The next morning I woke up only wearing my bra and panties next to Michael who was just in his boxers. Last night was fuzzy due to the fact that I had way to many drinks to count, but I do remember Michael kissing me.
"Michael.." I whispered, slightly shaking him to wake him up. "Michael, wake up."
"Whaaat?" He groaned turning over to face me. His eyes were still closed but I knew he was listening.
"Did we have sex?" I asked.
Although his eyes were still closed, it didn't stop the small grin from slowly appearing on his face. "We did."
I shot up into a sitting position. "What?!" I exclaimed. "Noooo, no, no, no, no, no, no, no!! Why? How?!"
He finally opened his eyes and looked at me. "Well, after I kissed you, you practically jumped my bones." After the glare I gave him, he held his hands up in defense and went on to say. "I did ask if you were sure and you said yes!"
"You could've said no!!" I exclaimed. "You still have a girlfriend, remember?"
"If I didn't have one, then what?" He asked, sitting up. "Would it have changed your reaction?"
"Yeah! Because then I wouldn't feel bad for wanting you as bad as do!" I didn't mean to shout at him. After all, it wasn't his fault that I was naive and vulnerable and lacked self control.
He pulled me over to him so that I was straddling his lap. "Why can't we just start over?"
"Because," I sighed. "I don't want to keep getting hurt by you."
"I promise I'll do better if you just give me one more chance." He replied leaving a soft kiss on my lips.
"I need more than just words, Michael." I explained. "If you can't show me that you mean what you say, then we can't be together."
"Give me a chance and I'll show you." He pulled me in for another kiss, this one deeper and more passion filled than the last, but before it could go any further, I had to make one thing clear.
"Tell Roxanne she's no longer needed."
~
Michael and I spent the rest of the morning in bed. After going another round with him, I fell asleep and when I finally woke up again the sun was beaming through the window and Michael was no longer in bed. After showering and getting dressed, I went into the kitchen to rummage through the fridge when I found a note from Michael.
Meet me at the house tonight at 7pm.
P.S. There's a gift for you on the sofa, you're going to need it for tonight.
-MJ
I looked over to the sofa and saw a white rectangular box perfectly wrapped in a black bow. With my curiosity piqued, I walked over and lifted the top off the box revealing a beautiful dress.
Smiling, I put the lid back on the box and took it to my bedroom. Right as I was making my back into the kitchen, there was several knocks, or pounds, on the door. Growing irritated because I haven't had any food and someone was beating on my door, I rushed over and swung open, ready to curse out whoever was on the other side.
Clarissa rushed past me in a haste. "I have neighbors you know." I said, as I shut the door and turned to look at her. She had walked back to my bedroom looked around and came back out. "What's your deal?"
"Where's Michael?" She asked plopping down on the sofa.
"How should I know?" I shrugged. Making one final attempt to get some food inside me, I went into the kitchen in search of something appetizing.
"I know he was here, your bed is a mess." She stated.
"That doesn't mean I know where he's at right now." I say, opening a box of Cheerios to see if they're any good. "He was gone when I woke up."
She let out a aggravating sigh. "Well, we've got a problem."
"Don't we always." I sigh, already unfazed by whatever it is she was about to tell me. Meanwhile, I gave up on trying to eat because the cereal was stale and I had nothing in my fridge considering I haven't been here in so long. "So, what is it?"
"Michaels girlfriend, Roxanne, is furious!" She explains.
"And I care because..?" I draw out, taking a seat at one of the bar stools facing her.
"Because Michael told her that he no longer needed her and that he was going to work on his marriage......with you."
I was genuinely shocked. I had no idea he was really going to do it and this soon. It made me feel good on the inside to know that he actually wanted to try and he would do whatever to get back in my good graces. Yet, as a woman, I couldn't help but feel somewhat bad for Roxanne. After all, Michael could be brutally blunt so I know whatever he said cut her deep.
"Wait, how do you know what he said to her?" I asked looking over to her with curious eyes.
"I was at the diner doing some work and when I came out for some coffee, I saw them sitting at the bar talking. She was mad at him for not coming home last night, so I knew then that he was most likely with you." She smirked and I rolled my eyes. "Then that's when I overheard him say he didn't need her anymore."
"Wow." I breathed. "I didn't think he'd do it."
"You told him to break up with her?" She gasped as if she was getting the most juiciest of gossip.
"Um, well, yeah," I say scratching the back of neck. "We had sex." Clarissa' eyes got so big I feared they were going to pop right out of her head. "He told me he wanted a second chance to make things right. So, I told him he needed to show me and he needed to start by ending things with Roxanne."
Clarissa' grin grew bigger and bigger with each word I said and now she was sitting there like an excited school girl with her hands covering her mouth. "Oh my goodness.." she squealed. "So you and Michael are back together?!"
"No." I laughed. "I'm not going to give in that easy. He needs to work for what he wants."
"That's my girl!!" She exclaimed. "Whip his ass into shape, let him know who's boss!"
Shaking my head, I had to laugh. As much as she dislikes Michael, it's nice to know that she supports the fact that we're going to possibly be getting back together. Unlike other "friends" I've had, even the one I once called a sister, Clarissa has managed to remain consistent in my life. When it's all said and done, I know Clarissa will be there for me no matter what and she's not afraid to tell it like it is. That alone is the main reason why her opinion is the only one that matters to me.
"That's what I plan to do!" I winked.
"But for now," Her face went back to being serious. "We have to make sure this Roxanne bitch doesn't try anything."
Resting my chin on my hand, I let out a sigh. "It wouldn't be a decent trip to Texas without a little bit of drama."
Clarissa shook her head. "You ain't lying."
~
"Thanks Richard." I say while grabbing hold of his hand so he could help me out the car.
Michael had took it upon himself to rent a old school rolls Royce just to have me picked up from my apartment and taken to the the house. It was very extra of him but I enjoyed the smooth ride anyways. So, I was very disappointed when I had to get out of it fifteen minutes later.
"It's no problem Ms. Kennedy!" Richard smiled down at me. "You look stunning by the way."
"Thank you, I hope Michael thinks so too." I smile shyly.
My nerves has sudden started to get the best of me and I wasn't sure why. It was almost like we were going on our first date all over again and in a sense, I guess this could be considered a first date. We were starting things over and we're both different people now. We haven't spoken to one another in two years. I know for a fact I changed and I'm certain he has too, it's just a matter of whether or not we'll fit back into each other's world again after all this time. This date will possible set the tone for us, so it's crucial that it goes well.
"Dressed up or not," Richard walked me around the house to the back and it was beautifully lit. "That man adores you."
With a quick hug, I leave Richard standing alone to go over to where a now smiling Michael stood, dressed in a black tuxedo, next to a small table that had champagne already poured up into two glasses. We were right in the middle of the rose garden, which happened to be illuminated by warm white lights. The large trees around us also had lights twisting up their trunks and swinging from their branches to one another, giving us a romantic setting.
"You did all of this?" I asked with a smile while placing my hand in his outstretched one. He pulled me into a hug and kissed my cheek.
"Yeah," He answered, walking me over to my chair, which he pulled out for me. "It's not too much is it?"
I looked around and after a few seconds my eyes met his. "It's perfect." I smiled, leaning forward. His lips met mine but only for a quick second because I didn't want to mess up my lipstick.
I was about to complement him until a young man, who looked to be in his early to mid twenties, walked up to where we sat and set a small bowl of Caesar salad in front of both of us. "Enjoy your appetizer, the main dish will be out shortly." He explained with a smile.
After we both thanked him, I turned my attention to my salad. Going all day with out eating was a terrible mistake because now I was sitting here shoving forkfuls of salad in y mouth. I was just about done with my salad when I looked up to see Michael staring at me with an amused look in his face. My cheeks instantly heated up with embarrassment as I gulped down the last bit of salad.
"Damn," He laughed. "Did you even take a breath before you finished it?!"
I laughed lightly. "I haven't eaten all day. My fridge was empty and the cereal was stale."
He furrowed his brows for a moment and then his face lit up. "I'll have your kitchen restocked first thing in the morning!"
"You don't need to do that. I'm very capable of going grocery shopping myself," I laughed. "I also don't plan on being here that long anyways."
A waitress brought out our entrees. When she lifted the dome off the platter, there was chicken Alfredo under mine and chicken Parmesan under Michaels. She refreshed our drinks and after making sure we didn't need anything else, she disappeared back into the house leaving Michael and to enjoy our food.
"You're not staying?" He asked after taking several bites of his chicken. He glanced up at me and grinned. Knowing exactly what I wanted, he cut a piece of his chicken, forked it and held the piece up for me to take bite. "Go ahead, try it." He laughed.
After taking a bite, I let out a satisfying hum. "That's delicious." I stated, before getting back to the subject at hand. "To answer your question, No. I didn't plan on staying, I have to get back to California."
"Why?" He simply asked.
I didn't really have a legit reason. I just wanted to get back to the west coast. I enjoyed visiting home every so often but there was really nothing left for me here. I had no family or business to tend to down here, so there was really no point of staying longer than I already have.
"The only reason I'm here is because Clarissa wouldn't take No for an answer." I explained. "If it wasn't for her, I wouldn't have come. There's nothing for me here anymore."
He locked eyes with mine and after holding them for about a minute, he nodded and we finished our food in a somewhat awkward silence. I'm not sure why, but the atmosphere definitely changed.
Dessert was brought out to us not too long after we finished our meals and then afterwards, we took a stroll down to the lake. The night was beautifully lit with stars and there was nice breeze blowing through the trees which sent a light chill through me. Michael took off his jacket and draped it around my shoulders.
"Did I upset you?" I finally asked after we came to a stop at a small bench over looking the lake. He escorted me over to it and motioned for me to take a seat.
"No." He responded, taking a seat next to me.
"So why are you so quiet all of a sudden?"
He sat there for a moment, staring out at the lake. The stars reflected off the water giving it a beautiful crystallized glow. Off in the distance you could hear the frogs croaking and the crickets doing whatever it is that they do. When Michael didn't answer me after a few minutes, I began to think he didn't hear me.
I was about to repeat the question when he finally, after forever, spoke up. "I was hoping we could start fresh. Here. In, Texas."
"You want to start over.... here?" My brows furrowed in confusion. "We have so many bad memories, not to mention, we lost our son here. I have to literally pass by his memorial every time I go back to the apartment or to the diner."
"So then come stay at the house." He replied. "Clarissa can come over whenever so that you don't have to go to the diner."
"So," I chuckled even though nothing was funny. "It's that easy, huh? I'm just supposed to put a halt to what I'm doing back in LA to come live here where literally nothing went my way."
This time it was him furrowing his brows at me. "I never said that. You can easily expand your business out here and things will be different now. I told you I wanted this work this time around."
"Why can't we make things work in California?" I asked, standing up. As my frustration started to build, I started pacing back and forth in front of Michael. He remained seated but kept his eyes on me.
"Why can't we make things work here?" He retorted.
"Because!" I snapped, throwing my hands up and letting them fall back to my sides. "It feels like instead of moving forward, we're about to take a thousand steps back!"
He grabbed my hand, stopping me mid-pace, and pulled me down so that I was sitting on his lap. He put his free arm in the curve of my legs and lifted them up so they could rest on the bench. Wrapping his arms around me, he began to rock side to side. A comfortable silence ensued and as I cuddled deeper into his chest, he stopped rocking and used a finger to tilt my head up.
"I know you're scared and you think moving back here is a mistake," He explained. "But if you let me show you, I promise it won't be like it was last time we were here. Just give me a month or two and if you still have doubts, we'll go back to Cali and we won't look back."
Without breaking eye contact, I agreed. "Two months." I stressed.
After flashing me a heart stopping smile, which made me laugh, he planted a soft but passionate kiss on lips.
"Come on," He breathed after breaking the kiss. "I'm ready for desert."
Confused, I looked up at him. "We already had desert..."
He lifted me up and threw me over his shoulder and began walking back towards the house. "That's not what I was talking about." He said, smacking me on the ass. I could hear the amusement in his voice.
~
{Roxanne POV}
"He is not gonna get away that easy.." I mumbled to myself as the cab come to a stop in front of the gate to Michaels house.
Rolling down the window. I punched in the code and a few seconds later, we were rolling through the now open gate, down the longe driveway.
"Thank you!" I smiled sweetly while handing the driver thirty dollars. "Keep the change!"
Fixating my attention back on the mission at hand, I stormed up the steps leading to the front door. After standing there just staring at the large mahogany double doors, I finally insert my spare key into the keyhole, unlocking the door and pushing it open, allowing it to slam closed behind me once I was inside.
"MIKE!!" I yelled. "MICHAEL!!! I KNOW YOU'RE HERE!! GET DOWN HERE!!"
A few minutes had passed and after receiving no answer, I started to make my way up the stairs about to yell again when his bedroom door swung open and Michael stepped out. I didn't even get a chance to utter a word to him before he was literally dragging me down the steps and into his study, where he pushed me in and slammed the door shut.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" He shouted. Just by his demeanor and the way he handled me, I knew he was fired up. "Coming in my damn house making all that noise like you've lost your mind!!"
"You think I'm just gonna give up without a fight?!" I raised my voice with each word. "You're not about to just toss me to the side like I'm trash, Michael!!"
He rubbed the bridge of nose, trying to keep his composure as he spoke. "I'm done with you. We're over. I don't want to be with you anymore. Take it or leave it, I don't care-"
"What about everything we've been through?" I say, cutting him off while resorting back to my inside voice. "That's gotta count for something, right?"
"Wrong." He blinked as if I should've known better. "Kennedy and I have way more history and have been through more. I love her and I will always love her. Also, any chance I get to be with her... well, I'm gonna take it."
My eyes began to water at what he was saying. Not because I was sad and/or hurt, but because I was angry. How dare he stand here and act like the past year and a half meant nothing to him?
"So our relationship meant nothing?!" I jerked my head back waiting for answer.
"We had fun," He shrugged. "But I'm not in love with you. I'm in love with Kennedy. Always have been, always will be."
"Do NOT say her name to me anymore!!" I shouted. "You used me and now that she's back, I'm no useless?! Is that what it is??"
He walked over to me putting his face in mine. "Don't think for a second I needed you because that was never the case. I had my own shit before you, during you and after you. There's nothing you can give me that I can't get on my own. Please understand that."
Before I could respond, there was a light knock on the door and then it opened. In walked Kennedy. "Michael," She spoke to him but kept her glare on me. "Is there a problem?"
I raised my brows and put my hand on hip, ready to give her a piece of my mind but again, I was stripped of the opportunity.
"No, love." He answered her in a much calmer tone. "She was just leaving."
Now it was my turn. "The hell I was!! I'm not going any damn where until you tell me why it was so easy for you to end what we had!"
If looks could kill, I would've dropped dead from the daggers Michaels eyes was shooting at me. "How many times do I have to explain myself?! What aren't you understanding!!" He yelled.
Kennedy took a step further into the room, closer to Michael. "It would be in your best interest to go.." She expressed.
"Bitch, don't tell me what the fuck to do!" I snapped. "This conversation is between Michael and I. It ain't got shit to do with you. So, kindly dismiss yourself."
She licked her lips and a small smile appeared on her face. "Listen, I'm trying to remain calm here," She explained. "But you're already testing my patience. Not only did you come barging in my house as if you pay the bills here, but you're being loud and extra for no fucking reason. Pipe the fuck down."
Michael, who was standing off to the side, had made his way over to Kennedy. He pulled her back behind him before turning to focusing his attention back on me.
"Leave." He demanded. "There's nothing more for us to talk about and we all know if you stay a minute longer things is going to get real ugly."
An unamused laugh escaped my lips and it was like something in me snapped. Putting as much force as I could behind it, I sent a punch hurling towards Michaels face and connected with his jaw. I had even forgotten about Kennedy for a brief moment until she grabbed a chunk of my hair and yanked me down to the floor. Trying to get back up was pointless since she was on top of me, with a huge advantage because I couldn't see with my hair sprawled all over my face. A few of her punches landed and then she was gone, at least I thought she was until I felt something hard hit me right in the mouth and it immediately filled with blood.
Turning on my side, I curled up the fetal position, gripping my mouth in pure agony. Something was definitely broke, which only fueled my rage even more. With my adrenaline still pumping, I managed to get back up on my feet to see that it was a paper weight that was thrown at me. Michaels security was already in the study trying to calm the situation but that didn't stop me from trying to get to Kennedy.
"Get her out!!" Michael yelled. "NOW!!"
Richard scooped me up and carried me out but before I yelled to both Michael and Kennedy. "This isn't over!!! You'll see me again, bitch!!"
"I hope I do!!" I heard Kennedy shout back, I was already outside but I could hear her loud and clear. "Nobody's gonna be able to save you next time!!"
I was out into the backseat of a cab and was quickly driven off the property.
~
{Kennedy}
This bitch really had the fucking audacity. I don't know why Michael refuse to tell these women that I am not the one to play with. Speaking of him...
"Why the hell would you bring her here in the first place?" I turned jerking my arms from his grip. "And you gave her a key and the code to get in the gate.....Are you dumb?!"
"Watch yourself." He warned, giving me a stern a look. "We were dating... for over a year, so yeah, she had access to the house."
I stood there staring at him. If I said what I really wanted to say, it would start a argument and I'm not trying to start our relationship off with that kind of energy.
After I've finished counting to ten in my head, I tell him, "Those locks and the code to the gate better be changed first thing in the morning. I don't care if you have to do it yourself."
With that, I stormed off upstairs and went to bed.