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Disclaimer: All characters belong
to Marvel comics which means the author doesn't intend to
make any money off of them. This tends to be a spin off from
the animated series with elements from the comics (no, #350
did not occur in this). This is a toned down version of a
previous submission.
Part Four
A door behind him closed, but he ignored it in his misery.
"Remy?" Rogue's husky voice trembled.
He almost fell over his luggage as he got up. Her bright
red hair with its white crown flew around her face in the
breeze. A silky pale green dress and long gloves hugged her
body and fevered his imagination.
"Chère. You made Remy t'ink you not want ta see 'im.
Why'd you leave?" He reached out to her, but she retreated.
"Didn't ya get the letter Ah left?" She frowned.
"Does the professor need me?"
"Lord knows de professor will forgive me, but de devil
take his needs. I need you."
"But don't ya understand-"
"Oui, I understand. I read de letter." He shrugged.
"Got somet'ing de professor gave me ta help you. But
dis not de place ta show you."
She studied him for a long moment, then smiled uncertainly.
"Ah . . .Ah'll have ta make my apologies ta the ladies.
And Ah have a bag, too."
"Go get it an' say what ya must. I'll wait."
It took her less time than he thought it would. They walked
to a busier corner and hailed a cab. Gambit told the driver
to take them to the best hotel and shushed Rogue when she
protested.
She remained silent when he checked them into separate rooms
on different floors. The rooms he'd gotten for her were a
fancy suite, which left her gasping in delight.
"Would ya look at this? El-e-gant." She ran her
fingers over the gilded furniture, then faced him. "Now
down ta business. Ah can't believe ya just up an' left ta
find me. It's hopeless and ya know it. The last time ya tried
ta kiss me it nearly killed ya."
"De professor gave me his blessin's . . .an' a little
somet'ing dat should make it possible for you ta touch Gambit
or anyone else wit'out fear." He pulled the box from
his suitcase.
"What's that thing?"
"Wait an' see." Pulling the mechanism from the
box, he set it on the nightstand and pressed the green button.
A light came on, but he wouldn't know if it worked unless
Rogue touched him barehanded. Or he kissed her.
"Come, chère. Let's test de pr'fessor's gift."
He pulled her toward him.
"No, ya fool. Ah don't want ta hurt ya." She struggled
against him for a moment, then looked surprised. She couldn't
break his grip. "Ma powers . . .they're gone."
"See. Now give dis poor fool a kiss 'fore he goes mad."
Rogue closed her eyes and leaned toward him, barely brushing
his lips with her own. "Ya call dat a kiss, chère? Dis
Cajun can see you have a lot ta learn."
His arms folded her closer as he descended on her mouth.
As he gently nibbled her lips, then increased the pressure,
she moaned and returned his embrace. He felt as though he
was drowning and she was his lifeline. Heart pounding, he
set her away, afraid to go too fast.
"Nuff for one lesson. In da mornin' we'll fly back ta
de school if you want. Dey all got worried when you left like
dat." He tried to smile and knew he failed dismally.
Rogue's hand touched her lips, her eyes dazed. Before he
could make more a fool of himself he pulled her over to the
box.
"Here, dis is how it works." Briefly he showed
her how to activate and deactivate the device. The longer
she remained quiet, the more uncomfortable he got. He couldn't
meet her eyes, afraid to see anger or hatred in them.
"You don' have ta use it if you don' want ta, chère.
Know you wanted ta do it wit'out anyt'ing mechanical, but
dis ain't like de collars."
"Ah know," she whispered, then reached up to touch
his face. "Oh, Remy . . .what have ya done?"
"Not sure whatcha mean, chère." Was she accusing
him of something?
"How'd ya get the stuff ta make this? Hank's been tryin'
for months without getting' anywhere. Ah jus' know ya had
somethin' ta do with it."
"Jus' tryin' ta help you. Figured you should know how
I feel 'bout you. It's important ta me dat you have de freedom
ta use your powers or not, whenever you want."
He staggered under the impact of her body as she threw herself
at him, wrapping her arms around his neck. The soft, wet skin
of her cheek pressed against his face as she clung to him.
"Thank ya, ya fool Cajun. Ya didn't have ta do it, but
Ah sure am glad ya did."
Gambit stood there, holding her close, his emotions storming
through him. Yes, he admitted, lust numbered among them. But
a great tenderness and need to protect his precious Rogue
vied with the familiar physical ache. Slow, take it slow,
Remy, or you're gonna scare her off.
"If it makes you happy, chère, dat's de mos' important
t'ing." Gently, he disengaged her arms and put her away
from him; glad his trench coat hid how she affected him. "Now
it's time for dis boy ta be gettin' ta his own room an' getting'
some rest."
Something flared in Rogue's eyes. Was it disappointment or
relief? He turned to go, then stopped at the touch of her
hand on his arm.
"Ya don' have ta leave unless ya want ta, Remy."
He clenched his teeth, forcing himself to not read more into
what she said. "Dis not be 'bout what I need, chère.
It's 'bout what you need. An' you don' need dis no-account
Cajun for a lover b'fore you get a chance ta know what it's
like ta be able ta touch another person."
This time he couldn't mistake the fury sparking from her
eyes. "Dad blast it! What if what Ah want is your sorry
hide? Don' be tellin' me what Ah do and don' need! Right now
what Ah need is standin' right in front a' me. When Ah needed
someone to get outta the dumps ya always either made me mad
or made me laugh." Her eyes narrowed. "Don't ya
want me?"
Remy groaned and closed his eyes, pulling his coat closer.
"It ain't dat, chère."
"Then what? Are ya tryin' ta protect me from yourself?"
When he didn't answer or look at her again, Rogue tsked in
irritation. "Gol'durned man. Always tryin' ta be so noble."
She planted herself in front of the door. "Now listen
up, Cajun. Ah don' need no protectin'. 'Specially from the
likes of ya. If I want ya, and ya want me, why shouldn't we
be t'gether?"
He couldn't come up with a good answer, just stood there
staring at her. Mon Dieu, but she looked so beautiful it hurt
his eyes. Must be why his vision blurred.
"Remy . . ." Her voice, suddenly soft and tender
washed over him. "Ah want this as much as ya do. It's
not like the time Ah got pawed in Genosha. Then Ah had no
control over what happened. But now ya've given me somethin'
Ah haven't had since b'fo' I first got my powers."
At his hesitation, she scowled, angry again. "Blast
it! What more do Ah gotta do ta get ya to love me?"
Gambit pushed away his doubts for the moment and opened his
arms to her. "Nothin', mon amant."
Rogue moved into his embrace, returning his kiss as passionately
as he had ever wanted. Caution warred with the elation flowing
through him.
"Say de word if you want ta stop. Dis is de time for
you ta touch wit'out fear a' somebody getting' hurt."
"Jus' shut up an' hold me," she murmured against
his lips as she pressed him closer. His hands caressed her
back and neck, feeling her cool, smooth skin against his fingers.
"So soft," he whispered relished the feel of her
in his arms.
"Oh, Remy. Ah nevah thought Ah'd ever make love with
anyone, much less ya." She stripped her gloves off, then
ran her fingers through his hair. He felt like a cat being
rubbed.
"Mmm, magic hands, chère." His eyes closed as he
leaned into her hands, trying to ignore her body pressed close
against his and what she had said. Make love. Did she really
mean it?
"Never cared for anyone much as I do you," he murmured,
more to himself than for her ears.
Rogue pushed back a little, tugging off his coat, then turning
her attention to his shirt. He raised his arms to help her
pull the tight T-shirt over his head. Reveling in her study,
he stood still as she ran her eyes and hands over him. Beneath
her tentative touch his body came alive, every nerve tingling.
He watched her face, seeing the wonder on it as she experienced
for the first time extended contact with another person without
causing harm. Her cheeks flushed at his perusal, yet she continued
to explore his body's textures. He clenched his hands at his
sides as her tentative touch grew more assured, battering
down the need to return her touch.
When her hands began to stroke his sides, he groaned, throwing
back his head with a hiss of breath through his lips. As if
burned, she drew back. Startled at her abrupt withdrawal,
he met her gaze.
A frown creased between her brows. "Did Ah do somethin'
wrong?"
"Non. Don' stop now." He hesitated, then continued.
"I want ta touch you, too, ma belle, but I won' if you
don' want it." Dieu, give me strength, he thought. She
didn't answer him with words, just reached down to take his
hand and place it on her face.
"Oh, chère, you don' know how long I been wantin'you
ta do dat." He gently cupped her chin to give her another
kiss. She melted into his touch, her knees nearly giving way.
To keep her from falling he gathered her closer with his other
arm.
"Remy . . ." she murmured as she buried her face
against his chest.
A nearly overwhelming weakness settled in his legs as she
kissed the sensitive area at the base of his neck. With another
groan he pulled back to look at her face. Her features bore
a strained expression.
"Chère, I can' stand too much more a' dis," he
ground out.
"Neither can Ah," she admitted, her voice muffled
with a strange note.
Pain lanced through him. He'd been wrong to let things get
this far. Putting her away from him took everything he had
and more. "Den I'd best git my t'ings and go ta my room
for I make a fool a' myself and hurt you." He moved to
gather his shirt and coat.
"Don't ya dare do somethin' so cruel!" she yelled,
tears pooling in her eyes, then spilling onto her cheeks.
"Huh?" Had he read her wrong?
"Don' cha think Ah have needs too, you thick-headed
fool? There's nobody else I want an' now you're turnin' me
down. How'd ya think that makes me feel?" She buried
her face in her hands, sobbing.
"Aw, chère, I'm sorry. Dat's not what I meant."
He gathered her back into his arms, wiping away her tears.
"Thought you didn' want ta be dat close. When it comes
ta you, dere's no t'inkin' clearly for me . . .figured you
jus' wanted ta experiment, then had enough."
"Nevah," she whispered, then nuzzled his neck again.
Continued
in Chapter 5
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