Chapter 15

"It's good that you came in," Dr. Miller commented.

Rory knew the physician from a few years back, despite not being a frequent visitor at the local medical center. It had also helped, then and now, that the doc had gone to med school with Paris. That connection granted special courtesy to them so that Logan was seen on such short notice. Naturally, the fact that it was a private clinic, helped too.

It hadn't been ideal dragging Logan into the medical center considering how shitty he was feeling, but he too had begun to see the point after finding out his CRP had been above 35 and the rapid test for Step-A was positive. His initial diagnosis was bacterial pharyngitis, and for a moment there they'd even talked about having him admitted for a few hours to give him some fluids.

But Rory, who'd been in charge of his water bottle, had kept reminding him to drink something, and that seemed to have done the trick within the few hours they'd spent together, and he was already feeling a little better.

"I told you," Rory chimed towards Logan, unintentionally sounding a lot like a wife would.

"You really should listen to your wife, Mr. Huntzberger," Dr. Miller continued, glancing back to his computer to write him a prescription.

"Oh, I'm not...," Rory said awkwardly, having not meant to come off that way.

She'd been deeply surprised Logan had wanted her to come into the exam room with him in the first place. But it had been of some help that she could explain to the doctors what was going on with more than just scribbles on a notepad, even if a lot of the doctor's questions Logan could answer himself by nodding or shaking his head.

Rory had gotten quite a few little bits of information about him during this little appointment.

For example, Rory now knew now that Logan was allergic to Penicillin, and routinely took blood pressure pills. He didn't smoke, do recreational drugs, and only drank alcohol in a limited amount these days - but all those she could have answered for him, having observed him quite a bit by now. He still had his tonsils - that she had observed herself from looking in his mouth, and these types of issues really weren't something he experienced often it seemed. He'd had some surgeries before, not that they'd gone into a lot of detail on those - but the doctor had generally repeated the information he had on him on the database back to him for reference, mentioning him having his appendix out back in the 90s, an accident of some sort in 2006 and knee surgery in 2023.

Logan mused at Rory being so uncomfortable at the doctor's words, his painkillers clearly having kicked in by now, allowing him to think about something other than his throat.

"Apologies," Dr. Miller corrected, glancing between the two for a moment, and went on to explain his recommendations for Logan's treatment. It must've been evident for him that there was something going on, the electricity being palpable even considering the state Logan was in. Just every little thing - the way they moved through the halls, the way they communicated, Rory assisting him here and there, and doing everything in her power to help him along to get him better.

They made it out of there in good time, Logan stopping at the pharmacy on their way back.

As they got back, they noticed the boys' car in the driveway, making it evident for Rory that she couldn't just walk right back into that house without a good excuse. It was not like they were ready to explain whatever this was, and that went without saying.

"Now, you take care now, okay?" Rory lectured him, coldly, the reality check hitting her. "I want you to follow those instructions. Take the meds as he said, and plenty of fluids, remember?" she continued more caringly.

Logan smirked back at her, not being able to argue. But he acceptingly nodded. In his mind he was making all kinds of teacher jokes, even 'mother' jokes - but he really didn't want his mind thinking of Rory in any connection to his mother. But what he felt here was way different. Rory was motherly, but she was nothing like his mother, and that was a true relief. Honestly, he hadn't felt someone care about him this way since Whitney, ever so briefly, and before that his nanny Lola, who'd been with them until he'd left for his first boarding school. He hadn't realized how much he'd missed that kind of affection.

"Once you're better, we'll go somewhere… okay?" Rory said, wanting to leave him with something that wasn't bossy or motherly. After a day like this, having been close in a completely different way than she'd hoped, somehow saying something like this that was a little more direct, actually came easily to her.

"A date?" Logan mouthed.

Rory purposefully chose to not quite understand him, not wanting him to get even more cockier. But that promise was the biggest encouragement for Logan to actually want to get better and quick.

"Thank you," he mouthed, but that was self-explanatory, and squeezed her forearm assuringly. The touch lingered a little longer than would've been just casual, and Rory placed her hand on top of his, not wanting it to end. But as they heard one of the guys approaching the front of the house, they pulled apart.

"You're welcome," Rory chimed, smilingly. It was almost as if it went without saying that he'd owe her one.

Logan couldn't do miracles, but he could follow the doctor's orders to the letter, drinking fluids, taking his meds and adding some recommended supplements to his menu of chicken soup and vegetables, knowing well how anything resembling fast food could delay his recovery.

They texted a little but chose to hold back on the flirting for when they could do it in person, sticking to movies, books, and his general wellbeing instead.

Once Logan was back to feeling like himself again, a handful of days later, he wanted to break the ice again by making a gesture by cementing some plans with her. Just texting her didn't do his intentions justice anymore. Nor did he want to spring something on her like he had the last time.

After his kids were half an hour into the newest video game that evening, he drove out to Freeport to get a bouquet of flowers. Picking something out for someone like Rory, wasn't an easy task, but he only realized that once he was at the flower shop.

Odette had very much been the red roses type of woman, as had many others that he'd dated during his life. Whitney, on the other hand, had appreciated things that were a little bit more exotic and colorful. He was determined to make a distinction just because Rory was so different from anyone he'd ever met. But it was then he remembered - she loved sweets. Hence, he eventually opted for a flower arrangement box that was lined with macaroons. The flowers inside were pink and orange Ranunculus and pinkish Zinnias. It was sweet and flirty, yet not too serious. He picked out a simple white card too, which he wrote by hand, placing it inside the box before he had it sealed with a modest bow.

Rory was in the middle of reading a crime-novel called "Ashes to Dust" by an Icelandic author whose name she was better off not trying to pronounce, when her phone chimed.

"Check your front porch," Logan had typed.

Rory placed her book down, placing her phone as a placeholder, and pulled her legs out from under her, and made her way down the hallway to the kitchen and foyer, full of excitement. Honestly, she almost wished he'd just showed up again, even though she felt like she could've used some warning, feeling like she wanted to look a little more put together than she currently was.

"What the...," Rory mumbled, seeing the box that resonated in her mind with the book she'd been reading. "Let's hope it's not someone's severed head," she chimed sarcastically to herself, thinking back to a scene in the book. But a smile crept onto her face once she recognized the flower shop logo.

She glanced towards Logan's house, hoping to catch him smirking back at her, but he was nowhere in sight.

When back inside, she opened the box, seeing its contents. Without hesitation she bit onto one of the chocolate macaroons and returned to the couch with his card, unfolding it as she did. Her stomach felt all giddy.

"I cannot thank you enough for the other day, or should I say 'days'," Logan had written. "We could call it a 'thank you dinner' but I think we both wish it was not just that. I'll pick you up tomorrow at 7. Logan," he'd added.

Rory loved the decisiveness of his choice of words. He was going to pick her up and he'd been rightfully certain she wasn't going to say 'no'. There was no question in there, and his assumptions oozed confidence.

Rory didn't need to ask him about the dress code. Around here, evenings were smart casual, there being no fancier place than that in 50 miles radius. And she doubted Logan would've gotten the wrong idea of her preferences after all the time they'd spent talking already.

Rory could also feel an odd nervousness about the passing of time, not only counting days until he'd be better, which she'd been doing for many days already, now hours until the long-awaited date and, also until her daughter's return, feeling like whatever happened was going to happen a little too late to fully take advantage of Corinne's absence.

The 24 hours warning did give her a chance to groom herself, making an extra effort like she hadn't in years. Sure, she'd dated, but generally she'd known better than to go to those dates with high expectations. This time, those expectations were difficult to keep in check, making her stomach squirm with anticipation in the best possible way.

She must've changed dresses like five times, eventually going with an asymmetrical square-neck dress from Anthropologie. It was a little beachy, not as sexy as her first choice had been, but she'd wanted to balance things, not wanting him to assume she would just sleep with him. She'd liked this game, and while she felt the pressure of time, she really didn't want to make herself that available either. She was horny, sure - but she wasn't desparate. She wasn't ruling anything out, and her grooming standards had certainly taken that into account, but she didn't want to feel like she had to do that to meet his assumption. Hence the dress looked more innocent and playful, hoping the dress would just reflect how she wanted them to relax and see what happened.

She'd worn a pair of heeled sandals despite him saying explicitly that she didn't need heels, wanting to show off her legs. She wanted to have his mouth watering for her, craving to feast on those looks of his that he'd already been giving her. Whatever this turned out to be - she wanted to have as many moments as possible to savor, to think back on, before it came to its end, not daring to hope for anything long term. She didn't need it to be for forever. She just needed to feel alive.

But the nervousness was hard to shake, hence Rory opted to take a little liquid courage - a small shot of tequila, hoping it would calm her.

Meanwhile, Logan was in his bedroom, getting ready, having freshly showered. It was a simple choice of one of his linen outfits, he mostly wore around here, and he was planning on bringing a light blazer along in case it got chilly later. Getting ready out here, to go out with Rory, didn't feel like going out had felt back in London. There were fewer prying eyes, there were no fashion standards to live up to, and he knew with certainty that Rory would not care whether he wore his Rolex or whether he had a pair of handmade Italian loafers on or not. It was surprising how at ease he felt. There was pressure, sure, but it was so much different than he was used to feeling.

"Dad, is it okay if we go out to town later?" Liam asked, pretty much marching in through his bedroom door, barely knocking.

It wasn't ideal, Logan having hoped to have the town to himself, so to speak, not having to worry about running into his kids while out. But he could work around it because it was not like they'd want to run into him there anyways and were likely to prefer very different venues.

"If you don't plan on drinking," Logan replied, knowing well enough that recreational drinking was something he tolerated. He preferred that his kids enjoyed a beer every now and again rather than to go off drinking behind his back, and risk overdoing it by feeling like it was some forbidden fruit. But he knew it was a fragile balance between good parenting and cool parenting, especially here in the States.

"We might just take a cab if we do," Liam replied. "You're going out?" he asked, noticing his father looking more put together than he would for lounging around the house.

"I am," Logan confessed, wanting to be honest with his eldest. He wasn't sure if everything between them would stay just between them or reach the ears of his younger kids, but if it would there wasn't much, he could do about it. He wasn't going to hide the fact that he was a man and he, on occasion, enjoyed the company of women, even if bringing women home, especially casually, wasn't something he was in the habit of doing.

"It's Corinnes mom, from next door, right?" Liam asked, perceptively.

"So?" Logan asked.

"I mean, we all know you know to handle your business… but you might want to be a little careful there for Eléa's sake. It's her friend's mom, after all," Liam noted, having not been blind these recent weeks.

"I don't mean any harm," Logan shrugged, innocently.

"Yeah, but she just might not see it that way," Liam noted, glancing back towards the living room, in hopes that there were not any ears hearing this. There weren't.

Logan wasn't used to hearing his eldest tell him what to do, or what not to do, let alone whilst sounding so mature all of a sudden. But he did make a good point. It was just that in this moment, he was far too excited to take him very seriously, his desire to be in Rory's company overpowering his sensibility. It seemed so harmless to him, and if anything, he considered it something he'd just need to deal with at a later date - talk to his daughter about it or something. Besides, it was not like they were about to parade it around. And the primary goal here really wasn't finding his kids a new step-mom if that was what Eléa might worry about.

"Then don't tell her. I'll tell her if and when there's anything to tell," Logan promised.

"Whatever...," Liam shrugged, trying to appear indifferent, walking off in his usual manner. It was like he cared, but at times felt it was too uncool to care too much. If there was any one of his kids with whom Logan considered having a more or less okay relationship, it was most certainly Liam. It was because Logan had actually still been around a little bit more when he'd been little, even if the kid didn't remember much of it, and later - he'd been the next best thing to another mature adult in the family with whom Logan had discussed his life decisions such as their move here or his most recent divorce. Liam hadn't been thrilled about the move, but considering he'd been planning on moving to the US for college anyway, it really wasn't a big deal for him. But in a way Liam had been his ally for getting the others to rebel less against it. Honestly, he didn't know how things were going to be once Liam moved out, with just him and the other two. It was like they didn't even speak the same language as him.

Logan hadn't anticipated getting pulled into thinking about parenting issues minutes before stepping out of his house to see Rory.

But as he made his way past Rory's window, catching a brief glimpse of her getting ready upstairs in front of the window, clearly making an effort to look good for him, he couldn't help but to feel flattered, and a little self-assured too, making him smile even wider. He'd picked a rose from the garden, just a symbolic flower really, and held it between his fingers as he knocked.

He could hear Rory's steps on the stairs, her heels - definitely heels - making more noise than her usual sneakers or slippers would. Logan inhaled deeply and on instinct held in his stomach and tensed his arms, wanting to look his best - not that he needed to do anything for that.

He saw glimpses of her cinnamon brown hair, accented by a few grays that added character, and the exposed collarbones thanks to that broad neckline she wore through the door window, and even through he'd done this many times, he struggled to feel as cool about this as he hoped he would look.

What hit him the most was that same whiff of her scent that invaded his nostrils as she opened the door that he'd felt when he'd worn her shawl the other day. It was already so familiar, but in an exciting new combination. Not just something forbidden or unattainable, but something that was all the more interesting for its multitude of layers.

Logan watched Rory lick her lips once and noticed the movement of her chest as she breathed. It was like all time slowed down for those few moments. The slow-motion scene was cut short, however, neither really giving each-other a lot of explanation as to what was happening.

Rory's lips crashed into his, kissing him feverishly. Her fingers clutched onto his lapels, and pulled him inside, her mind having gone blank for a second, feeding the desire within her belly, causing the lonely rose to fall to the floor by their feet.