A/N: Sept 8, 2012: And once again, here is the next edited chapter. Hope you enjoy.

Disclaimer: I do not own The Lost World.

Chapter 6:

"I do," Roxton announced.

Three days had passed since Roxton had asked Veronica to marry him. There was no question as to what her answer was. A reluctant yes was definitely had. And, though the pair of them saw this as an absolute necessity, nothing more, Lady Roxton was a quicker shot than Roxton was with the wedding planning.

Both had pleaded with her to not make it a big deal, but all his mother would confirm was that it wouldn't be 'huge'. Now, here they were, the two of them, standing at the altar saying vows that each had imagined saying sometime in their lives but not to each other, in front of a hundred or so guests.

"Do you, Veronica Layton, take the Lord John Roxton as your lawfully wedded husband?" the priest asked.

"I do," Veronica said demurely, sighing her disbelief.

This was just too unreal. Of course she'd pictured her wedding a time or two, but the man in her fantasies was definitely not Roxton. It wasn't that she didn't see him as handsome or worthy; it was just that she'd always thought of him as a friend, nothing more. It was hard to digest, this standing at the altar with him…

Tuning back in to the wedding ceremony, she heard, "… I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride."

Veronica looked up to see that Roxton looked just as embarrassed as she did. They both had forgotten this part. Standing there a bit awkwardly for a second or two, Roxton decided to take action. He leaned into forward and gave her a quick, brief kiss on the lips. Pulling apart, it was to see that they both had red faces.

Almost immediately after that, they were off to the wedding reception. There, the tension between them eased as they ate, danced and watched other people do the same. They could have almost forgotten that they were at their own wedding and not some party, if it weren't for all the people who congratulated them.

When the 'party' finally wound down, it was to find the two of them sitting in a couple of chairs, totally exhausted. His mother was nearby talking to a few remaining guests. When she finished with them she walked over to the tired two.

"So, ready for your honeymoon?" his mother asked slyly.

"Mother!" he said, too tired to muster a proper outraged tone. "We agreed to your fancy wedding but never to a honeymoon!"

Veronica conjured up a weak nod in support; she looked ready to drop.

His mother surprised him with a laugh. "I'm just kidding, John."

"Ha ha, very funny," Roxton said dryly.

"Well, shall we head home?" Lady Roxton asked contently. "I've had the gifts put in the car already."

"Gifts, what gifts?" Veronica inquired sleepily.

"Your wedding gifts, of course."

"We may be married now, but it's not forever. We should return them straight away," Roxton said, his propriety coming into play.

"Our guests don't know that and they don't have to… We'll open your presents tomorrow and send thank you cards to all of our guests. It's only right," his mother planned. By this point, Veronica had fallen fast asleep. "Oh, it looks like you'll have to carry her to the automobile; we don't want to wake her…"

Her voice was too sing-song-y for his liking. Nevertheless, he gently picked up his wife—née friend—and walked with her out of the reception hall to put her in the car. Veronica slept silently all the way to the Roxton estate. And neither Roxton nor his mother spoke for fear of waking her peaceful slumber.

After about a half hour they arrived at their home. Roxton had to, once again, carry Veronica. They approached the door where he stopped momentarily to think, My God, now I'm carrying her over the threshold. What's next?

When his mother threw him a strange look he began to move. He couldn't avoid the inevitable. Giving her a quick good night, he proceeded up the stairs, towards Veronica's room. Once inside the room, he placed Veronica on her bed. He was about to leave, but hesitated. A second later, Roxton leaned forward and placed a chaste kiss onto the jungle woman's forehead.

"Good night, Veronica," he whispered into her hair.

Surprisingly, she turned her head towards him and somehow caught his lips with her own. Before he knew what was happening, she was kissing him and he, absentmindedly, began to kiss her back.

Veronica put her arms around him, pulling him down towards her. The kiss lasted mere seconds and by the end of it Veronica was wide awake.

She'd been so lost in the gentle touch that she had no idea, really, where she was, just that she was enjoying the touch of soft, full lips to her own. Slowly, she opened her eyes, coming face to face with Roxton.

Her eyes became giant saucers. She suddenly exclaimed, "Oh my God, Roxton. I—I didn't know it was you. I didn't think—I was dreaming about Malone. I—not you!" She scooted backwards on the bed, trying to distance herself from him. "I'm so sorry."

"It's all right, Veronica…" Roxton replied, disconcerted with himself. "I didn't exactly stop it either." Why is that? he thought to himself before continuing hastily, "You—you caught me by surprise. Go back to sleep and I'll see you in the morning… It was nothing, all right?"

"Nothing, yes, you're right," she agreed, taking a deep breath to calm her nerves. "Yes, ok, good night, Roxton."

With a deep breath of his own, he walked out of the room to his own. Thankfully, the minute his head hit the pillow he'd fallen asleep. Saving him from disturbing thoughts of the kiss he just shared with the woman that was not the one he loved.

The Next Morning ~ ~

Roxton woke up that morning feeling refreshed. He hated to think that it had anything to do with what had occurred the night before. Somehow, he felt he was betraying his friends, even though both he and Veronica had agreed it had been a fluke of a kiss.

He lay back in bed, forcing himself to think about the people they'd left behind on the Plateau. Well, actually one person's face popped to mind. He stayed there for a minute.

I wonder what Marguerite is doing right now? he pondered sadly. I hope she' doing well. I hope they're all well. He let out a bit of a sigh. They probably think we're all dead. Summerlee never came back, so they wouldn't expect us to either…

But they were alive and well. And, he was now married to his friend. How exactly would Marguerite take that news? Or Malone, for that matter? What they'd just done last night would surely turn all their lives upside down. And yet, it had to be done. There had been no question.

He let out a resigned sounding breath, a feeling that he was getting quite used to lately as nothing seemed to be in his control these days, and got up to take a bath. Dressing quickly, he made his way to the dining room for an early breakfast. He found his mother already seated, reading the paper.

Despite his feelings of no control over things, he'd have to say the entire trip home was worth it just to see the smile on his mother's face once again. She glanced up at him as he approached the table, beaming at him. He forgot sometimes how much he loved and had missed her. "Oh good, you're awake. Look, your wedding made front-page news. Isn't that wonderful?" She stuffed the newspaper in his face. And then, when she opened her mouth, it all came back to him, why he easily forgot.

"Good morning to you too, mother," Roxton said dryly as he took the newspaper from her. He scanned it swiftly. "Well, it's all a ruse, isn't it… God, I do not enjoy lying to the entire country."

"Ruse or no ruse," his mother harrumphed. "You are still married to Veronica and that's all the country needs to know."

"Speaking of Veronica… where is she?" he asked, trying to change the subject.

"She was so exhausted last night. You both may deny it, but I believe you two had a good time at the reception…"

Her words were perfectly innocent, but the pointed look she gave him was certainly not.

"Oh, mother, please stop this nonsense. Veronica and I are just friends and we'll always be friends," Roxton stated in irritation. "Besides I'm in lo—"

He cut himself off abruptly, having almost said that he was in love with Marguerite. At the last possible second, he refrained from saying so. He just didn't want to complicate things further, especially since he didn't know if he'd even see the brunette again.

"Besides, what?" His mother smirked.

"Besides… We're not staying married for long," he amended. "You've known that all along, mother."

"Yes, yes..." She breathed out an annoyed sigh of her own. "What did you and Veronica do last night when you went upstairs?".

Involuntarily, a flash of the kiss popped into his head. All morning he been trying to forget it and now, here he was, remembering every detail. "I— I put her in bed, tucked her in and went to sleep."

"As soon as Veronica wakes and has her breakfast we should open the presents. I had them placed in the sitting room," she suggested.

As if conjured up from their thoughts, Veronica chose that exact moment to enter the room.

They exchanged a round of good morning's that were punctuated with a blush on both Roxton and Veronica's part. Each one remembered the impromptu kiss they'd shared the night before. And, of course, Lady Roxton noticed the look they shared, she came to the quick conclusion that something was going on between them. But, she decided to give prying a rest for the day.

Veronica had donned on a light pink blouse that morning and tan colored skirt. She had her hair down, but pinned back away from her face.

"You look lovely this morning, Veronica," Roxton complimented.

"Thank you, Roxton," she responded rather shyly.

She couldn't help but wonder at her timid response. What is wrong with me? Why do I feel so… shy around Roxton all of the sudden?

"So, what are we doing today?" she asked quickly, hoping to cover up her flustered-ness

"When you finish your breakfast, we'll open the wedding gifts. Then, I planned a shopping trip for the two of us," Lady Roxton explained. "And a few social calls to some friends."

"What about me?" Roxton asked. "What am I supposed to do all day? Tired of me already, mother?"

"Of course not, dear. You're just going to have to amuse yourself today without me or your lovely wife."

"I guess I may as well visit James," he mock grumbled to himself.

"You mean Governor Smith?" Veronica asked.

"Yes. I haven't seen him since we got back. He wasn't able to come to our wedding…" Roxton informed.

"Well, be sure to thank him for me, again. If it wasn't for him we would still be in the middle of nowhere," Veronica said, shuddering at the thought.

Roxton chuckled lightly. "I'll do that."

Sometime later, Veronica had finished her breakfast and the trio had migrated to the sitting room. The elegant room was covered in boxes of all shapes, wrapped in smartly decorated paper.

Veronica was amazed by the amount they'd received, considering she was a sheer stranger to all their guests. "All these are for us?"

"Of course," Lady Roxton said quickly. "You two are the talk of the town…"

They began to open the gifts, developing a system where Veronica opened the gifts while Roxton made note of who sent what. His mother handled the thank you cards.

They received a myriad of things, from bed linens and crystal bowls to dinnerware and utensils. All things that would come in handy if they were ever to have their own household. They wouldn't. The big packages out of the way, there were a few envelopes containing gifts of the monetary kind. People had been more than generous, to say the least.

Coming to one of the last couple of envelopes, the one they opened next contained a note that accompanied the check. It read:

Dear John and Veronica,

I'm sorry that I was not present when you arrived after your long journey. I've been quite busy, myself, since I returned. I can't quite understand why you two have married, but I hope to find out. I'll be visiting quite soon. Right now, I am in France trying to persuade people to invest in a return expedition to the plateau. Please know that I never abandoned you. I've thought about you all every day. I hope to see you soon.

The page ended there; Roxton had to turn over the slip of paper to see who it was from. The signature he found there was familiar and had him gasping out loud. He instantly dropped the note to the ground in surprise.

"What's wrong, Roxton? Are you all right?" Veronica questioned concernedly.

He couldn't get the words out, so he just pointed to the fallen note. Veronica promptly picked it up and read as he watched. Her facial expression, by the end, conveyed exactly what he was feeling.

She too let out a short gasp. "Oh my God! Summerlee, he's alive!"

And that's it for chapter 6 and its edit. Reviews of any kind are appreciated.