I finally made it back to work on this one. Part of me actually wants to end it with this chapter, but I don't want people to feel like I left too much unresolved. I'm considering either just ending it here, or doing a brief epilogue or possibly coming back to them at a later time and doing some more with this version of them. I'm thinking I'll see what sort of comments I get and then make the final decision. So here's your chance to let me know what you want. Of course keep in mind if I say it's done, then it gives me time to work on other things! I do have a WIP I've started and not shared any of it yet because I didn't want to have too many WIPs posted again. So there's that to take into account as well. Thanks to everyone still reading along and as always thanks to Bondopoulos for all her help and support.
Disclaimer: All original VM characters belong to Rob Thomas.
As Logan and Veronica made their way down the stairs, Veronica spotted Duncan, Lilly and Astrid a little farther down the beach. Their backs were to Logan and Veronica as the three walked barefoot along the edge of the surf, both adults holding on to Lilly's hands. Lilly's laughter drifted through the air as Duncan and Astrid lifted her up right before the foamy white waves could hit her feet. To a stranger observing them, they would appear to be nothing less than a happy young family.
"You okay?" Logan asked, stopping their descent to the beach. She could hear the same compassion and understanding lacing his tone that he'd had a few minutes ago when they were on the patio with Jake and Lianne.
Veronica nodded and turned her face up at him. "Thank you," she said softly, a hint of amazement in her one. "I have no idea how you could tell what I was actually feeling back there, but I'm so thankful that you effortlessly pulled me away."
"Well, you're not always easy to read," Logan replied, huffing out a soft laugh as he pulled her closer to his chest and paused to place a tender kiss on her forehead. "I think I'm probably off the mark eighty percent of the time, but I'll happily take the twenty percent that I'm right."
"Don't sell yourself short, sweetcheeks," Veronica teased with a coy smile. "I'd give you at least twenty-six-and-a-half percent right."
Logan shook his head as the corner of his mouth turned up in amusement. "Gee thanks," he volleyed back jokingly before his expression turned serious. "I will say I certainly didn't expect you to subtly threaten Jake the way that you did back there, but maybe that will help keep Duncan in line and we won't have to watch our backs as much."
Veronica blew out a slow breath, nodding as she did. She could sense the hopeful optimism in Logan's tone. "Hopefully—I thought it couldn't hurt anyway. Although, being us, I'm sure we won't completely let our guard down, but it would be nice if Jake intervened a little bit."
"And I so enjoyed Duncan's expression when he and your mom thought we were living together," Logan continued, his eyes lighting up with mischief.
"Yeah, that's been one of the highlights of this little visit for me too," Veronica agreed, her expression mirroring his.
"Of course you know I really wish that it was true," Logan confessed, a wistful look replacing the mischievous one.
Veronica sighed deeply, biting momentarily on her bottom lip. "I'm sure I'll be there plenty, but moving in together? We've barely just gotten back together, don't you think that's a pretty big leap?"
Instead of the rejected or hurt expression Veronica had expected to see on Logan's face, a tender smile appeared instead. "Yeah, I know. And I'd never try to rush you into something you're not ready for. But you really ought to know by now," he told her, a sly grin on his lips. "...all I want is you." She huffed out a soft laugh, remembering him saying that to her the year before. He reached up and gently traced his fingertips across her forehead before he continued. "And I'm more than happy to wait for you to be ready for that kind of commitment," he paused and let out a little sigh. "Even though I'd rather wake up every morning with you next to me."
"Even if I keep you tied to the bedpost?" she asked, suddenly feeling the need to lighten the tone of their conversation.
"Especially if I'm tied to the bedpost," Logan replied, a wolfish grin appearing on his lips before he leaned in and captured her mouth with his. She still had no idea how kissing him seemed to wipe away all the anxiety she'd just been feeling, and she certainly wasn't going to stop to analyze why.
Unfortunately Their kiss was interrupted much too soon by the sound of someone clearing their throat. They'd been so wrapped up in their own conversation and kissing that neither of them had noticed that Duncan, Astrid and Lilly had turned and headed back up toward the house.
"We um…" Duncan muttered, sounding a bit uncomfortable interrupting the two of them. "Lilly was starting to get hungry so we were headed back to get her a snack."
"Gol-fishies!" Lilly exclaimed loudly, a beaming smile stretched across her sun-kissed face.
"Yes, goldfish crackers, Lilly," Duncan answered, nodding down at her.
"You like gol-fishies?" Lilly asked, looking up expectantly at Veronica and Logan.
"I can't say that I've ever tried those, kiddo," Logan answered, sounding amused by her question. "Veronica?" he continued looking at her as if he assumed she had. Of course he'd think that since he always teased her about her unusual eating habits.
Veronica rolled her eyes slightly at him. "Yes, I've had goldfish crackers before and they're pretty yummy. Wallace's little brother is a big fan, so I've had them when I've been at their house a few times."
"Mm-hmm," Logan replied, with a teasing grin on his lips. "I'll be sure to pick up some to keep on hand at the new place," he added with a little wink.
"Let's go, Daddy," Lilly interjected, pulling on Duncan's hand again as she moved to pass Logan and Veronica on the stairs back up to the house.
"We'll meet you up there in a couple minutes," Veronica announced, not quite ready to deal with all of them—her soon to be new extended family—just yet. Logan followed her lead and they both scooted to the side of the stairs so the others could continue up to the house.
"Did you want to walk on the beach?" Logan asked a few seconds later.
Veronica gave him a grateful smile and nodded as she held out her hand for his.
After a short stroll on the beach, Logan and Veronica headed back to the house. Logan had distracted her a bit on their walk discussing what other furniture items they should prioritize in addition to a four poster bed. When they made it back to the patio, Lianne and Jake were both sitting at the table while Duncan and Astrid were sitting side by side on the edge of a lounge chair. Lilly was sitting on Duncan's lap and Astrid was holding a bowl of goldfish crackers and a juice box.
"I'm surprised that you haven't turned into a little goldfish yourself," Duncan teased as Lilly shoved a handful of the little orange crackers into her mouth.
"She'd make an adorable goldfish," Astrid countered as she lovingly smiled at the little girl. "She's already becoming quite the little swimmer too."
Veronica had thought Astrid had seemed rather fond of Lilly from the little bit of time she'd already seen them interacting, and it was certainly undeniable now just how much Astrid did adore the little girl. She seemed so motherly. While Veronica had enjoyed her time the night before with Lilly, being a full-time mother was definitely something she wasn't ready for at this point in her life.
"Me gol-fishy, " Lilly proudly announced. "Daddy and Nonny fishies too," she added reaching up to pat them both on their cheeks.
Veronica caught just the hint of a more meaningful smile form on Astrid lips as she locked eyes with Duncan for a few seconds. While she may have missed the signs the night before, it was obvious now to her that Astrid also adored Duncan probably as much as she adored Lilly. Of course Veronica had totally missed it the night before because she let her jealousy about what may have happened between Logan and Astrid cloud her judgment. And for the briefest of a second, she could have sworn she saw something flash across Duncan's face too.
"You know the four of us should plan a double date some night," Veronica announced jubilantly as she smiled at Duncan and Astrid, completely aware that her impulsive suggestion could go totally awry. "I'm sure my mom and Jake would be happy to babysit Lilly so we could all go."
Veronica tried not to laugh at the deer in the headlights look that immediately formed on Duncan's face. He really hadn't been very good at hiding things in the past when called directly on something. Astrid looked almost as surprised, but recovered quickly with an innocent look of confusion instead.
"We're not..." Duncan started nervously, causing Astrid to tighten her jaw slightly.
"Oh," Veronica continued with her own act of innocence and confusion. "I thought with the way you two were acting last night that you were."
"We'd be happy to watch Lilly sometime," Lianne interjected, either oblivious to Duncan's sudden discomfort or just not actually caring.
"You two are seeing each other?" Jake asked at almost the same moment as Lianne spoke, clearly sounding a little less than thrilled about Duncan possibly fraternizing with the help.
"Well I certainly got that impression last night, but I guess I was mistaken," Veronica responded, trying to sound as naive as possible. "And usually I'm so good at picking up on things." She glanced at Logan, really hoping that he wasn't going to do something that would make it seem obvious she was completely bullshitting them all. She noticed the corner of his lip as well as one eyebrow was lifted up just the slightest amount, apparently amused by the situation, but not overtly giving her away at least.
"Well I think they'd make an adorable pair," Lianne commented, obviously not sharing her future husband's opinion on the matter.
"They would, wouldn't they?" Logan chimed in, a smug grin forming on his face.
"Speaking of going out… Logan and I should probably be leaving soon so we can make our dinner reservations," Veronica quickly segued to.
"Oh, I was hoping you'd have time for a full tour of the house before you had to go," Lianne responded, looking disappointed that they were leaving so soon.
"Well…" Veronica started, ensuring that she sounded reluctant to at least sell their ruse. "Do you think we have time for a quick tour?" she asked Logan. "We might get some additional decorating ideas," she added, quirking her brow the slightest amount so hopefully he'd know that she was okay with staying just a little bit longer.
"I think we could stay a little longer and still be okay," he replied, leaning in to softly chuckle against her skin as he kissed her temple.
"So what do you think?" Lianne asked excitedly as they finally walked into the room she'd picked to be Veronica's. Only about half of the house that they'd already been through had been fully decorated and furnished, and this room was still completely empty. Her mom hadn't lied when she'd told her on the phone that it had a spectacular view.
"It's nice," Veronica said, keeping her fingers intertwined with Logan's as she pulled him over to the windows. "But I was thinking, between Logan's and Dad's, I probably wouldn't be staying here often, so maybe you should decorate it for Lilly to use when she comes to visit you."
"Oh," Lianne replied, biting her lip slightly in an obvious attempt to hide her disappointment.
Veronica knew Lianne was really trying, and while she had no intention of actually spending a lot of time there—especially not overnight, Veronica felt like she should try to make an effort too.
"Maybe I could still help you decorate it," Veronica offered tentatively. "We could look through some books together, with Lilly too, and then have your decorator put it together for her." Veronica glanced up at Logan who gave her an encouraging smile and nodded.
"Yeah, that could be fun too," Lianne agreed, her mood slowly bouncing back. "I'm sure we'll have her and Duncan over quite often. Jake and I had talked about designating a room for Duncan, but we hadn't discussed it with him yet."
And I definitely won't be staying over any night he is.
"I'd love to come and see the house Logan bought. Have you started moving in already?" Lianne asked as she walked over to where they were standing by the windows.
"Not yet, but hopefully I'll get the keys to it on Monday," Logan answered, the excitement from earlier slipping back into his tone again.
"We'll see about inviting you over sometime when Logan's all settled in," Veronica offered, not really sure that they actually would want to invite her mom and Jake over, but figuring it was probably safe enough to say for now.
"Well, I'll be sure to text you Gemma's number if you want to contact her at all. She's really just amazing."
"Thanks, Mom." Veronica paused for a moment and gave Logan a tight smile. "It was great to see your new house, but Logan and I really should be going so we can make our dinner reservation."
Logan nodded in agreement, smiling knowingly back at Veronica.
"Oh of course," Lianne replied, sounding a tiny bit flustered. "I really do appreciate you two finding the time to stop by today. Hopefully we can schedule a time to all have dinner together. I'd love to hear more about Hearst and all the classes you're taking."
"Sure," Veronica replied dropping Logan's hand to give her mom a quick hug. She still wasn't sure how things would work out with her mom back in Neptune and in her life again, but Lianne really did seem to be trying to take the first step in repairing their very damaged relationship and maybe Veronica owed it to herself to try too.
"Thanks again. And please let the others all know we said goodbye," Veronica added before grabbing Logan's hand and making a hasty retreat for the front door.
The moment they had walked out of the room, Lianne's cell rang again and Veronica heard her mom jubilantly greeting Gemma as they made their way to the stairway. Veronica was hoping they'd be able to make it out of the house without running into anyone, but she abruptly stopped short outside the door located right before the foyer that Lianne had pointed out on their tour of the house as being Jake's office. She immediately spun back and looked over her shoulder to see if Lianne had followed them down, simultaneously putting her finger to her lip to be sure Logan wouldn't make a sound. He quirked an eyebrow at her questioningly but, as she'd hoped, didn't say anything. Jake saying Duncan's name from inside the office was what had lead her to come to a screeching halt her curiosity getting the better of her.
The door had been pulled almost shut, but whoever was the last one in hadn't bothered to close it all the way or it just didn't latch correctly. She scooted close enough to listen, pointing at her eyes, then Logan and then the stairs, hoping he'd get her silent instruction. He smirked and nodded, turning so he could watch for Lianne coming down behind them.
"Gorya sent the recording that he took of you last night to me," Veronica heard Jake saying from within the office. "I talked with a couple of the other senior members, and with your confession added to the archive, they were all on board with letting you join even though you aren't technically enrolled at Hearst yet."
Veronica heard Duncan mumble something that sounded like appreciation or understanding before Jake started talking again.
"Now that that's taken care of and Gorya's back in LA, I hope you'll be wise enough to only have very limited contact with him. He's upset a few members in the organization with some of his less than astute decisions lately, and I wouldn't want you to get mixed up with anything that could jeopardize our agreement with the FBI. The organization has overlooked some of Gorya's questionable actions in the past, but several of the senior members are getting close to reaching their limit where he's concerned. I'm already calling in several favors to make this happen—both with the FBI and within the organization—so I hope I can count on you to be smart about your actions now that you're back."
Duncan's affirmation that he wasn't planning on doing anything that would cause any issues for him and Lilly was all Veronica needed to hear before she grabbed Logan's hand and stealthily continued on through the foyer and out the front door.
Logan wasn't sure what had been more of a turn on, Veronica threatening Jake, exposing Duncan's affair with Astrid, or her sleuthing in the hallway. He certainly hadn't expected their visit to Jake and Lianne's to include any of that. Of course there were also those few moments when he could tell that she was struggling to keep her composure as well. He'd been thankful for the chance to whisk her away when she seemed to freeze on the patio when Jake had alluded to Lilly's death. Given the state Veronica had been in when he'd run into her the prior weekend was all directly related to Jake and Lianne's affair and Lilly's death, he wasn't surprised that she had gotten upset by Jake's comments. Even if she was one of the most badass women that he knew, there was still that fragile part of her that he couldn't help but want to protect.
As he opened the passenger door of his Rover for her, he was glad to see a relaxed smile on her face when she turned to look up at him.
"Could you hear them too?" she asked, raising her eyebrows inquisitively at him.
Of course her mind would still be on the conversation they'd just overheard. He nodded in reply. It had been a little hard to make out what Duncan had said, but Logan thought he'd gotten the gist of it. He really hoped it meant that they didn't need to worry about Duncan conspiring with Gory to make things difficult for them. If Gory was already on thin ice with the Castle, and Veronica had already threatened to make his life difficult if Gory did anything to Logan previously, chances were good that he wouldn't initiate something now. Threats from Veronica Mars typically weren't something anyone wise would just ignore.
"Thanks for being my look out," Veronica added, coyness not only in her tone, but in the adorable way she tilted her head and smiled at him too.
"Anytime," Logan replied, leaning in to place a quick peck on her lips. He hoped she'd take him seriously and ask for his help not only when they were sneaking through her mom and Jake's new house together but when she was working on cases as well. He'd always felt better on those rare occasions that she'd let him tag along in the past.
He lifted her up into the seat—eliciting a small squeal of surprise from her—and angled her so he could effortlessly fit between her legs. He pressed his lips to hers, deepening the kiss as he felt her ardently react to it. His thoughts were still a bit preoccupied by just how amazing she had been inside and he easily got caught up in the kiss.
"Thanks," she breathed out when the kiss finally ended. He quirked his eyebrow at her, wondering exactly what he was being thanked for. Even though it had been an amazing kiss, he was pretty sure that wasn't what she was referring to, but he was suddenly having a hard time focusing on anything other than the feel of her lips against his. She must have been able to correctly interpret his look of confusion. "Thanks for being there for me for that," she continued gesturing with her head back toward the house. "Hopefully it wasn't so abhorrent that you refuse to ever come with me again."
"I'll always come with you," Logan countered, not even trying to keep the lasciviousness out of his tone.
Veronica let out a surprised laugh and nodded as she reached up and pulled his head back down toward hers. "Always better with," she told him sounding even more breathless than when they'd stopped kissing.
It took a lot of restraint, but Logan finally pulled away after kissing her for a minute or two, resting his forehead against hers and sucking in a deep breath. "We um... we should probably go... didn't you want to shower and change before we go out on our big date?"
"Mmm... shower... yes, definitely," she purred, smiling demurely up at him.
He chuckled huskily before leaning in to place one more quick kiss on her lips and then tore himself away to drive them back to the Grand.
Logan was thankful that Mama Leone's stayed open late on Saturdays. By the time they'd finally made it out of the shower, dressed and headed to the restaurant, it had been much later than he'd expected. He'd made a mental note to check out the capacity on the water heater at the new house to see how much it might be to replace it with a larger one if possible. He'd heard enough of Veronica complaining about the water heater at her apartment to know how much she hated running out of hot water, and the more time he could spend in the shower with her the better.
The late hour combined with the fact they were the last two in the restaurant, had lead them to take pity on the waitress; they offered to just take their dessert to go. Even though the waitress had assured them it wasn't a problem, Logan could still tell she was grateful when they said they'd take dessert with them.
He'd always considered himself to be the more demonstrative out of the two of them, so he was a little surprised—but in a very pleased way—by how affectionate Veronica had been not only on the drive back to the hotel, but at dinner as well. Fortunately she'd never been shy about having her hands all over him when they were alone, but out in public she'd been more reserved in the past. He'd always worried that it was due to her reservations about them being together, and hoped—though cautiously so—that maybe things really would be different this time.
By the time they'd made it all the way back to the suite, her look of affection had morphed into something much more ravenous.
"Did you want dessert now?" he teasingly asked as he closed the door to the suite and held up the to-go bag.
"Not for that kind of dessert," she answered with a salacious grin, reaching out and pulling him toward the bedroom.
Logan tugged her slightly so she spun back to him, pressing his lips to hers when she was close enough. "I'd better put this in the fridge so we can have it later," he shared a bit breathlessly. As much as he'd rather just sweep her off her feet and head for his bed, he was pretty sure she'd be a bit disappointed later if the tiramisu got ruined.
"Good idea," she agreed with a quick kiss before turning back toward the bedroom. "Don't be long," she purred with a suggestive glance in his direction before disappearing into his room.
Logan suddenly wished the fridge was right by the door, but did his best to acquiesce to her command. She'd already stripped down to her bra and panties, lying on her side on the bed waiting for him by the time he made it into the room. He quickly pulled off his own shirt as he closed the door. Even though Dick had moved out, he still had a room key and Logan knew Veronica would be furious if he stumbled into the suite and caught them in an intimate position. He stepped out of his jeans and crawled across the mattress to join her.
Logan could still taste the cinnamon on her lips from the candy that the waitress had left with the bill. He was just about to undo the hook on her bra when the ring of her cellphone echoed through the room. She gave him an apologetic look as he rolled on to his back so she could retrieve it. Given it was nearly eleven thirty, it seemed logical that it was an urgent—not able to wait for morning—type of call.
She reached across him, grabbing her phone from where she'd sat it on the nightstand. He'd expected her to shift back to the other side of the bed, or to take it into the bathroom for privacy, but instead she'd remained with her chest on top of his as she answered the call.
"How's the man hunt going? Burning the midnight oil on this one arentcha?" she teased, sounding much more relaxed than he'd expected her to be given their current position and level of nakedness. And since she was basically stretched across his chest, Logan could easily hear Keith's reply come through the phone.
"I'd correct that to a daughter-and-dog hunt since neither are where I expected them to be," Keith answered back tersely, not sounding terribly amused with Veronica's greeting. "Although I suppose that's a little less upsetting than the earlier call from your mother where she mentioned how excited she was that you and Logan were buying a house together." Suddenly the clip in his tone made a lot more sense.
Veronica grimaced slightly before replying. "I think she misinterpreted things," she offered, her tone not quite as light-hearted as when she'd answered the phone, but still maintaining a small amount of joviality.
"Mm hmm," Keith replied, again not sounding very happy with her response. "And where are you now?"
"At Logan's," she told him, starting to bite nervously on her lower lip. Her gaze had mostly been focused on the bed next to them, but she glanced out of corner of her eye at Logan as she answered.
"And Backup?"
"He's at Wallace's."
Logan heard a loud frustrated sigh come through the phone.
"Sounds like we have a lot of catching up to do. I'm assuming you'll be home soon given the time?"
Veronica turned her head so she could see Logan better. He'd hoped that Keith would be out of town longer so he'd have more uninterrupted time with her, but he wasn't foolish enough to think that would last forever. He gave her an understanding smile, trying his best to hide the disappointment that he wouldn't get to wake up next to her again the next morning.
"No, I'm staying here tonight," she answered, her lips curling up into a defiant grin.
Logan was sure the look on his face had to be one of shock at first, but then the warmth radiating from his heart made its way to his lips and he smiled lovingly back at her.
"Maybe we can meet for lunch tomorrow and you can tell Logan and I all about catching the bad guy," she continued unwaveringly. Logan heard another heavy sigh come through the phone.
"I'll call Alicia in the morning to arrange picking up Backup. You may just need to buy both of us lunch if he was bad," Keith answered begrudgingly.
"Sounds good, Pops."
After a very brief exchange of quick farewells, Veronica ended the call.
Logan was pretty sure the look on his face had to be one of complete and utter amazement. If he'd had any sliver of doubt left at how much Veronica really did love him, it was completely gone now. Having her chose him over Duncan had meant the world to him, but now hearing her chose him regardless of what her dad might think left him utterly speechless.
"Now where were we?" she whispered sensually as she tossed her phone back on the nightstand.
Logan sucked in a deep breath and quickly found his voice again. "Right where we're always meant to be," he replied, moving his hands to cradle her face. "I love you, Veronica Mars. So very much."
"And I love you too," she replied, the sultry look giving away to one of adoration before she pressed her lips to his.