Between You and Me

“Don’t mind her, babe,” Brady said to his wife, swinging an arm around her and yanking her closer. “She’s probably just a little jealous because she never got married, never had kids.” His dark eyes glittered cruelly as they focused on Tess. “I remember how you used to go on and on about wanting a big family. Didn’t happen for you. That’s a shame. Our kids, they made our life complete. You, now . . . close to forty . . . guess that ship sailed, huh?”

Logan fought back the urge to grab Brady by the front of his ski jacket and pound him into the wall. Brady was about six-foot-two, lean with a bit of a paunch. Logan had two inches of height and a hell of a lot more muscle on this worm. It took a lot to rein in his temper just then. Snide prick, rubbing Tess’s past dreams in her face, especially now that Logan knew how much Tess still wanted children . . . and Chynna stood there grinning like they’d won a victory. Rage burned hot in Logan’s veins and he clenched his jaw, not trusting what would come out of his mouth.

But he’d forgotten who he was with. Tess Harrison didn’t need a knight in shining armor, or a bouncer, or anyone to do her dirty work for her. She laughed. A gorgeous, light tinkle of amusement that made Brady and Chynna blink.

“I’m very happy,” Tess said. “My life is full. And the bonus is I didn’t end up married to a lying, cheating, pathetic man like you. Add to that I dodged a bullet. The thought of having had kids with you, tying myself to you for life?” She let out a huff of a laugh, pure condescension. “I’d say I came out way ahead.”

Logan smiled. Atta girl. He looked down at her and asked dryly, “Is that how this went? Just a no-good cheater?”

“Oh yeah.” Tess nodded and leaned into him. “Luckily, I walked in on him and one of his many women a few months before the wedding. Saved me a lifetime of heartache. He did me a favor.” She smiled a bright, sparkly smile. “And just think, honey . . . I wouldn’t have met you, and we were meant to be.”

“Absolutely.” Logan couldn’t help himself; he lowered his head to drop a quick kiss on her gorgeous mouth. He held her close, as if they were a real couple. She smiled anew, obviously enjoying herself. Then he glanced at the Hillmans. Brady looked all tight and furious, while Chynna’s face was bright pink. Yup, her designer panties were in a twist now. He imagined the conversation between Mr. and Mrs. Hillman later would be very interesting indeed. He shot a wide, smug smile at Brady and said, “Guess I should thank you for being such a douchebag, eh?”

Brady scowled and Chynna gasped. Tess just snuggled into Logan’s side and kept smiling as she said, “Gee, this reunion   was fun! So glad you wanted to say hi, Brady. But we have a dinner reservation upstairs.”

“We’d best get going, sweetheart,” Logan added cheerfully.

Brady glared at them both with undisguised fury, then grasped his wife’s elbow. He steered her away without a look back, though Chynna glanced over her shoulder at Tess once before they disappeared into the crowd.

“Thanks for the support,” Tess said to Logan.

She moved to pull away, but he still held her close. He gave her a little squeeze and said, “That was more fun than either of us should admit to.”

The corners of Tess’s mouth lifted. “I know. Gotta say, you did seem to enjoy yourself there at the end.”

“Well, calling out assholes has always been a fun pastime for me.”

“Good to know.” She pulled out of his arms, but said with quiet grace, “Thank you for having my back.”

“Anytime.” He gazed down at her. Questions rolled through his mind, but mostly, he just wanted to get her away from that whole scene. Despite her unruffled exterior, he suspected some of Brady’s poison-tipped arrows had hit a mark. “Let’s go get some food.”

“Yes, please.”

* * *

Ten minutes later, they were sitting at a table in the Sunrise Restaurant. The ceiling and outer wall were made of glass, affording spectacular views of Aspen Mountain and the scenery around it. Nearby, a fire blazed in a huge rock fireplace while acoustic guitar music played over the sound system. As the waitress left them menus and glasses of water, Tess muttered, “I need a stiffer drink than this. Hell, maybe a whole bottle.” Her eyes flew wide and shot to Logan. “Oh my God, I’m sorry.”