They arrived to the mansion at nearly 4 in the morning. Logan led the tired group through the mansion. Ororo, though exhausted, was amazed at everything she saw. They walked pass the large dining room, the lingering smell of pizza and wings made the girls stomach growl. Hearing this, Logan asked, “Ya ladies hungry?”
“I could eat,” Anna replied nonchalantly.
“Ro?”
“So could I,” Ororo replied.
“Well, ya’ll eat up. Remy heading to bed. G’nite, cheres. Logan,” he replied with a wave and disappeared down the hall.
Anna and Ororo gasped as they entered into the large dining room. The room could easily accommodate 100 people. The dining room brought to mind a coffee shop where there was a mixture of low tables near large and comfy chairs, regular size tables with normal chairs and even countertops with stools. In the middle of the hall sat a long table that could easily seat twenty people.
Logan led them through the dining room to the largest kitchen either of them had ever seen. It seemed to have everything times two. Refrigerators, microwaves, double ovens and other essential appliances. There was another large table sitting under a one of the walls of windows that could seat up to eight people.
“Have a seat. Imma make ya some of my famous sandwiches,” Logan joked, pulling open the large fridge and pulling out the ingredients.
Minutes later, he presented them each with a thick sandwich, chips, and a cup of his equally famous cherry lemonade.
“Wow…this is really good,” Anna said, savoring her first bite.
“I agree. This is delicious,” Ro replied, wiping her mouth before popping in a chip.
“Glad you like it,” he replied, taking a hearty bite and chewing mightily.
They fell into a comfortable silence, enjoying their early morning snack.
“Yum, that totally hit the spot,” Anna said sleepily, getting to her feet and going over to the sink, “Is it okay if I make some dish water?”
“Leave it. I got it,” Logan replied, finishing off the rest of his chips and the last of his drink.
“Logan, you have to let us help you with the dishes. It will go faster,” Ro replied, hiding a yawn behind her hand, “Excuse me.”
“And that’s the reason why I said leave it,” Logan said, getting to his feet, “Come on, sleepyheads. Let’s take ya to yer room.”
Logan had them to grab only what they needed for the morning, saying he would bring up the rest. He led them back toward the foyer and up the grand staircase that split into two directions. He went left.
Ororo, very conscious of her surroundings, made mental notes of the route they took to get to their room. She also made sure to know what escape routes were available in case they had to make a quick getaway. Though she didn’t think this was a place where they would need an escape plan, old habits die hard.
“Here we go,” Logan said, stopping at the seventh door on the right. He opened it and the girls gasped. The room was larger than any either of them had lived in before. The room sported two queen size beds across from each other, complete with a nightstand and five drawer bureau. Along one wall sat a wide dresser with a huge mirror.
“Here are your closets,” Logan said, opening the door to a large walk in closet, big enough for both girls to walk in and have room to move around.
“Last but not least, your bathroom,” he said, enjoying their stunned silence. He watched as they entered and Anna shrieked happily when her eyes fell on the garden tub complete with water jets. The separate shower was large enough to accommodate two adults comfortably. The sink had a double vanity with a long mirror.
“First dibs on the shower,” Anna replied, shooing them out the room and shutting the door.
“Towels are in the closet on the right,” Logan yelled through the door, chuckling. He turned to see Ororo looking over the room, softly touching the beds as if to make sure they were real.
“So, whatta ya think?” he asked, pulling out a chair at one of the desks and taking a seat.
“It’s unbelievable,” she said softly, not sure if he heard her.
“Yeah, this place does have that feel at first,” he replied, “But I didn’t show ya the best part.”
“What could top what you just showed us?” she asked, her curiosity piqued.
“Come on, I’ll show ya,” he said, taking her hand and leading her to the curtains. He pulled them back, revealing a double set of glass doors. He unlocked them and pulled them in and led her out on the balcony.
“Oh my God,” she whispered, her hand going to her mouth. She had dreamed of having a balcony where she could stand on nights like these and gaze at the stars or just be one with nature.
“So, the room okay?”
“It’s more than okay,” she replied, turning to face him, smiling brightly with tear filled eyes, “It’s more than I ever dreamed of. I can’t thank you enough for what you’ve done.”
“Just following orders,” Logan replied, suddenly unable to meet her shining eyes.
“You did more than just follow orders,” Ororo told him, stepping closer, “You could have given up after what we did to you and your teammates but you didn’t.”
“I couldn’t. Not after our conversation,” he said honestly, finally able to meet her eyes again. He was overwhelmed with the memory of holding her and wanted to do it again. “What kinda person would I be if I didn’t do something to help ya and yer sister?” he asked softly.
“Like so many others in the world.”
“Well, luckily for you, I’m cut from a different cloth,” he replied, making her smile again. I love seeing her smile, he thought, unknowingly pulling her close. He heard the shower turn off, thankfully breaking the spell that he felt had come over him as they stood out on the balcony.
“I should go,” he replied, taking a step back from her and lifting her hand to his lips for a gentle kiss.
“Okay. Will I see you tomorrow?” Ororo asked, trying to keep the disappointment out of her voice. She had enjoyed the feel of his arms again. Maybe Anna was right. Maybe I am falling for this guy, she thought
“Definitely. Tell Anna goodnight for me?”
“I will. Goodnight, Logan,” she replied, watching as he headed to the door. He pulled it open before Ororo remembered something.
“Logan,” she called out, walking toward the door.
“Yeah?”
“Will we be able to speak with the Professor tomorrow?”
“Yeah. I’ll check with ‘im. It’ll probably be sometime in the afternoon.”
“Okay. One last question “ where’s your room?”
He smiled. “The next door down,” he said, pointing to the door to the right of their room, “So if ya need anything, come get me, okay?”
“Okay,” she replied and watched as he turned toward his room. She waited until he entered his room before she went back into hers.
She found that her sister had taken the bed on the left. Ororo smiled at the young woman before leaning down and kissing her cheek softly.
She headed to the bathroom so she could take her own shower and was refreshed after standing under the tantalizing spray of hot water for a solid 15 minutes. After another 30 minutes in the shower, she got out and put on her pajamas. Removing the towel from her hair, she went to the balcony and summoned a gentle breeze to dry her wet hair. Sighing contently, she said a prayer of thanks while gazing up at the sky.
Turning to head back in, she thought she heard angry voices in the room next door. She stopped but didn’t hear anything again. Shrugging her shoulders, she headed to her bed and got in. She snuggled down under the covers, enjoying the softness.
It had been years since they had slept in a real bed and she wanted nothing more but to fall fast asleep in its cushions but she was too excited. And anxious. Anxious about their new surroundings. Anxious about meeting the Professor. Anxious about the feelings for Logan that she shouldn’t have but how can you not have feelings for a man who has shown such compassion. Even after suffering from their mistreatment and then, to top it off, giving her more money?
Yeah, she definitely had to find a way to pay him back. That’s why she was so nervous about meeting the Professor. She wanted to make a good impression, see if there was an opportunity for her to earn some money and she wanted to ensure their place at the mansion.
“Ro,” her sister said timidly, interrupting her thoughts, “Can I sleep with you?”
“Come on,” she replied, pulling back the cover so her sister could join her, adjusting her position so she could cradle her. They had slept together to keep warm for so long that Ororo figured that sleeping alone in a bed would take some getting use too. There could be worse things, Ororo thought, snuggling with her sister who had fallen right back to sleep with a contented sigh.
Logan stepped into his bedroom, knowing he wasn’t alone. He had smelled her after he left Ororo’s room. He was too tired to deal with whatever drama she was about to start.
“Not in the mood, Emma,” he told her, taking off his watch and pulling out his wallet. He placed them on his dresser, ignoring her near nakedness as she lounge on his bed.
“Where have you been?”
“None of yer business. Maybe ya should ask Shaw that question,” he told her angrily. He and Emma had been dating for the past two years. That is until he found out she was cheating on him with Sebastian Shaw.
He had loved this woman and had even gone so far as to go ring shopping, thinking that she was the one he would spend the rest of his life with. He had even grown to love her scent but one night while they were embracing, he smelled a different one. The animal in him readily recognize the smell of sex and the scent of another male. He fought the growl that rumbled in his throat and feigned a headache as an excuse to not sleep with her.
That was several months ago. When he asked her about the smell, she played it off and said that the guy she hugged must have just finished having sex or something. Then she played the guilt card and turned on the water works, knowing that it would get him every time. So he decided to give her another chance. And another. And another. Then everything came to a head one night, two months ago.
The mansion’s residents were having a couple's only movie marathon in the rec room. Shaw decided he wanted some sex and wouldn’t take no for an answer. He came to the mansion and asked for her. He was invited in and when Logan smelled the scent, he went ballistic, going after Shaw. His friends grabbed him before he made contact with the guy. Shaw, unfazed by Logan’s angry display, called out to Emma.
She looked back at Logan with an apologetic look and walked slowly toward Shaw. Logan couldn’t believe his eyes and roared, throwing off his friends, his eyes solid black. Shaw put Emma behind him to protect her when Logan charged them. He was brought down telepathically by Charles, leaving him unconscious for the night. When he awoke the next morning, Emma was at his side like the night never happened.
Since then, his heart had hardened toward her to the point where it sickened him to be in the same room with her. He went from loving the woman with all his heart to hating the sight of her.
“Logan, we’ve always been able to resolve our issues like this,” she told him, getting to her feet and going over to him, hugging him from behind.
“Yeah. That was before I knew Shaw was getting what I thought was mine,” he replied, grabbing her hands, “Now if ya don’t mind, I need to get some sleep.” He dropped her hands and headed over to his door.
“How many times do I have to tell you that it was a mistake and that I am sorry?” she replied.
Unable to hold back anymore, he turned and stalked toward her so quickly, she took a step backward, nearly falling on her ass.
“If it was such a mistake, then why did ya do it five more times?” he asked, taking in the shocked look on her face, “Did ya really think I didn’t know? The nose knows, darlin’. I can tell ya dates and even the time of the day if ya need me to refresh yer memory.”
“Then why didn’t you say something?” she asked hotly.
“What did ya want me to say, Emma? Please don’t fuck the guy. Don’t ya know how much I love ya?” Logan asked, looking at her, “I didn’t think I had too, especially if ya loved me as much as ya claimed ya did.”
“But Logan, I do love you,” she replied, closing the distance between them again, standing in front of him, taking his hands in her.
“The feeling ain’t mutual, now get out,” he replied, escorting her to the door.
“This isn’t over, Logan,” Emma threatened and Logan scoffed.
“It was over when ya went to Shaw that night, Emma. Ain’t no turning back from that,” Logan told her, closing the door in her face.
He looked at the clock and saw it read 7am. He got in the bed and tried to find something that would soothe his angry mind enough so that he could get a couple of hours of sleep. Ororo’s face flashed before his mind and he smiled.
In spite of everything that went wrong, Logan found joy in the things that went right. He found Ororo to be engaging, funny, caring, loyal, and a fierce warrior. Though it confused him to have such a strong reaction to a woman he just met, he couldn’t help it. It wasn’t every day that a girl will have you dancing and having a good time one minute then shocks the shit out of you when she breaks out of a restraining hold.
Thinking of their tussle in the alley, he got out of bed, deciding that sleep wouldn’t come. He went to the balcony and opened the doors, wondering if she would be willing to train with him to fine tune her skills. She was good enough that with a bit of training, she could easily become a part of the team.
“Shouldn’t you be in the bed asleep?” he smiled when he heard her speak.
“I could ask ya the same thing.”
“It’s a new place. It’s going to take some getting use too,” Ororo replied.
“Anna having the same problem?” he asked, leaning on the banister on the side closest to Ororo.
“Please. That girl could sleep anywhere and through anything if she was sleepy enough,” Ororo chuckled, “And she’s sleepy enough.”
“And yer not?”
“I am but I’m too excited and nervous at the same time,” she said, looking at him and then gazing out over the grounds, “If you had told me two days after meeting you we would be sleeping in a mansion, I would have thought you were nuts.”
“Hence the reason why it wasn’t one of the first things I told ya,” he said. She easy to talk too, he thought, comparing their conversations to ones he’s had with Emma.
“True but it feels like such a long time ago,” she told him, leaning closer to him, separated by four feet of space that lead to a two story drop to the ground, “I really can’t thank you enough.”
“Ya don’t have to thank me. Thank ya for coming. I mean ya still coulda thought we were nuts but ya took a chance and I’m glad ya did.”
“No, you’re the one who took the chance. You didn’t know me from Eve but yet you came back, looking for us. Not to get the money back but to offer me and my sister a safe place to go. I know it was God who did it and I’m glad he sent you as our angel,” she told him, feeling a bit weepy, a tear sliding down her face.
Logan didn’t know what to say. He had been called many things but angel definitely wasn’t one of them. And he didn’t know how to take it so he was silently happy when Anna stuck her head out, interrupting them.
“Nobody thanked me. I had as much input into the decision as Ro did. Don’t I get a thank you?” she said, pouting, making her sister laugh.
“Thank ya, Anna for coming along,” Logan replied, chuckling, “And to show ya how thankful I am, how about I get the Cajun to whip up some of his infamous French toast for breakfast?”
“The Cajun?” Ororo asked, a confused look on her face.
“Nickname for Remy,” he replied.
“Oh,” the sisters said in unison.
“Anyway, I can live with that. Imma go get ready,” she replied, heading back in the room, making them laugh again.
“That Anna really is something,” Logan said, standing up.
“She is,” Ororo replied, standing up as well.
“I’m going to call the Cajun and make good on my promise,” Logan said, “I’ll come and get ya in an hour, okay?”
“Okay. See you in an hour, Logan.”
