by Dana Mason
“What are you doing?”
“Get naked,” he said, taking Micah from her.
“Excuse me?”
“Get naked. We’re taking a shower together.” He grinned at her and stripped Micah of the foreign baby clothes. She quickly undressed and reached for Micah so Johnny could take his clothes off.
She waited while he started the shower, adjusted the water then stepped in, reaching for Micah. When the water hit Micah, his little mouth shaped into a large O and Ali had to laugh at him. “Does that feel good, sweetpea?”
“Sweetpea,” Johnny mocked. “Micah, don’t let her call you that.”
She stepped into the shower with them and asked, “What’s wrong with sweetpea?”
“He’s a little boy, not a little girl. He needs a manly nickname . . . like Buster Brown, or . . .” He looked down at Micah who had one eye closed because of the water dripping down his face. “Popeye.”
“Naw, I like sweetpea,” she said, getting the baby bath and lathering up a washcloth.
After getting out of the shower, Ali put a diaper on Micah and the three of them crawled into bed together. Micah sucked on his bottle while they watched him, smiling, with their hands linked. Relaxation set in as they lay together, bare skin touching and hearts beating strongly. “I love you,” she mouthed over Micah’s head to Johnny.
“I love you too, and I love this.” He snuggled closer to both of them.
“Me too,” she said, but was interrupted by her growling stomach.
Johnny looked at her with a raised eyebrow. “You need to eat.”
She smiled and moaned. “I’d love more of Sarah’s lasagna.”
“Your wish”—Johnny grinned—“my command. Be right back.”
Ali sat up and laid Micah on the bed in front of her and slipped on Johnny’s t-shirt. Micah’s eyes began to droop and he drifted off to sleep. How could she ever take her eyes off him again? She came so close to losing him and it nearly killed her. He had become her entire world over the last few months, and the last few days were pure torture. How did the mothers of missing children move on? How does their world turn without their babies? She couldn’t imagine life ever being the same or even bearable without both her sons.
The fearful thought alone brought her to her knees. Nothing in the world was more important to her than her kids, she’d kill for them, die for them . . . what mother wouldn’t?
Micah shuddered slightly in his sleep and she grinned at him. How had she made such a perfect little being . . . and with Carl no less? Carl didn’t deserve the distinction of being called Micah’s father, but it was still his blood that ran through Micah’s veins. If only . . . but it didn’t matter. She couldn’t regret Carl and she wouldn’t change who Micah was for anything in this world. To her, he was perfect, even with Carl’s DNA.
When Johnny sat across from her, she nearly jumped. She hadn’t heard him come into the bedroom, but now she could smell the sweet tomato sauce from the lasagna. She looked up at him and her smile grew. “I could watch him all night,” she whispered.
“I know,” Johnny said, handing her a plate. “It’s hard to let him sleep. I just want to pick him up and hold him.”
Her appetite came back with a fury. She dug into the lasagna like she hadn’t eaten in weeks. They were quiet as they sat there, having a little mattress picnic, both staring at Micah like he was going to get up and walk away.
A few solid bites in and Ali had to stop eating, exhaustion setting in. She looked over at Johnny and he was droopy eyed too. Her body shuddered a little when she took a deep breath and she had to put the plate down. When she reached over, Johnny took it from her and carried them both away.
He came back a few minutes later and curled in next to her and Micah. “Listen, we’ve been in this bed together—naked—for a long time and I haven’t touched you yet.” He smiled and leaned in, slowly kissing her sleepy lips and mumbling, “Do you think I can do it now? The anticipation is killing me.”
“Yeah, but I’m not naked.”
“I know, but seeing you in my clothes is almost as sexy as you being naked—almost.”
They both glanced down at Micah and she said, “That means we have to put him in his crib.”
He nodded, looking as apprehensive as she felt. “I guess we can wait until tomorrow night . . . or the next.”
Ali groaned. “No.” She gently picked up her sleeping baby and held him for a solid minute, then laid him in the crib, covering him with a blanket. She stared at him for a moment, her heart full.
“Sweetheart, we can wait.”
She shook her head and turned over her shoulder to smile at him. “He’s right here, I can see him.”
She backed up a step and got back into bed with him. Their eyes met and they both grinned like the Cheshire Cat.
Johnny wrestled the t-shirt off her then laid her down and ran his hands over her body, starting at her shoulders then exploring down to her toes. When goosebumps broke out over her chest, he smiled, his stomach fluttering like a teenage girl. He wanted every inch of that sweet cream skin. It’d been a week from hell and he wanted to lose himself inside her. “I’m sorry if I was too rough the last time I made love to you.”
“You weren’t,” she said in a pitched voice as he sucked her nipple in his mouth. “I promise to go slow and easy tonight.”
Ali shuddered again as he slid his tongue down her stomach to her navel and spread her legs with his hands. “Okay . . . how . . . ever . . .” She managed to say before he parted her with his tongue, forcing a throaty moan to escape her lips.
“You’re so sweet.” He could eat her alive he wanted her so bad. “You’re so fucking sweet . . . damn,” he said, moving back up to her nipple.
“You’re a tease . . .” she breathed, writhing underneath him.
“Oh no, sweetheart, I told you nice and slow.” He slid his hands around her shoulders to the back of her head and buried them in her hair, lifting her and tugging enough to make her arch up against him. Johnny parted her mouth with his tongue and tasted her, nipping her lips before sucking on each in turn.
“Oh, God . . . John,” she tried to say through his kiss, but he kept teasing, tugging back further so he could taste the skin of her neck and that perfect spot just below her lobe. “Johnny . . .”
“I’ve got you, baby. Open your eyes for me.”
She did so, meeting his eyes with a look of pure heat, her expression the sexiest damn thing he’d ever seen. How had he lived thirty plus years without her in his life? He never wanted to let go, never wanted to see this look fade from her face. He released her hair and slid a hand down between her legs, still locking eyes with her. Once he slid his finger into her wetness, her eyes lit like firecrackers. “There it is,” he whispered. “There’s my sunshine.” He massaged her until she moved like liquid underneath him and arched higher, her hands gripping his hips.
He took her mouth again, stifling her moan. She tensed and the word now gasped from between their kiss.
“I know, darlin,’ you’ll get there soon enough,” he said straddling her and sitting up on his knees to stare at her. “God you’re beautiful with your flushed cheeks and perfect round curves.” He moved his hands up her waist to her breast taking one in each hand and gently cupping them and caressing them while he watched her face.
Ali lifted her hips, pushing him up and reaching for his boxers, yanking until they ripped down the seam.
“Oh . . . you’re getting impatient,” he said, still holding her breast in his hands.
When he leaned in, she pushed his shoulders almost knocking him off her, but he just chuckled and pressed himself against her again. “Not yet, Ali-cat.”
“What are you waiting for?” she asked, tugging at the torn boxers to get them out of the way.
Johnny grabbed her hands and held them down on the bed. “I’m waiting until you can’t take anymore. I’m waiting until you realize you can’t live without me.”
“Baby,�
� she whined. “I love you . . . I want you so bad.”
Damn she was the sweetest thing he’d ever laid eyes on. He released her hands and cupped her face. “I love—“
Ali flipped him onto his back so fast, he couldn’t react, except to whistle out a low moan when she straddled him.
“You are so bad,” she said, a little breathless as she reached down to pull away the shreds of his boxers.
He grinned, his eyes fixed on her breasts as they dangled over him. “If you insist.” He cupped one in each hand like he was greeting long lost friends.
Ali leaned against him as he moved down to cup her hips. Her nipples brushed his chest and he lifted against her, aching now from his own teasing. “Damn you feel so good . . . now who’s teasing?” He tried to hold her against him, but she lifted up.
“Oh no, now you can wait until I’m ready,” she said, moving her hand down to grab him. A jolt of electricity shot through his system, leaving him temporarily shocked and incapable of complete sentences. “Tha—that’s not . . . fair,” he moaned, closing his eyes, moving in sequence with her hand.
When she pulled away, his eyes popped open. “On, no.” He grabbed her hips and pulled her down, hard.
“—Not yet.” She gasped when he entered her, pushing himself up and pulling her down by her hips. “Oh hell . . .” She leaned back and arched her body, taking him fully.
Her mouth fell open and she tilted forward, now leaning on his chest, her hands splayed.
She was the most beautiful thing he’d ever laid eyes on. He felt the spasm as it traveled through her body, her hands gripped his shoulders, the nails digging in and grasping for leverage. “Johnny . . . I . . . oh God.” She shuddered one more time and it took every ounce of strength he had not to lose it with her.
Johnny watched her face as the force of the orgasm hit her, then she collapsed on top of him. He smiled and wondered if he could get her there again. With quick hands, he grabbed her hips and flipped her on her back, forcing out a cry in surprise when he thrust back inside her.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Ali couldn’t have been asleep more than a couple of minutes when Micah woke her up crying. She jerked up, scared at first until she realized she wasn’t dreaming. Micah was actually crying in his crib, two feet from her bed. She stood and pulled on her robe then went to the crib, but it was empty. She gasped and jerked awake in a half cry and half choke.
“Ali, sweetheart . . . you okay?” Johnny asked, pulling her closer.
Her eyes locked on his. “Where’s Micah!”
“He’s right there in his crib.”
She got up and stumbled over to see him. He was wide awake and staring into the darkness. She wanted to cry out in relief, but sent a silent thank you up to God for bringing her Micah home.
“Everything okay?” Johnny asked, coming up behind her.
She nodded and said, “Hi, sweetpea,” as she reached into the crib for Micah. “You’re awake, what are you doing?” She cradled him and held him close, and closed her eyes enjoying the feel of him.
She turned to face Johnny. “I had a bad dream, but it’s fine, he’s home and safe.”
“Should I go make him a bottle?” he asked, rubbing Micah’s fuzzy head.
“Would you?”
“Yeah, you change him and I’ll get the bottle.”
After Johnny left the room, she looked down at Micah. “Did you hear that, baby? Somebody is here to help mommy,” she said, reflectively thinking about their conversation. “He loves you too, Micah, do you know that?”
She carried him into his room and changed his diaper, chatting with him the entire time. When he was clean, she snapped up the buttons on his sleeper and held him with her cheek resting on his head. He smelled like himself again, instead of that other foreign scent she didn’t recognize.
“Here we go,” Johnny said, coming into the room with the warm bottle.
“Do you mind if I put him in bed with us?”
He smiled. “Of course not.”
“You want to lie down in the big bed, sweetpea?” Ali asked, carrying him back to her bed. She propped herself up on a couple of pillows and cradled Micah while he finished his bottle and drifted off to sleep. When he was asleep, Ali placed the bottle on the table and laid Micah down on the mattress between her and Johnny.
“Is this okay?” Johnny said, looking at Micah. “He can sleep with us?”
“Yeah, just don’t roll over on top of him.”
Johnny laced his fingers with hers over Micah’s head. “This is cool.”
“Goodnight,” Ali said on the tail end of a big yawn, closing her eyes, more content than she’d felt in a long time. She smiled and squeezed Johnny’s hand. “Thank you for being here for us.”
Johnny pulled her hand to his lips, “Goodnight, sweet Alison. Good night, Micah,” he whispered.
When Mark showed up the next morning with Jamie, Ali greeted them at the door and couldn’t believe what she saw. Stuffed animals and flowers completely covered the front lawn. She wanted to go outside, but Mark pulled her back inside and shut the door behind her. “I didn’t know people were coming by and leaving things,” she said, staring through the peep hole in the door.
“I suggest you don’t go out there for a few days. The press is still camped out, trying to get pictures of Micah.”
Ali hugged Jamie, “Hey, babe.”
Jamie gripped her tight with his little fists, and rested his cheek on Micah’s head. “Is Micah okay,” he said, his voice a little high pitched as if fighting tears.
“He’s fine, honey, see.” She turned Micah around to face Jamie. “We’re all fine, Jay.”
Jamie’s chin quivered as he let Micah grip his finger.
“Do you want to sit down and hold Micah for a few minutes?”
“Okay,” he whispered walking toward the couch, wiping tears from his cheeks. Dark circles traced the underside of his eyes, making him look like he hadn’t slept. Her heart hurt for him after all the trauma he’d been through over the last few days . . . and for not being there for him. The road to recovery would be a long one for her family. It was one thing for her to lose sleep and worry, but her son shouldn’t have to deal with such difficult things in his young life.
Johnny rounded the corner from the kitchen with a mug of coffee in his hand and smiled. “Hey, Jamie, how are you?”
“Hi,” Jamie muttered, climbing onto the sofa.
Johnny knelt down, eye level with Jamie. “You okay?”
Jamie nodded, forcing another tear to fall.
“Honey, you know Micah is just fine now,” Ali said. When Jamie looked up at her, she gestured toward his lap. “Are you ready to hold him?”
Jamie grabbed a pillow and propped up his elbow. “Ready.”
Ali had to suppress a chuckle. She laid Micah across Jamie’s lap and positioned his arms so he wouldn’t get tired and Micah wouldn’t roll onto the floor. “Hold tight, he likes to wiggle.”
“I know,” Jamie said and a huge smile spread across his face.
Ali watched them until she was sure Jamie had a secure hold on Micah then she turned to see Mark and Johnny looking through a crack in the curtains.
She walked over and looked out too. “Why haven’t they left yet?”
“They won’t for a few days, maybe a week,” Mark said. “It takes them a while to close out a story, besides the kidnappers haven’t been caught yet so they still have something to talk about.”
“What if I need to go out? Jamie has school,” she said. “I can’t stay trapped in the house that long.”
“I was thinking maybe you should spend a couple of days with me and Sarah,” Mark said. “The property is gated and totally private. You’ll be able to go outside. I already talked to Melissa and your mom about getting the stuff outside packed up. They’re taking the toys to the children’s hospital and collecting the notes for you.”
Ali looked from Mark to Johnny and didn’t know what to say. “I’m s
ure Sarah doesn’t want your ex-wife staying in the guest room.”
Mark’s eyebrows rose. “Ali, don’t do that. Give Sarah some credit here.”
“Sorry, that wasn’t—I didn’t mean—I just don’t want to impose.” Ali looked at Johnny again, but he was still staring out the window.
“We were going to invite Johnny too,” Mark said, looking between the two of them. “He’s a target too—with the press—since he’s the hero.”
Johnny turned with a smirk on his face. “Yeah—right.”
“What other choice do you two have? Johnny’s place is too small and I don’t think a hotel will be very comfortable . . . of course there is always your mother’s house.”
“No, I’m not going to mother’s.” Ali crossed her arms over her chest. “We’ve just mended fences. I don’t want to push it.” She looked down at the floor, refusing to agree to anything until Johnny spoke up.
“Look . . . I haven’t spent any time with Jamie either since I’ve been here. Just come over and hang out with us for a few days. I can take Jamie to school every day and everyone will be safe.”
“I can’t speak for Johnny, but we can come for a few days.”
“Johnny?” Mark said.
Johnny turned again and looked at them both, then looked at Jamie holding Micah. “Are you sure you have the room?”
“Plenty of room, it’s not a problem.”
“It’s up to Ali. If she wants me there, I’ll come.” They both looked at Ali.
She met his eyes and knew he’d give his right arm to be with Micah. “I would like to have you there with us . . . if you don’t mind.”
He nodded and the change in his constitution was immediate. It looked like a ton of weight had been lifted off his shoulders.
“Then pack some stuff,” Mark said. “Do you need help? Should I—“
“Why don’t you take Johnny home to get his stuff then come back for us? He doesn’t have much here and he hasn’t been home in a week.”
“No, y’all shouldn’t be left alone.”