Disclaimer: The usual - all credits to Eglee, Cameron + Co.
A/N: I posted this chapter soon after the other, to have something more positive... Just pretend it's already weekend and late summer... we need those images on a cold winter tuesday! ;) Enjoy, and as always I would be really happy to receive reviews!
Chapter 10 – Family excursion
Fogle Towers, Penthouse – Saturday, September 14, 2024, 5.50 AM
A rattling noise streamed through Logan's dream. The noise didn't belong there, Logan was half-consciously certain. In his dream, he had just been in the middle of cooking a complicated dinner. The noise neither fitted the preparing of the orange sauce nor did it match the steaming of the asparagus, he dreamed of. Slowly Logan became aware, that the noise must come from somewhere outside of this whole setting... the dream began to slip away and was replaced by an energetic and way too loud female voice. "Logan! Wake up, sleepyhead!" Logan groaned. He stirred and slowly turned his head to his beloved, but definitively far too awaken Max. He produced a half-articulated "woahr...hmpf?" and opened his eyes. Max smiled seducingly at him. „Hey, the family excursion is today! Let's not loose too much time in bed!" - Logan slowly turned his head towards the clock on the nightstand and gave out another groan as he saw how early it was. "Max! It's weekend! Please..." - Logan tried. But Max had no mercy. "It was you who wanted to make a trip on the weekend! Remember?" - Logan let his head fall back onto his cushion. He gnarled: "Yeah, I remember." After taking a couple of deep breaths, he finally managed to get up into a sitting position. Sleepily he gazed at Max. "Mind if you prepare some coffee? Today I need one." Max obeyed quickly, jumped out of the bed and into the kitchen while Logan reluctantly began to head to the bathroom to start with his morning routine.
About 50 minutes later, they were settled into the car, Ben sleeping like an angel inside his carrier bag on the backseat. Logan envied his son as he pulled the Aztec into the street. The traffic at this hour of day was clear. No other car in sight until they arrived the sector check point. The sector police officer wanted to know the reason to trespass, and Logan told him something about visiting his sick aunt at the outskirts of Seattle to give her a chance to see her little nephew. As the officer saw the baby, he immediately waved them through without really checking their sector passes. Max wondered where they were headed to, because Logan didn't want to tell her beforehand, told her it would be a surprise. The only thing she knew was that it was not the family cabin, which resided in another direction. No, in fact, they were heading north and then turned to the west, taking the Tulalip Road. The way itself was already beautiful with the shoreline and the forest and in a remarkable good state, compared to the rocky roads she was used to outside of the inner city. Soon they reached Tulalip Bay, where Logan parked the Aztec directly beneath the bridge to the small pier. The couple of weather worn houses on the opposite side were the only sign that the pulse ever happened, the small harbour was in an excellent state. There were several parking spaces, and the pier bridge over the quay wall towards the boats was easily accessible from there. Max was genuinely surprised. A boat? She lifted one eyebrow and glanced at him. Logan smiled his ever winning smile at her and said: "You want to keep sitting in the car all day long?" Max shrugged, jumped out and began to pull out the wheelchair and the lower part of the baby stroller off the back of the car. When Logan got properly out of the car and was sufficiently loaded with items Max thought could come in handy (while Logan only half of the stuff considered as necessary), he began wheeling onto the pier bridge. Max asked: "Am I at least now cleared to know which one it is?" - Logan turned back to her and said: „The green one over there." Max paused in her motion for an instant and shaded her hand over her eyes to watch properly. "Oh, wow, Logan, that is great..." She gasped, "...it is awesome!" - Logan now grinned even more. "And you didn't see yet the interior!"
As they were halfway towards the ship, a man climbed off it and made advance towards them. "Hello Mr. Cale, welcome on board!", he shouted. Then, lifting his hat shortly towards Max, "Madame..." Max blushed. Logan's voice became professional "Good morning, Patrick. Thanks for being here this early. Everything about the job is clear?" - Patrick smiled back, "As clear as can be." Logan replied: „Good.". Then he proceeded to get to the gangway of the boat. When he got there he said softly to Max: "Think you could give me a hand here? Don't want to ask Patrick." Max rolled with her eyes. "Logan, you don't even need to ask!" With that, she matter-of-factly braked the baby-stroller, walked around him, lifted him up and carried him over the gangway on board the ship. She espied a bench in the middle of the deck where she sat Logan down, before she fetched his wheelchair. Then she repeated the procession with first Ben in his carrier bag and then the bottom piece of the stroller and the backpacks they had packed. When she finally had finished carrying everything on board, she let herself slump down onto the bench beside Logan.
As she sat there, Max glanced around. For the first time she took in the ship in all its splendid. It was a small yacht for about five people. The name of the ship was 'Jonas'. Max had an idea where that name came from. What she saw about the interior was wooden furniture, expensive quality. The deck itself was mostly white, while the outer face of the ship was painted in a dark green. The sail had a light celestial blue which matched perfectly the colour of the water. Max felt a slightly vibrating motion, as the engines of the yacht were started by Patrick.
Logan, who comfortably leaned on the backrest of the bench, took tenderly Max' hand into both his hands and announced: "Now that we finally managed to get on board, let's celebrate both our healthy family and the possible cure." His hair was disheveled by the wind, which made him look even more hotter in Max's eyes. Logan smiled widely and added: "You may now either kiss me or fetch the champagne. Your choice what you want to do first.", Logan twinkled by saying this. Max rolled with her eyes and leaned in to elaborately kiss him. They only stopped long minutes later, as they felt that the ship slowly turned in his drive. Max lifted her head and watched the manoeuver. She saw the shoreline with the forest behind them and another shoreline with trees in front of them. Apparently, the ship had switched the direction from west to more southward. Max shaded her eyes with one hand and spied what looked like an island. Inquiringly she turned to Logan who only watched Max instead of the beautiful landscape. He smirked at her as she said: "An island? We are going to an island?" - Logan nodded, still smirking. "Appropriate place to do a special family excursion, don't you agree?"
Max looked incredulous at him with big brown eyes. She wanted to retort something else, but instead gulped down her reply, shook her head and managed to say: "Whatever".
The yacht reached gedney island at the northeastern side. There was a small marina with piers for moorage. Patrick performed his job well and soon they were ready to get off board. Max wondered silently when Logan arranged for all this. But then, this was Logan. Lucky her. She shrugged to herself and decided better to enjoy it than to ponder over it. Max carried the items plus Ben and Logan onto the island. As she had set up the baby stroller and the picknick basket sat secured on Logan's lap, Max asked: "And what now?" - Logan grinned at her even more. It was a school boy grin, like he had something in mind. Max went on: "Come on! Logan Cale, the protector of all the downtrodden, the fighter for the good in life is making fun of me! That's not nice!" She tried to pout earnestly with a deadly gaze at him, but without success. Soon she had to grin as well.
Logan took this sight of Max loosing her ugly face deeply in, before he answered: "Let's built sand castles!" He beamed at her now really pissed facial expression. With her nose lifted high she snorted out: "As I said, you only want to make fun of me!" - Logan's features gotten softer. "Nah – hey Max, I earnestly wanted to go to the beach with you, you know, sit in the sand, enjoy the calmness and the view..." he pointed at the northern shoreline of the island, were indeed was a lonely and beautiful sandy beach. Logan continued, now deadly earnest: "...and it's true that I wanted to built a sandcastle. The last one of my life, before I can't do it anymore. You know, as a child I often came here with my cousins. And we played at this beach. So call me a nostalgic. But please come with me and built sandcastles!" He now looked pleading up to Max. Her features also totally changed. She kneeled beside him, took his hand and proclaimed with a soft smile: "I herewith declare the realm of the sandcastles as ours! Let's do it."
The rest of the day went by in a fluffy peaceful manner until they returned to the ship at the late afternoon. Logan leaned with his back at a big wooden stem, who apparently was flotsam. Like this, he could comfortably built at least two full castles at both sides of him. Max built a sandcastle big enough to put Ben in the middle of the inner court. They enjoyed the sunny day and the fact that they were the only people – at least on this side of the island. Since the pulse, nobody lived here anymore. Max was glad they brought the picknick basket so they could enjoy the meal. Max went into the water twice, but only after Logan assured her that he was totally fine with watching Ben for the time being.
Late at night, as they were back home again and laying down to sleep, Max tenderly caressed Logan's breast. She slowly kissed her way up until she reached his mouth. Then she said: "Thank you for the great day! You always surprise me again – if I wouldn't love you already, that would be reason enough to fall in love with you!" Logan only squeezed her hand in return and kissed her intensely back.