Brunch was enjoyable enough. It took everyone awhile to settle into the conditions. Mac, Kevin, Logan, and Veronica had a comfortable rapport, where banter flew easily. Keith's relationship with Veronica eased him and by extension Linda into the flow. Jessie clearly felt out of place, being as she was an employee but wasn't being treated as one by the people around her, aside from her boss. Trina was probably having the hardest time adjusting. She was used to a much more privileged lifestyle and clearly hadn't known how different a life her brother had chosen to lead.

Kensley was blissfully unaware of the slight awkwardness around her as she ate strawberries and the Mickey Mouse shaped pancake Logan had made her. She continued to beam up at her uncle, who she appeared to think hung the moon.

"So how is the hotel, Trina?" Logan asked casually, unsure how to talk to his sister.

"It's acceptable," she replied. "Not the best sheets, but you can't have everything right?"

Veronica bit her lip thinking of some of the hotels she had stayed in over the years. "We were thinking about going to look at some of the Christmas lights tonight," Veronica said. "There is a street a few blocks over that does some knockout lights. Maybe you and Kensley would like to join us?" she asked Trina. Kensley looked up hopefully.

"Actually I made an appointment at the spa for tonight," Trina responded.

"Maybe just Kensley then," Logan replied. He had seen the look on his niece's face. "Jessie could have a few hours off. We can handle the munchkin until for an evening." He glanced at Veronica who smiled.

"Uh, sure," Trina replied. Kensley grinned and dug back into her pancakes. After brunch, Trina, Jessie, and Kensley went back to the hotel, for the little girl to have a nap. The plan was that Jessie would drop her back off with Logan and Veronica before doing some sightseeing that evening, having never been to San Francisco.

Mac and Kevin were hanging around for the day. Logan and Veronica left their guests in the living room, happily talking, while they cleaned up the kitchen.

At about five that evening, Jessie knocked on the door. Kensley was standing next to her, bundled in a winter coat, scarf, and mittens. Veronica helped the girl out of her outerwear and set a time with Jessie for her to pick Kensley back up. "Whewe's Unc'e Logan?"

"He's upstairs," Veronica replied. "He'll be down in a minute. You can come hang out with me for a bit if you want."

"'kay," the little girl replied taking Veronica's hand.

Mac, Kevin, Linda, and her father were playing a game of cards at the dining room table. Veronica sat on the couch with Hensley. "Are you nervous about being with just us tonight?" Veronica asked amazed at the little girl's comfort.

"No," Hensley replied. "You're nice."

Logan came bounding down the stairs at that moment. "Office is clean," he told Veronica. "Hi munchkin," he greeted Kensley, who giggled.

"Ready to go guys?" Logan asked.

A response in the affirmative came from the dining room. Everyone crowded in to the entryway to bundle up. As Logan pulled Veronica's beanie onto her head for her, she whispered to him, "If we have kids, they will not be raised by a nanny."

He glanced down at Kensley and replied, "Of course not. I lived that life remember."

Veronica nodded sadly and bent down to help Kensley put on her mittens. Kensley happily held Logan and Veronica's hands as they walked through the streets admiring the Christmas lights of the houses. "They're pwetty," the girl said swinging between the grownup's arms. After viewing the lights for a while, the group returned to the house for cocoa before Jessie picked up Kensley.

"So Santa is going to bring your presents here tonight," Logan explained to his niece while he helped her button her coat. "Then, Jessie and your mom will bring you over in the morning to open them. Does that sound good?"

Kensley nodded. "I love you Uncle Logan," she said sweetly, wrapping her small arms around his neck.

"I love you too, munchkin," he replied as Jessie led her from the house.

Veronica came up and wrapped her arms around him in the hallway. "Turns out, family," he stated, "not such a bad thing." Turning around so he was facing her, he said, "We need to have kids."

"Okay," Veronica replied.

"I mean it," Logan asserted.

"I know. But for now, lets go hang out with everyone in the living room. Mac and Kevin decided they had too much additive in their cocoa. They are staying on the blowup in the office," she explained as they walked hand in hand into the living room.

"Good thing I actually cleaned," Logan said with a smirk. Logan flopped into an armchair and pulled Veronica down so she was sitting on the arm of it.

"So Logan I mean this in the nicest way possible," Mac said, "but how on earth did your sister, who admittedly I don't know that well, have such a sweet child?"

"Speaking as someone who was raised that way, as long as the children are still being raised by a nanny, they are generally pretty sweet," Logan replied.

"How true," Veronica added, "you didn't turn into an ass until high school. It all becomes clear," she said and grinned at him.

"You think you're so clever Mars," he replied pulling her from the arm of the chair into his lap. He glanced quickly at Keith, but finding the older man laughing, continued to hold Veronica in his lap.

"So since everyone is crashing here, who needs another beverage?" Veronica asked. "Plus we need to stick the gifts from Santa under the tree."

"I'll do gifts; you do drinks," Logan replied letting her up.

Logan woke to Veronica stretching next to him the following morning. "Alarm is going to go off soon," she murmured.

"We're just doing leftovers from yesterday for breakfast right?" Logan asked with a yawn.

"Yeah, plus bagels and cream cheese," Veronica responded.

"Ahhh," Logan yawned stretching. "I forgot, Merry Christmas." He rolled on his side to face Veronica.

She mirrored his action and replied, "Merry Christmas." He snaked his arms around her waist pulling her to him and kissing her deeply. "Mmm, we should get up. We have guests."

"They know where the coffee pot is," Logan replied kissing Veronica again. "But, if you insist." He rolled out of bed and pulled her up with him. He pulled on pajama pants and a sweatshirt. "I'll go start the coffee."

Everyone was downstairs within fifteen minutes and already into the second pot of coffee when Trina, Kensley, and Jessie arrived.

"Here Brother," Trina said, "They were giving these out at the hotel. I thought you could hang it in your doorway." She handed him a sprig of mistletoe. Logan smirked at it mischievously.

"Thanks sis," he said looping the ribbon over a nail already in the molding of the doorway to the dining room. "Oh Veronica, Sugarpuss, I need your help," he called.

"Don't call me that," Veronica said rolling her eyes. Once she was just standing in front of him, he pointed up. Veronica followed his indication with her eyes. She laughed. As he pulled her in to kiss her, she whispered, "Like you've ever needed an excuse."

Logan stopped and just stared at her for a minute as everything around them seemed to disappear, until Kensley said, "Kiss now."

Logan and Veronica laughed before kissing rather chastely, now that they were well aware they had the attention of a three year old.

After releasing Veronica, Logan leaned down and kissed Kensley on the cheek. "You ready to open presents?" he asked excitedly, as the little girl nodded and bounced.

With plates of bagels and fruit and cups of coffee, the adults sat around as Kensley looked through the pile of gifts. "Mommy, does this one say my name?" she asked Trina, who was sitting near her.

"It sure does, baby," Trina replied with a smile at her daughter. Kensley grinned and tore into the present.

After Kensley had opened a few of her gifts and was distracted playing with a doll, which Veronica suspected cost nearly her whole months' salary, the adults began to exchange some gifts. Trina's gifts shocked everyone at the extravagance.

After gifts were exchanged, the rest of the afternoon was spent in leisurely activities. Logan read Kensley a book he and Veronica had gotten her. He played cards with Keith. Veronica, Mac, and Linda decorated sugar cookies with Kensley. Mainly, they all sat around and talked while Kensley played with her numerous gifts.

In the afternoon, Trina approached Veronica. "He won't talk to me," she said in a discouraged tone. "Not about anything serious."

Veronica sighed. She glanced at where Logan and Kevin were deep in conversation about something. "Trina," she replied. "It might take awhile. He had a hard time after everything with your dad, and well everything…" She pursed her lips. "And you kind of just disappeared after that."

"I know," Trina said. "It was just hard to handle."

"I get it, but…" Veronica stopped herself. "I think because of that, you need to make more of an effort now. He isn't going to make it easy for you. Believe me."

Trina took a deep breath. As Kevin stood up from where he was talking to Logan and moved to sit with his wife, Trina went over and took his place. Veronica sat down on the floor next to where Kensley was coloring in a coloring book Mac had given her. She could tell Trina was slightly annoyed that the $10 gifts were getting more attention that the $1000 ones. As Veronica sat down, she glanced at Logan and Trina, who had begun to talk.

"Logan," Trina began, "I…" She sighed. "I want to apologize for disappearing after everything that happened."

"It's not necessary Trina," Logan replied. "I understand. It was a tough time." He sighed and looked at Veronica, who tilted her head in encouragement. "I guess I just don't understand why it took ten years for you to contact me. I mean, I sent you a birthday card every year. I even sent Kensley gifts after I knew she was born." He sighed again. "But you never called or contacted me except that one time."

Trina sighed. "Well, you had moved on. And your life was so very different from what we grew up with; I guess I just didn't understand." She looked around. "I still don't Logan, with everything you have, why do you live here? Why do you live like this?"

Logan quietly laughed, but there was a slight bitterness in his tone. "Trina, that life wasn't the same for me. When I think about having kids," he said, his sight drifting to Kensley, "I don't want them to live the way we did."

Trina shook her head. "Why not Logan? If you can offer it to them, why wouldn't you?"

"One, because it made me a spoiled brat for a lot of my adolescence. Two, because when I look back at our childhood I don't just see the glamour and luxuries, at least not the way you do. I see those as something that hid the awful truth of my life, our life. I don't think about the car I got when I turned sixteen as a gift from Aaron; I see him hitting me with his belt when I scratched the edge of the gate backing out the first time." Logan sighed. "I know you never believed me Trina, but it doesn't make it less true."

Trina didn't respond, so Logan continued. "So I live this way because it is different from what I knew. It isn't like I'm lacking here. We have a nice house and plenty of nice things."

"It just seems like you gave up your life for something less to me. Maybe if I could understand better, we would have a different relationship," Trina finally admitted. "I just don't see how you can be happy like this, after what we grew up with. But Logan, I want a relationship with you. I realized after getting divorced that I haven't really had a family in years, aside from Kensley of course. I'm just not sure how I fit in to the way of life you have now."

"Trina," Logan explained, "You're my sister and I love you. And I would love to have a consistent relationship with my niece, but it's up to you. I'm not going to change my lifestyle because it makes you uncomfortable. I have the life I want. Whatever I gave up for it didn't feel like a sacrifice. I'm happy; finally after everything in my life, I'm happy. And, the only thing I need, I have. Veronica is my world. She is my family now."

Veronica smiled and ran her hand softly over the ring at her neck. She closed her eyes and pictured images in her mind from the day. Some of them were stored on the memory card of her camera as well, but most didn't need to be. She would remember them anyway. She could see Logan reading Kensley the book they had bought her. She saw him playing cards with her father, and putting on paper crowns from party poppers with Mac. She saw the look in his eye when he pulled her close to him under the mistletoe.

Then suddenly other images ran through her mind: him kneeling in front of her asking her to marry him, his face at her hospital beside, him grinning at her when he gave her Taser for Christmas exactly a year before, and the look on his face when she had finally told him she loved him.

And still other images: him grinning at her across the grassy courtyard when they graduated from Hearst, his face in the food court as he whipped blood onto his shirt as Gory Sorokin lay bleeding between them, him looking down at her in the parking garage on campus and pulling her into his arms, him dodging a bullet on the roof of the Neptune Grande, and finally him looking at her pensively on the balcony of the Camelot as he asked if she was okay.

Veronica opened her eyes and found Logan staring at her. She smiled, and he returned it. Slowly, she reached up and unclasped the chain around her neck. Logan watched intently as she slipped the ring from the chain and put it securely on her left ring finger. "Yeah?" he mouthed to her. When she nodded in return, the smile on his face grew to a grin.

She sighed and looked at the friends and family around the room. She held her hand out, and Logan stood and pulled her up from the floor. Grasping his hand as if it were a lifeline, she said, "Everyone, we, uh, have an announcement to make."

There it is. I have considered an epilogue, so one may come later on.