Chapter 21

CHAPTER 21

LOGAN

I woke up on the rig with Mira still in my arms, and a deep sense of satisfaction rolled through me. Contrary to my usual routine the morning after, I didn't jump out of bed immediately and there was no itch to leave her behind as soon as possible.

Instead, I was perfectly content to just lie there, holding her and listening to the stillness outside. For once, the waves weren't pounding on the legs of the rig, and it almost felt odd. Wait. I'm not getting used to the sounds of these creepy things, am I?

The rational part of me wanted to say "hell no" clearly and emphatically, but the more realistic part knew that it was at least partially true. I was hardly an expert on these things, but it did seem like there were certain aspects of life on an oil rig that I was already getting familiar with.

A shudder traveled through me at the thought. I do not need to start getting comfortable on these isolated platforms of impending death.

Mira stirred in my arms a little while later, waking up with a sleepy and adorable yawn. I glanced down at her, not wanting to miss the moment she opened her eyes and realized I was still here. Before she'd even opened her eyes though, a soft, lazy smile spread on her lips. "You didn't sneak out early, huh? "

"How did you know I was awake?"

"People breathe differently when they're asleep." That smile was still on her lips when she finally blinked open her eyes and looked into mine. "Good morning, Logan."

"Good morning, Mira." For a long second, neither of us spoke again. We just lay there, sleepy and lazy, staring at each other in the hazy, early morning light.

In such a vulnerable state, she was less the imposing woman I'd run into on my rig and more the undone, sexy woman of my dreams. Uhhh. No. Nope. Jeez. Where the hell did that thought come from?

What woman of my dreams? I didn't dream of women. Not even of a woman. I shook my head at myself mentally.

Mira was Slate's baby sister. We crossed a line last night.

Jude and Mickey's wedding? So what? It'd been a one-off. A night we could've chalked up to drunkenness if Slate had ever found out.

Neither of us had known who the other was back then, but this time had been different. Very, very different. Even if I did have a dream girl, Mira wasn't it. She couldn't be it.

Slinging an arm off the bed, I rummaged around for my pants and pulled my phone out of my pocket to check it. At the same time, she rolled over and rested her chin on my chest, propping herself up to look at me.

"Is the chopper here to take us home yet?"

I chuckled, unable to resist reaching up and stroking my fingers through those rich, dark chocolate locks. "Do you really think of the other rig as home ?"

Her eyes went unfocused for a moment as she shrugged. "Well, yeah. It's as much my home right now as my apartment back in New York. Minus some creature comforts like my weighted blanket and my collection of essential oils and diffusers."

I laughed. "Of course, you're one of those girls."

She sniffed the air and looked at me again, amusement dancing across her expression as she tried to fight a smile. "Hey, I've got to get my fix of girly luxuries somewhere. You won't ever hear me apologizing for it. I've got scented candles too. "

"A weighted blanket, though?" I screwed up my nose as I blinked at her. "Really? Is that even a luxury, or is it an unnecessary gimmick infomercials made you believe you needed in your life?"

Swatting my arm playfully, she shook her head at me. "Trust me, it's not a gimmick. You've never slept as well as you do under that thing. In fact, you should just take that fancy phone of yours right now and order one online so it'll be waiting for you at home by the time we get there."

"Or I could just come spend a night at your place," I joked. "Test the merchandise before I invest in it."

She arched a steep brow at me, but since she still seemed amused, it didn't look like I'd freaked her out too much. "If you're going to be spending the night at my place, it won't be for the weighted blanket and both of us know it. Thanks for trying to sneak in a sleepover, though. It's very flattering."

I laughed when she batted her eyes at me. Then my phone chimed and I lifted it up to see a message waiting from Derrick. "To answer your earlier question, the chopper is fifteen minutes out, so I guess it's time for us to get up and get dressed."

"Thank God," she muttered as she sat up, stretching her arms out above her head and covering her mouth when she yawned again. "I've never been as eager to leave a rig as I am this one. It just has some seriously bad juju, you know?"

I nodded. "Generally, I'm opposed to words like ‘ juju, ' but in this case, I agree with you. Something is not right onboard this thing. It's like the bad energy has permeated the very metal it's made of."

"Still doesn't mean you shouldn't buy it," she said lightly as I swung my legs off the bunk and stretched out myself, completely unashamed of my nakedness.

Mira's cheeks flushed as she glanced at me. Then she quickly covered her eyes with her palm. "You should put that thing away."

"Oh, come on. It's nothing you haven't seen before."

"Sure, but I'm not embarrassed. We just have to be at the helipad in fifteen minutes, so we should both cover up before we get distracted."

"Why?" I grinned at her, shaking my hips a little. "Derrick will wait for a few minutes if he has to. Maybe even a couple hours if I tell him we're not done here yet."

She laughed, letting out a deep exhale as her head started shaking. "No, we're definitely done here. As long as you're still sure you don't want to buy it."

Some of the playfulness faded out of me as I bent over to swipe my underwear off the floor. "I don't want to buy it. One of the reasons I think I've done so well with so many of my investments is because I listen to my gut. Slate said there would be lots of buyers for this thing, so let someone else take it. My gut tells me it's not for me."

She nodded slowly, her head slanting as she watched me pull on my underwear, but there was no heat in her eyes now. It almost felt like we'd known each other much longer and had gone through our morning routines a ton of times together before.

Mira drew her knees up to her chest, loosely draping her arms around them. "It's not just because of me though, right? I'd hate it if you resented me in a few years when this rig starts operating optimally and you realize how much you could've made."

"Not going to happen," I said confidently. "Sure, I don't want you to have to come back here, let alone work on this thing, but if I wanted it, I could hire other consultants for it. Or I could asked Slate to send someone else from your firm. Plans could be made. I just don't want it. Not right now, anyway. In fact, I can't wait to fucking leave. If I change my mind and it's still available, then it was meant to be, but I doubt that's going to happen."

"You do seem to know what you want," she said as she watched me put on my pants. Then she finally clambered off the bunk, leaving the thin sheets behind and moving around naked as comfortably as I was.

I ran my gaze along her soft, smooth curves. "Yeah, I definitely know what I want."

She shot me an amused smile over her shoulder as she set her overnight bag down on her bunk and unzipped it. "I didn't mean it like that."

I shrugged. "Doesn't matter. It's still true."

Our gazes held for a moment, my cock warring with my brain over what to do next. In the end though, I didn't move toward her. I wanted to, but I wanted to get to the chopper just a little bit more. Not for my sake, but for hers.

Mira wasn't comfortable here, and while I felt like I'd done a decent job distracting her last night, it wasn't necessary to do it again now. Not when I could be the knight in shining armor who escorted her away from here for good.

I kind of liked the thought of playing that role for her way too much, which meant it was time to get a tiny spot of distance between us. "I'm going back to my cabin to grab my bag. I'll come get dressed in my fresh clothes and brush my teeth and stuff here so I don't leave you alone for too long, but lock the door behind me, okay?"

"You got it." She didn't even try to argue.

As I buttoned up my shirt, I left my shoes and socks off and strode over to the door, giving her a meaningful look as I opened it. She'd put on jeans and a sweater, and she came over immediately, waiting for me to leave before I heard the lock engaging as I waited in the hall.

Quickly making my way back to my cabin, I grabbed my untouched bag that was still sitting on the bunk where I'd left it yesterday, and spun right back around. When I reached Mira's cabin again, she'd already brushed her teeth and was putting her hair up into a high ponytail.

For some reason, I was fascinated by the movement of her brush through those long locks, but I tried my best not to show it. It was just so domestic, and I was enjoying it far too much. After changing into clean clothes, I grabbed my own toothbrush and headed into her tiny bathroom cubicle, doing the necessary before I stowed my toiletries away and at least tried to do something about my hair.

Neither of us were paying too much attention to what we looked like right now, though. Choosing instead to hurry, we got through the bare minimum. Then I shouldered both our overnight bags before planting my hand on the small of her back as we left the cabin.

Stanislopoulos didn't come to greet us and none of his men were waiting, which was a welcome sendoff from this hellhole. We didn't stop for breakfast, heading straight to the helipad instead. The rotors were running, the noise deafening and somehow still the best thing I'd ever heard.

Derrick tossed his hand up in a friendly wave, finished the conversation he'd been having with a deckhand, and then helped us to climb onboard. With so little fanfare surrounding our departure, we were airborne only minutes after leaving Mira's cabin, ready to put the ugly rig behind us.

It was like I could feel the weight lifting from my chest as Derrick put the miles between us and the rig. With our headphones on, we were able to communicate during the flight. Mira reached over, taking my hand and giving it a quick squeeze before she released it again.

"Thanks for getting us out of there."

I nodded, but my throat suddenly felt like it was closing as I glanced at the hand she'd just touched. "What are we going to do about Slate?"

She turned to me, the look in her eyes dead serious as she responded. "Slate doesn't need to know about any of this. Deal?"

"Deal."

It didn't feel good saying that word, essentially promising that I would keep lying to a guy who'd been a close friend for a long time, but simultaneously, Mira was her own person. What she and I did didn't concern him, and if she felt like he didn't need to know, then I'd respect her decision. Even if it didn't really sit right with me.