Jack's jaw clenched as he drove by and witnessed Will helping Logan out of the passenger side of the car. They were laughing as if nothing had ever happened.
All my careful planning
, Jack thought, bitterly shaking his head,
all my planning gone to waste.
What pains he had taken in making sure that if he couldn't have Logan, than no one could, all that energy had been, apparently, in vain.
How carefully I had driven that street-rat off. He doesn't deserve her. I do
.
"Johnson," Jack said, leaning forward so the butler could hear him, "when we arrive home I'd like it very much if you'd ring my brother up for me, tell him I require his skill of trade."
"Sir, I thought your brother was in jail."
"Don't be silly, Johnson, you know I've got connections with the law. So why in God's name would I allow my own flesh and blood to rot in some filthy cell? Nonsense," Jack scoffed.
"Yes, sir," Johnson said, reigning in his temper as they pulled into the driveway of the three story mansion that bordered on the size of a complex.
**********
Logan laughed, running along the beach as Will came up behind her and threw her over his shoulder as he jumped into the water. She squealed and came up sputtering. She jumped on his head and dunked him under, well aware that he let her dunk him. He came up laughing.
"I missed you," he said, kissing her as he picked her up and spun around. She shrieked into his mouth as they fell into the water once more. He could feel her laughing in his arms underwater as they resurfaced.
"And you've got a funny way of showing it," she said, laughing as she ran away from him up to the beach.
Jacob watched the two of them from the window, wondering what his problem had been in the first place.
If I had only let them be
, he couldn't help thinking.
If I had only let them be then they'd be the two happiest parents on the face of this earth
.
**********
That night Will took Logan out to dinner.
"Tell me where we're going!" she protested as they left the house and locked the door. Logan barely even noticed that everyone had already left for the day despite that it was only five and they generally stayed around until seven. "Tell me! Tell me! Tell me!" she said, jumping up and down like a three year old.
"No," Will chuckled as he pulled the blindfold out from his back pocket and tied it around her eyes. Logan groaned but the huge smile never left her place.
"I despise you, Mr. Katarin."
"Well, sucks for me," he said, guiding her into the seat and buckling her in, "Because I sure love you," he kissed her gently. Her hand instinctively went up as her fingers gently played in his hair. A half groan, half contented sigh left his lips as he gently pulled away.
"Fine," Logan said, licking her lips, "You never let me have any fun." Will laughed.
"We'll talk fun later tonight."
Twenty minutes later and enough turns that Logan had no idea where they had ended up, Will cut the engine.
"Alright, beautiful, we're here, but no looking just yet. I want to surprise you."
"Okay," Logan said, "But hurry, I really need to use the little girl's room." Will chuckled as he helped her out of the seat and shut and locked the door.
"Watch your step," Will said and laughed when she hit his shoulder.
"Funny, Will."
"I meant, step up." He led her up a short set of stairs, down what sounded like a long porch to Logan and finally she heard a door being pushed opened as he tugged her along inside.
"Now?" Logan asked, reaching for her blindfold.
"Now," Will said, stepping behind her, his hands on her waist as she removed the blindfold. Logan gasped. They were in a large, large open room with sawdust on the floor. There was one intimate table that had candles already lit and dinner set out.
"Where are we?" she asked, trying to squint through the dark.
"Come look," Will said, pulling her back outside and down the porch so that she could see the front of what looked like an abandoned ware-house. There was a large sign that said Lonnie's. Tears stung Logan's eyes. She was going to name her baby Alana and call her Lonnie for short as a cute nick-name.
"Will..." she said, turning and holding onto him with a surprising ferocity. He just held her close as she let the tears fall. "Thank you," she said, pulling away enough to trace the strong outline of his jaw, "You have no idea what you just did for me."
"Jacob said that after I left you wanted to open a restaurant. I was thinking that this might be a good place to start." Logan hugged him tighter.
"I don't know what I did to deserve you," she whispered in his ear as she kissed his lobe.
"Come on back inside and eat so you'll be strong enough to carry the next one that comes along," Will said, kissing her once and sighing into her mouth. Will held the door open for her and she started walking towards the table. He flicked on the lights and Logan screamed.
"SURPRISE!!" everyone yelled. Logan looked around and saw everyone that she had grown to care about.
"Happy twenty-first birthday," Will whispered in her ear as he planted a tiara on her head. She laughed as Jacob grabbed her and started to twirl her around as the band played.
"So how's he treating you?" Jacob asked and Logan let out a long groan, "Kidding, Lo, kidding."
"Good," she said, kissing his cheek softly, "You're like the dad I never had."
"I suppose I am old enough to be your dad," he said, thoughtfully.
"Yeah if you had had me when you were like... eighteen."
"Like I said, I could have been your dad," Jacob said laughing, "Are you having a good birthday?"
"I am now!" Logan explained, "Will really had me convinced that he'd completely forgotten about it. No flowers, no nothing this morning and when he said we were going to dinner he said it was just because."
"He's a good liar," Jacob said and then wished he could take those words back, "But he's never honestly lied to you before."
"I know," Logan said, looking up into his eyes, "And nothing will ever change that. No Jack," she said shaking her head, "Will ever come between Will and me again."
"No Jack and no Jacob, right?"
"Jacob, –"
"No," he said, shaking his head, "I hate myself for it every day, but that doesn't change that I scared him off."
"You didn't make him leave."
"Well I most certainly didn't make him feel welcomed around here, now did I?"
"I didn't make him stay. Now by your standards that should put me at just as much fault as it puts you."
"Lo, don't you blame yourself, not even for one second."
"His action, his responsibility," Logan said, "end of discussion."
"Alright, you win," Jacob said, sighing.
"She usually does," Will said as he approached, "May I cut in?" Jacob stepped aside.
"Of course," he bowed respectively as he walked off. Will took Logan's hand and kissed each knuckle gently. The rest of the world melted away and they were in their own little trance until a fellow dancer bumped into Will and he laughed, stumbling into Logan's arms.
"Will," she said, kissing his neck as she rested her head on his shoulder, "Thank you. You gave me the greatest gift I could have ever asked for."
"I'm not finished yet," he said, kissing her gently as he stopped dancing in the middle of the floor and got down on one knee. Logan gasped. "El, you are easily the most important, integral part of my life and you have been ever since I yelled at you for littering on the beach," Logan laughed, tears stinging at her eyes as she bit her lower lip,
now way is this happening to me
, "Since the first time that I ever spent alone with you, I knew that you were the only person that could complete me and make me feel whole. I can't see anyone else in my life besides you. I want a life with you, I want a home with you. I want children with you. I want to be there with you through it all. Logan, will you give me the honor of becoming my wife?"
Logan nodded, tears streaming down her face as Will slid a real diamond above the cracker-jack box one. He stood, his arms wrapped around her, lifting her off the ground as she wrapped her arms and legs around him. They shared the most gentle and loving kiss either had experienced.
The room roared as people cheered and the delighted couple looked around, surprised, both having forgotten everything else in the world besides each other.
"I love you," Logan whispered in his ear, "I'm glad that you're mine," Will smiled at her and kissed the tip of her nose, "I live only to be yours."
*********
The next morning they set off again and began preparations on getting the restaurant set up. They laughed, hand in hand, as they walked up and around the circling board walk of the restaurant. Will gave a puzzled look as he noticed mail sitting in the mailbox.
