Eagle's Destiny (22 page)

In between my roaring force, I could hear him calling me by my pet names.  I felt Michael’s body stiffen as he shuddered and released inside of me.  We lay tangled together for a few moments and then gently moved apart.  Our breathing was rough and ragged, and our bodies glistened with our exertion.

His eyes looked like pools of clear blue water when they opened.  His hand reached up to caress my face.  “You are amazing!” he said.

I smiled and kissed his fingers. 

Michael pulled me over so I could lay my head on his shoulder.  I curled my fingers around his chest hair while he stroked my back.  “Can I ask you something?”  I asked finally breaking the silence.

He took my hand and laced his fingers with mine.  “What?”  He answered while kissing my forehead.

“Last night after we made love you said you knew it would be me.  What did you mean?”  I scooted up so that I could look at his face.

His eyes told me that he hadn’t realized he had spoken the words aloud.  Michael smiled, “It’s a little silly.  Do you really want to know?”

I nodded my head, “Only if you want to tell me.”

Michael turned on his side while my head was still nestled in his arm.  “I don’t mind telling you.”  He pulled me closer and I slid my leg up and over his hip to settle us together.

Michael kissed me and began his story.  “When I first divorced, I was a little wild.”  He chuckled, “Truthfully I was a lot of wild.  I chased after every woman who would have me, and I wasn’t very discriminating either.  Maggie and I did not have a very loving relationship or least I didn’t, she did, but it wasn’t me she loved.  After Maggie, as the song said, I was looking for love in all the wrong places.”

While I watched him tell his story, I could tell he was picturing it all in his mind.  I giggled, “So you were the man’s version of a loose woman.”

Michael smiled, “Yes, I was very much that.  I noticed though as the weeks went by I became more choosey in who I brought to the house.  The
girls had the ultimate veto, if they didn’t like the woman, I would stop calling her.”

I feigned shock, “Oh you were absolutely heartless.”

“Well, I was also stupid.  The women were smarter than me.”

I giggled, “That’s always the case.”

“You’re right.”  Michael agreed.  “They got wise to me and they started pandering to the girls, hoping that would lead them to me.  It worked for a while until I figured it out.  I was disgusted mainly with myself when I finally did figure everything out.  I decided just to be a dad and stop dating.  I concentrated on the girls and promised that I would do so until Tammy graduated from high school.

“Oh my gosh!”  I exclaimed, “How long was it?”

“The last five years.  I’ve been out a couple of times, mainly blind dates that I was forced to go on, but, I’ve been celibate since then.”

I shook my head, “No fooling around?”

He smiled and kissed me again, “Not at all.”

“So what was with the comment you made to me?”  I asked.

Michael laughed, “If you would stop interrupting, I’ll finish the story.”

I reached down and pinched him on the butt, “Okay mister, and now finish the story.”

He laughed again and pinched me back.  “Hey!”  I cried, “Knock that off!”  I teased.

“Okay, okay.  I don’t want to get into a pinching contest.  So, then when I moved to Mintock I heard about this incredibly sexy next door neighbor I was going to have.”

“And?”  I said, fluttering my eyelashes.

“And, I even looked up your website and you were amazingly beautiful.  I was really looking forward to meeting you.  You have quite the sales person in Debi too.”

I laughed, happy to cuddle against him.  “I’ll have to thank her sometime.” 

“Then Tammy met you and told me how nice you were and that you had given her a copy of your new book.  The alarm bells went off in my head, and I immediately thought here was another woman being nice to my daughter to get to me.”

“But, I hadn’t even met you yet.”  I protested.  “I barely knew that you existed.  Although Debi did quite the sales pitch on you too.”

Michael laughed, “Remind me to thank her.  Tammy pointed out to me that you were not like the other women, and besides she is over eighteen now.  Then I met you at the baseball field.  I wanted to lay you down on the bleachers and have my way with you right then and there.  You looked so sexy in your tight uniform.  You were hot.”

“So was it then that you knew that I would be the one that would break
your celibacy?”

Michael shook his head.  “No, not then.  It was later when we driving home that night, and you…”

I finished the sentence for him, “Oh great, when I got sick all over you.”

“You didn’t get sick all over me, but it was when you showed the most vulnerability.  You were the big baseball pitcher, romance novelist, and singer when I first met you.  But when you were in the car, you were a very normal fragile person.  I saw
a woman
who would let me take care of
her
.”

“Oh!”  I said surprised.  “That’s nice.  I like that.”

“Good that’s my story, and I’m sticking to it.”  He slapped my bottom playfully, “Okay my hellcat, we need to get up if we’re going to make our baseball game today.”

We packed up the camp and made our way back to Michael’s jeep.  Even though I insisted, he would not let me carry one of the large backpacks and he made two trips to the car.  I waited at the stand and made the second trip with him.  It was difficult for me to believe that less than twenty-four hours had passed since we had arrived.  The time felt more like a week to me.  I was almost sad to be leaving the eagles and this peaceful place.

The day was warming up and I wore only my tank top and jeans.  After we loaded the jeep both of us were warm from the hard work.  Leaning against the car door, I took a deep breath and let it out slowly.  “Whew!  I’m going to need to get into better shape if I want to keep coming out here.”

Michael walked up and opened the car door for me.  He put his arms around my waist and planted a kiss on my lips.  “I’d say you were in pretty good shape.” 
He
squeezed my bottom.  “The altitude is what is taking your breath away.”

I laughed, “Oh I don’t know.  I think you’re doing a pretty good job of that on your own.”  I put my arms around his neck and pulled him down for another kiss. 

He looked down at me, the corners of his mouth turned up in a small smile.  “Did you have fun?” 
He
asked.

Nodding, I put my head on his shoulder and murmured, “Did you?”

His hands slipped under my tank and he rubbed my back.  “It was like heaven.”  He whispered. 

We held each other just enjoying the closeness.  This was the happiest I had been in many years.  The exhilaration I felt when I was with Michael was surprising to me.  After my life with Kevin, I was adamantly against any further relationships.  Being with Kevin had hurt me deeper than I could have imagined.  Thinking of it now while Michael held me almost brought tears to my eyes.

He must have felt the tension go through my body as I thought of
Kevin.  He lifted my chin to look into my eyes.  “Hey are you okay?”

I nodded mutely trying to cast the thoughts of Kevin from my mind.  Michael kissed me again.  It was not like the passionate ones we shared earlier, but a gentle, sweet kiss.  The kiss was not chaste either and it held a promise of passion to come later.  When he pulled back, I almost could feel myself collapsing.  He opened the car door and my legs gave out so I literally plopped onto the seat. 

He chuckled making his way around the car.  I pulled my feet in and buckled the seat belt.  Everything was moving in slow motion.  As he pulled out onto the highway, we didn’t speak.  He took my hand and squeezed it.  The touch of his hand sent a jolt through me.  Michael was smiling as I glanced over at him.  How could this man elicit these feeling in me?  What had happened to me?

We were quiet on the drive home.  Both lost in our own contemplation.  His face gave me no clues of what his thoughts contained.  The jeep pulled up in the back of his house.  All four dogs and Tammy rushed out of the house to greet us. 

“How are the eagles?”  She asked by the way of a greeting.

Michael smiled and kissed her on the top of her head.  “They were great and they say hello.  I see all the dogs are doing okay.”

She nodded and started to help unload the car.  “What did you think Elizabeth?”

I bent over to pet all the dogs.  “It was amazing.”  I said truthfully, but I referred more to what Michael and I had shared.

He flashed me a private smile.  “Go on home Elizabeth.  I know you’re dying for your shower.  Tammy and I will get all this unpacked.”  He handed my little bag to me.  “I’ll pick you up in an hour for the game.”

I nodded as Michael bent down to kiss me quickly.

After my shower, I braided my hair.  I looked at my face closely in the mirror.  Michael’s stubble had done a number on my face.  My face looked wind burned at best and my swollen lips were evident.  Grinning at myself in the mirror, I didn’t mind the after effects at all.

Before I knew it, he was knocking on the door.  I called for him to come in while I prepared dinner for the dogs.  He came up behind me, wrapped his arms around me, and planted a kiss on my neck.  I grinned
.  H
e had shaved and smelled deliciously of soap. 

“Is Tammy coming with us tonight?”  I asked.

“She and Jason are going to stop by at the restaurant later to hear you and the band.  I think they’re planning on having dinner at the house with Katy and the boys.”  Michael replied.  He took the dog food bowls and put them down for the dogs.  “Ready?”

I rinsed my hands.  “Yeah, let’s go and play some baseball.”

Even though we arrived at the field early, the parking lot was still
packed.  It looked like everyone in the town had turned out for the game.  It wasn’t unusual.  A crowded town was the rule for
the entire week following Labor Day
.  I looked forward to the end of summer when sleepy little Mintock would go back to normal.  Michael insisted on dropping me off while he searched for a parking space.  Debi snagged me before I went ten feet.

“Hello darling, how was your visit with the eagles?”  She asked and then looked me squarely in the face and laughed.  “Oh dear, you’ve had your horn honked haven’t you?”

“I don’t know what you mean?”  I frowned.

“Oh yes you do.”  She linked her arm with mine as we walked toward the field.  “Your face looks like it has rug burn, your lips are all swollen, and you have that cross-eyed look to you.”

I could feel the blush from the roots of my hair down to the tips of my toes.  “Is it that noticeable?”

“Oh only me and your close friends will notice.”  Debi laughed again.  “Okay, it’s not that bad.”

“Really?”  I looked at her earnestly.

Debi shook her head, but I didn’t know whether to believe her or not.  I pulled my hat onto my head and pushed the brim down hoping that the shade would hide my face a little.  I warmed up with Don.  He was a gentleman and did not mention anything to me.  Don had known me the longest of anyone at the field and I knew he was aware whether or not Debi had the chance to tell him.

When Michael joined us, I appreciated that he did not hang all over me.  I was not ready to declare to the world that we were involved any more than just dating.  I needed time to acquaint myself to the idea first. 

The game was over quickly.  The other team from Mintock was no match for us and we breezed through the game without much effort.  It was the last game of the season and we were happy with the win.  I asked Michael to drive me home so that I could shower again and change clothes.  Katy had asked me to wear a black outfit to the restaurant tonight.

He
dropped me off
at
the back of my house.  As I got out of the car, he grabbed my hand. 

“Do you want some company in the shower?” 
He
grinned and looked like a teenager.

“I think I have that one covered.  Are you changing clothes?”

He nodded, “Yeah, and I’m getting my camera.  Katy wants me to take pictures of the performance tonight.”

“Well when you’re done, come on over.  I’ll leave the door unlocked.”

“Oh?”  He raised one eyebrow.

“No.  You can keep me company while I get ready.  I’ll see you in a bit.”

I went into the cabin and stripped off my uniform in the bathroom. 
The shower was hot against my skin.  My body was sore from sleeping on the ground last night as well as, I was sure, from last night’s activities.  The water pounding on me felt good.  Steam filled the bathroom as I wiped off the mirror.  My skin was pink from the hot water.  I wrapped my hair in a towel and wrapped another towel around myself.

A blast of cold air hit me when I open the bathroom door, but that wasn’t what made me gasp, Michael was lying on my bed.  On his side, he
propped
his head up with one arm.