Reaching for the Moon by ThePekingNoodle
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Chapter 19: Shop 'Til You drop
A shopping trip, some girl talk and a surprise in store for our hero…
Max decided that she liked Kendra. True the girl never stopped talking, and true, her major topic seemed to be discussing the physical attributes of every good looking guy that she spotted (or the talents in bed of her many boyfriends) but she made Max smile. Max hadn't had much of that in her life in the last month and so Kendra was a breath of fresh air.
It was a good thing Kendra liked to talk, and mostly answered her own questions, because Max hadn't had a chance to ask Logan how exactly they had met. Kendra gave her the answer within moments of them getting into the elevator together.
"Anyway I think it's just the most romantic thing I ever
heard. Your wicked guardian and all, I mean, forbidding you to see Logan
just because he was an American. It was just so clever of Logan
to have you come here from Japan
so that your guardian would never guess and then to marry you like that, before
anyone could do anything to stop it…" Kendra sighed. "It's almost like a fairy
tale or something. But I never would have thought Logan
would be so romantic." She looked at Max and hastened to add, "Not that he
isn't, romantic I mean. It's just that he's always been kind of a …I mean when
it comes to girls he's…" She stopped dead remembering who Max was.
"An arrogant bastard?" Max laughed. "I know that. One of his girls was over this morning. Ashley something or other." She made a face at the thought of the blonde.
Kendra rolled her eyes. "She's a spoiled little bitch who's just been using him for his money and connections. Sort of like Valer… Um, I mean she's not very nice."
"Who's Valerie?" Max asked. Intelligence was necessary when planning one's strategy and this was the second time Kendra had mentioned that name.
Kendra looked at Max and sighed. "You'll have to know sooner or later, and I guess Logan didn't tell you. Valerie's his ex-wife. They were married for two years and then she walked out on him."
"Why?" Max couldn't imagine anyone walking out on Logan, at least not if it was a real marriage, which she assumed the one to Valerie had been. She wondered why her parents had never told her about it.
"She was, probably still is, a complete alcoholic. I never did understand why Logan married her. I think it was his whole save the world thing. He thought he could save her from herself or something. Believe me no one could save Valerie from anything, not even Logan."
"His save the world thing?" Max keyed in on another new aspect of Logan. She'd find out more about Valerie later, but it didn't seem like she was anything much to worry about.
"Logan thinks he should be out saving the world. The family business almost went under after the Pulse, and Logan saved it pretty much single handedly. Once it was okay again he turned it over to my brother, Bennett, to run. He doesn't even take any money from it. I think he lives off a trust fund our grandmother left him or something."
"So how is that saving the world?" Max was determined to keep Kendra on track. This might give her something to use in her campaign to make Logan see her as something more than just a pretty face and hot body.
"He writes these newspaper articles or something. All about how corrupt the world has gotten to be since the Pulse and how it can be made better. And he goes to all these charity events. Not just to be seen like most of the people there. I think he really does care. Stuff like that."
Interesting. So Logan was a journalist, and not a businessman as she had thought. She wondered what that had to do with what he had told her about being a magician with computers. There was definitely more to Logan than his playboy, socialite surface appearance and she was going to find out what it was.
They had hit the stores with a vengeance by now, and Kendra had happily helped Max replenish her "lost" wardrobe. Max had agreed to buy some clothes that she could wear to society events, since Kendra had assured her that as Logan's wife she would certainly be accompanying him to not a few of those. When they finished with that, Kendra dragged her into a store called Victoria's Secret and started picking out undergarments for Max. Her taste ran to lacy and tiny, and Max protested, never having worn things quite like that.
"Max. You are on your honeymoon. No man wants to see plain cotton undies when he's undressing his wife while he's in the throes of passion. This is what he wants to see." She held up something lacy and tiny and black. Max wasn't even sure what it was. "This will drive him crazy. And this." Max gave up protesting Kendra's choices, only insisting on adding a few practical sports bras and soft cotton bikinis. She didn't have to wear the other stuff and Kendra was exhausting to argue with.
She drew the line when Kendra held up something pink.
"No. No pink."
Kendra considered a minute. "Yeah you're right. But you have to have a sexy negligee. It drives men crazy to see their woman not quite naked." She tilted her head and considered Max. "Black or white. Those are good colors for you. Or maybe…" She dove into a rack and came out holding a silky red garment which she held in front of Max. "Red is definitely your color. When Logan sees you in this he'll be your sex slave for sure."
"Kendra!" Max felt herself blushing. Of course the thought of Logan as her slave was certainly tempting…
"Max. Listen to me. The man is amazing in bed, which you, of course, already know. I've heard it from half the women in Seattle. You don't want to be his sex slave. So you need something to even the odds. This will do it, so stop arguing with me."
Max gave up and handed the credit card Logan had given her to Kendra. She rationalized that there were enough practical garments included to suffice. The other stuff could go in a drawer and no one needed to know about it, least of all Logan. Kendra arranged for their purchases to be sent on to Logan's, just as she had the previous ones and turned to Max, ready to head back, but Max stopped her. "I want to go somewhere else. Somewhere that sells clothes to ordinary people."
"What kind of clothes?" Kendra was puzzled.
"Jeans and t-shirts and leather jackets. I want a black leather jacket." Max declared.
Kendra looked at her and giggled. "Who would have thought. You being this rich heiress and all. I know just the place. Logan will kill me, but it'll be perfect." She lowered her voice, "I shop there all the time but I can't let my mom or brother know. They expect me to be Miss Perfect Prissy Debutante. What's the fun in that?"
Max smiled at her, and soon they were in a tiny little shop on an obscure street. They walked out with several bags of clothes since this shop didn't run to delivery. Max had decided to wear some of her purchases and was happily clad in a tight black t-shirt and low cut jeans, topped by a black leather jacket. She felt freer than she had in years and she couldn't wait to see Logan's face when he spotted her in the garments.
"So is that it?" Kendra asked. Max was about to say yes, but then she stopped dead in her tracks and walked away. Kendra followed her with a confused look on her face.
Max was standing next to a black motorcycle that had a FOR SALE sign taped on its windshield. The bike was all gleaming chrome and shining black. Max ran a reverent hand over it.
"Max?" Kendra walked over, puzzled at Max's fascination with the bike.
"It's mine." Max whispered.
"You have a motorcycle?"
"This is mine. It's been waiting here for me." Max turned and headed into a
doorway as directed by the FOR SALE sign. Within minutes she was back, followed
by a young man dressed completely in black leather with multiple tattoos and
piercings.
Kendra stood in shock as Max proceeded to charm him into selling the bike to her for much less than the price on the sign. Her mouth dropped when Max opened her shoulder bag and pulled out a wad of bills. The biker counted them up and then handed her a set of keys. "Dig it babe. See ya around."
"For sure." Max agreed.
"Max what are you doing? Logan is never gonna let you have a motorcycle."
"Logan isn't my keeper." Max wasn't listening.
"He's your husband. Max, what are you doing?"
Max had started the bike and was gunning the motor with an expression of bliss
on her face. "I'm taking my baby home, Kendra. Hop on."
"Can you even drive this thing?" Kendra gingerly climbed on behind Max.
"Hang on." Max was off with a roar and Kendra held on for her life, wondering what in the world Logan was going to have to say about this. Then she started to laugh. It seemed to her that her cousin Logan had finally met his match.
End of Chapter Nineteen…TBC…
