The suit was one Johnny only brought out rarely. Formal, elegantly cut, it was a shade of charcoal gray just short of black. The shirt he wore beneath was dark, forest green ? but he wore no tie, and the top button was undone. It echoed in his eyes and darkened their tone. He was clean-shaven for once, and his hair was caught back with a plain silver cuff. A smile caught at the corner of his mouth as he adjusted the jacket cuffs absently, looking up the stairway. ?Are ya close ta ready, m?love??

Her voice echoed down the stairs. "Aye, nearly there. Just a few moments more, leannan." He could hear her crossing back and forth between their bedroom and the bathroom, the staccato of heels echoing against the wooden floor of the hall above. "Do ye need anything else from up here before I come down?"

About to answer in the negative, Johnny paused as he twitched his jacket cuffs again and grinned. ?Actually, yeah. Think ya could bring down th? cuff links on th? dresser?? It was something of a mystery to him what Sianna was still doing up there. When he had come downstairs, she had promised to be only a moment longer. Still, it was early enough that they had time before their dinner reservations. The carriage driver was waiting patiently outside, well-paid for his time and trouble.

"Alright, th' cuffs it is and then down I'll be!" Crossing the room one last time, she snagged the cuffs easily and turned towards the stairs. Carefully holding her skirts clear so that she wouldn't step on them, she descended slowly, still unsure of herself in such slender heels. Her dress was one of the latest from the walkways of Fashion Week, a stunning draped gown with straps that showcased her upper body to perfection not to mention her graceful neck.

Her curls had been groomed and coifed so that they fell back in timeless waves and ringlets, and she lifted a hand routinely, as if to check that all were in place. Holding out her arms from her side, she spun slowly for his perusal, unable to bite back the grin and giggles that threatened to overtake her.

She was beautiful in her every-day clothing, with her hair in a loose tumble or caught casually back. In this dress that echoed her eyes, with the careful-careless fall of her chestnut hair and the giggles that livened her expression, she took his breath away. Emerald eyes darkened to a shade that almost matched his shirt, and his voice when he spoke was soft. ?Th? death a? me, Sianna.?

After a moment longer of watching her, he finally recovered his bearing and stepped forward to place his hands on her waist. ?Ya have yer wrap? Th? carriage is waitin?, an? we have a table tha? I don? wan? ta lose. I?ll put on th? links on th? way.? He was taking refuge in the prosaic matters, because otherwise he would be lost there in the hallway, in her eyes.

Her own voice was thick as she took in the full picture of him, letting her gaze travel intimately from top to toe. "Well, I would no' wish tae do that when ye are such a fine figure of a man yerself, mo chridhe. No' at all..." Nodding towards where her wrap was placed with a prettily wrapped box, she felt her knees give way as the sheer luck of her life overwhelmed her. How the Fates had seemed fit to bless her with such a man was a mystery. Placing a quick kiss to his lips, she grinned. "Aye, let's go...." Pausing a moment to brush away a slight tinge of lipstick with her thumb, she entwined her fingers with his and moved towards the door.

One pale eyebrow winged upwards, but he placed his hand palm-down on hers. The flush of her cheeks had brought a wickedly teasing smile to his face. ?Love th? color ya get on ya when ya blush, m?love.? The discreet cough of a waiter distracted Johnny for a moment, and he paused to place his order ? tandoori chicken ? without removing his hand from hers. Some consideration finally led him to order chicken dhansak for Sianna, and naan bread for both of them.

Pausing her thought until the waiter departed, she chuckled softly. "Oh, aye, I'm sure ye do love it. Especially as ye are oft intent on producing just such a reaction from me." Sianna drew one fingernail across the plane of his palm, tracing one of the major lines. Her eyes were dark and the candles' flames were mirrored in their depths. "But ye certainly have th' talent for it, and no mistake of that."

?An? a good thin?, too, since ya go? th? talen? fer most everythin? else.? His voice was lowered as her nail traced across his hand, and slightly husky. ?Ya had me recitin? th? things I love abou? ya las? nigh?, bu? I din? get ta finish, m?love. Don? think I?d ever be able ta, t?be hones?. Find new thin?s ta love abou? ya mos? every day.? And then he smiled, quick and bright. ?Th? blushin?s jus? a li?l side benefit fer me.?

"Ahh, and here I thought it was th' Glenfiddich that had ye announcing them." A loving smile for him as he spoke. "But I ken what ye mean, clear enough. I dinna think I could even begin tae list one thing I love about ye without immediately jumping tae th' next thing, and th' next after that." Reaching for her waterglass with her free hand, she took a small sip. "And 'tis glad to know that loving provides ye at least one wee benefit e'ery now and again." As the moment was perfect for it, her cheeks tinged another shade deeper.

The flush, the gentle teasing note ? he couldn?t resist, and brought her hand up to kiss her palm lightly. ?Yer jus? plain gorgeous, m?love. Ain? no way aroun? it.? About to continue, he was interrupted by the return of the waiter with the basket of naan bread. There was a small tray of different sauces to accompany the bread, ranging from a mint-yogurt to tomato chutney to one that Johnny had never learned the name of but that seemed to taste of fire and an oddly appealing bitterness.

Catching the perusal of the waiter, she let her fingers brush against the strange smoothness of his cheek before bringing her hand back in front of her. Folding them together, she let them rest on the table's edge as she leaned forward to inspect the offerings. Sianna uncharacteristically took a small sniff as if trying to deduce which spices were filling the air. It gave her the illusion of being a gourmand of some sort. Raising her eyes from the bread to his face, she offered a wry smile. "I'm afraid I shall have tae rely on ye for a suggestion on which tae try first, leannan."

An amused smile touched at his lips as he realized her predicament. ?Well?n, I?ve always liked this sauce, th? red one. Bu? tha?s powerful spicy, so then th? green one here?s mint yogurt an? somethin? else, an? it cools off th? burn. Th? tomato?s somewhere in between.? True to his words, he tore one of the pieces of naan bread in two and passed over half to her before pouring a small spoonful of the red sauce onto his portion. ?If?n this place?s half as good as I?ve heard, there won? be any tha? tastes bad.?

Her eyebrow arched as she accepted her half, carefully watching his reaction upon taking a bite. Glad to see that it did not set him gasping for water, she started to pick up the spoon. Yet, on second thought, she chose the tomato chutney instead. Placing a little on her plate, she then draped the napkin across her lap. A stain on the dress was the last thing she wanted. Finally settled, she placed some chutney on the bread and sampled it. Appreciative murmuring escaped as she chewed.

Emerald eyes widened as he lifted the engraved disk from its bed of shredded paper, long fingers running through the cord it was suspended on as he looked at the engraving, mouthing the words silently. After a moment he looked over at her and spoke quietly, clearly. It was only in the rarest cases that he troubled to enunciate, but this in his mind deserved the effort. ?It?s perfect, Sianna. My friend, my love, my own.? He slipped the cord over his head, letting the engraved disk rest over his heart.

She had been biting her lower lip, awaiting him to ask her to translate it for her. "Ye dinna mind then..." She had been about to ask if he minded her giving some other jeweler the business, but his understanding caught her unawares and she blinked like a startled owl.

Her shock was obvious, and it brought out the boyish grin that delighted in surprise. He had been planning to save his gift for later in the night, but the opportunity was too good, and he couldn?t resist. ?Is min a has, is fin a cas, is caomh a cruth,? the words rolled out in Gaelic, lilt of his pronunciation flawless with the ease of long and hard practice. ?Is caoin a guth, is binn a cainn, is grin a meinn, is blath sealladh a sul,? he paused a moment, to search for the next lines.

Sianna's mouth parted slightly in surprise, the weight of his words along with hearing them in her own tongue stealing her breath, as a single plump tear rolled down her cheek. Every fiber of her being was alert, as if trying to save every iota of the moment into an eternal reservoir that she could carry with her.

??S a brollach graidh-gheal a snamh ?n a com mar chra-fhaoileag air bharr nan tonn.? From there he went on to another poem, this one a short call and response type. It was one that Hudson had assured him Sianna would recognize, and have the proper replies for. There had been a haunted look in Hudson?s black eyes as he taught Johnny the poem, but it was perfect for Sianna. ?T? do chro? ar iompar liom.?

Her voice was soft, but clear, and heavy-laden with emotion. More tears pooled in the wells of her eyes, threatening to overspill the fringe of dark lashes at any moment. "Ar impar liom i mo chroise."

He reached over and brushed at the spilling tears with his thumb, his voice low and husky. ?N?l m? cho?che d? cheal.? They were in their own world, the food forgotten, the moonlight and candlelight mingling to cast their table in an otherworldly glow.

Her breath escaped her body in an unsteady pulse, her voice wavering as she balanced on the edge the world where only the two of the existed. "Cib? ?it a rachaidh m?, rachaidh tusa, a mhuirn?n." Covering his hand with hers, she pressed her face into the curve of his palm, a soft kiss placed to the base of his thumb.

That gathered a broad smile, and he looked her up and down with lifted eyebrows. ?No more?n ya do, m?love. Yer outshinin? every woman here, an? half a? them are goin? ta go home t?nigh? an? eat their hearts out wishin? they had tha? dress, or th? looks ta wear it half as well as ya do.? He leaned in to whisper in her ear before the musicians began again. ?Especially th? girl with th? really flashy makeup behind yer righ? shoulder lookin? daggers at ya an? makin? eyes at me.? A quick wink and he straightened as the unmistakable strains of a tango began.

Blushing prettily at his compliments, in a flash her brows lifted just shy of the ceiling. At his announcement, a wickedly mischievous glimmer flashed in her eyes as she dramatically wrapped her arms about his neck and placed a full kiss to his lips. Breaking the kiss, her cheeks flushed, she grinned wide. "If she canna manage more than wee daggers, there must be something wrong wi' her." Sianna was never one to have a jealous streak, but she was ornery enough to not let the incident slip by without being a proper antagonist.

The tango was the perfect instrument for Sianna?s mild vengeance, and she picked up the sultry, slithery promenade in a flash. Her dress was perfect for this dance as the full sweeping skirts of the other women?s were not. The girl with the flashy makeup ? undoubtedly used to drawing the majority of attention ? scowled as Johnny and Sianna reached the end of the promenade. Sianna seemed to know what Johnny had in mind, and she curled one leg around his and let him bend her into a low dip before they straightened to resume the dramatic dance.

All the other couples had such serious and dramatic faces that she managed to whisper through her teeth, never breaking the persona. "Oh, and do ye wish her tae wield a broadsword next, mo chridhe?" The passionate blending of emotion into movement between the pair soon began to draw the attention of the nightclub as the dance floor thinned out considerably. Soon only the other couple on the floor was the flashy peahen with her timid partner.

Emerald eyes were laughing, although he was able to maintain the seriousness of the rest of his expression with some effort, and speak without being too obvious. ?Ain? nothin? ta worry abou?, m?love. She?s jealous, bu? she ain? goin? ta do anythin? abou? it here. Tha?s th? lady trader tha?s been givin? yer bro so much trouble, Catriona Davies. Figger she can absorb some heartache from us.? And to demonstrate the point, he guided her through another dramatic turn, and then played up the heat of the close promenade back.

Her eyes darkened with blue-steel resolve at the idea of the trollop causing any sort of trouble for her brother. Giving the sultry dance her all, she bit back a laugh as the crowd ooh-ed and ahh-ed their performance, every nuanced move seething with passion. "Then it serves her right and may she have a double portion of it, for acting sae towards my own lads." As the closing notes lingered in the air, they spun into the same low dip as before, yet this time Sianna was bent backwards over his knee, her leg wrapped around his upper thigh. His hand cradled her head at the nape of her neck and their bodies were inches apart, a breath from kissing. The crowd erupted with enthusiastic gusto matched in kind with applause from the orchestra. Catriona Davies, her simpering escort in tow, stomped from the dance floor and directly out the front door.

He was still amused at the steely resolve in her voice, but as she turned up the passion of the tango, he lost himself in it ? to the extent that he forgot about the rest of the dancers entirely, much less the overblown lady trader. So when they finished the dance, it took a moment for Johnny to break the lock of his eyes with Sianna?s, and another to straighten her and realize that the applause was indeed for them. It was enough to bring a stain of color up from his collar, and he smiled around with some surprise. Still, the storming out of Catriona was enough to bring back the humor at the situation, and he smiled down at Sianna. ?So with tha? for a big momen?, ya wan? ta keep dancin? or call it triumph an? take th? nigh?, leave all th? other girls seethin???

She had been similarly adrift in the moment, and her blush was a hearty tinge of color. Shaking her head in wonderment as the others continued to acknowledge and compliment them, she whispered to him, "Mayhaps we both missed our calling in life, leannan. Seems we managed tae do something right." Bouncing on the balls of her feet, the heels clicking on the smooth wood as the band picked another musical selection, she grinned. "While I'd gladly dance th' night away wi' ye, my Jo, dinna ye need tae work a shift tonight?"