Chapter 25
25
" A m I an awful person?" Tabby asked as she rubbed Logan down and took off his tack after Clancy left with the men to talk contracts and details. "Should I feel worse about winning?" She felt giddy and weirdly let down. She'd won, but did she deserve it? It soothed her conscience that other horses in the ring had been shifters, but she wasn't sure it completely excused it. Schadenfreude was complicated.
Three quarters of a ton of horseflesh suddenly shifted into a man right in front of her and Tabby gave a squeak of alarm as she glanced out at the aisle of the stable. The stall door was shut, but there were other riders talking loudly at the far end of the building and going about the care of their horses.
"What are you doing, Logan?" she hissed. "Someone could come by at any moment!"
Logan, with apparently no care for being caught, scooped her up into an embrace. "I had to tell you that you were amazing and that we earned that win. I didn't do anything supernatural and you were perfect . You aren't allowed to feel bad about rubbing Veronica Chase's perfectly made-up face in manure of her own making."
"I had a better horse," Tabby admitted, kissing him back. "Much, much better."
"I had a better rider," Logan insisted. "Much, much better."
How did Logan always make everything feel alright?
"I wish you were coming back with me," Tabby said. "I know just how to celebrate our win."
"Maybe Clancy will fumble the deal," Logan said, kissing down the side of her neck. "Then I could come straight back with you."
"Is that likely?" Tabby said hopefully.
"Not really," Logan said. "He wouldn't have sprung for the entry if he wasn't sure about the outcome."
Tabby was nearly ready to risk a tumble in itchy hay, his touches were so skilled and Tabby was already all worked up from adrenaline and excitement. Surely, it wouldn't be too bad if they put down a coat…
She knocked his hat back off of his head so she could at least kiss him more properly.
"No!" Tabby drew back at the sound of Veronica Chase's angry voice as she suddenly stalked past the stall speaking loudly into her phone. "I am not waiting for him to come around. I want that property on the market before the end of the month so we can flip it before the fiscal quarter ends—" The realtor glanced to the side just in time to meet Tabby's eyes and see her standing kissing distance to Logan. Logan stooped to pick up his hat and tipped it to her in what felt like slow motion as Veronica continued past after the barest startled and angry pause.
"—I'm not interested in your excuses," she continued as she stomped away. "I've had enough excuses today. "
"Whew," Tabby said, leaning into Logan's arms as Veronica's shrill voice faded down the aisle. She hadn't seen anything too incriminating. Yes, Logan was standing in a stall where a horse ought to be, but there were a lot of reasons that her horse might be somewhere else. The most suspicious thing was the white lock in Logan's dark hair that had first clued Tabby in to his dual nature. She brushed it up under his hat. "Have you ever thought about dyeing that?"
Logan chuckled. "My horse would never let me."
"Is it possible that he has more vanity than you do?" Tabby teased. She sighed. "You should shift back while it's clear. Clancy will be back soon." She stepped back into his embrace before he could. "I'm…going to miss you."
Logan kissed the top of her head and rubbed her shoulders. "I'll be back before you know it," he murmured.
It was an I love you moment, Tabby recognized, breathing in the smell of him and the comfort of his cotton shirt over his muscular chest. But were they there yet? Did he even feel the same way? Sometimes he still joked about paying off his debt with great sex, but was it all in jest? He was as complicated as schadenfreude.
"I have a sale to close, and it's not with that ugly mug."
Clancy's voice outside the stall set Tabby back on edge. She gave Logan one lingering last kiss, not caring that Clancy was watching over the door.
"Last gambit," Logan said warningly to his cousin when he was done kissing Tabby. "Nothing else after this."
"That's what you said," Clancy smirked. Did he not believe that it was Logan's last con? Should Tabby be doubtful, too? "Anyway, I've all but closed the deal. My buyer's agent wants to take you now, and he's on his way, so shape up, Logan, and get your signing pen ready, Miss Swiftwater." His voice filled with warning .
"I'm ready," Tabby said.
She told herself that she didn't have instinct, so there was no real reason for the dread in her heart.