Well, I couldn't resist. I've been planning to wait until this story was complete before posting but I'm going to go ahead and start anyway. If I run out of chapters, I guess I'll just start posting like a normal person…as I complete each chapter. I hope you enjoy.

"So, you really don't have any idea about Dick's big secret?"

Veronica started at the sound of Logan's voice. She's been mesmerized by his hand tapping some unclear rhythm on the gear shift. She blushed a little as she looked up at his face but he was still focusing on the PCH as they sped towards Dick's beach house. His eyes shifted slightly to her and he smiled.

"What? What's the secret?"

She was relieved that he thought what she was hiding was Dick's secret, rather than what she was actually thinking, which were impure thoughts about his hands. "No, seriously, I don't have any idea. He's been totally close-mouthed on this and so has Mac."

"What about Mac? She knows the secret?" he asked.

"Yeah, weird huh? He showed up about six weeks ago and asked her to do some research for some issue that had come up. She agreed and will not tell me or Dad what is going on. I have to admit, I've snooped a little, trying to find out what she was researching but she's pretty hip to my sneaky ways and can cover up as well as I can."

"Ha, that must burn you."

"It's true. I'm supposed to be the master here and Mac the padawan. I should be able to figure her out."

"Ah, but a Jedi uses the Force for knowledge and defense, never for attack."

"It was for knowledge that the Force I tried to use. I just couldn't break her."

"Umm, break her, Yoda? That sounds like attack to me."

"Geez, whose side are you on anyway?"

He snorted a laugh. "Always on your side, I am."

"Funny way of showing it. The fact that the first place we go after you get home is Dick's means you're not on my side."

"First place after two days in a hotel suite and another in the apartment."

Logan had returned after his four month mid-cruise deployment three days ago. He hadn't been on the fly-in list and he'd been assigned to duty that kept him aboard the boat until the rest of his squad was already released. Knowing that he would not be available immediately after docking, they made plans to meet in the beachfront cottage Veronica had booked at the Hotel del Coronado. She'd arrived about three hours before he was supposed to be released. She'd wandered throughout the cottage wondering where she should meet him when he arrived and whether she should be fully clothed, full-on naked, or some compromise between the two. She had decided to check out the outdoor soaking tub while she waited and the warm water had finally relaxed her enough to drift off to sleep. She'd been nervous about their reunion; although the awkwardness of his voluntary departure had eased over the intervening months, she'd still felt an increasing anxiety as the days ticked away to his return. That had all melted away when she woke to find him kneeling in the tub before her, his lips ghosting across her collarbones and neck, and his hands sliding smoothly along her torso.

"Hi there," she murmured in his ear. "Welcome home."

"Thanks. I'm always in favor of naked welcoming parties."

"Well, I guess that was one choice I shouldn't have second-guessed but I really didn't mean to fall asleep out here."

He chuckled as he wormed one arm behind her and spun them so he was now seated and she was astride his lap. One hand remained spread across her low back with his fingers trailing down to caress her ass. The other stroked her face for a moment before sliding slowly down her neck, stopping to massage a breast, then to gently tweak a nipple. "I must say, I'm glad your best laid plans went awry. I think this is a great location." His mouth found hers then and the coherent portion of the reunion conversation was basically over.

After some...preliminary reuniting, they made their way out of the soaking tub, with Veronica still in Logan's arms and her legs wrapped around his hips. The climb out had been slightly awkward, if not outright hazardous, and they hadn't made it any further than the first solid wall inside the cottage before he had her pinned up against it and gasping.

For the next two days, the most she'd had on was the hotel robe, for very brief periods of time. Logan had slipped shorts on to answer the door whenever room service delivered their meals but otherwise, the welcoming party had stayed sans clothing. After two days, they checked out and made their way back to their apartment but the hour long drive had been too long and as soon as the door closed behind them, clothes started coming off again.

"Anyone listening to you would think that was some kind of a hardship that you had to endure," Veronica teased.

"Yeah, I'm sure that's what everyone's gonna think. Poor Logan, stuck in bed with Veronica for three whole days." He glanced over at her and shook his head before taking her hand in his and lifting it to his lips to kiss. "We'll have dinner and we'll be back at the apartment in like, two hours." He kissed her hand again. "Can you wait that long?"

She made an offended sound and tried to tug her hand out of his but he tightened his grasp and smirked at her. "I can wait as long as necessary. Don't act like I'm so needy."

"Hey, no offense intended. I'll admit freely, I'm going into withdrawal right now. I wouldn't mind pulling over and getting busy but this car isn't exactly built for privacy."

She laughed. "Yeah, and truthfully, the Mars family is in good with the current sheriff's administration. I'd rather not jeopardize that with public indecency."

"Same."

"So, we'll give Dick a little time and then we'll be free to go?" She squeezed his hand and when he glanced over at her, she raised her eyebrows suggestively.

"Yep. Plus, if you will recall, he has our dog."

"Oh, right," Veronica felt her face warming with embarrassment. "I guess it's a sign we're not ready for kids when I completely forget about the baby when daddy comes home."

His mouth fell open and she laughed. "I didn't know we were contemplating kids." She shrugged.

"WE haven't. Doesn't mean the thought has never crossed my mind." She tilted her head as she considered him. "Are you telling me you've never thought about it?"

This time it was his face that turned pink. "No, I'm not telling you that." His eyes shifted towards her, like he was trying to gauge her reaction. "Maybe, sometime when we're not four minutes away from Dick's, we can actually think about it at the same time."

"I think that can probably be arranged." She leaned more toward the center of the car. "I do have to work some over the next two weeks, but I've kept my schedule as clear as possible and I've still got two more days before I have any appointments."

"Cool. You do know, don't you, that if Dick hadn't been so insistent, he would still be waiting and we'd still be naked." He pulled her hand back to his mouth again.

"Well, if I've learned one thing in the last couple of years, it's that absence does make the heart grow fonder. A couple hours dressed, even if we will be with Dick, won't be a bad thing." She shifted in her seat so she could gaze openly at him and he responded by turning her hand and kissing her palm. He then moved her hand back to drop into her own lap so he could grasp the gear shift. He downshifted as they took the exit for Dick's beach house. With both his hands occupied, she stretched out to trace a finger across his thigh. "Maybe, if Dick's been hitting the medicinal brownies, he won't notice if we sneak into your little bedroom porch, for old time's sake."

"Hmmm, that's an interesting idea. We'll see how he is." They pulled up in front of the beach house and Logan hopped out, hurrying around the car to open the door for Veronica. She stepped out and into his arms, stretching up to kiss him. He pressed her against the car door for a moment, curling down into her before wrapping his arms around her waist and lifting her up to him.

"See, I told you a little separation wouldn't hurt," she whispered as he kissed down her neck.

"Mmmhmmm," he murmured against her skin. She shivered at the vibration.

"Oh, my good God. Can't you two keep your hands off each other for a minute?"

They jerked upright at the sudden intrusion although Logan's grasp around Veronica's waist didn't break. "Mac. What are you doing here?" Veronica wriggled a little and Logan let her slide back to her feet.

"I got invited to the combo 'Logan's back in town dinner-slash-Dick's big reveal' event." Mac gave Veronica a gentle push so she could give Logan a hug. "Welcome back, Lieutenant."

"Thanks, Mackie." He grinned down at her. "So, what's the big reveal? I hear the student has now become the Master."

"That is not true," Veronica answered indignantly. "She's just coming along nicely." Logan and Mac looked at each other and smirked. "It's true." She slapped her flat palm against Logan's chest. "It's true!"

"No one's arguing with you, Sugarpuss."

"Yeah, Sugarpuss, no one's arguing with you," Mac teased. "Now, come on. I know for sure that Dick's about to lose his mind in the house waiting for you guys."

"How are we going to be able to tell that from normal, every day Dick?" Veronica said sarcastically but both Mac and Logan ignored her.

"How is it that you're involved with some issue of Dick's?" Logan asked. He held his arms out behind both women, ushering them towards Dick's front door.

"He needed help and he didn't want to ask Veronica or Keith. That left me."

"Why couldn't he ask me?" Veronica asked in a petulant voice. Logan and Mac both stopped walking to look at her incredulously. "What?"

"Are you seriously asking why Dick didn't want to ask you for a favor?" Mac said. "He knows you only tolerate him for Logan's sake."

"And you're his biggest fan?" Veronica asked scornfully. Logan gave a bark of laughter and began to move them towards the door again.

"No, obviously not, but he and I, we have some commonalities that he doesn't share with you. And, there's less pressure on him with me." Veronica looked disgruntled but Logan nodded.

"You agree with her?"

"I understand what she's saying. Stop getting worked up about this and be glad Dick has someone else to do him favors. It keeps him out of your hair." Logan grabbed her hand and pulled her towards him, giving her a gentle kiss on the top of her head. "So, let's go see what the surprise is."

Mac led the way up the stairs onto the porch. She rapped quickly on the door and then opened the door to step in. "Dick. They're here."

Veronica looked over her shoulder at Logan as they followed Mac. "She just walks in?" she said in a low voice. Logan rolled his eyes but didn't respond.

"LOGAN! My man!" Dick was suddenly before them, throwing his arms around Logan and lifting him off the ground. Veronica jumped out of the way and stood looking at her boyfriend being hugged fiercely by his best friend, her mouth twisted in a moue of disgust. Mac looked at her face and burst into laughter. Her sudden outburst caught Dick's attention and he put Logan back on his feet. "So glad you're here, man." He turned to look at Veronica who was still grimacing. "Ronnie. Always a pleasure." Both Mac and Logan laughed.

There was suddenly a loud scrambling noise and Pony burst into the hallway, feet slipping and sliding as she rounded the corner. She had gained about twenty pounds since Logan had been gone but she launched herself at him like she had when she was still small and he stumbled backwards trying to regain his balance. "Pony! Whoa. Settle, settle." The puppy tried frantically to obey but her excitement was too great and even as she sat, her tail continued to wag violently. Logan knelt in front of her, scratching her head. "How's my little girl? Hmm, hmm? Who's the best puppy?" As he continued to croon to the dog, the other three humans stood over them, shaking their heads.

"She loves him best. I didn't abandon her but she still loves him best." Veronica threw up her hands in exasperation.

"I thought YOU had him whipped, Mars," Dick answered. "That's just pitiful." He looked down at his friend who was still snuggling the puppy. "Come on, dude. I've got a surprise for you."

Logan gave Pony one more cuddle and stood up. The puppy leaned into his legs. "All right, Dick. Your turn. What's the big surprise?"

"Come on." Dick turned and walked back toward the great room. Logan reached for Veronica's hand and followed Dick, Pony still glued to his leg, and Mac bringing up the rear. As they stepped into the large room, Pony darted forward, jumping up onto the couch, next to a teenaged boy. Dick followed the puppy to the couch and the boy stood up next to him. He was nearly Dick's height but still slender, with shaggy, blonde hair.

"So guys," Dick said in an excited voice. "Congratulate me. It's a boy."