This time he arrived in the middle of the afternoon breaking several land speed records to achieve it and alluding two cops and a state trooper along the way. He was almost embarrassed at how eager her was to see her and it injured his male pride and made him growl when he discovered she wasn't even there. When Marie's little gum popping, yellow wearing friend told him where she was his animal side wanted to howl and kill something.

She was on a date and it wasn't with him.

That's how Jean found him, sitting at the edge of his bed, hands on head contemplating the million and one ways he could kill himself a little pompous Frenchman. He sensed her before she walked in but ignored it, he'd never told her he was going and had hoped to grab Marie and get the hell out of dodge before he ever had to see her again.

"When I asked you out a three month hiatus isn't really what I had in mind." Her voice was low and husky as she sat down next to him, intoned to seduce. The bed dipped as she moved closer to him.

"You want to know what I had in mind?" Jean's hand clasped onto his thigh and squeezed before running slowly up and down his leg, fingers curved and playing lightly with his inner thigh. He looked at her shocked, her eyes were heavy, lips parted she leaned in towards him. "We could just skip the date Logan."

He grabbed her hand before it could fit itself over his penis, his embarrassingly unaffected penis. He chuckled when he realized it, it was funny how this women whom he had been very attracted to, any women infact, that wasn't Marie couldn't move him. He looked at her and all he felt was compassion. Sadness that she had thrown away her life for someone who loved another, someone whose real motivation towards her had been solely sexual.

His hand clasped tighter around her wrists, "this isn't gonna happen Jean." Her eyes widened innocently and she smirked.

"Logan if you want to play rough I understand, I can play rough" her other hand moved towards him and he clasped it in his own forcing her to stand as he did.

"No Jean" shaking his head he stared at her. " You don't understand, I don't want to play at all." That got her, the smile leaving her face as she jerked her hands from between his and stood, expressionless before him.

"What the hell are you talking about Logan? I know you want me."

"No Jean I don't. Maybe at one point I did but not now. You should have listened to Rogue, she knows me best. All I was ever interested in was a quick fuck." He said the last slowly, part of him wanting to wound her for what she'd done to Marie, another disgusted in himself that he'd ever contemplated playing this women. Marie had given him that, given him his conscience, he would just have to get use to the guilt that came along with it.

Logan's head was bowed and he didn't see it coming but he felt it when she slapped him. The next thing he knew all hell broke out.

"You bitch!" that was from Marie as she staked over and punched Jean right in the nose, so hard he thought he heard something crack. The next thing he knew Scott was yelling, Marie was standing before him shaking, eyes wide in shock at what she'd done, some French guy was swearing and Jean was crying bloody murder. All he could do was hold Marie to him as she shook and not giving Jean a second glance ushered her out of the bedroom.

They got half way down the hall before Logan started laughing. "Its good to be home baby."

---

Three hours later they left in a jeep that Scott had bartered in favour of his bike. He took it because he'd told Marie to pack everything she owned and that, though not much was considerably more than could be taken on the back of a bike, most of it being made up of books. He'd grinned at her sceptical look as she'd asked him for the fifteenth time if everything really meant everything. He'd nodded and she'd signed, trusting him enough to do as he asked.

She'd only once brought up where they were going, wrapped in a blanket, her voice tired and eyes heavy. I can only be gone for two weeks, that's when school starts. He'd nodded and agreed, and she'd looked at the backseat pilled high with boxes and shook her head, knowing he'd tell her eventually before squeezing his arm affectionately and drifting off to sleep.

It took them a week to get to Connecticut, Marie loved to travel as much as he did, only she also like to stop and look. Before he knew it Logan had become what thousands despised, he'd become a tourist, one of those aimless, witless masses that walked around not watching where they were going and getting lost. He spent way too much time following maps and seeing art galleries, museums and exotic gardens than he would ever admit to but he'd done it because it made Marie smile. He'd laughed more, smiled more, taken to putting gloves on every morning before anything else so he had the freedom to trail his fingers down her cheek. He'd even trimmed his hair.

It was the last motel that he'd gone to her room clean shaven. She'd turned towards him, putting the last of her clothes in a bag on the bed, a smile tilting the corners of her lush lips. Her voice had flattened out and then stopped when she'd noticed.

"So what for breakfast Logan, I feel like some..." Her eyes where wide in her face a mixture of awe and fright tilting her features. He almost blushed when she'd run her silk covered fingertips over his check and down his jaw.

"Why?" And her voice had been almost breathless. He'd just shrugged.

"It was time." Time for what she didn't question only grinned cheekily and pressed a freshly kissed fingertip to his lips.

"Not that anything was wrong with the old look but I like this one too." She'd spent the rest of the day staring at him and Logan kissed good bye to his shaggy look for good, especially when she blushed the few times he'd caught her staring. Lack of hair was a small price to pay and he knew it made him look younger, the main reason he'd done it, he hadn't wanted people to call Marie his daughter, a mistake that had already been made by one unfortunate motel manager who almost pissed his pants when he'd growled a threatening "no she isn't."

They'd been entering the university district when he couldn't take it anymore. Marie had been reading one of her books and the silence was comforting but Logan had had enough.

"So Marie," his voice was casual yet hushed and she hadn't looked up merely hummed affirmatively and turned a page.

"I was wondering about school."

"What about it Logan." Another page turned.

"Chuck told me about Yale Marie." This got a reaction, head tilted towards him.

"Oh." Book was placed in her lap. "Its no big thing Logan, I never really thought I would get to go, I've accepted it, Boston U is just as good. " She almost had him convinced.

"Really?"

"Yeah really. Besides all my friends are in New York, Jube, Kitty, Bobby, John..."

"Remy?" He tried but the tightness in his voice came through anyway and she glanced at him in confusion.

"Well yes Remy is there too though at twenty-six he's a little old for college." It was on the tip of his tongue to tell her twenty-six was way to old for her when he remembered he was probably three times that old so he shut his mouth.

"You miss him though don't you. I mean it must be hard starting a relationship when I come and drag you to places unknown for two weeks?"

One finely shaped eyebrow rose. "I don't see how me leaving for a little while has affected our friendship, my god if he'd that fickle that he can't still be my friend after I've been gone a little while I am so glad I never dated him." She chuckled at the thought and Logan nearly swallowed his tongue.

"You...your not dating him?"

"Good god know Logan I mean really he's nice enough, attractive but he speaks about himself in the third person. It would be like dating Peppy Le Pew. Besides he's not yo...not what I want," she quickly recovered and he grinned, turning his head to hide it and she went back to reading her book.

---

When they pulled up outside the apartment Marie had already clicked as to what was going on, at least some of it. She thought he'd taken her to see Yale since she couldn't go there and she wasn't hiding the fact she was upset like she wanted to. Carrie was outside and she clasped onto Marie as soon as she exited the jeep, her once over of Logan being a grin and a it suits you when she noticed the lack of hair and beard. He'd just smiled and started taking boxes out of the jeep much to Marie's confusion. Carrie had clasped onto Marie and sat her down on the bench outside and where deep into girl talk by the time he returned for the last of the boxes. Marie glancing at him with shook in her eyes.

He'd been measuring the small living room for a bookcase, or maybe two knowing Marie's love of reading when she'd entered the apartment, he heard her and held his breath, knowing she'd put two and two together after hearing her gasped 'excuse me' when Carrie had congratulated her on going to Yale.

"So is there something you need to tell me here Logan?" Her hands where on her hips but the brightness in her eyes failed to convey the anger she was working for. "According to our and I stress the work our, neighbor we are going to be living here while I go to Yale. According to her your working to help put me through college and will be staying here with me, infact she seemed to think that we were a couple." He didn't turn around.

"Did you tell her we weren't?" He held his breath.

"No, but that's really not the point is it. How Logan? Why? I don't understand, you hate staying in one place for too long and now you have a regular job, two infact and plan on staying here with me for four years. And how the hell did you get this all done, the admission, I declined, not to mention my classes. "

"Chuck helped with all that, if you choose to do this, and it is a choice Marie, then all we gotta do is ring him and he'll tell Boston U you no longer want to go there and you start classes, the ones you wanted to do, history, English, photography and all the rest on Monday." He turned towards her, not meeting her eyes, afraid of what he'd see. "You earned this Marie and I knew you wouldn't take my money, besides this way you don't have to live in the dorm, you know skin issues, and I got you an interview at the bookshop down the block, a nice place, you'll like the lady."

"Why Logan?"

"Because I could Marie, because I can't be without you anymore and this is what you wanted. You get your future and me and you don't have to choose." He shrugged and looked up, her eyes were wide and tears filled them. "I can't say I'll never leave from time to time but I'll always come back, always."

She nodded, "because this is home now" she reasoned.

"No Marie, because your home to me." She smiled a brilliant, sole felt smile and grinned.

"I can't believe you did this" her arms outstretched she gestured around her at the small kitchen and lounge. So this is home for the next four years, the empty room echoed her laugh as she flung herself at him, hugging him till it almost hurt she looked up at him. "I love it sugar but it could really use some furniture."

He laughed and hugged her again. "Lets go shopping then shall we."