Reaching for the Moon by ThePekingNoodle
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Chapter Twenty-Six: Crime and Punishment
Our hero suffers the pangs of remorse…
Logan's hangover had finally subsided to a dull roar, and he had managed to drag himself out of his bed and into the shower. When he got out he felt halfway to being human again and he headed out to his kitchen to put something in his stomach. When he got there, Bling wordlessly handed him a glass. Logan debated asking what was in it, but decided that he really preferred not to know. He had to admit that after drinking it down, he felt almost recovered.
"Thanks, Bling."
Bling just grunted something at him, evidently still not quite ready to forgive him until Max returned and he heard the entire story of their night. Logan had to admit he was somewhat anxious for that himself.
"You think she's okay?" he wondered out loud.
"Max seems to be pretty smart. I doubt she'd go anywhere dangerous." Bling mused.
"Yeah." Logan stopped. "Didn't her note say she was going for a ride?"
"I think so."
"What was she going for a ride in? My car is totaled. Nothing left but pieces of scrap metal."
Bling just looked at him. "You were serious about the train thing?"
"Yeah, I'm pretty sure that part really happened. It's the rest I find hard to believe…" Logan shrugged and headed in to his computer room. "Max probably forgot about the car. Bet she ended up going for a walk instead, in which case she should be back any minute. By the way didn't you say you had some errands to run today?"
"I'm sticking around to find out if I have any ass kicking to do first." With that Bling walked away, leaving Logan staring after him.
"Nice to know us guys stick together." Logan muttered to himself. He dropped into his computer chair and then he noticed the mini-disk on the desk. He picked it up and inserted it into his computer and smiled when he saw the list of Ratburn's files open in front of him. "At least something went right last night."
Just then he heard the door open and Max's voice called out, "Helloo."
That was followed by the sound of Bling's quick footsteps walking to the entrance foyer.
"Hey, Max."
"Hey, Bling."
"Max, I have to ask you something. About last night….about Logan. He didn't do anything to… I mean he didn't make you do anything you didn't want to…" Bling seemed flustered at what he was trying to ask Max.
Logan groaned to himself at that, but he listened intently for her answer.
"Last night? It was exciting. Logan was a little hard to deal with, him being drunk and all but I learned a lot of things. Only he passed out before I found out everything."
"What exactly did Logan teach you before he passed out last night?" Bling's voice didn't sound very happy and Logan could understand why. He cursed champagne and whoever had invented it. "What happened to your dress? Did he do that while he was teaching you things?"
"Oh, he only ripped the side seam. I did the other part because I needed to be able to move more. It was kind of confining and I needed to be able to move around. For Logan. He needed me."
"What exactly did he need you to do that required ripping your dress off?" Bling demanded.
"Well I couldn't have done the lap dance with it long, but that came later." Max mused.
Logan dropped his head into his hands and stopped listening. The murmur of voices went on, but he was thinking about ways he could kill himself, before Bling got around to coming in and doing it for him.
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"The lap dance? Logan made you give him a lap dance?" Bling's voice was rising and Max looked at him curiously.
"It was my idea. I had to get him out of that strip club and it was the only way I could think of to do it."
"He took you to a strip club?"
"He was tired. He needed to rest after everything we did earlier." Max explained.
Bling looked at her in disbelief. "Max, do you think you could start at the beginning and tell me exactly what happened and what Logan did, and what you did last night? When I kill him for you, I want to know exactly what I'm killing him for so I can be sure he suffers accordingly."
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Logan heard the murmur of voices and then he actually heard Bling…laughing?
He wondered what in the hell was going on out there. Finally he couldn't stand the suspense any longer, and he took a deep breath before heading out to face his executioners.
Just as he reached the conversation area he heard his front door closing. Max was sitting on the couch alone in the room. She looked up and smiled at him. He walked over and sat on the couch at a safe distance from her.
"Hey. How's your head?"
"It's fine. Where's Bling?"
"He said he had some errands to run. He told me to tell you that you were saved this time but he'd be watching you."
Logan frowned. "That's all he said? He wasn't angry at me?"
"No. Actually, I thought he wasn't going to stop laughing. Especially when I told him about the strip club." She paused, "I didn't tell him all of it. I mean I don't think he needs to know about the shed and the elevator and your bed…"
Logan just looked at her. "Max, do you think you could tell me all of it? I have some very strange memories. Please tell me that I didn't ask you to give me a lap dance."
Max just looked at him with an amused smile.
"Shit. I did. What else did I do?"
"You mean besides kissing me and asking me for a peep show and singing Ninety Nine Bottles of Beer to me on the way home?"
Logan groaned and dropped his head into his hands. Then he steeled himself and forced himself to look at her. Her reached out and took her chin in his hand and looked into her eyes. "Max, just tell me. Did I talk you into…I mean did we…did I…sleep with you last night? What happened in my bed?"
Max just stared at him and he assumed the worst.
"Damn it. Listen to me Max I didn't mean to…I never intended… to" he trailed off as Max looked like she was about to cry. "Max. Don't cry. I'm sorry. Was I rough with you? Oh god, please tell me I didn't hurt you. I never would have hurt you if I was myself. It was that damn champagne Ratburn poured down me. Max, can you ever forgive me?" He reached out and pulled her into his arms and he could feel her shaking.
"Don't cry. Please. I'll make it up to you. I promise. Somehow. Anyhow. Just tell me what you want me to do?"
Max's shaking subsided, and he looked down as she turned her face up to him. Instead of tears she was…laughing. "What the hell?" He pulled back.
"Logan. I'm sorry, I couldn't help it. You sounded so upset."
"Do you mean I didn't do anything last night?"
"Well I wouldn't exactly say that…"
"Max did we sleep together?" Logan demanded.
She gave him a dramatic sigh. "No. You promised me all kinds of things on the way home but when we got here you fell asleep. That wasn't very nice of you. Don't you want to sleep with me?" She gave him her hurt look once again, but this time Logan was on to her.
"Why you little…" Logan had gone from remorse to annoyance. Here he had been imagining the worst, and she had been teasing him all along. Before he could grab her and wreak vengeance, Max jumped up from the couch and danced away.
"I need to go shower now. I'll let you know later how you can make things up to me…you promised." She sashayed out of the room and he was aware for the first time that she was wearing those tight low cut jeans again.
He suddenly remembered the feel of that trim derriere under his hands and the taste of her in his mouth. Something had definitely happened the night before. His body remembered even if his mind didn't. And it wanted more. Much more.
Logan continued to sit for a minute more. Then he made a decision. Max was turning his life upside down. He needed to stop wasting time and figure out how he could settle her somewhere safely. Nothing serious had happened this time, but he was afraid it was only going to be a matter of time and opportunity. Nathan's files had never arrived but he couldn't wait any longer. It was time to do some serious hacking with Max as the subject.
End of Chapter Twenty-six…TBC…
