Here we go, Max is finally pinning Logan down! Enjoy and please reward me with your review.
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Chapter 8
When Max came out of the bathroom she could smell the full aroma of the steaks and her mouth began to water. She was so hungry! Well, she decided, her conversation with Logan would have to wait until after the main course! She met Logan in the kitchen, where he was just beginning to clean away the cooking utensils.
When he heard Max' steps he turned around and eyed her up and down.
"Wow, you look hot in my clothes!", he teased. "Should have offered you to wear them earlier!"
"...Ready to eat?" He added quickly, when he saw that his remark provoked a slight redness on Max' cheeks.
"Sure! Like I said, I'm starving!" she answered quickly. Logan filled the plates and handed them to Max who was curiously looking over his shoulder.
"Would you mind carrying them over?" he said "I'll take care of the wine".
Max had finished her steak within a few minutes and had another helping of vegetables and potatoes. Logan took his time, enjoying the fact that his guest seemed to like his meal. He couldn't help but smile at the way Max gulped down the food.
When she was finished, Max looked over at Logan's half empty plate and asked innocently:
"'You not hungry?"
Logan chuckled. "Not as hungry as you are, I suppose."
"Oh, ... I didn't mean to... you're not finishing this?" she asked eyeing the leftovers of Logan's steak.
Logan's smile broadened. This woman was just unbelievable. But if this was what his personal super-soldier needed...
"Go ahead" he said, shoving over his plate. "As long as you leave some room for the desert!"
"Oh, I will, don't worry" Max replied already busying herself with the rest of Logan's steak.
When Max was finished, Logan moved to the kitchen to get the desert from the fridge.
Max sat there still relishing the good taste of the delicious meal lingering in her mouth. She took a deep sip of the red wine and thought about how to start Logan up on the topic she was going to discuss with him. She would have preferred to stay silent and cherish the moment. But she wasn't going to deny nor let him deny that something was wrong. She had to find out tonight. Logan came back with the desert, which looked delicious.
"Wow, this looks heavenly!" Max exclaimed. "What is this?"
"It's called Tiramisu. It's an Italian speciality. It's made of Mascarpone-an Italian cream cheese, biscuits, coffee, some sweet liquor, eggs and cocoa powder."
He put a piece of the creamy desert onto Max' plate. "Try it."
Max took a spoonful. "This tastes even better than it looks! Where did you get the recipe from?"
"My mom used to make it every year for my birthday, because it was my favourite. I didn't even want a cake if she just made me this." He smiled.
Okay Max, ask him now, she told herself. She took another sip of wine, before she started.
"This case, you told me about this morning. ...Did you find out anything new?" she asked, trying to sound casual.
"No, Matt Sung is taking care of the case now, like I told you." Logan said reluctantly.
"How did you find out about that case anyway?" Max continued.
"One of my informants got a hint. ...People were donating money to the foundation, but when the children's clinic needed a new playing area, they didn't have the money to finance it." He took a spoonful Tiramisu himself.
"The hospital would have needed some renovation years ago, but.."
"You ever been there, yourself?" Max interrupted.
Logan looked at her suspiciously. "I...had to meet an...informant there, some years ago." He explained.
Suddenly he seemed to tighten up to her questioning and avoided her gaze.
"So there was a similar case already back then?" Max insisted.
"Something similar, yeah." Logan mumbled. "But I figured it out.." he added, hoping that Max would finally drop the topic.
"Wow, I can't understand how people can be so brutal as to take advantage of those poor innocent children!" Max said, plunging her spoon into the cream.
Logan sighed: "Yeah, NO ONE can understand that, Max! But that's the way it is." He tried to cut her off.
"All we can do is try and give those bastards what they deserve!"
Max looked at Logan in surprise: "That's not the kind of speech you used to give. Where is the usual lecture?"
"No lecture today." Logan snapped. "I'm tired....Just go ahead and finish your desert." He picked up his plate and wheeled towards the kitchen.
Max dropped her spoon onto her plate and jumped from her chair.
"What is YOUR problem?", she yelled, following him. "You have been acting strange ever since you told me about that case!"
Logan didn't look at her. Instead he started cleaning the dishes noisily.
"I shouldn't have told you in the first place." He eventually uttered. "Just forget about it, okay?!".
Max put her hand on her hip and stared at his neck. "Why? I thought we were partners. I don't understand why you are so secretive about this stupid case!" She couldn't help but feel offended by him locking her out.
Logan whirled around in his chair and pierced her with an angry look. "It's just none of your business, so leave it alone!"
Max was taken aback by this forceful reaction. "Well, I'm sorry I asked. I won't harass you any longer. Thanks for the meal. Good night." With that she turned on her heels and left the room. Logan sat there. Staring at the spot where Max had just stood. He buried his face in his hands and sighed deeply. The realisation of what he had just said struck him hard and he cursed himself for ruining this evening, which he had meant to be perfect.
Max' digging into the subject had aroused his anger, because he didn't want to deal with all the feelings that came back with it. But now, that she had finally left the subject and him alone, he just felt empty and lonely.
Max bolted from the kitchen and went to get her coat, when she came past Logan's
office. She could her Logan wash the dishes in the kitchen, so he obviously wasn't coming after her. Fine, she thought, if he is not going to tell me, I could just as well take a quick look myself. I have to find out what he's hiding! She sneaked into the office and looked around. There were a lot of papers lying around. She didn't even know where to look. But it was probably best to start looking on his computer. She new that Logan had most of his information in files on there. Just when she was about to boot the computer, she saw a beige paper folder, lying, next to the monitor. Logan had scribbled "The foundation" on the cover. Bingo! She opened it and skipped through the pages. They were filled with numbers, donated amounts, and the names of donors. Then she found something that caught her attention. It was the copy of a Thank you letter seemingly addressed to one of the bigger industrial donors. It had just the usual stereotypic phrases in it, but the pre-printed head of the letter puzzled Max. Beneath the words "Make you Smile Foundation", the founders were listed: H. Simmons, A.C. Gilles, F. Hillmore, J.L.Cale. Max stared at the names. What the hell did that mean? Why hadn't Logan told her? After all couldn't he be proud, if his family had contributed to the foundation?
Logan dried his hands and put the towel down. He felt bad for yelling at Max. He needed to talk to her and apologise. Maybe, she wouldn't be too far away. Maybe if he paged her, he could convince her to come back and listen to him. He didn't want this evening to end like this. He didn't want to be alone. He didn't feel like sleeping either. He didn't want those bad dreams to come back haunting him.
He left the kitchen to look for his phone.
Max continued to leaf through the pages until she found an old newspaper article in the very back of the folder. It dated from the year 1991. Max skipped through the lines.: Thanks to the generosity of founder J.L. Cale...founded on February 12, 1991...Mr. Cale said that ...the loss of his daughter...to help other terminally sick children...and fulfil their dearest wish..."
Max read those lines again. She still didn't get the full picture, but she had certainly stumbled onto something big.
Logan continued his search for the phone. He could have sworn he had left it in the living room, but lately he had been so occupied by all kinds of thoughts that he couldn't really concentrate. He wheeled towards his office and was surprised to see Max' coat lying on the couch. She probably had been so infuriated that she had forgotten to take it.
Max heard the sound of rubber wheels on the wooden floor. It was nearing the office. Shit! She thought. What am I gonna do now!? She looked around hectically, but it was too late to get out of here unnoticed. She managed to shove the article back into the folder and close it before Logan rounded the corner.
"Max!" he said confused. "I thought you had left. I was just going to...What are you doing here?" he asked puzzled.
"Logan, I ...ahem.." Max stuttered, searching for the right words.
It only took him one look to realise what she was holding I her hands.
"What the hell are you doing?" he asked again, his voice being growing more intense.
"I just, thought..." Max muttered. " I needed to know..."
"What!?? " Logan said incredulous. "I can't believe this! You're going through my stuff behind my back?!" He shook his head in disbelieve. She could see the disappointment in his eyes.
"Logan, I'm sorry!" she said remorseful. " It's just...I didn't know... You were so secretive! I thought... you might need some help."
Logan clenched his teeth. "I TOLD YOU I DIDN'T" he yelled.
"Logan, please, listen to me..." Max said meekly. "I just wanted to help you!"
" I DIDN'T ASK YOU TO, DID I ?? !!"
"I know, but...I found this... article...from 1991... It says..."
Logan furiously wheeled towards her. Max backed away. She had never seen him so angry. She felt like he was going to slap her any minute.
"THAT'S NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS" he exclaimed, his voice trembling with anger.
"PUT THAT DOWN, NOW!" he yelled, motioning towards the folder she was still firmly holding in her hands.
Max stumbled backwards, bumping into the desk. The folder fell from her hands and its contents scattered all over the floor. The article landing right in front of Logan's feet. Logan looked down at it and shook his head slowly. He stared down at his feet, breathing hard and motioned eagerly towards the door. His voice was as cold as ice now, but he didn't yell anymore. Max closed her eyes.
"Get out of here." Logan said, his voice lacking all emotions. Max would have preferred if he had continued to yell at her. But there was nothing she could say to his toneless command.
She hesitated for a second, then bent down and started to pick up the papers from the floor.
"I said GET OUT OF HERE." Logan repeated, his hand still pointing towards the door.
Max put the papers down on the table and silently left the room.
Logan sat there, his head ringing and heard the front door slam shut.
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Chapter 8
When Max came out of the bathroom she could smell the full aroma of the steaks and her mouth began to water. She was so hungry! Well, she decided, her conversation with Logan would have to wait until after the main course! She met Logan in the kitchen, where he was just beginning to clean away the cooking utensils.
When he heard Max' steps he turned around and eyed her up and down.
"Wow, you look hot in my clothes!", he teased. "Should have offered you to wear them earlier!"
"...Ready to eat?" He added quickly, when he saw that his remark provoked a slight redness on Max' cheeks.
"Sure! Like I said, I'm starving!" she answered quickly. Logan filled the plates and handed them to Max who was curiously looking over his shoulder.
"Would you mind carrying them over?" he said "I'll take care of the wine".
Max had finished her steak within a few minutes and had another helping of vegetables and potatoes. Logan took his time, enjoying the fact that his guest seemed to like his meal. He couldn't help but smile at the way Max gulped down the food.
When she was finished, Max looked over at Logan's half empty plate and asked innocently:
"'You not hungry?"
Logan chuckled. "Not as hungry as you are, I suppose."
"Oh, ... I didn't mean to... you're not finishing this?" she asked eyeing the leftovers of Logan's steak.
Logan's smile broadened. This woman was just unbelievable. But if this was what his personal super-soldier needed...
"Go ahead" he said, shoving over his plate. "As long as you leave some room for the desert!"
"Oh, I will, don't worry" Max replied already busying herself with the rest of Logan's steak.
When Max was finished, Logan moved to the kitchen to get the desert from the fridge.
Max sat there still relishing the good taste of the delicious meal lingering in her mouth. She took a deep sip of the red wine and thought about how to start Logan up on the topic she was going to discuss with him. She would have preferred to stay silent and cherish the moment. But she wasn't going to deny nor let him deny that something was wrong. She had to find out tonight. Logan came back with the desert, which looked delicious.
"Wow, this looks heavenly!" Max exclaimed. "What is this?"
"It's called Tiramisu. It's an Italian speciality. It's made of Mascarpone-an Italian cream cheese, biscuits, coffee, some sweet liquor, eggs and cocoa powder."
He put a piece of the creamy desert onto Max' plate. "Try it."
Max took a spoonful. "This tastes even better than it looks! Where did you get the recipe from?"
"My mom used to make it every year for my birthday, because it was my favourite. I didn't even want a cake if she just made me this." He smiled.
Okay Max, ask him now, she told herself. She took another sip of wine, before she started.
"This case, you told me about this morning. ...Did you find out anything new?" she asked, trying to sound casual.
"No, Matt Sung is taking care of the case now, like I told you." Logan said reluctantly.
"How did you find out about that case anyway?" Max continued.
"One of my informants got a hint. ...People were donating money to the foundation, but when the children's clinic needed a new playing area, they didn't have the money to finance it." He took a spoonful Tiramisu himself.
"The hospital would have needed some renovation years ago, but.."
"You ever been there, yourself?" Max interrupted.
Logan looked at her suspiciously. "I...had to meet an...informant there, some years ago." He explained.
Suddenly he seemed to tighten up to her questioning and avoided her gaze.
"So there was a similar case already back then?" Max insisted.
"Something similar, yeah." Logan mumbled. "But I figured it out.." he added, hoping that Max would finally drop the topic.
"Wow, I can't understand how people can be so brutal as to take advantage of those poor innocent children!" Max said, plunging her spoon into the cream.
Logan sighed: "Yeah, NO ONE can understand that, Max! But that's the way it is." He tried to cut her off.
"All we can do is try and give those bastards what they deserve!"
Max looked at Logan in surprise: "That's not the kind of speech you used to give. Where is the usual lecture?"
"No lecture today." Logan snapped. "I'm tired....Just go ahead and finish your desert." He picked up his plate and wheeled towards the kitchen.
Max dropped her spoon onto her plate and jumped from her chair.
"What is YOUR problem?", she yelled, following him. "You have been acting strange ever since you told me about that case!"
Logan didn't look at her. Instead he started cleaning the dishes noisily.
"I shouldn't have told you in the first place." He eventually uttered. "Just forget about it, okay?!".
Max put her hand on her hip and stared at his neck. "Why? I thought we were partners. I don't understand why you are so secretive about this stupid case!" She couldn't help but feel offended by him locking her out.
Logan whirled around in his chair and pierced her with an angry look. "It's just none of your business, so leave it alone!"
Max was taken aback by this forceful reaction. "Well, I'm sorry I asked. I won't harass you any longer. Thanks for the meal. Good night." With that she turned on her heels and left the room. Logan sat there. Staring at the spot where Max had just stood. He buried his face in his hands and sighed deeply. The realisation of what he had just said struck him hard and he cursed himself for ruining this evening, which he had meant to be perfect.
Max' digging into the subject had aroused his anger, because he didn't want to deal with all the feelings that came back with it. But now, that she had finally left the subject and him alone, he just felt empty and lonely.
Max bolted from the kitchen and went to get her coat, when she came past Logan's
office. She could her Logan wash the dishes in the kitchen, so he obviously wasn't coming after her. Fine, she thought, if he is not going to tell me, I could just as well take a quick look myself. I have to find out what he's hiding! She sneaked into the office and looked around. There were a lot of papers lying around. She didn't even know where to look. But it was probably best to start looking on his computer. She new that Logan had most of his information in files on there. Just when she was about to boot the computer, she saw a beige paper folder, lying, next to the monitor. Logan had scribbled "The foundation" on the cover. Bingo! She opened it and skipped through the pages. They were filled with numbers, donated amounts, and the names of donors. Then she found something that caught her attention. It was the copy of a Thank you letter seemingly addressed to one of the bigger industrial donors. It had just the usual stereotypic phrases in it, but the pre-printed head of the letter puzzled Max. Beneath the words "Make you Smile Foundation", the founders were listed: H. Simmons, A.C. Gilles, F. Hillmore, J.L.Cale. Max stared at the names. What the hell did that mean? Why hadn't Logan told her? After all couldn't he be proud, if his family had contributed to the foundation?
Logan dried his hands and put the towel down. He felt bad for yelling at Max. He needed to talk to her and apologise. Maybe, she wouldn't be too far away. Maybe if he paged her, he could convince her to come back and listen to him. He didn't want this evening to end like this. He didn't want to be alone. He didn't feel like sleeping either. He didn't want those bad dreams to come back haunting him.
He left the kitchen to look for his phone.
Max continued to leaf through the pages until she found an old newspaper article in the very back of the folder. It dated from the year 1991. Max skipped through the lines.: Thanks to the generosity of founder J.L. Cale...founded on February 12, 1991...Mr. Cale said that ...the loss of his daughter...to help other terminally sick children...and fulfil their dearest wish..."
Max read those lines again. She still didn't get the full picture, but she had certainly stumbled onto something big.
Logan continued his search for the phone. He could have sworn he had left it in the living room, but lately he had been so occupied by all kinds of thoughts that he couldn't really concentrate. He wheeled towards his office and was surprised to see Max' coat lying on the couch. She probably had been so infuriated that she had forgotten to take it.
Max heard the sound of rubber wheels on the wooden floor. It was nearing the office. Shit! She thought. What am I gonna do now!? She looked around hectically, but it was too late to get out of here unnoticed. She managed to shove the article back into the folder and close it before Logan rounded the corner.
"Max!" he said confused. "I thought you had left. I was just going to...What are you doing here?" he asked puzzled.
"Logan, I ...ahem.." Max stuttered, searching for the right words.
It only took him one look to realise what she was holding I her hands.
"What the hell are you doing?" he asked again, his voice being growing more intense.
"I just, thought..." Max muttered. " I needed to know..."
"What!?? " Logan said incredulous. "I can't believe this! You're going through my stuff behind my back?!" He shook his head in disbelieve. She could see the disappointment in his eyes.
"Logan, I'm sorry!" she said remorseful. " It's just...I didn't know... You were so secretive! I thought... you might need some help."
Logan clenched his teeth. "I TOLD YOU I DIDN'T" he yelled.
"Logan, please, listen to me..." Max said meekly. "I just wanted to help you!"
" I DIDN'T ASK YOU TO, DID I ?? !!"
"I know, but...I found this... article...from 1991... It says..."
Logan furiously wheeled towards her. Max backed away. She had never seen him so angry. She felt like he was going to slap her any minute.
"THAT'S NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS" he exclaimed, his voice trembling with anger.
"PUT THAT DOWN, NOW!" he yelled, motioning towards the folder she was still firmly holding in her hands.
Max stumbled backwards, bumping into the desk. The folder fell from her hands and its contents scattered all over the floor. The article landing right in front of Logan's feet. Logan looked down at it and shook his head slowly. He stared down at his feet, breathing hard and motioned eagerly towards the door. His voice was as cold as ice now, but he didn't yell anymore. Max closed her eyes.
"Get out of here." Logan said, his voice lacking all emotions. Max would have preferred if he had continued to yell at her. But there was nothing she could say to his toneless command.
She hesitated for a second, then bent down and started to pick up the papers from the floor.
"I said GET OUT OF HERE." Logan repeated, his hand still pointing towards the door.
Max put the papers down on the table and silently left the room.
Logan sat there, his head ringing and heard the front door slam shut.