Another party popper exploded overhead and Max's nerves twitched for the hundredth time. Seriously, tomorrow when she found out who bought those things, and she was going to strangle them very slowly. She couldn't help but jump every time someone let one go, it sounded so much like gunfire.
Alec pressed mug of eggnog into Max's hands and bumped cups. "Bottoms up," he winked with a grin.
She curled her arms around his waist and stared up into his laughing face. "I've been standing here for ages. I was beginning to think I'd have to go find you."
Giving her a puzzled frown. "Waiting…oh." He looked up at the sprig of weed that was suspended above them. "Really Max, you have to resort to cheesy traditions to…"
"Shut up," she growled, trapping his head between her palms. Dragging him to her, she kissed him hungrily.
Rita's gallery was dressed to the nines in Christmas flavor and transgenics mingled with art patrons for the party in honor of Joshua's new showcase of art featuring "Faces of Seattle".
Alec squeezed her tightly to him and lifted Max off the floor in a sweeping hug. "So have you heard the good news?"
"No," Max answered her eyes twinkling. "What could beat Joshua going public, Christmas with you, and transgenic's freedom?"
"Veronica's here," Alec said bending his head to touch her forehead to his.
Max's eyes widened with surprise and her lips formed a glittering smile. "She said she might not be able to make it."
"She's out front. They're having trouble getting through the lobby. This place is packed." Alec was sure that she hadn't even clued into the fact that he'd used they, since she was already weaving through bodies, dragging him along behind her.
"Ronnie," she called joyfully.
Veronica pushed through the people crowding the entrance hall and wrapped Max in a big hug. "I wanted to surprise you," she said her eyes shining. "Merry Christmas." She gave Max a portrait-sized, slender box.
Sliding off the ribbon. Max lifted the lid with unsteady fingers. Inside was a framed picture of her mother. She was dressed in white t-shirt, her long wavy hair pulled back in a tight ponytail. She held her horse's head to her cheek and was smiling warmly at the photographer. The horse had a brown, well-groomed mane and bright dark eyes. From the way it leaned into Susan, Max could tell the affection was mutual. Her mother looked happy.
"Susie spent her summers working as a junior trainer. Ronin was a highly spirited Mustang and she tamed him. I think they were both heartbroken when we moved…"
Max brushed a tear from her eye and hugged her aunt again. As she pulled back a sparkle caught her eye, and her gaze drifted down to Veronica's hand. On her aunt's ring finger was a delicate, antique design, princess-cut diamond ring.
Veronica followed Max's gaze and lifted her hand, watching the diamond catch and refract the light from above them. "We wanted to tell you together but I guess it's out now huh?" she said softly, her cheeks coloring slightly as she twisted the ring on her finger. She sensed him at her side before she turned to see him.
It had taken them years to find their way back to each other, only to discover that the memories and feelings they shared hadn't faded in the slightest. When he'd first told her that he had fallen in love with her, they were in college and the memory of her sister's death was still painful. She hadn't been ready for a relationship, so she had tried to let him down gently without telling him about Susan. It was a mistake. He had misunderstood and she had ended up losing a friend and sent him into the arms of someone else. But time had healed old wounds, and since then she had told him about Susan and five years ago when she had come to Seattle searching for answers, Logan had helped her put some of the missing pieces about Susan's death together. They'd never lost touch after that, but work had kept them apart. Max had brought them back together in more ways than one.
Logan took Veronica's hand and smiled sheepishly at Alec and Max. "I asked her to marry me and she was good enough to say yes."
Max hugged him, then stood back and smiled at them. "I'm really happy for you both. It could happen to two people I care about more."
After they had explained everything about the retrovirus to Veronica, she'd referred Logan to a contact in Australia. One of the country's leading pharmaceutical labs had been working on an antigen for Zycinor and several other bio-warfare agents after a devastating biological attack had hit Sydney in 2019. After sending the lab blood samples from the both of them - two months, a 34-hr return plane trip, a lay over for a week in luxury suite in Perth and she was cured.
Alec slapped Logan on the back and pumped his hand energetically. "Congratulations, Logan ol' buddy. Treat her right," he added, echoing the words Logan had said to him from what seemed like a lifetime ago.
Veronica watched Logan and Max for a moment and saw a shadow pass between them of what had once been. She knew of their history from conversations Max and she had shared and from things Logan had told her himself. She never felt awkward about their situation, in fact before that moment it hadn't really crossed her mind. Her niece had sort of dated her fiancé, Logan, who had almost dated herself years back, had been married once before and engaged three times counting now. If she let her mind run with it, she'd be reeling with the overload. Logan had confided in her how he felt about Max. Perhaps he would always love her but he had let her go a long time ago, and Veronica didn't doubt where his heart lay now. His mother's engagement ring, which she wore on her finger, was a symbol of that.
"Veronica doesn't want a big wedding. It'll just be family," Logan told them.
Max nodded understanding. Her aunt had, had enough media attention to last several lifetimes. Between her sister's suspicious death, and the ties to Manticore, publicly acknowledging a transgenic as her sister's daughter, actively pushing for transgenic freedom and human rights, time out of the spotlight would be a welcome relief.
"So where are my two favorite munchkins hiding?" Veronica asked with unconcealed pride. She touched Max arm, and sobered a fraction. "It's not a big affair but I was hoping that you could be part of the ceremony."
"Sure," Max answered without pause. "Of course." She took her aunt's arm and started waving toward the back of the gallery. There was an unguarded flight of stairs at the back of the gallery and Max started up it, with Veronica, Logan and Alec following behind. "Lexie's in her first trimester and hardly feeling up for a party but Biggs dragged her along. She's watching the twins."
"Biggs," came a holler from across the hall.
"Coming!" Biggs answered as he rushed past them. He stopped when he caught sight of Alec. Grabbing Alec by the arms, Biggs shook his friend. "It's not fair, man. I've been through this twice now and you…."
Alec raised an eyebrow. He could feel Max's eyes on him and wondered if he could gag Biggs now. She had let the emotion blackmail routine slide months back after all the effort he'd gone through to make it up to her, but he knew that Lexie going through pregnancy now had to be bringing back memories. His savoir came in the form of a chestnut-haired, transgenic female bearing two squirming toddlers.
Tia stuck out her chubby arms immediately. "Da-da," she squirmed harder. And Jesse soon joined in the Daddy chorus.
Max rolled her eyes. "It's so nice to be wanted."
Veronica took Jesse and squeezed him, dropping kisses all over his plump cheeks. "Missed you, big guy. Look at you."
Alec took Tia from Lexie, thankful that her fire-lit, cider colored eyes weren't focused on him.
Lexie planted her hands on her rounding hips and glared at Biggs. "Thirsty means today. Not when you feel like it." She snatched the bottle of water from his fingers and downed half the bottle in one swig.
When Biggs looked intent on offering an excuse, Alec was about ready to shut him up, but thankfully his friend clued in that it was better to suffer silently than to argue with a pregnant transgenic. Biggs snapped his mouth closed. Tia chuckled happily and pulled at his tie. Alec shifted her to one arm and affectionately tousled her mop of blonde curls.
"Alec," Max screeched at him. She sighed and rescued her daughter, who was clapping proudly under her father's attention. Doing her best to straighten out Tia's messy curls, Max took off the dressy sweatband and re-adjusted it, shooting Alec an accusing look. "You never wash or brush her hair. It took me ages to get it right."
Alec shrugged his shoulders innocently and tickled Tia's tummy. "Come on Max, what's to look right? She's a baby. They look cute all the time. And for the record, I have washed her hair before. Daddy bath time, don't you remember?"
Max groaned. Bath time with Alec meant water and bubbles everywhere, a tub full of water toys, lots of splashing and not a lot of washing. "Please don't mess up her hair, okay?"
Logan watched Tia's bright blue eyes drift between her parents with serious curiosity at their exchange, before seeing her baby fingers curl around the sweatband and pull it off her head. She threw it on the floor, and he struggled to keep a straight face at the expression of glee that alighted her baby face.
Max swept up the band and stuffed it in Alec's jacket pocket. Shaking her head, she growled at Tia playfully. "You not only look like your Daddy, you can get away with murder like he does."
Alec shoved his hands in his pants. "Can't help it that my charm matches my good looks." He was ready for the swing, and angled out of the way as Max shot her hand out to hit him.
Logan had barely a nanosecond to get a hold of Tia properly as Max thrust her into his arms.
Lunging at Alec, Max tackled him to the ground. The two of them poked and tickled each other without mercy, till from the tangle of limbs and shrieks of laughter from both, no one could tell if either was winning.
Veronica bounced Jesse on her hip and pointed at his parents. "Now that's the healthy way to settling a disagreement. What do you think, Logan?"
Logan raised an eyebrow, his eyes twinkling with suppressed laughter. "I don't think my legs could handle it."
Biggs snorted, and Veronica laughed. "Chicken," she argued nudging him in the ribs.
"Hey," Logan protested as she elbowed him in ticklish spot. "Holding precious cargo here."
"Makes you an easier target," Veronica taunted wickedly.
Logan's eyes widened and he shifted Tia in his arms, so the toddler acted as a shield between him and his advancing attacker.
Veronica wrapped one arm around his waist, the two transgenic babies trapped between them. She stood on tiptoe and whispered in Logan's ear. "You're safe for now, but just wait till later."
Logan swallowed tightly, her seductive undertones rippling down his spine. He looked down into the warm depths of his lover's eyes, reading his fate. He was doomed.
Alec caught both Max's hands in his and held on tight. His aching sides couldn't take one more poke or he'd split at the seams. His cheeks felt like they were permanently etched with a broad grin, and his eyes were still watery with tears of laughter. Max wasn't fairing much better. Her cheeks were wet and she twisted in his lap as they sat up to lean against the sofa. "Truce?"
"For now," she said breathlessly.
She curled against his chest and dropped her forehead against his crook in his neck. "Our first Christmas."
Alec squeezed her shoulders and smiled into her hair. "Yeah. Merry Christmas, Max."
Fate sure knew how to surprise him. Years ago he'd grown up thinking all life would ever bring him was death and pain, and he had no choice but to accept it because it's what he'd been trained to believe. Then Max had yelled, punched, trashed and burned his neat little life to smithereens, and it had been one curveball after another since then. But as he looked into the eyes of the passionate, independent and fiery female curled snugly in his arms, his only regret was the time he'd wasted apart from her. "Any regrets?" he whispered. Every now and again, when he let the over active part of his brain run free with 'what ifs' he wondered if she truly was happy being stuck with him.
Max lifted her head and held his gaze. She brought his palm to rest over her heart, so he could feel its rhythm for himself. Only he could make it beat both erratically and calmly in the same instance. "I love you, Alec," she said snaking her fingers just under the collar of his shirt so she could touch his barcode. She saw the self-assured sparkle light his eyes, and felt his neck dip forward. She dropped his hands and put an index finger to his lips, halting his pending kiss. "But you ever so much as look at another woman, or disappear on me again, you'll find how much feral cat they actually threw in my cocktail," she said whispered softly in a teasing tone.
Alec heard her threat and even though it was delivered jokingly, he knew she was deadly serious. Her grip on the back of his neck and the unflinching gaze holding him captive only cemented his conclusion. "Wouldn't dream of it." And before she could bait him or stalling him further, he brushed her hand aside and met her lush waiting mouth. If the world ended tomorrow, honestly, he'd die a very happy man.
THE END
Notes: Many thanks to Calistra and acirefox for the beta of the last three chapters. I hope you all enjoyed the journey. Feedback is always appreciated. SitaTheLastVampire(OnTheDL) I don't mind where you post your thoughts, but anxious to read them soon. ;o)