Chapter 117 The future
“Are you two going to get married?” Olivia asked, perking up and wide awake suddenly Logan quickly dropped Serena’s hand. They’d been talking about plans to be parents and be in a relationship, but Serena had said she wanted to take things very slow. Logan didn’t want to be the first to answer Olivia’s question and say something that offended or upset Serena. “Olivia, Logan and I are taking things one step at a time,” Serena explained. “You mean ‘daddy,” Olivia corrected. Serena laughed and nodded. Logan chuckled too, catching Serena’s eyes. She seemed a little uncomfortable at the moment, trying to think of the best answer.
Logan nodded to her, waiting to hear what she would say. He was interested in what she thought as well. Their future was wide open and they’d only just scratched the surface of what they could be. “I think that could happen,” Serena said. “If everything goes the way we want them
to.”
She looked over at Logan. He felt a swell in his chest, hopeful that their relationship could get to that point. He hadn’t fully confessed his feelings for Serena, only telling her how much he cared about her.
He didn’t tell her that he loved her or that he wanted to be with her in every way that mattered. He’d had to keep it as basic as possible to not overwhelm her or scare her off. Logan didn’t know if Serena returned his feelings with the same intensity. Hearing her say that they could get married someday, that she wanted things to go that way, he felt a lot better about the future. “Good,” Olivia said. “Then we can all live together and be a family.”
Logan looked at Serena again. She was flushed, her cheeks, her neck. In the low light of the darkened living room, Logan found her far too attractive. He wanted to reach out to her, but Olivia was still between them on the couch.
“I want to go back to bed now,” Olivia said. Serena stood up automatically and picked Olivia up in her arms. “Wait here,” she said to Logan. He nodded. He would have liked to put Olivia to bed again, but he figured too much interaction would keep her up longer. He’d have to talk to Serena about certain parenting techniques so he could make sure that he wasn’t doing things the wrong way. Being a parent was still very new to him. Serena came back down the stairs several minutes later.
“Poor thing,” she said as she took a seat on the couch. “She’s so overtired she just can’t get herself to sleep.”
“That happens sometimes?” Logan asked.
“It can happen a lot with kids,” she explained. “They get so worn out they just can’t get to sleep. Their bodies and minds are just too exhausted to process anything and it makes them cranky because they can’t sleep.” “Lots of late-night tantrums?” he asked. Serena shrugged. “Sometimes,” Serena admitted. “It doesn’t happen as often anymore. When they were younger, like under two years old, it happened a lot. So many late nights before exams trying to rock them both to sleep while studying.” Logan sighed, feeling guilty for not being there. “I should have been there,” he said, voicing his thoughts aloud. “I don’t want to think about the past,” Serena said smiling at Logan. “We can’t fix anything from the past, but we can change the future.” “You’re right,” Logan said with a nod.
“I’m getting pretty tired,” Serena said. “I’d invite you to stay but…”
“But the guest room isn’t set up yet?” Logan asked, smirking at her. Serena giggled and nodded. “That’s alright,” Logan said. “I could use a walk.” Standing up, Logan stretched and brought the empty wine glasses to the sink. He was contemplating where he could take Serena on a real date at some point. She walked him to the door. “Thank you for tonight,” Serena said. She reached out and took his hand in hers, squeezing his fingers. Logan smiled, raising his other hand and tucking her hair behind her ears. He leaned in, kissing her forehead. “Thank you,” Logan said. “Tonight I actually felt like I was their father, for once.” “Well, you should start feeling like that all the time,” Serena told him. They
hugged each other. Logan wanted to kiss her, but he held back. He kissed her forehead again and opened the front door. “We’ll touch base again tomorrow,” Logan said. Serena nodded. Logan stepped out onto the porch. Serena closed the door behind him. He took a big, deep breath of the night air and walked off the porch. It wasn’t a long walk back to his own house, but it gave Logan time to think things over. He was happy that he was looking towards his future with Serena and the twins.
All at once, he had gotten a family, complete with kids and with a great woman. His mate. Logan felt sure that he would always be there with them, that he would always care about them. He was ready to move things along faster, but he had to respect Serena’s wish for moving slow. She had more to worry about than he did. From her perspective, she’d been protecting her kids, she’d watched Logan going around with Holly and confessing things like not knowing if he was ready to be a parent. It was true that Logan hadn’t given her any reason to trust him or to think she could rely on him. That had changed, and now he just had to continue to prove it. Eventually, she wouldn’t be so closed off. Logan hoped to prove it to her sooner than later. He wanted her to be ready to move things along. When Logan made it home, Flo was waiting for him. She had never stopped being a mother, and still always waited up for him unless he told her he wouldn’t be home. “You look happy,” Flo said when Logan came in. “It was a good day, a good night too,” he said with a smile. “Were you with Serena?” Flo asked. Logan couldn’t help his smile. His mother smiled right back “Yeah, I was helping her with the kids tonight,” he explained. “We’re going to give it a try” “Good,” Flo said. “I love Serena and I love those twins. I had a feeling they belonged to
you.”
Logan rolled his eyes. He groaned and tried to head up the stairs.
“Logan, don’t run away,” Flo said. “Why don’t you invite them to come live here again?” “Serena and I are taking things slow,” Logan said. Flo raised an eyebrow at her son.
“And that means she can’t live here?” the Luna asked. Logan shrugged.
“I want her to be comfortable with all of it and I want to show that the twins are my priority.” Logan said. “Serena needs a little time to adjust and feel ready for the next steps.” “I understand,” Flo said, placing her hand on Logan’s as his rested on the banister. “Being a mother can be hard. It makes it difficult to trust anyone else. After you were born, I was so nervous to leave you alone with your father.”
Logan creased his brow.
“I thought dad was good with me when I was younger?” he asked. “Oh, he was, completely,” Flo assured with a light laugh. “But I was so devoted to you, had trouble trusting my own mate with your basic needs and care. Imagine how it is with Serena who has been everything for those kids for years.”
“That is exactly why I am letting her set the pace,” Logan explained. “Okay.” Flo said. “But if it takes too long, don’t be afraid to push her out of her comfort zone. There are sparks there, I’ve seen them.”
“Mom, I really don’t need dating advice from you,” Logan said. Flo shrugged. “I’m more thinking about getting her in position to become Luna,” she admitted. Logan rolled his eyes.
“And with that, I’m going to bed,” Logan said. He nodded to his mother. Up the stairs and to his room, he still wasn’t used to Holly and all her things being gone. At the same time, he enjoyed having the space to himself. As he looked around the room, he thought it could benefit from a woman’s touch. Specifically, Serena’s touch. The idea of laying down next to her after a long day and snuggling together and talking about the pack, their kids, and every day nonsense. That was the kind of life he wanted. It wasn’t what he’d had with Holly, and there was no way he could imagine having that with her. Serena on the other hand, she was the
relationship Logan went to bed that night happily. All the weights had been lifted from his shoulders. Everything was starting to work out, and he was able to let go and really rest.