It was a hot summer day as Marie waited in one of Weschester's obscure little bars.  A tiny rustic establishment with rough wood paneling as its main décor, the ambience was comfortable and relaxed. Sipping her iced tea, Marie surveyed her surroundings and the diverse patrons. Unlike trendy and upscale bars or cafes, this place attracted poets, thespians, writers, mutants, humans or just about any stressed-out person  who wanted to enjoy a brewski without having to worry about how he/she looked. There were no ritzy college kids or rich matrons taking a break from their shopping marathons in the place.

The lack of pretentiousness made it Marie and Logan's traditional meeting place whenever Logan came back from one of his "trips". It had been two years since that unforgettable day when he gave her his dogtags. She was nineteen now and she looked back at how their strange intense relationship had evolved into a special unbreakable friendship. Sure, she had that little crush in the beginning, but she had come to accept that what she and Logan had, transcended any love affair she could imagine. This connection they had was unique. Despite periodic separations and a huge age gap, there was nobody else they could find who understood them better than they did each other.

When Marie finally learned how to control her mutation three months ago, Logan had been in Japan working with other mutants. He was the first one, aside from the professor of course, to learn about the news. Calling him long distance, she excitedly talked his ear off about her achievement, her plans and everything else non-lethal skin could mean to her. As in most of their phone-calls, Logan softly grunted his replies. "That's great kid. I'm really happy for you" and a variation of those were all he said. It was enough for her. The Wolverine wasn't big on words. If he started going Oprah on her then she'd definitely think something was wrong.

At the back of her mind, she wondered if her suddenly controlled mutation would change their friendship. Shaking the thought from her head, she refused to think about it. A relationship like theirs was best left to travel along its natural course. No need to analyze and dissect it endlessly. If they had done that in its early stages, both of them would have gone insane. The events that led up to their friendship were uncanny and strange to the rational mind.

With the gift of control, Marie felt a surge of freedom in herself and immediately looked for a part-time job. She wanted to earn her own money and not be too dependent on the Professor's generosity. He never complained or asked for anything in return, but it was something Marie felt she had to do.

She had found a job as a part-time clerk in a specialty bookstore and saved up enough money to rent herself a cozy studio. It was her tiny niche in this big bad world of mutants and humans. When she told Logan, he immediately understood. She probably got it from him, the intermittent urge to be left alone. The people were kind in the mansion, but sometimes, there was nothing more relaxing than moving freely in your own private space.

Checking her watch, it was 5:15 PM. They had agreed to meet at 5:30 to hang-out first and catch-up on things. Being the perpetually late friend, Marie decided to surprise Logan by finally showing up on time. He'd been away for the past four months, galvanizing around Japan, and she was beside with excitement at seeing him again.

Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted when she heard Logan's gruff voice.

"Hey darlin'. Did Magneto escape? You seem to be early."

Marie looked up to see the classic Logan teasing grin. She could feel a smile creeping up her face as she replied.

"Hey, and yes I am on time."

Pulling up a chair and seating himself, he pulled his face into a mock-serious expression and checked the clock behind the bartender. "Actually no, you're fifteen minutes early so you're still not on time."

Giggling, she said, "Sorry, I'll try my best next time."

After ordering a beer for himself, Logan asked Marie how she was doing.

"Everything's ok. Same old, same old. There's training for the team, my part-time job and college studies from the mansion."

He furrowed his brows at her last comment. "You're still not going to the university to do your studies?"

"Nah. I really want to concentrate more on my training as an X-Woman and kick some serious ass," she joked.

Nodding slightly, he thew her an easy grin. "Fair enough"

"How 'bout u? How was Japan?"

Lighting  a cigar, and propping his elbow on the table, he pondered on his answer. After several moments, he said, "It was good."

Marie couldn't help but laugh. "C'mon Logan, you can do better than that. Did you meet anyone?"

"Yep. Met-up with a couple of ugly bastards causing some trouble.  Never gave them a chance  to do their shit ."

"Logan, those things are a given. What I was asking was if you MET anyone?"

He took a puff from his cigar before he answered. Blowing out the smoke, he said, "Yeh, there were some nice ones who kept me company.  There was even one which I thought would get serious."

"Really?," Marie asked, genuinely excited and happy for her friend. "Who was she and what happened?'

"A gorgeous Japanese model who couldn't stand the thought that she had to share me with you."

Marie suddenly felt sad at what he said. It was hard starting romantic relationships with other people when you were so attached to another. Both of them didn't fully understand the deep connection of their friendship.  It wasn't surprising that other people couldn't understand either.

"I'm sorry", she said.

"Nothin' to be sorry about darlin'. She was kinda boring with all her talk about losing weight for her next photo shoot."

Laughing, Marie couldn't help but tease him. "Well, you have no one to blame but yourself. I bet you knew she'd be like that from the first moment you met her but still stuck around 'coz she was gorgeous."

Holding his hands up in jest, he said, "Guilty as charged."

"Tsk, tsk, shame on you Logan. Letting your Little Johnson get the better of you.", she teased.

They continued their easy banter all through the next hour. Marie was doing most of the talking with her chatter about training, her non-serious dates, studies and just about everything else she could think of.

Logan couldn't help but notice the marked change in Marie.  There was, of course, more bare skin than he was used to seeing. The gloves and scarves during summertime were now a thing of the past. But the changes went beyond the physical.

She had always been open and relaxed with him, but there was always this slight aura of sadness about her. Her mutation made her ill at ease around people. Now, she seemed more  candid and excited about everything, especially her future.  Gone was the guarded stance she wore whenever they were in public. Logan knew she was still the Marie he knew so well, but he couldn't help but enjoy the changes in her. She was probably like this before her traumatic first kiss, he thought.

"So, do you have any plans for dinner?" he asked.

"No. I can just call Scott to pick me up if you have somewhere else to go."

"Pick you up? You still didn't drive yourself over here?"
 
Marie shook her head. "Nope. Scott dropped me off."

"I'd think that after absorbing me..."

"I know," Marie interrupted, "I got all your cigar and beer drinking urges but your driving knowledge simply eluded me"

"Marie, you have to learn how to drive."

"Well, between all the training and the intense meditation sessions with the professor, there was no time for me to learn the skill. "

"It doesn't matter. You still have to learn have to drive,"  he insisted.

"Don't think so. The idea of driver's ed doesn't really appeal to me. Besides, I can always take the bus."

"I'll teach you. And my teaching style will definitely appeal to you." he teased.

Cocking an eyebrow at him, "Really? That's something that I might want to check out."

"You'll love it darlin'.  We'll start tomorrow, after the meeting with Chuck.

Marie knew that there was no use in arguing about the driving. Not that she was about to protest.  With that settled, they left the bar and drove off to Wasabi for a Japanese dinner. Logan kept on bragging about this thing called Kobe beef which he said was something she should definitely try. She simply took his word for it. When it comes to beef, nobody argues with the Wolverine.

The next day found the core and junior members of the X-Men team gathered at Professor Xavier's Office. Logan, Rogue, Jean, Scott, Bobby, Jubilee and Ororo listened with rapt attention as the Professor explained the mansion's summer program.

"As some of the students will stay behind for the summer, I've developed several classes to keep these students occupied and in condition for fall training,"

Wheeling himself over to the silver-lined blackboard which listed the different classes, the  professor started assigning each member to a class.

"Jean, you'll be taking over the Applied Science class. As this is for advanced science students, you'll be only having around 4 or 5 pupils."

Continuing on the next item on the list, "The English Composition class will be taken over by Scott and your student assistant will be Bobby." Turning to smile at the young man, Prof. X explained, "I've heard that you've been doing excellent work on your short stories. I'm sure that a lot of the students would also benefit from your assistance."

"Ororo, you'll be handling the  Environmental Appreciation class. As this is a class that's held outdoors and will have lots of the younger students attending, I believe Jubilee would be your perfect assistant.

Jubilee gave a less-than excited  smile at the Professor.  "Err, that's a really nice thought since I'll get to chill with Ms. 'Ro over here, but sir, me and kids....", criss-crossing her index fingers back and forth to make her point, "we just don't, well, you know."

Smiling at his young trainee, the professor kindly  pointed out, "I know Jubilee. But think of this as  just another  learning experience. Something that will  help you overcome your fear of little kids."

"Lastly, Logan will be teaching the physical-ed and  combat training classes. As this will have the most  number of students, you will be assisted by Rogue."
Turning to address Rogue, he explained, "Your  hand-to-hand combat training with Logan has proved to  be quite excellent. Also, I believe that you are the  only one who'll keep that temper of his at bay," the  professor teased.

"Yeah, and she also makes the fight demos prettier  than Logan ever can", Scott taunted.

Snorting at Scott's comment, Logan retorted, "Well,  unlike you Scott, looking pretty was never my  priority"

"Boys!" Jean interrupted. "Can we save this macho posturing for later?"

Scott immediately felt embarrassed. Throwing his wife  an apologetic smile he swallowed the sarcastic remark  he was about to blurt out. He settled  for giving  Logan a  smirk.

Rogue caught Logan's eye before he could rip off  Scott's smirk with his glare. Chastizing Logan with a  look, Rogue could only shake her head. Logan can be  such a child sometimes, she thought.

"Rogue", the professor said, cutting through her  thoughts, "the classes will be in the morning so I'm  sure they won't interfere with your job at the  bookstore."

Always amazed at the Professors concern, Rogue could  only give him a genuine thank-you smile.

An hour later, with the details and scheduled settled, the X-Men crew finally broke apart and Logan and Marie  shared a look.

"You ready to go?" Logan asked.

"Yeah," she said. With that, the two walked out to  Logan's truck and left the mansion to find a suitable  place to start her driving lessons.
 

They continued to drive around until Logan found an abandoned parking lot.

Logan pulled the truck to a stop and turned to Marie. "Ok, your driving lessons start now. First, we change  seats."

"Duh!"

Half-grinning to himself, Logan stepped out and went around the car as Marie scooted herself over to the driver's seat. Fixing himself at the passenger side,
Logan instructed, "Ok, now adjust your seat so that  you'll be able to reach the pedals with your feet.  But not too close that you're scrunched up up front"

Marie fiddled with one of the many buttons on the side of the door  to adjust her seat according to Logan's directions. She still couldn't believe that Logan  would let her practice driving in his brand new Ford  F120. Shifting around and flexing her legs to test  the distance, Marie was finally satisfied and turned  to Logan for further instruction.

"Now, let me point out the parts of the car. You might  know this already but heck, I'll still point them  out. The ignition, the steering wheel, the handbreak,  the stick shift....."

Leaning closer to Marie's side, Logan continued to explain the use of each gadget. While he discussed  the importance of always checking the car temperature  and the gas tank level, Marie couldn't help but feel  Logan's warm breath against her face. That and the  heat emanating from Logan's body made her feel  slightly fuzzy in a nice way. She immediately told  herself to get a grip and concentrate on whatever  Logan was saying.

"...Now, let me teach you how to shift gears."  Logan suddenly took Marie's hand and wrapped it around  the shift knob, placing his hands over hers.

Suddenly, Marie felt a wave of heat travel from her  hands, all the way up to her arms, warming her chest  and face. Marie could barely breathe.

Logan also felt a jolt of electricity as he felt Marie's soft hands under his. It felt so small and  delicate compared to his hand. Without knowing it, he  gently caressed the back of her hand with his thumb.  He felt his own breath hitch in sync with Marie's.

Logan let his eyes roam over her slim, smooth ivory  arms. She was wearing a pale blue tank top which gave  him a nice view of her beautiful neck and upper chest.  The sight of his dogtags resting on her chest made  them more temptingly beautiful. With her hair pulled  back in a ponytail, the skin of her elegant neck  looked tantalizingly soft. He wondered how it would  feel under his lips. He continued his penetrating  gaze to her tempting red mouth and finally locked on  to her beautiful doe eyes. Deep dark eyes which were  staring back at him with desire and wonder.

Logan felt his mouth go dry as they continued to share  each other's heated gaze. Somewhere at the back of  his mind, a voice was excitedly rambling off  questions. What the fuck was happening?! This was  Marie. His friend. One of his best friends. Why was  he suddenly feeling desire at the sight of her? She  was only nineteen. Fuck it! Nineteen!

With that sudden reminder of her age, Logan groped  enough sense to break away from her hypnotic eyes.  Clearing his throat, "Ok. Step on the clutch."

Taking a deep breath, Marie tried to compose herself and looked away from Logan. Stepping on the clutch,  she waited for Logan's next instruction.

Tightly gripping her hand, Logan pushed the knob  forward." That's first gear. The knob should always  be in this gear when you're starting the car or when  you're driving up-hill. When you feel that you've  gained enough speed by stepping on the accelerator,  you shift to second gear" Pushing the knob straight  down, he showed her second gear. "Upon gaining more speed, you shift to third gear." He pushed the knob,  with her hand, halfway up, then slightly pushed it to  the right, then all the way up to third gear. He then explained that the same principles follow the fourth  and fifth gears while enjoying the feel of her hand.  "Of course, when you have to pull the car into reverse, you shift all the  way to the end over here."

Marie was barely listening to Logan as he shifted the  knob and her hand from side to side, showing her how   to check if the gears were in neutral. "Whenever you  stop the car, always put the car in neutral,  especially in traffic. That way, you can release the  clutch and rest your legs."

And what wonderful legs they were, Logan thought, as  he checked out the bare, shapely legs peeking out of  her slightly short skirt.

Marie saw his eyes skimp over to her legs and she immediately blushed. What was happening? She felt  suddenly confused and amazed at the sexual tension  inside the cramped space. She could feel her heart  rate going faster and her lips go dry.

To relieve himself of the nervousness he was feeling,  Logan continued to ramble on about how to start the  car, hold the steering wheel, etc. Shit! He was  fucked!

The Wolverine was never nervous about anything. But  the presence of a touchable Marie and cramped space  seem to contest that fact. Clearing his throat and  confident that he has fully explained the  fundamentals of driving, Logan told Marie to start the  car. He was dying to have the car moving and maybe  ease off the tension.

"We'll be doing some laps first. Ok." Logan gave her  an encouraging grin.

Oh God, Marie thought. Was his grin always this sexy?  How come she never noticed it before. She felt her  knees go weak.

After a few failed attempts to move the car because of jerky clutch release, Marie finally got the right  timing and the car moved forward. Slowly increasing  her speed, she then shifted to second gear. She  couldn't believe it! She was driving.

"I'm driving! I'm actually driving!", Marie shrieked excitedly.

Logan couldn't believe how beautiful she looked when  she was excited. Her eyes sparkled and her pouty red  lips broke into a sweet smile. He could stare at her  all day long. Her youth and vigor were simply  fetching.

Fetching?! Where the heck did that come from?! The  Wolverine does not say pansy-assed words like  fetching! Logan was suddenly feeling nervous at the  direction his thoughts were taking.

Marie did several laps around the lot and felt herself relax. So relaxed, in fact that she failed to notice a cat suddenly streak in front of the truck. Startled,  she panicked and screamed.

Logan immediately reacted by grabbing the steering  wheel and veered the car away from the cat.  Fortunately, Marie had enough good sense to step on  the breaks.

Marie's body shook with nerves at what just happened.
 
In his new position, Logan realized that his shoulder and upper arm were brushing against her breast. He suddenly felt himself go hard down "there" at the feel
of her soft flesh. Embarrassed at his reaction, Logan jerked himself back to his seat and felt a furious blush creeping up his face.

Shit!, he thought. The Wolverine was now blushing.  What was next?! The Wolverine watching "The Sound of  Music"?

Marie saw the blush and, surprisingly, it made her  deliriously happy. She didn't understand what was  happening but all she knew was that both of them felt  this mutual intense attraction.

"I think that will be all for today's lesson", Logan  said while giving her a sheepish grin.

Marie silently nodded her agreement. They switched  back to their original seats and drove home in  uncomfortable silence. The tension in the car was so  thick it made breathing a difficulty for both of them.

After  what seemed like a long time, they finally  reached Marie's tiny studio.

"Would you like to go inside for awhile?", Marie  blurted out before thinking.

Despite all the sensible reasons that told him he  should say no, Logan answered, "Ok."

They stepped out of the car and Logan followed her  closely from behind. He watched her graceful movements  as she walked to her apartment. He's always known  that there was something different about her from  other girls her age, but he never really thought about it until now. He realized that she had that unique feminine quality that was sorely lacking in girls these day. Her steps were soft, as if she barely touched the ground. Her hips had a slight sway to them that wasn't exaggerated. He's always found it  annoyingly showy the way those cheeky women sashayed  their hips. With Marie, everything about her was  subtle and languid.

Oh God! He's noticing how she moves! The Wolverine has never done that before. Check-out their boobs, yes. Check-out their ass, definitely. But actually look at
how they move?! Shit! This had to be some alternate  universe. But he knew it wasn't, and he was,  strangely, pleased with that thought.

They stepped into her apartment and Logan seated  himself on the couch. He continued to watch her move  about the room, marveling at how she made simple  gestures like offering him a seat and walking to the  kitchen to get drinks look like ballet-movements with  her grace.

Ballet? Since when did the Wolverine think about  ballerinas and grace. Shit! He thought to himself.  This was not good. No, not good at all. But deep down, he knew, he was enjoying every moment of it.

Marie couldn't believe that she had Logan alone in her  studio and it was making her nervous and excited at  the same time. They've done this a dozen of times  before, back in the mansion, just vegging out. It  had never been like this. Suddenly, she was very aware  of how his masculine presence filled the room. As she  walked towards him, carrying the bottle of beer, she  couldn't help but admire how sexy and manly he looked,  casually sprawled on her couch.

"Here"

"Thanks."

She sat beside him.  Not too close, but not too far  either.

Clearing her throat, she started "So, what will you be teaching me tomorrow?"

"Well, we'll probably continue practicing your clutch  release then I'll teach you how to do three-point  u-turns."

She smiled and nodded.

Logan looked at her and noticed that  a strand of her  hair had escaped from the pony tail. Without thinking,  he stretched out his finger and tucked it behind her  ear.  Gestures that echoed that one sunny day from a  long time ago when he said goodbye and made a solemn promise to come back for her. The slight touch and  intimate memory gave them both a jolt of electricity they felt throughout their bodies.

Marie ran the tip of her tongue across her lips in  reflex.

At the sight of her rosy lips being caressed by her  tongue,  Logan lost all semblance of control. He  slowly bent down and kissed her fully on the lips.

Marie felt surprise and then an incredible warmth as  Logan pressed his lips against hers. On his part,  breathlessness took over.

Both pulled back at the same time and looked at each  other's eyes. No words were spoken but a thousand  questions could be seen as they gazed at one another.  What was happening?

Marie was the one who spoke first. "Does this feel  strange to you?"

"No, and that's the weirdest part of it.  It feels  right."

Marie nodded, never breaking her gaze from his. "I  know."

At her words, Logan cupped her delicate jaw with his  hands and bent forward to kiss her deeply. Feeling  sexier than she's ever experienced in her young life,  Marie pulled out her barette and let loose her  cascade of thick hair.

Logan immediately sank his fingers into her hair while intensifying his kiss. He gently ran his tongue  across her lips and they immediately opened. Sinking  his tongue into her mouth, their kiss turned into a  frantic tongue dance as their feelings and emotions  soared.

Pulling back, Logan closed her eyes and tried to catch  her breath. When she opened her eyes, all she saw was  Logan's rugged, handsome face looming over hers. They  were filled with desire and tenderness. She began to  lightly kiss his eyes, cheeks, nose and finally his  lips, as her hands fluttered on his strong  shirt-covered chest.

Groaning with desire, Logan grabbed Marie's hands and put them around his neck as he deepened their kiss. Putting his arms around her, he pulled her closer to  him.

When they finally broke the kiss, both knew there was  no more turning back.

Logan pulled Marie to her feet and carried her off to  the bed.

Letting her stand at the foot of the bed, Logan took a moment to just look at her. Her hair was loose and  soft around her shoulders, her lips was a deep red  from their kisses and her chest was heaving with  heavy breaths. At the sight, Logan felt his desire  intensify.

He tugged her tank top upwards as she raised her arms  and helped him pull it off her body. He took deep  breaths at the sight of the rosy perfection of her  breasts and the dogtags resting between them. Next,  he pulled her skirt down and Marie stepped out of it  as it pooled at her feet. She now stood only in her  virginal pink cotton panties in front of the sexiest  man she's ever seen.

"Help me undress, Marie."

She didn't hesitate to comply. She helped Logan  divest himself of his shirt and revealed his  magnificent chest. Marie immediately placed a soft  kiss on the muscled flesh. Logan took a sharp intake  of breath at the unexpected caress.

Marie's hands then went to unbutton his waistband and pulled down his zipper. She pushed it down as he  lifted his legs out of his pants. She didn't stop  there and even helped Logan remove his briefs,  leaving his manhood bare and sticking out for her hungry gaze.

Standing naked a mere few inches away from each other, Marie suddenly felt a moist heat pump between her  legs. It was overwhelming, all the feelings and  emotions coursing through her. She was caressing and  touching Logan in ways she had once thought were never  possible. "Touch me," she begged.

Logan swooped down to kiss her on the lips. Lost in  the sensations of his soft mouth, Marie vaguely felt  herself being pushed down on the bed. When they  pulled apart, both of them were on the bed with  Logan's naked heat pressing to her side. It was a  wonderful and heady feeling.

His hand went up to caress her face then traveled down to her neck then further down to cup a breast. His  thumb caressed the nipple as the rest of his fingers  massaged the creamy mound. Marie felt her breath stop  at the caress.  Then her senses overwhelmed her  completely as Logan bent down to lick the nipple of  the other breast. He suckled and laved the nipple as  she gasped and clutched his head.  The feel of his  coarse hair under her fingers was just as arousing.

He then switched his tongue ministrations to the other breast while he massaged the other. Marie's back was arching towards his mouth as she struggled with the
pleasure.

When he finished, Marie was flushed and breathless.  His hands then roamed down south and removed her  panties, assaulting his senses with the smell of her  arousal. Logan immediately delved his fingers down her  heated core which elicited a deep moan from Marie.

"You like that don't you?"

"Yes" was her moaning reply.

Wanting to intensify her pleasure, Logan placed  himself between her legs and started kissing her pubic  mound. Snaking his tongue out, he gave her vagina one long lick. Marie immediately gasped and clutched  his head. She could feel her legs opening up like a  flower as Logan continued to lick her up and down  while alternately sinking his tongue deep into her sopping hole. Marie felt nothing else but the heat  and waves of pleasure emanating from her core. Then with a firm lick at her clit, Marie finally went over  the edge. Clasping Logan's head tight and lifting  her hips, Marie climaxed and saw stars explode against  her eyelids.

Logan felt himself harden even more at the sight of a breathless Marie with her head rolling from side to  side. He pushed himself up and gave her a kiss on her  gasping lips.

"I wanna touch you too," Marie said in a breathy  voice.

Her hands lightly touched his penis head and then firmly clasped it around his shaft. Logan thought he  would explode at the feel of her small soft hands  around him. She started to slowly pump him and Logan  couldn't help but move his hips towards her hand.  Feeling that he was close to losing it, Logan pulled  away from Marie's hand and whispered, "I want to come  inside you."

Shifting slightly, Logan further spread her legs and  lifted her hips. "It's my first time," Marie  whispered.

"Don't worry," Logan assured her.

At the feel of the spongy head of his penis against  her, Marie immediately felt intense sensations and  opened her legs further.

He slowly pushed inside her until he felt her hymen  break. He saw her wince and gave her a light kiss.  Feeling her inner muscles finally adjust to his size,  Logan gave a full thrust and filled Marie deeply. She  had never felt so complete and filled in her entire  life. Wanting to feel more of Logan, she started  moving her hips against his. This encouraged Logan to  start his deep pumping motions.

Within a few seconds, Marie was rhythmically lifting  her hips to meet his thrusts. Logan had never felt more pleasure at the feel of Marie all around him. Her  deep inner warmth closely driving him over the edge. The feel of her heels digging at the back of his legs  only beckoned him to deepen his thrusts.

With one last final thrust, Marie screamed and felt herself explode. She felt as if she was spiraling  down some deep abyss where only pleasure existed.  Feeling her inner muscles clutching him tight, Logan finally gave in to his release and felt the most intense orgasm of his life. It was amazing. He felt  lost and so at home all at the same time.

Logan and Marie stared at each other's eyes, amazed  and surprised at what had just transpired. Kissing  her full cherry-red lips, Logan pulled himself out of  her, rolled over to his side, and gathered her into his arms. He pressed his face into her hair and  inhaled her sweet scent deeply.

"How do you feel?", he asked.

"Wonderful. Like it was coming home," was her soft  reply.

"I feel the same way."

After a few moments, she asked, "We've crossed over  haven't we?"

"I'd say in a big way darlin'. We've shifted gears."  He paused for a moment, then in a gruff voice, he  added,  "And it's about time"

Logan felt it deep in his bones. It was only then he realized that he's always cared intensely for Marie.  She was the first one he called whenever he arrived at  a new city, and the first one he'd meet up with  whenever he would come home. He'd always admired her  beauty and intelligence. It's been staring him right  in the eye, and under his nose. Perhaps her then  uncontrolled mutation had kept his eyes shrouded.  Acting like a mental barrier, his thoughts about her  never went on the sexual side. He'd been too blind to realize that their friendship had already blossomed  into something else.

The same thoughts were running through Marie's mind.  Wanting to ask Logan, she pulled her head back and  looked at him in the eye. All she saw were all her  thoughts and feelings being reflected back at her.  She had never felt more safe or cared for in her  entire life until then. Then a thought came to her.

"What would everyone else think about all this.?"

Logan smiled and told her, "I'm sure Chuck will be  happy with how intense our hand-to-hand combat will  be."

Laughing at his joke, Marie resumed her position in his chest and enjoyed the feel of his hands exploring her back.  It was comforting and sexual at the same  time. She could stay like this forever.

Logan, on his part, realized that he could enjoy  spending the rest of his life holding her just like that.