February 2017
Lisa reveled in the weight of Michael’s head resting on her shoulder. She knew she would have to wake him up soon, since they would be landing in less than twenty minutes. This flight was so different from the ones they had taken together while married, when he would charter a private jet and they could be alone, comfortable and snuggly – or even get frisky.
Now they were flying in business class, which was still a luxury not everyone could afford, Lisa knew that, and they sat among many other people. The best part? Nobody paid attention to them. Not in the slightest.
At the airport, she had observed how Michael had learned to move unnoticed among people and, again, had marveled at how perfectly he mastered his new identity. At one point, she even tried to detach herself from the entire situation and observe him like a scientist would watch an interesting specimen through a lens, and what she had seen had confirmed her opinion: he was good. As a matter of fact, he was more than good: he was flawless. And he had become invisible, to the point that he could just hide in plain sight.
His physical change and graceful aging were even accompanied by a different posture: wherever Michael’s stride could be slow, purposeful and somehow shy, Ethan’s walk looked self-confident, quicker, even a bit cocky. Michael tended to hide his face and look down, while Ethan watched straight ahead, like someone who was not scared of a face-off. Of course, while in Peterhead, he tended to relax a tiny bit more and acted more like his natural self, but Lisa knew that it was because he was sure nobody was there to scrutinize them. On the other hand, the minute they had reached the crowded airport, his mask had slid back in place without the slightest hesitation. Again, only one word came into her mind: performance. Michael was the ultimate performer, and he delivered – every time.
Only after the airplane took off, he finally allowed himself to show a hint of vulnerability. Lisa remembered very well that he didn’t like flying and was usually nervous while on board. It was amazing to think that he had actually traveled all over the world dozens of times. Yet, he still didn’t like being on an airplane. It wasn’t surprising that he had tried to calm his nerves by immediately asking for a whiskey.
She had reached for his hand and had squeezed it.
“Hey… You OK?”
“Yep.” Michael had feigned a comfort that didn’t feel and had given her a tired smirk. “I’m just a bit overwhelmed by… everything, really. I had no idea my life could change so much in only a handful of months.”
He was nervous because he would be seeing his kids after not spending a minute with them in over a year. Lisa knew it. She and Michael had talked about it.
She had brought his hand up to her mouth, kissing his knuckles.
“It’s gonna be OK, baby… You’ll see.” His skin felt cold against her lips and she had been glad to be there with him. To be doing this for him. “You’ll see.”
The current situation, as Michael called it, didn’t allow him to have a consistent grip on his children. He knew that he had been missing so much of their lives, and although they would often Skype and talk over the phone, it wasn’t like being with them during their everyday life at all. It felt as if his kids were somehow slipping through his fingers, and he was losing the best years of their lives. And in a way, of his life too.
He had explained that Prince and Blanket had adjusted to the new situation way better than Paris had. He hadn’t given Lisa any specifics, but she had caught the pained, guilty look in his eyes. She remembered very well how special the relationship between him and Paris was, when he was still, well, Michael. Lisa was also sure that Paris did not remember, but they had seen each other several times when she was little and she and Michael were still going through their on-again, off-again relationship. She knew what a strong-willed, determined young girl Paris was.
Lisa was not going to pass any judgment, but she was sure what had happened to Michael had taken its toll on the little girl. After all, her own father’s death had changed her permanently, and although Michael’s situation was different, she had a feeling that the mark on his daughter would be indelible anyway.
“I think that… I don’t know. Maybe she feels like I betrayed her, somehow,” he had quietly told her one night, after making love, while they lay on their sides in bed, facing one another. He had shrugged slightly and had raised his eyebrows in confusion, and Lisa had noticed the shadow of tears in his eyes, the lines on his beautiful forehead.
“I gotta be honest here, Lise. I know she does. I also know she loves me, but I feel she’s also mad at me. I have disappointed her.”
He had looked weary and defeated.
“I don’t think so, baby,” she had brushed a grizzled curl off his forehead. “She’s still so young. She’s probably still jumbled up inside, confused… Finding her place in the world. Just give her time. She’ll come around eventually. This mustn’t be easy on her.”
He had given her a sorrowful smile.
“Well, that’s good then, right? It’s not that I have anything else to give, but time…” Cocking his head to a side he had rubbed his bearded chin with the palm of his hand. His new trademark signature. “I don’t know what else to do, Lise.”
She had just blinked and scooted forward, kissing his lips again and again. He must have felt so alone, so hopeless for such a long time, after disappearing and destroying the persona that he had been for his entire life. Even though they were now navigating an immensely complicated and somehow risky situation, she was glad he had reached out to her. She was not as young and energetic as she had been when they had first met, but she still loved him so much it hurt. She had never stopped. And she could still be fierce. She intended to do everything in her power to help him out and take care of him. Like she should have always done.
Back to the present, Lisa watched the high wispy clouds outside the window.
Greece was close. And so was Michael’s opportunity to reconnect with his family. She turned her face slightly, and her hand stroked his head, her fingers running through his curly hair, gently massaging his scalp. They then reached the side of his face, caressing him as she kissed his forehead. She loved how natural he looked now, no make-up, no make-believe, no pretenses. He was gorgeous. He had always been the most handsome man she had ever seen. He had never really had anything to hide. He had always been perfect just the way he was.
“Baby…” She whispered softly.
“Mh…” His eyes stayed closed. Blindly, he took her hand and brought it up to his lips, letting it linger there for a moment. Lisa smiled. Gestures like this nullified the time they had spent apart. It was one of those little things that had always belonged to them, one that time and pain hadn’t been able to defy.
“Are we there yet?” His voice was groggy.
“Almost. Come on, sleepyhead. Time to wake up…”
He let out a sigh a snuggled more into her. Lisa smiled.
“OK… I’ll give you five more minutes…”
Michael had to admit it. Even though he didn’t like surprises, Lisa had planned everything just perfectly. For their encounter with the kids, she had chosen a beautiful resort in Santorini, in the Cyclades islands. He knew that she had put great care into finding a place that was not only secluded and completely privacy-oriented but also that he had never seen before. And he had seen many places in his life.
For their ten-day vacation, she had booked the Canaves Oia Villa, a beautiful luxury mansion with a panoramic view of the Aegean Sea and the volcano. The moment they stepped into the villa, Michael was blinded by the spectacular all-white environment, exuding a beauty that reminded him of the good old days. Lisa’s impeccable taste, as usual, had not disappointed.
His eyes took in the ample living area, the spacious master bedroom and private verandas with the immense, iridescent infinity pool. It was February, but the weather was uncannily merciful and warm, and he intended to swim outdoors – something he hadn’t done in at least ten years.
“I don’t know what to say…”
He was still glancing around the beautiful spaces. He heard her coming up behind him and felt her arms around his waist, her cheek pressed against his back.
“Just tell me this. Do you like it?”
“I love it.” He turned and took her into her arms. “And I love you.”
“Good, ‘cause I love you too. Come on. Dinner’s waiting for us in the kitchen.”
They enjoyed a quiet, excellent Greek dinner while the sun disappeared behind the bluest sea they had ever seen.
“You know, I don’t want you to leave…” He placed his fork on his plate and tried not to sound too frustrated. “I don’t like the idea of you out there, all alone…”
“Me neither. But I don’t have a choice.”
Lisa bit her lip. She would not fly back to Scotland with him after their holiday. She had to go back to Memphis, to Graceland, where she had to attend several meetings and manage some business for a couple of months. She had hoped to do everything from Peterhead, but apparently it was impossible. That said, she wanted to spend time with Harper and Finley – and still had to take care of her heinous divorce. And then there was the custody battle, in court. The endless nightmare she was now a prisoner of.
Even though she longed to see her kids, the thought of leaving Michael behind, all alone, broke Lisa’s heart. At the same time, she didn’t want to smother him. She remembered very well how her wanting him around all the time had been a problem during their marriage. And in their perpetually exhilarated phase, she still hadn’t been able to figure out what had changed about him and what had stayed the same.
Although he still was the man she knew, sometimes Lisa felt that his new identity had taken over a little more than she had initially fathomed. Or maybe it had happened even before 2009, after all the ordeals he had gone through. They had almost killed him, and perhaps they also had managed to change some parts of him forever. But once again, couldn’t she say the same about herself? Was she really the same woman Michael had bumped into at that wedding, so many years earlier?
“Is there…” He cleared his throat. “…anything I can do to help?”
He was still a control freak and didn’t like it one bit when he felt left out. That much was still the same.
He fidgeted with the napkin resting on the table and Lisa looked up at him briefly. His now way more massive torso leaned back into the chair, his short hair a bit wild, the first button of his light blue shirt undone, his eyes dark, so very dark in the frame of his pale skin, grey beard, greying curls falling on his forehead. There he was, the man he loved. The man she had always hoped to grow old with. She could see him clearly, at this very moment, and yet he looked as if he had just lost a marathon.
They had spoken about her separation from Lockwood. Michael had tried to be mature and had listened carefully, but some of the things Lisa had told him had left him bitter and enraged. Lockwood buying expensive stuff with Lisa’s money behind her back was quite appalling per se, but the worst part for Michael had been the cruel, fat-shaming insults she had been subjected to during her pregnancy and after having the twins.
What the fuck was wrong with that dude? Michael would have worshipped her body if only they had managed to have their baby. The baby they had lost, right at the beginning of their marriage. The baby they had decided not to talk about anymore, because even thinking about the miscarriage still hurt too much. A loss that hadn’t ended up being the foundation to build something even stronger. It had cast the first of many shadows that, in the end, had managed to swallow them up.
Michael had realized that Lisa’s fourth marriage had started to crumble after June 2009. Still, she had also been adamant in stating that the foundations of her relationship with Lockwood were very different from what she and Michael had. It had never been about passion, lust, or blinding love. Yet, to Michael, nothing could justify the level of misery that she and Lockwood had eventually reached. Even less, he could defend the physical and verbal violence she told him she had been subjected to during the last years of their marriage. The result was that now the mere thought of Lockwood made his blood boil.
Michael’s hands, resting on the table, closed into fists.
Lisa noticed the gesture and the mercurial change in his mood. She had seen the clouds approaching and now knew that she would have to tread carefully.
“No, Michael… Thank you, but this is something I have to sort out by myself. You being here already means a lot to me. You gotta know this.”
The custody battle over Harper and Finley, currently still in Priscilla’s care, would be ferocious. For the umpteenth time, Michael found himself thinking how in the world he and Lisa had managed to destroy what they once had, ending up in such dire situations. They hadn’t been able to sort their shit through, and eventually, they both had lost too much.
If only they had stayed together. If only she hadn’t sent him those divorce papers just to stomp her foot, trying to prove her point. He had called her bluff by responding in a way that didn’t reflect what he truly wanted.
She and Michael had acted like two spoiled brats. He shouldn’t have accepted Debbie’s offer behind Lisa’s back – that had been idiotic. He should have ripped those divorce papers to shreds. She shouldn’t have sent them in the first place. At the same time, he knew that he should have listened to her when she told him to be careful about the people surrounding him. Vultures closing in on him until it was too late. They both had made mistakes, and they both had been paying for their stubbornness for the longest time.
They had been living in their happy bubble for the last handful of weeks, but the truth was that the outside world hadn’t stopped spinning and could still be destructive and reckless. It could still do a lot of damage. What was he going to do, being so far away from her again? He recognized and appreciated the immense effort she was putting into taking care of him, but he wanted to reciprocate. Lisa was a great caretaker, but so was he. Too bad his limits shackled him. He was a nobody now, what could he do? He was still comfortable money-wise, but no longer influent, no longer powerful, no longer a force to be reckoned with. He was nothing.
Fuck, he was mad. He needed to calm the hell down.
Michael swallowed hard and, with immense difficulty, relaxed his hands on the table. He unbuttoned a couple more buttons on his shirt, feeling sweat starting to dampen the nape of his neck. His breath had become erratic.
“I think I need some fresh air.”
He pushed his chair back and stood up. Lisa put her napkin on the table, closed her eyes and just let him go.
“I know you like being in control. And I know how you react when you feel powerless.”
He tightened his grip on the railing facing the sea, on the veranda, and closed his eyes for a moment when he heard her voice.
“And how do I react…” His question didn’t sound like a question.
“You get mad.”
He felt her moving closer, heard her voice approaching. If he tuned out the peaceful sound of the waves crashing on the beach, he could even hear her breathing.
“No, I don’t.”
“Michael…” Lisa sighed. “Please, don’t do this. Don’t ice me out. I thought we were over this.”
All of a sudden, her voice sounded tired, defeated.
He took in a long breath and turned, leaning his back against the parapet, and looked at her. She was so beautiful in the blue light of the night. His beautiful goddess. Yet he couldn’t do anything to relax his stiffened stance.
“I’m not icing you out.”
The moment the words left him he winced, realizing how cold and detached they sounded. He didn’t like to feel that way, but she was right. He didn’t want to lose control, and even less he wanted to get mad. But he was furious and didn’t even know why. Or maybe he did. He felt powerless, and that was one of the feelings his new life entailed and to which he still hadn’t gotten used.
And now he would lash out at her and didn’t even know how to stop himself.
“You aren’t? Thank you…” Lisa crossed her arms over her chest as a shiver ran up her spine. “But I can tell you’re angry. Care to tell me why?”
“I don’t know.”
He shook his head and rubbed his forehead with his hand, then his chin. Lisa let out a tiny smile and stepped closer.
“Want me to take an educated guess?”
He just shrugged, his brow furrowed. He lowered his gaze instinctively. What a child he was – he almost had to scold himself.
“You’re mad because you can’t be with me in Memphis. You’re mad because you’re anxious and worried about your kids. You’re mad because I let Lockwood do what he did… And you’re mad because I married him in the first place while I should have been with you instead.”
Michael squared his jaw and shook his head stubbornly. Why could she still destroy all his defenses so easily?
“…You’re mad because I told you I was indifferent and I was lying. And maybe a part of you knew that… even back then.”
He chewed on the soft flesh inside his cheek until he tasted blood. He still didn’t move.
“You’re mad because I wasted away, ended up in rehab and forced you to reach out to me.”
“I’ll never regret reaching out to you,” he replied evenly. “It’s the best thing I’ve done in years.”
“Yeah… but still… you’re mad at me because I’ve scared you so much.”
This time, Michael didn’t deny what his soul, deep down, knew to be true.
“And now you’re mad because you feel you can’t help me through the shit that my life has turned out to be before you came back to me… You’re mad because you’re afraid.” Lisa moved another step in his direction, getting closer to him. “Now, the point is… What are you afraid of, Mike?”
He mumbled something unintelligible. She looked over at the dark sea and then back at him.
“You can get mad at me if you want to, you know? I can take it.”
“No, I can’t.” Once again he shook his head obstinately.
“Yes. Yes, you can. Why do I always feel like you’re atoning? I see glimpses of the fierce man I used to know, but they’re buried deep somewhere… in some other place where I can’t reach you. This is not you.”
He sneered wryly.
“The fuck are you even talking about…”
She almost had to smile. She was getting under his skin. Good! And damn the consequences.
“You know exactly what I’m talking about. The only time I saw you for who you really are, for who you’ve always been, was when I found out you were lying to me.”
Another step closer and she almost felt the heat radiating from his body. Michael raised his head slowly and stared at her.
“I was not lying to you.”
Lisa chuckled.
“Are you shitting me? You were not lying to me? Dude… You pretended to be someone else!”
“You just don’t understand, do you?” His eyes narrowed and studied her. “You don’t get why I had to move next to you… I wanted to watch over you, for fuck’s sake! I was worried, and I needed to keep an eye on you, not find out how you were on those motherfucking tabloids! You were never supposed to know it was me!”
“You just wanted to keep an eye on me? Are you friggin’ serious?”
Now she was getting mad for real.
“Yeah…”
Lisa pointed an accusatory finger at him.
“You’re a liar… You wanted me to know it was you. And yet you drove me crazy for weeks, you danced around all my questions, so smoothly, and left me in complete confusion. Why didn’t you just tell me the truth from the get-go? You really thought we could be friends, or even more than that, without me recognizing you? I know every fucking inch of you, Michael!”
She saw him clench his teeth and knew that he was going to go off like a missile.
Come on, big guy. Break free from that jail of resignation you’ve buried yourself into. I’m here. I’ll catch you, I promise.
“Don’t call me that. I am not a liar. I was just trying to protect you… and myself.” He straightened up and grabbed her finger. “And stop pointing that damn finger at me, missy.”
This time he moved into her personal space.
“You know what I think? I think that you are the one who’s pissed. You’re angry because you feel like I abandoned you. Just like my daughter.”
Lisa rolled her eyes.
“So that’s the point, Mike, huh? Stop projecting, for Christ’s sake! Those are your fears! But I guess it’s easier for you to think that you’re a loser and a disappointment to everyone you love now, right? Instead of realizing that we all get why you had to do what you did. We all get it, and we all are trying our best here to navigate it and make the best out of it. But what about you? What happened to the go-getter, to the man who knew no limits, who always got what he wanted? When was he replaced by this… this…” She opened her arms in frustration. “…This distant observer? This man who just lets things happen to him? Did they really manage to break you, Mike? To what extent did they break you? You’re stronger than this. You’re the strongest man I know!”
Michael frowned.
“I was not a distant observer with you.”
He carefully avoided her questions. But she knew he had heard them, loud and clear.
“Oh, yeah. Yes, you were. I had to drag you out of whatever hole you were hiding into. I forced you to come clean. That was me, Michael. Not you!”
He shook his head and moved a step aside, raising his hands in a dismissive gesture.
“Alright… You know what? I’m done talking, Lise. I’m not gonna do this.”
Lisa sneered.
“Of course not.”
She watched him as he slumped his shoulders and headed to the entrance of the house.
“I need you to find your way back to me, Michael. I don’t like what I see in your eyes when you’re not quick enough to hide it. It scares the living shit out of me.”
He slowly stilled his movements but kept his back turned to her.
She looked up at the starry sky and suddenly remembered a poem she had read after she had thought she had lost him forever. It said, “And love looked at time and laughed, because he knew he didn’t need him. He pretended to die for a day, and to blossom again in the evening, without any law. He fell asleep in a corner of the heart for a nonexistent time. He ran away without going away, it came back without having left. Time died, and love remained.”
Those words had both soothed her and killed her inside. Now she just wanted to stop the pain. Her own pain, and his. And it worried her to see how suspended he looked at times. Lost in a place where she couldn’t find him.
“They haven’t defeated you… You can still live your life… But you must stop being sorry for what you can’t do and focus on what you can do… You have to get rid of that guilt because, babe, what happened is not your fault. You gotta get rid of it ‘cause it’s eating you alive.”
“Yes, it is my fault. It’s on me. And yes, they have, Lisa. They have defeated me. They have broken me. They finally made it…”
He kept his head down as he spoke, his voice even, and yet she felt the undercurrent of rage running through him. A muscle on his solid back twitched.
“Come back to me, Michael… I need you. I need all of you.”
She swallowed as fear threatened to choke her all of a sudden. She chased it away as best as she could, afraid that a new panic attack would shatter her. She was not sure she could take it, but she knew that she would take whatever Michael had to give. She would take his tantrums and his pain.
“Get mad, lash out at me… But don’t hide. Stop fucking hiding! Come on. Do it!”
She marched over to him and slapped him on his back. Not hard, and yet he flinched anyway. He turned around suddenly and grabbed her by her wrists.
“Stop it!” His eyes narrowed. “Leave it alone.”
“No, you stop it. Do what you gotta do.” She stared into his eyes. They were now flaming with pent-up frustration and barely conceived fury. “Say it for what it is.”
His face was close to hers now, his breath labored. He blinked rapidly and pursed his lips.
“You’re so fucking infuriating, woman… I ain’t talking to you until you calm the fuck down.”
“Yeah, I know I can be. What you gonna do about that, huh?”
He seemed to think about it for a second, then his lips slammed over hers almost painfully, and they kissed. In a perfectly choreographed move, Michael let go of her hands and grabbed her by her hips, picking her up, and she immediately wrapped her legs around his waist. Still kissing her like a madman, his tongue plundering her mouth, he moved a couple of steps and pushed her against the glass door that led to the living area of the villa.
He backed off slightly, speaking right against her lips.
“Yes, I’m angry… I’m furious. I don’t want you to go to Memphis without me, and I don’t want you to have to face that prick in court without me…”
As he spoke, Lisa started kissing his neck, her hands tangled in his hair. Goosebumps rose on his skin.
“Say it… Say it for what it is…” Her voice had dropped, becoming huskier than usual.
His breath was ragged as he moved his hands on her thighs, under her dress. He tore up her thong with a grunt.
“Say it for what it is? The idea of you with him makes me livid… Of you married to him and above all of you taking shit from him… and I’m worried and scared I ain’t giving you what you need. I’m in love with you, and I don’t want you to be with anybody else…. I might not be who I once was, but that doesn’t mean you’re no longer mine.”
His words sounded confused and hurried, but it was OK. Lisa understood.
She let him speak freely, realizing that his self-control had finally snapped and that he was expressing how he felt without any restraint. His fears, his concerns, his insecurities. They were festering wounds that needed to be discovered and cleaned. Never hidden.
Her trembling hands got busy unbuckling his belt, unbuttoning his pants, unzipping his fly and finding him hot and ready, waiting for her. No matter how infuriating she could be, she always turned him on like crazy.
“Oh, you give me what I need alright.”
Lisa spoke between kisses, grabbing him, stroking him. He closed his eyes and threw his head back, and she started kissing his throat, the hollow of his neck, her free hand moving the fabric of his shirt to a side so that she could bite down on his muscular shoulder.
“And you’re still the man I fell in love with…”
She ran her fingers over his face, tracing his features. Blindly, Michael, kissed her fingertips as they touched his lips. Having finally been freed from the constraint of his pants, he surged upward and entered her in one powerful thrust.
Lisa cried out, both in pain and pleasure. His eyes snapped open.
“Did I hurt you?”
“Yes… God, you hurt me so well… Please, don’t ever stop. Move, baby… come on. Take me… Please…”
And so he did, and stopped holding back.
“Are you? Are you mine, girl?”
He stared at her through glossy eyes. He watched how her head rested against the door, her beautiful lips parted, a small wrinkle in between her eyebrows as she seemed caught between agony and ecstasy.
“Fuck, yes… I’m yours, only yours…”
“Forever?”
“Oh shit… Yeah… Forever…”
She was on fire. The cold surface of the glass against her back, his hot body in between her legs, his chest rubbing against her breasts. Keeping her eyes closed, she felt as if they were both twenty years younger and time hadn’t passed at all. It hadn’t deprived them of anything. Right then and there, Michael was himself – he was back, in full force. It was not just sexual – it was more about what had led to the fucking. Of course, their physical connection always acted as the magnet attracting everything that hid beneath the surface. Sex had once been their way to push things aside for a while. Now, it had become the means to bring everything out in the open.
Somehow Lisa managed to unbutton his shirt, and a few buttons got lost in the process, scattering on the stone floor of the veranda. She kissed and licked his chest as he kept moving into her hard, loving the taste of his skin. Finally, still buried deep inside of her, he walked back into the house and crashed on the wide couch of the living room. She rested one leg on the backrest and opened up more to him, pulling down his pants and finally removing his shirt.
Like a magician, Michael got rid of her dress and bent his head to kiss and bite her naked breasts. Almost in a delirious state, she could only hold onto him.
“I swear to God… There’ll be nobody else but you… Never again…”
He shivered and kept kissing her, teasing her, all the while moving into her faster, harder, deeper. She felt herself clamp down on him and moaned out loud, leaning up onto one hand, the other one touching her in between her legs, where they connected, stroking, caressing. The contrast between the rough way his hips moved and the gentle touch of his fingers sent her over the edge, and she came hard, her hands blindly grasping at his chest and shoulders.
“Fuck! Oh, shit… Christ, Mike…”
Still climaxing, she opened her eyes and saw the look on his face. He was burning. He was making love to her with a desperation and a fury that hadn’t been there when they had first reconnected. When she could tell that he was holding back. Well, not everything could always go his way.
Lisa rotated her hips and his eyes flew shut, his teeth biting down on his lip in concentration. He winced, almost in agony, when her muscles contracted, holding him prisoner.
“Give it to me…” She pushed her hips up and pulled his head down at the same time, slowing down the pace, kissing him slowly and thoroughly, her tongue dancing with his. “I wanna feel you come inside of me. Please, baby… let me feel you. I love you so fucking much…”
Panting, he opened his mouth to say something and then his eyes widened. She felt him throb inside her body and then he surged forward again, his strong arms trembling now, as he finally came with a long, painful moan.
Two days later, Michael and Lisa were standing on the balcony when the SUV finally entered the private property. It was a beautiful, warm, sunny day. She glanced at him and noticed how nervous he was. His eyes shimmered, and he was clutching the railing so hard that his knuckles had turned white.
“They’re here, Lise…” He sounded adequately out of breath.
She rubbed his back.
“Yes, baby. Are you ready?”
Michael turned to look at her and smiled. A vulnerable, beautiful smile that showed his perfect teeth. He wasn’t wearing his glasses, and his eyes were soulful and huge.
“I’m not sure. I guess we’ll find out soon enough, uhm?”
The SUV pulled over and the engine went quiet, then the driver’s door opened. Janet climbed off the car and squinted, looking up at them while shielding her eyes with her hand. She saw them and smiled broadly, waving.
“Look at my pestering sister…” Michael let out a nervous chuckle. “Gosh, I didn’t know she too was gon’ be here…”
“She missed you. She can’t wait to see you. Come on… Go.” Lisa squeezed his shoulder and raised on her tiptoes, kissing his cheek. “I’ll wait here.”
For a second, he looked lost.
“No, Lise… you…”
“I’ll be right here.”
She gave him a reassuring smile, silently telling him that she just wanted to give him space. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Prince, Paris, and Blanket, busy retrieving their trolleys from the car. Prince waved at Lisa with a smile, and she waved back at him.
Then she felt Michael’s warm hand on her cheek. He turned her face to look at her straight in the eyes and then gave her a sweet, lingering kiss on the lips. Lisa closed her eyes and kept them closed even when she heard him step back, run across the living area and open the door. A second later, he was rapidly climbing down the external stairs.
She rested her elbows on the railing and watched him as he opened his arms and his three kids hugged him all at the same time. She saw Prince pat his father’s back lovingly, Paris bury her face in the crook of his neck, and Blanket rest his cheek on Michael’s back. Still standing by the car, Janet dried her eyes with the back of her hand and pressed her palm to her mouth, her arms crossed over her chest.
Lisa smiled softly, feeling a bit out of place and so, so happy for all of them. Her eyes watered. The expression on her face didn’t change even when she noticed Paris raise her head from her father’s shoulder and glare at her.
Chapter song
