THE RETURN 27: Logan [Logan/Ensemble] PG-13
Title: The Return 27-Logan [The Rules]
Rating: PG-13 (there isn’t really anything but some discussion of sex)
Word Count: 3,764
Characters/Pairings: Logan, Veronica, Parker, Duncan, Lilly the second, Dick, Mac Logan/Veronica and Mac/Dick
Spoilers: All episodes (from 1.01: Pilot to 3.20: The Bitch Is Back. Just to be sure) Although this is obviously AU and there are obviously going to be some alterations to events and especially some in the last couple of episodes.
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Literally, nothing. So don’t sue me over this, because you won’t get anything. It all belongs to Rob Thomas and if I had owned it when it was still on the last season would have been way different.
A/N: Sorry it’s been so long everyone. My computer died, literally, died (something about a blown graphics chip on the motherboard, it’s been such a beast that I really don’t care at this point). So I’m on a borrowed computer at the moment. The bad news for this story was that while I have all previous chapter of this story (and all my other stories) that have been posted were saved to an external hard drive, I kept the outline and unposted chapters on the computer itself. That means that 4 written chapters that I had yet to post just disappeared with the death of my laptop (it’s name was Steven, and he was a bastard). So I had to start all over with the chapters with no point of reference on how I originally wanted them to be. On a lighter note, I think that these new chapters are pretty damn okay. It’s been a while since I’ve written this story (I’ve been working on writing my own original novel lately) but I hope I’m still in voice. I’ve worked out a new outline.
Chapter 1: Awake/ Chapter 2: Homecoming/ Chapter 3: Forgive/ Chapter 4: Arrival/ Chapter 5: Reconnect/ Chapter 6: Belong/ Chapter 7: Bets/ Chapter 8: Fight/ Chapter 9: Battle/ Chapter 10: Retreat/ Chapter 11: Push/ Chapter 12: Sound/ Chapter 13: Potential/ Chapter 14: More/ Chapter 15: Storytime/ Chapter 16: Understanding/ Chapter 17: Piggyback/ Chapter 18: Sinners/ Chapter 19: Drama/ Chapter 20: Dinner/ Chapter 21: Armor/ Chapter 22:Mingle/ 23:Bubbly/ 24:Awkward/ 25:Closing/ 26: Drunks
The Return
27
Logan
~The Rules~
Logan rolled and groaned, cold toes dug into his right kidney and his left arm flopped off the bed. His head pounded and his stomach churned. It may have been a bad idea to keep drinking last night, to over indulge since his usually under indulging girlfriend was partaking as well. Girlfriend, the idea was still so new, again. Unless, of course, said new girlfriend’s toes were currently performing invasive surgery in an attempt to steal your warmth.
“Could you please remove your toes? It’s starting to hurt.” He croaked, his throat raw from the early morning vomiting session he’d had the oh so embarrassing pleasure of.
“Do you have to be so loud about it?” Veronica whispered, wincing, but retracting the ice cubes she had the nerve to call toes.
“I wasn’t loud, this is my regular speaking voice.” Logan groused, turning onto his right side in as much of an effort to shield it from further toe-probing as to offer her a cuddle. She came to him quickly, tucking her head under his chin and wrapping her arms around him. Curling her legs up a little to wedge her toes in between his ankles, pressing them into his warm flesh and causing goose bumps to break out all over his body.
“Your normal voice is too loud, learn to whisper.” She instructed, brushing her nose back and forth over the hollow at the base of his neck. It was also ice cold.
“It’s not too loud, you’re just over-sensitive.” Logan argued, but still lowering his voice to a whisper. “Why are you so cold?” He pulled the covers up around them, wrapping them tighter before he pulled her in even tighter in an attempt to warm her.
“Because you’re a freaking blanket thief.” She relaxed in his grip, and he felt her skin start to warm. His goose bumps had faded and he began to relax as well. The pounding in his head was starting to ease off, but his stomach still churned. Veronica sighed, the burst of warm air fanning against his skin and causing him to shiver slightly.
“Cold?” Veronica asked, her voice edging above a whisper now. Her head shifted slightly to the side, her cheek pressing against his chest.
“No, not really.” Logan smirked a little. “After all, I have all the blankets.”
“I don’t know why you’d need them anyway, you radiate heat. I could probably stand you in the corner of my apartment in the winter and not have to turn on the heater at all.” She muttered, burrowing in a little further in.
“Are you saying I’m hot?” He mused, chuckling a little before the pain in his head sharpened a moment before easing off again.
“I just stepped right into-” Veronica stopped abruptly, her body stiffening. Before Logan could ask what was wrong she started to push at him, knocking him onto his back. She scrambled over him, running into the bathroom and slamming the door.
He could hear her retching on the other side, his hand hesitated on the doorknob for a moment before he made the decision. He opened the door only a little, slipping inside. She was hunched over the toilet, her hair falling all around, shielding both her from his view and him from hers. Reaching out, he gathered her hair back, holding it.
“Go away,” she complained between gagging sounds.
“Nope.” Logan argued, rubbing her back with his free hand. She didn’t argue anymore, merely finished emptying her stomach before sagging back into the wall. Logan let go of her hair and handed her a glass of water. “Drink it all and take a couple aspirin while you’re at it.”
He stood and began rummaging through the medicine cabinet. It hadn’t been cleaned out since the last time him parents were here obviously. Bottles of valium and vicodin, among other prescription drugs, cluttered the shelves. He finally found a nearly full bottle of ibuprofen near the back. He shook out two pills and handed them to Veronica before he started taking out the old bottles and dropping them into the trash.
“Suddenly you’re cleaning.” Veronica muttered, standing up. She set the glass down and kissed his shoulder before turning to the shower.
Logan finished cleaning out the medicine cabinet before stepping into the shower behind her.
~*~
“I can’t believe that you do this almost every weekend.” Veronica commented, digging through one of the drawers for a pair of jeans. Logan leaned back a moment to admire her, clad in only a simple pair of white cotton underwear and matching bra. It was sexy without her even trying.
“Do what every weekend?” He asked completely oblivious to anything but the way her body curved under the undergarments, the way it moved so gracefully as she pulled on a pair of jeans.
“Get hungover.” She simplified as she searched for a shirt, seemingly unaware that he watched her dress.
“I don’t get hungover, it’s not exactly the effect I’m aiming for.” He explained, watching as she tried to decide between a plane t-shirt and one with a something emblazoned across the front. She stood still a moment, looking at the shirts before deciding on the plain one. She pulled it over her head, covering all that lovely flesh. Immediately after she pulled on an old NHS hoodie. Green with a gold outline of a pirate decorating the front. She chattered on, aggravating his headache a little but he it was worth it for this casually intimate moment they were sharing. Him watching her dress as she chatted.
“But you know that’s where you’re going to end up after all that drinking. I mean, it’s simple cause and effect. You drink to excess you get a bitch of a hangover the next day. I don’t understand why you would do something that will only cause you to end up in pain for the majority of the next day.” She turned to him, studying him. “Speaking of pain, I’m not leaving the room.”
“What?” Logan shook himself out of his temporary happy-induced stupor. “Why?”
“I may have been a little… unihibited… last night, but I still remember it. I know that Mac is down there and I’m pretty sure that we may have traumatized her a bit with the backseat make out session on the way back from the bar last night.” She was blushing now, actually blushing. Veronica wasn’t all that much of a blusher these days, but she was blushing now. It made him want to pull her back down on the bed and get her out of the clothes she had just put on. He resisted.
“Are you going to get dressed at any point?” She asked, the blush fading now as she began to rummage through his own clothes. She pulled out a pair of boxers and a t-shirt for him, tossing them over her shoulder.
“Why should I? I don’t know why you got dressed.” He leered at her, wiggling his eyebrows and causing her to giggle.
“Because we’re leaving remember? And I’m pretty sure it might be illegal to drive down the highway in the buff.” She walked toward him, picking up the clothes she’d pulled out for him. She pulled the t-shirt over his head, pecking a kiss on his lips. “Plus you have to go down and get us breakfast, because, I’m not leaving this room.”
“Why aren’t you leaving the room if you’re just worried about Mac?” He asked as he finished putting the t-shirt on.
She watched him pull on his boxers before she answered. “Because I have a feeling that my clothes from last night, with the exception of my underwear, never made it up the stairs.” She was blushing again.
“Why do you say that?” Logan asked, crossing the room to the door.
“Because they’re not in here.”
~*~
Logan padded toward the kitchen, hearing the small giggle of the baby and the slightly larger one of Parker, the deeper chuckle of Duncan.
“So, what’s for breakfast?” He asks as he enters the room, his voice startling the trio.
“Morning.” Parker greets, she’s standing at the stove, stirring something in a pot. There’s a frying pan on the back burner, with the smell of sausage wafting out. It smells delicious even as his stomach churns slightly at the thought. “Oatmeal and sausage.”
“Sounds good, is there enough for me to take up to Veronica?” He hops up on the counter, sitting on the close to the stove, crowding Parker’s cooking space. He waits a moment before reaching across the hot burners to pluck a strawberry out of the bowl sitting on the other side.
“Those are for eating with your breakfast, not snacking on. And get down before you get burned.” She scolds as she moves the bowl away from both him and Duncan.
“Yes mom.” Logan slides off the counter smoothly before walking around the center island to take a seat next to Little Lilly. He lets her have a bite of his strawberry before finishing it off himself. The juice from the berry runs down her chin and both he and Duncan laugh as she tries to get it with her little tongue.
“I made enough for everyone, so yeah, you can take some up to Veronica.” She looking at him but not, her eyes refusing to come up any more than his chin. She’s blushing now too, and her eyes are darting away to look at anything but him.
“What? Why are you blushing Park?” Logan asks as he focuses his attention on Little Lilly, making a silly face and earning a giggle.
“No reason, I’m not blushing. I mean, I just… There’s enough for you… and Veronica.” She’s stammering now, and blushing even redder. Her eyes are firmly focused on the counter in front of her and her hands are fluttering along the edge with nerves.
“What’s wrong?” His attention is no longer focused on the baby and that earns him a squawk of dismay from her, but he continues to stare at Parker.
“Nothing, um… The oatmeal will take a few more minutes. It’s not the instant kind so, it’ll be a few more minutes.” She turns back to the pot, signaling the end of the non-conversation.
“So, you guys sounded like you had fun last night.” Duncan says, he’s grinning at Logan in a way that confuses him even more.
“Why do you say that?” Logan asks slowly, his brow furrowing for a moment before speaking in a more normal tone. “I mean, yeah we had fun. We had a great time, wish you would have stayed man.”
“Yeah, it sounded like you really missed me.” Duncan’s grin only seemed to widen as she shook his head and turned his attention back on his daughter.
“Morning.” Dick called, announcing his entrance into the kitchen. “Logan, I’m surprised you up, and down here, so early.”
“Why?” His voice was hesitant now, nervous as to where this was going, although he knew he’d get a straight answer out of Dick. And without the blushing.
“I’m just saying that after all the crazy loud sex you and Veronica had last night, I would have slept in if I were you.”
Logan’s head hit the table with a thud. “Oh god, she’s never going to leave that room now.”
~*~
He passed Mac on the stairs, she smiled tightly at him and avoided his eyes. He blushed. As secure as he was about his prowess, it didn’t mean that he wanted all his friends to have front seat tickets to the performance. Even if they only got the audio and were spared the visual. Or, at least only one of them had gotten the visual, but that had been a different, and tamer, performance.
He set the tray on top of the tall dresser as he entered the room. Veronica was pulling the empty suitcases out of the closet, her book bag already out from under the bed and packed neatly by the door. She gotten the pile of clothes that Parker had neatly folded and put outside their door this morning. He hadn’t noticed it when he’d gone down but it was gone now and she’d said that she’d left it there.
“We’re leaving. Like, now.” Veronica informed him, throwing her suitcase on top of the small desk and opening up. “Do you that everyone in the house apparently heard us going at it last night? I don’t know how I’m going to be able to look at any of them without blushing when we all get home, I just know that I can’t deal with this today.”
“Breakfast.” He announced cheerfully. “Sit down and eat, I brought you some oatmeal, sausage, strawberries and orange juice. There’s some brown sugar for your oatmeal, too. Parker’s like the house mom at this point, all she’s missing is the apron and pearls.”
“What’d they all say down there? Mac said that she hadn’t seen anyone else yet, but her and Dick got an earful on their way up to their room. And they were the first ones up. She said that Parker didn’t sleep in her room last night. She thinks that she probably fell asleep on the couch, so she probably didn’t hear. And Duncan was already in bed so maybe he didn’t either, but everyone else… We have to leave.”
“We need rules.” He blurted, shocked that he’d said it so bluntly. Or at all.
“They said we need rules? That’s a little strange.” Her brow furrowed, eyebrows pulled so closely together that they were practically one.
“No, they didn’t really say anything. Well, Dick teased a little and Duncan thought it was funny. Parker may never be able to look at either of us again, but that’s because she ended up crashing in the room next door instead of her room last night. I meant that I think that we need rules. You brought it up.”
“I did? I don’t remember…” She trailed off, somehow looking even more confused than she did before.
“Well, you brought up home. And I was thinking, during your ramble, that when we’re home, that’s when things fall apart. So we should set some relationship rules down to avoid past issues.” He paced as he explained, sure that she was going to scoff at the suggestion.
“That might be a good idea. I mean, if we screw it up this time there might not be a next time, there might be too much damage. And after all, third time’s a charm, right?” She fidgeted, dropping down on the end of the mattress.
“Really?” His voice lifted in shock before he calmed it back down to it’s normal tone. “And I think this would the fourth time. At least.”
“No, it’s the third. I’m not really counting when we got back together last year. It was too short. And ended too badly.” She explained, still fidgeting.
“Okay, I’ll agree to that. So, these rules… I think that we should lay specific rules to help, mostly, with what seems to be our biggest issue.” Logan sat next to her, watched her fidget a moment more before laying a calming hand over hers.
“And what, pray tell, would be our biggest issue, according to you.” She looked up into his eyes now, they were clouded with insecurity. She was worried that he was going blame her. That their biggest issue was her fault.
“Communication. Neither of us says what we really mean, and I think that’s what get things so messed up.” Her shoulders were still tense, but so were his. It wasn’t easy pointing out the faults in a relationship that you were trying to revive again. One that had failed before.
“Okay. So the rule is that we communicate?” She looked down, biting her lip. He could already see her mind working, finding the loop holes, the impossibility of it.
“No I’m saying that rule number one is that when we’re mad, we share. We don’t just get pissed and expect the other one to figure it out. When we’re hurt we tell why. We don’t just break up or scream at each other and then brush it under the rug. Full disclosure. Rule number one is full disclosure.”
“So we have to tell the truth about everything all the time? That’s going to get messy.” She was doubting this already, and to be honest, he was a little too.
“Okay, maybe we just don’t lie. If you’re working a case that I think is dangerous you don’t say you’re fine. You tell me what’s what and I tell you I’m worried and we come to an understanding. I say rule number one and you tell me what’s going on, point blank. And same goes if you plead rule one. We don’t lie. Rule number one is full disclosure, no lies.” He let out a breath, sucked in another and held it, waiting for her response.
“Okay, that sounds reasonable. But rule number two is space. I’m going to need space at some point, to figure something out or to stop myself from saying something that we both know we’ll both regret. You have to admit that you and I have a tendency to go for the low blows. It’s how we do things, cutting the other person off at the knees. So if we’re fighting and I say rule two, or you do, then we take a step back and cool off. We’ll talk when we’ve calmed down.”
“Okay, that sounds okay. It’s probably better than battling it all out and breaking up, but with one condition. If I call, while we’re taking a time out or space or whatever, you answer. Even if it’s just to say that you’re not ready yet, you answer.” He squeezes her hand once before he jumps back up to his feet, needing the movement.
“I’ll agree to that.”
“Okay, rule number three. If you’re in trouble or scared or in some kind of situation that could be classified as dangerous in any way, you call me. No matter what. I won’t yell at you or freak out about it, I’ll just get there.” He paced. This was probably the rule that made him the most nervous, his perceived interference in her sleuthing.
“Okay, third rule is the danger call. I’m in any kind of situation I can’t handle I call you. Maybe you come on some of the more risky stakeouts. Honestly it’ll probably save us a fight later on, right?” She looked at him quickly, glancing away again just as quickly. It was a sign, she was relinquishing this stand she’d always taken. She would allow him to protect her, let him in on the more dangerous aspects in order to make him feel better. Letting him feel like she was safe. She understood that now. It had taken her a long time, years, but somehow she understood that now.
“Rule number four, ease up on the drinking and partying. It worries me. One day I’m going to get a call that you’re in the hospital. And you have to admit, it’d probably be in your best interest, some of the major issues have happened because of alcohol.” She was looking at him, displaying that balls to the wall confidence he loved so much. Her eyes challenging him to deny the facts, but he saw her restless fingers, showing how nervous she really was.
“Number five, Saturday is date night. Even if we stay in and get dinner and study, we spend Saturday night together, without fail.” He didn’t miss the quick smile before she spoke.
“Even if we spend it at a stakeout in my car with Chinese food?”
“Even if we spend it in a jail cell, as long as we’re together.” He smiled, rolling his eyes.
“Speaking of jail, I propose that number six is that we both try to avoid doing and time behind bars.” She smirked at him. “Even if it means you beating a cop car up to get there.”
“I didn’t know you knew about that.” He looked away, his stomach tightening at the thought of the reason he’d purposely landed himself in jail last year.
“Of course I did. Sacks called to let me know where you were.” Her head tilted a bit, a smile touched at the edge of her mouth. “Then I called Dick to go get you, threatened him within an inch of his life that he couldn’t mention to you how he knew you were there. I figured if you wanted me to know you would have called.”
“Should have known. Dick must have taken his time getting there, because I had a lot of time in that cell before he picked me up.” He paced, walked the length of the room twice before sitting down next to her again. “Are we done then?”
“Okay, we have six rules. Full disclosure, space, danger call, party down, date night and jail free. I think that should be all.” Veronica let out a long breath, the tension in her shoulders easing.
Logan felt his tension release as well, breathing deeply in and out, he shrugged. “For now. I think that we should keep things open for new rules. After all, there might be an issue later that will need it’s own rule. Okay?”
“Okay. I think this was good. Now we should get going before it gets too late.” She sighed again and stood up, walking towards her breakfast tray.
“Great, lets pack.” Logan clapped his hands together loudly, rubbing them together as he stood and went to retrieve his own suitcase from the pile of bags on the floor. “Neither of us are light packers are we?”
“Full disclosure?” She turned, smirking at him.
“Of course.” He chuckled, it didn’t take her long, did it?
“I pack our bags, you get your laptop and find us a hotel, book a room. Then you can get the road snacks.” She walked over and removed her suitcase from the desk. She retrieved her laptop from it’s own bag and handed it to him.
“Okay, I can do that.” He settled in at her desk, opening the laptop and waiting for it to boot up.
“I’m just saying, I’ve seen the way you pack a bag. It’s not pretty.” She popped a strawberry in her mouth as she started to transfer her clothes from a drawer into her suitcase.
Chapter 28: Wallace
Rating: PG-13 (there isn’t really anything but some discussion of sex)
Word Count: 3,764
Characters/Pairings: Logan, Veronica, Parker, Duncan, Lilly the second, Dick, Mac Logan/Veronica and Mac/Dick
Spoilers: All episodes (from 1.01: Pilot to 3.20: The Bitch Is Back. Just to be sure) Although this is obviously AU and there are obviously going to be some alterations to events and especially some in the last couple of episodes.
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Literally, nothing. So don’t sue me over this, because you won’t get anything. It all belongs to Rob Thomas and if I had owned it when it was still on the last season would have been way different.
A/N: Sorry it’s been so long everyone. My computer died, literally, died (something about a blown graphics chip on the motherboard, it’s been such a beast that I really don’t care at this point). So I’m on a borrowed computer at the moment. The bad news for this story was that while I have all previous chapter of this story (and all my other stories) that have been posted were saved to an external hard drive, I kept the outline and unposted chapters on the computer itself. That means that 4 written chapters that I had yet to post just disappeared with the death of my laptop (it’s name was Steven, and he was a bastard). So I had to start all over with the chapters with no point of reference on how I originally wanted them to be. On a lighter note, I think that these new chapters are pretty damn okay. It’s been a while since I’ve written this story (I’ve been working on writing my own original novel lately) but I hope I’m still in voice. I’ve worked out a new outline.
Chapter 1: Awake/ Chapter 2: Homecoming/ Chapter 3: Forgive/ Chapter 4: Arrival/ Chapter 5: Reconnect/ Chapter 6: Belong/ Chapter 7: Bets/ Chapter 8: Fight/ Chapter 9: Battle/ Chapter 10: Retreat/ Chapter 11: Push/ Chapter 12: Sound/ Chapter 13: Potential/ Chapter 14: More/ Chapter 15: Storytime/ Chapter 16: Understanding/ Chapter 17: Piggyback/ Chapter 18: Sinners/ Chapter 19: Drama/ Chapter 20: Dinner/ Chapter 21: Armor/ Chapter 22:Mingle/ 23:Bubbly/ 24:Awkward/ 25:Closing/ 26: Drunks
The Return
27
Logan
~The Rules~
Logan rolled and groaned, cold toes dug into his right kidney and his left arm flopped off the bed. His head pounded and his stomach churned. It may have been a bad idea to keep drinking last night, to over indulge since his usually under indulging girlfriend was partaking as well. Girlfriend, the idea was still so new, again. Unless, of course, said new girlfriend’s toes were currently performing invasive surgery in an attempt to steal your warmth.
“Could you please remove your toes? It’s starting to hurt.” He croaked, his throat raw from the early morning vomiting session he’d had the oh so embarrassing pleasure of.
“Do you have to be so loud about it?” Veronica whispered, wincing, but retracting the ice cubes she had the nerve to call toes.
“I wasn’t loud, this is my regular speaking voice.” Logan groused, turning onto his right side in as much of an effort to shield it from further toe-probing as to offer her a cuddle. She came to him quickly, tucking her head under his chin and wrapping her arms around him. Curling her legs up a little to wedge her toes in between his ankles, pressing them into his warm flesh and causing goose bumps to break out all over his body.
“Your normal voice is too loud, learn to whisper.” She instructed, brushing her nose back and forth over the hollow at the base of his neck. It was also ice cold.
“It’s not too loud, you’re just over-sensitive.” Logan argued, but still lowering his voice to a whisper. “Why are you so cold?” He pulled the covers up around them, wrapping them tighter before he pulled her in even tighter in an attempt to warm her.
“Because you’re a freaking blanket thief.” She relaxed in his grip, and he felt her skin start to warm. His goose bumps had faded and he began to relax as well. The pounding in his head was starting to ease off, but his stomach still churned. Veronica sighed, the burst of warm air fanning against his skin and causing him to shiver slightly.
“Cold?” Veronica asked, her voice edging above a whisper now. Her head shifted slightly to the side, her cheek pressing against his chest.
“No, not really.” Logan smirked a little. “After all, I have all the blankets.”
“I don’t know why you’d need them anyway, you radiate heat. I could probably stand you in the corner of my apartment in the winter and not have to turn on the heater at all.” She muttered, burrowing in a little further in.
“Are you saying I’m hot?” He mused, chuckling a little before the pain in his head sharpened a moment before easing off again.
“I just stepped right into-” Veronica stopped abruptly, her body stiffening. Before Logan could ask what was wrong she started to push at him, knocking him onto his back. She scrambled over him, running into the bathroom and slamming the door.
He could hear her retching on the other side, his hand hesitated on the doorknob for a moment before he made the decision. He opened the door only a little, slipping inside. She was hunched over the toilet, her hair falling all around, shielding both her from his view and him from hers. Reaching out, he gathered her hair back, holding it.
“Go away,” she complained between gagging sounds.
“Nope.” Logan argued, rubbing her back with his free hand. She didn’t argue anymore, merely finished emptying her stomach before sagging back into the wall. Logan let go of her hair and handed her a glass of water. “Drink it all and take a couple aspirin while you’re at it.”
He stood and began rummaging through the medicine cabinet. It hadn’t been cleaned out since the last time him parents were here obviously. Bottles of valium and vicodin, among other prescription drugs, cluttered the shelves. He finally found a nearly full bottle of ibuprofen near the back. He shook out two pills and handed them to Veronica before he started taking out the old bottles and dropping them into the trash.
“Suddenly you’re cleaning.” Veronica muttered, standing up. She set the glass down and kissed his shoulder before turning to the shower.
Logan finished cleaning out the medicine cabinet before stepping into the shower behind her.
~*~
“I can’t believe that you do this almost every weekend.” Veronica commented, digging through one of the drawers for a pair of jeans. Logan leaned back a moment to admire her, clad in only a simple pair of white cotton underwear and matching bra. It was sexy without her even trying.
“Do what every weekend?” He asked completely oblivious to anything but the way her body curved under the undergarments, the way it moved so gracefully as she pulled on a pair of jeans.
“Get hungover.” She simplified as she searched for a shirt, seemingly unaware that he watched her dress.
“I don’t get hungover, it’s not exactly the effect I’m aiming for.” He explained, watching as she tried to decide between a plane t-shirt and one with a something emblazoned across the front. She stood still a moment, looking at the shirts before deciding on the plain one. She pulled it over her head, covering all that lovely flesh. Immediately after she pulled on an old NHS hoodie. Green with a gold outline of a pirate decorating the front. She chattered on, aggravating his headache a little but he it was worth it for this casually intimate moment they were sharing. Him watching her dress as she chatted.
“But you know that’s where you’re going to end up after all that drinking. I mean, it’s simple cause and effect. You drink to excess you get a bitch of a hangover the next day. I don’t understand why you would do something that will only cause you to end up in pain for the majority of the next day.” She turned to him, studying him. “Speaking of pain, I’m not leaving the room.”
“What?” Logan shook himself out of his temporary happy-induced stupor. “Why?”
“I may have been a little… unihibited… last night, but I still remember it. I know that Mac is down there and I’m pretty sure that we may have traumatized her a bit with the backseat make out session on the way back from the bar last night.” She was blushing now, actually blushing. Veronica wasn’t all that much of a blusher these days, but she was blushing now. It made him want to pull her back down on the bed and get her out of the clothes she had just put on. He resisted.
“Are you going to get dressed at any point?” She asked, the blush fading now as she began to rummage through his own clothes. She pulled out a pair of boxers and a t-shirt for him, tossing them over her shoulder.
“Why should I? I don’t know why you got dressed.” He leered at her, wiggling his eyebrows and causing her to giggle.
“Because we’re leaving remember? And I’m pretty sure it might be illegal to drive down the highway in the buff.” She walked toward him, picking up the clothes she’d pulled out for him. She pulled the t-shirt over his head, pecking a kiss on his lips. “Plus you have to go down and get us breakfast, because, I’m not leaving this room.”
“Why aren’t you leaving the room if you’re just worried about Mac?” He asked as he finished putting the t-shirt on.
She watched him pull on his boxers before she answered. “Because I have a feeling that my clothes from last night, with the exception of my underwear, never made it up the stairs.” She was blushing again.
“Why do you say that?” Logan asked, crossing the room to the door.
“Because they’re not in here.”
~*~
Logan padded toward the kitchen, hearing the small giggle of the baby and the slightly larger one of Parker, the deeper chuckle of Duncan.
“So, what’s for breakfast?” He asks as he enters the room, his voice startling the trio.
“Morning.” Parker greets, she’s standing at the stove, stirring something in a pot. There’s a frying pan on the back burner, with the smell of sausage wafting out. It smells delicious even as his stomach churns slightly at the thought. “Oatmeal and sausage.”
“Sounds good, is there enough for me to take up to Veronica?” He hops up on the counter, sitting on the close to the stove, crowding Parker’s cooking space. He waits a moment before reaching across the hot burners to pluck a strawberry out of the bowl sitting on the other side.
“Those are for eating with your breakfast, not snacking on. And get down before you get burned.” She scolds as she moves the bowl away from both him and Duncan.
“Yes mom.” Logan slides off the counter smoothly before walking around the center island to take a seat next to Little Lilly. He lets her have a bite of his strawberry before finishing it off himself. The juice from the berry runs down her chin and both he and Duncan laugh as she tries to get it with her little tongue.
“I made enough for everyone, so yeah, you can take some up to Veronica.” She looking at him but not, her eyes refusing to come up any more than his chin. She’s blushing now too, and her eyes are darting away to look at anything but him.
“What? Why are you blushing Park?” Logan asks as he focuses his attention on Little Lilly, making a silly face and earning a giggle.
“No reason, I’m not blushing. I mean, I just… There’s enough for you… and Veronica.” She’s stammering now, and blushing even redder. Her eyes are firmly focused on the counter in front of her and her hands are fluttering along the edge with nerves.
“What’s wrong?” His attention is no longer focused on the baby and that earns him a squawk of dismay from her, but he continues to stare at Parker.
“Nothing, um… The oatmeal will take a few more minutes. It’s not the instant kind so, it’ll be a few more minutes.” She turns back to the pot, signaling the end of the non-conversation.
“So, you guys sounded like you had fun last night.” Duncan says, he’s grinning at Logan in a way that confuses him even more.
“Why do you say that?” Logan asks slowly, his brow furrowing for a moment before speaking in a more normal tone. “I mean, yeah we had fun. We had a great time, wish you would have stayed man.”
“Yeah, it sounded like you really missed me.” Duncan’s grin only seemed to widen as she shook his head and turned his attention back on his daughter.
“Morning.” Dick called, announcing his entrance into the kitchen. “Logan, I’m surprised you up, and down here, so early.”
“Why?” His voice was hesitant now, nervous as to where this was going, although he knew he’d get a straight answer out of Dick. And without the blushing.
“I’m just saying that after all the crazy loud sex you and Veronica had last night, I would have slept in if I were you.”
Logan’s head hit the table with a thud. “Oh god, she’s never going to leave that room now.”
~*~
He passed Mac on the stairs, she smiled tightly at him and avoided his eyes. He blushed. As secure as he was about his prowess, it didn’t mean that he wanted all his friends to have front seat tickets to the performance. Even if they only got the audio and were spared the visual. Or, at least only one of them had gotten the visual, but that had been a different, and tamer, performance.
He set the tray on top of the tall dresser as he entered the room. Veronica was pulling the empty suitcases out of the closet, her book bag already out from under the bed and packed neatly by the door. She gotten the pile of clothes that Parker had neatly folded and put outside their door this morning. He hadn’t noticed it when he’d gone down but it was gone now and she’d said that she’d left it there.
“We’re leaving. Like, now.” Veronica informed him, throwing her suitcase on top of the small desk and opening up. “Do you that everyone in the house apparently heard us going at it last night? I don’t know how I’m going to be able to look at any of them without blushing when we all get home, I just know that I can’t deal with this today.”
“Breakfast.” He announced cheerfully. “Sit down and eat, I brought you some oatmeal, sausage, strawberries and orange juice. There’s some brown sugar for your oatmeal, too. Parker’s like the house mom at this point, all she’s missing is the apron and pearls.”
“What’d they all say down there? Mac said that she hadn’t seen anyone else yet, but her and Dick got an earful on their way up to their room. And they were the first ones up. She said that Parker didn’t sleep in her room last night. She thinks that she probably fell asleep on the couch, so she probably didn’t hear. And Duncan was already in bed so maybe he didn’t either, but everyone else… We have to leave.”
“We need rules.” He blurted, shocked that he’d said it so bluntly. Or at all.
“They said we need rules? That’s a little strange.” Her brow furrowed, eyebrows pulled so closely together that they were practically one.
“No, they didn’t really say anything. Well, Dick teased a little and Duncan thought it was funny. Parker may never be able to look at either of us again, but that’s because she ended up crashing in the room next door instead of her room last night. I meant that I think that we need rules. You brought it up.”
“I did? I don’t remember…” She trailed off, somehow looking even more confused than she did before.
“Well, you brought up home. And I was thinking, during your ramble, that when we’re home, that’s when things fall apart. So we should set some relationship rules down to avoid past issues.” He paced as he explained, sure that she was going to scoff at the suggestion.
“That might be a good idea. I mean, if we screw it up this time there might not be a next time, there might be too much damage. And after all, third time’s a charm, right?” She fidgeted, dropping down on the end of the mattress.
“Really?” His voice lifted in shock before he calmed it back down to it’s normal tone. “And I think this would the fourth time. At least.”
“No, it’s the third. I’m not really counting when we got back together last year. It was too short. And ended too badly.” She explained, still fidgeting.
“Okay, I’ll agree to that. So, these rules… I think that we should lay specific rules to help, mostly, with what seems to be our biggest issue.” Logan sat next to her, watched her fidget a moment more before laying a calming hand over hers.
“And what, pray tell, would be our biggest issue, according to you.” She looked up into his eyes now, they were clouded with insecurity. She was worried that he was going blame her. That their biggest issue was her fault.
“Communication. Neither of us says what we really mean, and I think that’s what get things so messed up.” Her shoulders were still tense, but so were his. It wasn’t easy pointing out the faults in a relationship that you were trying to revive again. One that had failed before.
“Okay. So the rule is that we communicate?” She looked down, biting her lip. He could already see her mind working, finding the loop holes, the impossibility of it.
“No I’m saying that rule number one is that when we’re mad, we share. We don’t just get pissed and expect the other one to figure it out. When we’re hurt we tell why. We don’t just break up or scream at each other and then brush it under the rug. Full disclosure. Rule number one is full disclosure.”
“So we have to tell the truth about everything all the time? That’s going to get messy.” She was doubting this already, and to be honest, he was a little too.
“Okay, maybe we just don’t lie. If you’re working a case that I think is dangerous you don’t say you’re fine. You tell me what’s what and I tell you I’m worried and we come to an understanding. I say rule number one and you tell me what’s going on, point blank. And same goes if you plead rule one. We don’t lie. Rule number one is full disclosure, no lies.” He let out a breath, sucked in another and held it, waiting for her response.
“Okay, that sounds reasonable. But rule number two is space. I’m going to need space at some point, to figure something out or to stop myself from saying something that we both know we’ll both regret. You have to admit that you and I have a tendency to go for the low blows. It’s how we do things, cutting the other person off at the knees. So if we’re fighting and I say rule two, or you do, then we take a step back and cool off. We’ll talk when we’ve calmed down.”
“Okay, that sounds okay. It’s probably better than battling it all out and breaking up, but with one condition. If I call, while we’re taking a time out or space or whatever, you answer. Even if it’s just to say that you’re not ready yet, you answer.” He squeezes her hand once before he jumps back up to his feet, needing the movement.
“I’ll agree to that.”
“Okay, rule number three. If you’re in trouble or scared or in some kind of situation that could be classified as dangerous in any way, you call me. No matter what. I won’t yell at you or freak out about it, I’ll just get there.” He paced. This was probably the rule that made him the most nervous, his perceived interference in her sleuthing.
“Okay, third rule is the danger call. I’m in any kind of situation I can’t handle I call you. Maybe you come on some of the more risky stakeouts. Honestly it’ll probably save us a fight later on, right?” She looked at him quickly, glancing away again just as quickly. It was a sign, she was relinquishing this stand she’d always taken. She would allow him to protect her, let him in on the more dangerous aspects in order to make him feel better. Letting him feel like she was safe. She understood that now. It had taken her a long time, years, but somehow she understood that now.
“Rule number four, ease up on the drinking and partying. It worries me. One day I’m going to get a call that you’re in the hospital. And you have to admit, it’d probably be in your best interest, some of the major issues have happened because of alcohol.” She was looking at him, displaying that balls to the wall confidence he loved so much. Her eyes challenging him to deny the facts, but he saw her restless fingers, showing how nervous she really was.
“Number five, Saturday is date night. Even if we stay in and get dinner and study, we spend Saturday night together, without fail.” He didn’t miss the quick smile before she spoke.
“Even if we spend it at a stakeout in my car with Chinese food?”
“Even if we spend it in a jail cell, as long as we’re together.” He smiled, rolling his eyes.
“Speaking of jail, I propose that number six is that we both try to avoid doing and time behind bars.” She smirked at him. “Even if it means you beating a cop car up to get there.”
“I didn’t know you knew about that.” He looked away, his stomach tightening at the thought of the reason he’d purposely landed himself in jail last year.
“Of course I did. Sacks called to let me know where you were.” Her head tilted a bit, a smile touched at the edge of her mouth. “Then I called Dick to go get you, threatened him within an inch of his life that he couldn’t mention to you how he knew you were there. I figured if you wanted me to know you would have called.”
“Should have known. Dick must have taken his time getting there, because I had a lot of time in that cell before he picked me up.” He paced, walked the length of the room twice before sitting down next to her again. “Are we done then?”
“Okay, we have six rules. Full disclosure, space, danger call, party down, date night and jail free. I think that should be all.” Veronica let out a long breath, the tension in her shoulders easing.
Logan felt his tension release as well, breathing deeply in and out, he shrugged. “For now. I think that we should keep things open for new rules. After all, there might be an issue later that will need it’s own rule. Okay?”
“Okay. I think this was good. Now we should get going before it gets too late.” She sighed again and stood up, walking towards her breakfast tray.
“Great, lets pack.” Logan clapped his hands together loudly, rubbing them together as he stood and went to retrieve his own suitcase from the pile of bags on the floor. “Neither of us are light packers are we?”
“Full disclosure?” She turned, smirking at him.
“Of course.” He chuckled, it didn’t take her long, did it?
“I pack our bags, you get your laptop and find us a hotel, book a room. Then you can get the road snacks.” She walked over and removed her suitcase from the desk. She retrieved her laptop from it’s own bag and handed it to him.
“Okay, I can do that.” He settled in at her desk, opening the laptop and waiting for it to boot up.
“I’m just saying, I’ve seen the way you pack a bag. It’s not pretty.” She popped a strawberry in her mouth as she started to transfer her clothes from a drawer into her suitcase.
Chapter 28: Wallace