Gambit knew he would be able to make it to the mansion by the morning if he continued to travel through the night, but he just couldn't do it. His eyesight was blurring and if he didn't rest soon, he'd crash. It would be pretty hard to make it back to the mansion if he was critically injured, or worse—dead.

"Been gone dis long already," Remy thought. "What's one more night?"

So Remy LeBeau opted to spend the night in a hotel, not knowing that by the morning, everything would've changed.

*** *** ***

"Zander, I've given this a lot of thought, and well…"

Rogue looked down, and Zander felt like time was moving slower than it ever had before. He took her hands in his, gently stroking her soft skin with his thumbs. "What, Rogue. Please, just tell me what your answer is. The waiting is agony…"

"Yes," Rogue said, hardly recognizing her own voice.

Zander smiled, scooping her up into a fervent kiss. "Rogue," he said as he let her go. "You've made me the happiest man alive."

Rogue smiled. "I can tell."

"And you're happy, too—right, my darling?"

"Of course I am, Zander. We're getting married."

"We'll get started on the wedding preparations right away," Zander said. "I want to get married as soon as possible."

A chill washed over Rogue at those words. She'd agreed to marry him, yes, but she hadn't expected to jump right into things. "How soon is soon?"

"Well, I'm not sure," Zander said. "It will take time to plan a wedding. I'm sure my mother will want to help with much of the planning, and she will not allow it to be a small event by any means."

"You mother?" Rogue asked. She had not taken into account that Cordelia Hayes would want to have control over the wedding plans, but then again, she should have. The woman took an active interest in every part of her youngest son's life. Besides, he was the last of the Hayes children to get married—and Cordelia's obvious favorite.

Rogue, on the other hand, was not high on the old woman's list.

"What do you think your mother will say about the engagement, Zander? I mean, she's never seemed to take much of a liking to me. Maybe we should just elope."

"What? Rogue, love, that's nonsense. Mother likes you just fine. Besides, if we got married without her knowing she'd be heartbroken."

"Maybe it would kill 'er, and I wouldn't have to have her as a mother-in-law," Rogue thought. She smiled at Zander. "You're right. I'm sure your mother will be very happy for us."

Zander gave Rogue a gentle kiss. "Everything will be fine. Our wedding will be beautiful, and as soon as it's over, we can begin our perfect life together."

Rogue was already beginning to doubt how perfect a life with Dr. Zander Hayes would be.

*** *** ***

Home. He was home. Remy chuckled. Strange how after three years, the mansion still felt that way to him. He parked his motorcycle in the same place he always had before. Seemed like nothing had changed.

He walked up to the mansion and into the front door. The front hall still looked exactly the same.

"Remy? Oh my God, Remy is that you?"

Gambit looked up to see Jubilee come down the stairs—or at least a woman he believed was Jubilee. Her hair cascaded down her back all the way to her hips, and her features were definitely those of a woman—not a little girl. "Petite!" Remy exclaimed. "Look who's all grown up!"

Jubilee ran to him and threw her arms around him, reminding him of the girl he'd once known. She pulled back. "Geez, Rem, it's great to see you. It's been since, well, before I left for college, I guess."

"Yeah, Jubilee, it has been awhile."

"So you back for good? I sure have missed you."

"Oui, I plan t'stay," Gambit said. "Dis ol' t'iefs, been away from home long enough…"

"I'm glad. I haven't had many people to hang out with since I came back," Jubilee said. "Most of these people still treat me as a kid. Jean especially." She rolled her eyes. "But anyway, you've always treated me decently—I figure you haven't changed much."

"Nope. Still de same Gambit. You don't look much like de same Jubilee, t'ough."

Jubilee shook her head. "Nope, all grown up."

"Dat's good. Knew ya would be, 'ventually." Gambit decided it was time to ask the question that had been on the tip of his tongue since he'd walked into the mansion. "Where's Rogue."

"Oh she's upstairs with a bunch of the other women showing of her enga…" Jubilee stopped shocking. "Oh, God, Remy. I didn't even think about you not knowing."

"Not knowin' what, Petite?"

"I don't want to be the one to tell you, Remy."

"Tell me, Jubilee."

Jubilee sighed. "Rogue got engaged this morning."

"This morning? This morning. Mon Dieu…"

"I'm sorry, Gambit."

"Non, it's okay, Petite. Not like I came back here for Rogue. Got over her ages ago." Mentally, Remy was kicking himself for stopping the night before. If he'd just gotten there a little sooner. "No," he told himself. "If Rogue had already fallen in love wit' dis guy enough to marry him, den I never woulda stood a chance."

"Dat's great actually—for her," Remy said. "She's been lookin' for a man t'love her like dat for a long time."

"She can control her powers now," Jubilee said.

Gambit's mental kicks grew harder at that. Was the avoidance of sleep deprivation really worth missing his only chance to touch Rogue freely? "Really? Dat's wonderful. De femme wanted dat badly, I know. How'd she do it?"

"Zander helped her."

"Dat de guy?"

"Yeah."

"Lucky guy."

"You really over her, Remy?"

Gambit gave his most charming grin. "Of course! After t'ree years, dere's no way I'd keep holdin' on to dat torch. No point in lovin' a woman dat obviously never loved you. Dat relationship was doomed from de start. Probably better for me now dat it's really over."

Jubilee frowned, not really believing him. "Yeah…it's great you're taking this so well."

Gambit shrugged nonchalantly. "Not much bot'ers dis Cajun."

"I can tell…"

"So you people got anyt'in' t'eat in here?" Remy asked, wanting to change the subject from Rogue and her engagement. "I haven't had decent food in a while."

Jubilee laughed. "We sure do. C'mon, let's go to the kitchen and we can do some more catching up."

Remy grinned. "Dat sounds great, Petite. Jus' great."

*** *** ***

Rogue sat down beside the wall by the staircase as she heard Remy and Jubilee walk away. She'd just been on her way downstairs after letting all the X-Women fawn over the ring Zander had given her when she'd heard something that made her stop—Remy's voice. Her initial response had been to throw the oversized ring from her finger and run into Gambit's arms, begging him to forgive her for all the things she'd done to him in the past and do everything she could to prove she was worthy of yet another chance.

But that notion was tossed out of her head as soon as she heard what he'd had to say.

"No point in lovin' a woman dat obviously never loved you."

"Dat relationship was doomed from de start."

"Probably better for me now dat it's really over."

Rogue pulled her knees up to her chest as she began to cry. It really was over between her and Remy. She'd told Jean and Ororo that she'd given up her dream of Remy coming home to her someday, but that wasn't true. She'd never truly stopped waiting. Even when she'd agreed to marry Zander, she knew she'd toss away that ring in a second if Gambit came back and swept her back into his arms.

But now Gambit had come back, and it hadn't sounded much like he wanted her anywhere near him, much less his arms. Rogue cried silent tears, willing herself to banish all those feelings she had developed for the Cajun X-Man over the years. Their relationship had been volatile, but the love had been real, the passion ever-present. But what did it matter anymore? Rogue was engaged to a man that adored her and Gambit obviously could care less.

Rogue resigned herself completely to her fate as Mrs. Zander Hayes.

*** *** ***

"Remy?"

Gambit froze. That voice. Her voice. He turned around slowly and the first sight of her face in three years took his breath away. Could it be possible that she'd grown even more beautiful? "Rogue."

"You're back," Rogue said. "I didn't think you'd be coming back."

"I didn't plan on it."

"What made you then?" Rogue asked.

Gambit wanted to tell her the truth—that he suddenly hadn't been able to stay away from her any longer and he'd had to come back to her. But he couldn't do that. She was about to become somebody else's wife. He shrugged. "Don' know. Guess I'd been gone long enough."

"It's good your back." She added quickly, "The team has missed you."

Gambit frowned. "Yeah, I'll bet." He looked her over. She looked different somehow, almost more sophisticated. And her speech patterns seemed to have changed, too. Much of her trademark Southern accent had faded away. He wondered if her fiancé had anything to do with the change.

"I'm…I'm getting married," Rogue said, deciding to go ahead and get that out in the open between the two of them.

"I know," Gambit said. "Jubilee tol' me. Hope he makes ya happier den Remy ever did."

Rogue looked away from him. "Zander's a great guy."

"He takin' care of you, Chére?"

Rogue winced at the sound of him calling her "Chére." She hadn't realized how much she'd missed being called that particular term of endearment. "Yes. He's a rather successful mutant psychiatrist. Respected in the community and all that."

"Respected in the community…no wonder she'd lookin' all prim an' proper. Gotta keep up appearances when she's on the arm of her rich fiancé…" Remy thought. "Dat's real good f'you, Rogue. You deserve a man like that."

"Yeah, but I'd rather take a Cajun thief that's a little rogue around the edges." "I know. I'm lucky to have him."

"When's de weddin'?"

"We haven't set a date yet, but Zander wants it to be soon. He says he doesn't want to have to wait long to make me his wife."

"I don' blame him."

Rogue could've sworn she heard a tint of regret in her voice, but she refused to acknowledge it. It was only her imagination, nothing more. "You're welcome to come to the wedding if you would like," she said.

Gambit knew the pain he felt at hearing those words had to be his heart being physically ripped from his chest. She was asking him to watch her marry another man as casually as she would ask him to pass the salt? Was she really that over him? Or maybe she'd never been that in love to begin with… Remy shrugged. "I might show up."

Rogue wanted to cry at the nonchalant way he'd responded to her invitation to her wedding. He'd really gotten over her… "It will probably be a very nice wedding," she said. "Zander's family has a lot of money."

"Guess your set f'life then, Rogue," Gambit said. "An' he doesn't sound much like de kinds man who'd have dark secrets or anyt'in' like dat, so it should work out fine 'tween you two."

Rogue's jaw dropped at Gambit's last comment. "Remy, I…"

He took her hand and gently brought it to his lips, brushing the back of her hand with a feather-light kiss. "Au Revoir, Chére."

*** *** ***

Rogue's breath stopped as she waited for Mrs. Cordelia Hayes's response to her son's engagement. The old woman smiled falsely. "Well, I am happy to see that my boy will finally have a wife to take care of him," she said. She looked Rogue over, and Rogue could tell she was adding silently, "Even if it is you."

"I know that weddings take time, Mother," Zander began. "But Rogue and I would like to be married as soon as possible."

"Oh, of course," Mrs. Hayes said. "Have you chosen a wedding planner yet?"

"No, we were hoping you would be able to help us prepare," Zander said.

"Of course," Mrs. Hayes said with her painted-on smile. "I would be able to provide you with the best in town…"

"We would appreciate that very much, Mother."

"What's with all this 'we' crap?" Rogue wondered. "Zander's the one wanting a speedy wedding. Well, I guess once you get married all the 'I's' are replaced with 'we's.'"

"I can give you the number of the woman that planned that absolutely gorgeous wedding your sister just had," Mrs. Hayes said. "And if you tell her you are my son, she'll most likely be able to get you an appointment this afternoon."

"That would be wonderful," Zander said.

"And how about you, Rogue?" Mrs. Hayes asked. "You have not had much to say about this."

"I'm very happy with it all," Rogue said, mimicking Mrs. Hayes's smile. "I'm just sure that you'll have a better idea of how to plan a wedding than I ever would."

"Yes, I'm sure you're right," Mrs. Hayes said in a tone that made Rogue feel very small. She turned back to her son. "How about I get you that number and you can call right away?"

*** *** ***

Sorry about yet another huge wait… I just have so many stories I'm working on at once that I get behind. But at least this chapter was longer than ones in the past, right?