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#If I Can't Love Her

By: Night Music

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Author's Note: Heh, well, I was listening to my Broadway Beauty & The Beast soundtrack with my little sister and the song "If I Can't Love Her" got stuck in my head so it was my main inspiration for this story. I decided that I wanted to write my own TP Valentine's Day so this is my gift to all of you… I hope you have a wonderful and very Happy V-Day!

Summary: Jim decides to play matchmaker and give his mom an extra-special gift for Valentine's Day this year…the gift of love. (Silver/Sarah)

Disclaimer: Catherine is the only character that belongs to me…the rest of them are pure Stevenson (as technically, he did have claims to them before Disney did).

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No passion could reach me
No lesson could teach me
How I could have loved her and made her love me too
If I can't love her, then who?

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Sarah shook her head wearily as her son took her by the hands and forced her to stand from where she sat at her desk looking over some legal documents by the dim light of a candle. "Jim, really, it's been a long day and I've got to make sure these bills are paid off if we're going to keep things running here. I don't have time to fool around right now."

"Mom, you work far too hard for your own good. Now, will you just trust me for once?" Her son stopped, smiling down at his mother before placing a kiss to her forehead. He'd gotten taller over the years and now stood several inches above her, dark blue eyes that mirrored her own looking down upon her with a beautiful sparkle of excitement within them. Gently taking her small hands in his own, he gave them a reassuring squeeze before she could speak in answer to his question. "Now, you go on upstairs and get dressed because I have a special surprise for you. No, I don't want to hear it! No protests. You're going out tonight whether you like it or not." He grinned, that mischievous look that she knew all too well crossing his face. "I'll make sure the kitchen is cleaned and everything is closed up for the night. You don't worry about a thing. I got it taken care of, okay? Just go on upstairs and get dressed for a night out."

The young woman sighed, her shoulders slumping just a bit in defeat though she couldn't stop a small, almost curious smile. Jim had been babbling all day about this big "surprise" that he had prepared for her and she wondered what her son could have possibly cooked up in that clever mind of his. Besides, she knew he was just as stubborn as his father was when it came to things like this and so she rolled her eyes again in surrender, unable to stop the soft laugh that escape her lips. "Still using those 'puppy-dog' eyes on me, even after all these years? Really, Jim, you shouldn't prey upon a woman's weakness in such a way." She smirked and squeezed his hands in return. "Very well. I'll go get dressed but do me a favor and make sure that Catherine restocks the purp barrel before she goes, will you? I need to make sure I have plenty of fresh purps to serve for breakfast tomorrow."

The young man grinned triumphantly with a quick nod of his head. "Don't worry, I'm on it. Now go."

Sarah smiled and gave another pleasant roll of her eyes before quickly turning to walk up the stairs that led to the bedrooms. Jim watched her until she slipped down the darkened hallway, the sound of her work skirts rustling quietly against her legs. Once he was sure she was in her bedroom, he turned about with a laugh and rubbed his hands together.

Everything was going exactly as he had planned.

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There was a soft knock on the door of one of the guest rooms, and Jim heard a long pause from inside before the door was swung open for him. He entered into the room quickly so that no one saw him, and closed the door firmly behind him before turning about to see the tall silhouette of his friend standing in the candlelight, running his hands somewhat nervously down the front of his jacket in an attempt to smooth it out.

"Wow, you really clean up good, don't you, Silver?" he remarked with a laugh and a shake of his head, leaning casually back against the door as he took in the sight before him.

The old cyborg gave him a slight glare before turning back towards the large mirror that stood off to one side, and again he ran his large hands awkwardly over the jacket. He was dressed in the finest suit possible - a dark blue jacket with gold embroidery that hugged his broad shoulders, a white vest and shirt underneath with black buttons, and long black pants that hid the machinery of his cyborg leg. The only thing that remained of his old pirate's clothing was the tri-cornered hat and golden earring that he never parted with.

"I'm not so sure about this, Jimbo," the pirate admitted softly, tugging at the cuffs of the jacket to straighten them out. "I've never really done anythin' like this before."

Jim smiled, the older man's nervousness making him appear like a schoolboy right before his first date. "Hey, you love my mom, right?"

Silver turned to face him, certainty evident in his gaze and stance. "More than anythin', lad."

"So then what's not to be sure about? You've been waiting for the opportunity to tell her, right? What better a time to tell her than on Valentine's Day?"

The cyborg sighed and shook his head, turning to slump down to sit on the bed as he removed his hat. "That be the thing, lad. I don't want ye're mother to feel like I'm only tellin' her such a thing because it's some special day. I want her to know I really, truly mean it." His eyes refused to meet Jim's as he focused down on the hat that he ran through his hands. "It just seems like such a superficial holiday, Jimbo. It always has to me. If ye really love someone…it shouldn't take a special day to get ye to say it. I just don't want her to think I'm not entirely sincere."

Jim couldn't help but smile just a bit, finding such honest and candid words coming from the usually strong and certain man quite endearing. When he'd first found out that Silver was in love with his mother, he'd been uncertain about it. He knew Silver was in love with the freedom that he found out in space, and he didn't want to see his mother hurt again by a man who would not be able to handle the commitment of a relationship. But as time went on it became more and more evident to him that this love Silver had for the amazing woman was indeed real. Since he had come to the Benbow Inn and met her, he'd not yet returned to the sky except on a few pleasure rides that always brought him back at the end of the day. His passion for the untamed skies had now shifted to a true, gentle passion for a woman that he respected and loved with every fiber in his body and the alluring call of that freedom out in space had stopped as he finally found a place where he felt as though he belonged.

Jim stood to his full height from where he had been propped against the door and stepped over to kneel down in front of his friend so that he could look him right in the eyes. "Silver…just trust me on this one, alright? My mother knows you and I know that she loves you. If you're truly sincere when you tell her of your feelings, she'll know it. Whether it be on Valentines Day, Christmas Eve, New Years, Halloween… Trust me. She'll know."

The very slight smile that formed on the cyborg's features was one of relief and gratitude as he nodded his head to the boy's words, his tense shoulders seeming to relax just a bit as he breathed in deeply to try and still his nerves.

Jim gave a smile in return and stood back up to his feet. "Well, you'd better finish getting ready then. I'm going to go and help Catherine in the kitchen before Mom comes down. I'll see you in just a little while…and don't worry. Tonight is going to be perfect."

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"Oh, Catherine, Mom wanted me to make sure that you restocked the purp barrel before you called it a night."

The young maid laughed as she pulled her shawl about her shoulders. "Tell her not to worry. It's restocked and ready to go for the morning. The kitchens cleaned and I swept out the back room so everything is locked up back there."

"Thanks. I'll just finish up in here and then everything will be finished for the night. You go on and head out."

"Thanks, Jim. Oh, and a happy Valentine's Day to you."

"Happy Valentine's Day to you as well. Take care."

The young girl swept out of the room quietly, pulling the door closed behind her. Jim gave a slight smile as he shook his head, returning to the task of cleaning off the tables and setting the chairs back in order. He was glad his mom had finally consented to hiring a bit of help about the place. At first she had been wary of the idea, having always run the inn all by herself, but Jim knew she really appreciated Catherine's help. The girl was a hard worker and a fast learner, always anticipating Sarah's next request and seeing to it that each of her chores were carried out to perfection. Besides Sarah, she was always the last to leave at night and the first to come in the next morning. Jim knew that secretly she had developed the same sort of love for the old inn that his mother had, and he often wondered if Sarah would one day hand down ownership to her.

The sound of soft footsteps coming down the stairs was what alerted Jim to his mother's presence as he looked up from the table he was cleaning, a large grin spreading across his lips at the sight of her. She was so beautiful. Hair pulled back in a tumbling of dark curls that rested lightly over one slender shoulder left a bit bare by the wide neckline of her dress. The dark green gown she wore had actually been a gift from Silver, as had the small emerald that adorned the chain about her neck, and she wore them both with the elegance and grace of a woman of high class. Her lips had been colored a darker shade and a small amount of powder had been added to her face, though all of the beauty she held was clearly natural.

"Mom," Jim murmured lovingly as she came down to the last step. "You look great."

Sarah blushed a bit at the compliment, one hand rising to fiddle with the emerald necklace out of a nervous habit as she glanced downward towards the dress that covered her lithe frame. It was very rare that she got to get dressed up, though she did so love doing it. Like any woman, she enjoyed getting out of her work clothes and making herself pretty for a special evening. She even took time to have that guilty little pleasure of spinning about in front of her mirror, admiring how the skirt fluttered around her legs and striking a few different poses before giggling like a young girl with excitement. The last time she had actually had the opportunity to get all dressed up like this had been during the party to celebrate the Benbow's reopening which was nearly two years ago. She remembered it well, for it had been that night that Silver had come to seek out sanctuary in the old inn from the authorities that still sought him out.

"Why aren't you already dressed, Jim?" Sarah asked, looking back up and giving a slight tilt of her head, soft curls framing her face at this motion. "You did say we were going out tonight, didn't you?"

There was that mischievous, wicked little grin again as the young man shook his head, holding up his hand to stop her words. "Ah, I didn't say we were going out…I said that you were going out. Remember?"

The woman blinked her dark blue eyes quizzically, but was unable to ask any questions as her son took her by the hands and excitedly led her towards the door of the inn.