Friday
Morning brought the buses of mutant children back to the freshly-cleansed mansion, and the noise level rose considerably as the ghost-hunters and their assistants stumbled in from their various beds and gathered in the kitchen once the noisy children were tucked safely into their first morning classes after their breakfast. Professor Xavier stayed behind long enough to thank the brothers and discretely slipped them an envelope for their trouble. Sam started to protest, but Dean quickly settled the issue with a ‘thank you’ and ‘just call if you need help again’ before they settled down to the second-shift of breakfast in the same spots they’d occupied last night.
Logan took a discrete sniff toward Bryony and did not detect any significant male scent on her, then grinned to himself as he wolfed down hash browns and bacon. He grinned broader when she brought her plate and settled beside him, smiled, and started to eat in silence.
“Thanks for last night. If you’re passing through this way again, you may call me,” Jubilee bestowed the favor on Sam, who was looking enormously pleased with himself. He slid a business card across the table toward the edge of her plate, and pointed at the phone number.
“If you need us, call us. And yeah, same goes. Drop me an e-mail sometime. If we get in the same area, dinner’s on me. And thanks - it was...” he floundered for words. “... it was... enlightening, and yeah, a good night.”
“I’m your first, aren’t I?” Jubilee grinned at the taller brother, who blushed and nearly choked on a piece of toast.
Coughing away the crumbs, Sam stated, “No, not my first. I’m no, uh... virgin.” He was turning beet red to his ears.
“I meant your first mutant,” Jubilee giggled at Sam's confusion.
“Oh... yeah. Yes, my first mutant. Sorry, I didn’t understand.”
Dean shouldered against Rogue who was dipping her toast in her fried egg’s yolk. “That offer stands - you need, you call.” He shoved a card toward her as well. “Maybe next time we cross paths, you won’t have that overgrown study hall monitor hanging over you and we can get better acquainted.” Dean gave her a wicked grin and a flirty wink. Rogue grinned and laughed. Logan eavesdropped, growled, and refocused when Bryony playfully poked him on the thigh with her fork.
When the meal was cleaned away, the two brothers rose and the two mutant females walked them to their car. Jubilee gave Sam a blatant good-bye kiss on their side of the car, while Rogue stood on the driver’s side with Dean, wishing she could do the same.
“Just how fast does your skin kill?” Dean asked, grinning.
“It takes several seconds to kill, just a few seconds to start pulling energy and stuff like memories and powers, if you have those.” Dean’s fingers strayed into her white locks, not touching bare skin, but as close as possible.
“How many seconds is several?” He stepped closer, pinning her against the car’s door, making his intentions clear.
“Umh, I don’t know exactly...” Rogue was getting nervous and excited at the same time. Even a short space of contact might garner some of his memories and emotions, but they wouldn’t last long. They would fade as quickly as Bobby’s and John’s had after their time in Boston. It might be worth the risk. “Maybe ten, fifteen seconds... it sort of depends on what kind of...”
And before she could finish the sentence, Dean was kissing her, hesitant touching at first, breaking contact quickly, then taking longer as confidence built and Rogue responded to the demanding press of his mouth on hers.
The kiss lengthened, and eventually the pull started, taking Dean by surprise and leaving Rogue breathless and pumped with arcane knowledge that seemed to swirl around inside her head. They parted quickly and Dean still kept her pinned against the side of the old black car while he tried to catch his breath and gather his wits.
“You do pack a punch, lady,” he finally admitted, shaking off the drain. “Wow.”
“Sorry - can’t say I didn’t warn you.” She looked down in shame, but Dean used the strands of her hair over his fingers to raise her chin again, facing her squarely.
“It was worth it. You keep that card I gave you. If you need me, or if things change with you, call me. Remember what I said before: a real man lives for a challenge.”
“I’ll remember that. Have a safe trip, wherever you’re going.” She smiled up at him and he stepped back, allowing her to move away from the car door. Sliding into the car, the two brothers waved as the Chevy disappeared down the driveway and beyond the trees.
“Now, there goes an interesting pair of men,” Jubilee commented, then lightly punched Rogue on the arm. “You got kissed! Dude, that proves what I’ve been telling you all along. You’re hot, and you’re worth the risk.”
“Yeah, maybe so,” Rogue grinned at her friend as they strolled back into the mansion.
Meanwhile, in the kitchen and with the others gone, Bryony had broached the subject first.
“I saw you sniffing around me, and no, I didn’t sleep with him.”
“Caught that, did you?” Logan pushed his empty plate away and drank down the last half of his coffee.
“I don’t miss much,” she confirmed. “Are we going to talk about your feelings for Rogue, or are we going to ignore it?”
“I’m going to ignore it. It’s the only decent thing I can think to do. She’s too young and naive and impressionable, and she’s my friend. End of subject.”
“Uh-huh, right,” Bryony commented with sarcasm. “She adores you, that’s obvious. You adore her and watch over her like a hawk, and get territorial with her being around other men. That spells emotional investment to me. Should I ignore that, too, or break things off with you since you’re invested in her, or go ahead and date you and keep it casual friends?”
“Go ahead and date me and keep it casual friends, ‘cause I like the sound of that,” Logan admitted. “I like you, and I like being with you, and I’m not willing to just let you walk away without at least trying to talk you out of it.”
“So, we’re talking fuck buddies here, or casual friends, or exclusive, or seeing other people, or what? ‘Cause I really think we need to define some boundaries.”
“If you want to see someone else, you tell me. If I want to see someone else, I’ll tell you. Does that sound fair?”
“It does.” Bryony was starting to feel like they were negotiating a contract, but it was better than wondering what the hell was going on while no one was talking at all. “I’m all about the honesty factor in any relationship.”
“I can get behind that.” Logan stood and refilled his cup, offered her some, but then remembered she was a tea drinker. She waved him off, regardless.
“No thanks. I’ve got harvesting work to do at home, so I’m gonna go be productive. See ya.”
She started for the kitchen door, when Logan stepped behind her and gently grasped her arm, pulling her back to look at him.
“Got any other dinner date tonight? Maybe with another man?”
Pretending to think it over, she smiled and confessed, “No, my calendar is clear.”
“I’ll pick you up about eight, okay?”
“Okay.” Logan leaned in and kissed her, then let her walk away, smiling. Bryony passed Rogue and Jubilee as they came back in the front door. The women all greeted each other and parted quickly, as the demands of the day took over.
Jubilee disappeared upstairs while Rogue walked over to Logan’s side. They each leaned their backs against the inside of the door frame, regarding each other across the narrow span.
“You look like the cat that ate the canary, and I can smell that little punk on you. Did he get fresh with you?” Logan groused.
“Yep, and it was good. I got my first grown-up kiss, and he’s not dead, and I can handle that short-term download into my head. Right now, I know the entire banishing ritual for ghosts, and a lot of stuff about vampires and werewolves, which is interesting because I didn’t believe they were real.”
Logan nearly goggled at Rogue talking about such wild things, and he spluttered, “What?! Werewolves? Vampires? He kissed you?!”
“Yes, they’re real; yes, he kissed me; yes, he lived through it; and yes, I’ve got work to do. Tomorrow night is the big Halloween dance and I need a costume that’ll rock someone’s socks off. See you later, sugar.”
And with a deft, quick lunge, she planted a firm, sweet kiss right on Logan’s mouth, then ran away, laughing.
Logan just stood there, gaping at her retreating back, her taste still racing on his lips. Just when he thought he had everything including women figured out, someone turned the tables on him.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
Sorry for the late post - my phone lines were out last night, thus, no Net connection. Last chapter, too. Thanks for the feedback!