However, 'uneventful' changed almost the instant that Tony Dovolani arrived at the O'Neill home. He emerged from the taxi that had brought him to the address that Nick had given him last week and shrugged. Hopefully his friend was here, or things were going to be VERY awkward.
Giving the driver his money and a decent tip, he walked up the driveway and knocked hesitantly on the door.
The door opened. "Hello?" The blond pregnant woman asked as she opened the door.
"Hello, my name is Tony Dovolani...is Nick Kosovich here?"
There was a squeak from behind her as a young woman with light colored hair came racing around the corner. "Oh my gosh! Tony Dovolani!" She said, excited.
He smiled at her. "That'd be me...and just who might you be?"
"I'm Cassandra Frasier." She replied, holding out a hand.
Tony bowed low and kissed it. "Hej, Cassandra." He said, sounding very Albanian.
She tried to fight it, but suddenly, a girlish giggle escaped her lips. "Nice to meet you, Tony."
Nick hobbled over to the door where the whole house was congregating. "Okay, Tony, stop flirting with Cassandra...she's already spoken for..."
Tony grinned at the sight of his friend, then looked concerned as he noticed the cane in the dancer's hand. "Nick, are you ok? What happened?"
"I'm fine." He said, brushing away the questions as Cassie looked down at her feet in shame.
The dancer saw this and correctly surmised that there had been an accident of some kind and made a mental note to not ask. "So who's the lucky guy?" He asked Cassie lightly.
Liam walked out. "Uh...I think that'd be me...unless Cassandra wants to trade in the non-dancing model for the award-winning dancing model..." He teased, his arm snaking around Cassandra's waist. "I'm Liam Harris." He said, extending his free arm to the dancer.
Tony chuckled. "Nice to meet you. I'm Tony Dovolani."
Liam gave a mock sigh. "Oh, believe me...I know..."
Even though Tony had a darker complexion, everyone could see him blushing. "Thanks...I think..."
Cassie gently elbowed Liam in the ribs. "Be nice..." She quickly turned back to the Albanian. "What brings you to Colorado Springs?"
"I was in town for a competition and hadn't seen Nick in a while, so I thought I could stop by and say hi while I was here."
"Well, it's good to see you. But let's move this party inside, shall we?" Nick said, as he pulled his friend inside, past the crowd.
"Sure..." Tony replied, careful to avoid jostling Nick's leg.
The back door opened, and Sam turned to find Jack returning with Grace, Danny, Tommy, Nicky, and Michael. At the sight of "Uncle Tony" the Kosovich boys broke into a run. "UNCLE TONY!" They cried.
"Hey boys!" Tony replied happily, getting down on both of his knees so as to be closer to their height. They both launched themselves at him so enthusiastically that all three of them fell over backwards.
Lena walked in a few steps behind the group, and she saw only part of the exchange. The boys had tackled some poor unfortunate soul, and she didn't even know who it was.
As they pulled themselves back to a sitting position, she saw a glimpse of the man's hair and face. "Tony!' She cried, happily.
He grinned and waved cheerfully at her, his arms still full of two giggling little boys.
Sam, Jack, Daniel, Janet, Cassie, Liam, Kinsah, Rihana, Alan, Michael, Grace, and Nicky just watched the proceedings, happy to see the obviously joyful reunion.
"Okay you two, Uncle Tony is getting too old for this." The dancer said with a fake groan as he got up again.
Nick snorted. "YOU'RE getting old..."
Shooting his friend a sly smile, Tony merely shrugged eloquently before kneeling down in front of Grace. "Who is this lovely young lady?" He asked seriously.
Grace looked at him almost in awe. "Grace."
Tony smiled at her. "Pleased to meet you, Grace." He responded, kissing her small hand.
"I think Grace has officially dumped Liam." Lena whispered to Sam, who chuckled.
"Hey, I heard that!" Liam said, mocking incense.
Grace surprised everyone by leaning forward and hugging Tony, who returned the impetuous embrace with a slight smirk directed at Liam.
"Grace!" Liam said, feigning hurt. "I didn't get a hug when I came over!"
Grace looked at him. "You belong to Cassie now...Tony doesn't belong to anybody!" She said happily.
Cassie chuckled with the rest of the adults as Liam blushed.
Tony also turned a slight reddish hue before scooping Grace up into his arms easily. She twined her arms around his neck, looking almost smug.
Lena looked over at her boys, and was somewhat surprised to see a small scowl on the lips of her eldest son. "Uh oh," she whispered.
Looking over, Tony caught sight of the slight scowl on Danny's face and whispered something in the little girl's ear. She grinned and once Tony had set her down, she raced over to Danny and hugged him too.
"Hey, all of us unclaimed guys should get hugs." Tony said nonchalantly.
Tommy looked at Grace, with almost a look of disgust. "Uh...no thanks."
Grace gave him the evil eye and Tony gave Tommy a glare of his own. Sighing, the little boy hugged Grace quickly and ran off to play with his Legos.
Michael and Nicky also received hugs, which sadly, didn't do much to restore a smile to Danny's face.
And, of course, being the quintessential Daddy's little girl, Grace HAD to give her father a hug before returning to her seat on Tony's lap.
While Tony looked slightly uncomfortable, Nick hobbled over to his wife and whispered, "What do you think about Tony and Ria Sangford?"
She looked at her husband. "Do you ever stop matchmaking?"
"Only when I'm asleep." He shot back.
"And how often have you ACTUALLY been asleep?" She asked with a knowing grin.
"Oy, Nick... Lena...not in front of the kids!" Jack begged.
Nick gave her a smirk.
"Hey, it's not my fault that I'm irresistibly charming." Nick said in response to Jack's request.
Tony made a gagging noise that had all the children giggling.
"Okay, Nick...just...stop the scarring...RIGHT now!" Tony said, smiling.
Nick sighed. "The sacrifices I make for my friends..."
Tony snickered. "Do I get to sign the cast?" He asked, motioning to Nick's leg.
"Maybe...if you behave." Nick replied.
Biting his lip to keep back what he REALLY wanted to say, Tony merely nodded and focused his eyes on the ceiling so he wouldn't lose it!
"Was that a promise?" Liam asked, almost seriously.
A snort escaped Tony and he could no longer hold his laughter in. Everyone gave him a bemused look, but the adults had a fairly good idea of what was going on and were grateful that the dancer had restrained himself!
The kids just looked at the adults, curious looks in their eyes and Daniel and Janet took this opportunity to herd the children back outside so they wouldn't be utterly scarred before they turned seven.
Nick turned to Sam. "Tony and Ria...what do you think?"
"Oh...Ria...the nurse in the infirmary who was raped by the airman last year?" She asked, turning to Jack, who nodded.
"The same one...sweet girl who could use a gentleman..."
Sam nodded. "Yep. I think Tony would be great for her!"
Nick grinned widely and Tony looked at him suspiciously. "Nick, you're plotting again...I can tell."
"What? Me? Plotting? NEVER."
Giving an undignified snort, the Albanian muttered, "Yeah, and Alain Doucet is as pure as the driven snow..."
"Hey...THAT was just low!" Nick said, raising an eyebrow in the direction of his friend. "I'm NOTHING like Alain Doucet!"
Tony rolled his eyes. "No kidding, dude."
Nick eyed his friend for a moment before taking a deep breath and exhaling slowly. "Sorry Tony...you know how I feel about him."
Tony nodded wisely. "Yeah, I do...now tell me what you're plotting!"
He smirked. "That's for me to know and for you to lie awake and wonder about..."
"Oy vey..." Tony groaned, smacking his forehead with his open palm.
Nick just grinned. "So...how was the competition?"
"It went well...Elena and I got first." He said proudly.
"Good for you."
Though it had been a few years since he and Lena had been out on the dance floor competitively, he was very happy to hear that Tony was still doing very well.
Part of Nick still ached to get back out...even just to leave again, but with his latest injury, he could tell that it would be a while. And as far as ballroom dancers went, he and Lena were getting a little past their prime.
Tony shrugged. "I think she and I might go our separate ways." He said quietly.
Nick's eyes widened. "What? But you two..."
"She told me she's beginning to fall for me, and I said that I was flattered and honored, but...I just don't feel that way about her and I couldn't lie to her."
Nick nodded. "I see..."
"I haven't gotten a return ticket to New York yet...I thought I might stay out here for awhile, let things cool down a little bit before I head back." Tony replied, shifting Grace to his other arm.
"That's a good idea. Maybe after some time apart, Elena will get some perspective...maybe even a boyfriend...and your partnership won't have to end..." Nick said, hopefully. "But I understand if doesn't...the line between dance partners and...well...more than dance partners is very fuzzy. I'm just glad I don't have to worry about that line."
"You're definitely lucky there...you got a wonderful woman." Tony said wistfully.
Nick clapped a hand on his friend's shoulder. "You'll find one..." He said, a gleam in his eye.
"Oh no...don't even THINK about trying to set me up..." Tony began, backing away.
"What?" Nick asked, almost looking wounded.
"You have that matchmaking gleam in your eye...and I want NO part of this!"
"But she's a nice girl!" Nick protested. "And look how happy everyone else that I've match made is..." He gestured to everyone in the living room and they all nodded.
Tony crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. "Uh huh..." He said.
"Tony, I only failed ONCE, and that was with you and Inna..."
Tony closed his eyes and an expression of pain crossed his face.
Nick bowed his head and regrouped. "Look, I'm sorry...I shouldn't have said anything." He said before hobbling out the door to be with the kids.
Grace could see that Tony was sad, so she stretched up and hugged him. He smiled, grateful for this little girl that he'd only just met.
It was nearly an hour later before Tony approached Nick. He took a deep breath. "Okay...what's her name?"
Nick looked at Tony cautiously. "You ready?" He asked softly.
Tony looked at the ground. "I'm not sure..." He replied, honestly.
"Her name is Ria Sangford...she was one of the nurses who helped out with my leg." Nick replied.
"Ria? That's an unusual name." Tony said, turning the name over in his mind repeatedly.
"Yep. She's about 5 foot 6, medium length dark brown hair and hazel eyes." Nick added, knowing his friend's weakness for pretty eyes.
"Oy! You've been thinking about this a lot, haven't you?"
Nick shrugged. "She's been hurt by someone...really hurt and I figured that she deserved a gentleman like you." Tony looked down at the ground and Nick continued. "You also deserve to have a true lady."
Tony looked up, and took a deep breath. "I want to know up front what happened...I know it's sensitive, but..."
Nick exhaled slowly. "She was raped, Tony."
There was a stunned silence, as the breath in Tony's lungs stayed trapped in surprise. His fists clenched at his sides. "If I ever meet the animal that did it, I'll kill him."
Nick placed a calming hand on his friend's shoulder. "Right now, I think you should concentrate on Ria...she's really shy, and honestly, she's being ignored by the airmen on the base." He chuckled. "I asked her to help me up to the surface just to help make her feel special...The rest of the nurses were jealous of her." He finished, laughing.
Tony smiled slightly. "Well, it wouldn't do any harm to meet her and at least show her that not all men are algae." He mused.
"Exactly." Nick said, smiling a knowing smile.
"When do I meet her?"
"How about tomorrow?"
Tony nodded. "That would work...is there a basement or somewhere that I could practice?"
"Practice what? Saying 'hello, I'm Tony Dovolani?' I think you got enough practice with that today..." Nick said, dryly.
Tony did a double face palm. "My dancing, you debil!" He laughed.
Nick chuckled. "I'll see what I can't work out..."
"Thanks." Tony said, setting a sleepy Grace down gently on the sofa and rising to his feet. Stretching, he went outside onto the patio where Cassie and Liam had the radio going.
They looked up as he came out and Liam said, "Hey Tony, what songs do you like dancing to the most?"
"Oh, I do a mean "Twist and Shout"." Tony said, chuckling.
Liam snorted and Cassie laughed. Just then, the 80's hair band song "Cum On, Feel The Noise" began to play and Tony turned to Cassie with a grin. "Care for a Jive?" He asked.
She grinned. "I would LOVE one..."
Tony bowed to her, then took her by the hand and led her in a nice basic Jive.
When they were finished, Cassie looked back at Tony. "Thank you." She said, bowing.
She returned to her seat next to Liam, and Liam looked at Tony, feigning hurt. "You really are trying to steal my girlfriend, aren't you?"
"No...Nick's introducing me to someone named Ria Sangford tomorrow, so you don't have to worry about that..." Tony replied.
"Besides, where did I come back to?" Cassie asked, looking at Liam with a raised eyebrow.
Tony grinned. "Very true..."
Liam chuckled as he pulled Cassie into an embrace and kissed the top of her head. "So...Tony...you and Ria Sangford...that's not a bad combination..."
"So Nick claims..." Tony groaned, taking a seat on the top step.
"I would try to make her smile whenever I saw her...but I haven't been on the base very often lately." He said, sheepishly.
"Plus the fact that you've got a lovely girl." Tony said, nudging Cassie with his shoulder.
Liam looked at Cassie, and nodded. "Yep. The loveliest."
"Keep up the flattery, boys..." Cassie said, preening and Tony chuckled.
--
Inside, Nick picked up the phone and dialed Janet's desk number. He hoped that one of the nurses or attending physicians would answer it and that he would be able to speak to Ria about the next day.
"Hello, Dr. Warner speaking."
"Dr. Warner, it's Nick Kosovich, may I please speak with Ria Sangford?"
"Certainly!" Dr. Warner replied, putting the phone down and getting the young nurse.
Ria picked up hesitantly. "Hello?"
"Ria, it's Nick!"
"Oh...hi Nick!" She replied happily.
"Are you going to be free tomorrow?"
"As far as I know...why?"
"I have a friend who just got into town and he'd like to meet you."
Ria was unsure about this, but figured if he was a friend of Nick's, he was probably all right. "Okay...what's his name?"
"Tony Dovolani."
"Okay...meet...big group event...no awkward blind date, right?" She asked, trying to make sure that she was safe.
"Exactly." Nick confirmed.
"When and where should I be?"
"How about 5:30 at General O'Neill's house?" Nick replied.
"General O'Neill's house?" She asked, surprised. Though the General was quite friendly, and often had the members of SG-1 at his house, and even some of the members of SG-9, she had never anticipated winning an invitation to their house herself.
"Yep...that's where the raging horde is staying." Nick said with a chuckle.
"Raging horde?" She asked, allowing herself to chuckle as well.
"That's the technical term, of course..."
She laughed. "Okay...I'll be at General O'Neill's house at five-thirty tomorrow evening. Anything I should bring?"
Nick chuckled. "A comfortable pair of shoes...there's going to be some dancing!"
"Dancing?" She asked, her heart tightening in her chest for a moment.
"Ballroom mostly...although Jive is fun." He responded lightly. "We like to do ones we can dance with the children."
She exhaled again. "All right..." She began hesitantly. "Arrive at General O'Neill's house at five-thirty with a comfortable pair of shoes...I can do that."
"Great! We'll see you then!" Nick replied cheerfully. He hung up the phone with a wide grin. As usual, his plan was going perfectly according to plan.