Staying seated in the car and not daring to move for fear of any wrong doing would get her into even more trouble than she already was, she watched while Remy remained talking with the police officer near her police car. Rogue sighed for what felt like the hundredth time thinking of the many possibilities of her going to jail. She shuddered at the thought of having to be stuck in a jail cell with a roommate whose name was Big Bertha after having changed it from something like Daisy without anyone knowing all because jail changes a person-or at least so she heard never having experienced it herself.

She at least took some comfort knowing that someone with Remys face would probably have it harder with someone like Ted who no doubt would try and trade him for a pack of cigarettes.

This was seriously not how she had planned her day to go, she thought as she leaned against the window rubbing her temple. But what else did she expect when having a traveling companion like Gambit around. He was probably used to being in these types of situations.

He was unlike anyone she'd ever met. Not like Cody who was the typical boy next door who could warm your heart with just one smile, and definitely not like Bobby who was someone she could count on. But then why did she constantly find herself drawn to him and why was she suddenly comparing him to people she's dated? It didn't make sense.

Scoffing, she absently shook her head. But then again none of this really made any sense.

It wasn't until she saw the police officer smile at something he may have said right before he slightly tilted his head and shot Rogue a small wink. Rolling her eyes Rogue forced herself to look out the side window wondering what was taking so long. Not that she didn't enjoy her freedom while it lasted.

And it wasn't that she was necessarily looking forward to possibly going to jail, but if she had to stay in this car another minute longer while he seemed to be rather enjoying himself in the company of someone - who if she knew what he did for a living would surely lock him away. But then again maybe that's what had him so intrigued with this woman in the first place.

Frowning she was startled out of her thoughts when the driver's side suddenly swung open as the first set of raindrops hit the window. She breathed a quiet sigh of relief when she saw him getting back in the car before he removed his sunglasses.

"Took ya'll long enough."

Smiling to himself he gave her a quick glance when he heard the obvious edge in her voice before turning to see the other car begin to pull away.

"So will we be visiting Ted anytime soon?"

He raised an amused brow before flashing the small white piece of paper he had in his hand before putting his seat belt on.

"So what? She finally decided to give you a ticket for drivin' while annoying?" Unable to help the condescending smile on her face she quickly snatched it out of his hand only to see the ten-digit number scribbled on a plain sheet of paper. "You've got to be kiddin me…"

"Nothin' to it Chere." He shrugged nonchalantly as he began driving. "Just gotta know your audience." When he saw her frustratingly put it next to him without a single word, he couldn't help but smirk. "You're welcome by de way."

"What did you tell her?"

"Nothin' much, just dat I happen to forget my wallet back at my place an' since je suis un si bon frère who was rushin' to take his petite soeur to de nearest hospital due to her bein' in labor an' all…" he trailed off with a flick of the hand.

"And she bought it?" she gasped pivoting her body fully to face him. "Do Ah look pregnant to you?"

He made it a point to give her a once over before shrugging. "Non, but dat don't mean it ain't worked."

"Ugh, how anyone can willingly stand to be in the same room as you is beyond me Swamo Rat."

"Don't worry Chere, you'll eventually warm up to me. You'll see." He confidently chuckled. "Been told by many people dat dis one is one of de best company dere is."

"And yet Ah find that hard to believe." she fired back as his ruby red eyes glance back at her with them seeming to glow a bit brighter. Forcing herself to look away she began taking deep calming breaths in and out. "Whatever, the sooner we're back at the mansion the better."

"Yeah 'bout dat…dere's a bus station not too far from here."

"What?" Whipping her head around she wasn't sure if she had heard him right. "Could you say that again please because Ah don't think Ah heard you."

Pressing his lips together when he heard the warning in her tone, he reiterated his wording very very carefully. "Told you last night dat you're not obligated to come with."

"So Ah'm supposed to what? Take the bus back?" At his silence she readjusted her sitting positions to better glare at him. "Ah don't even have my wallet on me Gambit."

"An' who's fault may I say dat is?"

"Yours you egotistical asshole!"

"Anyone ever told you you got quite de mouth on you Chere?" He impressively grinned finding that he enjoyed riling her up more and more as her cheeks flushed red in anger.

"How was Ah supposed to know that we'd be gone this long?"

"Fair point." He nodded understanding that this was partly his fault for not telling her sooner where they were going.

Stubbornly shaking her head, she watched as the rain began to pick up outside. She wasn't going to let him know that she only had enough money to go out and eat when she agreed to come along thinking that that's exactly what they were going to do like last time. "You're taking me."

He gave a hearty disbelieving chuckle as he turned to her. "You're kiddin' right?"

"Do Ah look like Ah'm kiddin'?" she growled as she let her gloved hand reach for the door. "On second thought you know what? Pull over." The minute he pulled over to the side she didn't even wait for him to come to a complete stop before she opened the passenger's side and darted out. Weather be damned.

"Wait where are you-Rogue!" Groaning, he turned the car off before poking his head out of his door to see her wrap her arms around herself as she briskly began walking away from the car, not at all caring about getting wet. "Rogue!"

Stomping away she watched as a few cars drove past her and the rain grew louder, drowning out anything he tried to say which she was grateful for.

"What are you doin'?! Get in!" Remy shouted as he slowly drove the car next to her and rolled down the driver's side window.

"What's does it look like?! Ah'm walkin'!" she yelled right back, not even sure if he had heard her since she refused to look at him. "Since apparently Ah need the dang exercise!" she snapped remembering his comment from yesterday about her inhaling her food. "Jerk."

"Chere!" Pulling over he reluctantly stepped out of the car as he glanced up to see the storm clouds overhead rumbling. "Chere!"

"Just leave me alone!" she tried to rub her arms in hopes to try and keep warm even though she knew it was fruitless given that she was pretty much soaked at this point. If he wanted to be on his way, then at this point she was well beyond caring. She'd find a way home herself because just the thought of being in the same car with this guy another minute longer, she knew one of them wouldn't make it back to the mansion alive.

Thankfully when she saw a truck slow down, she couldn't find her legs moving fast enough as she approached it.

"Where you headed little lady?" The guy graciously opened the passenger's side door as his eyes took her in.

"New York."

Smiling the man gestured her inside. "Well, you're in luck because-"

"She's fine." Remy's arm quickly shot out to block her entrance as he glared back at the man.

Watching the man's lip raise into an ugly snarl as his eyes once again landed on Rogues body had Remys blood boil and hand turn a dangerous red purple before he felt Rogue step behind him.

"Is your name Ted by any chance?" She suddenly asked making both men turn to her in surprise. Remy expression however quickly changed to annoyance when his lip curled into a small smile.

"W-why yes it is." The man's grin grew.

"Really?" Now she was the one staring on in surprise now while Remy's grip on the door remained firm.

"Hey kid I don't mind giving Missy here a little ride." The man's eyes flickered over to Rogue again as Remy moved over to block his view and slamming the door shut.

He could feel his eyes burning into the man and it took everything he had not to charge up this semi-truck right now with the man inside. "I said step off hommes."

He could tell the man receive the message loud and clear when he quickly nodded before driving off.

"I can't believe you!" she shouted as she returned to stomping off.

He made sure to keep his eyes on the truck a little longer as it drove away before following after her.

"You just scared away my ride!"

"Me t'inks he wanted more den to give you a ride home Chere." He fired back. "Look I told you I'd take you to de bus station-"

"Well how very generous of you."

"I try." He sarcastically squinted his eyes.

"Why are you even followin' me?"

"Perhaps because you decided to pick now of all times for a nice leisurely stroll!" he gestured at the pouring rain.

"Maybe this is a bad sign Gambit have you ever thought of that?!" She whirled around making him stop in his tracks too. "An omen? Bad luck? Perhaps some form telling us that this is all a bad idea?!"

"Or maybe it's because we got caught and we've got a severely pissed off weather witch after us have you ever thought of dat?" That seemed to stop her rambling for the moment as she thought about it. "Look de way I see it you've got one of two options Chere. One, I could take you to de bus station so you could go back home to your nice little family, or you could come with me. Either way I'm betting dey already know we a long ways from de mansion."

Inhaling deeply, she tried to come up with a reasonable reason as to why she would even want to come with him when she should just go home. He was also right in mentioning that whichever option she chose she would hear about it later. Although the thought of going on a trip with him caused a weird tingling in her stomach. Even if she knew what it might be, she'd continue to ignore it. "Why?" she suddenly asked, letting her eyes flutter with every raindrop that landed on her face. "Why would you even want me to come?"

He gives her a long look before he finally nods and draws in a breath. "I ain't makin' you do anythin' Chere. But somethin' tells me you need this. I'm just givin' you a way."

"Ah can't." she shook her head. "Ah don't think…"

"D'accord." He nodded, turning his face to look at the cars driving by. She was startled to see him look this disappointed, almost like he was hoping she'd pick the second option. But why would he even want her to go when he had made it sound like he had no problem getting rid of her before?

"How long?" she found herself asking as she shivered at the raindrops sliding down her arms. "How long would we be gone for?"

He carefully eyed her as if making sure she was serious about this before answering. "A couple of days."

"A couple of days." She repeated, and the relief on his face came and went so quickly that she wasn't even sure she had seen it. He slowly walked up to her making her tilt her head upward to try and see through his shades.

"You sure 'bout dis?"

"No." she admitted, finding it odd how the sudden heat of his body tried to pull her to him like magnets.

"Très bien."

She was so overwhelmed by the sudden closeness that she barely registered his words until after he turned to move back towards the car, and it took her a moment to remember to breathe.

She allowed him to open her door for her before she slid inside, and he made quick work to run toward the drivers' side and get some much-needed cover from the rain. Running his hand through his wet hair to try and get the bangs out of his eyes. He could see the rain bang against the windshield like an angry beast as he turned the car on.

After a few failed attempts he silently cursed as he leaned back against the seat.

"Well, let's go." She turned her head enough to see him frustratingly glare at the steering wheel.

"I can't." he breathed out looking out the window. "Seems de battery's dead."

"You're not serious-" When she saw him open the car door and get out before going towards the backseat and grabbing a duffel bag she missed, she hesitantly followed not looking forward to getting even more drenched than she already was. "Gambit?"

"Dere's a small motel not far from here." He said over his shoulder. "We need to find a place to crash fo' de night."

"What? You mean together?" Her mouth dropped open at the thought of having to spend another night in any place with him.

"If dat's what de lady wants. I don't mind sharin'" He smirked as his face lit up in amusement. "Chere, didn't know you were lookin' to take advantage of dis one de first chance you get."

"You keep dreamin' Swamp Rat." She tightly wrapped her arms around herself. "And Ah'm not leavin' Scott's car behind."

"Car battery's dead, so unless you want to sleep in de cold car be my guest." He lowly chuckled as if reading her mind and something about that boyish laugh had her stomach flutter finding that sound pleasant to her ears. "Bedside's, you makin' it sound like dis one had somethin' immorally planned which I take offense to."

"As Ah'm sure you do." she muttered as she followed behind him but stopped when he shifted his attention to her.

"You really don't trust me, do you?"

"Should Ah?" She felt him shifting his eyes and was surprised by his reaction. She didn't expect him to get so defensive over a simple question like that and could tell she hit a nerve. She wanted to know the reason behind it but knew better than to poke her nose in something she had no business in doing.

"Look tomorrow we'll just hitch a ride south-"

"We are NOT leavin' Scott's car." She firmly protested against it. If the others were mad about them leaving she could understand that, but she would still stay firm in not abandoning the vehicle of someone she came to care about and respect, especially when this was partly her fault.

"You do realize we don't have time to fix it." He frustratingly stared at her.

"Don't care. We are comin' back for it tomorrow and that's it." She stubbornly raised her chin as she brushed past him and trying her best not to trip while faking her knowledge of where she was going.

It wasn't look before they finally found an escape from the weather outside as they ran towards the nearest motel available like he had said. Based on the lobby she knew not to expect much since this was located pretty much in the middle of nowhere and the only person there seemed to be an older man that seemed to have seen better days as he lazily scratched his stomach where the shirt he wore did nothing about hiding the stomach peeking out as his eyes landed on them.

Clutching the trench coat Remy had offered here not long after they left, Rogue watched him as he tried to shake all the water from his hair once they entered allowing her to see it wildly stick up in an amusing sort of way compared to the way he usually wore it which made her lips curl into a small smile.

"What can I do for ya?" The man waited until they both stopped in front of the desk. As soon as his eyes landed on Rogue he boasted a huge smile where she could see him missing most of his teeth and eyeing her up and down like a prime piece of meat until Remy made it a point to stand closer to her.

"Bonsoir mon ami, you don't happen to have any rooms available for de night?"

"Let me check." The man curiously frowned as he looked at the two before turning to go through his computer on the other side.

"Friendly.' Rogue pressed her lips together to suppress a smile when she saw Remy shot her an agreeable look. She allowed herself this moment to let her eyes trail along the fabric of his wet shirt that did nothing to hide his chiseled body.

"How many nights?" the man asked making her snap out of her thoughts and thankful that Remy didn't seem to notice.

"One." Rogue answered which made Remy silently smile to himself when the man raised an intriguing brow at him.

"Rooms?"

"One is fine." Remy winked at the man who let out a rumbling sound from his chest as he shook his head laughing.

"Two."

"Un, mon ami." Rogue was basically shooting daggers into the side of Remy's head which was the only warning he received before she stomped down hard on his foot making him jolt sideways and bite his lip to suppress a yelp.

"Two would work, thank you." She smiled sweetly despite the heat crawling to her face. If he thought she would be crazy enough to share a room with him, then he was sadly mistaken.

Turning to the young man next to her, the man saw Remy taking another moment before raising his lips into a forced smile.

"Rough day I'm afraid."

-X-

She could practically feel his smug eyes burning into the back of her head as she continued stomping up the metal steps trying to find which room was theirs. After repeatedly asking if there were any other rooms available, they found that there was only one room that held two beds unless she wanted to share one bed. At this point she was seriously debating walking all the way back to the car until her dripping wet clothes reminded her otherwise.

When she finally found the door, she didn't waste time to set some ground rules. "Let's get one thing straight Cajun, this is strictly on an emergency type situation."

"Bon." He nodded in agreement and tried to reach for the doorknob before she blocked him.

"And this is in no way shape or form an invitation for anythin' else besides sleep."

"Oui." He nodded again and smiled when she hesitantly blocked his way again trying to think of something else to say. "You done yet Chere?" When she didn't answer he quickly opened the door, revealing a surprisingly clean room with fresh bedding.

It was simple really with two beds taking up most of the room, a small bathroom and TV and definitely not what she had expected. The thin carpeted floor had seen better days though.

As he slipped past her, she quickly shifted to the side suddenly flustered by his sudden proximity. It wasn't because it was getting late, or because she had to share a room with a boy for the first time who wasn't her boyfriend, and definitely wasn't because this was Remy she tried to reassure herself.

Awkwardly standing in the doorway, lightning flashed across the room removing the darkness for only a single moment as her eyes fell on the two beds and a sudden weight dropped into her stomach at the thought as he flicked the lights on.

"You gonna come in anytime tonight?" He raised a questioning brow when she finally found the courage to look at him and couldn't stop himself from seductively smiling. "Or perhaps would you like fo' me to make you come?"

That seemed to do the trick when she turned her timid eyes to glare at him instead as he gave her a playful once over. "Relax Chere, it's just a room."

"Thankfully with two beds." She huffed as she allowed herself to tentatively close the door behind her and forced her legs to walk over to the other bed before removing his coat and placing it on the nearby chair.

"Again makin' me sound like I'd try somethin' vile." He lowly chuckled as he rummaged through his bag. "Don't worry. Just cause a man an' woman sharin' a room don't mean anything's bound to happen."

"Oh Ah'm not worried." She determinedly shook her head despite her voice saying otherwise.

"Fair enough." Momentarily looking up he carefully eyed her before nodding in amusement. "Den why am I gettin' de sudden impression dat dis be de first time you sharin' a room with one?"

She glanced over her shoulder to see him still carefully watching her. Truth be told she wasn't used to someone paying such close attention to her and it made her nervously look back towards the wall taking deep breaths to calm herself.

Even when she first came to the mansion everyone always seemed to walk on eggshells around her knowing how she felt about her mutation including Bobby, Kitty and everyone else. But the way Remy seemed to be wanting to do the complete opposite in trying to constantly rile her up and get close to her since the moment she met him had her wondering what was it that made him so interested in everything she did.

Or maybe this was just the way he was with anything of the opposite gender. Or maybe he just wasn't aware of her mutation which would be odd since she had figured he'd heard about it by now from someone since she was the untouchable…or at least she used to be.

She was somewhat staggered by his carefree and nonchalant demeanor at the moment that had her wondering just exactly how many of these kinds of places he'd had visited in the past. Quite literally and presently.

She was still so busy trying to figure him out when Remy pulled off his shirt in a single move tossing it on his bed and she was pretty sure she almost swallowed her tongue before quickly averting her eyes. "W-hat?" she tried again willing her tone to remain calm despite her nerves feeling on edge. "What are ya doing?"

"Takin' a shower." He replied matter fact as a sly grin spread across his face. "Unless you want to join me?"

"Not in this life Swamp boy." She scoffed but remained fixated on a small black dot on the wall.

Smiling, he nodded towards the bathroom. "You can go first if you want. Get out of dem wet clothes an' all 'fore you catch a cold."

"It's alright. Ah can wait." She mumbled as she looked down at her clothes realizing she had nothing to sleep in other then the wet clothes she had on, compared to her he came prepared which now made her wonder whether what he had said before was true, and he really didn't count on her actually agreeing to come along. At the sound of rustling clothes, she only pivoted her head enough to see him toss a shirt next to her on the bed.

"Here Chere, you can use dis while your clothes dry." He offered as he watched her silently nod before he walked over to the bathroom.

"Thanks." She softly said as she traced her fingers against the black fabric.

-X-

By the time he finally emergent from the bathroom she had already finished eating the food they managed to buy right outside the motel as she turned to see him casually walking around like he owned the place and was very much aware of the rosy flush spreading across her cheeks. But in her defense, he didn't seem to find anything wrong with the way he only wore a white towel wrapped around his chiseled abs and a shameless smirk as he headed straight for his duffel bag next to his bed. She could still see his hair damp from the shower and make out the small drops of water still lingering on his skin.

It should be a crime for anyone to look this good.

"Showers all yours."

She nervously swallowed as she watched the taut muscles on his back move and flex as he pulled some clothes out of his bag and began hanging up his wet ones as he turned, and she had to suck in a sharp breath at the sight of his bare chest.

Sure she had seen it once before when they thought he was still knocked out but now that he was exposed this way again to her, it suddenly had her heart racing.

"Wow um…" she silently gasped unaware that she had said it out loud but found her mouth suddenly having a mind of its own, but could you really blame her? The man's body looked overly inviting, even good enough to run her hands through… 'Oh my gawd what am Ah doing?!'

"Rogue?"

The moment she forced her eyes upwards had her wishing that she hadn't when his ruby eyes made her realize that she was caught staring like an idiot when he cocked a questioning brow at her.

"Careful Chere, if I didn't know any better I'd say you were undressin' me with your eyes."

"Of course not." When her eyes involuntarily dropped back down to the towel wrapped snugly around his waist, she wondered how in the world it was possible for her face to feel any hotter especially when she could clearly see the well-defined muscles of his legs and that seductive line on his abdomen going past the towel. "C-could you please put on a shirt?"

"Why? Afraid you can't keep your hands off." He chuckled as he tilted his head sideways.

"And yet somehow Ah think Ah'll survive." She sassily fired back forcing her eyes elsewhere all the while inwardly screaming.

"You know…you should consider yourself lucky Chere." He said as he finally found what he'd been looking for in his bag.

"Oh yeah and why's that?" She startled herself when she eagerly turned her head back and the slow growing smirk on his face told her he knew all too well where her eyes kept going as their eyes locked and he began to move closer.

"Because…" He slowly drawled walking up to the edge of the bed and placed his hands on either side of her which made her nervously gulp and lean back. He slightly opened his lips like he was about to say something but paused when he drew a fraction of an inch closer. Her own lips slowly parting as his breath fans her face before stopping near her ear. "…dis one usually sleeps naked." He huskily murmured as his eyes burned with something she wasn't familiar with when he moved to meet her eyes.

"Oh." She only managed to breathlessly say as she felt herself slightly shivering. 'Oh indeed….'

He watched her intensely as he reluctantly moved away. Not a second later did he see her grab the shirt he let her borrow and sprint towards the bathroom as he ran a hand through his wet hair. He did however notice that during her quick departure she forgot to fully close the door behind her and if he pivoted just the right way, he could see her begin to raise the hem of her shirt but quickly looked away. That was the last thing he needed on his mind right now.

It was only the second night, and it turned out to be more troublesome than the last.

"Get it together Rogue." She quietly scolded herself as she began to raise her shirt.

"I can still see you Chere." He grinned when her eyes widened in alarm right before throwing a small towel towards him and slamming the door shut.

Trying to calm herself she quickly peeled off one article of wet clothing at a time before hopping in the shower and ignoring the thought that she had to basically share this room with someone like him.

As she stepped out, she tried to figure out what kind of person Remy really was. He seemed like the most complicated guy she'd ever met and this coming from someone who's had a guy like Logan in her life. Towel drying her hair she gave herself a once over in the mirror as her bare fingers trailed down the length of the shirt.

Usually she wouldn't be caught dead wearing someone else's shirt that wasn't Bobbys, but at the moment she really had no choice as she looked over at her wet clothes hanging to dry. "This whole trip is makin' me look like such a creep." She silently groaned.

-X-

Frowning down at his cards he contemplated checking up on her to make sure she was alright since she was taking a bit longer than he thought she would. He had already finished eating and was now playing a few rounds of solitaire while the TV continued to play in the background.

Opening the door, she could see him focused on the cards sprawled on the bed and was grateful that he had the decency to finally put some clothes on. At least that way she could pretend that none of what had happened before did in fact happen.

When his eyes flicked over to her, she felt her breath hitch when she saw them slowly take in her appearance as she only wore the shirt he had let her borrow for the night and was thankful that the shirt at least covered most of her thighs.

It took her a minute to learn how to speak again when his eyes flicked back up to hers, blazing with an intense heat that only spelled trouble and made her nervously shuffle over to her own bed.

"What is it with you and cards?" she casually said when she finally saw him snap his eyes downwards.

"Easy to tug away an' use shall de need arise." He quickly gathered the cards before shuffling them. "Kinda like havin' fifty-two explosives neatly tugged away in my pocket."

Nodding her eyes eventually made their way towards the window, still hearing the rain pouring outside. "When's this rain goin' to stop?"

"Why you got someplace to be?" He cockily asked, raising an eyebrow. "How's 'bout you an' I play a friendly innocent game, hein?"

"What kind of game?" she warily asked.

"Well, we could play a little game of Blackjack or Poker if you want?" he asked as he continued shuffling, lifting a card every once in a while, before putting it back in the stack. "Or we could play strip poker to help pass de time."

"And that's innocent?" Her mouth hung open for a few seconds, not believing her own ears.

"Depends on how you play Chere…" he playfully winked as she tiredly yawned, too exhausted to argue with him at the moment. "Come on Chere, I'm bored." He groaned as he laid back against the pillow.

"Night Cajun." She sighs before hastily crawling underneath the covers. This was going to be a long couple of days with one Remy LeBeau who constantly had her fight against new feelings she wasn't used to. She just hoped she wouldn't regret it.