Chapter 9: Out With the Old
By 5:30 am, Veronica had given up trying to sleep. She had managed to get in a few hours but mostly she had tossed and turned between getting up with Logan. Twice during the night, he had bolted out of the bed and into the bathroom and she knelt next to him, rubbing his back as he retched the alcohol out of his system. Each time when he was done, she helped him clean himself up and drink a glass of water before escorting him back to bed. He didn't say much to her during either of these trips but he snuggled right up next to her as soon as they crawled back in bed.
Part of her sleeping problem came from the fact she wasn't used to sleeping with a man next to her. It was hard to adjust to another body in bed, especially when that body exuded heat like a furnace. Having Logan draped around her was like being wrapped in a down comforter. It was comforting but damned hot.
The other reason she couldn't sleep was because her mind wouldn't let her. She alternated between feeling bad for Logan, which caused her to want to comfort him, and being angry when she only wanted to slap him for being so stupid. If this stunt ruined his probation, he would not have to worry about the judge or jail because she was going to strangle him.
When she finally got out of bed, she roamed through the house surveying the damage Logan had caused in his rage. Rubbing her temple she tried to figure out how to get him out of this potential disaster. She started to clean up the debris and had made quite a bit of headway by the time Mrs. Navarro had shown up for work. Veronica decided it was best to keep her mouth shut and not volunteer any information to anyone, including Mrs. Navarro. She was relieved when the housekeeper merely observed the mess with raised eyebrows and refrained from making any comments or asking any questions.
After discussing what was left to be cleaned, Veronica asked the housekeeper to arrange for someone to come in and pack up the study and bedroom. If possible she wanted it done that afternoon while she and Logan were off at his appointments. Knowing Logan could afford it, she told the housekeeper to spend whatever was necessary to get it done quickly. For Logan's peace of mind, the rest of Aaron's belongings needed to be removed. She actually wished he would consider moving to his own place. The house made her uncomfortable, like it was shrouded in evil. Maybe once the rest of Aaron's presence was removed it would be different.
At 8:30, Veronica decided it was time to wake up Logan and get the rest of the alcohol out of his system. From listening to Lilly and Duncan over the years, she knew that under the best of circumstances he was nearly impossible to get out of bed. This morning was going to call for some drastic measures. The part of her that wanted to smack Logan got a certain amount of sadistic pleasure from what she had planned. Marching to his bedroom door she took a deep breathe before flinging it open, banging it against the wall. "Good morning! Time to rise and shine!" She saw him shift a little and bury his head further under the covers. Walking over, she opened the blinds and yelled, "Get up Logan!" That elicited a small groan but nothing else. She hadn't really thought it would work but at least when he bitched later she could say she had tried a less sadistic approach.
Fortunately, she had been prepared for his lack of cooperation. Going back into the hall, she retrieved her back-up plan and stood next to the bed. Ripping the sheets away from Logan, she picked the bucket up and dumped the icy contents over Logan's almost naked body. The shriek he let out was bloodcurdling and he shot straight up in the bed gasping for air. Luckily, Veronica had quickly backed away from the bed since he tried to jump out of it but got tangled in the bedclothes gathered around his feet and flopped onto the floor with a thud.
She tried not to laugh, but a small snort escaped her at the sight of a soaking wet Logan glaring at her in shock and outrage. "Oh good, you're up," she snarked.
"What the hell are you doing? Are you trying to kill me?"
She grinned at him. "Honey, why would you think that? I was only trying to wake you up. We have a lot to do before your meetings this afternoon." She gave him a sugary sweet smile and even threw in a few eyelash flutters for good measure.
He continued to glare at her this time in confusion. She could tell he was trying to figure out what was so special about today. When he groaned and buried his face in his hands, she knew he realized that it was Friday. He tried to lie down on the carpet but she was behind him yanking on his armpits before he had a chance. Though reluctant to get up, he did let her coax him to his feet. She stood next to him trying to make sure he stayed upright as he stood there swaying.
Holding firmly onto his arm, she tugged him into the bathroom. He stood there in the middle of the bathroom shielding his eyes from the light as she started the shower. The whole time he was moaning and groaning like she was torturing him. She shoved a glass of water into his hands and told him to drink it all. She checked the water temperature and looked back to see him standing there immobile with the empty glass clutched in his hand. She adjusted the temperature and after seeing his lack of movement decided he wasn't going to move unless she made him. This was no time to worry about modesty so she got rid of the glass and proceeded to yank his wet boxers down.
The shock of her stripping him finally got a response. He appeared to be blushing as he covered himself. "Hey, what are you doing? Damn if you were that desperate to see me naked, you should have just said something." Ah yes, nice to know snarky Logan could peek through even the worst of hangovers.
"Yeah seeing you naked and hung-over has been on my top ten wish list for a while now." Ignoring his shouts of protest, she shoved him under the shower spray. He shrieked like a banshee, letting out a string of curses and threats that echoed off the shower walls as the cold water hit his body.
"Oh quit your whining you big baby. Suck it up and shower like a big boy." She wasn't positive but she was fairly sure he was trying to place a hex on her as she talked. She actually did feel sympathetic towards him, but she knew he would be even more pissed off if he thought that was why she was helping. She was doing this because she loved and worried about him, but if she showed him any mercy now he would think she was there out of guilt and sympathy. If he thought that, there was no way in hell he'd let her help. She admitted to herself that in addition to being able to help him, there was the added bonus of finally getting to see him naked. 'He might act like a little boy sometimes but there are parts of him that are definitely all man,' she thought slyly.
While Logan showered, Veronica went downstairs to get a large jug of water and Mrs. Navarro's special drink. She had said, "I will make him a special drink. Make him drink it all and he will feel much better." Even though the older woman hadn't come out and said what the drink was for Veronica thought her tone of voice made it fairly obvious it was for Logan's hangover.
She re-entered the bathroom 15 minutes later with the drink, just in time to see Logan wrapping a towel around his waist. Before she left she had watched him through the shower door for a minute but the beveled glass had only afforded her a few glimpses of skin but nothing of note. She had caught a glimpse of him when she stripped his boxers down and again when she shoved him into the shower but she had been hoping for a longer look. Now she was disappointed she hadn't come back a few minutes earlier and that she had missed what she had been dying to see since the week before.
Eyeing the green concoction in her hand he asked wearily, "What is that sludge? I'm not drinking that crap and you are crazier than I thought if you think otherwise."
Knowing she was in for an uphill battle today she glared at him. He was awake and angry so she knew the only thing that would work was to play the bitch to his asshole. "Shut up and drink it. We don't have time for your childish bullshit this morning. We need to get the alcohol out of your system before your probation meeting."
If looks could kill, she'd be a corpse on the beautifully tiled floor. He snatched the sludge out of her hand and gave it a small sniff. It didn't smell that bad even if it did look nasty, so he quickly downed the contents. Wiping his mouth with the back of his hand he asked peevishly, "What did you put in that thing? Turpentine and seaweed? You could take rust off a bumper with that crap."
She smirked slightly. "I didn't make it, Mrs. Navarro did. I didn't ask what she put in it…it seemed safer that way. If you are done with your whining go and get dressed." Turning around she exited the bathroom, confident he would follow. He looked confused when she threw a set of workout clothes at him but he put them on without an argument. She laughed silently when he made her turn her back to him. She knew there wasn't a shy or modest bone in his body so she wasn't sure why he was having such a fit about her seeing him naked. He had seen every last inch of her last weekend so it was only fair she should see him!
She had snuck a few glances over her shoulder but with his back turned she hadn't seen much. She handed him the jug of water and headed out of the room. He followed resentfully behind a few steps. "What are we doing?"
"We are going to get the alcohol out of your system. You are going to drink as much water as you can to flush it out and we are also going to try to sweat some of it out too."
He stopped in his tracks, gawking at her like she had lost her mind. "You want me to workout? Do you have some bizarre fetish for watching me throw up, because that's about the only thing that's going to happen if I start exercising?"
She shrugged and continued walking down the hallway. "Whatever will get the alcohol out of your system. Quit procrastinating and let's go. I'm not going to drop it so there is no point in arguing about it. Don't worry, we'll take it slow and gentle for you today."
She didn't figure he was up to anything too strenuous such as lifting weights or running but some cardio would be good for him and get him sweating. She coaxed him onto the treadmill at a much lower speed than he usually used. She worked out on the Stairmaster and used a few of the weight machines.
He made it a lot longer than she had expected. After walking briskly for about 45 minutes, he shut the machine off with a scowl. "That's it. I'm done." He was looking a little green but he wasn't rushing to be sick and he was still upright so she took that as a good sign. He was sweating a lot more than a walk would normally induce but she thought that was also a good sign, anything that might get the alcohol out.
As they had journeyed through the house he glanced towards the closed doors of the study and Aaron's bedroom but she quickly distracted him. It was best that he stay away from those rooms altogether. He stopped briefly in front of the ruined grandfather clock and stared at the remnants. He glanced at her but did not ask any questions about where the mess had gone.
They went downstairs where the housekeeper fixed them a breakfast laden with grease and bread. It was composed of the perfect hangover foods that would hopefully absorb the rest of the alcohol.
After breakfast they both went upstairs to clean up. As she had done the day of their workout, she used Trina's shower to get ready. She had suggested a joint shower but he had glowered at her and stomped off muttering to himself and slammed the door to the bathroom. Obviously he was not keen on the idea of seeing her naked, even if she was dying to see him. She dressed in her jeans from the day before and a t-shirt she had borrowed from his drawer. This one would probably join the last one she borrowed in her drawer at home. She told him that she disguised her voice and called the school and told them he was out with a stomach bug. She had also called and told them she was out with a similar bug.
She all but personally poured the water down his throat throughout the morning. The rest of the time before they had to leave was spent trying to get Logan awake and prepared for his meetings. She told him that if Jack or Billy asked any questions about why he wasn't at school, he was to tell them that he had been up all night with a stomach bug. They might suspect otherwise but if the flushing of his system was successful, they would be unable to prove it. Personally, Veronica didn't think they would believe it for a minute but after the prison visit yesterday she also didn't think they would push too much.
At 1:30, they drove downtown for his probation meeting. She wanted to go in with him to make sure he didn't say anything he shouldn't. However, she realized that while he might tolerate her presence during the drive and allow her to escort him inside the building, he was not going to voluntarily let her in the room with him during his meeting. She knew he was still embarrassed by her being there last week so she stopped at the front desk and told him that she would wait there.
He had looked at her confusedly but didn't say anything. Of course he hadn't said much to her all morning but he hadn't refused to let her accompany him either. He slunk out of his meeting, head down and headed back out to her SUV.
"How did it go? Did he suspect anything?" She awaited his response anxiously.
"I think he probably knew, but he didn't say much," he replied sullenly.
"Did he say anything about yesterday?"
He leaned his head against the cool glass of her window and shut his eyes. "I don't want to talk about it," he snapped. Biting her bottom lip, she tried not to get upset by his attitude. She reached a hand out and stroked it through his hair. Her eyes filled with tears as he jerked away from her. "My head hurts," he muttered.
"I'm sorry," she whispered. "Would you like some more ibuprofen? I can stop and get you something to drink if you think that will help."
"No Mommy, I'm fine. Just leave me alone already."
It was impossible not to take that personally. She was trying not to hover but apparently she hadn't been doing a good job of it.
While he was in session with Billy, she ran to a nearby store and bought a few newspapers. Examining the stories she noted there were already articles about his chat with the District Attorney and his visit to the prison. There was also speculation as to her and Logan's relationship. The articles were accompanied by pictures of him leaving the prison and of her entering the Echolls' estate. She supposed it sold a lot of papers to bring up a possible relationship between an almost murder victim and the perpetrator's son. She could just imagine the articles that would appear in the coming days and weeks. The paparazzi had been following them all afternoon so it was only a matter of time until the story of Logan's arrest and subsequent probation would be exposed to the world. Dumping the papers in the trash, she headed back to pick him up. She wasn't naïve enough to think he wouldn't see any of the stories but he wasn't going to get them from her. He was vividly aware of the press following them and was probably more prepared for the fallout to come than she was.
He slid back into her SUV when his appointment was over. If possible, he was even more sullen than he had been earlier. "Can we go get my SUV please?"
"Sure. Where did you leave it?"
He blushed and stared down at his hands. "I can't remember exactly but I think it was down somewhere near The Camelot. I wanted to ditch it so no one could find me but I was in a bit of a haze at the time so I can't be positive."
She sighed and rolled her eyes but agreed to search for it. Fortunately, he had left it out in the open about a block down from the motel. She wondered if the neighborhood chop shop had just not gotten around to stripping it yet or if they had realized whose it was and decided there was too much risk involved. Normally a nice, new SUV like that wouldn't last more than a few hours there, much less overnight.
"Are you stopping at the grocery store or heading straight home?"
"I'm going home. I'm not in the mood to shop right now. The world does not need to know what brand of toilet paper I buy."
She nodded in understanding. That was the only reference he had made to the press the entire day. "OK. I have a few stops to make but I'll meet you back at your place. It will probably take me a few hours."
He opened his mouth in what she assumed was going to be an argument but the frown she gave him apparently made him think better of it. He snapped his mouth shut and nodded before climbing in his yellow beast and driving off.
Resting her head on the steering wheel she wondered what she had gotten into. Loving him took a lot of effort some days.
She stopped by Mars' Investigations to do some paperwork, check messages, and return phone calls. One of the calls was to Cliff to let him know Logan had indeed made it to his appointments and everything seemed to go alright.
Her father had called to check in while she there. He had wanted her to go stay with Alicia while he was out of town but she refused assuring him she had been fine all the other times he had been gone this time would be no different. She was after all eighteen and didn't need a babysitter. She assured him that her only plans were to hang out with Backup and Logan. She thought that he was more worried about her being unsupervised with her boyfriend than he was about her being the victim of a crime. If he knew about Logan's unwillingness to let her see him naked or have sex with her, her dad would have nothing to worry about. However, it was probably best he knew absolutely nothing about that part of their relationship.
After she finished at the office, she headed over to Wallace's to get Backup. She had called him yesterday and asked him to check in on the dog and take him for a walk. He would have taken Backup home last night but that would have led to questions from his mom. She was also fairly certain Alicia wasn't completely comfortable around the pit bull. Wallace had picked him up today after school for a run on the beach and had taken him home telling his mom that Veronica was busy at the office and he was just helping her out for a few hours until she came by.
Backup had been thrilled to see her after a day and a half. He had tackled her, smothering her with doggy kisses. Alicia had looked a little suspicious at the overly enthusiastic greeting so she got Backup into the backseat and took off before Alicia could ask too many questions.
She drove off to Logan's house stopping only to pick up some dog food and a pizza. She knew the dog would end up eating at least some of the pizza but she wanted to have some real dog food on hand so he wouldn't get sick. Taking care of a sick Logan was one thing but a sick pit bull was even worse.
She was relieved to find that not nearly as many members of the press were outside the gates as there had been last night. She knew that meant they were probably off filing stories but at least there were fewer people to fight off. One reporter had gotten a little too close to her door but was quickly scared off when Backup stuck his head out the window and started growling and barking.
Getting into the house was difficult as she tried to balance her bag, the pizza and the leash. It was further complicated by Backup enthusiastically surveying his new surrounding and bumping into her to get her attention. "Calm down boy. I know you are somewhere new and you can smell the pizza but enough already." Shoving the door open, Backup shot through the entryway, dragging her with him. She dropped the leash to keep from being pulled down as he ran around the house.
Logan had obviously heard the commotion as he hurried into the entry. Though startled when Backup jumped up to greet him, he was better able to hold himself upright than Veronica had been. He enthusiastically petted the dog and looked over at her. "Hey. Do you need some help?"
"Can you take the pizza while I go back out and get the dog food?"
"I'll get the dog food if you want to go set up in the kitchen." He walked out with Backup close on his heels. He met her back inside a few minutes later carrying the dog food and overnight case she had packed when she stopped by the apartment. He set both bags down without a word. She had been expecting him to make a comment about her obvious intention to spend another night but he kept his mouth shut.
The evening turned out to be surprisingly enjoyable as they shared the pizza and watched a movie. By 10:30 they were both yawning in exhaustion. Pulling her up, he put an arm around her waist and she leaned heavily against him. As they headed towards the stairs, he grabbed her overnight bag and they walked to his bedroom. He set her bag down in his bathroom and with a kiss to her forehead he left her alone to get ready. She was much happier being able to get ready for bed with her own products instead of the stuff she had found in there last night. She thought about throwing the other stuff away but she was afraid Logan would realize she was jealous.
After she was done getting ready, she came back out and realized Logan must have gotten ready elsewhere as he was already under the covers with Backup settled on the floor next to him. Crawling under the covers, she was rather surprised when he pulled her close to kiss her passionately. Before things could get too heated, he pulled back and kissed her on the forehead. Without a word, he turned out the lights and settled into the bed, positioning them so he was spooning her. He kissed her lightly on the neck and whispered good night. They were both sound asleep within minutes.