A Debt To Pay

27

MIA'S POV:

Things with Logan had gotten a little intense last night. I was blaming it on the champagne. I'd had a few glasses of the stuff to try and relax at the banquet and it must've messed with my head because there is no way that I wanted Logan Sternato to kiss me.

He'd looked at me with so much desire burning in his eyes and I couldn't deny the effect it had on me. Under the heat of his gaze, I started to burn up and I had to clench my thighs together beneath my dress to relieve the ache that started to form there.

I'd spent half the night thinking about what might've happened if Fiona hadn't interrupted and the other half was spent worrying about the woman in question. Logan had seemed pretty annoyed at her when I left and I was more than relieved when I saw her the next morning. She didn't seem any different when she brought us our breakfast and I couldn't see any signs that he'd beaten her for ignoring his orders.

She placed my food in front of me and I thanked her with a smile while Logan ignored us both. Nothing unusual there.

We ate in silence – again, nothing new, and I waited to see if he said anything to me once our plates had been cleared. If he was planning to, he didn't get the chance because of a knock at the door. He moved to answer it and from my spot at the table, I could see as he pulled the door open to reveal a woman.

"Logan," she greeted with a smile.

She was a naturally beautiful woman, with a tanned complexion and long, black, wavy hair. Her face lit up when she looked at Logan and my jaw fell in surprise when he smiled back. Not a menacing grin or a grimace that could be mistaken for a smile if you were naive enough to believe it. A genuine, happy smile.

"Alessandra," he greeted, his Italian accent coming across. "It's been a while."

I watched as the woman leaned into him a little, flicking her hair behind her shoulder. "It has," she said. There was a hint of an accent in her smooth voice. "How've you been?"

"Good," Logan answered before stepping aside so I could see more of the woman. She was taller than me, but nowhere near Logan's towering height, and wore a thick jumper-dress and knee high, heeled boots. "Come in," Logan said before turning and leading her through the foyer and out of my sight. Just before they did, he caught my eye and I could've sworn I saw his light up a little.

I clenched my fists and stomped off back to my room. It shouldn't have bothered me that he was being nice to another girl. For all I knew, they were friends. Or she was his girlfriend. And that shouldn't have annoyed me as much as it did. It's not like I wanted to be friends with someone like him and I certainly didn't want to be his girlfriend. I just wished he treated me with a little more respect, he's clearly not incapable if he can be friendly towards that woman – whoever she may be.

I wasn't sure where they'd gone but was grateful not to come across them on my way back to my room. When I got there, Gavin smiled politely at me but I was too worked up to return it. I burst inside, leaving the door wide open and flopping onto the bed. "Oh no," Gavin muttered with a smile before turning to face me, "what's wrong?"

I frowned and raised my head to look at him. "I don't want to talk about it," I grumbled before dropping my head back down and burying it amongst the pillows. I didn't want to talk about it because I wasn't sure what was wrong. I couldn't be jealous of this woman. That wasn't it. I was just angry that clearly, Logan had the ability to be friendly and yet, he was nothing but an ass towards me just because my father couldn't pay him on time.

"Alright," Gavin said, following me into the room and dramatically throwing himself onto the bed beside me. I couldn't help but laugh, raising my head to see him grinning back at me. "This is fun too," he stated.