“You know what I mean.” She gave a roll of her eyes that made him want to both laugh and spank her ass, all at the same time.
“Actually, I don’t know what you mean.”
They’d never been an “us”. No matter how often he’d wished otherwise.
“This. Tonight.” Natalie motioned toward the laundry room doorway behind him. “You should be able to go home after a long day of work and relax. Not rush through a shower so you can run over here to help me.” Her shoulders dropped with a sigh. “And I know I’m the one who called and asked you to come, and I realize I even went as far as bribing you with food to get you here. But I just feel like I’ve been monopolizing a lot of your free time lately, and I need you to know that stops now.”
“Meaning?”
“I’m not going to keep calling you for every little thing that needs fixing. Hell, I got along just fine when Hunt was alive. I mean, you guys would be gone a month at a time…sometimes even more…and I survived. So I should be able to take care of myself now, too.” She added an emphasized, “Icantake care of myself.”
He knew he’d fucked up. The second she left that fucking laundry room, Logan had known. And apparently their shared moment had shaken her up as badly as it had him.
Enough she was basically asking for some distance where he was concerned.
Goddamnit.
“Nat, I’m—”
Logan started to say he was sorry. Was prepared to do whatever he needed to do, say whatever needed saying to explain away his unacceptable behavior.
But before he could get the rest of his apology out, Natalie had already started to put his worried mind at ease.
“I’m not saying we can’t still be friends or hang out,” she said in a hurry. “Or share a decent meal now and then.” A playful lift of her lips. “I’m just trying to say you don’t have to worry about me constantly bombarding you with handyman requests anymore. And while I truly appreciate everything you’ve done for me, I think I’ve become a littletoodependent on you.”
“Too dependent?” He frowned.
The determined woman gave a small dip of her chin. “I feel like I’m taking advantage of you.” Her tongue darted out, swiping nervously along her bottom lip. “I feel like I’m taking advantage of the promise you made to Hunt.”
And there it was. She wasn’t pissed about the hug. Wasn’t upset that they’d stared into each other’s eyes longer than was socially acceptable.
She felt bad becauseshethought she was taking advantage ofhim.
Ah, Nat. You are so, so mistaken.
Stepping forward, Logan needed her to hear the truth in his next words more than he needed his own breath. “You’re not taking advantage of a fucking thing, Nat. If I didn’t want to be here, I wouldn’t be. Plain and simple.”
“I know you feel responsible for what happened to him, Logan.”
That hold she had on herself tightened, and damn if it didn’t make his fingers twitch to reach for her.
It should be my arms around her.
“I was the one in charge of the mission.”
“Secretary Webb told me everything that happened that day.” She gave a tiny shrug. “As much as he could, anyway.”
“Then you don’t know everything.”
“I know enough.” That slightly dimpled chin jutted with the challenge. “I know the team was ambushed. I know the shot came from a place you and the others couldn’t have possibly seen prior to. I know you were right by his side from the minute he got shot until…” She didn’t finish the sentence because there was no need. “You’re not the reason Hunter died, Logan. In fact, from what Secretary Webb shared with me, you’re the only reason my husband stayed alive as long as he did.”
Natalie’s gorgeous face lost focus, and it took Logan a second to realize it was because his own damn eyes were starting to fill. Almost instantly, he began to blink, his lids moving at high-speed to clear the unwanted rush of emotion away.
When Natalie had first begun this little heart-to-heart, he’d been sureshe was pissed about…whateverit was that had passed between them earlier. But as usual, the caring, selfless woman had pulled the rug right out from under him.
She wasn’t tossing his ass out. The misguided woman was trying to fire his fix-it man services because she’d somehow convinced herself she was taking advantage of him.
Trust me, sweetheart. You’re not the one taking advantage.