Veronica paced outside the main door to the Echolls family estate trying to work up the nerve to go inside. The doors to the Echolls family house were mirrored, mostly to afford the family a little privacy from all the paparazzi snaps by ruining the light exposure, something that would have driven Veronica crazy had she been on a stake-out trying to get snaps for a case, but at this particular moment, all it did was show her a girl who had just lied to her dad about staying in Mac's house for a sleep over so she could go and confront the man who she was in love with about the racy snaps she had taken of him with a Greek Goddess and legs that went on for miles.

Get your game face on Mars… she told herself, adjusting her lip gloss.

She opened the door and went inside, the house as quiet, music still carried on from the ipod dock in the garden, she walked past the kitchen and noticed the photos were gone, an ice bucket was the only thing sitting on the counter. She ventured from the main house out into the garden, taken by surprise to see a small army of half melted church candles leading up to the decking beyond the pool, a dying garden fire pit was set up beside a dinner table set for two… What was all this?

"Logan?" she called as she went to the edge of the garden, overlooking the view of Neptune, this was her favourite spot in the entire house, probably in Neptune if she was honest about it. Something about the way the harbour was circled around the hillside and the way the light caught the moon made it look like the heavens were smiling.

There was still no sign of him, she picked up the silver lid on one of the dinner settings. It was a burger and fries but food was cold now. The bottle of wine sat abandoned on the edge of the table and the candles on the centre piece were dying. This had been set up for a while… had he been waiting like this for her when she had come here the first time? Guilt settled itself into an uncomfortable ball in the pit of her stomach. He wasn't in the guest house, or his bedroom.

"Yeah, well you do have this habit of dodging me sometimes…" he had teased her that morning while they were laying cuddled up in his bed together. Like that time in the guest house during the night of the surprise party when she had found the hidden camera's Aaron Echolls had installed, but she had immediately thought the worst of Logan and bolted? She had avoided him for days with zero explanation. Was this something she had inherited from her mother? Things get tough so she just ran away? At least she wasn't reaching for the liquor cabinet she guessed. She dialled his cell phone, but only got through to his inspirational message of the day.

"Hi this is Logan, and this is today's inspirational message:

"There's nothing as exciting as a comeback - seeing someone with dreams, watching them fail, and then getting a second chance. - Rachel Griffiths"

There were no other lights on in the house except upstairs, she went inside and found the door to Aaron Echolls home studio office propped open. There were photographs were lying shredded in the bottom of the glass shredder basket, and Kendall's bra was laying in the trash. So he knew she had been here…

His loud yellow car was still in the driveway, but he was nowhere around.

"Where are you Logan?" she whispered.

Logan stood in the Line Up at the Sheriff's Department and stepped forward when the mystery voice behind the mirror called his number. He was being blackmailed, Veronica had ditched him… again, and now he was being arrested for a murder he didn't commit.. again.

"There are no secrets that time does not reveal" he smiled as he tapped on the glass before being hauled off to the interrogation office by Deputy Briar.

"I don't care how many times you ask Lamb… I am not interested! Now get your minions to get the clamp off of my car!" Daisy Blossom complained, her black hair was tied up in a choppy bun and her green eyes flashed angrily at him.

"It's a valid reason Daisy… you were badly parked.." he crooned, giving her that sleazy smile again. All pearly whites like an idiot shark. Ugh!

"Badly parked… in my parking spot… of my driveway?" she snapped. The asshole had been doing these little things for weeks. Honestly, you get drunk at your exes engagement party and wake up next to a complete rent-a-cop jerk. Coyote Ugly am I right?

"What can I say? You just Daisy Chained your way into my heart" he smiled. God the cheese…

Apparently their little night together had rocked the Balboa County Sheriffs world because he hadn't stopped calling, showing up at her place of work or getting his lackeys to do little things to make her have to come down to the Sheriff's office to get sorted out in person, and she had thought that night with Vinnie Van Lowe had been a bad move. She really had to stop doing body shots and tequila when she went to the Neptune Rusty Knot, the local strip club she pulled pints at sometimes over near 43rd and Ukley.

"What are you staring at Chasing Maverick?" she snapped as saw the Deputy Briar taking a young guy into the interrogation room. "Shouldn't you be doing something other than trying to get back in my pants?" she snapped at Lamb before storming off out of his office with the ticket.

"We can settle this other ways?" he offered, disappointed.

"Yeah, I'm thinking, Anchor and the end of the Pier!" she growled and continued walking. Lamb couldn't help but watch the gothic siren storm off out of the station. Sexy Sea Witch…

"Ah.. Mr Echolls… Let's have a chat now shall we?" Lamb grinned as he closed the door behind them.

*** There will be a few wee of my own Original Characters making little Easter Egg appearances in my various stories for your amusement. Daisy is one of these that I like to pop in from time to time.