Looking around the busy diner, Logan chomped on his cigar and debated the merits of meeting up with Marie here for dinner. He had made it a point over the last fifteen years, since he found this little Podunk town after surviving years of wear in the sandbox, to keep his private life private. He never fooled around with the locals. Rather driving a few hours up the road to Prince Albert if he needed to get laid.
So he knew the moment any of this old gossiping biddies saw Marie join him that he would spend the next several days deflecting questions. They'd call, stop in to have their oil changed, or even worse in his opinion, they'd chat with Jean. Thinking of Jean, he made a mental note to talk to her about her attitude as of late. Not that he cared, per se, about customer relations, but he was getting fed up with her admirers clogging up his business every day.
Marie walked into the diner and hesitated once she saw the stormy look on Logan's face. She could admit, she had not expected the offer to join him for dinner tonight. While she knew it was not a romantic invitation, and why was that thought upsetting, she did not want to be the latest gossip in a town when she had no way of escaping in the immediate future.
Flashing a tiny smile at the waitress, she walked over to Logan's booth and sat down. She wished the hush that enveloped the restaurant was just her imagination, but she saw Logan's shoulders tense briefly and his eyes harden.
Marie's smile widened as she heard his grumbling under his breath about nosey fucking people with nothing better to do than discuss who he ate with.
The waitress swung by the table, glancing between the two of them, as if she could gather all their secrets telepathically.
Clearing her throat, Marie asked for coffee with cream in a strong, clear voice. Feeling a little brazen, she brushed her hand across the back of Logan's and in a slightly raised voice asked "you need more coffee, Sugar?" The Mississippi in her voice so think you could slather it on toast.
Logan hitched his eyebrow up but once he realized the game she was playing, smirked and upped the ante.
Slipping her hand into his, he brushed his thumb across her palm. Never once breaking eye contact and he ordered his usual.
Marie placed her order for a chicken club with soup whole her heart raced and the blood filled her cheeks until they were red.
Delphine hurried back to the kitchen, called out the order over her shoulder, as she dialed her best friend's number. Nancy was never going to believe this in a million years. Logan Howlett was on a date.
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Pulling her hand free, Marie put a stop to the antics and got down to business.
"So you said you had an idea about how I could make enough money to pay for the repairs."
Sitting back into his seat, Logan crossed his arms over his chest, and studied her for a minute. He was generally a good judge of character. It was pretty much impossible for someone to deceive him. So he felt zero qualms about the suggestion he was about to make. He just hoped she didn't cause a scene.
"You can work off the cost at the shop. We usually hire someone right out of school for the summer to answer the phone, cash out customers, schedule appointments."
Marie thought it over. It was a great suggestion. They both knew it was only temporary. She would work until she had enough to pay him and then be gone. The only problem was, she didn't know how long it would take. Especially if she had to continue living out of her hotel room and getting take away for every meal.
As if he could read her mind, Logan addressed that problem next.
"You could also live with me."
To say Marie was shocked by his suggestion was putting it mildly. She leaned back into the booth as if he had stuck her. Outage filled her quickly and she lashed out at him.
"I don't know what type of woman you think I am, but if you think I'm going to fuck you to pay off my debt, you're out of your fucking mind buddy."
Logan felt her anger wash over him. He had expected a similar reaction, so it didn't piss him off as it might have normally. He fought the urge to smile at the little hellcat sitting across from him.
"No one said anything about fucking darling, though if you want I'm sure not going to turn you down. However, I have a room over my garage that you can stay in. It's not much but you can stay for as long as you need."
Marie felt her ire burn out. She had little to no experience in this kind of situation, but she felt instinctively that he was a good man that you could trust. She just prayed her instincts were right. But just in case, she would talk it over with Jubilee tonight. It never hurt to get her best friend's opinion.
Having made that decision, Marie told him she'd think it over and give him an answer in a couple of days.
Once the business discussion was over, they spent the rest of the evening eating and talking about things in general.
Marie had already explained why she was travelling earlier that day during her breakdown. But Logan was curious as to why she had decided to move.
"Have you ever looked in the mirror and not recognized the person staring back at you? I realized one day that I was just going through the motions every day. I was engaged to a man that I didn't love and honestly I'm not sure I had ever loved. We'd been together since we were teenagers. It was comfortable. We both knew what we were getting with the other person. Not to say that I don't care about Bobby. He's a good man and a better friend. But that's all he is, if even that now, is a friend. I packed up and left one day and I still haven't heard from him. He hasn't called to ask why or beg me to come back. He just accepted it and moved on."
Logan looked across the table and couldn't understand how anyone could just let her walk away with fighting for her. He knew that if they had been together, he would cross continents to bring her home. The thought set heavy in his chest.
What was it about this woman that made him rebel against his normal behavior?
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Author's Chapter Notes:
I had a lot of fun writing this chapter. I really feel like I'm getting back into the groove of writing these characters after ten plus years.
Chapter End Notes:
Let me know what you think? I think we may see some Jean and Marie interaction in the next chapter. Whoa boy.