Chapter Eleven

Complicated

They made their way inside, overnight bags, laptop, wheelchair, shower chair and Logan was struck by how much stuff he now actually needed. His visits here as a teenager with his cousins and friends usually consisted of a toothbrush, deodorant, trunks, an extra shirt and boxers, now he looked like he was moving in.

"Kyle and I took the master bedroom, but if you and Max…Or…uh..." Bitsy looked flustered, still unable to actually figure out what the deal was with them. Logan might claim they were nothing, but she had answered the door in a robe that time and Brittany said they were having a sleepover.

Logan looked to Max on that one, he'd taken the guest room last time and let her have the larger room, that final bit of his childhood remaining as he thought it weird to sleep in the room his parents had always used.

"That's fine with me," she answered only somewhat reluctantly, looks like her thoughts from the night before were coming true because she wasn't about to share a bunk with Brittany, not to mention the kid might find it a little odd that she didn't sleep.

"Why don't you guys go get settled, I'll put on some coffee," Bitsy said with a smile and as soon as they turned she grabbed her husband's hand and dragged him off with her. "I told you they're sleeping together," she said in hushed tones as she thought the other couple was far enough away.

Max smiled uncomfortably hearing the other woman's words and noticed Logan's eyes close in embarrassment paired with a slight shake of his head. He debated calling her out on it, but decided that would just give her another opportunity to discuss it with him. They entered the room still in silence and were both confronted with the fact that the bed seemed to have grown smaller since their last visit. It wasn't a particularly large room and to prevent overcrowding only a full-sized bed had been installed in it.

They both just stared at the small bed, covered by a cheery yellow and white comforter that hadn't been updated in years since the cabin had fallen into a constant state of disuse once all the kids had grown up and moved off to do their own things and any semblance to a family had thankfully been allowed to fall to the side.

He made the first move and approached their focal point dropping his bags down on it, Max did the same and pulled the ring out of her pocket, "You should probably do something with this before I lose it."

He took the ring and looked down at it, he barely even remembered it from his childhood; the simple band had been hidden by the extravagance of his mother's engagement ring and noticed how bare his own hand felt now. He reached into his pocket and pulled out its mate before dropping them down to the bed before digging out his toiletries case to store them in.

"School's in session right?" Max asked looking out the window.

It was Logan's turn to look at Max like an idiot.

"Oh right," she nodded, "Brookridge." They'd just left a school in session. "I'm gonna go ask Brit why she's not in school," Max said grateful to have an escape from the cramped….No, worse, intimate little room.

"I'll be out in a few," he said with a nod as she made her way out of the room and hoped she wouldn't be cornered by his cousin.

-o-o-o-o-

"So how'd you do it Max?" Bitsy asked walking into the room.

Max looked up and over from her spot on the bunk bed where Brittany was showing her a new doll, "Uh?"

" Logan, the hair, the clothes, the lack of facial hair, not to mention the contacts. I think I've seen him in contacts about twice since I got married."

"That's because there's too much dust in Seattle," Logan said walking up behind her. Grime had taken over the city after the pulse and he didn't appreciate having it in his eyes.

"Your eyes are such a beautiful color though."

Please dear god shoot me, Logan thought as he noticed Max's amusement over Bitsy's mother like attitude,

"They're hidden by your glasses," she continued on.

Max wondered what world the other woman was living in, Logan's eyes were always one of the first things she noticed about him, probably only because his smiles weren't a constant, his smile seemed to block out everything else.

"Bloodshot isn't really a good look for anyone Bits, I looked like I was high," he said dryly.

Max's head tilted to the side, Logan high? Wonder if he knows that from actual experience?

"High?" Brittany's voice interrupted everything and everyone's eyes dropped down to her, she'd been unusually quiet as her mother and uncle bickered like kids. "High like the slide at school? Do my eyes look different at school?"

Bitsy's mouth opened trying to find an answer, then closed, and then opened again, "Why don't you go ask Daddy honey. I bet he'll know."

"Okay," Brittany slowly drawled out with a shake of her head before going to move out of the room as Bitsy shot an accusing look at her cousin.

-o-o-o-o-

One of the things Max would have never have been able to imagine was spending a not only peaceful evening, but fun evening with Bitsy and her family. Time had passed quickly; Brittany had joined them in her second walk for the day as Bitsy had started dinner, although she and Logan had offered too. Bitsy had cooked though and they'd joined Kyle in the living room. They'd started their third bottle of wine halfway into a game of Monopoly, which was the result of caving into Brittany's pleas and Logan's declarations of being the best. Of course Max had repeatedly reminded him that playing one on one as they had the last time they had been here was more a matter of luck than skill.

Somehow though, he'd managed to be right. He and Kyle worked together causing the females to team up, she didn't know how they did it; she swore it was just luck but between the two of them they ran the board and refused to part with any properties and the females were annihilated before the men called a draw with each other.

"They need it Max," Bitsy consoled as she scooped an exhausted, yet defiant Brittany into her arms for bed. "Men and their egos," she said with a shake of her head.

"Why is it they always have to bring our egos into it?" Kyle asked Logan who was propped up against the couch alongside Max.

"I don't know. All I know is we won, they lost."

Both woman turned and glared at him.

"We're having a rematch," Bitsy said as she teetered slightly holding Brittany, "Max, go find another game."

As much as Max's own ego felt like putting Logan in his place, the rest of her was reminding her how comfortable leaning up against the couch was and how easy it would be to just close her eyes and fall asleep on Logan's shoulder with the warming fire before them.

"We're all out," Kyle said as he poured the rest of his bottle into his glass. "I'll go get another," he said pushing himself up on the edge of the chair he'd been resting against.

"Maybe we should just call it a night," Logan offered realized they were moving onto a bottle apiece.

"It's 10. Come on," Kyle said with a shake of his head as he moved out of the room.

"Your family can drink," Max said as her head leaned back.

Logan softly chuckled thinking about how alcohol was the only way to survive his family. "You okay?" He asked suddenly aware of the fact that Max despite the fact was all supercharged she was still a hundred pounds lighter than him and they'd all been keeping up with each other drink for drink.

She yawned and stretched out, "I might actually sleep tonight."

He laughed.

-o-o-o-o-

"This is how we're regaining the family fortune," Bitsy declared as Max pulled in the stash of pennies they'd been playing for.

"We're taking Max with us to Vegas?" Her husband supplied.

Everyone laughed as Bitsy nodded and Logan's eyes connected with Max's and they smiled. She'd almost expected him to say 'no' when the possibility of poker was introduced and the large jar of pennies emerged from the closest, the fact that they weren't a chip family had amused her on their first visit. Something about a hunting party and one person thought they'd been playing for real money. He'd been a little vague on the details, but the end result was clear, they played for change now and on most occasions it was just thrown back into the jar at the end of the night.

He hadn't said no to the poker game, he hadn't warned them that Max would kick their asses, even though he knew full well from personal experience she would. No…Instead he'd looked proud? Whatever the look it had warmed her even more so than the wine. The wine that had left their counterparts completely trashed.

Logan had nursed a final glass of wine for the past hour and a half they'd been playing…She smiled to herself wondering if Logan like always was trying to stay in control. Never had she met a guy that needed to just let loose more than Logan

"I think it's time we call it a night," Logan said as Bitsy was draped over her husband unable to stop laughing.

"Oh good idea," she said pushing herself up to a wobbly stand; she looked down at the table. "Let's just leave this for tomorrow," she said with a wave.

"Goodnight"/"Night" Logan and Max said on top of each other as the others stood.

"Goodnight," Kyle nodded.

"Sweet dreams," Bitsy said with a drunken 'I know what you're going to do' smile.

Once more Logan closed his eyes and shook his head. Max smiled with no embarrassment this time just amusement. Funny how everyone else sees…She shook her head, 'Snap out of it Max.'

"You okay?" Logan asked as he gathered up everyone's discarded hands and added them to the pile.

"Yea," she stood as if to prove her point that the alcohol had no effect on her and ignored the slight head rush and went to grab the coin jar.

"Just checking," he said smiling as he stood with the deck in his hand to return it to its place.

"I'm not the one who had to stop drinking," she said taking the pack from him to return it along with the coins to the closet.

He laughed softly, he hadn't been aware she'd noticed, then again what didn't Max notice, "I didn't want to be sleeping in the exo tonight or worse on the floor."

She smiled; she knew the feeling, but sleeping on the floor hadn't been such a bad thought, "It's the fire."

"You too?" he asked as he brushed the crumbs that had gathered on the table into the chips bowl.

She nodded.

She straightened up the couch before she followed him into the kitchen a few moments later with the wine glasses he'd left on the table as he carried in everything else. They paused in the entranceway as they brushed up against each other; he was going as she was coming. She blamed it on the alcohol. Blamed the fact that she forgot to breathe seconds longer than she normally did when this happened on the entire bottle she'd managed to consume. Shame it wasn't really the reason because it would have meant tomorrow she'd be fine.

She wondered if he was doing the same as he looked down at her, his eyes so very focused on hers. Bitsy had been right; there had been something about his glasses…As if they were able to mask what he was feeling. Right now, he was just there…Just open. She saw the desire and confusion in his eyes that she was sure reflected her own.

"Sorry," he said in a hushed tone, not at all because of the sleeping child in the house.

Snap out of it Max! She ordered herself as she finally remembered to exhale and smiled as she continued on to the sink. He's attracted to you, nothing shocking or new about that He'd said that second day, most singularly beautiful face he'd ever seen, course he had been trying to get something out of you... She turned on the tap and filled the glasses with water. He's attracted to you, you're attracted to him—

"Max?"

Her head snapped around to his voice, "Huh?"

He laughed, "I asked if you were coming to bed. Those can wait until tomorrow."

"Uh yea," she turned off the tap.

By the time she reached the doorway to their room, Logan was already extracting the toiletries case from his bag and she was once more confronted by the small bed they would be sharing. Her body warmed reminding her of heat as he smiled passing her to head back out to the bathroom.

"Get a grip Max," she muttered to herself as she heard the bathroom door close.

"It's all yours," he said coming back into the room a few minutes later to find Max sitting on the bed already dressed in a pair of gray pants and black tank flipping through a magazine attempts to distract her thoughts.

A few minutes later she was softly laughing as walked back into the room closing the door behind her. Logan was sitting on the edge of the bed as he removed the exo. It briefly stopped her words, the sight of Logan stripped down to his boxer-briefs and a tee shirt.

"What's so funny?" he asked pausing for a moment.

"You don't need to go back out there do you?"

"Why?"

"Your cousin…"

"And Kyle," he asked even though he knew the answer.

"Oh yea," she said with a shake of her head unable to get the noises out of her head that had caused her to rush washing her face.

"I hope Brittany's sound asleep," he laughed as he went back to removing the exo.

"Eww," Max smiled and shook her head. She might never have been a kid with parents, but she was pretty sure that would be a traumatic experience.

"Can you?" he asked a few minutes later once he had fully separated himself from the exo.

"Not a problem," she said moving around the bed to take the exo from him.

"Thanks," he said as she moved it to the corner as he grabbed the pajama bottoms from next to him and wished that getting into them would miraculously not look awkward, which it still did, no matter how well practiced it was. "Thanks," he repeated as she moved his chair closer to the top of the bed so he wouldn't have to lean to get it.

"Lights off?" she asked as she walked towards the doorway.

"Yea," he said as he pulled the covers up.

Her eyes quickly shifted as the lights turned out and she was thankful for the cover of darkness as she hesitantly moved towards the bed. That small tiny bed, with…well the last thing he was, was small or tiny.

"Night Logan," she said staring up at the ceiling.

"Night Max," he said doing the same thing.

Both of them thinking the exact same thing, 'I'm never going to get any sleep.'