She was standing outside of the cottage with an unknown man when they landed. The way she was holding herself was a little uncomfortable and Logan wasn’t sure if it was because of him or the other man.
Logan couldn’t help but smile at the way her eyes lit up while she watched them walk toward her. They had landed on a small hill just in front of the cottage, making them close enough to make a quick getaway if needed. She ran towards them, the man she left behind watching them with open hostility. For a split second, Logan let his hopes get high enough to think she was running to him. But that hope was quickly dashed as she flung herself into Scott’s open arms.
“I can’t believe how much I’ve missed you!” Logan heard her exclaim as she placed a kiss on Scott’s cheek. “I should have made you come with me. I could have really used your help with this one.”
Logan watched as the young man walked towards them a little reluctantly. He stopped in front of Scott, offering his hand to him, although it was plain to everyone that he wasn’t too happy about having to be hospitable.
“Me name is Shane O’Rourke. You must be Logan, the man keeping me from my destiny.” If he hadn’t said it with such flare and hostility, Scott might have burst laughing. As it was, he was having a hard time to keep his composure as Rogue rounded on the poor man.
Neither the young man nor Rogue noticed how Logan’s jaw dropped or the uneasy glance Scott threw at him.
“As I told you before, Shane; it has nothing to do with him. I’m just not going to marry you,” Rogue said sternly, whipping away and heading for the cottage. “Now, if you don’t mind, I’d like to spend some time with my friends.”
“Aye, lass, I do mind. I’ll not be leaving you alone with men. ‘Tis will ruin your reputation.”
“Shane, you’ve been here everyday for the past damn week. Wouldn’t that have ruined my reputation by now, too?” Both Logan and Scott could hear the strain in her voice and knew she was on her last nerve. It wouldn’t take too much more for her to lose it entirely.
“Ah, lass, didn’t you realize? My own dear uncle has been here to chaperone while he tended to your pretty lawn,” Shane said with a sweet smirk. He turned towards the real Logan with a cocky smile. “She must have been blinded by her love for me to have missed him.”
“Uh, Shane, is it?” Scott said, quickly trying to deter him away from Logan’s angry scowl.
Shane looked at the man he still believed to be Logan, flashing him a dark gaze. “You’ve hurt her enough, haven’t you? Do you want to see her cry over you, too? Why don’t you tell her how you really feel and break her heart to complete pieces. Then maybe I’ll be able to help clean up your mess once and for all. Or aren’t you a real man, Logan?”
Scott only shrugged, not understanding how the man could be so blind not to see the rage over taking Logan. “Alright. Rogue…”
“Her name’s Hannah, you know. Or do you not even care enough to address her as a real person?” Shane asked stubbornly.
“Hannah?” Scott asked, grabbing Rogue’s attention and her anger for going along with this. “You know that I care for you a great deal, and that I would do anything for you and have done a lot, including when I let my marriage fall to pieces to find you when you were in danger. You know that I love you a great deal, but it’s not the kind of love you need or that I am willing to give just yet. I’m sorry, but you will never be anything more than a sister and a friend to me. I though we had established that.”
“We had,” Rogue replied with a stiff lip. “And you know damn well I feel the same way, Scott.”
“Scott? I though you said his name was Logan?” Shane asked, a little bewildered.
Scott shook his head no, trying really hard not to laugh. “Nope. I’m Scott.” He jabbed a thumb towards the very angry, very dangerous man. “That’s Logan.”
“Well, I’ll be…” Shane said with a quick swallow. He looked the other man up and down, realization dawning on him as he came to understand that the true Logan may be a bit more formidable than the other man. “Well, ‘tis doesn’t matter at all. I wasn’t raised a coward. You hurt her bad, and, because of you, my Hannah doesn’t want to see that she was meant for me.”
“That’s too bad, kid,” Logan replied with a slight growl. “And I am very sorry to hear that about you and your Hannah, who ever she maybe. But me and my Rogue have a lot to catch up on and your bothering me.”
Shane didn’t know what to say to him, so, instead, he turned towards Rogue. “I don’t see how you can be so hung up on him, lass. He’s not even respectful enough to call you by your real name.”
“Shane…”
“No, lass, ‘tis time you listened to me. To your heart. Is this man really worth throwing away what we have?” His voice was hopeful and sweet, and Rogue had a feeling that if she was another woman under different circumstances, she might have accepted his love. “I can give you anything you could possibly want, lass. I can take care of you and love you as a man is supposed to. If only you would give me a chance.”
Rogue felt the anger leave her bones as she walked to Shane, kissing him gently on the lips. She knew that he thought he loved her, and it was going to break his heart, but it was better to do it now than later. “Shane, I’m not who you think I am. I’m not just some sweet girl from the states who is here to mend her broken heart and who just so happens can fly and lift a tank with ease. My name isn’t Hannah, and has never been. It’s Rogue, and I’m hear to heal from a life time of being abused and unloved and treated as a weapon.
“I’m a mutant who can take away a life with a single touch. A woman with too many people caged up in her head to be able to count or have a single thought without worrying if it’s my own. I’ve seen and done things far worse then any nightmare you’ve ever dreamt. And when your children and your grand children and even your great grand children are nothing more than a mixture of dust and forgotten memories, I’ll still be young and vital and strong. You don’t even know who I really am. How can you possible love me?”
“But, Han… Rogue, what ever your name might be, I want to know you. I want to love you,” Shane replied, his dark eyes pleading with hers.
“Then think of it this way,” Rogue replied softly, touching her hand to his cheek affectionately, trying to reach the words that would make him understand. “I can’t love you, Shane. I can’t sit here in a hundred years and pass the time away trying to remember the name of the first man that I married. I can’t search through all of the memories, those that are mine and those that I acquired along the way, that belong to other people, trying to find the memories of you and the small amount of life I shared with you. What’s it going to be like for you in sixty years, when your life is growing short and you know that your wife will never lay beside you in death, that she will go on to bury your children and never grow old, probably never die.”
“Aye, lass, I see your point. But I love you, you should know. I love your spirit and you heart. I love your temper and your thoughts,” Shane whispered, and Rogue could see how he was beginning to let go of the idea of them together.
“I thank you for that, Shane, but I can’t return it. I can’t give you what you really want,” she whispered, embracing him tightly. “But you can still find what you are looking for, in someone else. I’m sure there are many women here who would open their hearts to you. If you gave them a chance, I’m sure you will find one more suited to be your wife.”
“ ‘Tis the soul of an Irish woman you have, Rogue. And I am sorry. But will you at least be my friend?” Shane asked simply, his shoulders hunching in defeat.
“That’s all that I’ve wanted from you, Shane, and it’s more than I could have hoped for,” Rogue replied softly.
Shane looked past her quickly, eyeing Logan with distain. “Don’t hurt her, lad. Don’t hurt my feary, Logan. She deserves better than you, and you had better go to your grave knowing that.”
Shane then turned, walking away, his shoulders hunched and the bouquet he had picked for her hanging low enough to almost touch the ground. Rogue had a feeling that he was going to the pub to drown himself in whiskey and to tell his tale of heart break. She couldn’t help the feeling of guilt that rushed through her.
“Can we go in now, please?” She asked softly, going the extra mile to not look at Logan. “You can tell me what to expect inside.”
“Great,” Logan replied angrily. “Then you can explain what the hell that was about and why I have something to do with this.”
She turned on him then, for the first time since they arrived, acknowledging his presence. “What the hell do you think, Logan? Are you seriously that dense and blind that you don’t see it? I’m in love with you. I have been since I saw you in that cage fight. But your too stupid or something to get it. You’re too damn blind and got your head too far up Jean’s fucking ass to see what’s in front of you.”
“I… Mar…’
“No. Don’t apologize. You don’t get to apologize for this, Logan. It’s who you are and I get that. I’m just some stupid kid who’s supposed to have been waiting for you to come home and throw herself into your arms. Well, guess what. I’ve been through some shit since then and I’m not that girl. I love you, Logan, but I know that you won’t ever feel the same and I will not be something to pity. When we’re done with what ever is going on here, I’m disappearing again, and, this time, I will not be so damn easy to find.”
Logan grabbed her before she could walk away and pulled her close. His grip was tight on her wrist and he was about to let her go. One quick scan of the surrounding area and she realized they were alone. Scott was probably already in the cabin, waiting for them to fix what ever it was that was broken between them.
“You listen to me, Marie. I might have thought that you were always there for me, that you would be waiting for me to come home, but I’ve never pitied you,” he whispered angrily. His eyes were full of passion and she felt her breath catch in her throat. She knew that she could easily push away, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it. She knew that, if she was willing to admit it to herself, she wanted to be here, to be flushed against him. “I know you’re not that same girl you were when I left. I can’t help but notice how grown up you’ve become. Hell, there isn’t a man alive you can’t help but notice. Why the hell do you think I was so pissed when I thought you and Scott were together? I was fucking jealous, Marie. I still want you. Hell, if I didn’t know that there was something big about to happen and that I didn’t think you’d kick my ass for it, I’d take you right here. As it is, it’s going to have to wait until this is over.”
She didn’t know what to say, the shock of his words making her heart pound enough to ring in her ears. And then he did something she wasn’t expecting. He lowered his head, meeting her lips with is own, and devoured her mouth.
She realized then what it was that she was missing when Scott had kissed her before. Logan’s lips were warm and firm and soft at the same time, but it was the hunger that pulled her in, and force and the animalistic greed. She had never felt anything like this before, and it seemed to reach to her soul. She couldn’t help but kiss him back, to be swept into the moment. He tasted of cigars and bourbon and just pure animalistic maleness. She felt the bittersweet joy of knowing that this was all she had wanted for years and that it might be all that she ever had. She knew that this wasn’t going to be enough. With Logan, she would never be able to settle for less than all.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
"I’m in love with you. I have been since I saw you in that cage fight. But your too stupid or something to get it. You’re too damn blind and got your head too far up Jean’s fucking ass to see what’s in front of you.”
Chapter End Notes:
I've been building up for this for way too long now. Feed back please!!!!