Real Good Man (Real Duet #1)

After we’ve cleaned up and I shimmy my rucked-up skirt back down around my hips, I turn to Logan, who’s now wearing a worn pair of jeans and nothing else.

“I’m pretty sure you can’t top that appetizer.”





Chapter 38


Logan


Banner tried to tame her hair, but I like the just been f*cked by Logan Brantley look on her. No woman has ever made me lose control the way she does. I felt it in New York, and I feel it here. Eventually, I’m going to get a handle on myself, but part of me doesn’t want that to happen anytime soon.

She looks good in my house too, even if all she’s doing is stabbing potatoes with a fork to pop in the microwave, or shaking some shredded lettuce into a bowl. The rest of my life might be chaos, but there’s something about Banner that makes me forget about all of it.

I’m probably f*cked, and I don’t care.

After I pull the steaks off the grill and the potatoes are on our plates with the salad, we take seats at my bar because I still don’t have a kitchen table.

One thing has been nagging at me all week, though, and she promised me an answer tonight.

“You’re finally going to tell me what you’re working on.”

Banner almost chokes on a piece of steak before washing it down with half a glass of water. “That came out of nowhere.”

“I’m cashing in the whole rain check. You promised me an explanation tonight, and I gotta know. I’ve been driving myself crazy trying to figure it out.”

She sets her water down and meets my gaze. “You really want to know that bad?”

“As long as you’re not selling drugs,” I start, but then cut myself off. That hits too close to home right now to be funny, considering Jeff is still in the hospital and by no means in good shape.

Banner shakes her head. “Definitely not drugs.”

I wait for another minute before she finally tells me.

“I have patents pending on two new vibrators, and I’m going to sell sex toys.”

I lower my fork to my plate as a smile stretches my lips. “Is that right? And you, the bluntest person I’ve ever met, don’t want to tell people this . . . why?”

She bites her lip. “I don’t think anyone will take me seriously. I can’t exactly explain that I did my market research all by myself, and narrowed it down to what I believe are the two best and most efficient ways to get yourself off. And then I created two new vibrator designs that are basically idiot-proof so more women can finally have regular orgasms.”

Her passion comes through loud and clear, and it’s a good look on her.

“You haven’t told anyone?”

“Two lawyers, a freelance engineer, the factory that created the prototypes and is getting ready for the first full run, and a marketing firm.”

“You’ve got some coming here?”

She nods. “Yep. A box of dicks, if you will. Actually, that’s how I got fired.”

“What do you mean?”

“I screwed up and had my prototypes sent to my office. The boxes got piled up outside my cube, and a coworker of mine decided she had to know what was in them, so she opened one. Apparently she wasn’t used to being wrist-deep in dicks because she freaked and dropped one on the floor, which of course turned on and vibrated its way just far enough into the hall for a senior VP to trip on. He landed face-first on the floor, broke a wrist and chipped a tooth, and I had to explain that my dick was the culprit.”

I’m holding my sides laughing by the time she finishes the ridiculous story. “You’re f*ckin’ with me. You have to be.”

Banner shakes her head, a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth. “I’m really not. I couldn’t make this shit up if I tried.”

“Jesus Christ. You don’t do anything halfway, do you, Bruce? So, when is this box of dicks coming to Gold Haven? Do I need to warn the post office?”

“In a couple weeks, if everything works out the way it should with production. And you better not warn them. I’m not taking the blame for any heart attacks over this.”

“All right, deal. No warning. But I gotta say, it’s hard to be sad you got fired, because this is all really f*cking cool, Banner. I’m proud of you.”

Her smile wobbles. “You’re probably the only one, because I can guarantee my parents won’t be anything but humiliated when they find out.”

“So screw them. If they can’t handle the fact that their daughter is talented in her own way, then they don’t deserve to share in it.”

The wobble disappears from her smile. “And here I figured you’d offer to help me test them out.”

“You don’t have to ask me twice about that. But I mean it, Banner. This is really f*cking cool, and you should be proud.”

“I’ll be proud when I get the products and they work. I’m already working out teaser marketing campaigns, and I hope to God it all comes together. I’ve sunk so much into this that if it doesn’t work out, I’m going to be broke for a while.”

There’s no doubt in my mind the incredible woman in front of me can accomplish anything she puts her mind to. “It’s going to work. I have faith in you.”

“Thank you. That means a lot. You probably didn’t realize that I was a little jealous of the fact that you’re a successful business owner, and I’m just sitting over here with a fake dick and a dream.”

My laughter echoes off the vaulted ceilings of the house. When I finally can catch my breath, I tell her the thought that’s been playing on a loop in my head all night. “I like having you here.”

She lowers her water glass to the bar. “I like being here.”

“Then it’s a good thing I’m not planning on letting you leave for a while, isn’t it?”

Her eyebrows go up. “You did make some promises about my p*ssy being on the menu for dessert, and something about f*cking in front of a fire?”

“I’m glad you didn’t forget. I fully intend to keep my promises.”

She pushes her plate away. “I think I’m finished.”

“Oh, hell no. You finish that steak. You’re going to need your energy, babe.”





Chapter 39


Banner


When one-nighters are your gig, there’s no chance of falling into any kind of a routine with someone. But Logan Brantley and Gold Haven are changing all of that for me.

It’s been a week and a half since I last stepped foot in Manhattan, and although I miss the convenience of being able to get Ethiopian, Brazilian, and Hungarian food within a six-block radius, I’ve learned about the deliciousness of Mr. Burger seasoned fries, free homemade fudge tastings at the gift-shop counter in the pharmacy, and the fact that watching Logan grill a steak is on the list of sexiest things to watch men do, falling somewhere below meeting his eyes in the mirror as he pounds into me, and the way his head looks between my legs while he’s making me scream.

Basically, I’m one endorphin-happy girl who is having mind-blowing sex with an amazing man, and I’m starting to think my stance on relationships could never have been changed by anyone but this man.

In other words, I’m f*cked.

I really like this guy.

Like, really like him.