Moira and Nathan

[x-mactaggart.livejournal.com]

Moira and Nathan's night out on the town. They flirt, they tease, they try not to worry about Rachel.



Moira barely resisted the urge to poke Nathan in the head, just to see if he would respond. He'd been rather fixated since she had come out of the bathroom and she smirked, smoothing down the green dress as he blinked at her again. The hem, despite her threats, had stayed put at the rather short angle she'd had the dress maker take it up too. "We're goin' ta be late," she reminded him, glancing over to make sure she knew where their hotel room key was.

"The legs are happy," Nathan said, staring at them. A little smile was playing on his lips. "They're being admired." He raised the hand that had the keycard in it, and then got up. "So why did you tell the valet we weren't needing the car again tonight? Isn't this restaurant a bit of a ways away for walking in this weather?"

"Ye'll see." The smirk grew, just a tad, as she crossed in front of him. "Did ye think I'd tell ye all th' surprises for tonight?"

"I could find out," Nathan reminded her, smiling as he helped her into her coat, then picked up his coat. "But then you'd pout at me all night, if I spoiled your surprise. Lead on, scheming woman."

"I should register my pout as a deadly weapon." There was a slight pause when she turned towards the door. "Alon' wit' my legs." As they made they're way down to the lobby, Moira couldn't help but snicker at the look on Nathan's face when he realized they were being admired by a few folks in the elevator.

#You're being admired,# Nathan sent to her merrily. #I'm just the thuggish-look escort in the all-black suit.#

#Tha' couple over there was checkin' out yer butt, nay mine,# was the giggling reply. They stopped as one of the hotel staff approached them and she felt the curosity along the link as Nathan poked at her.

"Dr. MacTaggart? The limousine you requested for this evening is waiting out front. Allow me to escort you and your husband outside."

"Aye, thank ye."

Nathan covered his laugh with a cough, then offered Moira his arm. The limousine was sleek and black and more than a little vintage-looking. "Roomy," he observed wickedly as the chauffeur held the door for them.
An eyebrow quirked, just slightly. "Dessert after dinner, dear."

~~~

"You know, when you said French restaurant, you didn't mention that Parisian chefs would get an inferiority complex if they ate here," Nathan said innocently, making a happy face as he tried more of the caviar. "You know, I haven't had caviar this good since the last time I blew something up near the Caspian sea." At a neighboring table, an older gentleman gave him a mildly incredulous look. Nathan just smiled.

Moira nearly choked on her water before very gently kicking him in the knee. After all, making him knock over the food would be a perfectly good waste of the cuisine. #Behave, dear.# "An' ta think, I 'ad ta fight wit' ye ta get ye ta try caviar when we ran inta each other in Paris. Ye dinnae even notice when I snuck some onto yer plate."

"My culinary horizons were very narrow. You've been an education," Nathan said, his eyes dancing as he lifted his wine glass. "On many, many levels." He had been relieved, more than he could have expressed aloud, when they'd left the mansion and he hadn't felt guilty in the slightest. Maybe it was because he knew GW would have been so happy to see him and Moira out having a good time.

Laughing at that, she smiled as the waitress brought another plate of bread and left silently, with just a small smile. The waitstaff was incredibly good here. "'ave I now?" Moira asked, teasing, cutting into her salmon.

"Yes. I was next door to a total barbarian before you got your hands on me," Nathan said brightly. "Now I even know what fork gets used for what."

"I remember tha'...ye tried ta stab Rory wit' it." There was a hint of dryness in her voice but nothing else, tonight wasn't a night for worries. #An' Nathan, luv, stop thinkin' 'bout th' pager in me purse, Rachel's fine.# She winked and wound her foot up next to his. Not that she could blame him, she had thought of Rachel and Terry and Bobby more than once this evening.

Nathan's lips quirked. "Like I said. Total barbarian." The waitress arrived with his appetizer next, and his eyes went wide and thoughtful at the size of the scallops. Nantucket Bay, the menu had said. "You could play golf with these," he murmured mischievously.

"If I find ye playin' golf wit' th' scallops," Moira warned, "I'll magically make this hem drop lower."

"Not to worry, dear. I am not going to start a food fight in these highly dignified environs." He tried the scallops, making an approving noise, and then smiled at her again. "By the way, your hair looks beautiful."

She smiled at him. "Thank ye, th' people I go ta are miracle workers, especially after wha' I put my 'air through." There was a giggle. "Ye dinnae look 'alf bad yerself, despite some o' yer whinin' bout nay wantin' ta go."

"I'm happy with the trim, yes," Nathan conceded with a chuckle, "but I'm going to have to regrow the beard now. Not that it would take me more than a couple of days to get the appropriate level of stubble again..."

"Th' scruffy look is adorable but I like th' clean shaven look every now an' again."

"Makes me look younger, or so the madwoman with the razor said. I suppose I can use all the help I can get on that score. Being almost-forty and all..."

"Hush, I'm nay tha' far behind ye, remember." Moira made a face. "Accordin' ta some, we're already ancient, dinnae ye know tha'?"
"Oh? Has someone been being young and smug?" Nathan asked, then grinned at her. "As for you... you may be not far behind me, but you have the fringe benefit of looking ageless."

"Can I 'elp it if I 'ave good genes?" she asked, teasing as she finished off her water.

"I'm not complaining, trust me," Nathan said. "I get far too much of a charge out of being with the most beautiful woman in the room, all the time."

There was a small snort at that. "Yer daft, if adorable an' yer also so verra, verra biased." Leaning over the table slightly, Moira kissed him on the cheek. "Besides, I win. I'm wit' th' most 'andsome man in th' room."

"Listen to us. You'd think we haven't been married for a year yet or something," Nathan teased, taking her hand as she leaned back. "All of this romantic talk..."

"Speakin' o'," she mused, "we should get away for our anniversary. Go back ta Greece or somethin'."

"Back to Santorini?" Nathan's smile was brilliant, yet oddly wistful. "I'd like that. Damn, but we both need a vacation. Not that I'd trade some parts of the last six months for anything... especially the tiny redheaded parts..."

"But we need a vacation," Moira said, firmly. "Especially wit' th' wee redhead. Let's take 'er wit' us when we go, means we can 'ave a longer go at th' place than if we were 'aving 'er watched."

"Remember those private houses we saw on Santorini when we were touring the island?" Nathan asked after a moment. "We could rent one of those. Not that I didn't like the hotel, but..." He trailed off, his eyes gone distant. "I dream about one of those houses, I think."

"Good dreams?"

"Not bad dreams, but strange. It's always in the distance, always waiting for me. I was there, once, but that was before." He made a slight, uncomfortable gesture. "Before November," he said, meaning the Hellfire Club. "My dreams have been different since."

Moira frowned and tucked that away. "We'll discect yer dreams when we get 'ome." She raised her hand to stop his protest. "It'll make me feel better, anyway."

Nathan blinked at her for a moment, and then ate another half a scallop, meekly. "Anyway," he ventured, "someplace like that... might be best, if we're taking the munchkin. That way she can be, uh, eccentric to her heart's content."

"So she can float ta th' ceilin' without anyone starin' at us funny, aye, tha' would be a good idea. An', besides, we can jus' do th' normal family thin' for once."

The man at the other table was staring again, and Nathan grinned suddenly, hugely. "Euphemisms are for the weak-minded, you're right," he said. "Oh. We can take her swimming. Hell, I can go swimming. Since I couldn't get that damned cast wet the last time."

#Jus' two words for ye.# Moira smirked. #My swimsuit.#

Nathan's expression was positively reverent. "Oh, yes. I remember."

~~~

Moira shrieked and held on tightly as Nathan suddenly grabbed her and pulled her down into a dip. "Nathan!" she yelped, though she was laughing at the time. "I thought ye were done dancin'!" They had just left the dance floor and had been heading back to the limo when he pulled this little stunt.

Nathan pulled her back to her feet, giving her an innocent look that wouldn't have fooled the dullest person on earth. "Whoops, are we not still on the dance floor? I think I got confused." The chaffeur was opening the door for them, smiling.

She tottered a little bit on her feed as the blood suddenly rushed back into her head. "Scoundrel," she accused with a sniff.

"And you wouldn't have me any other way," Nathan said, gesturing for her to precede him into the limo. The chaffeur closed the door behind him, and he leaned back into the seat with a contented sigh. "My back's barely twinging," he said, sliding an arm around Moira.

Curling up closer, she kicked her shoes off and wiggled her toes into the carpet. "Well, tha's a good sign. An' a sign we need ta do this more."

"Yeah," he said with a soft smile as she leaned her head against his shoulder, "I think we do. Show all these callow kids how you dance."

"Ye try bein' bad at dancin' when we were taught by a crazy old women in th' bowels o' an ancient castle. Scary, scary lady." A part of her was blissfully tired, the result of muscles and mind relaxing after weeks of stress.

"There is that," Nathan said, kissing the top of her head. "So it's back to the hotel?" he asked lightly. "I believe I was promised dessert... and no, the creme brulee didn't count."

Smiling at him, Moira inched the rest of the way into his lap and wound her arms around his neck. "I've always been a big believer in keepin' me word."

~~~

Nathan sighed as Moira settled herself more comfortably beside him, her head resting on his chest. "One of these days, you are going to kill me," he said with a wistful little smile. "But what a way to go."

Swatting him on the side, she snickered. "Please, old man," Moira teased, easily avoiding the fingers when he reached out to tickle her. "Ye're tellin' me ye cannae 'andle me?"

"It's an uphill battle," he said very solemnly, and yelped when she poked him in the ribs. "You're naturally more devious than I am," he went on, "so you've got an edge."

"Well, o' course I do. I'm evil, remember?"

"Evil and devious," Nathan said, drawing her closer again. "And very, very patient. In case I hadn't mentioned that lately." He kissed her forehead as she looked up at him. The look in his gray eyes was soft, a little uncertain if tender. "You sure took the 'for better or for worse' part seriously, you know."

"An' ye dinnae?" Turning to get comfortable, Moira pillowed her arms on his chest and leaned her head on her hands. "Nathan, even if we 'ad never come around an' we were still jus' friends, I would still be by yer side durin' this. Maybe nay like this..." A teasing grin was flashed at him. "...but I'd still be 'ere."

He reached up and pushed the hair back from her eyes gently. 'Dessert' had made rather a mess of her hairdo. Ah, well... "I much prefer it like this," he said, a tiny smile playing on his lips. "I just... want to make sure you know how glad I am that you are here." The smile faded, his expression unguarded, almost vulnerable. "I don't think I could do this without you. I don't know that I'd have a reason to do it, without you and Ray."

"Dinnae say tha', please." Her fingers lightly traced his jaw, clean shaven for the first time in months. "It 'urts ta think 'bout. But 'tis a moot point, we are 'ere."

"Moot," he agreed softly. "You are. The two of you. You're my better world." He reached up and took her hand, lacing his fingers with hers. "I'm a lucky man."

Moira thought about that for a second. "...well, aye, ye are...gah!" She wasn't quite fast enought to avoid the tickle to the ribs and it took a few seconds to get her breath back. "But we're lucky as well."

"Is this going to turn into one of those conversations again?" Nathan asked idly, but his eyes were locked on her face. "I'm lucky, no, you're lucky, I love you more, no, I love you more..."

"Hrm." Leaning over, she kissed him solidly and then pulled back, grinning at the grin on his face. "I win."

"You always win. It's part of your charm." Nathan stared up at the ceiling for a moment, pursing his lips. "What do you think Ray's doing right now?"

"I'm 'opin' our darlin', beautiful daughter is sleepin' like she should be an' lettin' Terry an' Bobby rest."

"She's getting better at doing that." Nathan blinked. "You realize she was six months old this weekend?"

"Aye, I know, we got 'er a few things, remember?" Like the new toys that, oddly enough, Nathan had found more fun to play with than Rachel. And a few gifts from some others, like the stuffed alligator she was currently sleeping with. "But we got so swamped an' so tired we couldn't celebrate really."

"Right," Nathan said, then shook his head a little, sighing. "Between taking Kyle to Arlington yesterday and all the rest of it..." He smiled a bit ruefully. "Okay, so I'm getting old and forgetful. There is that magic number coming up in a few months."

"So, for yer birthday do ye want a chair likes Charles 'as?" Moira asked sweetly.

"No, dear. One stretch of time in a wheelchair was enough for me for a good long while. Possibly permanently." His smile turned contemplative. "Speaking of gifts for Ray, I want to stop in the gift shop in the lobby on our way out tomorrow. I spotted a stuffed penguin in the window that I think she'd like."

"...does it make noise?"

"We'll have to find out. It's about as big as she is." Nathan grinned. "I doubt it'll displace Mr. Bunny."

"God, nothin' will replace Mr. Bunny." She wrinkled her nose. "Mr. Bunny needs a bath, though."

"We'll have to do it on the sly, when one of us has her out for a walk. Otherwise she'll howl and shriek." Nathan's eyes were starting to feel heavy, much as he told them to stop. It had been a relaxing afternoon and evening, but his body was still well aware of the fact that he was tired and stressed and still in a considerable sleep deficit.

Barely able to stifle a yawn, Moira slide off of his chest and snuggled closer. "I think 'tis time for sleep," she murmured.

"Sleep," Nathan agreed wearily, closing his eyes. "And then we can order French toast for breakfast. Yes, I have a fixation."

"'Tis got ta be th' syrup."