Our Kind of Love (26 page)

I entangle my tongue with his as he devours my
mouth. Reaching around his back, I claw into his skin and pull him harder.
Micah unsnaps my bra and tosses it to the floor. He strays from my lips, kisses
my chin, and traces my jawline until he reaches my neck. I tremble as he sticks
his hand inside my panty, finding what desperately needs his touch.

“Hmm…” he groans in delight as he realizes how
much I want him. Then he gently inserts his middle finger and uses it to
pleasure me.

“Micah,” I moan again as I lift my leg to give
him more access. Gliding a hand down his torso, I slip it inside his shorts. A
conceited grin stretches across my lips when I feel how hard he is. He wants me
just as bad.

As if he’s had enough, Micah slides my tights
and panty down to my ankles. I kick them off. We don’t make it to his bed.
Desire takes over and we slither to the hardwood floor.

“Oh…” I quiver as Micah eases his way in, making
love to me; slowly, then ravenously, and with more passion than before.

Thirty
-
One

Micah

“WHAT JUST HAPPENED?” I ask, moments later when
we’re cuddling after we eventually reached my bed.

“I don’t know,” she tells me, sounding
exhausted. “I was at the beach, and then…I wanted to see you right away.”

I laugh teasingly. “I could tell. So, I guess
you’re not too mad at me for lying about my name and keeping secrets then?”

Reign nuzzles up to me and kisses my jaw. “I’m
still a little upset about it, but I like you too much to stay mad.”

Lowering my head down to her face, I kiss her
lightly on the lips and stroke her hair. I can’t get over the way she looked
earlier, standing in my doorway, heaving.

There was so much passion in her eyes when she
stared at me. And the way she held my body when I made love to her, it’s as if
it was our last.

I can’t help but ask, “Did you decide if you
want to come with me?”

Her face tenses. She looks away from my gaze.
“I…don’t know…”

“It’s okay if you don’t,” I tell her so she
doesn’t feel bad.

Glancing at me, relief covers her face. “You
sure?” she confirms, “You’ll be okay going back alone?”

I nod. “Truthfully, I’ve never felt more scared
about anything, the way I’m afraid of seeing Lewis again. But it’ll be fine. I
need to get past this.”

Reign tips her chin up and kisses me. We stare
at each for a while before I glimpse the clock on the table by my bed. “It’s
almost eight. You don’t want to be late for work and put me on your mom’s bad
side, do you?”

She wobbles her head and eases out of my arms as
I climb out of bed to put on my sweats. Walking over to the kitchenette, I make
her coffee and toast—since I’m pretty sure she came straight here after
running—while she hauls back on her workout clothes.

“So, did you call that guy back?” she asks,
putting on her sneakers.

I lean against the counter. “Not yet. I’ll call
Greg in a bit.”

Sitting down at the table, Reign rests her
elbows on top of the placemat, studying me as she asks, “Who is he, anyways?”

“He was my counselor in juvie. He helped me a
lot, not only with what happened to Lewis, but with stuff having to do with my
parents.”

“I see.” She picks at the placemat,
contemplating something. “Are you thinking about going this weekend then?”

I sit down at the table across from her. “Yeah,
I probably will. So, I guess I’m gonna have to tell your mom—”

“But you’re coming back, right?” There’s
uncertainty in her eyes, like she’s afraid I won’t. “I mean, you just have to
ask her for the weekend off, that’s all. And my birthday’s next week. You’ll be
here for that, right?”

Leaning forward, I reach for her hands. “Of
course I’m coming back, babe, relax,” I assure her. “Why wouldn’t I?”

She shrugs. “I don’t know, maybe you’ll go home
and realize how much you missed it and then decide to stay.”

“The only way I’d stay in Haxtun is if you’re
there,” I tell her. “Don’t worry about that.”

The sweet smile I adore returns and she braces
over the table to kiss me.

“I forgot to mention something,” she says,
settling down.

“What?” I press, playfully narrowing my eyes at
her.

“Claudia and I planned this trip to Miami from a
while back. It’s for two weeks; we leave at the end of the month. She says you
can come if you want…”

“Huh…sounds like a girls’ trip.”

She shakes her head. “It’ll be fine, you can
come with us. Claudia won’t mind.”

“Babe, you don’t have to invite me along. You
can go have fun with your best friend,” I say. “But you gotta get in the water,
though. It won’t be fun if you don’t.”

Reign twists her mouth to one side then says
lowly, “I’ll keep trying. I’ll do it before we leave for Florida. I will.”

“Okay. I believe you.”

I hear the toaster and hop up to fix her a
plate. We have breakfast together before Reign heads home to get ready for
work.

On my way out, I call Greg to let him know I’ve
decided to meet with Lewis this weekend. I just have to suck it up and handle
my problem.

“That’s great, Mitchel,” he enthuses. “I’ll let
them know you’ll be coming then. Can I ask what changed your mind?”

“It’s the right thing to do,” I reply. “I never
got a chance to apologize and I want to.”

Greg pauses a moment before he says, “That’s
good. It’s part of your journey to moving on.”

“I know.”

“Well, I’ll let the Harrison’s know. See you
soon.”

When I arrive at the restaurant, that broker who
stopped by last week, Dean Carmichael is inside talking to John. He appears
sympathetic, while John has a crooked look on his face. He’s not happy, and he
wants nothing to do with Mr. Carmichael.

I park my bike next to a metal post and walk
through the door. The air is thick. I feel as if I’ve missed the whole shebang.

Aislin and Reign stop talking and glance at me.
Mr. Carmichael turns away from John, striding over to me.

“Hey, I don’t believe we’ve been properly
introduced. I’m Dean,” he says, reaching his hand out to shake mine.

I reply simply with “Micah.”

“Well, Micah. Good to meet you. I hope we’ll
have a pleasant working relationship from here on.”

John snorts at his back. Wrinkling a brow, I
twist and regard Reign’s face. She shrugs and looks down at her fingers,
chipping at her nails. It’s what she does when she’s thinking hard or isn’t
sure what to do.

Looking back at Dean, I ask, “What do you mean?”

A smug grin spreads over his face as he answers,
“I’ve purchased
Captain’s Choice
from Sophia. My consultant and I will
be working to come up with strategies that will improve the restaurant.”

“Improve how?” Aislin fires from across the
room. She slowly walks over to him and drops her hands on her hips.

Dean slants and eyes her from head to toe.
“Well, I’m considering changing the name, getting a revamp of the place,” he clears
his throat then adds, “among other things.” That probably means he’s planning
on letting them go.

Her eyes expand. “You’re changing the name? You
can’t do that.”

“Miss,” he chuckles, finding her reaction
amusing it seems. “I
own
the place now. Yes I can.”

The door swings open and we all spin around to
see Mrs. Aldridge coming in. She studies our faces and lets out a deep sigh as
she stops on Dean.

“Why are you all moping around? It’s not the end
of the world.”

“But Mom,” Reign starts, “You love this place.
We love this place.”

“And it’ll still be here, thanks to Dean,” Mrs.
Aldridge says, walking over to her daughter. She squeezes her shoulder.

Looking at the rest of us, she says, “It’ll
remain
Captain’s Choice
until August. I’ve agreed to let Dean do
whatever he wants after that. Now, please, don’t look so depressed. You’ll
still have your jobs.”

“Right,” Aislin mumbles. Mrs. Aldridge makes to
say something to her but then three customers enter the restaurant.

Suddenly, we all scatter. Reign tends to the
customers, Dean walks out to his car to use his phone, John does what he does
best, which is glance at the TV while he fishes around the bar, and Aislin
ambles out to the deck to fume by herself.

I walk around to Mrs. Aldridge’s office. Even
though it’s a hard time for her, I have to tell her I’m going back to Haxtun
this weekend.

“You are?” she retorts, peering up at me from a
sheet of paper on her desk.

“I need to take care of something,” I tell her.

“Does this have anything to do with juvie?” she
asks.

“Yes, ma’am,” I reply in a low tone.

“Did you tell Reign, not only that you’ve been
there but what you’ve…done?”

“I have.”

Her face relaxes. She sits back in her chair and
studies me. “Micah, if you don’t mind me asking, what happened in Haxtun?”

I look down at my hands. “I don’t…um…I don’t
think
I
—”

“You were more comfortable telling Reign,” she
concludes.

I meet her gaze again.

“It’s okay. I understand.” She releases a gush
of air before saying, “I’m glad you opened up to her. It’s never good keeping
something that hurts inside. And I don’t know what you’ve done, but I’m happy
she’s trying to do the same.”

Mrs. Aldridge smiles at me. It’s warm, kind, and
beyond genuine. It’s the way I wish my own mother would smile at me, if I ever
meet her.

“Well, get back out there. Today might be one of
those days we get a noontime rush,” she says, hopeful.

Nodding, I hop up and head for the door. Before
stepping outside, I twist and look at her sideways, saying, “Mrs. Aldridge, I’m
sorry you had to sell your restaurant.”

Her smile slowly fades. She glances at the floor
as she mutters, “Don’t be. I’ve wanted to make a change for a while now. I
guess it’s just time for me to move on, too.”