Luck Be a Lady - Cathie Linz [66]
At Logan’s and Ria’s blank looks, he explained, “There’s an opera by Strauss called Fledermaus. Actually it’s an operetta. Get it? Feedermice, Fledermaus?”
As their blank looks continued, Andy said, “Philistines.”
“Hey, we can’t all have opera-singing mothers the way you do,” Logan said.
“Ignore him,” Ria told Andy. “He’s just in a bad mood because he’s got woman trouble.”
“No. I’m in a bad mood because I’m in a karaoke bar,” Logan said before pulling out his iPhone to answer a call, hopefully one to get him out of here. “Doyle.”
“This is Megan.” She paused. “Is that music in the background? Is this a bad time?”
“It is a bad time caused by bad karaoke.”
“You’re singing in a karaoke bar?”
“Not in this lifetime.”
“Not a fan?” she said.
“No. How about you?”
“Doing karaoke? Not in this lifetime.”
“Yet another thing we have in common.”
“I talked to Gram about Buddy this afternoon,” Megan said.
“And?”
“And I didn’t make a lot of headway. But I haven’t given up.”
“No, you’re not the kind to give up easily. Listen, I needed to talk to you anyway. Are you home?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll be right over,” he said.
“Where are you going?” Ria demanded. “Esposito is gonna sing ‘YMCA.’ And Jablonski is gonna do ‘Danny Boy’ after that.”
“Haven’t you heard?” Logan said. “Torture is illegal.”
“So much for being tough.”
“Everyone has their limits. And Esposito singing ‘YMCA’ is mine.”
Logan ignored the taunts and catcalls as he quickly made his way to the nearest exit.
Megan was waiting for his knock on her front door. She opened it instantly. “Did you find out something about my mother?”
“No.”
She frowned at him. “But you said you needed to talk to me about something.”
“I do. Have you ever heard of the Leonids?”
“The meteor shower?”
“That’s right. Where’s your coat?”
“What?” She blinked in confusion.
“Your coat? Where is it?”
“Why?”
“Because I’m taking you to see the Leonids,” he said.
“You’ve got to get away from the city lights to see them.”
“That’s the plan.”
“You think you can just show up here out of the blue and take me to see a meteor shower?”
“Yeah. Do you have a problem with that?”
She glared at him. “Yes, I have a problem with that. You kiss me, you sweet-talk me and then you disappear for days.”
“You could have called me any time.”
“I called you tonight,” she pointed out. “You didn’t call me.”
“I was trying to be good. You don’t like cops.”
Her mouth dropped open.
He gently closed it with his index finger before cupping her cheek with his hand. “I know you’ve got reservations. So did I. But I want to kiss you again. I want to explore every inch of your body. I want to take you to bed and keep you there for days. But before I do that, I need to convince you that it’s okay to be with me. So we’re going to see the meteor shower so you can wish on some shooting stars. Get your coat.”
“I’d be crazy to go with you,” she muttered.
“You’ve been crazy before and you had a good time with me.”
“Is that all I am to you? A good time?”
“No.” He threaded his fingers through her hair before pulling her close for a hotly intimate kiss that said what he hadn’t or couldn’t. That he wanted her as badly as she wanted him. That he was as confused by their chemistry as she was. That he couldn’t resist her any more than she could resist him.
His groan when her tongue tentatively met his told her that she had power over him. Their kiss was their way of acknowledging that something worth exploring was going on here. She couldn’t blame him for not saying the words. She couldn’t say them either.
He pulled away from her to rest his forehead on hers. “Coat?” he said huskily.
“Right.” She stepped back and retrieved her coat, hat and scarf. She had a pair of gloves tucked in the coat pocket.
“It’s not real cold out and it’s clear so we should have a good view.”
An hour later, Megan found herself out in one of the many forest preserves ringing the suburbs. They officially closed at sunset but that didn’t stop Logan from parking his Ford Explorer.
“I can’t believe you brought me all the