On a particularly balmy evening, four very different couples came from four different places for one very mutual cause. Elizabeth and Nikolas were the first to arrive, a notable nod to the prince's good manners and proper upbringing. His sleek black limousine arrived at Wyndamere as punctual as ever, and he thought that maybe everything was going to work out for the night. Hoping against hope as he swept down the stairs, he couldn't help but pray that his thoughts were correct.
"Elizabeth, the car is here to pick us up!" he called up toward her wing. Dressed impeccably in black trousers and a crimson button-up shirt, he stopped to adjust his collar nervously in the mahogany mirror above the fireplace. He could hear Elizabeth respond, indicating that she would be down in a minute. Deciding upon a small drink to calm his nerves, he happily poured scotch into a crystal tumbler. The oily liquid slid down his throat, coating it with warmth and courage.
"Here I come," Elizabeth proclaimed as she made her grand appearance on the landing overhead. Looking up toward her, Nikolas felt all breath leave his lungs as he gazed at her adoringly. With her strapless crimson dress, kitten heels and flowing hair, she was the picture of perfection. Stepping off the bottom stair, she spun in a circle, allowing her skirt to flail out slightly. "Well, what do you think?"
"What do I think?" Nikolas mused aloud, moving over to wrap her in his warm embrace. Kissing the side of her neck, he growled in her ear hungrily. "I think that you look incredibly sexy, especially with the baby bump."
She smiled appreciatively as he slid their entwined hands down over her rounded stomach. Turning around so that they were both looking in the mirror, she leaned back against his chest. "I'm really nervous about this, Nik. I mean, last time didn't go so well, and I don't know that this time is going to be any different. I'm nervous that this is going to do more harm than good. I don't want our problems to affect your little sister."
Breaking away, he raked his hands through his hair. "I have to try to do this for Lulu, Elizabeth. I understand if you can't go, but I hope that you will. Emily hasn't asked me for anything since everything went down, but she wants to find a way to make this better for my sister. I owe it to both of them to at least try."
"You owe Emily? I don't think she was exactly hurting when she turned to Lucky," Liz replied. "Everyone is always so worried about hurting Emily. Lucky is certainly wrapped up in her. What about me? Are you going to be loyal to her or me?"
"I wasn't aware that we were on different sides," he responded. "Liz, I promise that you are my first priority, right up there with Spencer. But I still care about Emily. Maybe I'm not the one who hurt her this time, but I've hurt her plenty of times in the past. I still want her in my life, so I have to try."
"Fine," she relented. "Just don't ask me to pretend that Emily is innocent in all of this. She is just as much a part of this as I am."
"Let's not talk about this right now," he pleaded. "Let's just try to find a way to get through dinner. It is only an hour at the Quartermaines, we've done it a million times. We will figure out a way to make this work, I promise."
Emily reached up and straightened Lucky's tie, letting her fingers trail down his toned torso as she smiled at the handsome cop. "There you go," she said as she turned to affix her necklace around her neck. They were holed up in their room at Kelly's, enjoying a little alone time after a hectic work schedule all week. At first, they had talked about finding somewhere to live together, but Emily found it rather exciting that they had a secret place to rendezvous. They were together most nights anyhow, either at the mansion or at the old Spencer house where Lucky was staying.
"You know, we probably should have gotten ready at your house. I mean, you are officially the host," Lucky told her as they headed out of the café. Slipping behind the wheel of her luxurious sports car, he couldn't help but enjoy the power the vehicle exuded. "I still love this thing."
"I could care less about it. I'd be happy driving around in your cruiser all the time if you want to trade," she teased.
He chuckled brightly before putting the car into reverse. "Somehow, I don't think Mac would quite approve of that. He has this thing about boundaries."
"Speaking of boundaries, how do you feel about tonight?" Emily asked. "Are you nervous about us all being together?"
Lucky shook his head. "As long as you are on your best behavior, I think everything will be fine. We can't have anymore episodes like the other night. I wouldn't usually ask you to act different than you want, Em, but I want to protect my little sister. She needs to see that we're all still there for her."
"Are you guys going to tell her about the family session tonight?"
He nodded. "Nikolas and I agreed that it would be the best thing for her if we could do it as quickly as possible. I don't want her to feel like we are attacking her or that this dinner is about this, but I also want her to know that we are all going to be there for her. My dad and Tracey have agreed to be there, and Dillon will bring her to the hospital. I'd like for you and Elizabeth to be there, but I'm going to leave that up to the two of you. If you don't think you can handle it, I understand, but I'd appreciate it if you could at least try."
"I'd do anything for your sister, Lucky, you know that," Emily said. "She's apart of my family, too. Not just because my aunt is married to your dad – which is weird every time I say it aloud – but because I've always been apart of her life. First as your best friend and then as her sister-in-law. Even if it's not legal, I still feel like she's my little sister. Elizabeth does, too. Nothing could change that."
Robin grumbled as she waited for the van's lift to lower so that she could roll her favorite new accessory, her chrome wheelchair, into the vehicle. "I can't wait until I get out of this damn thing," she said, probably for the thousandth time in the past month. "Besides, it's just not fashionable."
"You Parisian snob," Patrick teased as he strapped the wheels in and jogged around to the driver's side. Glancing at her in the rearview mirror, he turned around and flashed her a winning smile. "You look very beautiful, by the way."
"I've been waiting for you to say that for the past five minutes," she replied, "but thank you." Skirts didn't tend to work well for her quite yet as she wasn't use to material getting caught in the spokes. So, instead, she had opted for an emerald sweater and black flared pants. She had insisted, however, on heels. Patrick had helped her strap them on, all the while wondering why it mattered. She had explained that while it didn't make much sense logically, it impacted how she felt about herself.
"You know, I've never been to the mansion. I bet it's pretty lavish."
"Not anymore than Wyndamere," she said dismissively. Truth be told, she knew that the house was ornate, but she'd been around it enough to not be impressed by the house anymore. It was more the people inside that had had an effect on her. Between Lila's incredible grace, Alan's infinite patience and Ned's heartfelt friendship, the Quartermaines had long been a second family to her. Everyone except Tracey seemed to adore the petite brunette, and even her distain was limited.
"So, why exactly are included in this evening?"
"I think we are what is referred to as the buffer couple," Robin answered. "But I'm happy to do it because these are my friends. Emily and Elizabeth helped save my life, and Nikolas and Lucky have been my friends forever. If it helps them feel more comfortable if we're around, then I'm willing to do that. Besides, you know that Lulu needs this. As doctors, we are morally obligated to help with her progress in any way we can."
"I don't know about that," he said as he turned the car toward the gatehouse, "but I am willing to at least try to make tonight bearable. I won't even pick any fights with you. You can say or do whatever you want, and I won't let it faze me."
"Now that's a plan I can live with," she grinned as he pulled the van to a bumpy stop just outside the front door. The expansive white house unfolded in front of them in all its majesty. She heard him take a deep breath and then exhale loudly. "Okay, so it is a little spacious."
"I think that's putting it lightly," he commented before swinging himself out of the van. Pressing the lever to lower her out of the van, he waited patiently until she had rolled out and onto the cobblestone drive. "Well, Mrs. Buffer, are you ready to go?"
Upstairs in Dillon's room, Lulu rushed around trying to find her missing red ballet flat. He was sitting patiently on the bed, having been ready for nearly a half-hour. Finally, spotting in beneath a chair across the room, he strode over and held it up for her to see. It dangled on the end of his index finger as she retrieved it thankfully, laying a gentle kiss on his lips. "Thanks, I've been looking for that!" she exclaimed before ambling over to put on the rest of her makeup.
"We live here, and we're going to be the last ones down to dinner," he remarked absently before flipping open a film magazine tucked on his nightstand. They had spent most of the day packing, filling brown packing crates with the contents of Dillon's life. Lulu's room was to be attacked the next day. Boxes of DVDs, books, clothes and other miscellaneous items littered his room. Tomorrow, they planned to pack her CDs, shoes and everything else she had hauled to the mansion. Their apartment was finally open, and as a special treat to her before the family session, he had arranged for them to move in immediately. They still hadn't broached the subject of the session, so he wanted to give her a soft place to land.
"You know, there are a lot of people out there who probably don't really think we belong together," Lulu said offhand as she pressed an earring through the lobe. "I wish that they could see what we see and maybe they wouldn't be so preposterous as to deny what we share. I mean, for me, it's always been so obvious."
Dillon nodded. "It is obvious. We are the people who hold the fate of our lives in our hands, not them. Sometimes, people get things so completely wrong that it takes something like us to make it right. It's like a television show where the writers deny what the viewers can so plainly see. It's frustrating to have the writers – or in our case, our parents – try to prevent the inevitable. But in the end, what's right always comes around."
"And there's my little film buff that I love so much," she cooed, dropping the mascara tube back on the bureau to make her way toward him. Sitting on his lap, she wrapped her arms around his neck and languished in a long, sensual kiss. "I love you so much."
He smiled against her lips, "I love you so much." Then, picking her up, he started toward the door. "I just heard the doorbell. It sounds like our guests are arriving downstairs."
"They're not our guests," she pointed out. "This is Emily's dinner. We're lucky to just be just the guests. I have this sinking feeling that they're going to make this about me."
"You're probably right," he said mystically.
"What do you know, Quartermaine?"
"Nothing, Spencer."
"Dillon, tell me."
He reached for his hands and laced their fingers together. "This is about you, but I promised that I wouldn't say anything else until everyone was together," he answered. "I'm sorry, I know you're not going to like that answer, but it's all I have. You need to hear the rest from your brothers."
Lulu dropped his hand and shot him an angry look. He stared back at her until her face fell slightly into a bright smile. "You're lucky that I love you."
"Yes, I am."