“Hi, boss, what’s up?” she smiled.
He didn’t respond. Instead he fixed her with a Cheshire grin.
“What?” she laughed.
“I heard that one of my best litigators left court at the lunch recess yesterday with a future hall of famer.”
Her eyes widened. “Oh. That.” She felt the flush crawl up her cheeks.
“Would he be the sender of those lovely tulips that were delivered recently?”
Maggie gently cleared her throat. “We’re, um, going out.” She looked Rance directly in the eye.
He maintained eye contact for a beat before breaking into laughter. “Good for you,” he said genuinely. “You should get out more.” As he walked away, he tossed over his shoulder, “Remember, you’re inviting Jason and me to the wedding.”
She rolled her eyes, fanning herself with a file folder.
After work Maggie stopped to pick up some more chicken soup. She hated getting the same thing every day but at least she knew Michael would eat it. Yesterday, he’d had his last chemo appointment for this round. She hoped that he’d be feeling a little better today.
As she let herself into his apartment she could hear baseball on the television and she felt a flash of annoyance. Any time of the day or night, there’s always baseball. Then she smiled to herself. Baseball is only interesting if there’s a certain bayou boy involved.
Still smiling to herself as she rounded the corner into the living room, her gaze fell on Michael, and she stopped dead in her tracks.
“Holy. Fucking. Shit. Sean Michael Rannigan, what in the hell have you done?”
He grinned up at her. “Hey, Mags! I shaved.” Michael was completely bald, his scalp pink and shiny in the afternoon sun that streamed in through the windows. Speechless, she walked to him and smoothed her hand across the top of his head and down the back of it.
“Why? Why on earth would you do that?” she breathed as she sank beside him onto the sofa.
He looked down and she saw his jaw tighten. “I woke up this morning and found loose hair on my pillow. In the shower it came out by the handful.” He glanced back up at her. “I just wanted...” he trailed off. Maggie placed her hand on his arm. “I just wanted to control something. Since this whole thing started I haven’t had any control.” He ran his hand over his head and grinned. “Until now. If I’m going to lose my hair, I’m going to lose all of it, and on my own terms.”
Maggie couldn’t help smiling. “Well,” she said as she stood, “you have a very nice head.” She leaned down and planted a light kiss right on top.
“How are you feeling?” she asked as she headed into the kitchen.
“A little better, actually. That soup smells good.”
She returned carrying a tray with his dinner. “Glad to hear it. Because guess what? You will be joining us for Easter brunch on Sunday.”
“I don’t know, Mags.” Michael shook his head doubtfully. “Besides, you and Beau should enjoy it by yourselves.”
“Bobby is in Louisiana. The ‘us’ to whom I refer means me, Ben and Nate, Rance and Jason, Kevin and whoever he’s bringing, and a few others.”
Michael looked doubtful. “I’m not sure I’m up to going out.”
“You need to get out and get some fresh air, Michael. You’ve been cooped up too long. Take advantage of feeling better and come to brunch. I’ll pick you up, and we can go together.” She glanced at him sideways. “You’d better find a hat, though.”
* * *
Bobby relished the time he spent with Savannah. It occurred to him that maybe Deanna had made a bigger deal than necessary of the little girl’s illness. His mood was thoughtful as he sipped his beer and watched Savannah running and playing with her cousins after a delicious meal on Friday evening. The entire family had gathered at his sister Michelle’s house for a Good Friday dinner. Now the adults relaxed on the patio as the children played on the lawn.
Everyone would be at Jerilyn and Justin’s on Sunday for the big holiday meal and traditional Easter egg hunt. If Bobby knew his mother, she’d have been scrambling since he’d called to say the New York trip was off, putting together eggs at the last minute. It would probably be up to him, his brothers-in-law, and his father to hide about half a million plastic eggs all around the outside of the house bright and early on Sunday morning. He smiled contentedly.
“Bobby, can I get you anything?” his sister Michelle’s husband Russ asked.
Bobby shook his head. “I think I’m just about fine.”
“Just about...” Russ repeated, grinning. “Sounds like something is missing. Rumor has it you have a new girlfriend.”
Bobby glanced around realizing that all other conversations had stopped. The only voices were those of the children who ran squealing across the lawn.
“Ro-bert has found himself a city girl,” his mother said. There was friendly laughter all around.
“Maggie’s not a city girl. She’s originally from North Carolina. She lives in New York now, just like I do.” He dug his phone from his pocket, queuing up the photo of the two of them he’d taken at the Red Lantern Inn, and he passed it around.
“What does she do?” asked his sister Renée, who was pregnant with her second child.
“She’s a lawyer. Works for the prosecutor’s office.”
“We were supposed to meet her this weekend but we couldn’t go, what with Savannah being sick,” Jerilyn elaborated. “Ro-bert, tell them how you met her.”
Interested eyes were on Bobby. He sighed. “We met in the elevator in my building. She was visiting someone who lives on my floor. Her shoe broke when she stepped out of the elevator and she fell into the hallway. I helped fix up her knee.” He grinned at the memory.
Russ hooted. “Oh, yeah, he’s got it bad!” Everyone else laughed, and Bobby joined in good naturedly.
Later back at his parents’ house, Bobby tucked Savannah into bed and wandered back to the kitchen. Jerilyn was putting together potato salad for Sunday’s dinner. Bobby sank onto a stool at the counter and watched.
“How are you feeling, bébé?” his mother asked. “You looked so tired this morning.”
“I’m good, maman.” His phone blipped indicating a text message. Checking it quickly, he saw that it was Maggie.
Jerilyn smiled knowingly. “Is that your little girl?”
“It’s Maggie,” he said, smiling.
“What’s going on there, cher?” she asked softly.
Bobby sighed. “She makes me happy.” He looked up at his mother. “She’s pretty, obviously. And she’s smart and kind and funny and genuine...” He trailed off.
Jerilyn crossed her arms. “Is she another one of those little girls looking for a rich, famous man?”
He looked his mother squarely in the eye. “No, maman. Maggie had no idea that I’d played ball. She couldn’t care less about sports or money.” He laughed. “She gave me eight pounds of shit, I mean crap,” he edited in response to her raised eyebrow, “when I bought her an antique dresser last week.”
Bobby gazed through the kitchen windows at the moonlight reflected on the marsh. “She sees me. Not some has-been retired pitcher. I know that we haven’t been going out very long but...” He looked down at his hands before meeting her gaze. “I think I’m in love with her.”
A slow smile crept across his mother’s face. “You’d better go give your little girl a call, then, bébé.”
Chapter 8
While the tub filled with hot water and lavender-scented suds, Maggie padded to the kitchen to pour herself a glass of wine. Returning, she turned off the water, lit a few candles, and switched off the overhead light. As an afterthought, she set her phone beside the wine glass on a stool she carried in from the living room. Maybe Bobby would call. She didn’t want to miss him because she was in the tub.
Satisfied, Maggie slowly sank into the steaming bath, leaning against the back of the tub and sighing contentedly.
* * *
In the privacy of his
room, Bobby dialed Maggie’s number. It was after 11:00, he realized, but they always seemed to talk at that hour anyway.
She picked up on the third ring. “Hi!” He could hear the smile in her voice.
“Hi, yourself, cher. How are you?”
“I’m so much better now. It’s good to hear your voice. How is Savannah?”
Bobby smiled. “She’s fine. Tonight she was running around all over the place. How was your day?”
Maggie sighed. “Work was work. I was glad to be in the office all day, though. Oh, by the way, my boss asked about you today.”
He frowned slightly. “What do you mean?”
“Someone told him that we left together for lunch. He seemed...amused.”
Relief replaced the frown. “That’s good. I wouldn’t want to get you in trouble. How’s Michael doing?”
Maggie gasped. “Holy shit, you’ll never believe it. Michael shaved his head today. He’s completely bald.”
“Bald?” he laughed. “I can’t even imagine. Why did he do that?”
“He said the hair was falling out anyway and he wanted to be in control of it,” she replied. “I’ll tell you, it was a shocker.”
“I’ll bet,” he chuckled. “You sound funny. Where are you anyway?”
“I’m in the bath,” she giggled, “I put my phone next to the tub. I had a hunch you might call and I didn’t want to miss you.”
Bobby felt his cock stirring and gave a low chuckle. “So what are you wearing right now, cher?”
Maggie glanced down at herself and grinned. “Well, I’m wearing bubbles but they’re starting to disappear.”
She heard him laugh again. “Really?” he asked.
“Really. So what are you wearing?” she asked.
“Hang on,” Bobby said into the phone. Maggie could hear noise in the background and he spoke again. “I locked the door and took off my shirt and jeans. I’m down to grey boxer briefs.
“Mmmm,” Maggie cooed appreciatively. “I love grey boxer briefs.”
“I’m more interested in bubbles that disappear. What do you see now?”
“Well,” she grinned, “in this candlelight it’s a little hard to see but I’m pretty sure those are my nipples sticking up out of the water.”
Bobby stretched back on the bed and pressed the phone to his ear. He could picture those nipples, feel them on his lips. “Touch them for me, cher,” he purred. The line went quiet for a moment before he heard her moan lightly. His cock stood at attention, and he stroked himself there, closing his eyes. “How is that?”
“It’s nice. Not as nice as when you do it,” she said softly.
He smiled to himself. “I wish I could be there right now. Move your hand lower. Touch yourself for me.”
Her hand wandered lower coming to rest between her thighs. “Oh, that’s good,” she breathed into the phone.
Bobby slid off his boxer briefs, kicking them to the floor. “Make yourself come, cher. I’ll do the same.”
“I’m putting you on speaker,” Maggie told him. Moments later he could hear heavy breaths occasionally interrupted by soft moans.
Bobby gripped his cock and slid his hand up and down, remembering how it was to be inside her. “Come on, cher, we’ll do this together,” he urged softly. “Are you touching your pussy?”
“Yes,” she breathed. Maggie worked her clit feverishly with one hand and pulled her nipples with the other, feeling herself nearing the edge. “Oh, shit, Bobby, I’m so close...”
“Do it, cher, come for me, baby,” he breathed as he neared his own climax. When he heard her call out loudly, he couldn’t hold off any longer, his release exploding across his stomach and chest. “Oh, baby,” he murmured into the phone.
Maggie dried her hands on a towel and picked up her phone, taking it off speaker. “Bobby, that was...” she panted.
“It was indeed,” Bobby agreed. “You should see me, cher, I’m a mess,” he chuckled.
She giggled. “I don’t mind a mess. In fact,” she continued, feeling emboldened by the combination of wine and their long-distance connection, “if you ever wanted to pull out and come on me, I kind of like that sometimes.”
His eyes rolled back in his head as he cock sprang to life again. “Is that a fact, cher?”
“Mm-hmm,” she replied. “You know, cum across my belly, dripping off my tits, off my chin... I’m naughty like that.”
“Are you, now? I need to get myself back to the city,” he growled, and she laughed lightly.
“I can’t wait for you to get back. Maybe you could come over for dinner on Monday. When does your plane land?”
“I get in around 5:00.”
“Perfect. How about you come to my place and I’ll cook a nice dinner,” she said, smiling.
“I’d say that sounds like a date. I can’t wait,” he grinned.
“Me, too,” she agreed. “Still, I hope you enjoy your time with Savannah.”
“I am,” he said, images of the day with his daughter popping into his mind. “I really want you to meet her.”
“I want that, too,” she replied genuinely.
“Well, right now I need to get myself cleaned up. And you should get out of the tub before the water gets cold.”
“Too late,” she said, laughing. “I’ll tell you good night. But Bobby?”
“Yes, cher?”
“This was...nice. I’m glad you called.”
“It was nice. My pleasure, cher. Good night.”
* * *
The rest of the weekend seemed to pass quickly. On Saturday morning, Bobby and his father took Savannah fishing. That afternoon, Jerilyn convinced the two men to take the little girl to the mall to have her picture taken with the Easter Bunny.
Back in New York, Maggie spent the day going over files and briefs. She and Bobby texted several times and spoke again later that night.
Sunday brought excitement at the Beaulieu home. With the enthusiastic energy that only a five-year old possesses, Savannah awakened her father in the wee hours of the morning and peppered him with questions about the Easter Bunny, who had in fact visited, leaving a ridiculous amount of treats for the only child in the house.
Bobby scratched his head and smiled as he watched his daughter dive into two huge baskets brimming with toys, books, jelly beans, and chocolate bunnies. “I suppose we ought to coordinate with the Easter Bunny next year,” he said to Justin.
His father just laughed. “Aw, she’s having a big time.”
About the same time the Beaulieu clan returned to the house after church, Maggie and Michael were being seated with everyone for brunch at Sarabeth’s on Madison. She’d forewarned Ben and Rance about Michael’s new hairstyle to prevent everyone from going into shock when they saw him.
Brunch was delicious, and the atmosphere was relaxed with everyone chatting and laughing affably. From time to time Maggie glanced down the table at Michael who seemed to be glad he’d come along.
On Monday morning, Maggie allowed herself to sleep until about eight o’clock in honor of the day off. When she got up she hit her to-do list with vigor. She wanted the apartment clean with everything put in its place. And she wanted fresh clean sheets on the bed. Unfucked upon, she thought. I have plans for that, bayou boy.
The weather had turned unseasonably warm and Maggie spent time considering what she should make for dinner. She settled on shrimp scampi with a fresh garden salad and warm baguette, so after her cleaning chores were accomplished she headed to the fresh markets to pick up what they’d need. She also scooped up a couple bottles of a good Marlborough sauvignon blanc.
By 3:00, everything was ready. The dinner would come together quickly. There was no need to begin preparations this early. An idea formed in her mind. I could meet him at the airport. Maggie smiled as she mulled it over.
Quickly, she showered and got ready, spending time getting her hair and makeup just right. At last she slipped on the new sundress she’d purchased for the evening and surveyed her
self in the mirror. Her red hair hung loose in gentle waves past her shoulders. The dress was cotton knit, with a vertical pattern of deep blue, fuchsia, and black. The formfitting bodice segued into a loose skirt which hung down to her mid-calf. The dress buttoned all the way down the front, though she left it unbuttoned from the hem to just above her knees. With its spaghetti straps and deep neckline, it was a bit more revealing than she was comfortable with for going to the airport, so she threw on a short denim jacket and headed out to meet Bobby.
Chapter 9
Bobby watched out the window of his first class seat as the runway came into view, felt the bump as the wheels touched down. He’d flown with Savannah to Dallas, rented a car to drive her to Deanna’s, then driven back to the airport for his flight to New York. Just like every time he left his daughter, he’d felt the hole in his heart, but those emotions had been tempered by his annoyance with Deanna. He shook his head to dispel the negative thoughts. He’d see Savannah again soon. And for now, he had Maggie to look forward to. A home-cooked dinner with a beautiful redhead sounded just about right.
Brown leather carry-on bag slung over his shoulder, he headed to the escalator that would take him to the taxi stand. “I’m back. I’ll see you as soon as I get a cab,” he texted quickly as he stepped onto the steep moving stairway.
Seconds later his phone blipped. “I see you now, bayou boy.” Puzzled, Bobby scanned the diverse crowd waiting at the bottom of the escalator. Among the throng he saw an older couple watching hopefully as the stairs descended. A woman holding a small child leaned over to speak to an older child. There were several drivers holding placards showing the names of passengers. Then he felt his lips slide into a genuinely pleased smile. There she was, just a bit apart from the crowd, beaming up at him, green eyes sparkling.
As soon as he was able to get away from the crowd, he crossed over to her. “Well, hello, cher.”
Maggie threw her arms around him hugging him tightly. “Hey there. Welcome home.”
The thought struck him oddly. Home. He’d just left home, hadn’t he? He kissed her cheek and released her, stepping back. “Thank you very much. Don’t you look pretty tonight?” He hugged her again. “I didn’t expect you to meet me here.”
Rannigan's Redemption: Complete Collection Page 42