Rayne

"Ah Mr. Rayne and Mr. Javonnie. It has been ages since you have gifted us here at Xavier & Xavier's with your presence. What can I help you two gentlemen with today?"

Both Rayne and Javonnie were well acquainted with Freidman and knew that whatever they required would be fulfilled in the most efficient and timely manner possible by this exuberant tailor.

"Freidman, we have only arrived in London late last night, and find we are to attend a ball this evening. As you are aware, I've been traveling abroad in much warmer climates and I'm sadly lacking in the appropriate evening apparel as is my friend here. It most important that Mr. Sumner looks especially dashing this evening. So, do you think you can help us out of this spot we're in?"

Freidman knowing full well that he would be handsomely rewarded for pulling off such a feat was already mentally ticking off the suits in the gentlemen's size range he had available for alteration. "Of course it will be difficult, but as usual, if it can be done, I can do it!" Freidman said with his usually enthusiasm. Javonnie had stood listening to the entire exchange between the two men with a look on his face that clearly let Rayne know he knew he was up to something. As Freidman scurried off to pull together two evening ensembles he and Rayne sat in the private viewing room sipping coffee.

"Okay, what are you up to? 'Mr. Sumners must look especially dashing this evening'? Don't even try to tell me you're not up to something."

"Oh, I just thought by now you would have come to your senses and realized that you're about to let a perfectly good woman get married to a man that hasn't a clue how to be a man. Now, you tell me could you live with yourself if you allowed that to happen?" Having said that, Rayne sat back to see what Javonnie would say.

He looked incredulously at Rayne before asking "Just what do you expect me to do? I mean this ball is to announce her engagement. Don't you think it's a little late for me to do anything about it now? Don't you think I haven't thought of every conceivable scheme that I could come up with to stop this? But nothing I come up with is believable." As Javonnie ranted on and on Rayne wondered what Javonnie would say if he could hear himself. Yep, the guy had it bad. Rayne, feeling badly for his friend, wanted to put him out of his misery so he simply said, "Abduct her."

Javonnie stopped in mid-sentence and said "What?"

"Simple, abduct Veronica."

"Oh yeah right, like that's gonna work." But Rayne could see he was giving the suggestion serious thought. "Just how do you propose I accomplish this abduction?"

Rayne hadn't thought that far in advance, so he was silent for a few moments before suggesting, "Aren't you familiar with the Mulholland's gardens and house?"

"Well of course. I've been there dozens of times."

"Well then, I suggest you attempt to get her alone and try to first talk some sense into her. Tell her you love her. If she chooses not to believe you and you feel like it's gonna take you longer to convince her than time permits let me know and I will manage to get her into the garden near the back gate. We will have the coach waiting there and we can whisk her away before she or anyone else is any the wiser" Rayne finished with a wide smile amazing even himself with this spur of the moment plan.

Javonnie just stared at him like he had taken leave of his senses. "You really expect me to believe this harebrained plan of yours is actually going to work?" Javonnie rolled his eyes heavenward and leaned back in the chair. But Rayne could see the wheels in Javonnie's mind turning and knew before the night was out, his "harebrained" scheme would most likely be a reality.

Freidman returned with a very elegant charcoal gray evening suite with a pearl gray silk shirt and matching cravat as well as a jet black suite with a white shirt and emerald cravat for the two gentlemen to look at. "I suggest that Mr. Sumners wear that black ensemble as he would look most dashing with his golden skin, Adonis-blonde hair and emerald green eyes. Perhaps a diamond cravat pin would be the perfect touch to compliment the outfit? While this elegant charcoal suite will be the perfect foil for your dark good looks Mr. Quinhurst" Freidman suggest with his usual expert opinion. Both Rayne and Javonnie agreed with the choices and moved into the dressing rooms to try the apparel on so that Freidman could see to any necessary alterations.

Rayne emerged first and Freidman began making the necessary adjustments assuring Rayne it could be accomplished within a few hours and delivered to the townhouse in plenty of time for the evenings festivities. Javonnie emerged looking quite handsome in the elegant black suite, with the cravat making his eyes seem even greener than normal.

"By jove Freidman, I believe you have succeeded in making my mangy friend here as handsome and dashing as possible" Rayne joked with a jovial grin at Javonnie who was preening in front of the large mirror. "Careful Javonnie, you are starting to remind me of a certain popinjay of our mutual acquaintance" Rayne said barely able to contain his laughter at the dark scowl he received for his wit.

"I could never be like dear Stevie even if I tried" Javonnie snorted, imitating the mincing steps of the referred to dandy and looking quite the fool for his efforts. He soon had Rayne howling with laughter at his antics, that is until Freidman managed to poke Rayne with the straight pin as he was attempting to pin the back seam of the trousers he wore.

"Hey Freidman, watch where you're poking that damnable pin!" Rayne shouted at the now nervous tailor who was desperately trying to apologize.

"Oh yeah right, make him nervous before he gets a hold of me, why don't you Rayne" Javonnie said with mock concern. "Guess I'll feel like a pin cushion by the time he's through with me from the way his hands are shaking. Now, Freidman, pay no attention to my friend here, he's suffering from a bad case of rejection from a certain lady of the feline persuasion." Javonnie received a glowering look from Rayne for his trouble and should have known it would be wise to let the subject drop, but this was Javonnie after all! "Yes siree, I don't believe I've ever seen his Dukeship here receive quite a set-down like that before." He leaned closer to Freidman and said in a conspiratorial whisper, "You know, the ladies always prostrate themselves at his feet, but not this lady. She flat out refused his advances without batting an eyelash. I fear the Duke here was quite undone by the lady's rebuff. You know, not knowing how to handle a refusal as it's never happened before."

"Javonnie, I believe that's enough, unless of course you would like to know what if feels like to have me really take my frustration out on you?" Rayne said with deadly quiet and a furious look on his handsome face. Freidman looked as if he was a mouse caught between two hungry cats and the look cause both Rayne and Javonnie to burst out in laughter. Freidman managed to get through the rest of the fitting and breathed a sigh of relief as the two gentlemen walked out the front doors of the establishment to the street. These two particular gentlemen could be very volatile but they always made it worth his time he thought as he looked down at the handsome tip he had received. The tip alone was more than he normally made in a month, so he shrugged his shoulders at the nervous tension their visits always brought him.

True to his word, Freidman had the suits delivered to the townhouse in plenty of time for Javonnie and Rayne to dress for the ball. Rayne had been dressed and sitting in the study for almost an hour before Javonnie put in an appearance.

"Damn Javonnie, you take longer to dress than most women. Why, I bet ole Stevie boy doesn't even take as long as you do to dress" Rayne just couldn't refrain from taking that little jab at Javonnie.

"Yeah, that may be so, but then Stevie doesn't stand a chance when I walk in the room either!"

"My, my, we are feeling confident tonight aren't we?"

"Have you spoken to your coachman?"

"My coachman will be in front of the estate where he should be. I have made arrangements with Scotty to be waiting in the back alley with the new landau I bought. Just incase your charm and good looks aren't enough to convince Veronica to call off this engagement."

Javonnie at least had the decency to look chagrined as he spoke, "I know I owe you for this one Rayne. I should have taken care of that little detail by proposing before I left to return to Tahiti. At least then she would have know what my intentions were. I just can't believe she wouldn't wait for me." Then as if it just dawned on him he looked over at Rayne with a stricken look.

Rayne seeing the very real fear mixed with denial on Javonnie's face cautiously asked "What?"

Javonnie cleared his throat and asked somewhat shakily, "You don't suppose she conceived that one time do you?"

"Good Lord Javonnie, you mean to stand there and tell me you didn't have the wherewithal to take the precaution to withdraw before…no, never mind, I can see you didn't. How could you let this happen? I mean it's not like this was the first woman you were ever intimate with. I happen to know for a fact there have been numerous women and times. Would you care to explain yourself?" Rayne exploded.

"Rayne, I know you're not going to believe this, but it was like it was the first time. I hate to admit this, but…I totally lost control of the situation and before I knew it we were both there and I spent myself before it occurred to me to pull out." Javonnie looked extremely uncomfortable with his admission and tugged at his perfectly tied cravat as if he were suddenly suffocating.

Rayne had never seen his eloquent friend so flustered and he had rarely seen him blush, but he stood before him now with his face a dull red and looking totally miserable with the situation. "Javonnie, I have to ask you before this gets totally out of hand. Do you love Veronica? Now hear me out. Are you in love with her, because once you take her from the ball by force, there will be no turning back. Her reputation would be totally ruined and you will have to marry her once the deed is done. Do you understand all of the consequences of your actions if you do this?"

Javonnie still looking miserable replied dismally, "All I know is that ever since you told me of this damned engagement this morning, I feel like someone punched me in my gut and the pain just won't go away. Every time I imagine that little prissy Stevie or any man putting their hands on her I am filled with a rage I can't control. And when I remember the night I spent in her arms, not making love to her, but making love with her I become so aroused I almost spend myself! God, that's embarrassing to admit. What's wrong with me? I've never felt this way about a woman before?"

Poor Javonnie, he had fallen and fallen hard, and he didn't even know it. "I believe you've just answered all my questions. Let's go. We've got a ball to attend and a engagement to stop."

As the two devilishly handsome men walked into the ballroom there was a twitter among all the mama's with daughters of a marriageable age as well as the married women looking for a discreet lover.

"Well, the wolves are circling" Javonnie muttered and Rayne grimly agreed.

"I suggest you find Veronica, isolate her as quickly as possible and try and talk some sense into her. Oh, and it wouldn't hurt to let her know how you feel about her" Rayne suggested. With a nod, Javonnie searched the faces as they swirled past him on the dance floor. Finally he caught a glimpse of her talking with another couple and there was that twit Stevie hanging on her every word wearing a horrid puce suite that made him look like an overgrown elf. With a surge of confidence Javonnie knew at least his physic and handsome visage were a plus in his favor. He already knew that the beautiful and serene Veronica was a tigress in bed, and he knew little Stevie wouldn't know what to do with that side of Veronica. But he sure did he thought with a chuckle.

He approached Veronica with the stealth of a lion stalking its prey. When he stood directly in front of her he said, "Good evening Miss Mulholland, how very beautiful you look tonight."

Veronica had not noticed him as he had approached, in fact she had no idea he had returned from Tahiti. Her breath caught in her throat and the room tilted dizzily for a few seconds as she drank in the sight of him. Then her anger at his cavalier attitude towards their relationship caught up to her and she gave him a frosty greeting, "Why Mr. Sumner, I can hardly believe my eyes. I would have thought you were still off on one of your high sea adventures. And instead here you stand in my humble ballroom. You must be terrible bored with all of us common, uninteresting, everyday people."

The couples around them picked up the undercurrent of the conversation and had almost gasped at the barely veiled hostility with which Veronica greeted the gorgeous man who stood staring at her. Javonnie knew she was furious with him and that she had that anger on a very short leash, so he decided to push the issue just a little. Before he spoke again he let his eyes rove over her freely from top of her head to the tip of her dainty satin slipper with a look that clearly told everyone there he was staking his claim on her. Veronica shivered because that look was. so bold it felt as if Javonnie had actually run his hands over her entire body. She knew first hand how it felt to have Javonnie's hands on her body, that thought brought another round of shivers as well as arousal to her. She wanted to stomp her foot in frustration that he could make her feel so much with just a glance. How dare he come here after leaving her alone for so long without even the promise that he would come back or a declaration of his feelings?

The musicians began to play a waltz and Javonnie reached for her hand, even before he bothered to ask her for a dance. "May I have this dance, Veronica?" he asked softly.

Stevie, feeling way out of his element said in his wheedling voice, "Miss Mulholland, you said I could have this dance."

Javonnie kept Veronica's hand firmly in his as he turned and fairly snarled down into the little mans face, "She's changed her mind, twit, so go ask one of the wall flowers to dance." Stevie face turned the same shade of pink as his suite as he stood there looking like the idiot he was.

Veronica felt like laughing out loud at his expression, but anger at Javonnie held that emotion in check. "He may just challenge you to a dual over this obvious insult Mr. Sumners" she informed Javonnie with a frown on her beautiful face.

"One can certainly hope, love" Javonnie responded dryly. Javonnie used all of his charm as he cajoled "Please Roni, smile at me and tell me you forgive me."

"Forgive you? Why, whatever would I have to forgive you for? And please don't use that disgustingly male version of my name, you may address me as Miss Mulholland" she replied icily.

"Now Roni, you liked it when I called you that when I was last here. Remember when we were.."

"I remember when you were last here! I'm not a dottering old fool that can't remember so much as my own name. I also remember you sailing out of the harbor and not receiving one letter from you in all the months you've been gone, you inconsiderate, pompous, overbearing, egotistical,……..Oooooh man!" Veronica could have bitten off her tongue for letting all of that slip out. She had at least wanted to salvage her pride by letting Javonnie believe that he meant nothing to her. So much for that idea! Her eyes were swimming in tears and she absolutely refused to stand here on the ballroom floor in front of all these guests and him and cry. She twisted out of Javonnie's arms and raced off the dance floor. Rayne who had thought things were going pretty well shook his head. Damn, couldn't Javonnie ever do anything the easy way? He decided to work his way around the dance floor and out into the garden to apprise Scotty that it would seem that he would be having a somewhat reluctant passenger before the night was over.

Having notified Scotty and the two men inside the carriage of the upcoming chain of events Rayne was making his way back through the gardens when he heard Javonnie pleading his case to Veronica. He faded into the shadows to await the outcome of Javonnie's second attempt to straighten out this mess.

Javonnie began to speak to Veronica in that voice that could charm the devil right into giving up hell. "Veronica, darling, you're being silly. Of course I know you're angry but did you really think I wasn't going to come back?"

Rayne rolled his eyes heavenward. Didn't Javonnie know women hated to be told they were silly? He wanted to snatch Javonnie away from Veronica and tell him he better get down on his knees and start begging for her forgiveness. Because that was about the only thing that was going to save him at this point in the game.

"Silly am I? Well, it would seem to me that you're the silly one. Did you really expect me to sit here and wait forever, darling?" That the word "darling" was dripping with sarcasm should have warned Javonnie he was on thin ice. But no, he just plunged ahead still believing she was ready to forgive and forget.

"Sweetheart, I know I should have made myself clearer before I left, but, I did think after what we shared that you understood my intentions" Javonnie explained still in his most charming tone of voice as he reached for Veronica.

Veronica sidestepped his embrace and turned to face him with murder in her eyes, "Oh "sweetheart" your "intentions" were perfectly clear." This said in a voice that was raising about one octave with each word. "Your "intentions" were to seduce me, compromise me and then leave me to face the music alone, pining for your return. Well guess again my "darling sweetheart". I won't wait around being made a fool of by you any longer." Having finished her speech Veronica stood glaring at Javonnie with tears streaming down her face.

Javonnie at last caught on to the fact that he was going to have to pull all the stops out to convince her of his sincerity and he was begin to doubt that even then she might not be swayed to his path. He managed to capture her hands in his and he looked into her eyes as he said softly, "Veronica, I know I've been an absolute cad. I didn't intentionally set out to seduce you or compromise you. Or fall in love with you." This last was said barely over a whisper and Veronica (as well as Rayne) wasn't sure they had heard Javonnie correctly.

"What did you just say?" Veronica asked him, a look of hopeful incredulation on her face.

"It's true you know, I guess it just took me a while to identify exactly what these feeling were. But I do love you Veronica. I can't stand the thought of another man touching you, making love to you or giving you babies. And as for that little popinjay Stevie, he isn't man enough to remove your slipper, much less be a real husband to you."

At the mention of Stevie, whom Veronica had forgotten all about with Javonnie's startling declaration her present situation was brought home to her. She had the overwhelming urge to stomp her foot yet again. (A terribly unladylike habit of hers that the aunts continuously admonished her about.) After all, this was a ball to announce her engagement to the little twit. Ugh, now Javonnie had her admitting that she could hardly stand the sight of Stevie. It was hardly fair to Stevie as she had her god-like Adonis Javonnie to compare him to. Of course Stevie couldn't compete with Javonnie, she didn't know many men who could, except for possible the Duke of Darkness. But he was much too formidable for her taste.