Chapter Seventeen

Mid-November 2019

Eighteen Weeks Along

It's Wednesday afternoon and Veronica waits impatiently in the arrivals area at LAX for Logan to appear, but despite his plane landing thirty minutes ago, there's no sign of him yet. He hasn't even been away for five weeks, but with all the changes she's gone through in that time, it feels like a lot longer. When he left in October, unless she was wearing tight clothes, her pregnancy was barely noticeable, but in the last couple of weeks, it feels like she's ballooned. Mac has assured her she's not that big and that she's worrying too much, but Veronica can't help but be all-too-conscious of her rapidly-expanding waistline.

Pulling out her phone, she checks it for messages, then opens her emails, just in case. There's a new email from Nick, asking if Logan has made it home safely and wanting to know when they'll be back in Virginia so he can return Pony to her rightful owner. She's about to type a reply, when a pair of arms slide around her from behind and Logan's voice sounds in her ear.

"What'ya doing?"

"Jesus, Logan!" she exclaims in alarm, almost dropping her phone as she spins around in his arms. "You can't do that to a pregnant woman! You don't know what might happen."

"Sorry," he says, though he sounds completely unrepentant, his eyes shining with humour.

She narrows her eyes at him, shaking her head, before breaking into a wide smile as she rises up and wraps her arms around his neck, hugging him tight. His arms tighten around her in return and he buries his nose against her shoulder.

"Welcome home," she says softly.

Logan's head lifts and he looks down at her for a moment before closing the gap between them and capturing her lips in a hungry kiss… one Veronica returns with just as much fervour. When they part, Logan smiles at her tenderly, before pulling back to stare at her stomach.

"Whoa," he murmurs in awe, one hand sliding around and coming to rest on her rounded belly.

Veronica lowers her arms and drops her gaze to his hand, frowning when she feels a small fluttering in her stomach. Experimentally, she closes her hand over his and slides it a little lower. Sure enough, she feels another fluttering beneath the touch, and her eyes widen as she looks back up at him.

"I think I just felt the baby move," she murmurs faintly.

"Really?" Logan looks surprised. "Are you sure?"

"Well, not entirely," she admits. "It could just be gas, or maybe hunger pangs… but I felt it when I moved your hand here." She moves his palm back up to the original spot again. "And when it was here too."

"Wow."

"Yeah…"

Logan's expression is one of both wonder and curiosity. "What does it feel like?"

Veronica scrunches up her face in thought. "It's hard to describe; kind of like bubbles, maybe? Which is why it might have just been gas."

"Well, I'm choosing to think it was the baby recognising her daddy," he says decisively.

"Her?" Veronica raises a surprised eyebrow. "You think it's a girl?"

"Oh, uh…" Logan blinks. "No, that was just… it just came out. Sorry."

"Don't apologise," she says. "Just surprised to hear you say it. We've been so focused on the 'getting pregnant' part, and I know we were talking about not finding out the sex, but I don't think we've actually talked about what we'd like it to be."

"No, you're right… we haven't," Logan says. "We should do that."

"Yeah, we should," she agrees. "But not here. Let's get home first, shall we?"

"Sure."

Logan smiles, leaning down to kiss her again, before releasing her and stepping back to pick up his large military-issue duffle bag. He holds out his hand to her and she takes it, winding her fingers through his as they head out of the airport.

Veronica tilts her head to the side, sighing blissfully as Logan kisses his way along her jaw and down her neck, his lips feather-light against her skin. She buries her fingers in his hair, delighting in the feel of his nude form stretched atop hers.

Within seconds of arriving back at the beach house, Veronica pulled Logan into their bedroom, locked the door behind them, and then promptly rid them both of their clothes. She wasn't kidding over Skype the other week… the pregnancy has been wreaking havoc on her hormones and the last month without Logan has been torture.

His mouth moves lower, down over her collarbone to her chest. One hand cups her breast, kneading the swollen flesh, his thumb brushing across her left nipple as his lips close around the right. Veronica shudders, letting out an eager moan, her hips bucking under his, overly-sensitive flesh feeling like it's on fire. Her hands slide from his hair to his shoulders, pushing down, letting him know what she wants. Logan releases her nipple with a pop and looks up at her incredulously.

"Again?"

"Yes, again," she insists, tone a mix of playfulness and urgency. "It's been a month."

Logan smirks, giving an amused shake of his head. "You're insatiable."

"It's the hormones," she returns, somewhat breathlessly.

"Whatever it is, I like it," he decides, easing himself further down her body.

He stops for a moment, his hands spreading over her stomach, fingers tracing gentle patterns across her skin. Eyes on her again, he gives her a questioning look.

"You feel anything now?"

She tries not let her frustration show, as she replies pointedly, "Not there, no."

"Okay, okay," he says in playful exasperation. "Hold your horses, I'm getting there."

Veronica's head falls back against the pillows, eyes sliding closed as he finally reaches his destination and his tongue darts out to taste her.

"Oh God…" She groans, clutching at his hair as his mouth closes over her clit and a fresh wave of sensation radiates through her. "Yes… don't stop. Just… stay there. Forever."

At that, Logan stops, his head lifting beneath her hands, and she opens her eyes to find him looking up at her with a raised eyebrow and a smirk playing on his lips.

"What?" she asks breathlessly.

"You know that I am not actually here simply to bend to your every whim, right?" he murmurs, tone teasing.

"Sorry," she mumbles. "I didn't mean to be so, uh, demanding… it's just... it's like I have this ache inside of me all the time, and nothing I do even comes close to taking the edge off. You're the only one who—"

"Who can scratch that itch for ya. Right," he finishes, looking amused. "Well, okay, then."

He spends the best part of the next thirty minutes making sure that particular itch is fully scratched—several times, in fact—before he slides up her body again and pulls her with him as he rolls onto his back. Veronica goes easily, straddling his waist and resting her upper body against his chest, not having the energy to sit up. Logan's palms run down over her back, slick with sweat, then curve around her bottom as he adjusts his hips and slides up into her.

They rock together, slowly at first, exchanging soft, gentle kisses and caresses, until Logan moves his hips just so and Veronica feels a spark deep inside her again. Using his chest for support, she pushes herself upright to sitting. Logan's hands come to her hips, guiding her movements for a moment, before sliding over her stomach, and then up to cup her breasts, testing their weight in his palms. She closes her eyes, and leans back, moving her hands to the tops of his thighs, as she concentrates on building towards yet another orgasm.

Anyone would think they'd been apart for months and not weeks, but Veronica can't get enough of him right now, and she's not going to apologise for it. Call it pregnancy hormones in overdrive or whatever, but God help her, she never wants this feeling to stop.

"So," Logan starts lazily as they relax comfortably on the sofa later that evening. Mac has offered to make herself scarce until tomorrow, so they have the house to themselves for the night. Veronica sits between his legs, her back propped against his chest as her hands rest over his on her t-shirt-covered stomach. "If I recall, we were going to discuss baby-related things when we got home."

"Yeah…we were…" Veronica says softly, voice faint, like it's an effort to get the words out.

He smirks when she yawns, feeling a strange sense of pride that he still has the ability to completely wear her out with sex, even after almost four years together. Not that he's faring much better, mind you. Even though they took an hour-long nap together earlier, he's having trouble keeping his eyes open as well.

"You wanna talk now?"

Veronica yawns again. "Can it wait? Too tired."

"Of course."

He drops a kiss to the top of her head, then spreads his hands out under hers, so that her fingers fall between his.

"You know, even though you showed me on Skype, I don't think this really became real for me until today," he muses, marvelling at the way her rounded stomach can feel both soft and firm at the same time.

She turns her head, looking a little bemused. "Oh, it's real. Believe me. It's been feeling all too real for weeks now."

"Yeah, I know," he acknowledges. "Sorry. That was insensitive."

"'It's okay." She reaches one hand up and gives his cheek a gentle pat. "You more than made up for it this afternoon."

"Yeah I did," he retorts playfully.

Veronica smiles, then freezes, her body stiffening.

"What?" he asks in alarm. "What is it?"

"I just realised that soon I'm not going to be able to see you when you're… you know… down there," she says faintly.

"Oh." Logan blinks, not expecting that at all. A strange mental image enters his mind and he quickly shakes it away. "Uh, I hadn't thought about that."

"And, oh God… I'm going to be too huge to have sex."

She sounds miserable at the prospect, but Logan can't help but smile. For once, a crew-room conversation from deployment will actually come in useful.

"Not necessarily," he says. "We'll just need to get a bit creative. You didn't read about that in one of those pregnancy books you bought?"

"I wasn't really focusing on the third trimester when I started reading them." She gives a shrug, then frowns, glancing back at him. "Hang on, how do you know so much about it?"

"Oh, uh… crew room talk?" he offers sheepishly.

"Right." She gives a scoff. "Of course… it's all about the sex with you men, isn't it? Not the wonder of creating human life or anything."

"Hey, that's not fair," he counters. "Which one of us has been 'all about the sex' lately, huh?"

"Yeah, whatever," she retorts childishly, looking down at their joined hands.

He grins as her cheeks flush, kissing her temple, then moving to sit up, bringing her with him. She shifts forward on the sofa, giving him some space to move.

"Don't know about you, but I need to sleep off some of this jetlag," he says, lifting his hands to her long hair and smoothing it down her back. "And I gotta be in San Diego in the morning."

"Yeah, me too." Veronica stifles another yawn, before turning to face him. "The sleep part, I mean. Let's go to bed."

They fly back to Norfolk, Virginia on Saturday, first heading over to Nick and Amy's to collect Pony, before driving back to their house. As much as she's missed seeing her puppy every day, Veronica can't deny the heavy, sinking feeling that settles over her when they step inside the military-assigned home again.

"You okay?" Logan asks as he enters the foyer behind her.

Veronica pastes a smile on her face as she turns her head to him. "Yeah. Just tired. And hungry."

"Good thing Amy gave us that then." Logan nods to the casserole dish she's holding. "Means we don't have to go to the store tonight."

"Yeah, good thing," she says, lifting her chin for a kiss as he moves past her.

While Logan brings the rest of their bags in from the car, Veronica heats up the dinner and fixes some food for Pony, and then they sink down on the couch to eat.

"So, what do you think we're having, a boy or a girl?" Veronica asks, when she's done, moving her plate onto the coffee table.

Logan glances over at her stomach thoughtfully, as if he's expecting some kind of signal from the baby. "I really don't know."

"Well, what would you like it to be?" she tries another tack.

"I'll be happy with either, as long as it's healthy," he says vaguely, causing Veronica to reach across and lightly smack his arm.

"That is such a cop-out," she declares, narrowing her eyes at him. "Come on, gimme a real answer."

Logan places his plate down on the coffee table next to hers, before shifting to face her. He purses his lips thoughtfully, regarding her for a long moment before finally speaking.

"Honestly? When I think of us with a child, it's always a girl," he says, giving a slight smile. "With your hair and eyes, and—"

"You do know that your eye colour will be the dominant one, right?" she interrupts. "Remember biology class? There's only a twenty-five percent chance this kid will have my eyes."

"Yeah, okay," he dismisses with a shake of his head and a small smile. "But that wasn't really my point."

"So, you'd like a girl," she says. "Okay."

"I'd be happy with a boy, too," he says "Like I said, as long it's healthy. What about you?"

Veronica gives a helpless shrug. "Well, being an only child, I don't really know anything about raising boys… but then, given what I also know about girls, we can be a handful too." She makes a face, recalling the kinds of things she went through growing up. "God, think of the teenage years."

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves." Logan reaches across to take her hand. He squeezes it lightly and she smiles in response. "We'll have plenty of time to figure all that stuff out."

"Yeah, I know." She nods. "Okay, if I have to choose… I think I'd like it to be a girl, too."

"Do you want find out at the scan in a couple of weeks?" he asks.

Veronica presses her lips together as she considers the options, before she asks, "Do you?"

"Not if you don't want to."

"You've changed your tune," she muses. "Before the last scan you were pushing for finding out the sex."

"I changed my mind." He gives a shrug. "Whatever you want is fine with me."

"Okay, a little surprised… but, thanks." She shoots him a grateful smile. "Well, part of me is really curious to know, but the rest is… I mean, I don't want knowing the sex to affect how I feel about the baby; you know, about how I'm going to raise it. And, well, what if they get it wrong, and we spend the next five months thinking it's a girl and then out pops a boy, or vice versa?"

"Both valid points," Logan concedes. "Though I'm pretty sure ultrasound technology has advanced a fair bit since we were born. They have those 4D scans and everything now."

"Yeah, I know, but I kinda like the idea of not finding out until it's born," says Veronica thoughtfully. "It adds some mystery. And there's no way I'm gonna be gender stereotyping my kid anyway, so I guess, ultimately it doesn't matter."

"Okay," Logan agrees. "We won't find out then. Keep it a surprise."

Mid-November 2019

Nineteen Weeks Along

They visit Sarah's new arrival on Monday morning. Logan has a few days off before he has to get back to work at Oceana, but Chaos has used up all the leave he took when Mason was born, so it's a good opportunity to see her friend and offer some help.

While Veronica relieves Sarah of the baby, carefully cradling him in her arms as she takes a seat on the couch, Logan offers to make the hot drinks in the kitchen. Sarah smiles at him gratefully as he hands her a small mug of instant coffee, and then he takes a seat beside Veronica, who nudges him with her elbow.

"Isn't he just adorable?" she says. "He looks like his daddy, don't you think?"

"Uh, yeah." Logan smiles and gives a nod, though given the kid is only two weeks old and fast asleep, it's hard to tell if there's much of a family resemblance yet. "He does."

Veronica looks down at the newborn with an awed expression, gently rocking him in her arms, and Logan feels a small flip in his chest at the sight of it.

In a few months, that'll be our baby she's holding, he muses. And despite what she might think, she's going to make a great mother.

As if sensing his gaze on her, she turns her head to look at him and he smiles warmly in return.

"You wanna hold him?" she offers.

"I don't want to wake him," he declines with a shake of his head.

"Yes, please don't," pipes up Sarah tiredly from the armchair. "He's been screaming the place down all morning."

"Should I put him down?" Veronica nods towards the small bassinet beside Sarah.

"Sure."

Gingerly, Veronica eases herself forward on the couch and stands, careful not to disturb Mason as she moves across the room. She gently lowers the baby down into the bassinet, and lets out a sigh of relief when he doesn't wake.

"How're you doing, Sarah?" Logan asks as Veronica settles back down beside him.

"So so tired," she admits. "I thought it would be easier this time, 'cause I've already been through it before, but nope. If anything, it's worse, because it turns out my daughter was what they call a 'good baby'. Mason, however, just refuses to sleep for more than about an hour at a time and never seems to stop crying."

"I'm sorry," says Veronica softly. "Please let me know if there's anything I can do to help, with the baby, or even just looking after Ava for you."

"Where is Ava today?" Logan wonders, glancing around the room. He hasn't seen any sign of her yet.

"Oh, my parents are staying with us for a few weeks," Sarah says. "They're entertaining her for me today."

"That's nice of them," Logan replies, even as Veronica shifts a little beside him, her gaze fixed on her hands. He frowns slightly, but doesn't comment.

They stay with Sarah for the next few hours, Veronica offering to put on a load of laundry, while Logan fixes them all some lunch. When the baby wakes, Logan offers to hold him, and though the first few moments with the tiny bundle in his arms are peaceful, it's not long before Mason starts screaming. And despite his best efforts, Logan can't get him to stop.

"He'll be hungry. Again," says Sarah, making her way to his side. "Here, I'll take him."

By the time they head home mid-afternoon, Logan's feeling a mix of excitement and apprehension at the prospect of what's to come for himself and Veronica in the next few months. Even though he was around when Ava was born, Veronica was the one who spent the most time with Sarah and the baby afterwards, so he didn't really experience the reality of having a newborn at home.

"You okay?" Veronica asks as they pull up in front of the house.

"Yeah." He nods, cutting the engine. "Just, uh… getting my head around it all."

"A lot to take in, huh?" She gives a small smile. "I know, me too. I get the feeling that the first few months are not going to be easy."

"I'm certainly getting that impression," he agrees. "At least her parents are here to help out though."

"Yeah… they are."

Her soft reply concerns him, but before he can say anything, she's out of the car and heading into the house.

Late November 2019

Twenty Weeks Along

Three days before Thanksgiving, Veronica and Logan visit Dr. Anderson's office for her twenty-week anatomy scan. The scan will make sure the baby is developing as it should be and check for potential medical anomalies, such as spina bifida, a cleft lip or a congenital heart defect. And of course, determine the sex of the baby, though since they've now decided for sure that they don't want to find out, they'll have to leave that part out.

Though she knows the scan is only routine, if she's honest, Veronica's not sure she really wants to know whether anything is potentially wrong with the baby. It took so much to get to this point that she can't bear the thought that he or she might not be completely healthy.

"Okay, then, let's get started, shall we?" says Dr. Anderson when Veronica is settled on the exam table in her office, her shirt pulled up to expose her rapidly-growing bump.

Veronica smiles at Logan, who slips his hand in hers as the cold gel is squeezed onto her stomach, and the doctor starts to move the sonogram wand across her skin. After a moment, the steady whooshing noise of a heartbeat sounds through the monitor and Veronica's own heart rate speeds up in response.

"The heartbeat is still nice and strong, just like before." Dr. Anderson smiles, giving a nod of approval. She turns the computer screen so that Veronica and Logan can see it. "Okay, here's the little one."

"Oh, wow…" Veronica feels a jolt of excitement as she takes in the image on the screen. At the last scan, it was hard to determine exactly what they were looking at, but this time she is definitely looking at a real, human baby and not just an alien-like blob. She turns to her husband with a wide smile. "Logan, look at our baby."

"It's incredible." He squeezes her hand, though his eyes are firmly fixed on the screen. "You can actually see a nose and mouth and everything."

"That you can," agrees the doctor. "And here's a hand as well, see?"

"Look at those tiny little fingers!" Veronica feels a sudden wave of emotion bubbling up in her chest as she takes in what she's seeing. She swallows, her hand coming to her mouth as she feels tears welling up in her eyes. "That's my baby."

Dr. Anderson smiles warmly. "Before I go any further, have you decided for sure whether you want to know the sex?"

Veronica glances up at Logan, whose eyes also seem slightly shiny, and he gives a small shake of his head. She nods once in confirmation, then turns back to the doctor.

"We don't want to know," she says. "It's going to be a surprise."

"Okay," says the doctor. "I'll do my best, but I have to warn you that the baby is in the perfect position today to tell, so you might see by accident. I'll try not to let that happen though."

Dr. Anderson continues with the scan, pointing out the various limbs and organs of the baby for them, while helpfully covering the parts of the image that could potentially give away the sex, before turning the monitor away from them again as she moves on to taking measurements and completing the rest of the scan checks.

"Okay, well," she says eventually, turning off the monitor and turning to Veronica and Logan. "Everything seems good to me. Your baby's growth looks to be on track, and it doesn't appear that there's anything to be worried about at the moment."

Veronica lets out a small sigh of relief. "That's great."

"Awesome," adds Logan with a smile.

"How have you been feeling lately, Veronica?" the doctor asks.

"I've been good, actually," she tells her. "The morning sickness stopped a few weeks ago, which means now I'm hungry all the time."

"That's good to hear," Dr. Anderson nods. "I know we were worried about your weight loss last time, but it seems you've been gaining steadily since then, which is good. You're within the normal recommendations for weight gain and the rest of your vitals seem normal. Have you felt the baby move yet?"

Veronica's hand comes to the side of her stomach. "I think so… I've felt a few flutters in the last couple of weeks, but it's hard to tell if it's the baby or just me."

"That's normal," says the doctor. "But it won't be long now before those little flutters will turn into actual kicks and jabs that you'll definitely be able to distinguish from other sensations."

"Amazing…" Logan says, a note of awe in his tone now.

Veronica looks up at him, seeing the same emotions mirrored in his eyes as she's feeling herself. This is so cool, and amazing… and it's getting more and more real by the day.

"Do you have any concerns or questions, either of you?"

"I don't think so." Veronica shakes her head.

"Okay, but, please, don't hesitate to let me know if you're worried about anything," Dr. Anderson says kindly. "Have the two of you started preparing for the next few months yet?"

"In what way?" The question comes from Logan.

The doctor shares a smile with Veronica, as she replies, "Well, like enrolling in childbirth classes, setting up your baby registry, deciding on a birthing plan, getting the nursery ready, finding a paediatrician…"

"Oh, right. Those things." Logan looks a little shell-shocked, as if none of the logistics or practicalities of having a baby have actually occurred to him yet.

"No, not yet," says Veronica, feeling a curl of discomfort in her chest at the thought of it. "Logan's been overseas for the last few weeks, and I've been visiting family in California, so we haven't really had a chance to yet."

"Well, don't worry, they aren't urgent," the doctor assures them. "But they are things you'll need to start thinking about soon, because they can take some time to sort out."

"Of course." Veronica nods

Dr. Anderson smiles. "Okay, well, that's everything for today. Your next screening will be at twenty-six weeks, so we'll get you scheduled in for an appointment in"—she checks her calendar—"the second week of January."

"Okay, we'll see you then," says Logan, as he helps Veronica sit up and slide off the exam table. "Thanks, Doctor."

"So, I guess we need to figure out a… what was it called? A birthing plan?" Logan says later that evening as they enjoy the cool night air while walking Pony along the beach.

"Yeah, I guess we do." Her voice is soft, almost timid, and he frowns in response.

Veronica's been quiet since they left the doctor's office, which is unexpected, given how excited she was during the scan itself. In the car on the way home, he wanted to ask if something was wrong, but before he had the chance, she leaned forward and turned the radio up, effectively preventing him from saying anything. Then, during dinner, she kept her focus on the food and avoided any real conversation.

He glances over at her now, squeezing her hand in his as he asks, "Hey, is everything okay?"

She starts to shake her head, but then instead, takes a deep, almost stuttering breath, before she says, "Not really, no."

"What's wrong?" He tugs on her hand, urging her to stop. "You were so happy earlier. What changed?"

"Nothing. It's probably just pregnancy hormones." She looks down at Pony, who is standing dutifully beside her, waiting to get moving again.

She's trying to shrug it off, he can tell, but he isn't going to let her just pretend everything's fine when it clearly isn't.

"Talk to me, Veronica," he says seriously. "Please."

She doesn't say anything for a long moment, but then takes another long breath, before finally speaking.

"All this talk about birthing plans and nurseries and paediatricians…" She looks up at him in the darkness, her expression fraught. "Logan, the thing is… I want to have the baby in Neptune."

Ah. There it is.

He's seen the look in her eyes lately, the enthusiasm in her voice over Skype when she was in Neptune, how her mood dipped as soon as they arrived back in Virginia a few days ago. It was only a matter of time before it all came spilling out.

Not that he hasn't thought about bringing it up himself, but even though his meeting in San Diego the other week went well, and he's already discussed the possible transfer with Commander Sanchez, which seemed like it might have positive results, he still doesn't know anything for certain yet.

"I'm sorry," she adds when he doesn't say anything. "I know it can't happen, because you have to be here, and because there's no way I'm going anywhere, or doing any of this, without you. But, Logan, seeing Sarah the other day… the thought of trying to cope on my own after the baby's born, without my dad, or anyone else from home… I'm afraid I won't be able to do it."

Logan opens his mouth to talk, but she continues before he can say anything.

"I know my dad said he would come out here when the baby's born, but that means taking time off work, and he can't stay indefinitely. He needs the money."

"I know," he says softly when she takes a breath.

"And," she keeps going, "before you say that I have friends here, like Sarah and Nick, it's not the same. Besides, Sarah has Mason to take care of, and Ava too. I couldn't ask her to help me as well."

"I know," he says again, taking her other hand in his, Pony's leash sliding down to her wrist as he does so, and looking down at her seriously. "Veronica… I know."

"Wait." She frowns in the darkness, looking confused. "What do you mean, 'you know'?"

"Veronica, I'm not blind," he says. "When you were in Neptune, you seemed different. Lighter, happier. Your eyes had this extra sparkle. You were where you needed to be; but then, as soon as we landed here, you lost that lightness and sparkle again."

"But, we can't go back, Logan," she utters, sounding completely dejected. "So what's the point in dwelling on it? I mean, what good will it do?"

"Hey, come here," he says softly, releasing her hands and pulling her into a tight hug.

Her arms come around his lower back, Pony's leash preventing her from lifting them higher, and she buries her forehead against his chest. Logan rests his chin atop her head for a moment, pressing his lips together, his brow furrowing as he debates his options, before he makes a split decision. He just hopes it's the right one.

"Okay, look," he says gently, releasing her and pulling back so he can look down at her in the moonlight. "I wasn't gonna say anything yet, because it's not set in stone… but there's a chance I'm going to be transferred back to North Island."

"What?" Veronica's head whips up, her mouth falling open as she stares up at him in shock. "When? How?"

"The Navy is setting up a new F/A-18 tactics unit based at North Island," he tells her gently. "Like the squadron I teach at here. You know that meeting I went to on the base when I got home?" She nods, still looking stunned. "I was discussing the possibility of being transferred back so I could help set up the unit."

"Seriously?" Her voice is faint. "I mean, is this just hypothetical, or is it something that might actually, really happen?"

"As I said, nothing's official yet," he states. "But it's sounding promising."

"Oh my God…" she murmurs. "If it does happen, when would you start?"

"As far as I know, the plan is to have the unit up and running by next Spring, but if the transfer goes ahead, I could be there earlier to plan and execute the training program. It could be as early as the New Year."

"Really?" She seems to be in disbelief. "As in we could come home for Christmas?"

"I hope so."

"Oh my God, Logan… this is incredible!" She bounces on her toes for a moment before curling her fingers around his biceps and rising up to kiss him excitedly. "I can't believe it."

"Like I said, it's still only a possibility," he reminds her. "I wasn't going to mention it until I knew for sure and had been issued the official orders. I knew how you were feeling, and I was concerned about getting your hopes up, in case it doesn't come together."

"Well, I'm glad you did." She beams up at him, reaching for his shirt and tugging him down for another kiss. "You've just made my day, Lieutenant Echolls."

He returns the smile, warmth spreading through his chest in response to seeing her happy again. "Glad I could be of assistance, ma'am."

Beside them, Pony barks, her tail wagging furiously as she tugs on her leash, obviously fed up of just standing around.

"Sorry, Pone." Veronica turns to the dog. "I know you want to keep walking, but did you hear that? We might be going back home again."