“No. They're looking because they're wondering who the beautiful blonde is.”
She grinned back at him. “I think you're feeding me a line, but it tastes great, so I'm gonna gobble it right up.”
They sat down at their table, and Mike marveled at the way that he felt he could talk to her about anything. She was one of the few people in the world that he had really never had an awkward moment with. Of course, they hadn't spent an inordinate amount of time together, but judging by the level of comfort that he already felt with her, he would be shocked if they ever settled into an awkward phase.
“So, did you enjoy sightseeing today?” Mike asked. “I tried to hit up some of the more obscure sites that even a native might not have been to before. No Alcatraz or Pier 39. Not for us.”
She brightened even further. The two of them had spent their day on a tour of local haunts – museums, coffee houses, and quirky shops that were favorites of the people that lived in San Francisco's many unique neighborhoods.
“I loved it!” she exclaimed, “It was the perfect day. Really.”
Mike smiled. That was a sentence he wouldn't mind hearing pretty much every day for the rest of his life.
Her face darkened a little bit as she said carefully, “There is one thing about today that I wasn't too sure about.”
He was puzzled. He didn't think that they had gone anywhere particularly controversial. He tilted his head to the side. “What was it? Let's talk about it.”
Her lips curled in a small half smile. “Exactly my thinking. Let's talk about it.”
“What was it?”
Her lips curled up even further, but there was no mirth in her eyes this time. “Lizzie.”
His heart dropped. Of course. He should've realized that she would need to know about Lizzie, it was a huge oversight on his part. Someone must have brought her up her name.
“Oh, God, I’m so sorry. Did someone say something to you?” Mike asked feeling like an idiot for letting her get blindsided.
“Yep,” Nikki nodded, “someone sure did.
“I should've explained about her right up front. I just don’t even think about her anymore. I'm so sorry.”
“Well,” Nikki said carefully, “no time like the present.”
“Right,” Mike had to smile at Nikki’s upfront approach. He loved that she didn’t try and manipulate conversations. If she wanted to know about something, she asked. “Lizzie and I were together for six years.”
“Six years!” Her eyes widened. She clearly had not expected to hear such a significant number.
He shook his head regretfully. “Yes. And in my opinion, about five and a half years too long. Trust me, it's completely over. In fact, it was completely over for a long time while we were still together. We broke up over six months ago.”
Nikki looked as if she was considering for a moment, and then suddenly her face brightened. “Okay,” she said, simply and happily.
Mike was stunned. He did know a lot of women, and he had certainly never gotten out of a touchy conversation that easily. It just couldn't be that simple. “That's it? Really?”
She shrugged, as if the answer were obvious. “Like I said. I trust you.”
Wow. Mike was floored. Nikki was a one of a kind.
Rather than beat a dead horse, he decided that it would be better to move the conversation along. He learned in politics that the best way to distract someone from what they were thinking about was to ask them about themselves. In this instance, he had the bonus benefit of actually being completely fascinated with Nikki and eager for the chance to learn more about her.
“So do you enjoy being a flight attendant?” he asked, his interest genuine.
Nikki nodded thoughtfully. He liked the fact that he was clearly not just getting the stock answer that she handed out to everyone. She was actually putting consideration into how she was going to respond to the question.
“I do love my work. It's very interesting. I get to travel all over the world and meet people that I never would otherwise. However, it's not my long-term plan. It has a shelf life.”
“What is your long-term plan?”
“I'm going to school. I'm getting my Master’s degree in psychology. Depending on where life takes me, I may enroll in a PhD program after that. I'm just really fascinated with the way the brain works. Not to mention, my sister is a teacher. It's really not fair that she has the family market cornered on helping people for a living. I'd like a little of that action, myself.”
He smiled. “You might be kidding, but I actually think that you would be amazing at helping people. You have the perfect demeanor for a psychologist—straightforward but compassionate, with just enough humor tossed in. I know I'd go see you in a heartbeat.”
“Oh, no,” she said, mock concern written all over her face, “we couldn't have that.”
“Why not?”
She took her time answering, letting a slow and simmering smile spread across her face and looking straight into his eyes as she said, “Well, I'd never sleep with one of my patients.”
--- ~ ---
Nikki saw Mike flush a little at her well-timed and provocative response, and she loved it. Hell, she'd been distracted by thoughts of sex with him all day and she didn’t feel like she should be the only one suffering. It was only fair that he be a little distracted by carnal imaginings as well.
Still. She didn't want to torture them for too long, so she moved smoothly into the next topic without even stopping to acknowledge the short moment of erotic energy that had passed between them.
“So what made you decide to get into politics?”
He laughed. “Well, it's going to sound disingenuous after you just saying that your sister making a living helping people and you wanting to get a little piece of that action, but that actually is the honest answer. I wanted to help people and I thought that the best way to do it would be to effect change at the highest levels.”
Nikki grinned widely. She didn't know a lot about politics, but even she could recognize the naïveté in that statement. “So how's that workin’ out for ya?”
He laughed again, even more fully this time. “About as well as you'd expect. Honestly, I'm not even sure anymore that doing good in politics is something that's possible. In a way, that's kind of freeing. For a long time I was torturing myself internally, thinking that doing an amazing job was possible, and I just wasn't up to the task. It was all of the accolades that I've been getting lately that changed my mind about that. People think that I’m doing a good job. FrankIy, I have no idea how I could possibly do any better—and I’ve always tended to have high standards.”
“What are your standards?” Nikki asked as she took a sip of water.
He shrugged and then replied simply, “To make a difference.”
She sat in silence for a moment, head cocked, eyeing him contemplatively. Finally, she nodded and sat forward. “Yep. Too high,” she confirmed.
They both chuckled. Nikki felt a warmth spreading within her chest. It felt so good to be talking with someone who actually cared about more than small talk. They were talking about their lives and what mattered to them. Their dreams and aspirations. It wasn't something that she was used to.
People usually judged her on what she looked like and they thought that she couldn't possibly have a brain. Oh and once they found out what she did for a living…it was over then. She was lucky if they didn't think she needed help tying her shoes. Stereotyping was alive and well, and Nikki knew that better than anyone.
But not with Mike. Mike saw past all of the outer trappings to who she really was inside, and damn if it didn't feel good to be seen.
Afraid that if the topic turned back to her she would be uncharacteristically—and dangerously—forthcoming about things that she normally kept close to her heart and protected because of how close she felt to him right now, she decided to keep the conversation going on topics pertaining to him and his life.
“So, there's something else that I was wonder
ing about at the luncheon today.”
“What's that?”
“Why was the scholarship named the Jayden Rhodes scholarship? Is there a historical figure that I've never heard of? I've been searching my memory all day, and I've come up empty. Soon, I'm going to be reduced to searching my iPhone.”
Mike shook his head. “No, he is no one that you would find on Google. He wasn't famous. But he was awesome. Jayden was one of my best friends growing up. We met when we were eight. We were on the same Little League team. I lived in Palo Alto, and he lived in East Palo Alto—which I don't have to tell you, are two completely different worlds. In Los Angeles, it would be like calling Compton 'East Beverly Hills.' Same name. Very different living experience.”
Nikki nodded. She wasn't intimately familiar with the area, but everyone that frequented the Bay Area knew about the dichotomy of the two Palo Altos.
“Jayden was just the best guy you'd ever want to meet. Funny, compassionate, smart, athletic—there was seriously nothing that the guy didn't have. And the girls loved him. He put me to shame in all areas, to tell you the truth—academic, athletic, and personal. Still, his life was difficult because of where he lived. He always talked about going to college. He called it his 'way out.' He knew that he would need a scholarship, and he knew that his best chances for that were through athletics and academics, so he was incredibly serious and hard-working in both of those areas. To make things more difficult, he had to work. His mom worked two jobs, his dad was in and out of jail. He was the oldest of five kids. Most of the time between work, school and sports, he only got a couple of hours of sleep and somehow nothing suffered.”
“Did he get the scholarship?”
Mike nodded tersely. Nikki could tell that what he was about to say was not easy. “Yes. Football scholarship to Notre Dame. Full ride.”
Nikki was puzzled. Why did that make Mike so sad? She said, unsure of her words, “So...the story has a happy ending then.”
Mike shook his head, equally as tersely as he had nodded a moment before. “Two days after finding out about the scholarship Jay was killed in a drive-by shooting.”
Nikki felt shock run through her like ice water in her veins. No wonder it was such an emotional subject for Mike. She felt tears spring up in her eyes involuntarily. She didn’t like public displays of emotion but she couldn’t seem to help herself. She was just very connected to Mike, and could feel his pain.
She put her hand over his and squeezed, sensing that words were not needed. They simply sat there. Her hand over his. Looking into his eyes.
Mike leaned over and kissed her briefly just as their food arrived. Although the mood lightened after that and they went back to discussing more trivial topics, she could tell that something significant had transpired between them, and this time, rather than scaring her the way it normally would, she found herself cherishing the moment.
Chapter Fourteen
Nikki snuck a glance in Mike's direction as they walked through the door to the hotel room. She didn't want to be completely blatant, but the truth was that it was difficult to keep her eyes off of his chiseled face and physique.
Hell, she thought, not just my eyes. It's been all I could do to keep my hands off of him, as well!
The good thing was, she was reasonably certain that it was not one-sided. She had been catching Mike sneaking little glances at her all evening—it seemed that he also was suffering from can't-keep-my-eyes-off-of-you-itis. She smiled to herself. She hoped that, in his case, the disease had spread to the can't-keep-my-hands-off-of-you-itis phase, as well.
Her head was spinning from the time they had spent together this afternoon and evening. It was such a new experience for her. Although she had certainly felt attraction for members of the opposite sex before, she had never found a man intoxicating. And, yes, she realized that that was the absolute right word – she found Mike Gowan completely, totally, utterly intoxicating.
She felt unsteady on her feet, and a little lightheaded. This wasn't two-glasses-of-Chardonnay buzzed. This was five-or-six-Tequila-shots buzzed. She smiled again to herself. Damn. Not only was Mike Gowan intoxicating, but he was the hard stuff.
But, amazingly, the overwhelming physical reaction that she was experiencing in response to Mike's nearness was not the most powerful new sensation that was rushing through her. Not by a long shot.
No, it was the intense emotional connection that she felt with him. It was new, and it was scary – but it was also exhilarating. Not only had Nikki never felt this kind of emotional bond with a man before, she had never felt this kind of emotional bond with anyone before.
She felt as if she had known Mike forever. She felt like they were communicating on a level that was more than just physical, more than just emotional even. It felt spiritual, transcendental. It felt like their souls were communicating without the need for words, touch, or glances.
However, rather than taking away from the excitement she felt at the idea of sharing physical intimacy with him, this newfound spiritual closeness that she was sharing with him only added to her anticipation of their lovemaking. This was a surprise to her. In the past, whenever she had imagined what it must be like to have sex with someone that she cared deeply about, even loved, she had secretly thought that it would bring the experience down somehow. She knew that wasn't the common wisdom. Everyone said it was so much more powerful. But Nikki couldn't help but secretly think about what a burden it must be to have to give so much consideration to the other person's thoughts and feelings.
Nikki was a wild, free, inhibition-less girl. She reveled in the physicality of sex, and she had no problem using the experience to take her own pleasure. It's not that she had no regard for the pleasure of the other person – it just wasn't her top priority. Her own experience was her top priority.
She had never been able to imagine herself enjoying a sexual experience where she felt compelled to put the other person first.
Well, all of that had certainly changed today. The more time that she had spent with Mike, talking to him, getting to know him and growing even closer to him, the deeper the feelings of care and consideration had grown for him as well. Now that they were about to make love, all she could think about was giving him the most intense and pleasurable experience that she possibly could. It didn't seem like a burden to her to put his feelings first – it seemed like an absolute pleasure.
Mike turned to her, his eyes a gleaming mixture of affection, admiration, and attraction – and in a flash she knew that he felt the same way. Her body began to burn with that knowledge, and she made a snap decision to stop trying to resist the urges she had been feeling all day to let her hands wander wherever they wished on his body. Yes, she was going to give into those urges right now, and she was going to enjoy every second of it.
Mike opened his mouth to say something, but she never found out what that something might have been. Before he could get a word out, she moved in close to him and covered his mouth with hers. She began to kiss him passionately, everything that she was feeling for him, everything that had been building up all day, was somehow injected into that one passionate kiss.
She felt him respond immediately and intensely, his tongue darting forcefully into her mouth as her lips parted in passion. Her knees weakened and her head began to swim even more maddeningly. To her shock, she actually felt herself begin to melt down his body, unable to hold herself upright under the sheer weight of the erotic charge that was racing through her at his touch.
She certainly didn't need to worry about falling to the floor, however, as she was never in any danger of that. She felt Mike's strong arms come around her, one powerful arm encircling her waist and the other slipping gently yet powerfully underneath her knees, drawing her up into his arms as easily as if she weighed no more than a feather.
Her arms slipped around his neck naturally, as if of their own accord. It just felt right – him carrying her, her clinging to him...she had never felt more at home in her life.
Slowly and methodically, his lips never leaving hers, Mike carried her over to the bed and laid her down carefully, positioning her head perfectly on the pillow as if she were the most delicate Princess. Nikki felt absolutely cherished at that moment, and that was more of a turn on than she would've ever imagined. She realized that, while she took pride in her absolute ability to take care of herself, it was also pretty amazing to lay back and be taken care of by someone else every once in a while – especially when that someone else was as handsome, strong, and amazing as Mike Gowan.
Mike sat beside her on the edge of the bed, leaning over her and stroking her hair back from her forehead. He gazed lovingly into her eyes, and she felt herself melt just a little bit more. God, every time she thought this man was so perfect that there was no way he could get any better, he turned around and did something else that sent fireworks zinging through her and dialed her feelings right on up to the next level.
“Nikki,” he whispered as he looked deep into her eyes, “You are everything that I’ve been waiting for my entire life.”
Nikki was too breathless to respond for a moment, and that was all it took for the opportunity to respond at all to evaporate like a shallow puddle on a hot summer's day, because almost immediately upon uttering those inspired words, Mike lowered his lips to hers and began to kiss her again. This kiss, however, was different than the first. It was gentle and filled with emotion. It was soulful.
Nikki trailed her fingers up over Mike's biceps, thrilling at the way his muscles bunched and tensed under her touch. She felt his breath quicken, as well, as she let her fingers explore, and this triggered a quickening of her own rapid and shallow breathing.
“Oh, Mike...Mike...” she moaned, and she heard answering groans coming from deep within his throat.
Damn. This was already more intense and pleasurable than the majority of the sexual encounters she'd had in her life, and the clothes hadn't even come off yet! Man. Mike had certainly been right that first night they'd met, when he'd teased that she'd just never had the right partner.
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