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Out of Control, Part 22

"He's been watching you all evening when you're not looking."

"I know that."

"And you're doing it too. So, why don't you just go over there and talk to him?"

"Because it's not that simple, Randy," Veronica sighed as she cast another covert glance over at Vaughn who was watching the fathers' Sunday poker game in the one corner of the great room of the Yuy/Merquise home.

Randy rolled her eyes. "Love is never simple. We just have to muddle through it the best we can."

"Well, I sure mucked it up even more."

"All you have to do, Ver, is go over there and tell him you want to talk to him. I'm sure he wants to talk to you too, but you're dad keeps on giving him that death glare of his. But you should just go over there and tell him."

"Randy, don't interfere."

Randy frowned at Donavon from over her shoulder as he sat on the couch with Jet across from him. They were working on a puzzle. "I'm not doing anything wrong."

"You're meddling. Leave it alone," he said without looking at her.

"Like hell, I'm trying to help."

"Trying to fix something you helped screw up."

It caused a scowl to cross Randy's face. "That was uncalled for."

Veronica rolled her eyes again as her friend's face grew more indignant.

"But it's true. So, stop meddling. They'll do it when they're both ready and not before," Donavon replied as he finally looked at her out of the corner of his eye.

Randy leaned away from the arm of the couch. "I will do no such thing and there's nothing you can do to stop me," she said with a toss of her raven ponytail.

"Oh no?"

"No, I'm going to help…" She then shrieked as she was yanked back over the arm of the couch to land on her back on the cushion. Her head fell next to his leg.

"I did warn you," Donavon replied as he looked down at her. "So, don't make me humiliate you any further because I'd rather not, but I will if I have to. Do I make myself clear?"

Veronica couldn't help but smile at the mutinous expression crossing her best friend's face.  She looked over at Vaughn, who also looked amused at what was taking place. "Donavon, be nice," she chided.

He arched a brow at her and then back down at his girlfriend. "Stop looking at me like you want to kill me a thousand different ways, we both know you won't do a thing."

"Bastard," Randy hissed at him with hot color in her cheeks because it was true.

Veronica laughed again as Randy continued to fume again, this time in silence. She returned her eyes to Vaughn, who was looking over at her. He quickly looked away with a pale blush lighting his cheeks. She looked back at Donavon, who had returned to his puzzle, looking at Randy on occasion. "She is only trying to help me. Don't be mad at her, besides, she is trying to help. I know what you did and why you did it, but I'm all right. I can protect myself, Donavon."

"You need to be taken care of, so I took care of you the one way I'm allowed to. I defended you and gave him fair warning for liking my girlfriend more than he should by breaking his nose. I spared him from a maiming that you and I know he deserved, but I didn't do a thing because you care about him," he replied as he turned his head to look at her. "Although I was tempted to do more since I had very good reasons."

She smiled and nodded, looking down at Randy again, who was sitting up next to him, with a murderous look in her eyes. "I know," she replied softly as she let her chin drop against her chest. She sighed. "I think I'm going to go outside and take a walk."

"You'll be ok?"

"I'll be fine, Donavon. Thank you," she answered as she walked past the men playing poker, squeezing her father's shoulder before she opened one of the many glass doors in the great room and stepped out into the late summer night.

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Heero frowned as his eyes followed his youngest before retuning them to the lovesick looking. Vaughn Winner. He had noticed how he had been gazing at his little girl all evening. The pale bruises under each of his eyes were testament to the fact that he already had been dealt with by Donavon. He sighed again as he looked back down at his cards. "Winner should feel lucky that it was his cousin dealing with him and not me. I would've broken more than just his nose," he thought as he tossed several more chips into the center of the table.

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Vaughn watched her walk out the doors. She looked much better than the last time he had seen her. He felt the cool gaze of Heero on him, but it didn't make him take his eyes away from her. Pushing himself away from the wall, he opened the door on the opposite side of the room. He had to talk to her now, while there was no one there, watching them.

"Wait a minute, Winner."

Vaughn hunched his shoulders at the sound of Dominic's voice. He turned to face the older man. "Yes?"

Dominic regarded him silently for a moment before he pushed him the rest of the way out the door and closed it behind him. "I want to say something to you before you go after my sister."

"Like what?"

"Like I heard what you said to her that day when you and your dad came over to see how she was."

Vaughn paled. "You heard?"

"Every word. I was sleeping on the couch since it made her feel better that someone was there. She needed to be watched so she wouldn't try to get out of bed on her own again and end up hurting herself. But I was awake to hear every word you said to her," Dominic said, noticing the wary look entering the amethyst eyes in front of him. "You loved her since you were thirteen years old, but at the same time it's a known fact you had a thing for Randy. I just want to know right now before I let you go anywhere near my sister, are you over your fantasies of your cousin's girlfriend because you have to let go of one to have the other. So, are you?"

Vaughn flinched under the penetrating Prussian blue eyes in front of him. "Randy has always been a fantasy. I've always known I could never have her since Donavon loved her. She's very special to me, but it's never been more than that. I love her on some level, like she does me. It's never been what she receives from Donavon…it's different. But I am over them because I do love your sister, and she's always been what I've wanted. She's been a fantasy that I've always kept close to my heart," he replied, his voice quiet. He glanced in the direction she walked. "That's my answer. I've let Randy go because I do want to avoid future broken bones, but I've also let her go because I want your sister to fill that space and become reality."

His mouth twitched before he let go of the other man's shoulder. "If my sister is your reality, than go after her. I have the answer that I want, but if you ever hurt her…I swear on my grandfather's grave that I will hunt you down and kill you. And like my father, I don't bluff when it comes to her. Have I made myself clear?"

He paled even further, but nodded his head. "Clear."

"Good. Now go after her."

Vaughn shook his head again as he turned on his heel and took off down the steps of the terrace to look for Veronica.

Dominic sighed and laced his fingers behind his head. "I hope I don't have to resort to violence. Mom would kill me despite her pacifist teachings."

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Veronica walked along the lighted path through the acres of woods that were enclosed within the high walls of the property. She could hear the soft noises of insects of the night as well as the sounds of the wind whispering through the trees. Her flip-flops crunched on the gravel beneath them before she sat down on one of the many stone benches that lined the long path through the woods. Slipping them off, she pulled her knees up and rested her chin on them. Her hair tickled her neck and cheeks since she hadn't pulled it back this morning. She wanted to talk to Vaughn, but she wasn't quite sure what she wanted to say to him. Sighing, she closed her eyes. "What I would say if you were here," she whispered. The sound of someone approaching made her open her eyes again. Standing a few feet away, beneath a tree, stood Vaughn. His hands were shoved in the pockets of his jeans, his shirttails flapping in the slight breeze. Those violet eyes of his were on her. "Vaughn."

"Veronica," he returned as he gazed back at her. His heart twisted as he thought of what she had gone through without him, and the guilty feeling that assailed him because he had been the cause of some of it. Her hair was loose, falling about her shoulders like spun gold in the soft lighting. All he wanted to do was go over to her and pull her into his arms, never to let go of her.

"How is your nose?" she asked quietly.

"It's better. It's been better," he replied as he approached her, his gait hesitant. He stood next to the bench, looking down at her. "Can I?" he asked, nodding at the space next to her.

She kept her eyes on his as she nodded. At this close, she could see the faint bruises under his tanned skin. "Does it hurt?"

"Only when I sneeze."

A smile quirked her lips as his response and she turned herself towards him a little. "He hit you pretty hard, didn't he?"

"Enough to make me bleed all over the place," Vaughn replied, his own mouth tilting up into a slight smile. Her sapphire eyes met his again as silence ensued again. He glanced away from her sapphire eyes, but his eyes shot to hers when he felt the light touch of her fingers on his cheekbones. "Veronica…"

"Shh…let me see…"she murmured as she let her fingers glide over the bruised area under his eyes.

Her touch was gentle and caring as she touched the bridge of his nose, where Donavon's well-aimed fist had broken it. He could feel his insides rioting with sensations.

His skin felt warm under her fingers. Her eyes followed her fingers as they made a light pass over his nose again before sweeping across his cheekbones and bruises. "This is my fault. I knew Donavon would get angry from what I told him. I should have known he resort to this," she thought as a look of remorse came over her features. "I'm sorry."

"What?"

"I'm sorry. It's my fault that your cousin did this to you. If I hadn't been so upset, if I had thought things through, maybe he wouldn't have broken your nose."

Vaughn shook his head and grasped her fingers in his, lacing his fingers with hers. "No, Veronica. I deserved the broken nose. Donavon was justified. I shouldn't have fantasized about Randy, and we should have remembered that not everyone will see the banter between the two of us as harmless."

Veronica let another rueful smile touch her lips at his reply. "Vaughn, I know you and Randy well enough to know that you two rarely mean the things you say to each other…but it is my fault no matter how you look at it. This is whole thing is my fault. I only dragged Randy and you into this…these are the consequences of my bad choices. And I knew…I knew that there were times that Donavon and you would defend me…even though you knew half of the stories told about me to be true. It was something that you didn't have to do…but you two did it anyway. And I helped drive this wedge between you and him because of my own insecurity…and now, he doesn't trust you because of that…and it's my fault that this…" she was cut off when he suddenly cupped her face between his hands. "Vaughn?"

"Ver, stop. Don't put this all on you. It's not your fault; it's mine as well as Randy's. And I know she's admitted as much. Randy…was, and I mean was my fantasy. I couldn't help it if I even tried…and kissing her was nice…but it wasn't who I was always thinking of when I was. I liked kissing her, but imagining who I could be kissing was better," he said as he ran his thumbs over her cheeks. Her skin felt warm and smooth. "I shouldn't have said what I said to her that day and she knows she shouldn't have said those things she said to you. I never thought you would ever take it the wrong way…even after the past weeks before that, about how I was treating you. I may not have told you exactly how I felt about you, but I did drop hints in the way I acted with you."

His eyes were gazing into hers, making it hard for her to breathe. They were shining with emotion. "I knew that you cared about me, but…I wasn't sure. I'm not sure how you really feel about me?"

Her eyes were wide and luminous. They were searching his with intensity. He swallowed and raked his teeth over his lower lip. He continued to trail his fingers over the softness of her skin, watching her, watch him. "When you got hurt…I felt it. I knew instantly that something was wrong. I could feel you…here," he said as he grasped her hand in his and held it over his chest. "It hurt me so bad…I felt like my chest was going to collapse. I didn't know why you were hurting so much at the time…my heart was constricting with so much pain…I couldn't sleep. I wanted to make it go away…but you were still angry at me…I wanted to stop whatever was hurting you…but I couldn't," he said, his voice faint as his hand clutched hers. "It wasn't until a hefty dose of painkillers knocked me out enough to sleep…my dad told me in the morning. He knew, he had felt every little thing. It made me angry that I couldn't be there with you, I was angry with myself because I did it to myself, and in a fury because I couldn't go after Bobby again and beat the living hell out of him."

Tears gathered in the corners of her eyes as they held his. There was so much guilt written his face and eyes. She could feel his heart thumping against her palm and the tightness of his fingers, as they remained locked about her hand. He looked as miserable as she had felt. "Vaughn…I wanted you there…but Bobby had told me that you didn't want anything that he had touched…and that it included me. Is that true?"

"Yes, I told that bastard that I would never want anything he had touched, but not you…never you…I wanted you…I've always wanted…" he was cut off as she leaned forwards and kissed him. He felt wetness of her tears against his cheek, nose, and lips.

It was impulsive, but she didn't want to think. "He wants me? He's always wanted me? How come I didn't think of it or see it? He's always wanted me," she thought as she found his other hand on his lap and wrapped her hand around his fingers, squeezing.

"Veronica," he murmured against her lips, fighting for his control to not drag her onto his lap and kiss her with everything he wanted to offer her. "Veronica…you want to know how I feel about you?" he asked as he tugged his lips away from hers to gaze into her glistening sapphire eyes. "I love you. It's always been you, no one else," he said as he joined his lips to hers again as his hand loosened its hold on hers, letting her fingers curl against his chest, while he slipped it around the back of her neck. Her hair brushed his knuckles, feeling like silk.

He knew how to kiss her. She could feel every nerve-ending quiver from the contact of his lips against hers. The one time they had kissed, she had done it for spite, and he had turned it around on her, teaching her a lesson. But this was different. His heart and soul were in it this time; his emotions were transmitted through his lips to hers. "Oh my God, he loves me," her mind whispered, making her turn towards him and wrap both her arms around him. Her lips parted against the gentle nudging of his. Her own heart thundered in her ears.

Wrapping his arm around her, he held her as close as he could. Her curvaceous figure fit against his, as he successfully tugged her onto his lap. He loved the feel of her mouth against his. He thought about the way he kissed her that night when the electricity went out. Her lips had been hot and demanding. She was filled with passion, with a fire not one person could even think to calm. She had always been out of control, but that was what he loved about her. Her lack of inhibitions intrigued him, teased him, making him want to know more of what made her tick. But this was a kiss to soothe, to wash away everything he had done wrong with her, to make her his. He licked her lower lip, slowly dragging his tongue across it.

The sensuous sensation made her scalp tingle and her hold tighten on him. She touched the tip of her tongue against his. She heard a soft growl before his tongue slid into her mouth and swept her consciousness away.

Feeling her emotions, made him dizzy. Feeling her tongue twisting with his, made his body hotter than it had ever been. The pleasure he derived from just having her in his arms and her mouth fitted to his was more then he had imagined. Tugging his mouth away from hers, he looked into her face, watching as her sapphire eyes opened to focus on him. "Now, do you know how I feel about you?"

"You love me," she replied, her voice tinged with wonder and happiness. His nose was pressed against hers, their foreheads resting against each other's, and their lips inches away. She closed her eyes again, a smile beginning to play on her lips. "I remember…that night when I slept. I heard someone say that they loved me…it was you, wasn't it?"

"Yes…it was me…I'm not very good at it…and it takes a lot of concentration, and it only works if you're connected on an emotional level with that person. And I was connected with you, and because I felt it with all my heart, I was able to transmit it to you…I love you, Veronica."

A tremor went through her as she saw the adoration in his eyes, his heart and all his emotions laid out for her. Lifting one hand, she pressed it against his cheek. "I love you too, Vaughn."

"I know that you do…I had a good idea when you started to get jealous of Randy the past few weeks. I knew that you cared, but when you saw her, and me I knew what it was. I knew you loved me then, just like you do now. And I promise to take care of you…it's my job to take care of what's mine…of what I've always considered mine," he said, tightening his own hold on her. "And I swear that I'll make everything up to you. I'll even prove to your father that I'm worthy enough to take care of his little girl's well being."

"You already did make it up to me, Vaughn. By telling me that you love me…you made it up to me," she said as she kissed him again.

Vaughn smiled against her mouth and kissed her back, giving her everything that she wanted and needed, and what his heart and hers desired most.

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Quatre smiled as he felt Veronica's and Vaughn's emotions ripple off of them. He glanced over at Heero. "Royal flush, Yuy. Oh and my son and your daughter are together," he added as he scooped his winnings towards him.

Heero's mouth dropped open slightly from the smooth way the blond had worded that information. "What?"

Duo snickered. "Looks like Heero's little angel has found her way into the loving arms of a "good boy."

Heero scowled and glanced at Quatre. "If he…"

Quatre shook his head. "He loves her, Heero, like she loves him. They'll be ok."

Not completely satisfied, but partly reassured by the smile on the other father's face, Heero decided to let it slide for now. "Just one wrong move, Winner, and there will be hell to pay."

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And outside on the softly lit path, the couple on the bench were oblivious to the world around them, as the out of control spirit of Veronica Yuy, was finally quenched with the hopeful and soothing love of Vaughn Winner.

A/N: HAPPY HOLIDAYS! Hope you enjoyed! XOXO!!