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“Hello, Moira,” he says in a throaty voice that makes my pulse thunder. “You look beautiful.” He pulls me in for a gentle hug and presses a kiss to my cheek. Of course, I wish he’d kissed me on the mouth, but if he did that, we’d end up in the bedroom, and we’d likely stay there all night.
“Hey, Michael,” I say with a slight giggle. “Not looking too bad yourself.”
He takes my hand as he leads me inside, and he stares at the high ceilings and hardwood floors, the antique furniture and paintings, and I soak in the warm, home-like quality of the place. The atmosphere is almost as amazing as the man himself and I’m happy to enjoy both.
It's crazy to me that our decorating tastes seem like the exact opposite, and yet I like his home and he’d complimented mine.
We stop in the living room, and I make myself at home on the couch. I notice he has a little fire going in the fireplace, but the room isn’t overly warm. Instead, everything feels perfect as he takes the spot beside me.
“I ordered some takeout. I hope that's okay.” He says the words with that signature smile of his, and I feel my stomach grumble in anticipation. I can't remember the last meal I had... or the last time I ate, even. Life has been a blur with mom not doing well and my dad not returning calls or texts.
“Well, that depends. What did you order?” I'm teasing, of course. It doesn't matter what he ordered; I love to eat.
“Chinese food from my favorite place,” he says. “I hope you like Chinese food, and I hope you don’t have any allergies.”
“I will love it, and I don’t have any allergies.” I say, leaning into him and putting my arms around his shoulders. He winds an arm around my lower back and places his hand on my hip as I snuggle into his chest. I love the way he smells, like cologne, soap, and fresh laundry detergent.
“So how's your mother doing?” he asks.
“She's doing a lot better now that she's taking her supplements. She hated the iron in her IV; apparently that burns really badly.” I smile at him. “I'm really grateful that the news wasn't worse, so I was worried she'd have cancer or something like that.”
“I'm glad she's doing better. She seems like such a nice woman.” He sounds genuine and kind, which makes my heart flutter. “I'm proud of you for being so strong and supportive of her, even though your relationship isn’t that solid. That takes character.”
“Thank you.” I’m touched by his words, and I realize they’re exactly what I need to hear right now. “And we had a long talk at the hospital and on the way home. I think we’re seeing eye to eye more now.” Of course, I'm not sure that's a good thing considering she's not happy about my life choices, but we’re working through our expectations of one another, even the unfair ones.
“That's really good to hear. I was worried that you'd get upset at me for imposing on your life.”
“Not at all.”
I snuggle closer, feeling safe and comfortable. “So tell me how things are going for you. How is your dad?”
“I think he's officially decided to date Betty, but last time I thought he was certain he changed his mind, so.” He lifts both shoulders and I can't hold back a laugh. I love that his dad’s adventures mean so much to him. “Other than that, at the moment, the only thing I'm working on is your app. And you know how the progress for that is going.”
I do. It's absolutely amazing. He's incredible at what he does. I can't imagine how challenging and rewarding his job is, but I do know that he loves solving problems and creating things.
“Sometimes it's hard to believe how great you are,” I say, tracing the line of his face down to his chin with my index finger. He kisses my hand and I smile. “Are you real or did I create you in my mind?”
“I think I’m real, but who knows? Maybe I was made just for you.” He says the words in that voice that gets my heart thundering in my chest, and I want to lean in and kiss him. Obviously, I know he wasn't made for me, but there's something so sexy about the words I have a very visceral reaction.
“So how are things with your other friends, Raina and Valerie?” he asks.
I shake my head. I haven't had a chance to make things right, but not because I don't want to, just because our schedules haven't lined up yet. “I haven't had a chance to fix things up, but can you settle that debate for me? Is it weird that she's marrying her dead husband's brother?”
He sucks in a deep breath between his teeth, making a hissing sound. “I mean, I think family reunions would be awkward, but I don't think it's wrong.”
“Aren’t family reunions awkward anyway?”
He chuckles. “You got me.”
“I don't know. I just told her outright that I think she's making a mistake. I do admit that I'm probably also a little salty that she's going against what she said about how we would never get married.” As soon as I say the words, I wonder if I should have not said them.
“You guys made an actual pact about that? When you were kids, or...?” He seems incredulous and playful, and I don’t regret sharing that detail after all.
“As adults. To be fair, we are already watching our other friend’s marriage fall apart. She was the one who's wedding I was en route to we met on the flight.” As I say the words, I see his eyes widen.
“Wow. Yeah, that did not last very long.”
I nod my head with a big gesture. “Exactly. See, what's the point of getting married if it's just going to fall apart?”
