polite and engaging with his friends, a good dancer, and a thoughtful person. She didn’t ask him to fetch her drinks or complain about how her feet hurt or the dance floor was too hot.
In fact, she hadn’t complained about anything at all. Even when other women had come up to him and asked him to dance, she hadn’t said a word. He’d turned them all down and at one point she’d leaned in close and whispered in his ear that it was okay if he wanted to.
He hadn’t wanted to. He had a bad reputation but he knew how to treat a lady. Ava Hayworth was a lady. Class all the way. It was probably a novelty for a good church-going girl like her to hang out with a guy like him.
And the evening wasn’t over yet.
Normally, if he wasn’t going to end up in bed with his date, which was rare, he took them home and then went for a ride. Tonight, he would take Ava with him on the bike. She’d loved it earlier but he knew she’d like it even better at night.
There was nothing like a nighttime cycle ride. The roads were deserted and there was nothing but the sound of the engine. He wasn’t going to get involved with Ava, but he could share this with her. It would be a thank you for all she’d done for him.
“Is everything okay?” Ava asked. She must have felt his gaze on her profile.
“Are you ready to go? Have you had enough fun?” He smiled as her dimples appeared.
“I have, actually. I don’t go out much at home. I’m always working. Thank you for bringing me.”
“As I said earlier, you did me the favor. Thank you.”
Ava’s gaze strayed to where Christina danced with Jack. “She looks pretty happy with Jack tonight. Maybe she got the message.”
Christina’s behavior had improved as the evening had gone on. Jack had made sure she was very busy indeed leaving little time for her to spend with Logan. Things just might have turned the corner.
“I hope so. She really is a nice person and she deserves to be happy. She wouldn’t have been happy with me.”
Ava tilted her head. “Why not? Because you can’t be faithful?”
For some reason her words stung. He lifted his hand. “Now hold on a minute. To be considered a candidate to be faithful, you have to be in a committed relationship. I don’t do relationships, so I’ve never been unfaithful. I want to be clear on that.”
Ava’s respect was important to him and he wasn’t sure why. Maybe it was because she was the first real female friend he’d ever had.
“I’m sorry.” She shook her head. “I didn’t mean to offend. When you say it that way, I guess you’re right.”
“You guess? You don’t sound convinced.” Logan had to lean close so he could talk over the loud music but still not be overheard by his friends at the table. This was none of their fucking business.
“When I think about dating I automatically think about one person at a time,” Ava admitted. “Honestly, I couldn’t picture myself dating several men at once.”
Images of Ava with other guys flashed in front of Logan. His gut tightened and a scowl crossed his face. The thought of her with other men pissed him off. She was too good for anybody he’d ever met. She needed someone who would be as truthful with her as she was with them.
Most men would lie, cheat, and steal to get laid. Hell, he’d arrested a guy once who had pretended to work for Brad Pitt just to meet women. Of course he hadn’t arrested him for his game of make believe, he’d arrested him because he ran out on his bill after running up a tab of food and drinks over a thousand bucks. Logan still couldn’t believe females had actually believed someone working for Brad Pitt would be hanging out in Corville.
But women believed what they wanted to believe. Christina believed that Logan was a good man and that she was in love with him. Ava believed he was a hound and had to be blackmailed into going out on a date with him.
Logan stood and then helped up Ava with a hand under her elbow. They bid his
Sharon Kleve, Jennifer Conner, Danica Winters, Casey Dawes