seemed to say what he was thinking, and she liked the fact he was a straight shooter with her.
“Are we cleared to leave?” she asked, trying to ignore what he’d just said even though she couldn’t stop smiling.
“I told your manager and the rest of the team that you’re feeling ill, and you wanted me to escort you straight to the hotel. I said we’ll be exiting from the side entrance, and I have a feeling there’ll be a lot of fans waiting there, if you catch my drift.”
“So we can’t go?” she asked, hearing the disappointment in her own voice.
Logan gave her a wry smile, a dimple flashing against his cheek at the same time. “We’re going out the very back. My vehicle’s parked down the alleyway, so no one will see us.”
“So you lied to everyone?” she asked.
“I expanded the truth,” he said, winking as he gestured for her to follow him. “I have a feeling your manager is more interested in getting publicity than a quiet getaway for you, and given that I’m your head of security, all I care about is your safety. You say no fans or paparazzi? That’s what I give you.”
Candace shook her head. “I think I underestimated you,” she said with a chuckle.
“I also told them that you’d be exiting in fifteen minutes, so if we’re going to do this, I think we should hurry, just in case someone comes looking for you before we go.”
He waited for her to nod, then clasped her hand firmly, walking fast in the opposite direction to which they’d arrived earlier in the day. Candace had to almost run to keep up with his long, loping stride, but she didn’t care. Logan was going to get her out of here without being mobbed, without even having to come face-to-face with her manager, and she might actually have a drink at a bar before anyone figured out who she was. Adrenaline was starting to fill her with hope.
Her phone started to beep in her purse, and she managed to open it without slowing down. She glanced at the screen.
“It’s Billy, my manager,” she told Logan when he looked down.
“Text him from the car when we’re driving away,” he said. “You can tell him we’ve gone once we’ve hit the main road, but not before.”
Candace slipped the phone back into her purse and hurried along with Logan, trying to concentrate on not falling off her stiletto heels. A few little white lies weren’t going to hurt anyone, especially not her manager, who didn’t seem to care that she’d spent the past few weeks frightened out of her own skin about the thought of being in public.
* * *
“So did you believe me when I said I’d get you out of there?”
Logan glanced over at Candace and saw that she was staring out the window, watching the world as it blurred past.
“No,” she replied, sighing and turning in her seat to face him. “If I’m completely honest I didn’t even want to let myself hope that I’d get out of there that easily.”
“So I don’t need to ask you if you’re still keen for a few drinks and something to eat?”
Candace laughed and it made him smile. “I’ll stay out until someone starts flashing camera bulbs in my face.”
“You’re on. The places I’m taking you no one will ever find us.”
She was looking out the window again, and he took his foot off the gas a little so they weren’t going so fast. For someone who hadn’t found it easy being back or dealing with people, he was finding it weirdly easy to talk to Candace. She should be the one person he had nothing in common with, but for some reason he was drawn to the fact that she was an outcast just like he was, albeit a different one. It settled him somehow.
“That kind of makes you sound like a serial killer,” she finally responded, like she was just thinking out aloud. “Which makes me wonder how I ended up letting you whisk me away from everyone who’s supposed to be looking after me and keeping me safe.”
“I’m the one who kept you safe today, so you don’t have a lot to worry about,” Logan told her, taking his eyes off the road for a second to make sure she was listening to him, looking at him. “If I’m perfectly honest, you have a manager who makes sure you get mobbed when he knows you hate it, and the rest of your entourage probably have way less interest in making sure you’re kept out of harm’s way than I do.”
She shut her eyes and put her head against the rest. “I know you’re right about my manager. Deep down, I think I’ve known it for a while. I just didn’t want to acknowledge it.”
He didn’t answer. He knew he was right, but he didn’t need to make her feel worse than she probably already did.
“Until you said that, I guess I’ve been trying to bury my head in the sand and pretend like everything’s fine.”
Logan fought the battle to bite his tongue and lost. “The guy’s seriously bad news. How long have you put up with him for? I know you have more experience with the whole celebrity thing than I ever will, but that’s a layperson’s take on him.”
Candace sighed. “He’s been with me for years, and he used to be a lot better than he is now, that’s for sure,” she muttered. “Things have kind of been going downhill for a while now.”
“How about we stop talking about work and just have a nice night?” Logan suggested, wishing he’d just kept his mouth shut instead of insulting her people. For once in his life he wasn’t screwing up—usually something he only managed to achieve in his work life—and he needed to just enjoy the company of a beautiful woman.
“You betcha,” Candace agreed. “Hey, where’s your dog tonight?”
Logan grimaced. “I left him at home. He was pretty pissed.”
“You know, for a dog he’s kind of nice.”
“You’re a cat person, aren’t you?”
She laughed, like she was embarrassed. “Sure am. I was attacked by a German Shepherd when I was a little girl. In fact, I still have the scars to prove it. I’ve just never really warmed to dogs since. Stupid, I know, but just the way I am.”
“Understandable.” Personally, he wasn’t fussed on cats, but he wasn’t going to tell her that. “I’ve had dogs all my life, but then I’ve never had one be anything other than loyal to me.”
“Back home I have a pair of Birman cats called Indie and Lexie, and if I’m completely honest they’ve probably done me more damage with their claws than your dog has probably ever done to you with his teeth.”
They both laughed. Logan changed the subject for a second, wanting to point out to Candace where they were going.
“See just over there? That’s Cockle Bay and it’s where I’m taking you for dinner.”
“I thought we were just going for drinks?” she asked, her nose almost pressed to the window, looking where he’d pointed.
It was the reason Logan had brought her here, because he knew how amazing the harbor was to
