing her in downward dog in the middle of a steamy yoga studio. “I’ve been known to yoga,” he said with a smirk.

  “Oh, yeah?”

  “Yep. Nathan, one of our goalies, does it for flexibility and I’ve gone with him once or twice.”

  Kate tried to picture Logan on a yoga mat and smiled when the image came clearly into mind. Was there anything he didn’t look good doing? “What’s your favorite position?”

  “C’mere and I’ll show you.”

  “Right now?” He had to be tired after the acrobatics on the piano bench earlier.

  “I want you again,” he said huskily.

  “Already?”

  The slow smile that curved his lips made her belly quiver.

  “Once is never enough.”

  He took her hand and said, “Come with me,” and led her upstairs to the bedroom.

  Chapter Ten

  Carl, Dry and Unsalted

  A few days later, Kate found a recipe for Baked Rigatoni with Eggplant she wanted to try and decided she needed to make a run to the grocery store to stock up on ingredients. It wasn’t her normal time to shop and she gave herself a mental pat on the back for venturing out off schedule.

  She grabbed her purse and keys and headed out the door. When she turned around after locking the deadbolt, Logan
was walking up the driveway.

  His jeans were snug in all the right places, leaving plenty to the imagination of what lie beneath the faded denim. The leather jacket only added to his appeal by hinting at a tougher, more dangerous side than the blonde hair suggested.

  Sometimes when Kate was with him, she forgot just how gorgeous he was. When they were engrossed in one of their long, heartfelt conversations—yes, there had been just as much talking in the last few weeks as there had been lovemaking—he had a way of making her forget everything but matters of the heart.

  Today, the sight of him all tanned and toned made her pause. Forget the rigatoni and eggplant. The combination of blonde hair and blue eyes was a recipe for sexy deliciousness all on its own.

  Logan’s magnificent body was a requirement of his profession. Like how a model got by on their looks, a professional athlete was required to be in top physical form at all times. And Logan’s good looks were just a byproduct of his ancestry. With paternal ancestors who originated from Scotland and a Swedish mother, his gene pool was fully stocked.

  He was aware of his good looks—how could he not be?—and used them to his advantage when the need presented itself. But when they were alone together, he was just a man who cared enough to listen to her opinions and ask her questions about herself.

  “Hi,” he said with a grin. He really should start calling before he just randomly showed up on her doorstep, but he loved that surprised look she got when he showed up unexpectedly.

  Her eyes lit up and her lips curved into a devilish smile. “Hi,” she answered back.

  “You look pretty.”

  She wore cute wedge sandals, a denim skirt and a flowy blouse. Even though it was hockey season, the weather in Red Valley was like summer year-round. For a hockey player, living in Northern California was the best of both worlds.

  “Thank you.”

  “Mmm and you smell good, too.” He slid his arms around her waist and kissed her until her knees were weak.

  If they hadn’t been standing in the middle of her driveway Kate would have done much more than just kiss him back.

  She rested her hands on his chest and savored the feel of his arms around her. “I was just on my way to the grocery store.”

  “Would you like some company?”

  She’d expected him to persuade her to ditch her plans and take the party to her bedroom. But she was almost, almost glad he didn’t because since they’d met, she’d been putting off a lot of things to spend time entwined with him.

  “Sure.” She’d always done the shopping alone when she was married to Carl. He thought the chore of keeping the house stocked with food was solely the woman’s responsibility. Going with Logan sounded like it might be fun. Because of his laidback attitude, going anywhere with Logan would probably be fun. “Okay. We’ll take my car.”

  Logan left his Ferrari parked on the street and folded himself into the passenger seat of her BMW M4 convertible. He looked around the interior of the car and wondered if there was room for them to get horizontal. “I like your car.”

  She’d bought it after the divorce. Just for her. The day she traded the aging Toyota that Carl had insisted she drive had been a happy one. If it didn’t make her happy, Kate didn’t want it in her life. She’d wasted too much time being unhappy with Carl.

  The BMW made her happy. Sometimes on her day off, Kate would put the top down and take a drive around the lake, enjoying her newfound freedom.

  “Thanks,” she replied. “I thought I’d pick up the ingredients to make rigatoni. Would you like to stay for dinner afterwards?”

  “Sounds good. If it’s half as good as your penne, then I’m in for a treat.”

  She smiled, knowing that every time she heard the word penne, it would be associated with a very pleasant memory. “It’s a new recipe,” she warned him, “so don’t set your expectations too high.”

  “I’m sure it will turn out delicious.”

  Delicious. There was that word again.

  “What’s your favorite meal?”

  “Besides the penne? Chicken parmesan,” he answered without having to think about it.

  Kate nodded and made a mental note to make it for him sometime. She didn’t think she could ever get tired of cooking for Logan. And watching him eat was half the fun.

  At the store, Kate found a parking space, parked and got out of the car. Logan strode around the trunk and laced his fingers with hers. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d held hands with a man.

  Oooh, it felt nice. Her small feminine hand tucked perfectly into his big, warm masculine hand.

  A stranger on the street wouldn’t see them as a buttoned-up optometrist and a hockey player. Today they would just see a happy couple holding hands and enjoying a leisurely trip to the supermarket.

  Kate hated for Logan to spend his precious free time between games doing something as mundane as grocery shopping, but by the looks of his easy smile and relaxed body language, he didn’t seem to mind.

  For a midweek afternoon, the store was busier than she thought it would be. Without letting go of her hand, Logan grabbed a shopping cart.

  Determined not to waste anymore of his time off than she had to, she looked at her list and directed Logan toward the pasta aisle.

  “Do you always have one of these,” he said, tapping at her list, “when you shop?”

  She looked down at the list and frowned. “Yes. Don’t you?”

  “Nah,” he replied and maneuvered the cart around a display of power bars.

  “Oh. I’d be too afraid to forget something.”

  “Then you just learn to improvise,” he said with a shrug of his shoulders.

  Improvise. Now that was something she didn’t do much of. She’d been focused on being more spontaneous and supposed it went hand in hand with improvising.

  Well, she needed specific ingredients today for her recipe. She’d have to try her hand at improvising next time.

  Shopping with Logan was fun. Even the act of tossing items willy-nilly into the cart was liberating. The one time Carl had gone grocery shopping with her, he had insisted everything be stacked just so. Logan didn’t live by such constricting rules. He did what he wanted, when he wanted and didn’t overthink things like Kate tended to.

  In the wine aisle, they chose a robust red Zinfandel to compliment her recipe. Kate was surprised by how much Logan knew about wine, but it made sense for someone who traveled and ate out so much to pick up a thing or two along the way.

  “Dog treats?” he asked when she tossed a box of dog biscuits into the cart. “You have a dog?” He’d been to her house enough times to notice if she had a dog, hadn’t he?

  “They’re for my sister’s dog Shamus. I like to have treats on hand for when she brings him over. Do you have any pets?” Suddenly, she felt like an eighth grader asking her crush what his favorite color was.

  Do you like blue? Check yes or no.

  “No. I’d like to someday, but I travel so much that it wouldn’t seem fair.”

  “I’ve been thinking about getting a kitten,” she admitted sheepishly.

  “What’s stopping you?”

  “Well…” She started to name off the things that were needed for the preparation of bringing a new pet into your home—supplies, toys, food—but then she quickly stopped herself. Maybe adopting a pet was another thing she should be spontaneous about. And improvise along the way. “I don’t know,” she answered lamely.

  “If you want one, then just go pick one out.”

  Yeah. Why shouldn’t she just do it instead of overthinking it by writing out lists and pros and cons? What was stopping her? She didn’t need Carl’s permission—not that he would have let her have a pet in a million years while they were together anyway—and she was free to do whatever she wanted. Julia had a cat and a dog. And if Julia could manage to take care of her pets then there was no reason Kate shouldn’t be able to, too.

  They moved on to find the next item on her list
and Kate put thoughts of bringing a tiny little furball home on hold for now. A kitten would probably shred the heck out of her new drapes anyway. There was still more to shop for and daylight was burning.

  Shopping for groceries turned out to be an intimate experience. You could learn a lot about a person by what they put into their cart. Speaking of intimate, when they turned down the next row, the condom aisle loomed ahead. It was tucked into the back corner of the store, banished along with the pregnancy tests and the tampons. Everyone knew it was there. It should’ve had a neon sign announcing it.

  Kate scanned the brightly colored packages. Words like lubricated, intense sensitivity and extended pleasure jumped out at her. There were way too many to choose from, especially when she knew Logan was watching her. She’d never bought them in front of an audience before, but his last visit had left her supply dangerously low. When they were together they didn’t discuss protection, he just tore open the packet and they frantically rolled one on.

  Just when she was beginning to panic, Logan reached out, chose a box and tossed it into the cart.

  There. That wasn’t so bad. Improvise and move forward.

  Kate smiled and they moved on to the next aisle. In the dairy section she picked out fresh mozzarella for the meal. Logan grabbed a can of whipped cream and set it into the cart.

  She eyed him with a smirk and he grinned. “What’s that for?”

  “Dessert. Later.”

  “Should we get something to go with it?” she asked. Ice cream and chocolate syrup came to mind.

  He shook his head. “Just you,” he answered.

  She recognized that look in his eyes and knew she was in store for a night to remember.

  This shopping business was fun, but she desperately wanted to get Logan somewhere where they could have a lot less clothes on.

  In the next aisle, she picked out a box of the most buttery microwave popcorn she could find.

  Logan nuzzled her neck and tossed another box of popcorn into the card. “I might want some, too.”