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Out of Control, Part 8

Vaughn eyed his brother from across the boardroom table. He had looked like he wanted to kill something for the past two days. High color was apparent in his cheeks. "You look like hell."

Damien's head snapped up towards his brother. He scowled. "And what the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Exactly how I said it. What has you all hot and bothered?" He noted that Damien's color got even brighter. He smirked. "Is a certain red head by the name of Angelina the reason for it?"

"No," Damien snapped as he flipped through the paperwork in front of him.

"You know, you can't lie. I'll just read you if you don't tell me."

"You're a nosy pain in the ass, Vaughn."

Vaughn grinned. "It's my job."

"Take those empathic abilities of yours and shove it."

Vaughn whistled. "She really tied you into a bunch of knots, didn't she? What did she do?"

Damien slammed a folder down on the table and glared at his brother. "Will you drop it!"

"You're such a spoil sport," Vaughn replied as he shook his head. "It must have…"

"Mister Winner, Miss Yuy is here," Vaughn's assistant, Missus Carlisle said as she poked her head inside the door.

Vaughn smiled. "Time for my lunch." He pushed himself out of his chair. He gave his brother another look. "Did she play a head game with you?"

"SHUT UP, VAUGHN!"

The younger Winner held back his laughter at his brother's outburst. "I'll see you in an hour." He left the room and shut the door firmly behind him. He began to snicker uncontrollably. "Poor guy, I think that's exactly what she did to him." He raked his hand through his hair as he spotted Veronica with her back to him. She was looking out of the windows. He walked up behind her and slipped an arm around her waist. "Hey, pretty girl," he whispered.

Veronica had been lost in thought as she stared out the window. She hadn't told Bobby. She didn't know how. She jumped slightly when she felt Vaughn's arm wrap around her. "Don't do that!" She turned to frown at him, but his smile was so infectious and his compliment was sweet, that she couldn't help but smile back. "I hope you didn't forget that we were eating out today."

"Me, forget you? Never. Not with your face." He pressed a kiss on her cheek. He turned her around to face him. "How are you feeling?"

"Better. I don't feel sick anymore," she replied as she absently let her hand rub over her abdomen.

"That's good." He brought her hand up to his lips and kissed the back of it. "You look beautiful today," he complimented as he took in the bright royal blue suit she was wearing. Its cut emphasized her generous figure and intensified the blue of her eyes.

Veronica blushed. She didn't think anything could make her blush anymore, but compliments from Vaughn had a strange effect on her. "Thank you."

"No problem. Now, where do you want to go?"

"Oh, I don't know. You pick."

He looked at her thoughtfully. "How about lunch at the Country Club? Is that all right with you?"

She nodded her head. "It's fine."

"Good, let's go then." Vaughn slipped an arm around her back and escorted her outside to his car. He bowed slightly as he let her in.

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Once at the Country Club they found a table outside on the terrace. Veronica studied him as he sat across from her. His pushed back sunglasses gave his hair a disheveled appearance. His amethyst colored eyes were matched by his shirt, his silk tie of the same color, loosened. He was the only guy she knew who would wear purple and get away with it. The deepness of his tan allowed him to carry it off. The sleeves were rolled up to his elbows revealing the brushed stainless steel watch on his right wrist. He was left-handed. He was one of the few children that were.

"I can feel you looking at me, Ver."

She flushed a little as he glanced up at her over his menu. "Sorry."

Vaughn grinned at her. "I don't mind if you stare at me, sweetheart."

Veronica looked back down at her menu, a faint blush under her own tan. She slid it back to the table. "I'm ready."

He looked back down at his. "That was fast." His eyes scanned the page. "I still don't know what I want, but I'd like to save some room for their blueberry pie. Want to share a slice with me?"

"Vaughn, I've seen you polish off one of those pies on your own. I hardly think you'll need me to help you."

"I'm asking you to. There's a lot I wouldn't mind sharing with you."

Her eyes rounded like a doe caught in the headlights. Her lips parted slightly. "What do you mean?"

He gave her an enigmatic smile. "You're a smart girl. Figure it out." He went back to perusing the menu.

Veronica's mouth twisted into a frown. She tapped her idle fingers on the glass tabletop as she leaned back in her seat. "What does he mean by that? I know he kissed me on Sunday, but that was just a friendly kiss. It didn't mean anything, did it? This is confusing. I don't understand him at all."

He was feeling her confusion. He knew he wasn't leaving her much to go on, but he was sure she wouldn't have a hard time figuring it out. He was already half in love with her. "I would have thought the kiss I gave her almost two weeks would have given her the idea that I felt a much stronger emotion than just like towards her. But she has a lot on her mind lately, so I can't blame her for being confused."
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Lunch progressed. She basked in the attention that Vaughn was lavishing on her. He was generous with his compliments, which made her blush and smile. Since the day she announced her pregnancy, he had been there with her constantly. He would take her out to lunch every other day or else he would surprise her in the design studio where she worked with little chocolates or with flowers. And the touching. It made her skin tingle every time he took her hand or when he put his arms around her, but what baffled her was that he didn't kiss her again. He pressed kisses on her cheek, but he hadn't touched his mouth to hers since that day. She sighed to herself and dug into her slice of pie that he ordered.

Vaughn continued to watch her. His eyes centered on her mouth every time she pulled out the fork and licked her lips. He was dying to kiss her again, but he knew it wasn't the right time to do so. However, he couldn't help but be fascinated by the way her tongue would run across her lips to retrieve the bits of the filling and the crust that clung to it. He hadn't kissed that many girls and kissing wasn't something he did too often either. Randy had been the only girl he had kissed more than a handful of times. They had only been kids then. He took another slice of the pie he had ordered.

Veronica glanced up at him. "That's your third piece."

He grinned at her. "What can I say, I like blueberry pie."

"I can tell," she said as she rolled her eyes. "Since some of it's stuck to the corner of your mouth." She leaned forwards and brushed it away with her thumb.

A small shockwave raced through him from her touch. His eyes went to hers. "And now it's on your fingers," he said as he grasped her hand and brought it to his lips and licked off the filling.

All she could do was stare at him as his warm wet tongue raked across the tip of her thumb. Warmth flooded her veins and deep color raced up her cheeks. Her mouth went dry as she gazed back into his eyes. There was some heat in his gaze.

The cherry pink of her cheeks was endearing. He turned her hand, palm up and placed a kiss in the center of it before releasing it. "I hope you didn't mind."

"N…No," Veronica replied as she curled her fingers inwards toward her palm. She lowered her eyes away from him and picked up her fork again. She tapped it on the edge of her plate. She raised her eyes back to his. "Why?"

"I don't like to miss any part of the pie. And I like touching you."

"Oh. You never did before."

"Ver, there were plenty of times I wanted to touch you, but couldn't. I'm making up for it now."

"Why didn't you than?"

"Too many admirers. I wasn't going to wait in line."

She lowered her eyes back to her pie. "I see."

A gentle smile touched his lips as he reached up and covered her hand on top of the table. "I didn't mean it in a bad way. You've just always been popular."

Veronica looked at his hand covering hers. "So was Randy and you didn't wait for her."

"She was different. I didn't have to wait in line for her because she preferred Donavon or me to be with her in the first place."

"Is that the only reason?"

"Yes."

"You've made out with her."

"Yeah, but it meant nothing."

Her sapphire blue eyes bore into his. "Vaughn, I knew you've had a crush on her."

He shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "It was along time ago."

"You still flirt with her now."

"But it's just flirting. It means nothing."

Veronica frowned and tried to pull her hand from his grasp.

Vaughn gripped her hand tighter. "Veronica, it means nothing. You were just never there to flirt with because of some other guy. It's not because I didn't want to. I mean that."

A sigh escaped her lips and she shook her head. "I just have to face it that I'm always going to be second to her."

"Don't say that. You're not second to Randy. You never were. If it makes you feel better, some of those times I was kissing her, I was wishing it was you."

The corner of her mouth tilted up slightly. "Does she know that?"

"I'm sure she does since she was probably wishing it was Donavon," he replied as he scooted his chair closer to hers. "There just was no opportunity than, but it didn't mean I didn't want to."

A half smiled quirked her lips. "Is that so?"

"Yeah, it is. Why wouldn't I want to kiss one of the most beautiful girls in school?"

Soft laughter escaped her lips. "You're a flatterer, Vaughn Winner."

A lazy grin crossed his face. "I'm pretty darn good at it."

More laughter erupted from her lips from his admission. "Conceited too."

"Not conceited, sweetheart, just honest," he quipped as he pressed a kiss on her cheek again.

"Well, well, look what we have here," drawled a voice from behind them.

Veronica whipped her head around and found Bobby glaring at them, more accurately, Vaughn. "What do you want?" she hissed.

"I was right, Winner. You badmouthed me just to get her," Bobby spat, not even looking in Veronica's direction.

Vaughn's eyes narrowed. "I didn't need to tell her that you're an jackass. She already knew that."

Bobby's indigo eyes glinted dangerously. "Better than I can say about you, you bastard."

Vaughn stood up and came toe to toe with the taller man. "Remember what I said, Arquette, I'm a lot stronger than I look."

"Vaughn, don't, he's not worth it," Veronica said as she stood up as well. She pushed herself in between them. "Let my father deal with him."

A wicked smirk crossed Vaughn's face. "That would be interesting to watch."

Confusion crossed Bobby's face for a second before he looked at Veronica. "What the hell does that mean?"

Veronica swallowed hard. She reached behind her and grasped onto Vaughn's hand. She thrust her chin up and stood up straight. "Because my father wants to kill you…for getting me pregnant."

His mouth fell open in shock before he snapped it shut. A derisive snort was his response. "I don't believe you. There is no way in hell you could be pregnant, Veronica."

"But I am. Have you ever known me to lie?" She gazed up at him steadily.

Bobby stared back at her with an incredulous look mirrored on his features. "There's absolutely no way."

"I'm afraid so, Arquette. You got Ver pregnant," Vaughn interjected as he continued to hold Veronica's hand.

"I am very pregnant. Nearly nine weeks to be exact, Bobby. Believe me, I don't like it any more than you do," Veronica said, her voice flat.

Bobby took several steps back. "I don't believe this." He raised his eyes to Vaughn. "You knocked her up and she's lying."

Vaughn's eyes hardened. "I've never slept with her and you won't be calling her a liar or else you'll have more than just me and her father to contend with. You'll have her brother and every other guy that we grew up with on your ass. Not to mention all of the women too."

Bobby paled. "I want proof."

"What more proof do you need? I was sleeping with you all those weeks ago. I haven't slept with anyone else in the past year except for you," Veronica stated as her eyes narrowed at him. "And if you think you can get away with calling me a liar, you got another thing coming." She balled up her other fist and landed a punch on his jaw. "You don't ever call a Yuy a liar."

Bobby staggered back from the impact of her right hook. He rubbed his jaw as he stared at her.

"Come on, Vaughn, I'm ready to leave," Veronica said as she picked up her purse and walked out of the café with her head held high.

Vaughn laid down the necessary credits on the table and picked up the remnants of the pie. He looked at Bobby, who was staring at Veronica's retreating back. "What a waste for a pie, but it's for a good cause," he sighed as he looked at it. "Oh well. Hey, Arquette." He smashed the pie in Bobby's face. "Call her anything again, I'll do more then shove a pie in your face," he growled as he walked past with his hands in his pockets. He began to whistle as he past the maitre d.

Bobby wiped the blueberry from his face. He looked around. Other patrons were trying not to look at him. "I'll get you someday, Winner. No one humiliates me and gets away with it."

Veronica smiled broadly as Vaughn opened the car door for her. "I did it."

"You sure did. I'm proud of you, Veronica." He grinned at her as he got in. "And that right hook of yours was a nice touch. Saved me the trouble."

"I didn't want you to put a hole in his face. I think mine had the better effect, don't you think?"

"Sure shocked him."

Veronica looked out of the window as he drove back towards his office. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. "What happened to the pie?"

An evil smile lit his face. "What did you think I did with it?"

Eyes rounded before she burst out into laughter. "Oh, you didn't."

"I did and it felt good too."

"I can just imagine the look on his face," she howled.

"It was quite comical, too bad I didn't have a camera on me. It was one of those once in a lifetime moments that had to be captured."

Tears gathered in the corners of Veronica's eyes as she continued to laugh. She didn't stop until they reached the parking lot of his office building. She took several deep breaths. "Oh, that was good. I haven't laughed like that in such a long time."

Vaughn smiled from her remark as he helped her out and walked her over to her own car. "I'm glad that I made you feel better."

"You've done a lot for me these past two weeks. I don't know what I would've done without you," she said as she leaned against her car. She grasped his hands as he stood in front of her.

Vaughn bent down and pressed his forehead against hers. "Always remember that there's nothing I wouldn't do for you, sweetheart. That's a promise."

They stood silent for a moment. She could feel the warmth of his breath on her lips. She wanted him to kiss her.

How he wanted to kiss her. She had the most enticing set of lips. He didn't know why he wasn't. A quiet sigh escaped his lips before he pressed a kiss on her forehead. "Well, it was a pleasant lunch. I'll take you out to dinner tomorrow night, if you like."

She hid her disappointment behind an effusive smile. "That would be wonderful, but you don't have to."

He chucked her under the chin. "I want to. Now, I should get back in there before Damien loses his mind over his paperwork and Angelina. He's in one of those moods."

Veronica snickered. "I never thought I would see the day Damien Winner would get bent out of shape by a girl. But I have to be getting back to work as well. I had a nice time today."

"Any time, Ver, anytime," he said as she climbed into her car. He waved good-bye to her as she drove off. He shoved his hands in the pockets of his khakis. "I know you wanted me to kiss you, but its' not the right time, Ver. You need more time because I want to be sure I'm what you really want."

Veronica didn't get out of her car right away as she reached the building that she worked in. She leaned her head back against the seat. "Why didn't he kiss me? Is it because he doesn't want to?" She banged her head against the seat. "I'm so confused. I don't know how he feels about me and I don't know what I feel for him. This is all so complicated." She looked down at her abdomen as she smoothed her hand over it. "And this only makes it even more so. What am I going to do?"

A/N: It's here! I hope you all enjoyed it! I promise it won't take me as long to update next time, I was a little bit under the weather, but I'm back and ready to write! Stay tuned for more coming soon! XOXO!!