AN: Well I hope this is worth the wait. I really enjoyed writing this because we get to see a bit of the before and Logan is in Dad mode which frankly i think is hot. Read, review, enjoy. I'm hoping to have Forever My Girl updated in the next 2 days or so.
Disclaimer: I do not own Gilmore Girls
Chapter Sixteen
Logan walked slowly to his bedroom. Emma had gone to bed a bit earlier and Logan had nursed a scotch. He had needed it after the revelation Emma had made.
He didn't mean to…
She just needed to talk to him…
How often had this happened? Logan didn't really want to think about it…he wished he could just not think about it. But that wasn't an option, not anymore. There was a before and an after for so many things in his life now. Before, he may not have liked when Rory spent time with Dean, and after, he would do anything to keep her from being alone with him. Before, he was frustrated by Dean refusing to encourage Emma to have a positive relationship with her mother, and after…well…after was going to involve litigation and a revision of the divorce agreement, because being a father himself, he was not going to let Emma go back there without supervision.
Logan opened the door to the bedroom and instead of closing it like he normally would, he left it open a bit in case Emma needed them. He wasn't sure what a kid her age would need but he wanted to be there just in case.
"You up?" Logan saw that Rory had rolled to look at the door as he entered.
"A bit," Rory grumbled, she was semi-asleep as he leaned down and kissed her. "Where's Em?"
"She went to bed," Logan removed his clothing and retrieved his sleep pants. "I locked the front door and turned on the alarm," he continued, "she's been in her room for a few minutes."
"Thank you."
"We need to talk…tomorrow…about Emma," Logan exhaled as he sat down on his side of the bed and plugged in his phone to charge. Rory gave him a concerned look and while he wanted to appease her, he wanted to tell her it was no big deal, he also couldn't outright lie to her. There had been enough lies for a lifetime when they were sneaking around, he didn't want that anymore. "This Dean situation…I'm just…I'm worried about her."
"He would never hurt her," Rory told him firmly as Logan got into the bed. "I know he wouldn't."
Logan exhaled and rubbed his jaw. He really hadn't intended to have the conversation right that moment, but he also knew they couldn't have it with Emma around, and the plan was for Emma to be around for a fair chunk of time for the foreseeable future. She wasn't a stupid kid, she would pick up on whispers in another room, so he had to take advantage of the moments that they had. "She told me that she thought she could calm him down…how often did he…" Logan wasn't quite sure where to go with this. Had Dean been abusing her physically for years and he had never noticed? When they were together? When they were friends? "Has this happened before?" Logan asked cautiously.
Rory shook her head, "no." She ran a hand through her hair and brought her knees up to her chest as she looked at him. On one hand it destroyed her that she was even having this conversation, but she also couldn't help but feel relief that he cared. He wasn't just going through the motions with Emma, even if she hadn't made it simple. He cared. He was worried about her. "He's never…" Rory sighed. "He has never touched me or Emma. He yells. He throws things…he gets upset, but…I didn't," Rory felt tears coming to her eyes, "I didn't think she saw. We would…he would normally keep it to the garage so she wasn't around. But I guess…I guess after I left…"
"Ace," Logan pulled her towards him, "I wish you had told me how volatile he was…it wouldn't have changed anything, but we could have made a better plan for Emma before this. I'm sorry you had to go through this with him, and alone…"
Rory put her head back against the headboard, putting a bit of space between the two of them. "Don't apologize Logan, this wasn't…this was my issue. My relationship. I am glad you care about Emma and I'm glad we can do this together, but…I'm not making excuses for Dean. He's not…he's not the man I fell in love with anymore, and I don't love him anymore, I don't even like him…I worry that taking this too far, he will explode. I just don't know what he is capable of anymore."
"That doesn't mean we can just send Emma back in there. She can't be the one who has to deal with it."
Rory nodded her head. She knew that. Of course she knew that. What kind of mother wouldn't know that? "I will talk to my lawyer tomorrow, or Monday," Rory knew that she was available at any and all hours, she certainly was paying enough for it. "Then I will talk to Dean."
"I don't want you talking to him."
"We'll meet somewhere neutral," Rory assured him. "Maybe the diner or something. He can see Em with me there, we can talk…and I can tell him he needs to get therapy."
"Therapy…anger management…AA…" Logan shook his head, "the guy is a mess."
"I know he's a mess," Rory countered, the frustration was coming out now and she knew that wasn't fair to Logan. She knew that he was just trying to help, she knew that he was trying to protect them. "But part of why he is such a mess is because his wife was cheating on him for the better part of three years and then left him…I'm not saying I regret that because I don't. I don't regret a thing, but I am partially responsible for how he ended up here."
"You are the victim of domestic abuse Rory," Logan told her slowly. "No matter what you did or didn't do during your marriage. You didn't deserve any of this and Dean isn't entitled to these outbursts at your or Emma's expense."
Rory curled herself back up in the bed. She was tired. She knew that Logan wasn't wrong, but she also knew that some of these decisions were ones she would need to make on her own. As much as she wanted to make the decisions that would make Logan happiest, it needed to be what was right for Rory and Emma. "Can we please talk about this tomorrow?" Rory asked as she put her head down on the pillow.
Logan nodded and turned off the lights before rotating to put his arms gently around Rory. He was relieved when instead of flinching she exhaled into his embrace. "I didn't want to do this tonight," Logan murmured in her ear. It was the truth, he hadn't wanted to upset her. He knew she was struggling enough without adding this to the mix. "I'm sorry."
"I love you," was the only response Rory could muster, it was the only one that mattered. "Thank you for caring about her."
xxx
Logan wasn't sure what to make of the e-mail that he had finally opened after receiving it two days earlier. It wasn't entirely unexpected…that is what he kept telling himself as he read over it, but as much as he may have been expecting it, it still felt a bit like a punch to the gut.
He swiped up to close the message and pinched the bridge of his nose. He had to call her anyway. They had to talk about the living arrangements and how things had changed seemingly overnight. He and Rory had spoken at great length that morning and now she and Emma had gone to do some grocery shopping. Of course Logan had told them Linda would take care of it, but Emma had wanted to poke around, so he stayed home and let them do their thing.
"Logan, hey, everything alright?" Abigail breathed into the phone, she sounded happy, her voice had always been expressive. Much more expressive than any of her physical features. She had a poker face like no one he had ever met before…but her voice. He could read her like a book just by the tone she was using. "I wasn't expecting to hear from you."
"Yeah, sorry," Logan wasn't exactly on his game, "I…everything is fine. I just wanted to see if we could get together?"
"You want to get together?"
"Are you free tonight? If I came by the house? Maybe I could bring dinner and we could talk after?"
Abigail paused, Logan could tell she was trying to choose her words carefully, "you read the e-mail?"
He exhaled and once again his fingers found the bridge of his nose, "I wasn't expecting it," he admitted. "I knew it would happen eventually…but the divorce isn't final and the kids are still in school."
"You have moved another woman in with you Logan, I don't think you should be talking to me about how soon something happened. I am not a Huntzberger anymore. Sure if someone slips up and calls me that I'm not going to slap them or throw a temper tantrum, but I'm a Chambers."
"I just don't even…did you talk to the kids? They didn't mention it to me?"
"It was one of the first things Noah asked me after you left," Abigail told him honestly. "I'm their mom. My last name doesn't change that."
"I still need to talk to you. There is some stuff here…on my end…it's changing and it impacts the kids. Can I please come by?"
"Where is Rory?" Abigail asked, there was a little bit of cattiness in her tone but not as much as there could have been. She had given herself time to grieve. She had allowed herself moments in time to be angry. Girls nights, vent sessions on the phone, some very expensive shopping trips, but then she moved on. She wanted to be happy, she wanted her kids to be happy and she ultimately wanted Logan to be happy.
"She is with her daughter," Logan explained. "Do you want me to bring dinner?"
"The kids are having dinner with my mother tonight," Abigail reminded him that she had company. "But if you come over we can have a drink and discuss whatever is going on. Not too late though. Does five work? I have plans later."
"I can be there for five."
They ended the call a moment later and Logan could feel a tightness in his chest. There was no part of him that wanted to be married to Abigail still, in fact he hadn't wanted to be married to Abigail in a long time, but there was still a feeling of loss associated with knowing that she was in the process of legally changing her last name. He had found out because of an e-mail update from the benefits plan he was required to maintain for her…just a simple e-mail notifying him of a plan member change. He walked to the kitchen, grabbed a water from the fridge and then sent Rory a couple of messages explaining that he was going to be gone for dinner so that she could have time with Emma and he was going to talk with Abigail. He knew his driver was off and so he would have to drive to the house which he supposed kept him from getting too lost in his thoughts about it.
Logan casually flipped through his phone. Years worth of photos and memories, suddenly many that had been hidden from the before were now at his fingertips as he scrolled through. Photos that had been kept in fake folders so that they wouldn't be seen by his wife if she happened to have his phone. Logan scrolled for a few minutes, photos of his kids, photos of his family, photos of Rory laughing on trips around the world. He smiled as he stumbled upon a photo of Abigail, Noah and Lily at a birthday party that Lily had insisted on having for her pet rabbit, Daisy, and then he felt a knot in his stomach as he flipped from a birthday cake for a rabbit to a smiling picture of Rory wearing nothing but his white dress shirt. He had almost missed that birthday party. He was just home from a business trip and he had asked Rory to meet him at his apartment in the city to give her something he had picked up for her. A signed first edition copy of Charlotte's Web. Rory had told him how she used to read it to Emma and how her mother had read it to her, so when Logan had found it in a bookstore in London he felt an immediate urge to purchase it for her, and then when he came home he felt the need to see her immediately. Not his wife, not his kids. Rory. He needed to see Rory.
"Don't go," Logan pled with her. He could feel his phone buzzing in his pocket and he knew she could too. He had asked her to meet him just after work to give her the gift he had picked up and he hated that even though he had told her that they couldn't stay, he wanted them to stay. "What do I have to do," he finally pulled her close enough and smiled as Rory relaxed into his arms, "to get you to stay?"
"We both need to go home," Rory exhaled loudly as his lips found her neck, "Logan," she smiled as his hands moved down her body. "You just got home from a trip."
"Do you want to go?" Logan asked, his fingers were now playing with the tie on her black wrap dress. Rory didn't speak, she just looked at him and smiled. "Rory…"
"The book was very thoughtful," Rory smiled as she leaned up to kiss him. She knew they should both go home. But she would be lying if she said her heart hadn't skipped a beat when he had called her upon his arrival in the city. They had been sleeping together just over six months now and Rory had finally started to understand the high an addict got. She was addicted to him. It wasn't just the sex…the sex was amazing, but it was his spirit, his warmth, his excitement over a new deal at work, and him just remembering a book she had mentioned reading with her mother and then her daughter and buying her a first edition…it wasn't that it was a first edition. It was that he thought of her. That was a conversation for another day, she could see the lust in his eyes and the longer she went without speaking the more she was aware that he was slowly untying the dress. "We have to be quick," Rory told him, her cheeks turning crimson as his eyes lingered over curves.
Logan let his eyes wander back up her body, he could see her breathing was laboured as her chest moved up and down quickly. "I've missed you," his voice was gravelly as he kissed her.
"Why are you fully dressed?" Rory grinned as she pushed the grey Brioni suit jacket off of his shoulders, running her manicured fingers along his biceps.
"We can fix that," Logan followed suit and pushed the rest of the wrap dress off of her shoulders. "God you're sexy," he told her.
Rory kissed him again, she was never great at receiving that kind of compliment. She had never been sexy she had been smart, she had been loyal, she had been cute…pretty even, but sexy was never a way she had defined herself. "Logan," she moaned as his lips moved to her neck and she began pulling at his tie, goosebumps appearing behind his fingers as they moved across her back to undo her bra. Had she known this was going to be happening she probably would've chosen a different bra, something a bit nicer than the nude Target purchase she had made months earlier.
Before.
Before she spent any time thinking about her undergarments or who would be seeing them.
"Bed," Rory told him, pushing his shirt off of his shoulders and taking a moment to appreciate his impressive physique.
"Here," Logan shook his head and started undoing his belt and then his dress pants, leaving them undone but still on his body. Rory was more into doing things traditionally. Their first few meetings had been frantic, hotel rooms close to the office, the apartment, anywhere they could discretely arrive and find themselves in a plush king sized bed and now Logan was hoping to bring out a more adventurous side to Rory, and there was something about seeing her come undone surrounded by floor to ceiling windows that made his cock twitch.
"You're such an exhibitionist," Rory couldn't even pretend to be annoyed. There was something about sex with Logan that was unlike anything she had ever experienced and she was reminded of that as she pressed her body into him to kiss him once more and felt the prominent bulge in his open pants. She waited until he pulled away and snaked her hand between them, pushing his pants off and dipping her hand into the waistband of his boxer briefs. Logan didn't move. He stood as Rory began stroking his dick. Slowly at first and then with more fervour. Having never been a particularly sexual person, Rory was always shock by how turned on she was just by watching Logan. Just about anything about the man turned her on. He took advantage of the moment when Rory was attempting to rid him of his boxers to turn the tables and backed her against the small wall separating the kitchen and living areas, spreading her legs with his knee he pushed her black cotton thong off her hips and began rubbing her soaking wet folds with two fingers. Rory bit her lip and let her head hit the wall behind them as he quickened his pace. She had said they needed to be quick, hadn't she? She was certain that at this rate it would be multiple orgasms, and a leisurely pace if she let him have his way. "Babe, fuck me," Rory knew the pet name would be his undoing. He had called her Ace at work for years and while she loved it, she had only ever really been able to call him Logan so when she had started calling him babe and baby in bed, it had driven him wild.
Logan bit his lip watching her as he felt her warmth around his fingers. He wanted to pull away and bury himself inside of her as soon as she said it, but despite his now throbbing erection, he wanted to watch her finish first. "Come on Ace," Logan leaned forward and brought his wet, open mouthed kisses down her neck and to the swell of her breast. His tongue flicked out to her nipple and Rory moaned at the warmth of his tongue compared to the cold air of the air conditioned apartment.
"Lo-" Rory gasped as he doubled down on his efforts. She wanted to force him to his knees but she also knew that she did in fact need to leave. She surprised even herself as she pushed him away and gave him a coy smile as she walked over to the edge of the couch and bent forward. Her naked ass exposed to him as she looked over her shoulder.
"Let me grab," Logan swallowed hard as he stared at her figure. If you had told him six months earlier that he would see Rory Gilmore naked and bent over his couch asking for him, he would've told you that you must've been high, but Logan was sure he had died and gone to heaven.
Rory sucked her bottom lip in. They had been doing this for a while now, they were safe. They had discussed being safe, "I'm on the pill," she offered. She had gone ten years without an unexpected pregnancy, she didn't imagine it would change now, even if it was her hormones driving the suggestion. "If you want…"
Logan didn't need her to say any more than that as he walked over to her. He pulled her up to him first and kissed her. Their tongues duelling for a moment, Rory couldn't help but grin at the feeling of his erection pressing against her, she wrapped a leg around his waist and despite the fact that she had just been suggesting an entirely other position, the pair tumbled with tangled limbs back onto the couch and after taking a moment to readjust themselves, Logan found himself hovering over Rory propped up on his elbows. "You're beautiful," Logan whispered before he gently pushed himself inside of her. He knew that it was supposed to be quick. He knew he was dragging out the time they had together, but he couldn't help it. There was something about her, the way her breath hitched as he filled her, and her legs tangled around his own in an effort to keep him closer.
Rory bit down gently on his shoulder, there was something about the way he moved inside of her. It was powerful but gentle, it had gone from being frantic and primal to more sensual as the months had gone on. Rory tried to ignore the feeling in the pit of her stomach. The feeling in the midst of all of the desire that she knew were real feelings for him. "Harder," she purred as Logan quickened his pace, her hand went to grab his ass and his fingers found her clit and began expertly manipulating it as she squirmed beneath him.
Logan kissed her, it was all he could do from making some declarations that he knew he shouldn't make as he watched her getting lost in her orgasm. He loved the noises that she made. The way her body would twist and contort and although he was never the kind of guy who would complain about wearing a condom, it had practically been beaten into him as a teenager, there was something about knowing how much she trusted him that meant more than he had expected it to. "Come on baby," Logan urged her on as Rory let out a gasp at the height of her orgasm, her thrusts that had been meeting him slowed a moment later as Logan came inside of her. "I love…" he paused for a moment as he buried his head in the crook of her neck, "I love making you come." He couldn't…no he couldn't declare that he was in love with the woman he was sleeping with while his dick was still inside of her. It was too cliche, he wasn't that guy…and they weren't…well they weren't supposed to feel things.
Rory blushed and pressed another kiss against his lips before he pulled himself off of her. "I need to clean up," she told him awkwardly, "and you need to go home…"
"Do you think…" Logan pulled his boxers back on as Rory sat up and brought her knees to her chest, he wasn't sure exactly why she was going for modesty at this point but he wouldn't question it. Logan rubbed the back of his neck with his left hand and Rory tried not to cringe at the sight of his platinum wedding band. "I'd like to take you for dinner…next Friday?"
Rory felt her eyes widen as she heard him. They hadn't really enjoyed many meals. Certainly not ones that could be considered anything other than a business lunch or a dinner with clients when they were in town. "Dinner?" She repeated.
"Dinner and a movie, or…a show. I could get tickets to…something…" Logan handed Rory his shirt from the floor, he could tell she was feeling a bit exposed in the moment. He smiled as she pulled the button down on and did up two of the buttons leaving ample cleavage and most of her ass exposed as she stood up. "I just…thought it would be fun."
Rory leaned up and kissed him. She placed both of her hands on his cheeks and her thumbs gently stroked his 5 o'clock shadow. "Should we…"
"If I come up with a plan, will you take the chance with me? A night…maybe two? I'll let you know by Monday. Live a little. Come on Ace, you can live a hundred years without really living for a minute…"
"We have kids…I can't just vanish for a weekend. You were just gone for a week."
"I know," Logan ran a hand through his hair. He didn't know what was coming over him, but he knew he wanted to be with her more. To have more time with her. To just be with her. He knew it was selfish. He knew they shouldn't, but he couldn't help himself.
Rory smiled at him once more. "I need to get cleaned up." She looked around and found her dress and panties on the ground and then found her bra and Logan watched her for a moment before retreating to the bedroom to get changed himself. Rory took the opportunity as she stood in the gallery near the powder room to snap a photo of herself as she stood with nothing but his white button down on. She would save it for a rainy day and send it to him…those were the things Logan brought out in her. The sheer fact that anyone could ever hypothetically see that would be enough reason not to sext her own husband, but there was something about the way she felt wearing Logan's shirt that made her want to keep that moment forever. As she got dressed, she could hear his phone vibrating again, and once again there was that pang…that feeling in her gut about all the reasons they should't be doing what they were doing. All of the collateral damage when this went south. She wasn't trying to overhear him but as she walked to the bedroom to say goodbye she couldn't help but hear.
"Lil I didn't know it was her birthday today. Of course…" Logan had a fresh pair of pants on and Rory was sure he would simply leave his suit for his housekeeper to take care of. "I would never miss Daisy's birthday. Daddy is just at the airport in the bathroom and then I'm coming home…" he ran a hand through his hair and Rory could see that he hated lying to his daughter. It was a familiar feeling. She hated lying to Emma, and she hated hearing him lie to Lily and Noah. "Of course I will have cake. Tell mommy I am on my way home." Logan tossed the phone on his dresser and pulled a shirt from his closet and put it on, smoothing it out and looking at himself in the mirror quickly. "Do you mind locking up?" Logan asked as he walked towards Rory. She almost thought he would embrace her, but the flip had switched. The real world was back as Logan placed a quick peck on her cheek.
"I'll let you know about next week."
"Oh yeah," it was almost as though he had forgotten about the conversation. "Sounds good. I'll…I'll let you know the plan."
Logan had expected the drive back to Great Neck to be faster. He wasn't sure why, it was Friday, it was the middle of rush hour, and had he not been in such a rush to see his mistress he wouldn't have missed the impromptu birthday party for a rabbit. The logical part of him knew that Lily made up when Daisy celebrated her birthday as they did this a few times a year, but there was also the part of him that knew he had been ignoring calls from his wife so he could get in a quick screw, and maybe that was the part of himself he couldn't quite reconcile. By the time he arrived home, he wasn't completely sure the kids would've been able to convince their mother to keep the festivities going. As he entered the house through the garage he was relieved though. There were balloons hung from the ceiling as he entered the kitchen, leaving his suitcase in the mudroom. "Lil, Abs, Noah?" Logan shouted as he followed the fits of laughter and found his wife and children in the family room with no bunny rabbit in sight. "Did I miss the party?" Logan asked as Lily ran to embrace him. "Sorry I'm late Bean," Logan kissed the top of her head.
"Daisy is just resting," Lily explained, "partying is hard."
Logan laughed and gave Lily one more squeeze before walking over to his wife and leaning down to kiss her. Like always Abigail put her hand on his chest and lingered for a moment. He inhaled her familiar scent and hoped that he had managed to clean any lingering scent of Rory off his body. "You smell good," Logan smiled. He knew the scent well. Elixir Des Merveilles by Hermes. He had bought it for her many times.
Abigail smiled and kissed him once more. "Help me get the cake?" She bounced out of her chair in a way that he had only ever seen her do. "Lil, go get Daisy, Noah, turn off the television!"
Logan smiled as his wife took him by the hand and led them to the kitchen. He watched as her hips swayed in the long, buttoned front slip dress she was wearing. It was navy blue with floral accents and Logan was positive he'd never seen it before. "New dress?" He asked as they reached the kitchen and he saw that his wife had gone to the trouble of baking and decorating a cake for the event.
"I got it while you were gone," Abigail explained with a smile as she playfully pulled her husband towards her. "I missed you," she told him, both of her hands resting on his chest as she leaned in for a kiss.
Logan smiled and rested his head against hers, "I missed you too," he told her. It was a lie. Aside from talking to the kids twice during the week, he had barely thought of Abigail until it was time for him to come home, and as soon as he thought of coming home, after thinking of his children, he thought of Rory. He went to Rory. But now, standing in the kitchen seeing a perfectly homemade chocolate cake and decorations to celebrate a bunny and his beautiful wife staring at him with her gorgeous green eyes…well suddenly it felt like maybe he had missed her.
"I was thinking," Abigail moved her hands down to the front of his belt, giving it a playful tug, "once the kids are asleep," she moved her lips to his neck and Logan instinctively gave her access. "I could show you just how much I missed you…"
Logan closed his eyes and swallowed hard. This wasn't a problem he had ever had before. He had never gone directly from having sex with Rory to coming home to his wife wanting to have sex with him…but here he was…he couldn't do it. He couldn't do it to either of them. He couldn't betray Rory like that and he couldn't treat his wife that way. "Tomorrow," he told her, taking her hands in his and bringing them up to settle between them. "I'm exhausted babe."
"Mom!" Logan was thankful that they were interrupted by Lily's voice, "where is the cake? Daisy is ready!"
Logan had done the drive to Great Neck on autopilot, after all he had done it thousands of times before. Traffic wasn't great but also wasn't horrible. He didn't imagine his return to Manhattan would be fun, but that was a problem for later. There was still something strange about knocking on the front door of the home he had paid for. The home he had painstakingly designed and agonized over many of the features in…it wasn't his anymore. He didn't begrudge Abigail keeping the house. He understood her motives. He also knew that Rory would never have agreed to live there, so if Abigail hadn't wanted it, it would've eventually been sold. He didn't imagine his life with Rory ending up in a big sprawling mansion outside of the city…he figured they would find a penthouse somewhere and enjoy art shows downtown, trendy little restaurants when the kids were gone and panoramic views of the city when they were all together. He was surprised when the door swung open just a moment later and his ex-wife stood before him in a pair of dark jeans and an emerald green silk top. "Hey," Logan smiled and followed her inside.
"How was the drive?" Abigail asked as they walked through the house to the living room. "Couldn't have been too awful? Do you want a drink?"
Logan shook his head, "I'm fine," he assured her as he looked around. He noticed that a few pieces of art had changed and the wedding photos that used to be out were now gone. There were still a few photos of Logan, Abigail and the kids..but none of just him and Abigail. That made sense of course…he supposed he was just viewing things differently now that she had changed her last name.
"So…" Abigail sat down and crossed her legs, she took a quick glance at her Rolex, "I do have plans tonight…"
Logan nodded. "Of course," he agreed, "well…I got the e-mail…"
"So you said," Abigail raised an eyebrow, waiting a moment to see if he had anything else to say on the subject. "Logan you couldn't have expected me to just keep everything the same? Did you? I mean…honestly, you've moved in with another woman…you went to a wedding with her," she added pointedly, establishing that she knew about their weekend away which Logan knew meant Rose had told her. "I told Rose not to be a bitch," Abigail confirmed her source, "at least not on my account. If she wants to hate Rory she can come up with reasons of her own. I have no interest in that."
"Thank you."
"So what is it then? Why is this bothering you so much that you drove to Long Island to talk about it?" Abigail asked him. She knew him well enough to know his tells, even if she had not known he was cheating on her for several years…maybe Rory knew him better, but she still knew him like the back of her hand. A few months and divorce papers didn't change that.
"I expected it," Logan admitted. "You are…you are smart and beautiful and why would you want to be tied to your asshole ex-husband who cheated on you?" He smirked, self deprecation was his go to defence mechanism when it came to Abigail these days. "I guess I just thought we would talk. I didn't expect an e-mail…I thought we would talk about these things and the kids."
"This doesn't effect the kids," Abigail countered. "It only effects me…and apparently your wounded ego? You couldn't have gotten so used to having two women in your life that you just can't handle losing me now?" She joked.
"I'm being an asshole, aren't I?" Logan shifted awkwardly in his seat. This was weirder than he had hoped. He always wanted things to be normal between them, good between them…once they got over the initial pain and anger, things had levelled out and they had been good.
Abigail nodded and then laughed. "I'm dating someone," she admitted softly.
"That is where you're going tonight?" Logan tried to keep his expression neutral. He didn't want Abigail. He was in love with Rory, but the idea of her moving on…the idea that someone else would be with his kids more than he was, the idea that someone else could hurt her like he had…it was a lot for him to digest.
"He's taking me to dinner while the kids are with my mom. I'll be back tonight," she assured him. She wasn't sure why she was offering him an explanation, he certainly wasn't entitled to one.
"Where did you…meet him?" Logan asked cautiously. "Do you know…about him? His background? Has he been married? Kids…"
"We met at the club," Abigail told him. "And we are dating. I am getting to know him. I'm sure you can recall when things were new with you and Rory and you were just getting to know each other differently…you know…while you were married to me?"
Logan cringed. He knew he had no right to ask these questions, but he cared about her and that wasn't something he could turn off. "So he's local?"
Abigail nodded her head and tucked a long tendril of blonde hair behind her ear. "He is."
"Does he have a name?" Logan paused as Abigail nodded, "will you tell me what it is? I promise I won't look him up or anything…"
"Logan you didn't come here to talk about this," Abigail shook her head and changed the subject. "You don't get to march in here and ask about my dating life. You literally destroyed our marriage because you were fucking one of your employees. And I try…I try to play nice, but sometimes it is hard and I resent you coming in here and implying that I can't make sound decisions. I can find a man and it doesn't matter if you approve or not. I'm going to have to spend Noah's birthday with the woman who took you away from me. So you can just deal with whatever it is you are feeling."
"Can I take you up on that drink?" Logan stood up, he needed a moment. A moment to digest it all. There was a reason that most of their communication had been via text or e-mail, some over the phone, but very little face to face…and it was this. They weren't quite equipped for it yet.
"Help yourself," Abigail called, he was already halfway to the kitchen. She was relieved when he reappeared with a bottle of Perrier, she didn't want to lecture him about the risks of drinking and driving. "What is going on? Are you alright?" She asked after he had taken a sip of the cold beverage.
Logan wiped his lips with the back of his hand and nodded. "I'm fine," he told her. "There is…" he paused, he wanted to be delicate with how he spoke about Rory and Dean, after all it wasn't really his story to share, but given the violent nature of Dean's outburst and the fact that Abigail was the mother of his children who would be in the home as well, he knew she had a right to know. "Emma has moved in with us full time at the apartment."
"O…kay," Abigail inhaled deeply. She had no problem with it except for the fact that it meant her children were less likely to get any one on one time with their father which she didn't exactly love.
"Rory and I are going to expedite looking for a bigger place…enough rooms for the kids," he explained. "But the problem is…Rory's ex…"
"Dean."
"Yes, Dean. Well he and Rory got into an argument the other day about some of the things at their house, and Dean got physical." Logan felt a weird sense of relief when he saw Abigail look at him with a mixture of sympathy and shock. "She has some bruising on her arm, physically she will be fine but emotionally…you can imagine…"
Abigail didn't even realize that her eyes were watering until she was using the pad of her index finger to dab the tears. "No…I can't…I can't imagine because I can never imagine you doing anything like that…"
Logan was relieved at that revelation, but the entire situation still infuriated him. "So he has some anger issues, and we just didn't…I didn't feel it was safe for Emma to be there. I mean, I can't imagine leaving Lily or Noah alone with someone who has that kind of rage…"
"I get it," Abigail nodded. She supported him completely and while she would talk to him later about having one on one time with Noah and Lily, she knew that this was what was necessary in the moment. "Did she call the police? Rory I mean?"
Logan shook his head. "She doesn't want him to lose any more than he has. There is a lot of guilt…"
"So you say," Abigail quipped.
"Anyway, I just wanted you to know and I didn't want you to be blindsided by any of it. I don't think he is any threat to anyone but we have security and the doorman…the lawyers are involved and the custody agreement will be amended for supervised visits at most and hopefully he will get into anger management, counselling…"
Abigail nodded her head and the two sat in silence for a moment. There was a certain amount of awkwardness that remained as they tried to figure out a new normal in terms of their interactions. After a couple of minutes she inhaled deeply and then spoke, "his name is Tom…he's a paediatric oncologist and his name is Tom Hanks."
Logan sucked his lower lip into his mouth and tried not to laugh. "I always thought he and Rita were such a solid couple…I mean, I've met Colin a few times. Good dude…"
Abigail rolled her eyes and playfully swatted at him. "It was 1979, I don't even think that Tom Hanks was a thing yet. Tom is a popular name!"
"Is Chet going to call you mommy?" Logan joked.
"Shut up!" Abigail burst into laughter, Logan had always been able to make her laugh. "It has only been a month or so, but he is very nice."
"I'm glad you're happy. But if he hurts you, I will kick his ass. Even if he is Woody from Toy Story…"
Abigail rubbed her temples and smiled, "you're never going to meet him?"
"Come on, I'll toast at the wedding," Logan began singing softly, "you've got a friend in me…"