and headed up the walkway. Her painfully high heels clicked on the stone.
The last place she wanted to go was back into the fray of the reception. Yet, if she hadn’t cut off her own nose to spite her face and flatly refused to be one of Noelle’s bridesmaids, Annie would be dressed in elegantly tasteful salmon silk and standing up there with the rest of the wedding party while Will and Noelle shoved raspberry-cream-filled wedding cake into one another’s mouths and Drago wouldn’t have had an opportunity to get near her.
“All right, all right. I’m going.”
She stopped and looked back. Drago was shaking his head, backing away from Logan.
“Stay away from Annie. Permanently,” Logan said.
Her heart stuttered.
Drago’s lips curled. “Wanting a little jailbait yourself?”
Annie winced as Logan’s fist shot out, clipping Drago’s jaw. Drago stumbled back, but didn’t go down. His smile was oily as he turned and jogged away, disappearing into the thick stand of trees that bordered the palatial Hess estate.
Logan looked ready to pursue him and Annie hastily darted back to him, grabbing his arm. “He’s an idiot. Let him go.”
“So he can get away with assaulting you?”
“He didn’t—” She exhaled. The truth was, she wasn’t entirely sure what Drago would have done if Logan hadn’t come along when he had. Before now, Drago had seemed content with the bargain they’d struck—she’d get him an in at her private school so he could pick up mechanic work on all the rich kids’ cars, and though in public he’d portray the totally inappropriate boyfriend, in private he’d keep his hands off her. “Look, I’m glad you came when you did. But I meant it when I said I didn’t want to cause a scene during the reception.”
“I don’t think you’ve ever walked away from creating a scene. What did your parents do? Threaten to disown you if something happened today?”
“My parents threaten to disown me every other week,” she assured blandly. The truth was, she hadn’t wanted to disappoint Will any more than she already had with her refusal to accept Noelle’s efforts at friendship. “Believe me, they’ll probably be disappointed when the day ends without me doing something to embarrass them in front of their guests.”
From the other side of the boathouse, where the enormous awning had been erected on the richly groomed grounds, applause and cheering broke out from the revelers.
“Is that why you wouldn’t go ask for their help?”
Annie kept her smile in place, but it took an effort. “As it happens, I did ask.”
He drew his eyebrows together. “And?”
She shrugged. “Well, Drago didn’t leave until just now, did he?” She didn’t like the look in his eyes. The one that seemed a little too close to pitying. “You should be back there.” She tilted her head in the direction of the party. “Will’s probably tossing the garter or something about now.”
“Why aren’t you back there?”
“What? To catch the bouquet?” She managed an uncaring shrug. “Not my style.”
His eyebrow lifted. “You’re seventeen years old. You don’t have a style yet.”
She nearly laughed. “I’ll be eighteen in a few months, and you know better than that. Annie’s style is to go wherever there is trouble, and if there isn’t trouble yet, there soon will be once she arrives.”
“Is that what you really think or are you just quoting your parents?”
Her smile faltered a little. “What’s the difference?”
Another burst of clapping and laughter sprang through the night. Logan’s steady, silent look made her feel positively itchy. “If you don’t like something, Annie, you’re the one who has the power to change it.”
“Annie’ll never change,” she assured. “My parents say that all the time.” She hated the way her throat felt, all tight. She focused hard on the empty champagne bottle lying in the grass beside the walkway until her vision cleared.
Then she nudged the bottle with the pointed toe of her red pump. “Pity about the champagne. It spilled out when I tried to hit Drago with the bottle. Such a waste.”
“I think you’ve already had plenty.”
“Me? I’m underage, Logan, remember? You don’t think I meant to drink it myself, do you?”
The corner of his lips tilted. “I’m well aware of your age, and yes, I do think you meant to drink it.” His voice was as dry as the imported bubbly.
The man was intoxicating. More so than any amount of champagne she might have consumed on the sly.
“That’s why you snuck down here by the boathouse, I suspect. To drink your little heart out.”
“How nice of you to notice.” She’d perfected that bored tone when she was knee-high to a grasshopper. But, when she languidly brushed her hair back from her shoulder and his gaze tracked the movement, she hid another little shudder.
“Oh, you’re noticeable, all right. Somebody should put you on a leash.”
Despite his wholly overwhelming appeal, she was more comfortable with this sort of exchange with him than any other. She didn’t want his pity. She wanted his hands on her. Simple.
Her lips curved. “Why, Logan. Is there a bit of kink hiding beneath your straight-arrow exterior?”
He didn’t look amused.
She exhaled, pouting a little, and walked closer to him. Her heels were so ungodly high that the top of her head nearly reached his chin. She tilted her head back a little, leaning toward him. Her heart was beating so hard that she wondered hazily if he could see it right through the wedge of skin revealed by the plunging V of her dress.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
“Giving you a proper thank you.” She pressed her lips to his jaw, settling her hand against his chest when her knees seemed too shaky to hold her.
“Fine.” His voice was clipped. “You’re welcome.”
He hadn’t moved, and she felt the heady beat of his heart right through the shirt he wore. Her palm still hurt, but the white silk felt unreasonably soft as she moved her hand down over his hard abdomen. Her lips tingled as she drew them along the hard, raspy line of his jaw. She rose on her toes, her mouth slowly, agonizingly nearing his. For an altogether too brief moment, his hand slid behind her neck, tangling in her hair. His lips hovered enticingly close to hers.
Then he suddenly set her from him, dragging her hand away from his belt as he pushed her back. “Dammit, Annie. You don’t have to behave this way, just for the sake of getting some attention from your worthless parents.”
Her defenses closed around her again like a vise. “You want me, Logan. I know you do.” She leaned toward him
