Friday, December 7th, 2012 -- evening
Ben had felt a little bad for Jackie finding out about this at the last minute. It wasn't like he'd had a lot of notice either, but this sort of thing was easier for a guy to dress for, and, from time to time in Vancouver, he'd done things sort of like this -- fancy events, black tie. But he had faith that she'd figure it out. Jackie might not be used to anything like this, but she was nothing if not resourceful.
By the time Ben's rolling up in front of her house (in a nice, new silver Mercedes -- a rental), it's already close to seven in the evening. He parks the car and kills the engine, gets out and heads for her door. It wasn't exactly warm out, but the knee length dark grey overcoat was left unbuttoned anyway, revealing black-tie-Ben: a midnight blue tux, so dark it looks like a richer black, with all the right accessories. The bow tie is a touch askew, but really, he cleans up well when he needs to. When he gets to the door he raps his knuckles against the wood a few times, and then he's pressing his hands into his coat pockets, glancing off to one side as he waits.
Jackie had her much deserved moment of panic over the entire thing. Christmas? She got that. Charity? Okay, great. But a Gala? What in the hell was a Gala? Once she had gotten the initial shock out of her system it was time to get to work. She found someone to cover her shift at the bar on Friday and wrangled two other girls who had off, then got busy shopping and primping. The girls had been a huge help and more than happy to help Jackie orchestrate her own redneck version of Pretty Woman. Without the hooker part. With only a few final touches needed the girls left Jackie in peace while she finalized her make-up and did a few more laps around the house in her heels to make sure she was comfortable in them. She wasn't, but it didn't seem they were ever meant to be.
It was at the knock to the door that Jackie could feel her heart leap up into her throat. "Hang on one second!" It was the usual Jackie call, with as much twang and spit as ever. But instead of being followed by the quick thumping of sock covered feet across hardwood floors there was the distinct click of heels.
The door was tugged opened to reveal a smiling Jackie, although it was tinged with nervousness. Something a little uneasy and unsure of herself that she so rarely wore. Though, she rarely wore anything like this. A fitted strapless red gown that runched along the torso and hips before cascading gently to the floor with a small pooling train behind it. A gold necklace, gold earrings, and a gold cuff bracelet all with a scrolling pattern of swirls added that extra splash of dazzle. To finish off the look Jackie's hair was fixed into intricate loose braids that gathered to hang over her shoulder.
She took a deep breath, obviously working double time to get the butterflies in her stomach under control. They weren't enough to distract her from Ben's cleaned up appearance and the extra curl to her lips made that perfectly clear. "My God y' look good, sweetheart." A few steps taken back with a sweep of her hand to silently invite him in. She was far too nervous to ask him if she did alright.
Jackie really shouldn't have to ask him how she did; it should be plenty obvious from his reaction, eyes a little wide, mouth dropped open partway, staring at her pretty blatantly for a few seconds before he's shaking his head a little, as if to clear it. There's actually a faint bit of laughter -- almost that nervous kind that escapes him sometimes, but there's something else to it, hard to pin down. "Wow." Stepping in through the door, he's shutting it behind him, but he doesn't take his eyes off of her. "You look-- Listen, we could just stay in for the night, maybe. I don't think we need to go," closing the distance between her in a couple of strides, and, hands at her hips, he pulls her in close. "Gorgeous. You're gonna make everyone else look bad," grinning crookedly, teasing, though he means it.
He was silent and she should have automatically taken it as a compliment, but it was far too hard to shake the edge about her. During the summer Jackie was prone to wearing cut off shorts and bikini tops without batting a lash, but somehow being in a floor length formal gown made her feel exposed. "Don't laugh." It came out in a squeak followed by her own round of nervous laughter. It was when he finally made some sort of comment, wow, that she grasped onto that. "Really wow?" His idea about staying in for the night got more chuckling out of her. Yes apparently, really wow. "Are y' kiddin' me? Sure, it sounds like a good idea, but considerin' how good y' look? I wanna show you off. 'Sides, that lady wants t' show y' off too an' she would be mighty disappointed if she lost her chance." When he pulled her toward him she grinned and tipped her head downward, a rare bashful gesture from Jackie at the compliments. "Thank y', sweetheart. I had a lil' help from the girls. It... I think it came t'gether alright." With her head tipped it was easier now to spot the crooked bow tie. Hands slid up between them so she could adjust it slightly, her bottom lip getting caught between her teeth at the gesture. It seemed bow ties worked just as well as regular ties.
"It came together a lot better than just alright, sweetheart." He starts to duck his head a little too, but when he realizes that she's going for his tie, he pauses in the movement. "Really, wow." His fingers knead lightly into her hips and he's pulling her fractionally closer. "I mean, I never doubted you'd look amazing tonight, but ... really. Really, wow." His vocabulary seems to be a little stunted at the moment, but he's still got that crooked grin on his face, and it just goes a little more lopsided when he notices her biting her lip like that. "You're right. We do need to go. I want to show you off, too." Finally leaning in the rest of the way, he's brushing a featherlight kiss to her cheek. "You ready to go? We probably should, if you are, or else it's just going to get less and less likely we're going to leave."
There's no movement to stop him when he pulls her in closer. In fact, once his tie is straightened she's dipping her head down further. If it wasn't for the fact that she was so aware of her make-up and smearing it all over his clothing she would probably be burying her face against his chest right about now. "I appreciate it, Ben. Really, thank you. I'm jus' glad y' like it, an'... here's hopin' I don't put one of these pretty lil' heels in m' mouth at some point in the night." Her smile grew beneath the kiss then she lifted her head following the withdrawal of his lips. Her hands lingered on his tie just a short while longer. It looked like she might be debating putting off leaving because, wow, he really did look good. Finally, knowing they needed to leave she released his tie, hands lifting in a sign of surrender. "I jus' gotta grab that thing." She's gesturing at her shoulders and looking about before giving a light 'aha!' and clicking her way to the gold flecked wrap laying across the back of the couch. It was draped around her shoulders before she grabbed a small gold clutch sitting nearby as well. "I'm ready, I'm ready." Moving back toward the door she smiled up at him in passing.
"You'll be fine," reassuring, in response to her comment about putting a heel in her mouth at some point. Already, he's trying to get himself under control, stop being so obviously smitten with her (at least outwardly, because he knew that even if they weren't near each other during the night, he was going to be sneaking glances at her all night). When she lets go of his tie and turns to get her things, though, he does let himself check her out -- blatant about it, since she can't see, and wow, she really did look good. By the time she's turning back to him, he's got his eyes on her face. He's beating her to the door, opening it up for her and guiding her out of it with a light touch of his fingertips to the small of her back. "How long did it take you to get ready?" Without waiting for an answer, "It was worth it."
He might have been okay with the idea of not being near the entire night, but for now Jackie had other plans. "Jus' don't stray too far from me, please?" She tried to keep her tone light during the request, but there was something serious about it. Jackie could handle anyone who stepped foot into the Busted Knuckle, her turf, but spending the evening in a mansion while rubbing elbows with RhyDin's elite? The butterflies were going crazy. At least she's managing a smile and nodding her head in thanks when he's opening the door for her. "Longer than I will ever admit. An' if y' keep sayin' such sweet things I'm gonna be matchin' the red in my dress here soon." Snickering she's lingering on the porch, waiting for him to follow her. But that silver Mercedes sitting outside looking so out of place in front of her house caught her eye. "Holy hell, Ben!" The words were paired with a laugh of disbelief. Hopefully she would get the colorful outbursts out of her system before arriving at the Gala.
"Alright, alright, I guess I can manage to stay next to you the whole night." Trying to sound like this was some kind of sacrifice, but he's grinning, and that comes through in his voice. "Hey, I've said it before, you're cute when you blush. Hm?" As if he doesn't know what the outburst was about; he's even twirling the keys idly on his index finger. "Oh, that." Shutting the door and making sure it's locked before taking her hand to start to the car with her. "I figured it'd be good to be the whole package tonight. You like it? Maybe you can drive it back to my place at the end of the night." With a sly little glance aside to her.
"Yer such a trooper." It was quick, flat, yet amused with a playful roll of her eyes before they fixated on the car again. "Yes, that." Her hand holding the gold clutch was gestured at the car wildly since her other hand was captured within his. "I wasn't expectin' this an' now I guess I should have. I love Betty dearly, but I don't think the ol' girl quite compliments m' shoes or yer tie." She would apologize to her truck later. For now she was busy hungrily gawking at the car only to be interrupted by a squeal of delight at the idea of being able to drive it. "Y'gotta let me, Ben. Pleeease." Her entire body dipped with the pleading word when they came to a stop by the passenger side door. "Though, I didn't realize the plan was to go to yer place after all this. I didn't bring an overnight bag an' I think I took every stitch I had at yer house home fer washin'." She gave him a look that said 'what will we do?', lips dropping into a small 'o' before the expression mirrored his sly look.
"Oh, I gotta? What do I get?" Teasing -- always teasing her. Maybe that was how he planned on getting her through this night, compliments and affectionate teasing. Without drawing any attention to it, like he did this all the time, he opened up the passenger side door for her, not letting go of her hand until he'd finished helping her into the car. Once she's inside, he's leaning down so he can respond to her, still with that sly look on his face, though it's slipped into something a little more obviously suggestive at this point. Bold, tonight, it seems. "I'm sure we'll figure something out, Peaches." One quick peck to her cheek, and then he's pulling away (unless she stops him), shutting her door and rounding the car so he can climb into the driver's seat, start up the engine -- and of course, of course, he's revving it a few times before he guns it and speeds off.
"Y'get an extremely happy girlfriend. I ain't never heard a man complain about havin' one of them takin' up space in his bed. Hear it usually has a happy sorta endin'." It was so much easier to make comments like that when she knew they were on their way to an event with... well, she wasn't even sure how many people were going to be there. But it was public, that much was certain. With his assistance she eases herself into the passenger seat, making sure her dress and wrap are both out of the way of the door before he closes it. Her fussing is interrupted when he leans down to her, a curious tilt of her head before it tips back in a laugh. "Oh yeah, I think we both got some ideas." Her nose scrunches sweetly at the kiss to her cheek then she's looking his way when he slides himself into the driver's seat of the car. It was when he revved the engine that Jackie gave a sharp clap of her hands. "Let's do this!" A rally cry for a charity gala. You could dress her up, but now it was the test to see if you could take her out.
Ben was confident that she'd be fine there, too, rally cry and all. He knows how adaptable Jackie is; he's seen her in situations much more difficult to handle than a mansion full of elites. An uneventful enough drive (though he does really push the car when they're on main roads), and eventually they're turning onto a long driveway past a gate that opens up without much pause when Ben gives his name to the voice coming through over the intercom. The house is huge, ridiculously -- the kind you see in movies, the kind you think you might need a map to find the bathroom, that you might be in danger of getting lost if you wander off too far. There's actually hired help at the front of the house to park the guests' cars off somewhere out of sight (and apparently to assist the women in getting out of their cars, which has Ben momentarily sour, even if it's mild, and even though it disappears seconds after he hands off the keys). After both Ben and Jackie are out of the car and it's being driven off, he's hooking his arm through Jackie's, though instead of heading right up the stone steps to the door, he's looking aside to her. "Ready?"
Every time the car was pushed Jackie gave a laugh and a clap of delight. But the longer they were in the car, the closer she assumed they were to arriving, she was getting quieter and quieter. By the time Ben is giving his name and the gates are stretching open for them she's very quiet and perfectly still. Well, until they're pulling up in front of the house and she's tilting herself aside to peer out the Mercedes window and up at the massive building. It was only when a young man was opening her door that she was tugged back to the present and out of her own thoughts. The offered hand of the man was taken with a smile and quiet thank you once she was out of the vehicle. It's only when she's safely got Ben beside her that she attempts a slow inhale followed by a long exhale. She's looking aside at him, mumbling quietly. "Please don't leave me." The playfulness of the request was gone, but she barely waited for him to reply. She had repeated herself but she knew he wouldn't ditch her. That was when she gave a subtle nod and turned her gaze ahead. "Ready." She managed to keep the quake out of her voice.
He's looking at her a couple of seconds longer even after she's turned to look forward. She hadn't waited for a reply, but he's leaning in to give her one anyway, mouth close to her ear, because his voice is low, just a murmur. "You're beautiful, you're smart, and you're amazingly fun. You're easy to talk to. You'll be fine. And I couldn't leave you even if I wanted to -- and I don't want to, gorgeous." A brush of his lips to her temple as he straightens up, and then he's leading her up the stairs to the door -- which, of course, has got somebody stationed outside to open it up for them. Ben gives the guy a quick smile as he and Jackie pass through the door (easily large enough for the two of them to go through side-by-side), and there's someone just inside to take Ben's coat and Jackie's wrap, if she wants to give it up.
The place is as extravagant as one might expect, all marble and dark wood, probably priceless artwork on the walls. Right now, it's obviously decorated for Christmas, and that, at least for Ben, makes it slightly less intimidating -- evergreen and holly, the whole enormous foyer and what looks like a greatroom beyond it lit up a little softer by-- well, it seems like it would be Christmas lights, but there aren't any to be seen. It is Rhydin, after all, and Lydia Landers certainly had the money to magick a holiday-mood-lighting without the lights. There are plenty of people already there, chatting; there are servers bustling around with plates of hors d'oeuvres; and, happily, there's somebody set up with a bar in a far corner of the foyer. Looking that way, Ben gives Jackie a little bit of a nudge, and then instead of keeping his arm through hers, he moves to take her hand in his. "Drinks first. Then I'll go find Lydia and introduce you."
Jackie's gaze stays straight ahead, but her head leans just a little closer to him when he lingers near her ear. It's that extra bit of contact mixed with his quiet assurances that are helping to make her feet feel less like a bag of bricks is holding her in place. Her eyes close at the brush of his lips to her temple. "Thank you, sweetheart. I should already know I'll be fine havin' y' with me." Eyelids lift when they make their way inside, the doorman receiving a smile of appreciation as well as the man who takes her wrap along with Ben's coat.
It seems as her gaze is sweeping the interior of the mansion and taking in the decor that she's also taking notes on the people around her. Especially the women. Without the wrap to hide beneath anyone can see the couple of moments when Jackie is straighening her spine, pulling her shoulders back, and lifting her chin. She still had a nervous energy buzzing through her, but from the outside looking in she could almost pass for just another one of these women with the way she easily curled her lips into a soft smile. At the nudge she's turning her gaze towards the bar and it gets a small snicker out of her. "No matter where y' go or what yer gonna do, safe to assume there's gonna be a bar. But that sounds jus' fine, I'm lookin' forward t' meetin' her." Her fingers carefully wrap themselves around Ben's hand before following him towards the bar.
Once again Jackie's gaze is busily at work taking in what she sees and hears. It's when they reach the bar and the tender greets them both with a grin before asking them what they'll have that Jackie displays what she was working out in her head. "Champagne, please an' thank you." She tried to make it sound like this was something she ordered regularly before looking aside to Ben. Now this was simply becoming a game in her head. How well could she camouflage herself among these people?
Jackie really could almost pass for one of these women -- almost, if she wasn't, by probably a couple of decades for the most part, the youngest one there. The two of them get a couple of looks on their way to the bar, but probably just as much 'who are they' as 'who is she,' and none of the body language seems disapproving, at least. Ben, for his part, doesn't seem to notice the looks, at least in part because he's distracted by Jackie, as much as he's trying not to let on. When they're waiting for their drinks -- Ben's just ordering a soda in a rocks glass with a lime wedge; he's played this game for a long time -- he lets go of her hand, lets his fingers trace light, idle shapes at the sensitive skin at the inside of her wrist. Probably not the best way to keep her calm. At least it's only for a moment, because once the drinks are there and Ben's leaving a tip, he takes her by the hand again, already meandering a little ways away from the bar, just not to be in the way. "You don't want to bolt yet, do y-- oh, there she is." The woman that was probably somewhere in her seventies, head to toe in gold (including a sequined dress and an elaborate hat), cradling an immaculately groomed Maltese (with a little red bow and a little green bow behind each of its ears) in one arm? And... sort of frantically waving Ben over to the small group of people she's with? That'd be her. "You good?" An aside to Jackie, even as he's starting in that direction.
Even if her gaze was slowly running laps around the expanse of the room, she was doing her best to ignore the looks and not make eye contact with anyone. If she simply kept that little smile playing across her lips she would come across like any other attendee impressed by what Lydia had accomplished tonight rather than someone attempting to get lost in their own world. It's only as Ben's releasing her hand that there looks to be a split second of panic when Jackie's eyes are cutting aside to him sharply. But he's not leaving her or wandering off to look for Lydia. That relief mixed with his touch trailing across her wrist causes her lips to twitch even if it's not entirely clear what's going on inside her mind. Maybe they could go back to the car and put that to good use for the rest of the evening? Her attention is trailing down to his tie but before she can get her fingertips stroking along the oh-so inviting material again her hand is being grasped and she's being tugged along. At least she manages to grab her flute of champagne and give the bartender a smile before following after Ben.
Ben almost got his entire question out when she opened her mouth to reply, but his interruption disrupts that until her attention moves to the waving woman. Oh my, look at the dog. Look at the woman. Look at the entire package. Jackie gave a nod to Ben paired with an ear to ear smile. "I'm not lookin' t' bolt an' yer officially bein' paged, sweetheart." The champagne flute is lifted and it takes a great deal of effort to not drain it on the spot. Instead a modest sip is taken before Jackie is trailing along beside Ben towards the group, replying in a soft sing-song whisper. "I'm fine. I just hope she pinches yer cheeks. She seems like the type." How she managed to not laugh was a miracle.
Ben had felt a little bad for Jackie finding out about this at the last minute. It wasn't like he'd had a lot of notice either, but this sort of thing was easier for a guy to dress for, and, from time to time in Vancouver, he'd done things sort of like this -- fancy events, black tie. But he had faith that she'd figure it out. Jackie might not be used to anything like this, but she was nothing if not resourceful.
By the time Ben's rolling up in front of her house (in a nice, new silver Mercedes -- a rental), it's already close to seven in the evening. He parks the car and kills the engine, gets out and heads for her door. It wasn't exactly warm out, but the knee length dark grey overcoat was left unbuttoned anyway, revealing black-tie-Ben: a midnight blue tux, so dark it looks like a richer black, with all the right accessories. The bow tie is a touch askew, but really, he cleans up well when he needs to. When he gets to the door he raps his knuckles against the wood a few times, and then he's pressing his hands into his coat pockets, glancing off to one side as he waits.
Jackie had her much deserved moment of panic over the entire thing. Christmas? She got that. Charity? Okay, great. But a Gala? What in the hell was a Gala? Once she had gotten the initial shock out of her system it was time to get to work. She found someone to cover her shift at the bar on Friday and wrangled two other girls who had off, then got busy shopping and primping. The girls had been a huge help and more than happy to help Jackie orchestrate her own redneck version of Pretty Woman. Without the hooker part. With only a few final touches needed the girls left Jackie in peace while she finalized her make-up and did a few more laps around the house in her heels to make sure she was comfortable in them. She wasn't, but it didn't seem they were ever meant to be.
It was at the knock to the door that Jackie could feel her heart leap up into her throat. "Hang on one second!" It was the usual Jackie call, with as much twang and spit as ever. But instead of being followed by the quick thumping of sock covered feet across hardwood floors there was the distinct click of heels.
The door was tugged opened to reveal a smiling Jackie, although it was tinged with nervousness. Something a little uneasy and unsure of herself that she so rarely wore. Though, she rarely wore anything like this. A fitted strapless red gown that runched along the torso and hips before cascading gently to the floor with a small pooling train behind it. A gold necklace, gold earrings, and a gold cuff bracelet all with a scrolling pattern of swirls added that extra splash of dazzle. To finish off the look Jackie's hair was fixed into intricate loose braids that gathered to hang over her shoulder.
She took a deep breath, obviously working double time to get the butterflies in her stomach under control. They weren't enough to distract her from Ben's cleaned up appearance and the extra curl to her lips made that perfectly clear. "My God y' look good, sweetheart." A few steps taken back with a sweep of her hand to silently invite him in. She was far too nervous to ask him if she did alright.
Jackie really shouldn't have to ask him how she did; it should be plenty obvious from his reaction, eyes a little wide, mouth dropped open partway, staring at her pretty blatantly for a few seconds before he's shaking his head a little, as if to clear it. There's actually a faint bit of laughter -- almost that nervous kind that escapes him sometimes, but there's something else to it, hard to pin down. "Wow." Stepping in through the door, he's shutting it behind him, but he doesn't take his eyes off of her. "You look-- Listen, we could just stay in for the night, maybe. I don't think we need to go," closing the distance between her in a couple of strides, and, hands at her hips, he pulls her in close. "Gorgeous. You're gonna make everyone else look bad," grinning crookedly, teasing, though he means it.
He was silent and she should have automatically taken it as a compliment, but it was far too hard to shake the edge about her. During the summer Jackie was prone to wearing cut off shorts and bikini tops without batting a lash, but somehow being in a floor length formal gown made her feel exposed. "Don't laugh." It came out in a squeak followed by her own round of nervous laughter. It was when he finally made some sort of comment, wow, that she grasped onto that. "Really wow?" His idea about staying in for the night got more chuckling out of her. Yes apparently, really wow. "Are y' kiddin' me? Sure, it sounds like a good idea, but considerin' how good y' look? I wanna show you off. 'Sides, that lady wants t' show y' off too an' she would be mighty disappointed if she lost her chance." When he pulled her toward him she grinned and tipped her head downward, a rare bashful gesture from Jackie at the compliments. "Thank y', sweetheart. I had a lil' help from the girls. It... I think it came t'gether alright." With her head tipped it was easier now to spot the crooked bow tie. Hands slid up between them so she could adjust it slightly, her bottom lip getting caught between her teeth at the gesture. It seemed bow ties worked just as well as regular ties.
"It came together a lot better than just alright, sweetheart." He starts to duck his head a little too, but when he realizes that she's going for his tie, he pauses in the movement. "Really, wow." His fingers knead lightly into her hips and he's pulling her fractionally closer. "I mean, I never doubted you'd look amazing tonight, but ... really. Really, wow." His vocabulary seems to be a little stunted at the moment, but he's still got that crooked grin on his face, and it just goes a little more lopsided when he notices her biting her lip like that. "You're right. We do need to go. I want to show you off, too." Finally leaning in the rest of the way, he's brushing a featherlight kiss to her cheek. "You ready to go? We probably should, if you are, or else it's just going to get less and less likely we're going to leave."
There's no movement to stop him when he pulls her in closer. In fact, once his tie is straightened she's dipping her head down further. If it wasn't for the fact that she was so aware of her make-up and smearing it all over his clothing she would probably be burying her face against his chest right about now. "I appreciate it, Ben. Really, thank you. I'm jus' glad y' like it, an'... here's hopin' I don't put one of these pretty lil' heels in m' mouth at some point in the night." Her smile grew beneath the kiss then she lifted her head following the withdrawal of his lips. Her hands lingered on his tie just a short while longer. It looked like she might be debating putting off leaving because, wow, he really did look good. Finally, knowing they needed to leave she released his tie, hands lifting in a sign of surrender. "I jus' gotta grab that thing." She's gesturing at her shoulders and looking about before giving a light 'aha!' and clicking her way to the gold flecked wrap laying across the back of the couch. It was draped around her shoulders before she grabbed a small gold clutch sitting nearby as well. "I'm ready, I'm ready." Moving back toward the door she smiled up at him in passing.
"You'll be fine," reassuring, in response to her comment about putting a heel in her mouth at some point. Already, he's trying to get himself under control, stop being so obviously smitten with her (at least outwardly, because he knew that even if they weren't near each other during the night, he was going to be sneaking glances at her all night). When she lets go of his tie and turns to get her things, though, he does let himself check her out -- blatant about it, since she can't see, and wow, she really did look good. By the time she's turning back to him, he's got his eyes on her face. He's beating her to the door, opening it up for her and guiding her out of it with a light touch of his fingertips to the small of her back. "How long did it take you to get ready?" Without waiting for an answer, "It was worth it."
He might have been okay with the idea of not being near the entire night, but for now Jackie had other plans. "Jus' don't stray too far from me, please?" She tried to keep her tone light during the request, but there was something serious about it. Jackie could handle anyone who stepped foot into the Busted Knuckle, her turf, but spending the evening in a mansion while rubbing elbows with RhyDin's elite? The butterflies were going crazy. At least she's managing a smile and nodding her head in thanks when he's opening the door for her. "Longer than I will ever admit. An' if y' keep sayin' such sweet things I'm gonna be matchin' the red in my dress here soon." Snickering she's lingering on the porch, waiting for him to follow her. But that silver Mercedes sitting outside looking so out of place in front of her house caught her eye. "Holy hell, Ben!" The words were paired with a laugh of disbelief. Hopefully she would get the colorful outbursts out of her system before arriving at the Gala.
"Alright, alright, I guess I can manage to stay next to you the whole night." Trying to sound like this was some kind of sacrifice, but he's grinning, and that comes through in his voice. "Hey, I've said it before, you're cute when you blush. Hm?" As if he doesn't know what the outburst was about; he's even twirling the keys idly on his index finger. "Oh, that." Shutting the door and making sure it's locked before taking her hand to start to the car with her. "I figured it'd be good to be the whole package tonight. You like it? Maybe you can drive it back to my place at the end of the night." With a sly little glance aside to her.
"Yer such a trooper." It was quick, flat, yet amused with a playful roll of her eyes before they fixated on the car again. "Yes, that." Her hand holding the gold clutch was gestured at the car wildly since her other hand was captured within his. "I wasn't expectin' this an' now I guess I should have. I love Betty dearly, but I don't think the ol' girl quite compliments m' shoes or yer tie." She would apologize to her truck later. For now she was busy hungrily gawking at the car only to be interrupted by a squeal of delight at the idea of being able to drive it. "Y'gotta let me, Ben. Pleeease." Her entire body dipped with the pleading word when they came to a stop by the passenger side door. "Though, I didn't realize the plan was to go to yer place after all this. I didn't bring an overnight bag an' I think I took every stitch I had at yer house home fer washin'." She gave him a look that said 'what will we do?', lips dropping into a small 'o' before the expression mirrored his sly look.
"Oh, I gotta? What do I get?" Teasing -- always teasing her. Maybe that was how he planned on getting her through this night, compliments and affectionate teasing. Without drawing any attention to it, like he did this all the time, he opened up the passenger side door for her, not letting go of her hand until he'd finished helping her into the car. Once she's inside, he's leaning down so he can respond to her, still with that sly look on his face, though it's slipped into something a little more obviously suggestive at this point. Bold, tonight, it seems. "I'm sure we'll figure something out, Peaches." One quick peck to her cheek, and then he's pulling away (unless she stops him), shutting her door and rounding the car so he can climb into the driver's seat, start up the engine -- and of course, of course, he's revving it a few times before he guns it and speeds off.
"Y'get an extremely happy girlfriend. I ain't never heard a man complain about havin' one of them takin' up space in his bed. Hear it usually has a happy sorta endin'." It was so much easier to make comments like that when she knew they were on their way to an event with... well, she wasn't even sure how many people were going to be there. But it was public, that much was certain. With his assistance she eases herself into the passenger seat, making sure her dress and wrap are both out of the way of the door before he closes it. Her fussing is interrupted when he leans down to her, a curious tilt of her head before it tips back in a laugh. "Oh yeah, I think we both got some ideas." Her nose scrunches sweetly at the kiss to her cheek then she's looking his way when he slides himself into the driver's seat of the car. It was when he revved the engine that Jackie gave a sharp clap of her hands. "Let's do this!" A rally cry for a charity gala. You could dress her up, but now it was the test to see if you could take her out.
Ben was confident that she'd be fine there, too, rally cry and all. He knows how adaptable Jackie is; he's seen her in situations much more difficult to handle than a mansion full of elites. An uneventful enough drive (though he does really push the car when they're on main roads), and eventually they're turning onto a long driveway past a gate that opens up without much pause when Ben gives his name to the voice coming through over the intercom. The house is huge, ridiculously -- the kind you see in movies, the kind you think you might need a map to find the bathroom, that you might be in danger of getting lost if you wander off too far. There's actually hired help at the front of the house to park the guests' cars off somewhere out of sight (and apparently to assist the women in getting out of their cars, which has Ben momentarily sour, even if it's mild, and even though it disappears seconds after he hands off the keys). After both Ben and Jackie are out of the car and it's being driven off, he's hooking his arm through Jackie's, though instead of heading right up the stone steps to the door, he's looking aside to her. "Ready?"
Every time the car was pushed Jackie gave a laugh and a clap of delight. But the longer they were in the car, the closer she assumed they were to arriving, she was getting quieter and quieter. By the time Ben is giving his name and the gates are stretching open for them she's very quiet and perfectly still. Well, until they're pulling up in front of the house and she's tilting herself aside to peer out the Mercedes window and up at the massive building. It was only when a young man was opening her door that she was tugged back to the present and out of her own thoughts. The offered hand of the man was taken with a smile and quiet thank you once she was out of the vehicle. It's only when she's safely got Ben beside her that she attempts a slow inhale followed by a long exhale. She's looking aside at him, mumbling quietly. "Please don't leave me." The playfulness of the request was gone, but she barely waited for him to reply. She had repeated herself but she knew he wouldn't ditch her. That was when she gave a subtle nod and turned her gaze ahead. "Ready." She managed to keep the quake out of her voice.
He's looking at her a couple of seconds longer even after she's turned to look forward. She hadn't waited for a reply, but he's leaning in to give her one anyway, mouth close to her ear, because his voice is low, just a murmur. "You're beautiful, you're smart, and you're amazingly fun. You're easy to talk to. You'll be fine. And I couldn't leave you even if I wanted to -- and I don't want to, gorgeous." A brush of his lips to her temple as he straightens up, and then he's leading her up the stairs to the door -- which, of course, has got somebody stationed outside to open it up for them. Ben gives the guy a quick smile as he and Jackie pass through the door (easily large enough for the two of them to go through side-by-side), and there's someone just inside to take Ben's coat and Jackie's wrap, if she wants to give it up.
The place is as extravagant as one might expect, all marble and dark wood, probably priceless artwork on the walls. Right now, it's obviously decorated for Christmas, and that, at least for Ben, makes it slightly less intimidating -- evergreen and holly, the whole enormous foyer and what looks like a greatroom beyond it lit up a little softer by-- well, it seems like it would be Christmas lights, but there aren't any to be seen. It is Rhydin, after all, and Lydia Landers certainly had the money to magick a holiday-mood-lighting without the lights. There are plenty of people already there, chatting; there are servers bustling around with plates of hors d'oeuvres; and, happily, there's somebody set up with a bar in a far corner of the foyer. Looking that way, Ben gives Jackie a little bit of a nudge, and then instead of keeping his arm through hers, he moves to take her hand in his. "Drinks first. Then I'll go find Lydia and introduce you."
Jackie's gaze stays straight ahead, but her head leans just a little closer to him when he lingers near her ear. It's that extra bit of contact mixed with his quiet assurances that are helping to make her feet feel less like a bag of bricks is holding her in place. Her eyes close at the brush of his lips to her temple. "Thank you, sweetheart. I should already know I'll be fine havin' y' with me." Eyelids lift when they make their way inside, the doorman receiving a smile of appreciation as well as the man who takes her wrap along with Ben's coat.
It seems as her gaze is sweeping the interior of the mansion and taking in the decor that she's also taking notes on the people around her. Especially the women. Without the wrap to hide beneath anyone can see the couple of moments when Jackie is straighening her spine, pulling her shoulders back, and lifting her chin. She still had a nervous energy buzzing through her, but from the outside looking in she could almost pass for just another one of these women with the way she easily curled her lips into a soft smile. At the nudge she's turning her gaze towards the bar and it gets a small snicker out of her. "No matter where y' go or what yer gonna do, safe to assume there's gonna be a bar. But that sounds jus' fine, I'm lookin' forward t' meetin' her." Her fingers carefully wrap themselves around Ben's hand before following him towards the bar.
Once again Jackie's gaze is busily at work taking in what she sees and hears. It's when they reach the bar and the tender greets them both with a grin before asking them what they'll have that Jackie displays what she was working out in her head. "Champagne, please an' thank you." She tried to make it sound like this was something she ordered regularly before looking aside to Ben. Now this was simply becoming a game in her head. How well could she camouflage herself among these people?
Jackie really could almost pass for one of these women -- almost, if she wasn't, by probably a couple of decades for the most part, the youngest one there. The two of them get a couple of looks on their way to the bar, but probably just as much 'who are they' as 'who is she,' and none of the body language seems disapproving, at least. Ben, for his part, doesn't seem to notice the looks, at least in part because he's distracted by Jackie, as much as he's trying not to let on. When they're waiting for their drinks -- Ben's just ordering a soda in a rocks glass with a lime wedge; he's played this game for a long time -- he lets go of her hand, lets his fingers trace light, idle shapes at the sensitive skin at the inside of her wrist. Probably not the best way to keep her calm. At least it's only for a moment, because once the drinks are there and Ben's leaving a tip, he takes her by the hand again, already meandering a little ways away from the bar, just not to be in the way. "You don't want to bolt yet, do y-- oh, there she is." The woman that was probably somewhere in her seventies, head to toe in gold (including a sequined dress and an elaborate hat), cradling an immaculately groomed Maltese (with a little red bow and a little green bow behind each of its ears) in one arm? And... sort of frantically waving Ben over to the small group of people she's with? That'd be her. "You good?" An aside to Jackie, even as he's starting in that direction.
Even if her gaze was slowly running laps around the expanse of the room, she was doing her best to ignore the looks and not make eye contact with anyone. If she simply kept that little smile playing across her lips she would come across like any other attendee impressed by what Lydia had accomplished tonight rather than someone attempting to get lost in their own world. It's only as Ben's releasing her hand that there looks to be a split second of panic when Jackie's eyes are cutting aside to him sharply. But he's not leaving her or wandering off to look for Lydia. That relief mixed with his touch trailing across her wrist causes her lips to twitch even if it's not entirely clear what's going on inside her mind. Maybe they could go back to the car and put that to good use for the rest of the evening? Her attention is trailing down to his tie but before she can get her fingertips stroking along the oh-so inviting material again her hand is being grasped and she's being tugged along. At least she manages to grab her flute of champagne and give the bartender a smile before following after Ben.
Ben almost got his entire question out when she opened her mouth to reply, but his interruption disrupts that until her attention moves to the waving woman. Oh my, look at the dog. Look at the woman. Look at the entire package. Jackie gave a nod to Ben paired with an ear to ear smile. "I'm not lookin' t' bolt an' yer officially bein' paged, sweetheart." The champagne flute is lifted and it takes a great deal of effort to not drain it on the spot. Instead a modest sip is taken before Jackie is trailing along beside Ben towards the group, replying in a soft sing-song whisper. "I'm fine. I just hope she pinches yer cheeks. She seems like the type." How she managed to not laugh was a miracle.