This is actually the idea were this story started and it just grew out of this. If you've been waiting for more Veronica, you'll get it now. I'm unsure how you will react to this turn. Leave me a review and let me know.
Chapter 10
Early June 2010 (2.5 Years Later)
Veronica stood on the beach with her camera in hands. Photographing a blonde haired, blue eyed little boy running around the playground who answered to the name of Jack. It's funny how much you can love someone so small. Since the first time she held him in her arms, actually even before then he had become her world.
She turned towards the shore and saw two figures in her lense and zoomed back to see their faces. Veronica pulled the camera from her face. She wasn't exactly surprised to see him, but this wasn't how she wanted there first meeting in three years to go.
"Veronica." Logan came to stand in front of her in his board shorts and surf shirt. Then propped his board up in the sand.
"Hi Logan." She moved her eyes to Dick who was standing next to him. "Hey Dick."
"Ronnie. Long time." Dick stood his board up as well.
"What are you doing here?" Logan eyed her up and down.
Veronica put her camera away in the bag on her shoulder and sneaked a glance at Jack who was now playing with another little boy that he had just made friends with when they got there an hour ago.
"I'm here visiting. Just got into town last night." Veronica set her bag on the bench behind her next to a large blue and white striped tote. "I was planning to call you."
Logan nodded. "Well it looks like fate had other plans."
"It always does."
A loud scream rocketed Veronica to attention. Her head wiped to the right and saw Jack on the ground with another woman named Holly, who was the mother of the other child, running towards him. Veronica bolted from her spot and reached Jack.
"He fell running. I don't think he's hurt." Holly told her as she picked up the boy Jack was playing with.
Veronica picked Jack up in her arms. "You're okay Jack. You're okay." She turned to Holly. "Thanks. He's nap was cut short today, so he's just grumpy."
"I'll call you about setting up a play date this week with Sean."
"That would be great." Veronica turned and headed back towards the bench, but froze when she noticed Logan and Dick watching her. She had forgotten for a moment that they were standing there. Taking a deep breath, Veronica made her way to the bench and sat down still holding Jack against her as his crying calmed down.
Veronica pulled a wet wipe from the tote and removed the tears from Jack's face before cleaned the sand from his hands. "Hey little man. How about some apple juice?" She could feel the two sets of eyes staring holes in her.
Jack nodded against her and pulled back rubbing his eye with his fist.
Veronica avoided looking up as she pulled a juice box out of a small cooler in her tote. After placing the straw in the box she handed it to Jack and then braved looking up at the two guys staring dumbfounded at her.
"This is Jackson, although he likes Jack more." Veronica kissed his forehead and she ran a hand over his hair.
Logan let out a loud breath. "How old is he?"
Veronica looked down at Jack. "Sweetie, can you tell my friends how old you are?"
Jack turned around in her lap and looked up at the two men noticing them for the first time then his eyes widened. "Surfers."
"Yes, they surf." Veronica gave a small laugh. "Can you tell them how old you are?"
Jack smiled up at Logan and Dick, and then held up two fingers. "This many."
"How many is that?" Veronica asked him.
"Two." Jack's looked to his left and then his smile got larger. "Mommy's here." He jumped off Veronica's lap and started running.
"Jack!" Veronica stood up but saw Mac walking towards them in old torn jeans rolled up and a white tank top with her arms outstretched to her son.
She looked up to Logan who was biting his lip. He motioned his head towards Dick and raised his eyebrows in question, so Veronica offered him a small nod. She turned her eyes on Dick would was staring at Mac in shock.
Mac picked up her son and twirled him around before placing him back on the sand. "Did you have a good time with Aunt V?" She held his hand and started walking towards where Jack had run from. When she looked up she stopped in her tracks when she was met by the face that she hadn't gotten out of her mind since she left Neptune.
Jack was pulling at her hand. "Mommy. They surf."
"Yes, I know sweetie." Mac took a deep breath and continued walking to the group without losing eye contact with Dick. "Hi Dick." She shifted her eyes and noticed Logan. "Hey."
Logan waved. "Hey."
Veronica jumped in. "Did everything get moved in?"
She looked over at Veronica. "Yeah. Got a few groceries and just got to unpack now. Thanks for entertaining Jack today." When Mac shifted her eyes back over she noticed that Dick looked panicked. "Hey V, can you go put Jack in the car seat for me?" She handed her car keys over to Veronica who picked up her bags and took Jack's hand.
Logan came up to Mac. "It's good to see you. We should catch up soon now that you're back." He kissed her on the cheek. "I'm going to go talk to Veronica." Then grabbed his board and walked away.
Mac bit her lips and composed herself as she turned to face Dick. "How've you been?"
Dick narrowed his eyes and pointed towards where Veronica had gone with Jack. "He's mine?" It wasn't exactly a question, but more of a statement.
Mac could tell he was angry, but found the strength to nod as her gaze fell to the ground.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"Because you didn't want to hear what I had to say." She instantly regretted saying that and flinched. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that." Mac sat down on the bench.
Dick rubbed his hand over his face before sitting down next to Mac. "Why didn't you call, email, hell sent a carrier pigeon?"
Mac looked over at Dick. He didn't look as angry anymore, which made Mac feel a small amount better. "I was going to that time I came to the penthouse. After that I was scared of how you would react. I started to call you a few times, but chickened out. I did send you a few emails, but hacked your account and deleted them before you saw them."
"Were you ever going to tell me?"
She nodded. "I came to town six weeks ago when I was house shopping and found out where you live. I went by your house, but you weren't there. I was planning on trying again tomorrow morning while Jack is with my parents."
"So you're back?"
"Just got here last night. I have a position with Kane Industries and moved into my new house today."
He rubbed a hand over his head. "Okay. I need to think. Can we talk tomorrow?"
"Sure. How about you come by at ten tomorrow? I'll text you the address."
Dick laughed. "So you still have my number. Too bad you didn't use it before."
Mac stood up. "I deserve that. I'll see you tomorrow." She began towards the parking lot.
"Mac." She turned around. "I'm sorry."
Mac nodded. "I'm sorry too."
She made it back to the car to find Logan letting Jack stand on his board. Jack was thrilled to pretend to surf. Ever since he first saw the Surf's Up cartoon, he has been obsessed.
"Mommy. I surf!" Jack giggled.
"I see that. Maybe we can come back and watch Logan surf sometime? We need to go to Grandma and Grandpa's house for dinner." She picked up Jack. "Can you say goodbye to Aunt V and Logan?"
"Bye." Jack waved.
Veronica came up and kissed Jack on the cheek. "I'll see you guys after dinner. I'll work on Jack's room."
Mac smiled at her best friend. "You're wonderful. What am I going to do without you all the time?" Veronica had accepted a job in LA that started in a few weeks and planned to visit a lot, but life will be very different without her help everyday.
Once Mac and Jack were pulling out of the space, Veronica found herself alone with Logan. "Sorry about earlier. I know what you were thinking. If Dick hadn't been there I would have just explained from the beginning, but I was overwhelmed."
"I understand why you didn't just explain." Logan picked up his board and carried it towards Dick's truck. "Would you be interested in having dinner tonight?"
She followed him through the parking lot. "I need to set up Jack's room. I have a surprise planned and want it up before they get back." Veronica wanted to spend more time with Logan. "Would you be interested in helping me? We could order pizza."
A smile grew on Logan's face as he put the board in the back of the truck. "I would like that."
"Great." She gave him Mac's new address and told him to head over as soon as he could.
Dick approached the two of them. "Hey guys."
"You okay Dick?" Logan looked at him with concern.
"I don't know how I am. I just found out I have a two-year old son."
She put her hands in the back pockets of her shorts. "If you decided to be part of his life, then you can't walk away later. Jack is a lifetime commitment."
"I don't know how to be a dad." Dick leaned against his truck.
"You'll learn. He's an amazing kid."
"Mac may not even want me to be in his life. If she had then she would have told me about him sooner."
"Mac has wanted to tell you a million times. I almost told you when…when he was born. I know she wants you in his life." Veronica turned to Logan. "I'm going to go. I'll see you later."
Logan watched Veronica walk away looking forward to seeing her as soon as he can get home and change, but then he remembered that Dick may need to talk. "Dick, let's go home."
After Mac left during their sophomore year, the two guys decided they needed to grow up some and bought a house together. It was on the beach, but they still enjoyed going to public beaches and surfing those areas.
When they entered their beach house, Dick went straight to the refrigerator and pulled out a beer. Logan had spent the past few years working on improving himself and it rubbed off on Dick. They both graduated college with their bachelor degrees the previous month Logan as an English major and Dick with business.
Before graduation Logan ran into an old friend of his mom's, who was working on a screenplay. Logan gave a few useful suggestions that were a big hit with the studio, which led to a freelance consulting job with several screenwriters at the studio over the past two months.
Dick had taken some of his inheritance and purchased two rundown beachside motels that he was currently renovating and hoping to open as new eco-friendly luxury condos just outside the 09'er zip code.
"Are you okay man? Do you want to talk about it?"
Dick pulled the beer from his lips. "I'm fine. You should get changed and go meet Ronnie."
"I don't mind staying if you need to talk."
He laughed without smiling. "You've read that letter a billion times. You've waited years for this. Go."
"Call me if you need me to come home."
Logan arrived at Mac's new house less than an hour after leaving Veronica at the beach. The letter from Veronica was in his pocket and Logan couldn't stop thinking about what Veronica had written all those years ago. He knocked on the door and waited for it to open.
When Veronica heard the knock on the door, she was suddenly nervous. It had been over three years since she last saw Logan, but he had been on her mind for all that time. Sure she tried to date twice while she was at Stanford, but they were both like Piz and Veronica became bored with them quickly.
She opened the door and smiled up at him. "Hi."
"Hey."
She motioned for Logan to come in. "Did you want to go ahead and order the pizza or wait?"
Logan entered the home. "Why don't you show me what we are working on first?"
"Oh you'll love this." She closed the door and began towards the bedrooms. "Jack is a lot like Dick believe it or not. He watched a cartoon a while back about surfing and has been obsessed since." She walked into the room that she was working on. "I got this headboard made for him, but haven't shown it to Mac yet. I just brought it in from my car." It was a basic white headboard with a short red surfboard attached horizontally. The board was decorated with different shades of red stripes, white turtles, and said Jack written in the middle in white.
"That's awesome."
"Thanks. I was planning to do a whole surf themed room. I already brought the boxes in. Mac hasn't seen any of it yet except the blue walls that I got her brother to paint a few days ago." Veronica had a twinkle in her eyes. She was so excited to give this surprise to Jack.
"You really love him don't you?"
Veronica sighed and sat down on the floor and began attaching the bed railings. "I was the first person to hold him after the doctors and nurses. He's had me wrapped around his little finger ever since. I'm really going to miss him."
Logan sat down with her to help. "You said you were just visiting. Where have you been?"
Veronica bit her lip. "We were at Stanford, but now Mac will be here and I'll be LA in a couple of weeks. So not too far away, but far enough I won't see Jack everyday anymore."
"What's in LA?" Logan was excited that she would so close by.
"I accepted a job with the California Bureau of Investigation. Not exactly as big as the FBI, but it'll keep me in California instead of moving around all over the country."
"I go up to LA for work a couple of days a week." They finished putting the bed frame together and Logan stood before offering his hand to help Veronica up.
She took his hand and came to stand in front of him. "We'll have to make it a point to see each other when you're in town."
Logan held onto her hand. "Did you mean what you put in the letter?"
She laughed to the side. "I was wondering when you were going to bring that up." Veronica stared at their joined hands. "I don't remember what I said word for word, but…"
Logan let go of her hand and pulled the letter from his pocket. "Maybe this would refresh your memory. I'll go order the pizza while you read it." He stepped out of the room and into the hallway.
Veronica came to stand in the doorway. "I don't need to read it." Logan stopped and turned to face her. "I meant what I wrote. We both needed to grow up and figure out who we were as individuals. It didn't matter how much we loved one another then because we kept hurting each other."
She unfolded the letter in her hands and looked at the writing. "I understand how you felt now." Her eyes came up to look at him. "I watch Jack run around and he can be fearless sometimes which scares me. What if he gets hurt and I could have stopped it? I care that he's safe. I get it."
Logan took the three steps that were between them and placed his hands on her cheeks before pressing his lips to hers. Veronica gave out a moan and fisted his shirt at his sides.
He pulled back a few inches and watched as Veronica opened her eyes. "I'm sorry for hurting you."
Veronica shook her head. "I know. I've let all that go." When he leaned down to kiss her again, she pulled back. "We have a room to finish first." She smiled and walked back into the room and over to the mattress. "Help me with these."
After a couple of hours of working with a few kisses and touches, they were done with the room.
"We never had dinner. Are you interested in maybe going out and getting something since we're done?" Logan asked.
"They should be back any minute." She jumped when she heard the door open. "We can leave after he sees the room." Veronica went into the hall. "Jack. I've got a surprise for you."
Jack ran to her and jumped into her arms. "Aunt Veeeee."
Mac walked up behind him. "So let's see this surprise. I'm excited."
Logan came to stand in the bedroom door way. "Hey Mac. Hi Jack."
"Surfer." Jack pointed at Logan, which made them both laugh.
Mac's eyes widened with surprise. "Logan, I didn't expect to see you. Hi." She knelt down to Jack. "He's name is Logan." She turned to Veronica and raised an eyebrow.
"He helped. You got back just in time because we were about to go grab something to eat. But first." Veronica carried Jack into his room and set him on the floor on top of a surfboard rug.
Jack started jumping up and down. "Dude. Cool!"
Logan laughed at the sight. "He says dude?"
Mac was standing next to Logan. "There is a lot of nature over nurture in that boy. Veronica has tried to break him of saying it."
"I've given up. It's a lost cause." Veronica pointed out the headboard to Jack. "Do you know what that says?"
"Jack. My name." He climbed up on his bed, which had a comforter with three surfboards going the length of the bed. When he got to the headboard he pointed at the red surfboard. "Turtles." Then stood up and started jumping.
Mac clapped her hands together. "Ok little man. It's been a busy day. I think it's bath time." Jack jumped off the bed and ran to his mom.
"Thanks for this guys. It's amazing."
