He groaned against her skin. “Miranda.” Straightening, he increased his speed. His face twisted, and he thrust deep inside her a moment before she felt his whole body turn rigid.
She was close, and he seemed to sense that, because though he’d climaxed, he continued to pump into her. Once, twice, three times until her orgasm exploded inside her and wiped away the rest of the world.
She came back to herself when he pushed away from her and disposed of the condom in the trash.
Halfway caught up in a post-coital coma, she didn’t want to move. “A girl could get used to that.”
“You’ll have to give me a minute, but you can count me in for an encore performance.” He grabbed her hands and pulled her into a seated position. “In the meantime, I’m thinking camping out naked in your kitchen may not be the best choice.”
Reality hit her as soon as her bare feet hit the cold hardwood floor. “Natalie.”
Logan’s eyes widened. “Tell me she’s not behind me.”
Laughing, Miranda bent down and grabbed her clothes. “No, her room is way in the back, but if she were to wander down for a midnight snack, she’d get more than she bargained for.”
“Sure, now you think about that.” He smacked her playfully on her butt and gathered his clothes.
“What can I say, you have a wonderful way of distracting me.”
Clothes clutched to her chest, she tiptoed up the stairs with Logan right behind her. At the landing, she turned left and hurried into her bedroom. Once inside, she dropped her clothes and dove onto the bed, flipping over so she could watch him strut to the bed in all his naked glory. The man was just as good coming as he was going. Her heart lightened in her chest, threatening to float right out of her body, tethered only by the string of uncertainty and doubt.
His fingertips traced up her stomach, making her shiver. She grabbed his hand and pulled him into the bed. Laughing, he rolled her over to her side and spooned against her. “I could stay like this forever.”
“Now that would get the town talking.”
“Let them talk. I don’t give a damn.” His whispered words blew a strand of hair against her ear. “So what happens now?”
Her eyelids fluttered closed. “We sleep.”
His arm tightened around her waist, and he tugged her back so the curve of her ass fit snug against him. “Sounds like a plan, Sweetling.”
Chapter Eighteen
Miranda hummed along with the dance-pop tune filling the interior of Natalie’s rental car, bopping her head along to the beat as they turned into the Sweet Salvation Brewery parking lot. The overcast sky blocked out most of the morning sunlight, but a ray beamed down through a break in the clouds, bathing the Sweet Salvation Brewery sign in a golden glow.
Natalie put the car in park, but she didn’t turn off the engine. Instead, she swiveled in her seat and pierced Miranda with a no-nonsense look. “Your good mood wouldn’t happen to have anything to do with the truck that pulled out of our driveway this morning?”
Damn. She’d hoped Natalie had still been sleeping. “You saw that, huh?”
“Judging by the pair of men’s underwear I found stuffed in a corner by the broom in the kitchen, I’m just glad I didn’t see it last night.”
A heated flush burned Miranda’s cheeks. “Sorry about that.” She and Logan had looked everywhere for his boxers, but wandering around naked in the dimly lit kitchen had only led to more naked fun upstairs.
Natalie tugged on her pearl necklace, run
ning her finger across the milky white ovals. “Miranda, I know you’re a grown woman but are you sure this is smart? He’s a Martin. You’re a Sweet. This is Salvation.”
“Don’t you think it’s time we moved beyond all of that?” She couldn’t completely obliterate the nugget of doubt in her tone, something her all-knowing sister no doubt had picked up on.
“Just be careful.” Natalie pulled the keys from the ignition. “At least it’s only until DeBoer buys the brewery. Then you can return to your real life in Harbor City, and I can get back to my research.”
Miranda crossed her arms in front of her chest and rubbed the sudden chill from her upper arms. The plan all along had been to make the brewery profitable, get the hell out of Salvation, and move into her own corner office in Harbor City. Now that she was so close to accomplishing her goal, her plan left the taste of skunky beer in her mouth. Sean and the rest of the crew were growing on her. She couldn’t imagine walking away and leaving them floundering for economic security.
“What if we didn’t sell?” The idea was insane, but part of her grabbed hold of the possibility and refused to let go.
“Very funny.” Natalie giggled before her eyes grew wide. “Oh, my God, you’re serious.”
A new plan started forming in Miranda’s mind. Expanding distribution beyond Virginia. Building a beer garden. Hosting brewery tours. Launching an online class about beer and food pairings, maybe even branching out to hands-on classes in Harbor City. “It’s the family business.”