Part 4

Veronica groaned at the cheery sound of her doorbell being rung. She rolled to her side on the bed and plopped a pillow over her head, muffling the noise. Still, the music played on. She sobbed softly, pitifully, for the bell to stop ringing. But Veronica had never been the brilliantly blessed. Again, the bell. She sought to ignore it and drift off to sleep once again.

Then her mobile phone rang. Veronica threw the pillow and glared at the phone. She picked it up and looked at the caller ID. She released a deep breath then powered off the phone.

That was when the landline phone started ringing. She yelled in frustration and stumbled out of bed. She did not bother to answer the phone. Instead, without glancing at the mirror or the putting her bedrobe on, Veronica stalked over to the front door and pulled it open.

"What Logan?" she growled.

It angered her even more to see him looking so fresh and polished, with his hair still slightly wet from the shower. Meanwhile she supposed her hair was so rumpled and she was wearing a pair of ladies' boxers that exposed her buttcheeks and a spaghetti strap tank top that had gotten a little too tight around her breasts. She only had the pregnancy to blame for her nipples being too alert this early in the morning.

"Sorry to wake you," he murmured.

"You're not sorry at all." She turned around and walked over to the kitchen, leaving him to close the door and follow after her. "Did you at least bring some food?"

By the time she turned back to him, Logan had already opened the Styrofoam containers and laid them out on the dining table.

Over the last couple of weeks the housemaid had been coming in early in the morning to prepare Veronica's food. True to his promise, he had arrived just around lunchtime every day since the night they had their tiff. In tense silence they would discuss the changes happening to her body. Over the last few days Veronica had slowly, excruciatingly, started to expect Logan's coming and going.

Then just two days ago Martha, the housekeeper, did not come to work. Veronica had worried about the sweet old lady who had been her constant companion before she left to work with Connor. Concerned that the woman had gotten mugged on her way to Veronica's apartment, Veronica called Logan. Logan tersely informed her that Martha would no longer be coming in and that he would be by with her breakfast in a half an hour.

i"You don't have to, Logan. I can grab something on the way out."

"No!" he snapped. "Just stay inside. I'll tell you everything when I get there."

"Logan, really."

"Veronica, just—" he breathed. "Please."

His voice had been so strangely lost and tremulous that Veronica was glued to her seat, waiting. When the doorbell rang, she had burst from her seat and opened the door. Logan stepped inside, locked the door behind him and grasped her against his frame, holding her body so tightly against his that she was afraid she was just going to crumble in his arms.

"Logan," she whispered. "What is it? What's wrong? Is it Martha? What happened to her, Logan?"

His breath came in shallow gasps. He shook his head. "She's not coming by anymore. I'm so sorry. We're not trusting anyone again. It's just gonna be me from now on, Ronnie. I'm not trusting anyone else with you," he promised.

She had then found out how the older woman had blackmailed Logan, threatening to leak to the press what she knew of Veronica and her pregnancy.

"You paid?"

He met her eyes with a steady gaze, trying to read her reaction. "I wasn't going to let the press cheapen this experience for me. And I'm not going to let your pictures get plastered all over the papers like that."

"Logan," Veronica argued, "it's not as if my pictures haven't been on the papers before. You didn't have to pay her anything."

"I'm not going to have my son or my daughter researching some assignment in the library one day and running to a headline about its mother's illicit affair and accidental pregnancy," he answered grimly, "all while still engaged to innocent victim Connor Larkin. No kid of mine is going to have to go through any scandal like that."

Somehow the words tugged at her heartstrings. Veronica reached for his hand and lifted it to brush a kiss against his knuckles./i

Veronica looked down at the waffles. She beamed at the sight of maple syrup and buttered pancakes. "These are gorgeous. Did you pass by iHop?"

"Made them myself," he declared proudly from the kitchen counter. She noticed that he had put on her cream-colored apron.

Veronica heard the sound of egg cracking and turned to Logan, who was opening cupboards. "Second one to your right," she said.

Logan opened the mentioned cupboard and reached for the bowl. He winked at her. "You read my mind."

"Great minds," she shrugged. "Now hurry up. I want mine over easy."

"Coming up," he announced.

Veronica wolfed down a couple of pancakes and eagerly waited for her eggs. When Logan walked towards her, she clapped. He laid down the plate of eggs at the center of the table. When her eyes fell on them to check if he made them the way she ordered, she felt her throat close up and her stomach tighten in response. Her hand flew to her mouth and she pushed back the chair so quickly it fell flat on the floor. Veronica stumbled out of the dining room and into the bathroom.

She heaved her breakfast into the toilet bowl. Her body jerked at each bout of sickness. Her ponytail loosened and some hair fell to the sides of her face. Vomiting took its toll on her, both with the pain of having to heave the contents of her stomach and the humiliation of leaning over the toilet seat while looking like hell to begin with, and Veronica started sobbing loudly.

When the worst of the crisis was over, she did not get up. Instead, she continued crying over the bowl. It wasn't until she felt the warm hand grasping her upper arm and hauling her up did she stop the loud bawling and graduated to sniffles.

"We expected this," came the comforting voice. "Probably until your second trimester." He had a wet hand towel. When she reached for it, he brought it up to her face. He handed her a glass of water. "Rinse your mouth. You feel okay enough to replace what you threw up?"

"Not the eggs," she answered weakly.

"The eggs were gone the moment you ran off. I took care of them," he promised.

"Thank you," Veronica rasped. As he led her back to the dining room, she said, "This so does not mean you're in charge by the way."

"I know," he answered. "This is very temporary. I will make sure I'm not to comfortable in the leadership position."

"Good."

He had already pulled up the chair. Logan helped Veronica sit down and served her large waffle and topped it with blueberry syrup. "I talked to Dr Miller," he said casually. "We're due for our ultrasound today."

Her eyes snapped back at him. "Oh my god! I completely forgot, Logan. I'm so sorry!" He had canceled an out of town trip for this doctor's visit. "I didn't get an appointment schedule."

"I know. That's why I scheduled one for us." He raised his arms in mock surrender. "I swear I'm not trying to take charge."

She would have been frustrated if she had not been so thankful. Veronica had so many things she wanted checked and answered by the doctor. So despite Logan's intentionally breaking the deal they made that she was in charge of anything baby-related, she relented. "I'm forgiving you this time. Next time you notice something like this, just remind me and I'll set an appointment on my own time."

"Understood."

Veronica cleared two waffled and three pancakes to Logan's delight. "What time is our doctor's appointment?"

"In an hour."

"Oh I've got to ready!" she exclaimed.

Veronica grabbed her towel and walked over to the bathroom. When the doorbell rang, she called out, "Logan, that should be the newspaper. Can you leave it in the living room?"

"No problem."

Logan went over to answer the door. When he opened it, it was to a mesmerized Connor Larkin who looked at Logan from head to apron-clad body to Italian leather shoes. "I iam/i still in my fiance's apartment right?" Connor drawled.

"You've reached the Mars residence," Logan parried back. "How may I be of service?"

Connor pointed to the apron. "Looks like you're already being of service." He strode in and yelled. "Veronica!" He gave Logan a pointed look. "Sweetheart, it looks like there's something you need to explain to me."

Logan informed him, "Veronica's in the bathroom taking a shower. But you're invited to have breakfast in the dining room."

"Since this is Veronica's place, I don't need your invitation." Connor stiffly sat in front of the plate of pancakes and served himself one. He stuffed his mouth with a forkful.

"Since I cooked, then you certainly needed my invitation," Logan attacked.

Connor choked on his pancakes and reached for some water. "I just realized I'm full."

Logan smirked at him. "Sure? There's still plenty."

The footsteps coming towards them silenced the two men. Veronica came in squeezing water out of her hair with a towel. "Logan, were you saying something? I couldn't hear above the water noise."

She obviously did not see Connor with her hair over her eyes. Logan shook his head. Connor stood up and cleared his throat. She looked surprised to see him. "Connor, what are you doing here?"

"What am I doing here?" he repeated, stressing on the pronoun. "Veronica, we're wine tasting."

"I'm drawing a blank."

"For the wedding, Veronica. We're choosing wine."

"Veronica," Logan started to interrupt.

"Excuse me," Connor interceded. "This is a private conversation between my fiance and me."

Logan looked at Veronica and shook his head. "You can't go and have a wine tasting."

"Who the hell do you think—"

"Connor!" she grabbed his arm. "Stop, okay?"

"Then tell this creep off. Why is he even here?"

"He's helping me out," Veronica answered, "with something important. Connor, I can't go with you. I'm sure whatever you want is fine. You have impeccable taste." She patted his chest. "Whatever you choose, your guests will love it."

"Veronica, you're the one who scheduled this a month ago."

"I know, sweetheart. And I'm sorry. But I have to be somewhere else. You understand, don't you?"

"You have a lot of explaining to do," he warned her.

"When I get back."

"Great! That's all settled then." Logan bunched the apron in his hands and tossed it by the sink. "So Connor, what's new with you?"

The actor merely narrowed his eyes and shook his head at Logan in warning. "Don't try to be cute."

Logan grinned. "I wouldn't dare."

Tbc

http/p092.