The last of us

Los Angeles, February 14th, 2009

Michael closed the door to his study and walked over to the bar corner, rubbing his forehead. He felt tired, but not enough to sleep. His back hurt. His muscles ached. His spirit was deflated. Sighing, he poured himself a drink and stopped right in front of the window. He was glad his study was located in the rear part of the house… at least he could look outside without having to face anyone and anything but his garden. A little privacy. A bit of silence. No eyes on him, for once.

Sipping his cognac, he wondered if it wasn’t a little too early to drink hard liquors, but hey, it was already dark outside. Thank goodness, it was almost over. He was glad that Prince’s birthday, the day before, had at least distracted him from the epitome of loneliness that this fucking Valentine Day was. It didn’t matter that Michael didn’t really celebrate this kind of stuff – and it didn’t even matter how consumeristic it had become. It still reminded him that it was about love.

It’s all about love. Love is all you need.

Beautiful words. And yet so empty, to a certain extent.

Oh, Michael loved, no doubt about that. He was full of love, for everyone, everything. Always had been. He loved his fans, his family, his kids. He loved art, music, animals, nature. His love knew no boundaries. Then why was he suddenly feeling so devoid of the intensity that should always be linked to love? Why did all that love feel as if it was falling on its ass, like a dimwit slipping on a banana peel?

Michael chewed on his lips and, when he took another sip of cognac, the liquid touched the broken skin, making his eyes water, just slightly. He winced. His gaze moved from the luscious garden outside to his own reflection in the glass. Face a bit stubbly, hair carelessly tied in a ponytail, somber eyes, he suddenly thought he looked fifty, and not a day younger. But the machine was in motion, the gearwheels had started to spin, the metallic noise of the whole system coming back to life required his maximum concentration, his absolute commitment, his steely determination, his best physical shape. He knew how the machine worked. He knew there was no space for softness.

He emptied the glass, throwing his head back, and placed the decanter on his desk with a sigh. He was ready to go back to his room and watch some TV, hoping to just fall asleep naturally and counting on the pretty long and extenuating exercise session he had subjected himself to, earlier in the afternoon, when his cell phone vibrated in the back pocket of his jeans. Michael pulled out the device, frowning. He thought he had been clear. He didn’t want to be disturbed. They weren’t supposed to bother him.

Glancing at the screen, he noticed that it was one of the security guys at the gate. He didn’t even remember his name – just his phone number. Weird.

“Yeah,” he barked into the phone.

“Boss? There’s someone here at the side entrance asking for you.”

“Well, I am not expecting anyone.”

“I told her, but she insisted I called you anyway.”

“Her? Who is it?” Michael couldn’t see the side gate from where he was, and yet he glanced out anyway.

“She’s… uh…” Michael heard a rustling noise, as if the guy – Adam? Aden? Fuck, he truly didn’t remember! – was covering the phone with his hand. “…Ah, miss? What’s your name again?”

A muffled voice in the background and Michael’s eyes narrowed, staring into space.

Static, then some crackle and finally Adam-Aden’s voice again.

“…Boss?”

“Yes….” Michael exhaled, tiredly.

“…Presley? Miss Lisa Presley for you… That’s what the lady says.”

Michael froze, all thoughts suddenly abandoning him. His legs felt wobbly all of a sudden. He also found himself blinking like a madman, as if he had something in his eyes. Then the security guy’s voice startled him, perhaps avoiding a nervous breakdown and his sudden running around in circles like a deranged lunatic.

“…Boss? Should I send her away?”

“What?” Michael’s brow furrowed, and he cleared his throat. “…No! I mean… No, don’t send her away! Let her in!”

But wait. OK. Of course, he was letting her in. But maybe she wasn’t alone. Maybe her husband was with her. Or the twins. The ones he had made sure received some beautiful stuffed toys, last October. He bit his lip.

“…Aden?”

“It’s Adam, sir.”

Michael cringed. All these new people.

“I’m sorry. Adam. Is she… Is Miss Presley alone?”

“Yes, boss. She’s all alone.”

“OK. Please, let her in and walk her to the foyer. I’ll meet her there in a few minutes.”

He hung up and kept chewing on the inside of his cheek, a bad habit he had acquired at that very moment, apparently. This time, he only stopped when he tasted blood. The expression on his face resembled that of a little kid trying hard to solve a very complicated math quiz.

What the fuck! Why was Lisa there, at his house? They had spoken over the phone a couple of weeks earlier, when he had called her for her birthday. The usual, periodic, polite and casual phone call between two ex-lovers, ex-spouses, ex-lovers again, ex-whatever. Currently, sorta-kinda friends. They had almost turned into strangers.

Nothing, not a single thing in the world had suggested to him that she wanted to see him, and even less that she would come over to his place, unannounced. By the way, how dared she? Why hadn’t she called to make sure he agreed with meeting her, first? Michael tilted his head: that was a moot point. Lisa never felt like she needed any authorization anyway. She was impulsive and hotheaded. In that aspect, somehow, they were oh so similar.

Lisa…

Michael realized that he was starting to sweat. His heartbeat was racing, his face was flushed, and he needed to pee. This was so not good. He needed to stay calm. He walked over to the desk, grabbed his glass and poured himself another drink, which he gulped down in one long sip. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He could do this. Determination, commitment, concentration: the same things he needed to get the machine to work, he could use now.

He stopped cold on top of the stairs, where he could see her but she couldn’t see him, and took in her appearance for a minute. He hadn’t seen her in such a long time. About three years. And the last time he had seen her, it all had ended in one of their devastating fights. Strangely enough, the fight hadn’t been followed by one of their just as usual hot and heavy sessions of make-up sex. Instead, Lisa had gone back home. To her new husband. Since then, both she and Michael had pretended nothing had happened during their occasional phone calls. Precious minutes wasted talking about nothing, listening to the deafening silence of all those words that remained frozen and unsaid.

As usual, Lisa was otherworldly beautiful. She had given birth to her twins a little more than four months earlier, and her body looked heavenly. The twins… another reminder that anything they could have had, anything they could have been, was over. Gone, forever. Michael shook his head slightly, still unable to imagine a reason for her to be there, with him. He had been so convinced it would never happen again.

Well, why don’t you just stop hiding and ask her? That might be a good start.

He inhaled a long breath, put his hand on the railing and let it slide along the cold surface as he slowly climbed down the huge marble stairs.

“Lisa Marie…”

Good. His voice sounded even and controlled enough to convey his complete lack of interest. What a great bullshitter he could be when he wanted to.

She turned her body to him, her head tilting up in the direction of his voice and, for the first time, he saw her face clearly. The azure of her eyes. Those perfect lips. The long eyelashes.

Lisa smiled a tiny, tentative smile.

“Michael…”

It was hard not to reciprocate that smile, but somehow he managed to keep a stern look. He quickly noticed the ample tote bag she had with her, her casual clothes – jeans and a tight, black shirt, her hair long and down on her shoulders.

“I wasn’t expecting you…” He stopped at the last step, his hand still on the railing. “…You should have called, first.”

She grinned, her eyes lowering for a moment.

“I was trying to surprise you. But I guess I ended up surprising myself, too…”

He had no idea what she meant. Or maybe he did. Maybe she meant that she already regretted being there.

“So…” Michael shrugged, casually, “…You’re here, because…?”

“Because I wanted to see you. And I needed to talk to you.”

“We spoke over the phone for your birthday, Lise… what’s going on?” His eyes narrowed. The whole thing started to feel suspicious. “…Something bad happened?”

Once again, that nervous, almost inaudible chuckle.

“Nothing happened… and everything.” She pushed a strand of hair behind her ear. “Look, can I talk to you in private? Do you have a few minutes for me?”

Girl… I’d have all the time in the world for you. But what about you?

Michael just looked at her quietly, his eyes sad and remote, head bent to a side, ever so slightly.

“Sure…” He turned around, vaguely pointing at the first floor of the mansion. “Come with me? Let’s go to my study…. Nobody will bother us there.”

She followed him upstairs, staying a couple of steps behind.

“Where are the kids, by the way?”

“At my mom’s. What about your beautiful twins? How are they?”

“They’re good… Thank you…”

“And they are…?”

“At my mom’s…”

“I see…”

They entered Michael’s private office, and he noticed how Lisa’s glance fell on the empty glass on his desk. She smiled quietly and he cleared his throat. He was confused and had no idea how to navigate this. Lisa was uncharacteristically calm and quiet, a bit remote, even. She looked melancholic, slightly sad, and yet serene.

“Can I get you something to drink?”

“What you were having will be fine…”

Yeah, she had noticed the glass alright. Michael turned his back to her, walking over to the bar and smiled to himself.

“You don’t like cognac, Lise…”

“Neither do you.”

He shrugged, pouring the amber-colored liquor into two balloon glasses.

“Well… Believe it or not, I’m starting to appreciate it…” He placed the bottle back into the cabinet. “…And, since this is not cheap stuff but a limited edition of Hennessy’s Fine…”

He turned and slowly walked back to her, handing her the decanter.

“…I’m sure you won’t be disappointed.”

They sipped their drink as their eyes locked. Danger zone approaching. Better to take cover.

“Please… have a seat.”

Lisa blinked and licked her lips, sitting on the couch while he just leaned against the desk, granting himself that slight distance he needed to survive the atomic bomb of her presence and, at the sime time, a prime view of his beloved ex-wife.

“I gotta say this stuff is excellent. You were right.”

“Oh, I know.”

“Isn’t it amazing how sometimes we think we won’t like something without even experiencing it?”

He studied her carefully, but her face didn’t betray any apparent emotion, except for the ones he had already noticed. That haunting calmness. Melancholy. A bit of sadness. That exhausted, defeated serenity.

“Michael, I…”

“Lise, just…”

They both giggled.

“I’m sorry,” Michael motioned to her. “Please, go ahead.”

“Will you be touring again?”

He just stared at her, a bit stunned. The formal announcement hadn’t even been made yet.

“There’s this rumor going around, that you’ll be performing again… in London. Tens of shows. Is it true, Mike?”

“Yes…” He placed the decanter on the desk and pushed his hands into the pockets of his jeans. He wasn’t going to ask her how she knew. It didn’t matter. Lisa always knew what she needed to know.

“Why does it matter, anyway? Is it important enough for you to come here and ask me in person?”

Lisa looked down at her own hands and blinked, then glanced up at him again.

“No, that’s not why I’m here. And I am not going to beat around the bush… I am here to tell you that…” She opened her mouth to add something, then closed it again, shaking her head. “…I wanna be with you …If you’ll have me, that is.”

Almost deafened by the whistle suddenly invading his ears, his head buzzing, Michael managed to keep an impenetrable face.

“Come again? I am not sure I follow.”

“I said…” This time she took her time to measure her words and when she spoke, she did it very slowly. “…I said, I want to be with you, if you still want me. If… your offer’s still good.”

He had probably tumbled down the stairs and was lying there, on the marble floor, with a severe concussion. Because what he was hearing now could only be the result of head trauma.

“So… let me get this straight. You want to be with me because I’m gonna be on stage again? And you’re asking me if I still…” No, he couldn’t go there. “…If what I told you after the trial is still true?”

“No, and yes.”

“Lisa, I am not sure I follow,” Michael repeated, and this time his entire stance stiffened. Was she fucking with him? He didn’t have the energy for this. He couldn’t allow this.

Lisa stood up and sighed, stepping closer to him, the empty decanter still in her hand.

“I want to be with you not because you’re touring… but because I love you… And what I am asking you, is if you still love me too.”

This, all of this, sounded a bit too clear and real to be the result of a coma. Was she really saying those words? He watched her eyes, intently. They were bright, open. Honest. Lisa was telling the truth. Unlike that other time, when she had told him – over the phone, obviously, not in person – that she was indifferent. He had let her believe that he had bought her bullshit, while in fact he knew that was her last, drastic, desperate attempt not to get swallowed up whole by the mess that their relationship was. But it had been such a long time ago. Everything was different, now. She was married, she had just had the twins. No way in the world she could still be in love with him. It didn’t make any sense.

Or did it?

He contemplated her words for what felt like forever, not really sure how he was going to respond. Of course, he still loved her. Of course, he had dreamed to hear her say those words countless nights and days. But right now, being like this, face to face, with no place to hide – it was all so overwhelming. She had caught him off guard and he was not prepared for this. Maybe he wasn’t even equipped for this. Should he stonewall? Should he disengage immediately and send her on her own merry way? Or should he just take her into his arms, and kiss her silly, and never let her go again?

Time flies, man. Tick-tock, tick-tock…

Whatever the answer was, every single limb in his body was frozen in place. While his heart, buried deep in his chest, was reaching the critical temperature of a nuclear reactor and the alarm was starting to go off. Michael was about to combust, ready to obliterate everything. Every doubt, every fear. If only he weren’t scared shitless – of her, of himself, of what they had, of what they could have. Again. Still. Always.

Tick-tock…

“Lise, I…” He shook his head, at a loss for words.

She kept her eyes courageously open to his scrutiny. He knew she wanted him to see that she was sure of what she was saying. There had been other occasions when she had been just as strong and brave – only, their timing had often been a bit off. When he was ready, she wasn’t. When she was, he would recoil. That eternal dance. So inevitable. So exhausting. To a certain extent, he now understood why at one point she had just decided to back off and wondered if, this time, he wasn’t going to do the same.

But she’s back, now, isn’t she?

“I got something for you,” Lisa murmured, very calmly, exhaling a sigh and stepping back – giving him enough space to breathe. All air had been stolen from his lungs, and Michael bent forward, slightly, the exact moment she turned her back to him and walked back to the couch, rummaging into her tote bag.

“Happy Valentine’s Day.” A tiny smile on her face she stepped into his personal space once again and handed him a little carton box.

It seemed like his baby girl was really managing to melt every single layer of ice he had so carefully erected around his heart. And she didn’t even look like she was trying so hard, yet. But maybe it made sense – they were no longer two energetic young adults who would stomp their feet and beg and yell and cry and throw things at each other, and then fuck against walls, doors or any other vertical surface. This more mature version of who they had become laid it all on down, no regrets and no fear, handed carton boxes and made unequivocal demands, asked candid questions, all the while expressing feelings and emotions in a stunning, adamant way.

Michael swallowed hard and took the box from Lisa’s hand. He almost had to catch his breath when her fingers gently stroked his, for the briefest of moments.

“What’s this?”

“Just open it.”

Biting his lip, Michael slowly removed the top.

The box was empty.

He looked up at her, frowning.

“There’s nothing here.”

“I know.” Lisa gave him a tiny smile.

“Lisa Marie… I am not in the mood for these stupid games.” He was getting irked now. He was confused, vulnerable and upset by her words, and he had no idea where they were coming from. Sure as hell he would not allow her to take advantage of him, and retaliation was the best weapon he had. Possibly the only one, too.

Hurt her. Don’t give her the chance to drag you back in. Strike with such force for her to wish she never came here. Make her bleed.

And yet she stayed very calm.

“This is not a game… It’s more about the way we see things… whether we decide that emptiness is the absence of something, someone, or the space we want to fill with them…” She stared at her, her eyes bright. “…I choose the latter.”

Michael placed the box on the desk.

“OK… So, you say this is not a game. Alright. I really wanna believe you. I just don’t understand you. I don’t know if I’ve finally lost the ability to read you or you’re trying to say something in that very convoluted way of yours… Either way, please Lisa, be kind and explain it to me as if I were a six-year-old. Do me this favor, will you?”

This time she smiled and the smile reached her eyes, and he knew it was because of his huffy tone. She had always found it amusing.

“Well, sometimes you are like a six-year-old… but I don’t love you any less because of that.”

He closed his eyes for a moment. He couldn’t hear that. He couldn’t listen to Lisa say that she loved him. Why did she keep repeating it, like she meant it?

Because she does, you moron.

“After the twins were born, I was supposed to feel content and accomplished in my marriage. Instead, I only felt content and accomplished in my role as a mother. Once again… the proof that having a baby cannot fix something that is not really working… and even less create the kind of love you wish you had…” She took a deep breath. “And you know what? I shouldn’t even be surprised. I guess that’s what you get when you wake up every morning hoping the man sleeping by your side is not the one you married.”

Still leaning against the desk, feet rooted into the floor, Michael braced himself for what was going to come by gripping the edge of the table with both hands. He found the strength to look right into Lisa’s cerulean eyes. What was she saying?

“I guess it was easy, while you were away… Easier, for me, to pretend that I had stopped feeling what I’ve always felt for you. For quite a long time, I just pretended you didn’t exist. You were kinda flying under the radar, anyway… that helped, too.”

She was talking about the years he had spent abroad, after the trial. Even the media had somehow managed to leave him be, to a certain extent.

“But then you came back… here, in L.A. and,” she just scoffed, dryly, “You were everywhere again, Michael. I tried to ignore it, I thought I had become pretty good at believing my own horseshit, but I couldn’t do anything to stop you. You were all over me… in me. Just like always… and then I find out you’ll be leaving again in a few months. And I’m afraid this time I’ll lose myself completely, and I’ll end up buried under my house of cards if I ever let you go again. That’s why I’m trying. It’s the only thing left to do… I’m trying to stay true to myself… which is what we both deserve anyway, no matter what happens.”

“…Horseshit?”

She shrugged.

“Yeah… It’s like bullshit, but with more ‘tude.”

He had to bite down on his lip to repress a grin. “OK…”

Alright then… So that’s where that serene, calm and defeated look came from. She had fought against herself, and inevitably, she had lost. And won at the same time.

“I don’t assume you still love me, and that’s why I asked. Maybe I hurt you so bad that you’ll always resent me… You’re always so kind and polite over the phone, Mike, friendly even… but I coated myself with so much crap that I can barely hear what’s beneath the surface of your words. And that’s why I’m here… talking to you face to face, finally looking at you.” She shook her head. “To be honest, I don’t even expect you to find a place for me in your life. But even less I want you to keep believing the biggest lie I’ve ever said in my life.”

They stared at each other, wordlessly, for a moment.

Michael swallowed and cleared his throat.

“Go on…”

“I had consciously decided to trade passion and love for a quiet affection… the solidity of a relationship that made me feel safe and secure. I thought my heart was dulled by use… because loving you, Michael, is like running a marathon. You gotta know that. I would always feel like I was gonna stroke out any minute. Sometimes I just couldn’t keep up. I thought I would welcome the rest, and maybe for a while I did… but now I realize, I’d rather prefer –”

He moved quicker than she could imagine. Than he himself could fathom. His hands framing her face, his lips pressed against hers. It was a chaste kiss and yet intense enough, for Lisa, to make her stumble back. She gripped his shirt to steady herself, and at that same moment, just as abruptly as it had started, the kiss ended, and Michael pulled back, still holding her face gently. Their breathing was labored. Michael’s lips tingled.

“Lisa, Lisa…” He shook his head, feeling exhausted all of a sudden. “…Why are you doing this to me, girl? Why now?”

“I was staring at that box, thinking… is that how I wanna live? Empty… emptied… do I wanna fill that void? Because I tried, Michael, I really did, but… Letting you go didn’t heal me… if anything, it chipped away at the truest and most honest part of me… Whenever I would reach over and you were not there, and not because you didn’t want to… but because I had pushed you away.”

“You pushed yourself away… It was not about me. It was more about you… you pulled back.”

“And yet the endgame was just the same, wasn’t it?” With immense sadness clear in her eyes, she reached up and stroked his cheek and, in a reflex move, he leaned into her touch. “All that time lost…”

“What about your husband?”

“We’ve been unhappy in this marriage for a very long time… Things aren’t always the way they look. You know the drill. We’re separated now. I’m gonna file for divorce… and it’s gonna be consensual.”

“You told him about me?” He needed to know.

“He has always known. He was my friend first, so… I guess he wasn’t exactly surprised…” She gave him a crooked grin. “Although I gotta admit that my timing is a bit suspicious.”

This time he couldn’t help but chuckle, wryly. Lisa’s hand snaked around his neck, and she clasped her fingers into his hair, on the back of his head. Her grip was firm, her voice still very soft.

“I don’t want this to be the last of us… I don’t wanna risk to lose you for good just because I can’t find the balls to speak up and tell you how I really feel…” She closed her eyes for a second, as if her own realization overwhelmed her. “And if there’s anything left, in you, any fight, any trace of love for me, Mike… Can you at least think about giving us another chance?”

“And you want me to believe you won’t leave, this time…” He tried desperately, with all his strength, to push back the hope that was starting to bloom inside of him.

“Yes, that’s exactly what I’m asking you to believe. That I’m never gonna leave again. ‘Cause I won’t.”

“You want us to start again… clean slate…”

“Or resume our unfinished business… Whichever you prefer.”

He blinked, his eyes lowering. He gently removed her hand, kissed her knuckles, then let her go.

“I’ll think about it… I promise.”

He saw her closing her eyes, quickly trying to hide the pain. But he felt it in all its intensity. Well, what did she expect? Did she really think she could appear at his doorstep, unannounced, dump all of this on him and have him happily jump around? That was not how it worked!

Yes. Yes, indeed! That’s exactly how it works. Why the drama? Can’t you guys just avoid it, for once, and try? Just try, Mike… isn’t that what you’ve always wanted? One more chance…

“I understand. You’re totally right…” Lisa stepped back and tried as best as she could to hide her disappointment. “Thank you, Michael. And… well, I guess you’ll let me know, right?”

He just stayed frozen in place. Saw her walk back to the couch, take her purse. Straighten her back. Motion to the door. The dignified stance. A last glance from those eyes that once had cradled his entire world.

Tick-tock… tick-tock… Time flies, man. Do you really wanna waste any more minutes? Seconds, even?

“Lisa…”

Her hand was already on the doorknob. She turned her head to him.

“Yes, Mike?”

He squared his jaw.

“Drive safe.”

Another sad smile, those azure eyes staring into space for a moment.

It’s too late.

No, it’s never too late.

“Sure. Don’t worry about it… Goodbye, Michael.”

He threw his head back and stared at the ceiling as she stepped out of the room. He shook his head and rolled his eyes.

Oh, fuck this all to hell!

He darted to the door and yanked it open.

“Lisa!”

His hand closed on her arm just as she was heading for the staircase.

“What, baby?” Something broke in her voice when she turned and stared at him. And her eyes – this time they watered, turning into oceans. And just like that, fear suddenly abandoning him, he dived in.

Michael pulled her into his arms, and she clung to him right away, molding against his body, exhaling a deep breath. He felt her shaking and held her tighter.

“Lisa… Lisa…” His whisper in her ear conveyed all his overwhelming, dazed surprise. “…Lisa, why are you doing this? Fuck… You got me all jumbled up, girl…”

She chuckled through the tears.

“I know the feeling… but it’ll get better, I promise… I’ll make it better.”

She backed off just slightly, just enough to caress his cheek, gently. He closed his eyes and, in the uncanny silence surrounding them, heard the rustling sound of her smooth hand stroking his afternoon stubble. Memories flooded his mind, appeared behind his closed eyelids. So familiar. Lisa was home.

“Let’s go…” He whispered, taking her hand and guiding her back to his study.

He closed the door and locked it, then turned and looked at her.

“So… does that mean that you thought about it?”

Michael shook his head.

“I do love you. You know that.”

“No, to be honest I wasn’t sure at all this time…”

Lisa stepped back into him and he felt as if he could breathe again. His hands rested on her shoulders and he took in her appearance like he hadn’t allowed himself to do since she had come into his world again. Only, this time he felt it – she was his. Always had been. And she was back, for real. He bent his head and kissed her softly, gentle pecks, lips on lips, nothing else. He wanted to savor every moment. All of them, each one of them so unexpected. So precious.

“I still love you,” he pulled back enough to be able to focus on her eyes. “And I swear, girl, I did try to stop doing that. But looks like my feelings for you are just as stubborn as you are…”

She blinked back the tears and stroked his chest.

“Yeah… thank God you never relent. Not a single part of you does.”

Lisa didn’t remember having fel this way in a very long time. She could barely keep her eyes open. And this, all of this, was going in a completely unexpected direction. Not at all what she had fathomed.

She had been sure Michael would be snarky, flippant, snippy and that he would lay on her all the classic repertoire he unleashed every time he was taken by surprise and forced to face conflict. Because Mike didn’t do confrontations and didn’t like drama unless he was the one controlling it. And this was not the case. But she was ready to face his evasive tactics and even his bitter remarks, because after all she felt like she deserved the whole package of punishment.

But no. None of that had happened. Yeah, at one point he looked like he was going to let her go, but then he had run after her. Told her he loved her still. He hadn’t said anything about what was going to be the nature of their relationship from now on, but right now Lisa was on all fours on his bed, naked and whimpering, and he was down on his knees, by the bed, his face buried between her parted legs.

Lisa gripped the sheets and bit her lips, her whole body shaking, trying hard to keep her release at bay. She was not sure she could survive another orgasm.

After talking some more, Michael had taken her hand and guided her to his bedroom. And then he had started to make love to her slowly and thoroughly, once again catching her off-guard. She expected a quick, hot and wild fuck – as it typically happened whenever they reconnected again after a long time apart – and instead he had taken his time torturing her in the sweetest possible way. Disrobing her slowly, observing her naked body, worshipping every inch of it, telling her, again and again, that to him she had never looked sexier or more beautiful, his fingertips tracing the trail of her exposed skin, his warm lips following, making her writhe under his touch.

And the way he was loving her now – Lisa had forgotten almost everything about it. Oh, she had thought about the way Michael would make love to her plenty of times through the years. She knew well that no other man had ever been able to make her fly like he did, destroy her and rebuild her all at once, each time. But the reality of it surpassed any fantasy, any memory.

She leaned down on her elbows and pushed back slightly, moaning.

“Mike… baby, please…”

His hands stroked the small of her back, her thighs. His mouth didn’t ease up, and before she could say another word, she shattered. Trusting him, knowing well that he would be there, catching her. He wouldn’t let her fall. And neither would she.

Her body liquefied by the intense pleasure, she collapsed on the sheets and felt him lie down on the bed next to her, his hands caressing her skin, his lips kissing her back, her shoulders. He moved her hair to a side and kissed her nape, nuzzling her neck.

“I love you like crazy,” she whispered hoarsely, resting her forehead against the mattress.

“I don’t wanna start again… I don’t want any clean slate.” His voice low and husky, thick with lust and yet so very clear did something to her. For a moment she thought he had been revenge-fucking her and he was going to kick her out. But no. That was impossible. She could feel how hard he was, his huge erection pressing against her side, throbbing, as he kept kissing her. She had only touched him, barely had him in her mouth for a short, heavenly moment. He was far from done, and Lisa knew how he rolled. She also recognized the quality of his kisses, of his touch. Michael wasn’t fucking her. He was making love to her. He wasn’t going to kick her out now… right?

“I want us to resume our unfinished business, Lise… Because it’s our past, and I don’t regret a minute of it. I just want us to learn from it and go on… together.”

And just like that, all her doubts evaporated, like fog under the rain.

She exhaled a relieved sigh and turned on her side, taking him into her arms, burying her face in his neck, inhaling his scent, loving the feeling of his sweaty skin under her fingertips. There was no other place in the world she wanted to be. No other man on the planet she needed.

“I love you,” she said, once again. She had deprived him of that truth for so long, and now the only thing she wanted was for Michael to never doubt her feelings again.

Her hand slid down and grabbed him, gently and yet firmly. She heard his sharp intake of breath and smiled, looking up and into his soulful dark eyes.

“And I agree with you… we don’t have to erase anything from our past…”

“Yeah…” He swallowed as she started stroking him with that slow, firm motion he adored.

“And if you want, Hidden Hills is still waiting for us…” Backing off a bit, she carefully studied his reaction.

Surprise.

Delight.

Comfort.

“For real?”

“For real. What about moving back home? Together…”

“You and I?”.

“And all the kids…”

“Well, obviously…”

“Yeah… we don’t really need two houses, do we?”

“Mh… What happened to my dance studio?” He reached down and closed his hand over hers, guiding her movements. Lisa bit her lip, feeling each nerve endings in her body on fire once again. Michael still remembered what turned her on. But she, too, had a perfect recollection of what he liked.

“It’s still there… waiting for you.” Her free hand found his testicles, and she fondled and cradled them. Michael rolled his eyes in complete, ecstatic rapture. Lisa bent her head, slowly licking his skin, kissing his neck, descending on his collarbone.

“Very convenient… I could… ah… rehearse there, then… And spend more time at home.” She could tell talking was becoming extremely difficult for him and grinned, pushing him back gently, forcing him to rest on his back and coming to rest astride him. “I am a family man now, you know…”

“Oh, are you now… What about your entourage?” She started to move against his body and he jerked. His eyes closed as her lips scorched his chest.

“I’m gonna talk to AEG and revise some terms of my deal… I still have a bit of time to maneuver myself into the whole thing… In fact, there are a few things I don’t quite like… That doctor they want to work with me, for example… He’s odd… And I don’t wanna put myself in the position of needing a live-in doctor anyway… plus, a couple of those security guys… They’re just… I don’t know, something’s off about them…”

She gently nibbled his skin, her fingers skimming his sides.

“I agree… Do this on your own terms, baby… and if you need another set of eyes to take a look at those papers, well… I’m here.”

He glided his hands up and down her smooth, warm back, then down to her ass. He was never going to spend another night alone. No more medication rooms. No more loneliness. No more.

“You sound very committed, Lise…”

“You have no idea…”

She guided him into her body and let out a long sigh as she worked to accommodate him fully.

Yeah. She would need a bit of time and exercise to get used to his size again, but hey, they had the rest of their lives ahead of them. And she was never going to spend another night without holding him, making sure that he was safe, making sure that he’d have a new, beautiful day to look forward to.

End.

Last edit: June 2019.

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