Chapter 25
AN: Ugh, do you know how hard it is to completely revamp a chapter when you've already written the following one? It's not just making sure you don't go off on a line that isn't covered later, or even missing a line that is but it's also a matter of making sure this new revamp is what you want because there is no going back. That said, I have actually managed to do it. I'm happier now with the way things are going and I still get to have a few of my 'snide' comments in here that I was loathe to take out. Not snide as in me the author, but one of the characters... hehe... Maybe in the future I'll give you a broken version of what this chapter was originally going to be and let you decide. :) On retrospect one of the comments have been moved to the next chapter.
Sunday dawned bright and early and Serena had to get out of bed. She promised she'd help out with the set up of all the decorations and tables and whatnot. She made herself a huge pot of coffee and managed to drink two cups before Andrew came out looking sleepy. "Rough night?"
"I didn't get in until late." He agreed. "Lita's a task stickler. I should never volunteer a new aspect of myself to anyone, I'll never be able to sleep otherwise." He filled up his own cup. "How'd you sleep?"
"Like a baby." She had too, it was marvelous.
"I wish I had your ability to shut off my mind."
"I don't have that ability." She argued. "I just didn't have anything pressing on it at the time." She eyed him curiously from across the counter-top. "What was so daunting for you to set aside?"
"Nothing much and that was the problem, I suspect. I'm so happy with my life here that I'm not thinking of what I need to do next, but more worrying about where I go from here."
"Nowhere. Settle down, have a family, be content with your life. Maybe one day open up your own resort if you want to."
"And you, would you be happy with that kind of life?"
"Not a chance." She was being honest and he nodded. "But you knew that. I hope I didn't disappoint you."
"No, just realizing that there are reasons why things don't work right when you want them to and work perfectly when you weren't expecting it at all." Andrew lifted his sleepy greens to her. "Thanks though for supporting me even when it drags you away from your own aspirations."
"I'd do just about anything for you." Serena shrugged. "Except have your children. I'd raise your children but don't expect me to have them."
Andrew laughed. "Oh I don't think either of those things are in the cards. Not now or in the near future." They had to get moving and get dressed because they had things to do so Serena couldn't accurately respond to that one. She threw on something comfortable, she'd come back before the party started and get glamorous.
Setup didn't take as long as they had thought with all the hands helping but it did take a few hours still and they had to go back and make sure everything was finished and done right.
She couldn't help but be a little disappointed that Darien hadn't come around like he said he would. She didn't like going for such a long time without seeing him. Sure she'd see him at the party tonight and all day tomorrow but they wouldn't be alone during any of it. They would have to act like nothing happened between them.
It was with these thoughts that Serena changed into her dress for the night. It was a formal party and so she dressed appropriately. The color was gorgeous and set off her eyes beautifully. It was one of her favorite dresses for that alone, the fit and the material just made it top tier for her. It hugged all the right curves and hid any she might not have wanted pronounced. In this case it gave her a bit more of a defined waist. She had flutter sleeves and so she brought with her a wrap in case she got cold.
Andrew was in the kitchen, there was a full length mirror on the opposite wall and he was fixing any last detail that might have needed it while he waited for her arrival. He looked up when she shut the door behind her and she watched as a slow smile unfurled as he took her all in. "My, you are quite something. I am the luckiest man in the world to have you on my arm tonight."
"Dear Andrew, don't you realize it is I whose bringing you?" She held out her arm but it wasn't in the way a gentleman would, but a poor imitation because it was obvious that she'd never had to do it before.
Andrew chuckled as he took her hand and rested in the crook of his arm. "I'd be honored if you'd let me bring you."
Serena sighed dramatically. "I suppose... Very well, you may be my escort." But she couldn't keep it up and her lips twitched upwards. There was a twinkling in Andrew's eyes as well.
When they arrived at the party there were a number of guests that had shown up already. Several were from town and not very many were from the hotel yet. But they were trickling in slowly, afraid of being too early. Though by now that fear should be abated somewhat.
The evening passed fairly uneventfully, she got to meet a lot of new people and was surprised that there was anyone left in this town she hadn't met yet. Darien arrived, but though she saw him at a distance, he didn't even look towards her or acknowledge her at all. He was too busy greeting other people and making his rounds. She didn't take the initiative and go towards him either, she just kept doing what she was doing and pretending it didn't bother her in the slightest.
Andrew surprisingly was at her side most of the night. He stayed and chatted with everyone Serena chatted with and had amusing anecdotes. There was a witty banter going between them at one time with jokes their audience didn't understand, but smiled politely at anyways. When the latest couple moved away to greet people they knew, Darien was finally upon them. "Ah, Serena and Andrew, how nice to see both of you again."
"We see each other practically every day." Andrew shook Darien's hand. "But yeah, I'll have to say the same thing."
Darien wrapped Serena in his arms and for a moment she had a panic attack that he was going to do more than hug her but then he was releasing her, though not completely. With one hand on the small of her back he turned and introduced them to another couple that he knew growing up. His hand lingered there and she could feel the heat of his hand through the thin material of her dress. But he was a perfect gentleman the whole time, he could have gotten away with a small stroke or other intimate gestures, but he didn't. He even removed his hand moments later as if realizing he had forgotten it there.
He was completely neutral with her, he was not angry as he had been for months and he was not the loving man she had a getaway weekend with. He was just... a perfect host in his once home.
"Hey Serena, you'll remember this guy-" Serena's head turned at Andrew's words, wondering who she could have known and just met the once, but with relief she noticed that Rab wasn't here, he didn't come back for the holiday.
What was wrong with her? She wasn't this nervous coming home and she was sure it had been plastered on her face all weekend. Maybe it was because he hadn't been around to reassure her that what they had was right. Maybe it was because for the first time he was there with Andrew in the same room. Maybe it was because she's a psychopath and needed to relax a bit more. Whatever it was, she wished she could go back to that state of calm she had only this morning. It was sort of ironic that when Dairen was so calm she was twitching out beneath her skin. Usually she had to at least try to remain calm in the face of his anger.
But right now today, there was nothing.
Serena couldn't dwell on that though, she plastered a smile onto her face, recalling the acting skills that had grown a little rusty and greeted everyone she met as if they were the most important being in the planet. She could totally rock a tiara and be a princess with that skill. With every step away from Darien though she felt her heels dragging and it was just a bit harder to maintain her energy. This was wrong, Darien should have been the one to have his arm wrapped around her waist, not Andrew, no matter how much she loved him.
She had to constantly stop herself from letting her eyes skate over the heads of the people nearest her and seek out that man. He was somehow easy in this crowd, he was slightly taller and slightly darker than the rest of them. Or maybe it was because she just had a homing beacon on him. She instinctively knew where he was.
Which is why it was no surprise an hour before the count down that she found herself in the hallway talking with Mona and listening to another conversation just inside the doors. The conversation with Mona was interesting when she came back down and focused on putting words together instead of just letting them drift off into the air. The conversation inside was keeping Serena sane even if it wasn't particularly interesting. It was always easier to be amused by people when you didn't know them or weren't a part of it, though her conversations were probably exactly the same.
Her eyes slithered passed Darien when she realized she was looking at him again and not paying attention to Mona. Then her attention was arrested and her eyes flicked back to him in shock. Darien was hugging a woman she'd never seen before. It was a warm and friendly hug, warmer and friendlier than when he hugged her earlier. It wasn't the hug that had caught her attention though, it was the fact that the first thing she'd seen was a kiss shared between the two of them, a short one of greeting on the lips. She'd never seen Darien kiss another female except with Mina surprised one on him. He hadn't pulled away, instead he kept his arms around her and was talking to her like she was the center of his world.
Jealousy flashed bright and hot in Serena's body as she noticed the interaction, her vision blurring out everything else around the two of them. She could barely manage a polite goodbye as she made her way towards them, not knowing her feet were taking her there until she was practically upon them. In retrospect Mona could have probably told her all she needed to know if she'd come down long enough to explain or if Serena even asked.
At the very last minute she'd managed to skid to a halt before she acted without thinking and pounced on this woman. Or have a terrible row with Darien in front of everyone and completely blow her cover out of the water. She didn't know what was wrong with her, she'd never been jealous for a moment in her life in the past. She'd either had no reason to be or had reasoned it out rationally. This was not a rational Serena that faltered in her step across the ballroom and didn't notice that someone ran into her because of her slip-up.
All Serena could focus on was that only family was allowed to touch Darien. Only family. And this was definitely not family, she was not remotely related. Her strawberry blond head with green eyes was the furthest thing removed from Darien's genealogy that was so strongly shown in his slightly darker skin and laughing lips as he responded to something this blond said.
Fire burned in her eyes as she made her way closer, intent on a confrontation that was sly and something that this woman would understand clearly without raising the alarm on her. She was angry that Darien was being so friendly with this woman, he was her man and nobody else was supposed to touch him or be that close.
Before she could reach him though a hand wrapped around her wrist pulling her to a halt. "Oh there you are!" Hadley was grinning from ear to ear as she pulled Serena into a hug and Serena had never seen the woman so cleaned up before. She looked nice in her black slacks and pressed white top, even if she might have looked like wait-staff. The only thing saving her from being confused was the blue earrings and necklace. She'd even styled her short sandy hair. "Have you seen Mona?"
"Yeah, I just left her in the hallway." Serena responded on autopilot, she wanted out of this conversation and to go over towards where Darien was standing too close to that green-eyed witch. She wasn't even aware that she'd responded, her thoughts were still too wrapped up in the man who wanted nothing to do with her tonight.
"Oh." Hadley paused then shrugged. "I've got the truck back, it's in the parking lot. It was just the tire." Serena nodded at that knowledge. "You know... Mona and I were talking-"
Serena pulled her attention back painfully, she didn't want to be rude and tried to concentrate on what Hadley was saying. "What about?"
She just missed seeing that green-eyed woman slip her hand into another man's. "Well we were thinking about having you and Andrew over for a dinner one of the nights this coming month."
Serena's eyes sparkled as she warmed to the conversation. "That sounds like a lovely idea Hadley, I'm in. I'm sure Andrew will be too. We should make a plan. When were you thinking?"
"The twentieth?" Hadley suggested and Serena bobbed her head. "Sounds perfect. Will it be at your place or Mona's?"
Hadley's eyes slid side to side before she answered. "We're living together now. I moved in with her about a week ago."
"That's wonderful!" Serena tried to keep her enthusiasm down so as not to be heard. Most of the people from town she met were pleasant but they could be very opinionated too and she was aware that Hadley was sensitive of it getting around though it'd get out sooner or later, especially now with them living in the same house without needing to.
"Hotaru will benefit from having two parent figures." Hadley admitted as if that was the only reason but Serena knew better and Hadley's eyes danced because she knew it too. Serena loved these conversations that had so much being said in what wasn't said. Serena nodded her agreement to their plans. She was happy for them. Hadley's eyes flickered over her head and she chuckled. "Seems Darien's long lost love is back in town. I hadn't been aware she was back. Usually she stops in for a special visit when she's here."
Serena pretended she was turning and looking for the first time though her stomach clenched against the idea of seeing the two happy in each other's arms again and a faint frown crossed her lips when she saw the woman wrapped in another man's arms as they faced Darien and talked to him. "Lost love?"
Hadley chuckled seeing the look on Serena's face that she couldn't hide. "Yeah, that's the only woman that I'm aware of that Darien's ever loved who didn't return his feelings in the slightest. Oh but they had dated for awhile, I forgot about that."
Color was wretched from her features and Hadley looked at Serena in concern. "Oh... was he terribly hurt when they broke up?"
"At the time? Sure." Hadley nodded and put a reassuring hand on Serena's arm. "Raye and Amy will gush on and on about her, how she's of the sweetest, most even tempered women they have ever known and that much is true. They'd probably also say she would have been perfect for him, but there I disagree. He needs someone who challenges him and makes him fight for what he wants, makes him realize not everything is always going to be his way. She was smart enough to get out and away from him before he could bowl her over and control her life like everything else he touched."
Raye found them then and stopped next to them also looking over across the people and seeing her brother and his ex. She laughed. "Telling stories again Hadley? They never actually dated. She got out long before that. Sure there was a flirtation going on before our parents died but it didn't go anywhere after that. Darien became obsessed with making things right for us and secure for the future. Mia married and moved to Portland after graduating and she comes around rarely. She got here before Christmas but declined to come to our party at that point, preferring a low-key family affair." Raye shook her head. "Darien looks miserable, probably regretting not pursuing her. He's talked about her often enough over the years and wondering what her life was like now."
"She's married now." Hadley added. "And by the looks of it happily, though I don't recall meeting the husband on the rare visits home."
"Got kids too, met them once or twice but no, never met the husband either."
Serena's stomach sunk to her feet, Darien had never pursued a woman who was married before and now that he'd broken that streak with Serena, would he allow his advances towards Mia, the woman he'd loved for years? But she seemed happily married, but that didn't mean she was off limits. Serena had seen happily married too if it hadn't been for her actions before arriving to town. What would this mean for them now that he'd seen the woman again after years of putting her on a higher and higher pedestal?
If that greeting was anything to go by, Serena's relationship with that man was doomed. Now that she'd had two women grounding her to her spot, she was forced to stay and reflect over the other woman. She was a pretty little thing, she had striking coloring and features and she did look so happy with her husband.
Her thoughts were calming at this point. Ok, so it was the holidays and so Darien had a crush on her at one point, people got over crushes, didn't they? Besides they'd both dated other people, she couldn't be jealous of anything as harmless as that. Raye had even clarified that they had never really gotten started so there wasn't anything that they could reminisce on and regret ending.
She probably wouldn't be feeling so off if he had greeted her with a modicum of what he'd done with this stranger. Serena felt like shemeant nothing to him, that they were the ones who had no history, even this very recent history. She was feeling very vulnerable and open right now as he treated her like she was part of the decorations.
How could Darien be so cruel? Was this whole thing a way to get back at her? Did he actually have an ulterior motive behind taking her away? Had Darien brought her out of dodge to get her to admit to her feelings so that on New Years Eve in front of everyone else he could crush her under his heel? She would have never thought it, but he had openly dismissed her as if he didn't even know she existed. The plan being to get her to admit to her feelings, make her open and vulnerable and then turn tables on her in a public setting like she had done to him, however unwittingly? If that was his plan, it was working. It was cruel, oh so very cruel. Serena felt her stomach drop and it rolled and twisted. It was having a dance of its very own.
She felt like crying and her bottom lip quivered in the knowledge. Sleeping with her must have just been an extra bonus, the real plot was getting her to trust him and these feelings. He couldn't out her, not anymore, well maybe he could if he wanted to, but this was a sly revenge. This was cold and devious, this was treating her like dirt and making sure she stayed around for the victory lap. Once he knew he still had her on the hook after they returned, he let everything else go into action. That's all Friday had been between them.
"I'd like to meet her husband." Hadley said and Serena looked back at her startled not realizing that the two women were still talking about the trio over there, not until they started moving in that direction and Hadley prodding her along with them. Serena looked one last time at escape dwindling before her eyes as she dutifully joined them with no reason to deny the introduction.
Raye and Hadley gave the other blond long hugs and there was a bit of gushing before Mia introduced her husband. "My kids will be here for the festivities tomorrow but you dark horse, you're well on your way to becoming a mother too, so you'll know all about this soon enough!" Mia's hand reached out and cupped Rei's belly and she grinned when she felt a kick in response.
It was kind of like Serena wasn't there as all of them caught up on missed information and old times. She was just about to slip quietly back into the crowd when Darien's hand came out and rested on her elbow, pulling her forward once more and hating him for denying her escape. But he tethered her to this world and she realized with a start that he wasn't ignoring her and was bringing attention to her now too.
Raye slid her eyes to Serena apparently realizing that she was still there and having forgotten in her rush to talk to the girl she'd thought was perfect for her brother but was unfortunately now off the market. "I apologize everyone for not introducing you, this is Serena, our newest employee and a great addition."
"Serena?" Mia asked with surprise as her eyes ran over Serena. "You don't strike me as a teacher."
"I'm not." Serena responded baffled.
Darien laughed. "She's not by trade." He corrected for her. "She's only been filling in time with the students around here by offering her knowledge when it fits in around her other job." His eyes lowered down to hers and she could feel their warmth, her lips parted a little but he covered the silence quickly. "We were just talking about you."
"I'm sure you were." She hoped it didn't sound catty but she very much doubted that he'd waste his precious moments with his once paramour with talking about her. He heard it though when everyone else continued on as if she hadn't said it and his eyes were perplexed.
"Actually we were. I'm sorry for the confusion, I just that you came here as a dance teacher. My mother has been going on and on about all the things I've been missing in my stubborn refusal to return home for more than a week a year. There's just too many other adventures to be had with our free time." Her eyes smiled up at her husband and Serena wondered how many kids they had if they could still look at each other like that. Suddenly all her new fears seemed old and dissolved right out of her.
Mia wasn't going to leave her husband for Darien and with his hand on her elbow still, she reckoned if he even bothered making a play for the other blond. He wouldn't. Not with Serena in his life now. She felt sorry for even being jealous for a moment and for taking it out on anyone.
"What kind of things?" Hadley asked though she was around for most of them, she might not have realized how great they were.
"Mother positively raved about that dance you had put on with the children after Christmas. She was hoping for a second showing in the days following but you had left. I was foolish enough not to attend, or so she says. My children enjoyed it too but I enjoyed the alone time spent with my husband." She smiled up at him. "Tonight is another night of breaking away, if you know what I mean? I hear you are married as well?"
"She is." Raye agreed for her. "We were asking for a sequel to the last performance as well, but she's thinking about it. Maybe if you stick around your children might be interested in it, or even a few lessons if that weren't possible."
Serena about told Raye no but caught her tongue in time. There was no reason to stop Mia's children from coming to a lesson or anything else. The children shouldn't be punished for their parent and especially for Serena's dislike of her. She really didn't see any of the attributes that Hadley and Raye had laid out for her. Mia just seemed snobby without a reason to be. Instead as they talked above her, making plans and changing them she was trying to free her arm from Darien's hand. It was odd for him to touch her for so long, especially in public like this. His fingers stiffened enough to inform her that wasn't his ideal action and that he wouldn't let her go until he was good and ready to. If that was an allegory for their relationship, Serena pushed it out of her mind as a possibility soon after it entered. That charge could be laid at both their feet.
"Well..." Mia drew out as she glanced unsure at Serena. "Having not seen it for myself I can't be sure if I want to potentially derail their training for a mini-lesson during vacation. While I dislike how out of shape they can be by the time they get back, I'd rather them not learn something incorrectly, or at least opposed to the way their teachers would like it." She gave a tight smile towards Serena at that and if she wasn't very much mistaken, that was a very well disguised dig.
"Everyone does have their own quirks and ways of teaching certain moves but the basics are all the same essentially. One cannot incorrectly learn a move if it is an universal move. There are industry standards." She pulled her arm free from Darien at that. See if he caught that double barb. "However I agree, it is unfair to the children to learn that there are different teachers out there than the ones their parents have deemed right for them. I'm going to go find Andrew and-"
"He's right there." Raye cut in and called out to him before Serena could yet again make an exit. The fates had aligned to make it impossible for her to leave this impossible situation. She was starting to get more and more irritated.
Andrew came up to them and wrapped his arms around Serena in a move very similar to the one her husband had done with Mia. Mia reached out a hand at that and Andrew removed one from her waist to shake the other blond's hand. "Wow, you're pretty."
Serena dug her elbow into his gut at that. Mia might be pretty but at the moment she was only someone Serena wanted to stuff down a garbage chute. "Why thank you." Mia blushed at the compliment. "I can see why Serena keeps you around Andrew Moon."
"Oh-" Andrew started but Hadley was snickering off to the side. Raye stepped in quickly to explain the older woman's behavior.
"His name is Andrew Crowne, he and Serena don't share a last name." She seemed to be wondering about that just as she'd said it as if it was the first time she'd really noticed.
"Serena, didn't you say that was because of work?" Dairen lifted a brow, not knowing why he was helping her and she was surprised he did.
"Yeah." She agreed. "It was too much of a hassle to change my last name and everything attached to it. I'd already made a name for myself before I had even considered taking his name on."
Mia lifted a brow at that. "Really? Were you some type of famous prodigy dancer before you came here and then got hurt and have been teaching classes since? That changing your name would require you to go on the attack to make sure people still found you when they've been searching for your old name?"
Serena took a steadying breath, she would not respond to that attack, she wouldn't... "Actually Serena's our media consultant." Raye responded bristling a little in Serena's defense now seeing how moody Mia could be too. "She's done the teaching out of the good of her heart and there might be plenty of reasons not to change a last name just because a woman gets married. Some cultures don't believe in it."
"Spanish cultures think our children will have a combined last name." Andrew added. "We don't take each others names in that occasion."
"Neither one of you are Spanish." The woman was so self-assured and didn't back off. "The only time I've heard the name Moon outside of Native American culture was in a TV show and the woman was British. Are you British, Serena?"
"Possibly but I know my last name actually connects closer to a Native American tribe than any British ancestry."
"Mia, please introduce me to some of your other classmates? I'm only here for a short time and I haven't had the opportunity to get out here much." Her husband swooped in at a safe point and pulled his wife away form creating further arguments. He gave them a reluctant smile and mouthed 'sorry'.
"I wonder what her deal was." Raye harrumphed. "I've never seen her like that before."
"Jealousy." Andrew stated rubbing Serena's shoulders. "She's intimidated by a beautiful blond living in the lodge. She thinks she'll be nudged out completely now."
Hadley shook her head. "We've always had Mina." Raye cast her panicked look as one of the elders walked by but the tall woman shrugged. "Now we just have two pretty blonds that Mia can't dare compete with."
Serena smiled her thanks up at Hadley, at least she was confidence bolstering. Raye looked at them a little oddly. "Just who is she competing over?"
"You and Amy." Andrew answered for everyone present. "She used to fly in here and think she was queen bee, did she not? Now she has to actually do something to merit that attention."
"Hmm." Raye nodded. "I guess I can see that." She ran a hand over her waist and rubbed a spot the baby must have kicked. Darien pressed his palm against her waist as well and felt another kick on the other side. "The little bugger is feisty."
"Just like its mummy." Darien spoke softly and Serena could see the love he had for his family, he was excited to be an uncle even if he didn't say it. He'd be a good one too. He was right Raye was feisty but it could be taking after its uncle too.
Andrew hugged Serena closer as they watched the family interaction, his hand brushing her stomach and she felt bad for the man behind her. He'd wanted kids from the day he was old enough to realize that there were babies. He was a protector and a lover of all things. Serena leaned back into his embrace and relaxed. She had felt that growing up and Lizzy had too. She couldn't have asked for a better childhood and it was because of the two Crowne children and their collective parents. It really did take a village to raise a child. Raye's child would have a lot of loving adults in its life.
Thankfully nobody took Andrew's action and ran with it in a totally incorrect way, there was nothing to be gleamed by that action except that he was looking forward to his own child. Or Serena swelled with a bun in the oven. She was definitely not pregnant. There was no reason to even think it. They always used two forms of contraception knowing full well one might not work like it was supposed to.
At this point, Serena wasn't sure what to feel, she was elated that Mia was taken and was clearly losing points in the Shield sister's eyes. But she was also a little sad as she was held by the wrong man. She loved Andrew, she really truly did. She loved being held by him, it was like a great big comforter wrapped around her, warm and secure. But he didn't give her the thrill or the zing through her bones that even relaxed in his embrace she was aware of him.
It was New Years Eve and she wouldn't be spending the drop of the ball with the one she wanted to be with. This wouldn't have been her ideal way to spend it anyway. There were far too many people here that she didn't know, she wanted to be celebrating it with the people she cared about and ones that she wanted to be with her in the new year.
She was also ticked off that he would keep something so big from her. He had to know that the woman was in town, didn't he? The sisters had and he spoke with his sisters, they would have been all too happy to share that news with him. Even if that wasn't true, this was a woman who clearly had some type of hold over him. And as Andrew held her, she could help but forgive him, here she was doing something just as bad if not worse. Darien's eyes lifted from his sister to Serena and they clashed. How could she do this to him? Guilt joined all her other emotions.
Hadley excused herself and joined Mona when she spotted the other woman again. Darien and Raye started in on a discussion about something, but Serena didn't hear what it was while Andrew whirled her onto the floor for a dance before she could think beyond that thought and Andrew tried his best to make her smile once more.
He succeeded as he always did in the end, but it was forced upon her lips to get him to stop worrying and just to enjoy the night. When the dance ended, Michelangelo tapped in for a round and was actually asked to step aside by Zolton.
Jace didn't dance with her and he was wise not to. Raye while it seemed like water was under the bridge wouldn't be opposed to a flair up of old grudges. Nashashuk didn't ask her for a spin either, but that was probably because he and Lita had slunk out when they thought nobody was the wiser. For how long those two had been married, one would think- but Zolton actually kept her from thinking about too many people around her as he managed to pull her back into a highly intellectual conversation. She might not talk like it but she did go to a very good school after all and he hit on a topic she knew about.
When the two of them finished with their song he thanked her for her time and walked off to join Amy. Serena looked around for Andrew and found him dancing with Mina. They looked like they were having a good time and so she let them be and used that time to make her, temporary, escape.
She thought whimsically on the porch about the fact that for New Years whoever you were with at the time the clock struck midnight it'd be who you were going to be with for the rest of that year. She was alone this year, just like she felt like she would be and had been for so long. Sure people came and went from her life, but she was never really truly with anyone. Not like she was with these people.
"There's about ninety seconds left before the ball drops. Don't you want to come inside and watch it?" Darien's smooth voice reached her before the sound of his steps did.
"Not especially." Serena looked up to the stars in the sky. The moon was hidden behind a cloud and there were too many stars to begin knowing where to look, but it was pretty. She could even make out Darien's features as he sat next to her on the cold bench and handed her a glass of champagne. "Why don't you go in?"
"Because I'm with the person I want to be with right now."
"Is that only because you can't have who you really want?"
He gave a mirthless laugh. "Think being with you means I can have the one I want?"
Serena tore her eyes away from the sky, really it was quite breathless, there was still a place in this great big country where you could see so many stars without the interference of lights. She thought the natural lighting and changes of this place was better than any ball that didn't even shatter when it reached the bottom. For all the money that a city had like New York, one would think they could come up with something better. She caught herself then, who was she? She's the one that liked all that cheesy cheap entertainment.
This place had changed her and she couldn't be sure if it were for the better. She let her eyes look over Darien's features and a smile forced its way along her mouth. She didn't have to fake it with him. "You have me."
"And you're who I want." Darien read the insecurity in her voice and rose to his feet once more and closed the distance. "I'd think I'd have made that clear by now."
"With the way you treated me today-"
"Because its what you wanted. Or what I thought you wanted. I couldn't keep my hands off of you today. I kept finding reasons to touch you and not let you go."
"I wish we'd discussed that, it would have helped in so many ways-"
"If I tortured you it's your own damn fault, now you know how I feel every minute of every day." His voice rasped and tugged her closer into the heat of his body but they still weren't touching. She wanted to close that distance but she was also angry. "Ten." He murmured by her ear.
"What?" Then she heard the chant in the other room and his word didn't seem so out of place.
"Will you be my New Years kiss?" His words were like he read her mind and she couldn't say anything but a positive, not that she'd wanted to deny him in what she wanted as well.
"I thought you'd never ask." They counted down softly and then their lips met. She knew they still had much to discuss, things weren't going to wrap up into a little box with nice packaging. But she was reassured. They were in the right direction.
After a heart beat or two where he just stared into her eyes, he lifted his glass for a sip. "Meet me tonight, I'm staying in my room here at the lodge."
"It's already midnight and the party won't end for another few hours. I'll be meeting you in the predawn hours."
"Then meet me at my room when you can. I'll wait all day if you make me." Darien traced her lips with his forefinger. "It has been too long since the last time I have been able to show you my true feelings."
"I won't be able to stay. I have to wake up in my bed." She reached for his hand and cupped her fingers around his palm. If they had met before tonight it would have made her a lot more sure of where she was with him before that disaster downstairs but the last minute and a half had erased most of her fears.
"So is that a no?"
Serena shook her head. "That's a- I'll be there."
"There I shall wait. Enjoy the rest of the party." Darien stole one last kiss from her before disappearing off the porch.
It wasn't too much longer after the countdown and Serena found her way to Andrew's side. He hooked an arm around her and took a drink out of a champagne bottle floating around. He made no mention to where she'd been and nobody of particular mention was nearby so she just joined in the merry-making though her mind was already on to what would be happening in a few hours.
Serena still let her eyes wander around the room, landing for a moment on Mia. Mia looked enthralled with her husband and Serena noted that there wasn't a glass of bubbly in her hand. Perhaps she didn't have to worry about that one. It seemed as if Darien had disappeared for good. She couldn't believe he'd go straight to his room to wait her out. She felt like she should go now, but her presence when missed would be noted as odd, Darien's behavior was pretty typical of him. He'd either be there fully or he'd be there as little as he could. She had to wait at least half an hour if not a full hour.
The after the drop party was fun but she noticed every minute tick painstakingly slow. She kept checking the mood of the crowd around her, she'd made sure that her presence was known by everyone who could make her life hell and then slowly made her way towards escape. But there was one person she had to say something to, to make sure there was someone who could answer the question and start the rumor. She grabbed Andrew's hand when she discovered him again chatting with a pretty brunette. Serena had seen her earlier but at that time the brunette had been with her boyfriend.
"Drew... I'm going to head down to the room."
"Is something the matter?" That caught his attention and she shook her head.
"No. I'm just going to be gone for awhile. Don't worry about me, it might take me awhile to come back."
"All right..." Andrew slid a strand of her hair back behind her ear. "Are you sure every thing is fine?"
"Peachy." She grinned at him and she must have seemed like it because he slowly let her hand go and she managed to slip away. Nobody was in the hallway when she got there and veered straight towards the Shield's private wing. She heard voices when she got closer and she slid close to the wall, waiting until they went away. It was Jace and Raye. They must have headed back before her. When their voices died down she tread carefully. It was kind of exciting to be such a daredevil and the element of getting caught was exhilarating.
She hadn't been positive in which room was Darien's and she had to guess. The first door she opened lead into a room that could have been his, it was blue afterall, but it was too feminine and so she backed out. The next one was red and with a quick click shut she closed it once more, that had to be Raye's. Having to cross the hall's width to get to the other door, she steeled herself and bolted for it, turning the knob and quickly closing the door behind her.
She worked on getting her breathing back to normal and looked up off the ground to see a lone figure standing across the sitting area, looking out into the world beyond. He turned slowly and there was a drink in his hand a serious look in his eyes. "You're earlier than I thought you'd be."
"I guess I was too anxious to wait any longer."
She was pleased to see a small smile lift up the corner of his lips. "I am glad to hear it." He crossed the sitting room and took her hand, guiding her into the space beyond the safe area of the door. She could explain being there, she could not explain anything else. But once she was in the sitting room she felt herself relaxing, perhaps she could explain that too. "For future reference, there is another way in, one less likely to get you caught by my sisters."
"Oh?" It was news to her that she'd be doing this on a semi-frequent basis.
"Hmm, I'll have to show it to you when you leave." She didn't have any eyes for the room she'd found herself in, she only had eyes for him. He wasn't in a hurry to show her that exit either as he drew her closer to him. "You have no idea how torturous it's been these last few days, and especially these last few hours. You look absolutely ravishing."
"Thank you, while you were present, you looked quite dashing yourself. It was no wonder all the girls were eying you up."
"There was only one pair of eyes I cared about." His hands were at her hips and his thumbs were making slow circular motions that were driving her to distraction.
"Oh, who was that?" She asked, her voice was husky and she didn't recognize her own voice.
His lips quirked up. "I think you know."
She thought for sure he was going to kiss her, she was more than ready for that kiss but he took a step back and handed her a glass. "Another toast?"
"The first one. To a new year and new beginnings."
"I'm here to drink to that." She raised her glass and her eyes locked onto his as they both took a sip. "To spending the year with the people we love."
Another raise and another sip. They were inches apart but she could still feel the heat from him opposed to the cool draft from the window. They stood there until their drinks were finished and once they were, she really felt like the past was behind her. That starting now and today that her future would be different. Her decision to be here was paramount to how her heart laid. She was here and this is where she wanted to be. Whatever happened in the future she'd manage to make things work, he was her choice. The slate was wiped clean and their path bright and shining like a beacon. She felt all the unease and hurt and guilt lift off of her and knew that this she could enter with a clear conscious.
When his glass was finished as well she took it and turned to set it on the table. Her dress caught the light and it moved like shimmering waves of blue and green. She felt his arms go around her as he came up to her from behind. "You have never looked more out of place." Darien groaned. "You look like a Miami girl in that dress, sunny hair and waves on the beach."
"That's the reason I bought the dress. But does that mean I don't belong and should leave?" She thought for a brief second she was wrong about what she thought today meant for them, and what he'd been saying.
His hands followed the waves of her body, his mouth scorching her skin as he trailed his lips up her shoulder and along the side of her neck. She tilted her head to allow him more access, she could feel his comforting heat. His sure powerful hands caressing her body. "Definitely not what I'm saying. You're like a rare jewel in a mountain of gray dust. I'm just happy to have found you here. Though whoever decided to bring you here must have fought with you, it'd be like dragging a child kicking and screaming away from its favorite toy."
"I make my home wherever I want."
"And you do it well. You brighten up a place and shed it of its drab reticence and spice it up."
Serena laughed. "I can't be the only one to be blamed for that. There wasn't much to start with and I only added a bit to it. More people have made this a place to be, a place where there are diverse personality and looks."
"They were always here and could never make me stay. Perhaps it was sweet revenge that had brought you in to my life. A thorn to my rose. An anchor to my sails." She held herself a hair tighter, waiting for the boom to drop, waiting for him to make some remark about her failure to do it completely, but he traced the bone behind her ear with his lips. "But I didn't realize you were just making it better. Whatever the cause, I'm just glad that I was there for it, that it was my car you were following. I think it might have been worse if things hadn't played out like they had. Its highly unlikely that I would have ever gotten to Florida. I would continue on life's path never knowing what I was missing if you never came to Montana. I'm glad I've stayed, you've opened my eyes to all that I've been missing. I can't thank you enough for the joy you've brought to it."
She felt herself melting and soon felt her dress follow the way her thoughts were going... down. She stepped out of the pool at her feet and into his waiting arms. She kicked off her heels and he lifted her up, her legs wrapped around his waist as he carried her to his bed. He let her slide down the length of his body and followed her onto it. This was right, this is where she was always supposed to be, with him, no matter where they were. All other thoughts and worries disappeared when she was with him. There was nothing else that was important.
EAN: So two things, 1, since I took a lot out of this chapter to make it run smoother and less crazy the parts that got taken out are going into the next one which is also going to have to be edited. That's all right because I couldn't really just make it into chapter 25 part B then it definitely wouldn't have flowed. Seeing as how this chapter got edited fairly quickly I have hope for that one as well. 2, Serena's dress... think Uli on Project Runway's final collection during her first season. Something like that but less flowery.