Well it's my last day of spring break and to be honest I'm grateful. This past week has been long and arduous to say the least of its horrors. The only highlight would have to be the wonderful reviews I've gotten - especially in the last few days. Thank you all…

JYNK: Its nice to know you think I've got talent heh. I know how you feel though. I have a friend who writes like a goddess of the written word and it sparks jealousy in me every time I read something of hers.

Angel LeeAnn: I've read many of your things and new you were an x-files fan cause I have you on author alert. I get all the updates when you add to your x-files fics as well as Lost World. Two shows I happen to love as well.

Mish: You know I love you and you're reading this is just so wonderful. Thank you.

Enjoy and try not to hate me too much hehe,

~ Gimpy ~

With a gruff intake of air, Logan shifted in bed. His body still wrapped up in sleep's hazy fog, he rolled over to pull Rogue closer to him. Instead of landing on her clothed waist, his arm hit an empty and rather cold spot on the bed. His eyes snapped open at the loss. Taking in the place where she once lay, he rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling. He didn't bother going to look for her, he could still smell her perfume and felt the humidity in the air. Just as he suspected, a towel encased Rogue exited the bathroom, scrubbing the water droplets from her hair.

Casting a glance his way, she graced him with a thin smile. "Mornin'."

Groaning, he flung his arm up over his eyes and grumbled a soft, "Don't remind me." He wished he could hope for a giggle, just a little one, but didn't, it was pointless.

"Keep that arm there, kay?" Rogue whispered and Logan listened as she rummaged around the room. With her back to him, she allowed the towel to drop to the floor. The cold air nipped at her soaked skin and she let out a shivery gasp. Slowly she got dressed, a sinking feeling in her stomach telling her that she had an audience.

Which she did. Logan could barely pry his eyes away from the graceful lines of her shapely back. The gentleman in him kept him from straying his gaze to her more private parts but that didn't stop him from idolizing the line of her neck or the curve of the dip in her back. Elegance. That's what her form screamed to him, an aged sense of elegance and grace. A pout formed in place of the dumbstruck grin as she finally pulled on a shirt. He stole himself a bigger grin when he realized, no bra.

Pulling her hair into a messy bun at the base of her neck Logan memorized the hairs that curved to wrap around her neck. He'd always hated buns but he liked this, a lot. His eyes never left her form as she went about gathering her things, putting earrings, rings and other accessories on as well as a very expensive looking discman. She left his sight again, disappearing into the bathroom to he assumed apply makeup. Not that he thought she needed any of it.

Stretching back, his arms resting behind his head he called out to her. "How you doing?"

She came back in and stared at him for a moment as if pondering his question when in fact she was merely taking him in as he had with her. Satisfied, if only slightly, she sat on the corner of the bed and shook her head. "You're back for barely even half a day and you already have me wrapped around your finger. How the hell did you manage that?"

The question dumbfounded Logan to no end. Did he really have her around his finger? He was pretty sure it was the other way around. "I-I don't know," he stammered. "It's never happened before."

The irritating scoff filled the room again. "You've been gone for a long time, you can't tell me you didn't attract a few woman. I find that far too hard to believe."

Silence. That was all he could come up with. He never expected these words coming from her and he really didn't know the answer. Sure there had been a few women but never had he ever acted with any of them. "I guess you could say that there were a few…" he caught the bow of her head at his admittance. "But not really. They weren't you."

If his attempts at saving himself had actually reached her ears, she didn't show it. Standing up again, she moved to the window, her arms clinging to her sides. "I was doing so good… everything was finally starting to fade away. I was almost completely oblivious. Then you walk through those damn doors with that damn smirk and your damn ability to just… make me crumble." Her eyes pricked with tears but she didn't give them a chance to fall.

Slipping from beneath the comforter, Logan moved to stand behind her. Running the back of his hand along the curve of her spin, he leaned in and whispered. "You and me both."

He felt her shiver under his touch and his words. Moving to pull her to him she side stepped around him, moving as far away from him as possible without leaving the room.

"This isn't a game Logan. You can't just say things like that and not mean them." Her defensive nature kicked in again and her walls flew back up.

"Whoa! Hold on a sec. I would never say things like that if I didn't mean them." His demeanor started to echo hers and the two realized just how much alike they truly were.

"Right 'cause your track record speaks for itself," she snapped. "Do the words 'I'll be back' ring a bell?"

Squeezing his eyes shut, that conversation replayed in his head. "I'm here aren't I?"

"Well you took your fucking sweet time with it! You should have just saved me the trouble and told me you weren't. Least then I wouldn't have been sitting here wasting away while I waited!"

That last sentence floored him. Had she seriously waited for him? "You waited?"

Her features softened with his. "Every damn day. At some point I thought I had finally given up. You were barely a thought in my mind and then one day I heard a motorcycle roll in and I swear my heart soared." Another bitter laugh followed by a small sniff. "Turned out it was just Scott on his new bike. After that I couldn't even look at a bike without thinking of you so I just didn't do outside."

Striding across the room, Rogue tore open a drawer. Reaching in she clasped her hands around the only thing she'd even had of his. "You said you'd come back for these. You wanted them, well here." Logan watched with trepidation as she pulled out his dog tags and then tossed them at him. He caught them with ease and frowned deeply.

"I gave these to you." Shaking his head, he reached out to hand them back. "I want you to have them."

She ignored his hand and the item he held there. "They've been in there for over a year, you wanna know why? 'Cause when I realized you weren't coming back it nearly killed me just looking at them. I don't want to go through that again when you find what you've come for and then hightail it out of here."

"If information was the only reason I came back, I would be down in Chuck's office getting it. I wouldn't have spent time setting up a room or coming to talk to you." His voice boomed in the room and he advanced on the tiny woman. Backing away from him until she hit a wall, she felt a gasp form in her throat when he all but pinned her body to the wall with his own. "I came back to see you, Marie." He hissed in her ear, letting her name roll off his tongue with a feverish insistence. Reaching up a hand, he let it hover just above her cheek. "To see my Marie."

The young woman's chest heaved as she struggled to compose herself. His proximity and his words hit her hard. Staring deep into his darkened eyes, she saw a lust reserved solely for her. Not just lust but something more, something she'd seen dangling in his eyes the night before. "I'm starting to get that but…" She flushed at the wavering sound of her voice and bowed her head away from his.

Leaning down gently, he forced her to look him straight in the eyes as he asked. "But what?"

"I don't understand it. I don't understand you. You say things like this and I almost believe you but I can't because if they were true it wouldn't have taken you so long to come back to me." There was no bitter taste to her words, not even a silver lining of anger, just a pure unadulterated need to know the truth. Logan's head fell onto her shoulders at her words and Rogue stiffened again. "And would you be more careful… I might hurt you."

"No," he murmured into her shoulder. "You'd never hurt me if you didn't want to."

Without warning, Rogue felt his warm breath hover over her covered shoulder, his damp lips wrapping tenderly around the cloth. A sharp gasp flew from her now opened mouth as his teeth grazed gently before his mouth closed and his teeth dug in. It wasn't hard by any means but she reacted in a way she never imagined she would.

"Oh fuck," she let out in a shuddering breath and felt her knees go weak.

Logan's own form quivered as he chuckled lightheartedly. "You like?"

Swallowing soundly, all she could do was nod vigorously and mentally pray he'd do it again. To her disappointment he pulled his head away instead. Sighing softly he simply peered down at her and smiled when her cheeks went a deep red under his appreciation. "You really wanna know the truth?"

Adrift in the sea that was his dark enticing eyes she mustered a gentle nod and readied herself for whatever bombshell he had ready for her. She watched him fidget for a moment as he searched for the right words. The silent moment became a few minutes and her fear of what was to follow deepened. Shifting, she begged him to continue with her eyes, not knowing if she could stand any more waiting.

Averting his gaze away from hers, he ran a nervous hand down her shoulder, dropping it down to the side of her torso. With a tortured slowness, he gripped her side and ran his hand down, his thumb brushing against the side of her breast. Stopping at the tip of her hip, he pulled her to him.

Clearing his throat, he brought his eyes back to hers. "Jeez…" he sighed with a nervous chuckle. "Who would have thought just talking could be so hard?"

"I-if you can't I… I'd understand."

"No… I can do this." He flashed her a smile and breathed deeply. "To truly understand everything you have to know that I didn't leave just for my past."

"I knew it… I-" shaking her head, she tried to push her way past him but his muscular arms stopped her, effectively encasing her against the wall. Trapped, all she could do was stare him in the eye.

"Would you let me finish?" Logan snapped lightly, giving her a look that told her to shut up. "I left because I was starting to fall for you. I swear I was starting to fall in love with you."

Hiding her eyes behind her lids, she tried to conceal the fact that her heart was soaring so high she swore she'd never touch ground again.

"But I couldn't have you. You were this untouchable creature and just your presence put me through roller coasters. Plus I kind of thought you'd never return my feelings, not in the way that I wanted. You consumed my every thought and I figured that if I left you behind then maybe…"

"You'd be able to get over me?" she finished for him in a breathy whisper, remembering thinking the same about him.

Logan smiled gratefully, knowing she understood at least in part how he had felt meant a lot. "Yeah but in the end it had the exact opposite effect. I started to want you even more, I started to crave you. So I lost myself in trying to find my past and it worked for a while. Then as you said, the leads went dry. Even at a dead end I still couldn't bring myself to come back. I mean how could I, not knowing how you felt?"

Rogue nodded solemnly. "I get that."

A pause followed her words and Logan was beginning to wonder if she really understood him at all. His heart was being laid out at her feet, he was vulnerable, something he never did intentionally. Didn't she understand he was doing it for her? Unnerved by his admissions, she pressed her back against the wall, leaning on it and staring up at him with uncaring eyes. Did she not care?

The marathon pace his heart had taken off at started to speed even faster. "I stayed away as long as I could." His face hovered before hers, his eyes desperate for her reaction. "Until I couldn't stand it any more. Your face, your eyes, and your adorable nose consumed my dreams. I had to come back before I went crazy."

Those words brought forth a reaction he hadn't been expecting. Listening to him prattle on became too much, his words forcing anguished knives into her heart.

"Stop, please," she whimpered softly, attempting to pry herself from his hold.

An infamous brow quirked, one with filled paralyzing uncertainty. "You… don't feel the same way, do you?"

Rogue winced at the lingering pain more than evident in his words. "Of course I do. How could I not?"

"See… roller coaster," Logan joked sadly. Viewing it first hand, Logan watched as a thousand emotions played out like a movie on her face, the final picture one of absolute pain. "Help me out here kid. I'm a little lost."

"I can't do this." She snapped under the weight of Logan's revelation and snatched up her bag before trying to duck under his arm and head for the door. His tanned arm shot out, blocking her escape.

"Why not? Just give me something." The panic he exuded dug even deeper then his previous words.

"I can never be like the other woman you've been with," she snapped when she felt an intake of air from the looming shadow in her room.

"What are you talking about?"

Sucking her lower lip between her teeth, she realized a crude bluntness was in order. Gripping his shoulders beyond the point of pain, she used her hold as leverage, pulling herself up his rigid form. Bringing her face within inches of his, she breathed in his warm exhale. "This," she hoarsely murmured.

There was no room to think, let alone react, for either of them before they were entombed in a bruising kiss. Rogue's silky flushed lips forced Logan's rougher ones open, her tongue ramming deep into his throat. Without thought his arms pulled her tightly to him with even brasher force. Animalistic nature replaced any semblance of rational thought and a song of groans chorused through the air. Rogue ravaged Logan sliding her hands into his hair and pulling him into her. Both could feel bruises start to form equally on their lips.

He couldn't get enough of it, couldn't let go even when the pull of energy started to take hold of him. These lips tortured him beyond all means and he didn't want to let her go, not even if it meant death. And it was then that he truly realized what she was doing. They both pulled apart at the same time, shoving backwards.

Swiping at her swollen lips, Rogue fell into the wall again. Her knees threatened to give way under the shuddering reality that she'd just kissed Logan. Salty droplets gathered in her eyes once more and she stared at him, wondering if he understood why she'd done that.

"What the hell…" Logan swore gruffly.

She sighed in frustration. "I will never be able to do that without hurting you. Don't you get that? We would never be able to kiss, to hold each other, to fulfill each other. Ever."

"That doesn't matter to me," his voice came out barely above a whisper as he continued to try to come to terms with the sensations kissing her gave him.

"Don't give me that! Of course it matters! Maybe not now but it will. One day you'll grow to resent my mutation, resent me and there's no way in hell I'm going to become a consolation prize, I won't let you settle."

"First off it's not up to you whether I love you or not! Secondly, there has to be ways around that, there are always ways around things." His once dejected voice grew in passion, a passion held solely for her.

Her head shook with determination. "I DON'T CARE! I can't settle for ways around it! I could never settle for it. How can you honestly expect me to be near you and not touch your body, not feel your skin on mine?"

Groaning deeply he tried to keep his mind off the images of her body withering underneath his, his name falling from her parted lips. Finding her timid, tear filled eyes again, he saw the look that told him her mind was made up. Knowing the stubborn streak vividly, it dawned on him it'd take a lot more then idle words.

*Ding, Ding, Ding*

"Shit," Rogue cursed under her breath at the sound. "I uh… I uh have an exam," she squeaked gently. Roaming around the room in a daze, shaky hands grabbing at items on the ground, all Logan could do was watch. "God," she breathed, staring deep into Logan's eyes. "I have to go… please… please just don't, don't run again. Please," she begged him before slipping from the room.

Standing in the wake of his siren Logan burst out of his stoic position, running to lean out the door. "I won't give up on this!" he yelled to the back of her retreating form, his breath catching in his throat when she spun around.

"I'm sorry," the words were barely above a whispering hum but Logan's heightened senses picked it up.

"Rogue?" A deep uneasy voice rang out from behind Logan and Rogue, bringing the ongoing stare-down to an end.

"Bobby?" Rogue squealed.

Sensing the need for dominance, Logan loomed towards the smaller man, his underlying need to stake his territory taking over. An amused smirk crossed his face when the kid stood his ground. Testosterone sparks filled the tense air between the three. Its force gripped at Rogue with unbearable pressure. Unable to witness what was to come, she took off down the stairs, slipping away without gaining attention from the two men.

Fueled by a deep-rooted need to protect his Rogue, Bobby stepped closer to the larger man and growled out, "What the hell did you do?"

A sarcastic grin spread across Logan's face at Bobby's bravado. "Do you know who I am?"

Hardening his stare, Bobby spat, "I know full well who you are and you should never have come back."

No longer amused by the defiance this boy exuded Logan snarled. "And who the hell are you to say that?"

Squaring his shoulders, Bobby sneered, "I'm the one who had to hold Rogue when she cried over your sorry ass. And I'm the one who's going to have to pick up the pieces after you leave."

"Who said I was leaving, runt?" Logan inched closer, disappointed when the boy's figure didn't sink back.

"If you cared for her as much as you think you do, you would. You don't deserve her, she's too good for you."

Logan full out laughed at that. "And what? You do?"

"More than you ever will," Bobby snapped.

"You better back down kid," the threat was no less idle then the one lingering in Bobby's eyes. Logan clenched his fists before his chest, emphasizing the intent he was harboring.

"You've done enough damage in this place, you really think killing me is going to increase your chances with her?"

Quirking his head to the side, a sadistic smirk waded amongst the disdain for this new adversary. "No, but it'd make me feel better," he ground out between clenched teeth.

"See that's your problem," Bobby sneered with a once more bated breath. "You never think about anyone but yourself. You hurt her again…"

Before he could finish his threat, Logan stepped into his space, leering down at him, "You finish that sentence and you won't get another one." Just the insinuation that he'd ever even attempt hurting his Marie made him cross-eyed with fury.

Bobby's unwavering courage faltered and he backed away. "Fine," he muttered stalking away.

"Smartest thing you've done yet," Logan called over his shoulder to the exiting boy. Waiting for his scent to vanish from the air, Logan sniffed for Rogue's. It was then he realized she was gone. Groaning at his stupidity, he buried his face in his hands and cursed his brashness. He was going to make it up to her somehow. There was no chance in hell he was going to lose her to some scrawny brat.