Lilly flopped over onto the floor, flipping her cards so that Veronica could see that, once again, Lilly would lose the hand.

"Lilly! In poker you kind of have to keep your cards to yourself. Come on, play this hand a little close to the vest."

But Lilly Kane wasn't the kind to downplay anything and Veronica knew it. Boys, booze, sensuality, she had them in spades and wanted the whole world to know. Like now, when she nibbled lightly on her bottom lip and twirled a lock of hair around her fingers, Lilly might as well be screaming "Take me now, right here on this carpet! Fall for me! Lose to me on purpose to win my heart!"

Incidentally, Lilly lay on Veronica's bedroom floor practicing seduction for no one as she learned to play poker for Logan. Lynn confirmed the night before that the so-called "First Annual Christmas Card Shark Night" was a go for the night of the Echolls' Christmas party. Veronica heard through the grapevine, otherwise known as Duncan, that Aaron would be out of town for the holidays, and Logan arranged this little diversion to avoid being shown off all night.

With no husband on her arm, Lynn usually looked to her son for an escort, and Logan didn't want to play the game of Hollywood Squares that was his parents' world.

Thus, Logan took it upon himself to throw the "most bitchin' party ever," and Lilly, who lacked poker skills altogether, had asked Veronica to teach her to play.

Veronica sighed and glanced over at Lilly, who picked up her cards and grinned like a maniac. "For a girl who can lie with a completely straight face on a whim to her parents you really have to work on your poker face."

"Oh, come on Veronica Mars! You know that I'll just wind up blowing on the dice for luck every time Logan snaps his fingers at me. He's been so possessive lately, maybe it's time to end it."

"There are no dice in poker, Lil."

"Whatever. So…" Lilly trailed off, looking around the room in search of a distraction from the cards before her, "Whatcha gonna wear to the party?"

"That's still a whole week away."

"A week," Lilly began, intoning a kung fu master voice, "is not that long. Much can happen in a week's time."

The two fell to the floor laughing, cards forgotten and strewn about.

Yet, a scant seven days later Veronica stood before her closet, wondering what on earth to wear.

Her cell phone buzzed, moving across her desk.Veronica jumped, cursing herself for leaving the stupid thing on vibrate.

"Lilly?"

"You still don't know, do you?"

"Why you call me with pointless and unclear questions? No, I don't know."

"Wear the black corduroy skirt and the red top. The shimmery one, the one that's all strappy in the back."

"What? You called me to find out what I was wearing tonight?"

"Looks are very important, Veronica Mars. You want everyone to watch you, and you don't want to give them a chance to think about the cards on the table."

"So now you're a poker expert?"

"Did you know they play it on ESPN? There was this one guy, sort of blonde-ish, he was tall and all rugged—"

"If they play sitting down, how'd you know he was tall? Don't answer that—let me get ready. I'll see you there."

Veronica and her parents pulled in to the Echolls' driveway just as the party began. When Veronica pushed open the door to the pool house, however, she saw that the 09er crowd had not yet arrived.

Probably still primping—and speaking of, where is our host? Re-applying gel to his hair?

Wandering further into the room, Veronica caught sight of the new card table. Its green felt was unscratched and it came with tiny racks to hold each player's chips. An unopened deck of cards lay on the rim, and Veronica idly wondered if she'd brought enough money.

"Gonna stack the cards, Mars?"

Veronica turned to find Logan pulling on a dark green sweater, which pushed the carefully messy hairdo he'd constructed down onto his head. Searching to find her voice, Veronica wondered how long he'd be able to surprise her with how delicious he looked.

"Oh, considering it. Trying to decide if a small crime would compromise my good-girl rep, you know."

"Weighing the consequences, considering the options, that sort of thing, I get it." Logan swept his eyes down Veronica's body, adding after a moment's consideration, "You look good."

She flushed, but Duncan's entrance saved her from having to reply.

Three hours later, the party was in full swing, and Logan, who had begun drinking upon Veronica's arrival, was more than a little tipsy. Lilly lost her money a few hands into play, and was now totally bankrupt. She and Logan apparently were off-again, as they pointedly ignored each other while sober, and Lilly became increasingly more flirtatious as the night wore on.

Logan's eyes followed Lilly around the room, as she moved from person to person; she stopped to giggle at something Dick said, causing Madison to pull her boyfriend away.

Veronica, meanwhile, now had a surplus of cash. The chip stack in front of her continued to grow, and she now could afford to buy Duncan the latest remake of next year's Madden NFL game without leaving herself in the red. Or feeling guilty when he gave her (another) piece of jewelry.

Gathering her chips and standing, she threw a look at Duncan that included a swift sidelong glance at his sister. He nodded imperceptibly and stood as well, taking Lilly's arm and whispering in her ear.

Logan stood as well, wobbling slightly as he moved to cash in his remaining chips. Despite his obvious lack of coherent thought for the last half-hour he'd played, Logan had done well all evening and managed to maintain a sizable pile of chips.

Duncan walked back to Veronica, pressing a chaste kiss to her forehead.

"I'm gonna take her home before my parents leave. If she's in bed they won't check to see if she's wasted or not--they'll just be thankful they don't have to hear her say anything more about poker now that the party's over." He glanced at Logan, who now clung to the edge of the bar for support. "You okay man?"

"I'll take care of him. My mom probably won't want to leave until your parents do." Veronica offered.

Duncan left, dragging Lilly after him, and Veronica turned to Logan, who watched her through heavy-lidded eyes. She tilted her head, deciding how best to get him to leave. Opting for the direct approach, she wrapped an arm around his waist and tugged at him until he moved with her toward the door. No one at the party noticed as their host stumbled away from the booze and gambling.

Logan didn't speak as she guided him toward his room. Numerous games of hide-and-seek, usually initiated to get Lilly and Logan alone in a closet, had taught her the layout of Logan's home, and the pair skillfully avoided contact with the partygoers entirely.

Stumbling on the stairs, Logan leaned heavier on Veronica, and she turned toward him to take more of his weight.

He smells like…Christmas, all evergreen and peppermint…and whiskey.

She shook her head, pushing away thoughts she'd given up long ago. Lilly and Logan, it was off-again, on-again, but she just couldn't play that game. A long-dead girlhood crush wasn't enough to ruin her friendship with Lilly—or her relationship with Duncan. Still, Logan's chest was warm against her side, and she could hear the steady rhythm of his heart, and—

"This is mine," Logan slurred, stopping Veronica before she walked right past his door.

Leaving him standing by his dresser for support, Veronica turned down the bed she was positive he hadn't made.

"Come on, let's get you to bed."

Turning, she saw he'd thrown his shirt into the corner of the room and was removing his jeans to reveal Grinch-covered boxers.

"Logan! I'm still in the room!"

"It's not like you haven't seen me in swim trunks. Practically the same thing." He swayed slightly, and Veronica instinctively put out a hand to steady him.

"Uhh-oh, touched my bare chest, Duncan'll probably kill you." He paused, gazing at her in a drunken stupor. "And me, for thinking about you."

Confused, Veronica removed her hand from his side. Logan stumbled to the bed, and she drew the covers up to his neck, tucking them in around him as if he were a small child.

"So pretty, always prettier than Lilly. The prettiest flower prettier than the flower," Logan intoned, sing-song, as sleep and alcohol clouded his brain.

Veronica sat down on the bed next to him, and he sat up.

"You're supposed to be going to sleep," she chided.

Veronica bent toward him to push him back down onto his pillow, and found his hands framing her face very gently.

I should pull away now.

But then his mouth met hers briefly and she was gone. All thought suspended as Logan teased her lips with chaste kisses, putting his arms around her and pulling her forward onto his lap. Unconsciously, Veronica wrapped her arms around his neck, leaning into his kisses. His tongue probed at the seam of her lips and she opened her mouth to his sweet flavor, so much like the Christmas smell she couldn't resist.

And suddenly she could resist. Veronica pulled back, away from him so suddenly, she fell to the floor. Scrambling backwards she ran out of the room, leaving Logan sitting alone in his bed.

Veronica half-ran to the main dining room, eyes frantically searching out her parents. Glancing surreptitiously behind her, she breathed out a sigh of relief, a prayer on her lips—Logan hadn't followed. She found her father, who cajoled Lianne into making her goodbyes, and the Mars family took their leave.