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Two days of not sleeping in the same bed as Melanie was two days too many in Logan’s mind. Sunday night she had opted to go back home because she had an early day at the studio on Monday. He’d understood that she needed sleep and let it go. But then Monday night came and after a long day of teaching, she was again tired and made the decision to just go home.
He’d even volunteered to go to her. But she’d shut that down fast saying that sleep was the only thing on her mind. He argued that he could handle that and just sleep.
She had practically laughed in his face.
And yeah, maybe she was right. Because it seemed whenever he was near her, all he wanted to do was touch her.
But fuck, now that he’d had a taste of what it was like to be with her, he was having a hard time functioning without her.
Tonight though, tonight was different. Her last class was over at six and she had agreed to a quick dinner and a movie out. He hadn’t pushed it by asking if she would stay over, but he was sure as hell hoping she would.
Until then though, he had a whole day to get through. Thankfully, he had plans. He was meeting with the mayor to see about possibly opening a gallery of sorts in Cedarville. The town got a ton of traffic in the summer months thanks to the lake and having a gallery could possibly draw more people in. And if he could sweet-talk some of his artist friends into loaning out a few pieces to his gallery, all the better.
Over the years he had made plenty of friends in the business. Most of them he didn’t really like all that much due to them not really being nice people. There were a few he’d gotten close to and that he genuinely liked.
The idea for the gallery in Cedarville came to him during his restless sleep on Sunday night. Why he had never thought about it before, he wasn’t sure. But now that it was in his brain, he couldn’t pry it loose.
A gallery in Cedarville would solve all his problems.
He’d just turned the corner on his way to City Hall when he practically ran into his mom.
“Mom.” He grabbed her shoulders to stop her from barreling into him.
“Hey, Logan. I was wondering when or if I would ever see you again.”
“Don’t be so dramatic. I was planning to come by and see you guys this week.” Her arms were full of bags and he reached out and took them from her.
“Have you or have you not been back in town a week?”
He hung his head the same way he had when he was ten and she’d scolded him. “I have.”
“Then why would you not come and see us or hell, at least call us?”
“I’ve been busy, mom.”
She gave him a look that told him she knew just what he had been busy doing. “Walk me to my car.”
He followed her and when she opened her trunk, he set the bags down inside. Turning, he found her glaring at him. “Just say what you have to say.”
“Logan Albert Graham, I don’t care how old you are, you don’t take that tone with me.”
She had middle named him and that meant she was serious. “Yes, Ma’am.”
“Now what is this I hear about you not traveling anymore?”
Of course his mom knew. She fucking knew everything. Always had. Always would. “I’m tired mom. So very tired of being gone all the time.”
She softened. “I know. Every time you left the last couple of years I could tell how much you hated it. You’re a smart boy, always were, so I am sure you already have a plan.”
He nodded. “When I’m sure and have things in place, you’ll be the first to know.”
“Ha! I know that’s a lie seeing how you and Melanie are all of a sudden more than friends. If I had to guess, I’d say she’ll be the first to know.”
“How the hell do you know everything?” He leaned against her car and crossed his feet at the ankles.
“It’s my power.” She removed her sunglasses and examined him. “You look happy, does that mean it’s going well?”
“I am not discussing my love life with you.”
“Don’t be such a baby. How can I help you keep her if you won’t tell me what’s going on?”
He laughed. “What makes you think I need help keeping her?”
“Because if you are anything like your father and brother, you will find a way to mess this up. And Melanie deserves your best effort.”
He took off his own sunglasses, looking up to the bright blue sky before training his eyes on his moms. “I love her, mom.” Saying those words out loud was like a weight lifted off his chest. He’d thought them many times, but actually hearing himself speak them was another thing entirely.
His mom didn’t even flinch though. What was a big moment to him was obviously not news to her. “Do I look like I was born yesterday? Of course you love her and have for years.”
He would have argued if he’d had a leg to stand on. “I feel like I was possibly the last to know.”
“Oh, Logan.” She touched his arm. “You were just so busy trying to make something of yourself that you didn’t notice what was right in front of your face.”
He swallowed, trying to force his emotions down. “How did you know that was what I was doing?” He’d always assumed he’d hid his agenda well.
“You don’t think a mother knows when her son feels inadequate and left out. I knew. I always knew. And I almost talked to you about it. I wanted you to know that there was never a time when we didn’t see you. But then I thought about it and I talked to your dad and we decided that you leaving and traveling all the time might just be the best thing. You needed to see how much you were loved and needed in your own time.
The emotion that he had been trying to force down came whooshing out in a breath. “I never thought that you knew.” His voice was raw and hoarse.
“Haven’t you learned by now...I know everything.”
He gave a small laugh and nodded. “Yeah, what was I thinking?”
“Why don’t you come by for dinner tonight? And you and your dad can talk. I know that he has been waiting for this day for years.”
“I’m supposed to be going to dinner and a movie with Melanie.”
“Bring her. I’m sure she’ll be fine with it.”
He knew she would especially since he had already told her how he had felt all those years ago. She was a big believer in closure and forgiveness.
“Let me just double-check with her. If you don’t hear from me, plan on us being there.”
She gave him a kiss on the cheek. “You’re one of the good ones, Logan, just remember that.”
He watched her get into her car and back away, giving him a small wave as she drove by him. For years he had thought that his parents had no idea of how he was feeling. He really should have known better. Nothing ever seemed to get by them.
He walked to City Hall, stopping just inside the doors to send a quick text to Melanie.
Logan:
Any chance you would be okay having dinner with my parents tonight instead of our original plans?
He knew by the time that it was her lunch break, so he waited for her reply.
Melanie:
Sure. Is everything all right?
Logan:
Let’s just say that I’m more transparent than I thought.
Melanie:
Since I have no idea what that means, I’ll let you explain it to me when you pick me up.
Logan:
See you at six.
Putting his phone away, he stepped into the lobby of the mayor’s office. Tonight would be enlightening and he was glad that Melanie would be there to share it with him.
––––––––
Pulling into Melanie’s house, he put his Jeep in park, and sat for a second. He was still in shock over how well his meeting with the mayor had gone. She was totally on board with him opening a gallery in town and even better, had just the building in mind. After he’d left her office, he drove to the center of town to take a look at the space she was talking about. It sat on the corner of the strip of buildings right in the center of town. It had been sitting empty for a while, so long in fact that Logan couldn’t remember what had been there last. When he had been a kid, it had been an appliance store, or at least he thought it had.
It was a big space though, perfect for what he would be looking for. And even better, according to Mayor Roberts, the owner who had not been willing to sell before, was finally ready to get rid of it.
Perfect timing in Logan’s mind.
He still needed to check out the inside and see what would need to be done but it looked like Logan was going to be opening a gallery.
He bypassed knocking and walked in the house, Max greeting him by lifting his head off the floor.
“Hey, Max.” He stroked the top of his head and gave his ears a scratch. Max was the laziest dog on the planet and in Logan’s opinion, a great dog. When he was ready for a dog, he wanted one just like him.
“Hey,” Mel said as she came down the stairs and saw him. “I’m almost ready.”
“No hurry.” He took her in. Her hair was pulled up into a bun on top of her head, something that he’d seen on her a million times over the years. A dancer thing he suspected. She was wearing a pair of cut off jean shorts that showed off her magnificent legs paired with a loose-fitting tank.
She looked every bit as gorgeous as Saturday night when she was in a dress and heels.
“You look...” she trailed off and scrutinized him. “Happy. Like really happy.”
He grabbed her hand and pulled her toward him. “That’s because I am happy.”
They were inches apart, her face tilted up to his because of their small height difference. “Do I get to know why you are so happy?”
He gave her lips a quick kiss. “The sooner we get to mom and dad’s the sooner you will find out. I only want to tell it once.”
“I just need to feed Max and then I am ready.” This time she kissed him. He wanted nothing more than to lean into the kiss and say to hell with dinner at his parent’s house. But tonight was important. For many reasons.
He stepped back, breaking the kiss. “Go feed Max.”
He steadied his breathing while she fed the dog and locked the back door. Grabbing her purse and phone, she stood by the front door. “I’m ready.”
It was a short drive to his childhood home but he wanted to fill her in on the conversation with his mom.
“Remember how I told you the other night that I always felt left out and that I needed to prove myself?”
She reached across the console and took his hand. “Yeah.”
“Well, turns out my parents knew that I felt that way.”
“No way. This whole time?”
“Yep.” He told her quickly about running into his mom and what she had said. He was pulling into their driveway when he finished.
“I shouldn’t be surprised because your mom is like a wizard. She always seems to know what is going on.”
“About that,” he said, “They know we are together.” He wasn’t sure if she’d wanted people to know or if they were trying to keep it a secret.
“Did you not want them to know?”
“No, I don’t care who knows. I’d shout it from the rooftops if I didn’t think Bran would arrest me. I just wasn’t sure what you wanted.”
“I want the world to know that you are mine.”
Her words hit him hard.
“I want to be yours,” he said and leaned over to capture her lips with his. Both his hands gripped her face and the kiss went on and on. She was breathing heavily and groaning when he heard his dad’s voice.
“Oops. Sorry kids.”
Leaning his forehead against hers, he expected to see her freaked out over his dad catching them. Instead, he found her grinning from ear-to-ear.
“It’s okay, dad.” He gave Melanie one last quick kiss before separating and getting out of the Jeep.
“I didn’t mean to interrupt,” his dad said sheepishly. “I was coming in from the garage when I saw you parked out here.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Melanie said as she rounded the car and joined them.
“Why don’t we head inside and see what your mom has cooked up for dinner?”
He reached out and stopped his dad. “If you don’t mind, I’d like to talk to you for a minute.” He looked at Melanie.
Getting what he was saying, she said, “I’ll head on in and see if I can help.” She gave his hand a squeeze and headed toward the house, leaving him alone with his dad.
“Your mom told me that she talked to you today.” His dad had never been one to beat around the bush.
“I always thought that you guys didn’t see me. And I think I realize now that it was unfair of me to think that about you.”
“I can’t let you take all the blame here. I should have realized sooner that we were ignoring you. By the time that I did, your mom had already made the decision that leaving and taking that job was what you needed to do. I fought her on it, but in the end, I think she was right. You leaving is what brought you back.”
“I think I see that now too. It was like I had to know what it felt like to be successful away from you and this town. But now that I’ve done it, this is where I need to be.”
“I’m glad.” He clapped him on the back. “We missed ya.”
They began walking. “So you and Melanie, huh?”
“Is it weird, do you think?”
“You and Mel not being together was more weird, if you ask me. This seems like it was always brewing.”
“I just wish I had known earlier.”
“It’s probably good that you didn’t. You weren’t ready then.”
His dad was right. If he had realized five years ago that Melanie was what he wanted, it would have never worked. He was still traveling all the time and he didn’t even have a home base. If he came back to Cedarville he’d always just stayed with his mom and dad. It wasn’t until three years ago that he’d decided he needed a real home to come back to.