Title: Nothing Better
Pairing: Logan/Veronica
Characters: Logan, Veronica, OC
Rating: Teen
Summary: The reunion, take two. Companion piece to Wrecking Ball.
Author's Notes: For the VMHQs Milestone Follower 1500 Word Fic Challenge. Irma66 wanted more interaction between Logan and his daughter… so here it is :P.
Author's Note 2: Both this story and Wrecking Ball have been written as standalones, not intended to be related to any of my other stories.
"Okay, we're here."
Veronica pulls the car into the parking lot of the naval base and cuts the engine. She takes a moment to check her reflection in the rear-view mirror before climbing out of the car, fetching the stroller from the trunk, and opening the back door. As she unbuckles her daughter from her car seat, the little girl looks up at her with inquisitive dark eyes… eyes so much like her father's that it still sometimes surprises her.
"Where's Daddy? I wanna see Daddy."
"He's not here yet, sweetie," says Veronica with a smile, her tone soft and soothing. "You'll see him soon, okay?"
"No, see him now!" Maia frowns petulantly, smacking her hands down on her legs in frustration.
Veronica has to suppress a smile at her daughter's stubborn expression… she wishes she could say she got it from Logan, but unfortunately, stubbornness is very much a Mars trait.
"You just have to be patient a bit longer, My," she says, lifting her out of the car seat and placing her in the stroller.
Maia immediately twists away, locking her muscles and half-sliding out of the chair, preventing Veronica from strapping her in. "No! No stroller!"
"You have to. It's too dangerous to run around on the base," Veronica reasons, as she tries to tackle her into the seat.
"No, don't wanna!" She twist her body away from Veronica's grasp again. "Momma, no!"
Veronica sighs as Maia's face scrunches up, reddening as frustrated tears well up in her eyes. Typical. She's been an angel all morning and now she chooses to throw a tantrum.
"I'm not arguing about this, Maia," she says sternly. "You are going in the stroller and that's final."
Maia starts crying in earnest now, loud wails that are sure to attract unwanted attention if she doesn't stop soon. Taking a steadying breath, Veronica places her hands on the toddler's legs to keep her from squirming and starts speaking calmly but firmly.
"Listen, Maia. Do you want to welcome Daddy home?" When there's no reaction other than sniffling sobs, she repeats, "Do you?"
"Yes." The reply is forceful, and just a little angry.
"Then you have to behave. It's not safe for a little girl like you to walk around Daddy's work on her own. There are too many people and big machines in there and you could get hurt. Do you understand?"
"Yes," Maia mutters petulantly.
"Okay, then." Veronica nods. "Now, let me buckle you in."
And that's all it takes for the calm to be broken and the tears to start again.
"No! Don't wanna go in stroller. Wanna walk!"
Veronica clenches her jaw, before snapping, "Maia Echolls, what did I just say? Do you want me to tell Daddy that you were being naughty and wouldn't get in the stroller for Mommy?"
"No." The little girl pouts and Veronica suppresses the urge to roll her eyes.
Such a daddy's girl.
"Well, sit down properly, then."
Finally, Maia does as she's told and sits still long enough to be fastened into the stroller. With a sigh of relief, Veronica grabs her bag from the car and they make their way across the base towards the dock.
To say Veronica's anxious for Logan to arrive home is an understatement. This is the longest they've been apart in years and she's more than ready to start sharing parental responsibilities again. This has been Logan's first big deployment since Maia was born and despite the joy of watching her daughter grow and develop and learn over the last few months, raising a toddler on her own has been a lot tougher than she anticipated. At least Logan will get his own lesson on being the primary caregiver now, since he'll be on post-deployment leave for the next few weeks.
Maia finally calms as they head towards the dock, her tantrum forgotten as she starts excitedly pointing out the planes and helicopters on display. The ship is already docking when they reach the port, and Veronica instinctively peers up at the officers lined up along the edge of flight deck, hoping to spot Logan amongst them… not that she would be able to tell anyway, since they all look the same from here.
"I see Daddy!" exclaims Maia from the stroller.
"Do you?" Veronica asks sceptically as she scans the sea of white uniforms. "Where is he?"
"O' there."
Maia points towards a row of sailors standing on one of the lower decks, and yeah, okay, perhaps one of them could be Logan… but she already knows he isn't there, since that deck is only ever occupied by the lower ranks.
They have to wait another twenty minutes for the officers to disembark, during which Maia gets restless and Veronica has to entertain her with a game of I Spy. The distraction only lasts so long though, before Maia gets bored and demands to get out of the stroller. Surprisingly she actually does what she's told for once and waits patiently… until she wrenches her hand out of Veronica's grasp, and starts to run toward the ship. Veronica is about shout a few choice words, when she hears a screech of "Daddy!" and looks up to find her daughter engulfed in a very familiar pair of arms.
As he steps off the ship and begins making his way across the concrete, Logan's gaze roams the crowd, searching. Veronica said she would wait near the spot where they said goodbye, but there are so many people here that he's struggling to pinpoint it. Weaving through the mass of people and into a clearer space, he frowns, doing another sweep of his surroundings.
"Veronica, where are you?"
He doesn't have to wonder for much longer, because a child's screech fills the air and he looks down to see a blonde head barrelling towards him.
"Daddy!"
Without hesitation, he crouches down, grinning widely as his daughter launches herself into his arms.
"Hey, Pumpkin," he says softly, closing his eyes as he breathes in the familiar scent of her hair, savouring the feel of her small body pressed against his chest, her arms wrapped around him. "I missed you."
Logan opens his eyes and pulls back a little so he can really look at her. She's grown up so much in the last few months—when he left she was still very much a toddler, but now she looks like a little lady.
"I like your dress," he says with a smile, taking in the adorable little sailor girl's outfit she's wearing. "Very fitting."
"I picked," she declares proudly, jerking her thumb at her chest.
"Good picking, little one." He leans forward and presses a kiss to her forehead as he stands, bringing her with him and balancing her on his hip, her arms tight around his neck. "So, where's Mommy?"
"There." Maia turns in his arms, pointing to a spot behind her.
Logan's gaze follows, and he grins when he spots Veronica standing a few feet away, her fingers tightly gripping the stroller handles like she's forcing herself not run to him just like Maia did. He starts walking in her direction, but doesn't get very far before she gives into temptation and half-walks, half-runs towards him. Before he can even say hello, her arms are wrapped around both him and Maia and his free arm comes around her, holding them both to him as tightly as he can.
"Welcome home," she murmurs in his ear. "I love you."
"Love you, too," he replies tenderly.
She pulls back a little, her lips meeting his in a kiss filled with love and longing and relief, and a feeling of warmth and contentment spreads out from his heart, flowing right through his body.
He's home. Finally.
"So, how are my two best girls doing?" he asks when they part.
"Perfect, now you're here," Veronica says with a tender smile.
"Glad to hear it," he returns. "So, what's the plan?"
"Ice cream," Maia declares. "You said ice cream when you're home."
"I did, huh?" he says, giving Veronica a wink. "I think that can be arranged. What do you say to Amy's?"
Veronica replies this time. "You know us Mars women can never turn down Amy's."
"Don't I know it," he agrees. "And exactly how many times did you two go for ice cream while I was away?"
"Oh, not that many," Veronica dismisses in an airy tone which makes him chuckle.
"Sure," he teases, giving her another quick kiss, before bouncing Maia in his arms. "Okay, ice cream it is."
As, he grabs his bag and they start walking towards the car, Maia still in his arms, Logan can't keep the smile off his face. He's finally back in California, with his wife and daughter… and he couldn't have asked for more.
Okay, so yeah, it's not the hot, steamy, foundation-shaking reunion that's been in his rotation for the last few months, but so what?
There's nothing better than this.