Two days later, Tony strode into the kitchen, cell phone in his hand. "Hey, does anybody have Ria's number?" He asked fretfully.
"Uh...I might...why?" Sam asked, as she dug into her purse for her day planner.
"I just want to make sure we're still on for Friday night."
"Okay." She said, flipping through the pages. "Aha! Found it!"
"Good." He sighed with relief.
"Something wrong, Tony?" Nick asked, studying the man intently.
"No...why?" He asked defensively.
"Because you're jumpy like a kangaroo on steroids..." The dancer replied, his eyebrow raised in skepticism.
Tony chuckled weakly. "Funny, Nick...real funny."
"Tony..."
"What?" The Albanian asked, sounding like a child who didn't want to fess up to his parents.
"What are you so worried about?"
"She told me she's not ready to trust people." He admitted.
"Oy."
"Yeah." Tony agreed softly.
Nick looked at his friend, somewhat uncomfortably for a moment. "I wish I knew what to tell you..."
He shrugged. "It's not easy...I've been there."
"Yeah, I know..." Nick said; his voice filled with regret at the thought of the suffering that his friend had endured because of his blindness to Inna's flaws.
"So, I'm just going to give her a call and make sure that things are okay."
"That's a good idea..." Nick agreed before an idea struck him. "Wait, Tony…did YOU suggest the date, or was it kind of a...mutual understanding?"
His brow furrowed. "I think it was mutual understanding."
"Well...still check it out, but...don't worry about it quite as much...she may have just had a bad day..."
"I will."
"Okay."
Tony took the number and punched it into his cell phone. Taking a couple of deep breaths, he hit the "call" button and waited for a few seconds.
"Hello?"
"Hi Ria, it's Tony." He said nervously.
"Tony!" She greeted, happily. "How're you?"
"Good. Actually, I was just wondering if we're still on for Friday night..."
"Of course!"
"Okay." He replied, his voice infused with relief.
"You thought I'd cancel?"
"I had no idea." He said honestly.
"Do you want to talk about it?" She asked, somewhat puzzled over his nervous hesitation.
"Nah...it's fine."
"Are you sure? 'Cuz I don't want you walking on eggshells around me..."
"Ria, it's fine...honest." Tony replied, chuckling.
"You're positive...it's a pain to pull the shredded egg shells out of someone's feet..." She teased.
Tony shook his head and laughed. "I'm sure, Ria...believe me."
"Okay. So, other than the fact that you were worried that I would cancel on you...which, by the way, I would NEVER do...what's up?"
He sighed as he walked outside so he could conduct the conversation in private. "I just...didn't know if I'd made you uncomfortable the other day with the direction our conversation had taken..."
She sobered. "Oh. No, I just...I had some things that I needed to get off my chest. I'm sorry that they made you insecure."
"They didn't make me insecure...I was just thinking of you."
She smiled. "Then, I'm fine. Thank you for being so considerate."
"You're welcome. I'll see you on Friday."
"Six o' clock, right?"
"Yep! I even got a NICE rental too."
"You know, we COULD take my car..."
"Yeah, but I really wanted to take you in my rental." Tony fake whined.
"Fine." She said, with a theatrical sigh. "If that's what makes you feel better about yourself...pooky."
"Oh you did NOT just call me that!" Tony squawked.
"Wanna bet?"
"Fine...snookums."
It was her turn to squawk. "NO! Anything but snookums!"
"Then if you don't call me pooky, I won't call you snookums...deal?"
She sniffed. "Fine."
He chuckled. "Mirë u pafshim."
"In English, if you please..."
"Good bye."
"Already?" She complained. "And I was just getting started!"
"Well, if you still want to talk to me, I guess I can fit you in..." He teased.
"Well, in THAT case..." She replied, haughtily.
"Aw, come on...I'm just a poor boy from another country who doesn't have any friends here..." He wheedled.
"And yet, you guess that you can pencil me in?"
"Okay, fine...my every waking moment shall be devoted to you. Happy now?"
"Perhaps."
He pretended to be aghast. "Perhaps?!? Perhaps?!? What do I have to do, serenade you?"
"It wouldn't hurt..." She chuckled, teasingly.
"Okay...what's your favorite song?"
"I was joking, Tony..." She clarified, thinking that perhaps her use of humor had gone overboard.
"Afraid I'll butcher it?" He challenged jokingly.
"Well, I do love Puccini arias, but...those don't exactly make good serenades..."
"Yeah...and opera ain't exactly my thing." He chuckled. "What about musicals?"
"Well, since we DO seem to be channeling a little West Side Story with the Tony and Maria love story," she teased, "That MIGHT work. But one of my favorite songs of ALL time is a jazz chart."
"And that is..." He prompted.
She blushed, somewhat embarrassed, suddenly grateful that she was on the phone, rather than talking to him live. "(I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons."
"Ahhh...that's a nice one."
"Yep...and Kurt Elling...his voice...it's..." She sighed. "It's just like butter!"
"So I guess I have some competition then."
She laughed. "No...it seems as though he is in a perfectly happy relationship...and it's NOT with me."
"Yes! There's still hope!" He crowed.
She chuckled. "Yes...there is hope IF you're interested."
"I think I am." He answered.
She sobered. "Good...'cuz I'm interested too."
"That's good for me then." Tony answered, a slightly smug tone to his voice.
"Oh, don't go and get all smug about it, or I might have to come over..."
"Hmmm...that has distinct possibilities..." Tony purred.
"Fine. I'll be over in about fifteen minutes...what should we do?"
Tony's mind raced. "Ummm...hmmm...want me to consult the board game king?"
She laughed. "You might as well...I also have cards...I can bring them if you want...we can play slap jack…"
"Don't EVER play that game with Nick..." Tony warned. "He has a way of winning it whenever he plays."
"In other words...he cheats." She laughed.
"He cheats...and he charms his way out of it." Tony intoned darkly, as though he was talking about some spawn of the devil.
"Well, it IS Nick...he was THE charmer in the infirmary!"
"I bet..." Tony groaned.
"And if you thought that the nurses at the hospital were bad, you haven't seen the nurses in the infirmary!"
"Do they have the hots for Mr. Kosovich?"
"You could say that...it's always 'Nick told me this'...'Nick did this for me'...'Nick chose Ria to take him to the surface'..."
"Oh dear...you are the chosen one..." He teased.
"Yes, I am..." She chuckled.
"And I'm sure that Nick will probably milk that charm for all it's worth..."
"Are you saying that I shouldn't come over?"
"Not at all!" He said hastily.
"I'm already on my way," she soothed.
"Okay...just checking."
"So...who all is there?"
"Just me, Lena, Nick, Sam, and the assortment of children."
"An assortment of children?" She asked, chuckling. "Please tell me that you at least know how MANY are there..."
"Nope!"
She laughed. "You are something else, Tony Dovolani."
"That's what my mother always says..." He mused. "Except when she says it, it sounds more like this: Je diçka përndryshe, Driton!"
"Driton?"
"Crap!" Tony groaned.
"Some embarrassing name or something?"
"Yep...my first name." He admitted.
"What's so bad about it?" She asked, honestly. "I like it."
"That name got me beat up in school..." He shuddered. "And my middle name isn't any better!"
"What's that?"
"Antonius." He muttered.
"Kinda makes you sound Roman." She said, trying to stifle a chuckle,
"I know."
"You say that like it's a bad thing..."
"I don't like the name too much, but if I ever changed it, Mami would have a fit!"
"Driton Antonius Dovolani...sounds regal."
"Which I am NOT." He laughed.
"Don't sell yourself short!" She admonished. "You're very chivalrous...a true knight in shining armor!"
"Yeah, yeah...now are we going to see how badly Nick cheats or not?" He said, suppressing a chuckle.
"I'm actually just pulling up to the house now…"
Tony grinned as her car came into sight. "See you in a few seconds..."
"All right." She said as she turned the engine off and replaced the gloves that she had discarded in the fully heated car.
He closed his flip phone and hurried over to her car, opening the door for her before she could get a hand on it.
"Thank you." She said, with a smile. "Driton."
He gave her a mock glare.
"What? I'm not making fun of it! I really do like it!"
"And I don't!" He said, laughing.
"Maybe I haven't found the right way to say it." She said, darkly. Suddenly, her eyes turned very flirtatious and sensual. "Driton." She whispered with her voice low and seductive.
Tony's eyes widened and he had to consciously keep himself from drooling. "Not...bad." He said, coughing.
She laughed. "Sorry...I guess I got a little carried away, there, Tony. You don't like the name, and I should respect your wishes."
"Hey, if you want to call me Driton like THAT ever again, feel free..."
"And I'll file THAT away for future use..." She said, hurrying to the house before he could catch her.
"Hey!" He said, chasing her.
"Last one to the house is a rotten egg!" She called as she reached the steps.
"Oh, come on! You bamboozle my senses, then leave me to give chase?"
She turned. "Bamboozle, huh?"
"Yep."
"Go me." She said, softly as Tony reached her.
He stood there, contemplating her for a long moment.
"What?" She asked, somewhat nervous at the obvious scrutiny,
He gave her a lopsided smile before he answered.
"In this place I do not know, I see a treasure, rare and bright. In radiant day or darkest night, this golden one I'll always seek..." He said softly.
"That's...beautiful." She said, almost breathless.
"Really? I just made it up." He shrugged, somewhat embarrassed.
"For me?" She asked, somewhat timidly.
"Yeah...for some reason, you move me to be poetic."
Her stomach flip-flopped as she looked into his honest eyes once again. She was overwhelmed with the clarity that she could see within them. "I'm...I'm not anyone that has ever inspired some creative genius before." She managed, recovering quickly.
"Then maybe they weren't looking..."
Suddenly, there was a creak as the door opened. "Are you two coming in or not?" Danny asked, somewhat impatiently.
"Yeah...we're coming Danny." Tony said, stepping back so Ria could enter first.
Part of her was disappointed that the small boy had interrupted their moment. But on the other hand, she was almost petrified by how much she had learned about this wonderful man near her, and she didn't want to know any more, for fear that she should fall in love with him- he was certainly one of the ones that she would fall for...HARD.
Closing the door after them, Tony looked over at Nick. "Hey Nick, Ria brought cards over...you up for a game of slap jack?"
"Am I ever!" Nick said with a grin. "Nice to see you again, Ria." He said, walking over and kissing her hand, graciously.
Tony snorted. "And Mr. Charming strikes again..." He murmured.
"Oh, don't worry...I'm almost impervious to the charm." She whispered with a chuckle.
"Nice!" Tony said admiringly as Nick pretended to pout.
She grinned. "Yes, well, thank you...you can hold your applause until I win the game..."
Nick smirked. "No way…I'M winning the game."
"I'll win, and catch you cheating!" She said, challenging him.
"Me, cheat? Never!" He said, looking at her innocently out of his chocolate brown eyes.
"Oh, Tony already told me all about your methods..."
"I do NOT cheat." Nick said, sounding deeply affronted by this.
"Whatever." She said, giving him a grin as Tony took her coat.
Rolling her own eyes in testament to the untruth of her husband's statement, Lena took a seat at the coffee table. "Would you like to play, Danny?" She asked.
"May I, Mum?" He asked, hopefully.
"You may...you can help us make sure your Daddy doesn't cheat." She replied with a smirk.
"Okay. Now, is this one of the times that I get to play with you until I get the hang of the game?" He asked his mother.
"I think you'll be able to pick this one up rather quickly."
"But I like to play with you, Mummy!"
Lena smiled as she picked the boy up and set him on her lap. "All right."
Ria chuckled as she shuffled the cards. "Better watch out for him when he's sixteen, Lena…he'll be breaking hearts…"
Lena chuckled as she ran a hand through her son's hair. "He's already starting to exhibit some of Nick's charm…"
"Mum, I'm right here!"
"I know, sweetheart!" She laughed.
"All right…let's get this party started!" Nick said, sitting between Lena and Ria.
Lena looked at her husband, one eyebrow raised. He returned the look innocently which only served to deepen her suspicions.
"You are NOT going to try death by close proximity, are you?"
"Of course not!" Nick replied.
"Uh huh...not going to pull out the accent, lean carefully into her so that you can see her cards, but make her so enamored that she doesn't notice?" Lena asked, her eyebrow raised.
"My dear, I am gravely offended that you would even suggest such a thing." He sniffed.
"Oh, I KNOW you would do that...you do it to ME every time we play poker!"
"Yes my dear, but you are my special one…" He replied, smiling.
"Right..." She said, rolling her eyes.
"You are!" He protested.
"No, I know that...but it's not like you wouldn't try the same trick on the other woman sitting by your side..." She said, sweetly.
Nick's lower lip trembled slightly. "I can't believe you would think that of me..."
"All right, folks!" Tony interrupted. "Let's get started before Nick and Lena start making out...I mean, making up..."
Nick shot his friend a good natured glare before turning his attention to his cards.
"Person to the left of the dealer is going first..." Ria said, authoritatively. "So...Tony, go ahead."
Tony laid down his card, the 2 of clubs and waited, eyes fixed on the cards to see if the next one would be a Jack.
Lena whispered into Danny's ear and he laid down the next card: the Queen of hearts.
Nick laid his own card on top of the Queen and looked at Ria.
She raised an eyebrow as her hand shot out and slapped the Jack before Tony, Nick, or Danny.
"Drat!" Nick grumbled playfully.
She grinned, smugly. "Better pay attention, dancer boy...I'm quick."
"Dancer boy?" Nick asked, one eyebrow raised. Leaning in closer, he growled low under his breath, "You may be a nurse madam, but I still play to win..."
Her breath was taken away for a moment before she gave a tiny cough and placed her own card down on the table.
He smiled to himself as Tony laid down another card and gave him a mock glare across the table.
"Get your eyes off my girlfriend!" He growled, playfully. "You've got your wife next to you..."
"I know...I'm blessed to be in the presence of two of the loveliest creatures on the earth." He replied suavely.
"Oh, this is war!" Tony said as Danny slapped the Jack of spades that he and his mother had just lain down.
"Good going Danny!" Nick said, pleased that his son had gotten the cards this time.
"I know." The young boy said, smugly.
Nick chuckled as he placed the ace of Hearts down and awaited Ria's card.
She placed the ten of clubs down and all eyes turned to Tony.
Tony laid down the Jack of Spades and before he could move his hand, Nick's tanned fingers were already on the face of the card. "Yes!"
"Beginner's luck." Ria muttered as she peeked at Nick from under her dark eyelashes.
"Ah, but I am no beginner..." Nick purred as he shuffled his cards.
She shuffled her own and Tony and Lena looked at one another, as though at a loss for words at the competition that this had become...
Shrugging his shoulders, Tony waited as Ria put down a card, then set his own on top of it.
Danny placed his own card on top of the pile, and Nick followed suit.
Ria put down another card, this time the Jack of hearts. She got it, but Nick was right behind her. "I think it's mine..." She said.
Smiling, Nick picked up her hand and kissed it. "You may have them."
Lena looked at her husband, giving him a mock glare. "And you said you wouldn't play dirty..."
"I said I wouldn't cheat..." He reminded.
"Oh, there's SUCH a difference." She said, one eyebrow raised as Tony and Danny placed down their cards.
"Trust me, there is..." He said, reaching under the table with his foot and dragging his toes up and down her leg.
Suddenly, she was filled with frustration. "That was low." She said, her eyes sending darts toward him.
He sat back and smirked, his foot now migrating down to the arch of her foot. "THAT is low, my dear."
She bit her lip as she watched the game progress...grateful that her son was so observant, and not about to let the adults win the game.
More cards were thrown down with Nick getting them this time. "I think I might lose!" Tony joked as he contemplated the 8 cards he had left.
Ria shrugged. "I would offer to help, but..."
"You're embroiled in the battle royale over there..." Tony said dryly.
"No..." She said, defensively. "There really isn't a way to cheat without being VERY obvious about it..."
"Too true..." Nick agreed as his turn came around again. Setting his card down, he allowed his arm to brush his wife's as he returned his hand back to his stack.
"NICK!"
"Yes?" He answered innocently.
She took a deep breath before muttering to herself in her mother tongue.
"Something wrong, Elena?" He asked, his voice having a distinctly Spanish tinge to it.
She continued to mutter as she watched the cards getting thrown down, rather than look at her husband.
Shaking his head, Tony couldn't help but chuckle.
"Would you two take your UST elsewhere?" Ria asked, setting down a Jack of hearts which Tony slapped first.
"YES!
"Finally, Tony gets some cards back!" Nick said, grinning.
"Not to mention that Ria TOTALLY called you two!" Tony said with a grin.
"Tony, our ST is anything but U..." Nick smirked.
"Well, there's a bit too much frustration in this room for your ST to be anything BUT U."
Nick looked up at his friend and smiled. "There's a child in the room, Driton..."
"And yet...that doesn't stop you..." Ria said, wryly.
Nick raised an eyebrow and put down a Jack that he slapped quickly before anyone else could get it. "Hey, we DO try to keep the scarring down to a minimum..."
"Mummy...this isn't very fun anymore..."
Lena looked down at her son. "Would you rather go outside and play with the others?"
"Yeah...you guys are boring!"
Tony tried not to start snorting.
"Go ahead, son." Nick replied, trying not to start laughing himself.
"Okay."
As they watched him depart, Nick started giggling.
"Happy now, Nick?" Lena asked, as she reacquainted herself with her cards. "You've single-handedly made this an adult zone..."
"Maybe..." He said, still giggling.
She placed down a Jack that Tony reached first again. "YES! I'm NOT going home in disgrace!"
Shaking his head, Nick allowed his foot to resume its course up and down Lena's leg while placing his card down on the table, looking cool and detached.
The whole table was somewhat surprised to hear Lena's low growl.
"Whatever is the matter, mi amor?" Nick asked seductively.
"Would you two PLEASE knock it off?" Tony begged, placing down another Jack, and slapping it. "I'm on a ROLL!"
"If you say so..." Nick sighed.
"No, please...continue..." Ria said, chuckling. "You're giving us the advantage." Seconds later, she also retrieved a few cards by slapping one of the Jacks.
"I'd better not...I think Lena wouldn't be able to handle it..." He said with a wink as he got a few cards of his own back.
A slight blush appeared on the female dancer's cheeks as she laid down her card.
Tony snickered as Ria laid down her card and it came back to him.
"Feel free to forfeit at any time..." He chuckled. "I hear the bedrooms are free during the day..."
"Hmmm..." Nick mused, his voice a couple of octaves lower than normal. "That has distinct possibilities..."
The Russian rant was almost instantly begun again as Lena laid down a card.
Nick bit his lip slightly to keep himself from laughing. Laying the 8 of hearts down, he set down his stack and stretched slowly.
"What? Intimidated already?" Ria asked as she placed down a jack and Lena slapped it, her aggression evident.
"Not intimidated...just feeling a little sleepy."
Tony shuddered as Lena looked at her husband asking him with her eyes if he was suggesting what she thought he was suggesting.
Nick merely smirked as he cut his deck in half, handing one part to Tony and the other part to Ria. "I think I'm going to crash on the sofa." He said, turning his back on his wife and walking into the living room.
"I...I'm suddenly feeling somewhat tired myself..." Lena said, splitting her deck between Tony and Ria.
Tony shuddered and tried not to think about this very hard.
Ria chuckled as she saw Tony's shudder. "So...trying not to think about them playing tonsil hockey?"
"I think they're probably going to be doing worse than that..." He groaned.
She laughed as she slapped the Jack that he had just lain down. "I think you're on a different roll now, Tony..."
"Less talk, more cards." He said, grimacing.
"If you wish...Driton." She said, reprising her flirtatious voice.
He gave her a look but shook his head and was able to reclaim some more of the deck.
She laughed. "I won't be that cruel again. I promise."
"Uh huh..." He drawled, sounding distinctly unconvinced of this.
"Well, if you're going to use YOUR accent against me, you're just asking for it." She said as she placed down a King of Hearts.
"Moi? Never." He scoffed.
Finally, she placed down a Jack, her last card...she managed to reclaim them, and she grinned smugly as she pulled a large chunk of Tony's cards into her own stack.
"Grrrr..." He said. Just then, they heard a loud "thump!" come from the next room. "SO not asking..." Tony said.
"No kidding..." Ria said, shuddering.
"Those two are something else..."
"I'd rather not consider this..."
Tony laid his cards down. "You want to go for a walk?"
"Sure."
"I think it's far safer than staying here..."
She nodded, vigorously.
Grinning, he scooted his chair back and stood up. "Shall we?" He asked formally, offering her his good arm.
"We shall." She said, with a chuckle as she accepted his arm.
He smiled and led her out of the house into the backyard where Sam was watching the children play.
"Colonel Carter!" Ria greeted with a smile.
"It's Sam when we're not on the base, Ria." She replied with a chuckle.
Nicky scampered up to Ria and looked up at her, squinting for a moment. "You pwetty." He pronounced.
"Thank you." She said, kneeling before the three year old. "You're pretty cute yourself."
He grinned at her. "Mommy says I look like Daddy."
"Well, you do." She said, with a chuckle.
Satisfied with this, Nicky stretched up and kissed her on the cheek.
She gave the little boy a hug, holding him close for a little while. "Thank you." She whispered.
He returned the hug before pulling away. "Bye!"
"Bye." She said, standing upright again.
"Cute kid."
"Thank you." Sam said with a smile.
"So…that walk?" Tony asked, offering his arm again.
"Yes, thank you." She said, taking his proffered arm.
"Have fun!" Sam called as she returned her attention to the kids.
"Oh…Sam?" Ria called, turning.
"Yes?"
"Be careful when you go back inside…Nick and Lena were…at it again."
"Thanks."
"So…" Tony began, unsure of where to start.
"So…" She repeated with a tiny chuckle. "A needle pulling thread."
He laughed. "A little too somber for you, huh?"
"Today…yes."
"Well…can't have that…"
"Nope." She laughed, gaily.
He laughed alongside her before she sobered. "Tony…what did you want to talk about?"
"No…I…it's not important."
"Yes, Tony, it is."
"No, it's not."
"Tony!"
"It's not important."
"Okay...what "not important" thing did you want to talk about?" She asked, cheekily.
Tony shook his head and pretended to heave a heavy sigh.
"Don't give me that, Mr. Dovolani!" She said with mock solemnity,
He raised an eyebrow in a manner reminiscent of Nick. "I somehow think we're past the "mister" stage..." He chuckled.
She raised her own eyebrow in response. "We never HAD a "mister" stage."
"True..." He teased, leering at her playfully.
"Come on, Tony!" She almost whined, and Tony was amused. "Tell me!"
"Hmmm..." He mused.
"What?"
"Maybe...maybe not..." He said smugly.
"And what would I have to do to get you to tell me?" She asked, dead seriously.
"Hmmm...let me think about this for a moment." He replied, equally grave.
"I don't have all day." She said, turning her head haughtily.
"Neither do I..." HHHe answered silkily.
"And just what do YOU have to do?" She asked, turning.
"My time is precious too!" He protested.
"I'll let you keep thinking that..." She teased.
"Sure...lead me on..." He said, giving a couple of fake sniffs of sorrow.
"Tony...did you have a point to this walk OTHER than running away from whatever Nick and Lena are doing inside the house?"
"Ummm...I think I was trying to get to know you a little better..."
"Then ask your questions."
"Yes ma'am!" He said, giving her a snappy salute.
She laughed. "Come on...I'm not being THAT unreasonable, am I?"
"No...just had to give you a little grief..."
"As I suspected." She said with a sniff.
He put a friendly arm across her shoulders. "Come on...don't be like that." He coaxed.
She shivered slightly as his arm draped over her shoulders, and she was reminded once again at how oddly comfortable she was with him. "All right...if you insist." She said, a friendly smile on her face.
He gave her one of his megawatt smiles. "Excellent."
"So...let Twenty Questions begin." She said with a tiny chuckle.
"Plant, animal, vegetable or mineral?" He asked, snickering.
"You know what I mean..."
"I know, I know..."
"I know you know..."
"Nobody knows the trouble I've seen..." Tony sang softly.
Somehow this struck a chord in her, and she sobered almost instantly.
"What's wrong?" He asked.
"Nothing."
"Ria..." Tony said, her name rolling off his tongue and sounding like something in his native language.
"That song..." She shook her head. "It's just...it struck a chord in me, and I didn't know what to say..."
He nodded. "It was supposed to be a joke..."
"I know..." She said, a small smile on her face.
Before he knew what he was doing, Tony bent his head and kissed her on the cheek.
Her stomach flip-flopped, and as he pulled away, he realized that she was staring at him. "Sorry...I don't know what got into me." He confessed.
"No...you're fine." She said, when her voice finally returned, surprising her with just how fine it really was. Tony looked straight ahead, feeling his face going hot.
"What?"
"Nothing." He mumbled.
"What?" She asked, more insistently.
"Nothing!" He said defensively.
"Okay." She said, backing off, realizing that she must have just hit a nerve.
He sighed. "You didn't deserve that...I'm sorry."
"No, it's okay." She said, looking forward as they continued walking down the sidewalk.
"This is just...slightly scary."
"I know." She whispered, staring at the sidewalk. "Believe me, I know." She reiterated a moment later.
He nodded, removing his arm from its place around her shoulders. Allowing his hand to trail down her arm, his hand found hers.
She looked at their entwined hands with a tiny smile before she looked into his eyes. "So..."
"So..." He repeated, a twinkle in his eye.
"A needle pulling thread..." She finished.
He grinned and laughed.
"No, really...is there an 'us' now?" She asked, almost teasing in her demeanor.
"If you want there to be." He said quietly.
"I do." She said, seriously.
"Okay then...it's official."
She smiled. "And the rest is history, I suppose..."
"Actually the rest will be our story..."
She looked at their hands again. "I like the sound of that..."
"Something my Mami always says." Tony said.
"What does your Mami always say?"
"History is just made up of stories that happen to intertwine. All you have to do is make your story the best it can be, whether you write it with someone, or you write it alone."
She leaned her head on his shoulder. "I REALLY like the sound of that."
"I think you'll like Mami."
"I hope so."
Tony grinned. "It's the sisters you have you worry about..." He joked.
"Really? You'll have to watch out for my five younger brothers...they may just beat you up to "welcome" you into the family."
"Eeek!" Tony said, eyes widening in mock fear.
"But...I AM a nurse...and I would have to be at your beck and call while I tended to your wounds..." She teased.
"Hmmm...this has possibilities..."
She gave him a playful glare. "Now, don't go doing something stupid and break your leg...I'll see right through that...and good luck trying to get me to wait on your every need..."
"I wouldn't even dream of it." He grinned.
"Better not...you wouldn't be able to dance if you did that..."
He nodded. "And that would be horrible."
"It would be a shame. You're really talented."
He flushed. "Not THAT talented."
"Tony." She reprimanded.
"What?
"I've danced with you...and you're VERY talented."
He smiled. "Thanks."
She returned his smile. "You're welcome."
"Two of my sisters are coming to see me at the competition..."
"Really? What are their names?"
"Lana and Anya."
"Those are beautiful names. Do I get to meet them, or are you going to keep me a secret?" She chuckled.
"You'll get to meet them...also my brand new nephew as well." He said proudly.
"Brand-new nephew?"
"Yep!"
"Name?" She prompted.
"Dmitri Aleksander Kaminov."
"That's a regal name...just like yours."
"My sister picked it...you should hear what her eldest is named."
"Okay..."
"Ivan Janos Kaminov."
"Wow...your family must be pretty royal..."
"The ironic thing is...we're not!" He laughed.
"Oh, you just like to SOUND important, huh?"
"Hey, believe me, I would be GLAD to not have a regal sounding name!"
She pouted. "But Driton, I like your name!"
"I'm...becoming used to it." He admitted.
"In other words, when a girl says it just right...it's not bad, huh?"
"Not too bad…" He grinned.
"I'll have to keep that in mind."
Tony looked at her. "Uh oh..." He said teasingly. "Bad for me, right?"
"Very...very...VERY bad for you..." She said, her eyes darkening sensuously.
"Ah, but I think things could be bad for you as well, Maria." He responded, his accent thickening.
His voice sent shivers down her spine. "I never knew that my average, run of the mill Catholic name could sound so sinful..."
Tony smirked proudly. "Just something for you to think about..."
They reached the park down the street from the O'Neill house, and Ria noticed the children playing on the various playthings. "I love watching children play." She admitted.
Tony nodded. "Children have a freedom in everything they do..."
"Yep...a freedom that we, as adults, envy...they can love and be loved, and they don't worry about getting hurt."
"And they don't worry about whether or not they look silly or if the clothes they're wearing are in fashion or not..."
She grinned. "Don't tell me that you were one of the kids that walked out of the house wearing stripes and polka dots in orange and purple and thought you were cool..."
"No...we didn't have money for clothes like that..." He said softly.
She placed the hand not currently resting in his onto his arm. "Tell me about your childhood."
"We were poor...not starving poor, but definitely not that well off..." He said reminiscently. "We had me, my 3 sisters, my parents, my grandparents, and my great-grandparents all living in one house."
"Wow...four generations in the same house?"
"Yep!"
"Your family must be in immaculate health...I don't remember meeting my great-grandparents at all."
"We've always been that way."
"Really?" She asked, her healthcare professional mind working overtime. "Must have a naturally strong immune system." She mused.
"Yeah...we've always healed from things quickly too." He affirmed.
"Your future wife will thank you for that." She said, smiling.
Tony looked sideways at her, his eyes saying everything he was thinking.
"You might as well say it out loud...I can practically hear it anyway." She said, tenderly.
"Hopefully that will be you..."
"You never really know, though." She said, looking downcast at the ground. "But...there's something that tells me that you're not that far off..."
"Good."
"Yeah."
"Can you put up with me and my crazy Albanian family?" He joked.
"I don't know...at least I know what I'm getting myself into with you, but your Albanian family...I may have to reconsider..." She returned his sense of teasing.
Tony pouted, sticking his lower lip out like a child.
"But...I think having you in my life would be worth putting up with your crazy family...so long as you're willing to put up with mine..."
"Deal." Tony said firmly.
"Good."
"Shall we return?"
"If we must..."
Tony shrugged. "I'm starting to get cold."
"Ah...well if the almighty emperor Driton Antonius says we must return, then return, we shall!"
Tony groaned. "Ack..."
"Just teasing."
"I know."
"So...must we face Nick and Lena again?"
Tony sighed. "I guess so..."
"Oy."
No kidding...I'm surprised they don't have about 99 children by now!"
"Ack!"
He smirked. "What?
She shuddered. "Ewwww..."
He snickered, and kissed her cheek again.
Before he could really pull away from her, she captured his lips with her own, wrapping one hand around his neck. Surprised, Tony resisted for a moment before allowing her kiss to win him over. He freed his hand from hers and wrapped his good arm around her waist, drawing her close to him. Their kiss was the perfect blend of restraint, passion, and tenderness.
Pulling back from her slowly, Tony leaned his forehead against hers. "What was that for?" He asked, feeling like he'd just danced 4 Quicksteps back to back.
"I'm not sure." She admitted, softly. "But it was perfect."
He gave her a lopsided smile. "I think we might want to take this off the street before the kids in that car over there get an eye-full..."
"Of what?"
"True..." Tony said, shifting so he was in front of her. "I wonder if we can get perfection twice..."
"Hmmm...you may just have to wonder..." She said as she pulled away and walked a little further down the road.
Tony's jaw dropped before he walked briskly after her. Grasping her gently yet firmly by the arm, he spun her around and caught her like Antonio Banderas in "Take The Lead." "I'm afraid I don't like to wonder." He whispered, his faces inches from hers.
She was still reeling in shock from the grace and ease with which he pulled her back into his arms. She allowed his lips to descend over hers in a sweet, lingering kiss.
Breaking apart from her, he looked into her eyes, his brown ones dark with passion. "I'd say that was perfect..." Releasing her, he walked away, a slight away in his hips whistling a jaunty Latin tune.
"Don't tell me that we're going to become like Nick and Lena!" She chuckled as she hurried over to him after regaining her senses.
Tony smirked. "Would that really be so bad?" He murmured, his breath warm on her ear.
"Not if we manage to scar them as often as they try to scar us..." She managed, surprised by the strength of the feelings evoked by this man's nearness.
"Precisely." He said, grinning.
"Uncle Tony!" Danny called as he, Tommy and Grace were riding their bikes in the front of the house.
"Hey guys." Tony called.
"Tony! Look! No hands!" Grace called.
Ria winced as she watched the little girl proudly ride her bike, her hands in the air. Sure enough, Grace fell and Ria hurried to her aid.
"Grace!" Danny cried, hoping off of his own bike and kneeling down next to her.
She was crying as Ria and Tony arrived. "Grace, sweetheart, what hurts?"
"My knee." The little girl sobbed.
Tony picked the little girl up while Ria grabbed her bike. "Danny, Tommy. Can you come inside with us?"
"Yes." Danny said, his eyes fixed on Grace. Tommy followed silently.
They hurried into the house where Tony placed Grace onto the counter and Ria reached for the soap. First, she washed her own hands, then she turned to Grace. "I'm going to look at the cut on your knee, okay?"
"Okay..." She sniffed.
Ria examined her knee and saw nothing but a skinned knee. "It's superficial." She told Tony. "Grace...I'm going to clean it up, and maybe we can get your mommy to find you a band-aid..."
"Okay."
Ria quickly washed the cut and turned to Danny. "Can you get Mrs. O'Neill please? Tell her that Grace skinned her knee and that we're trying to find a band-aid."
"Yes ma'am." He said, running outside.
"You're a very good bike rider." Tony said, drying the tears from the little girl's face.
"Thanks." She said quietly.
"Yes, you are...but maybe you should keep both hands on the handlebars..." Ria admonished, a tiny chuckle in her voice now that she knew Grace hadn't been seriously injured.
"Grace!" Sam called, worriedly, as she hurried into the house.
"Mom, I'm okay!" The little girl said as her mother arrived at the
"Are you sure?"
"She's fine." Ria assured.
Danny stood silently nearby, looking concerned.
"Danny? You okay?"
"I'm fine." He said softly.
Tony put a hand on Ria's back to indicate that he would talk to Danny while she filled Sam in on Grace's condition.
"Come on, Sport...something's on your mind...wanna fill me in?"
"I'm fine." The boy insisted stubbornly.
"You're worried about Grace, aren't you?"
"Yes." He muttered.
"She's fine. I saw for myself. She'll get a band-aid and she'll be good as new..."
Danny nodded solemnly.
"Now...wanna go tell her that you're glad she's all right?" Tony asked, seeing that Grace had been lifted off of the counter.
Danny looked over and nodded again. He walked over quickly. "You okay?"
She nodded, showing him her "princess" band-aid. "Yep."
"Good." He said. Kneeling down in front of her, he leaned forward and kissed her knee.
Tony and Ria exchanged tender smiles as Sam watched all of them with a chuckle.
Grace threw her arms around Danny as he stood up. "Were you scared?"
"A little." She admitted.
Danny kissed her for real this time. "It's all right, darling." He said, quoting one of his mother's favorite Gene Kelley movies.
Tony and Ria both looked at Sam who was trying hard not to laugh out loud. Tony intervened, pulling Danny from Grace. "All right, Gene Kelly...go back outside and play."
Danny gave his "uncle" an extremely disgruntled look, but obeyed.
Sam chuckled. "Jack's going to die when he hears about this."
"Actually, Jack is going to kill Nick when Jack hears this."
She grimaced. "He will…"
"Hey, I have an idea…"
"Okay…"
"Let's just keep this little incident as our own little "dirty little secret.""
Ria chuckled. "As if that's really going to work…"
"Well, we can try…"
"I have nothing to do with this." Ria said, pretending to wipe her hands free of the situation. Meanwhile, Tony and Sam nodded as if in a pact.
"Have nothing to do with what?" Jack asked as he walked into the room.
Sam's eyes widened in surprise while Tony sighed. "Just something one of the kids did."
"What did one of the kids do?"
"Grace fell when she was riding her bike and scraped her knee. Ria managed to take care of it really well."
"Thanks, Ria."
"You're welcome."
"Now, back to whatever it is that you aren't telling me…"
"Jack…"
"Don't…" He warned his wife.
"Okay…Danny kissed Grace."
"Well, that's okay…they've done that before…we'll just have to keep a closer eye on them next time…"
"On the lips." Sam clarified.
Jack's previously fairly calm demeanor slipped. "What do you mean?"
"Well, he turned to her and told her that everything would be all right, and before any of us knew what was happening, he kissed her." Tony explained.
"NICK!"
The dancer awoke suddenly from where he and Lena were cuddling on the couch. "What?"
"What the HELL are you teaching your son?"
Nick raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Why?"
"He just kissed my daughter!"
Both Lena and Nick looked at one another in surprise. "What?"
"On the lips." Jack clarified.
"Reprising an old Gene Kelly role."
Nick turned to his wife. "No more Gene Kelly for you, madam."
"But Nick…"
"No buts."
"NICK!"
"I know that you slip out of bed at 4 AM to watch Gene, and then return to bed so that you'll be there when I 'wake up.'"
She pouted as she folded her arms across her chest and bit her lip. "So…there's absolutely NOTHING about this that is even REMOTELY your fault?"
"Of course not! I don't watch Gene Kelly."
"But you have a habit of being at LEAST as charming as the men in those movies."
"I try…but you still run to them…"
"And Milla Jojovich has NOTHING to do with why you watch "Zoolander" and "Ultraviolet!"
"Children!" Jack shouted, stopping the Kosoviches from continuing their spat. "Can we get back to the problem at hand?"
"I don't think it's a problem, Jack." Sam explained.
"You may not, but I do."
"It was kind of cute, actually." Ria agreed.
"And I broke it up." Tony offered.
"Oh, for cryin' out loud!"
"Besides, Nick, didn't you catch your first kiss at FIVE?" Tony asked, turning to the other male dancer.
He blushed as his wife, raised an eyebrow.
"And…didn't YOU imitate Cary Grant?"
Lena's grin was rapidly becoming smug in nature. "I guess I'll get to keep watching Gene Kelly after all…"
" LENA!"
"So, I take it that I'm now officially overruled?"
"Yep…officially." Sam said, pleasantly as she kissed her husband's cheek. "Now, if you'll excuse me, someone needs to be outside, watching the kids. So, unless you'd like to go, I'll be returning in a half an hour or so with the children."
Jack watched his wife leave, and sighed. "I'm never going to win this one, am I?"
"I wouldn't count on winning anything if you're up against your wife." Nick added, helpfully as Lena stood and followed Sam out the door.
"Well…this has been fun, but…I think I'd better be going." Ria said, quickly.
"I'll walk you to your car." Tony offered.
"Thanks." She said, with a tender smile.
As Tony and Ria walked out of the house, Lena returned, a glass of water in her hands. "So…what did your squadron tell you?"
"My squadron?"
"The kids on their bikes…don't tell me you haven't debriefed them yet…"
"Darling, if you care to remember, I was asleep on the couch with you in my arms."
She gave him a tiny smile. "I would have imagined that you would have volunteered to play with the children to get the scoop…"
"I think I missed something…" Jack said, looking between his friends.
"Oh, Nick has a little neighborhood watch program."
Jack's look was priceless, and Nick laughed. "No, not THAT kind of watch. I send the kids out on their bikes whenever one of the couples that I've 'match-made' goes off to be by themselves."
"You spy on them using the KIDS?" Jack asked, incredulously.
"Well, of course! If they saw me, they'd know what I was up to, and I'd most likely get hurt, but they don't have to know that I have spies and minions around them almost all the time."
"So…where are your minions?" Jack asked as he motioned to the window where Tony and Ria were kissing one another good-bye.
"Ooh…this oughta be good…" Nick said, grinning.
"Nick…leave them alone…they've both had a hard time…"
"I know." He said, not turning from the window.
Lena sighed in exasperation, and pulled him to look at her. In his surprise, he didn't object, and she threw her arms around him, kissing him so soundly that he forgot his name…not to mention the young couple outside.
Jack stood. "I'll, uh…go outside with Sam and the kids…"
The couple didn't hear him as he hurried out the back door.