A/N: Thank you guys so much for all of the reviews. This is the chapter out of the whole story that I am most proud of, I like writing mean nasty bitter Logan. Great fun for me, and I hope you guys enjoy reading it.
Chapter Five
Logan stared dumfounded as Max swung the tiny girl up onto her right hip, smiling. "Hey Maddy Boo." Max said playfully. "Did you grow since I last saw you, baby doll?"
"No, Mommy!" The toddler said giggling. "It was just since breakfast."
"Well your huge! I can barely carry you, Maddy! You need to stop growing!" Maddy giggled again and laid her head on Max's shoulder. When she spotted Logan standing nearby staring at her, she turned back to Max. "Mommy, who is that?" She said in a mock whisper.
"Uh, that is a…friend of mine. Say hi to Logan." Max said carefully, avoiding eye contact with him.
"Hello." She said soberly, blinking her big blue eyes at Logan.
Logan stared, unable to speak.
"Are you hungry, Maddy-boo?" Max asked desperately. "You want to eat something with Mommy?"
"Do we have any apple juice?" Maddy asked hopefully.
"Why yes we do." Max said as she turned and walked into the kitchen.
Logan continued to stare, shocked thoroughly. The black woman who had followed Madelyn in watched him for a moment.
So this was Maddy's father, the one that Max refused to talk about. Well, then, now she knew where the child got her hauntingly blue eyes. She finally took pity on the man and stepped forward and offered a hand. "Hi, I am Caroline Brant, I live next door. And you would be?"
"Logan Cale." He said in a far away voice, watching as Max pulled a cup of apple juice out of the fridge, listening to Maddy as she related the story about seeing a pretty kitty-cat when she went to the park that afternoon. "What is her name?" Logan asked distantly. Caroline resisted the urge to smack Logan. He was obviously Maddy's father, never seen her before, and didn't even known the girls name. "Madelyn Elizabeth Guevara." She said, stressing Max's last name. With that, she flipped her hair over her shoulder and stalked into the kitchen, leaving Logan to stare blankly at the child.
Caroline walked over to Max who was digging in the freezer for something to make for dinner. Dropping Maddy's bag onto the counter, Caroline spoke under her breath. "Girl, you and I need to have a little chat about the man in your hallway."
Max whispered back as she pulled a package of frozen chicken out of the freezer. "I know. Do you mind distracting Madelyn while I figure out how my entire life got shot to hell in the last ten minuets." She muttered fiercely as Maddy continued to chatter, if to no one but herself.
"Hey Maddy. Why don't you go show Miss Caroline the new bear that Aunt Jace sent you?" Max asked. Caroline helped Maddy off the counter, and the child ran off, pausing near Logan with a curious glance, and then clambering up the stairs.
Logan stared blankly after the child, watching as she rounded the corner at the top of the banister. Logan then turned back to Max who was leaning against the counter with her elbows, her head in her hands. "Why didn't--"
"Stop." Max cut him off. "We are not having this conversation when my daughter is in the next room." She continued as she stalked across the room and grabbed her denim jacket off the back of a chair. "You want to talk, we do it outside." With that she wrenched open the back door and walked out into the dusky night.
Logan looked over his shoulder, hearing the sound of childish giggling floating down the stairs. Running a hand over his face, he followed Max outside.
Crossing the wooden deck, he spotted Max at the edge of her small backyard, pacing back and forth with jerky movements. Logan sank down on the edge of the deck to sit weakly on the top step.
When Max heard him approach, she whirled around. "What the hell are you doing--"
"Do you think you have any right to question me?" Logan interjected. "Do you think you have any right at all. How about I ask you a question. Why the hell didn't you tell me I had a daughter?" His voice started to rise as he spoke.
"Please, keep your voice down. I don't want Maddy to hear."
"Fine." Logan continued in a harsh voice. "Did you know before you left Seattle?" Logan laughed sarcastically. "Or was that why you left? You knew before you left didn't you?"
Max leaned back, crossing her arms, confirming his suspicions. "Why didn't you tell me? Did you think I didn't have a right to know? Or is it standard military operation--"
"What did you want me to do Logan?" Max snapped. "Should I have casually mentioned in passing while we were eating dinner that night 'Oh by the way, remember that time a couple of months ago when you were drunk and I was in heat and we accidentally slept together, well oppsie, I'm pregnant." Max through an arm up in the air exasperated.
"Well, that would have been a lot better than not telling me at all and just disappearing!" Logan shouted back.
"I did what was best for me, for my child."
"So, what am I supposed to thank you for running away with my child?"
"No, not your child Logan, my child. I raised her on my own, and you have no claim to her."
"And whose fault was that, Max?" Logan asked jumping to his feet. "Don't turn this into a 'I'm a single mother' sob stories. You raising her on your own is no one's fault but your own."
"Fault? I am perfectly happy this way! I don't need your help, we're doing just fine on our own, thanks for asking."
"Oh don't pull this shit Max! You blatantly lied to me, to your friends, to everyone. You left so you didn't have to deal with the consequences of your actions."
"My actions? You were their too if I remember correctly."
"Yeah I was, so don't you think I had a right to know that you were pregnant?"
"You're talking about her like I did something wrong. Don't talk about Maddy as if she was a mistake. She is the best thing that has ever happened in my life, and I'm not going to let you say otherwise."
"I am not saying she is a mistake, but you had no right to not tell me, no right whatsoever."
"Don't you think I know that?! I had to live with the fact that I left the only man I ever trusted completely behind, but you know what really topped everything off? I get to see Madelyn every day and see you; I look into her eyes and see you. Don't you think that is hard enough?"
"Do you think that makes up for anything?"
"What do you want me to say Logan? You obviously aren't going to understand that what I did was best, whether you agree or not."
"Why is you lying to me best?"
"Think about it Logan. One, Lydecker knew I was still in Seattle. Staying there on my own was risk enough, not less having to think about my unborn child. Second, I would have told you, and I know perfectly well how you would have reacted. First, you'd haul me off to some doctor, I'd get poked and prodded, and then Lydecker would probably have found out. Plus, your old fashioned, you would have dome something stupid like proposed marriage to me, a forced proposal that I would have probably kidded myself into thinking was real, then we would have ended up hating each other for it." Max trailed off, anger spent. "I wasn't going to raise my child like that." She finished.
"Let's take them one by one. Lydecker hadn't found you in the what, two years you'd been in Seattle. There were plenty of doctors that I knew that could be trusted. And I wouldn't have proposed anything without meaning it."
They both lapsed into silence. "Look, Logan, I am sorry if I hurt you. But I did do what was best, and I'd do the exact same thing again. I have to go put Maddy to bed, why don't you come back tomorrow, and we'll talk this out, ok?"
"Are you kidding me, Max? I am not leaving your side for a moment. If I would leave now, you'd have your sh** packed and be gone in a matter of minutes." He laughed mirthlessly. "I am not stupid Max, I know you all to well."
Max didn't reply, because he was exactly right. Logan stared at her for a moment, then turned and walked back into the house. Max sank to the ground and pulled her legs to her chest and laid her head on her knees.
A few minutes later, Caroline walked out onto the back porch. "Max, are you ok?"
"I think so." She said quietly.
"That's Madelyn's father isn't it?"
"Can't you just look at him and her?" Max asked, choking back tears.
"Did he know that you were pregnant when you left."
"No."
"Well, what happened?"
"I think he is going to try and take my baby away from me." Max said, finally giving into her tears.
Chapter Five
Logan stared dumfounded as Max swung the tiny girl up onto her right hip, smiling. "Hey Maddy Boo." Max said playfully. "Did you grow since I last saw you, baby doll?"
"No, Mommy!" The toddler said giggling. "It was just since breakfast."
"Well your huge! I can barely carry you, Maddy! You need to stop growing!" Maddy giggled again and laid her head on Max's shoulder. When she spotted Logan standing nearby staring at her, she turned back to Max. "Mommy, who is that?" She said in a mock whisper.
"Uh, that is a…friend of mine. Say hi to Logan." Max said carefully, avoiding eye contact with him.
"Hello." She said soberly, blinking her big blue eyes at Logan.
Logan stared, unable to speak.
"Are you hungry, Maddy-boo?" Max asked desperately. "You want to eat something with Mommy?"
"Do we have any apple juice?" Maddy asked hopefully.
"Why yes we do." Max said as she turned and walked into the kitchen.
Logan continued to stare, shocked thoroughly. The black woman who had followed Madelyn in watched him for a moment.
So this was Maddy's father, the one that Max refused to talk about. Well, then, now she knew where the child got her hauntingly blue eyes. She finally took pity on the man and stepped forward and offered a hand. "Hi, I am Caroline Brant, I live next door. And you would be?"
"Logan Cale." He said in a far away voice, watching as Max pulled a cup of apple juice out of the fridge, listening to Maddy as she related the story about seeing a pretty kitty-cat when she went to the park that afternoon. "What is her name?" Logan asked distantly. Caroline resisted the urge to smack Logan. He was obviously Maddy's father, never seen her before, and didn't even known the girls name. "Madelyn Elizabeth Guevara." She said, stressing Max's last name. With that, she flipped her hair over her shoulder and stalked into the kitchen, leaving Logan to stare blankly at the child.
Caroline walked over to Max who was digging in the freezer for something to make for dinner. Dropping Maddy's bag onto the counter, Caroline spoke under her breath. "Girl, you and I need to have a little chat about the man in your hallway."
Max whispered back as she pulled a package of frozen chicken out of the freezer. "I know. Do you mind distracting Madelyn while I figure out how my entire life got shot to hell in the last ten minuets." She muttered fiercely as Maddy continued to chatter, if to no one but herself.
"Hey Maddy. Why don't you go show Miss Caroline the new bear that Aunt Jace sent you?" Max asked. Caroline helped Maddy off the counter, and the child ran off, pausing near Logan with a curious glance, and then clambering up the stairs.
Logan stared blankly after the child, watching as she rounded the corner at the top of the banister. Logan then turned back to Max who was leaning against the counter with her elbows, her head in her hands. "Why didn't--"
"Stop." Max cut him off. "We are not having this conversation when my daughter is in the next room." She continued as she stalked across the room and grabbed her denim jacket off the back of a chair. "You want to talk, we do it outside." With that she wrenched open the back door and walked out into the dusky night.
Logan looked over his shoulder, hearing the sound of childish giggling floating down the stairs. Running a hand over his face, he followed Max outside.
Crossing the wooden deck, he spotted Max at the edge of her small backyard, pacing back and forth with jerky movements. Logan sank down on the edge of the deck to sit weakly on the top step.
When Max heard him approach, she whirled around. "What the hell are you doing--"
"Do you think you have any right to question me?" Logan interjected. "Do you think you have any right at all. How about I ask you a question. Why the hell didn't you tell me I had a daughter?" His voice started to rise as he spoke.
"Please, keep your voice down. I don't want Maddy to hear."
"Fine." Logan continued in a harsh voice. "Did you know before you left Seattle?" Logan laughed sarcastically. "Or was that why you left? You knew before you left didn't you?"
Max leaned back, crossing her arms, confirming his suspicions. "Why didn't you tell me? Did you think I didn't have a right to know? Or is it standard military operation--"
"What did you want me to do Logan?" Max snapped. "Should I have casually mentioned in passing while we were eating dinner that night 'Oh by the way, remember that time a couple of months ago when you were drunk and I was in heat and we accidentally slept together, well oppsie, I'm pregnant." Max through an arm up in the air exasperated.
"Well, that would have been a lot better than not telling me at all and just disappearing!" Logan shouted back.
"I did what was best for me, for my child."
"So, what am I supposed to thank you for running away with my child?"
"No, not your child Logan, my child. I raised her on my own, and you have no claim to her."
"And whose fault was that, Max?" Logan asked jumping to his feet. "Don't turn this into a 'I'm a single mother' sob stories. You raising her on your own is no one's fault but your own."
"Fault? I am perfectly happy this way! I don't need your help, we're doing just fine on our own, thanks for asking."
"Oh don't pull this shit Max! You blatantly lied to me, to your friends, to everyone. You left so you didn't have to deal with the consequences of your actions."
"My actions? You were their too if I remember correctly."
"Yeah I was, so don't you think I had a right to know that you were pregnant?"
"You're talking about her like I did something wrong. Don't talk about Maddy as if she was a mistake. She is the best thing that has ever happened in my life, and I'm not going to let you say otherwise."
"I am not saying she is a mistake, but you had no right to not tell me, no right whatsoever."
"Don't you think I know that?! I had to live with the fact that I left the only man I ever trusted completely behind, but you know what really topped everything off? I get to see Madelyn every day and see you; I look into her eyes and see you. Don't you think that is hard enough?"
"Do you think that makes up for anything?"
"What do you want me to say Logan? You obviously aren't going to understand that what I did was best, whether you agree or not."
"Why is you lying to me best?"
"Think about it Logan. One, Lydecker knew I was still in Seattle. Staying there on my own was risk enough, not less having to think about my unborn child. Second, I would have told you, and I know perfectly well how you would have reacted. First, you'd haul me off to some doctor, I'd get poked and prodded, and then Lydecker would probably have found out. Plus, your old fashioned, you would have dome something stupid like proposed marriage to me, a forced proposal that I would have probably kidded myself into thinking was real, then we would have ended up hating each other for it." Max trailed off, anger spent. "I wasn't going to raise my child like that." She finished.
"Let's take them one by one. Lydecker hadn't found you in the what, two years you'd been in Seattle. There were plenty of doctors that I knew that could be trusted. And I wouldn't have proposed anything without meaning it."
They both lapsed into silence. "Look, Logan, I am sorry if I hurt you. But I did do what was best, and I'd do the exact same thing again. I have to go put Maddy to bed, why don't you come back tomorrow, and we'll talk this out, ok?"
"Are you kidding me, Max? I am not leaving your side for a moment. If I would leave now, you'd have your sh** packed and be gone in a matter of minutes." He laughed mirthlessly. "I am not stupid Max, I know you all to well."
Max didn't reply, because he was exactly right. Logan stared at her for a moment, then turned and walked back into the house. Max sank to the ground and pulled her legs to her chest and laid her head on her knees.
A few minutes later, Caroline walked out onto the back porch. "Max, are you ok?"
"I think so." She said quietly.
"That's Madelyn's father isn't it?"
"Can't you just look at him and her?" Max asked, choking back tears.
"Did he know that you were pregnant when you left."
"No."
"Well, what happened?"
"I think he is going to try and take my baby away from me." Max said, finally giving into her tears.