| Subject: Chapter 286 - Part 2 (16 and above) (end of chapter 286) |
Author:
KatherineG.
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Date Posted: Monday, April 23, 06:35:32am
In reply to:
KatherineG.
's message, "Dreams in the Dark continued (273>)" on Monday, March 05, 07:03:06am
Oh, Lord. Michael's heart was thumping loudly by the time he finished; he couldn't help it. Despite her obvious tipsiness, he was caught; she never would have believed it. She was the most adorable little drunk he had ever seen.
He was laughing to himself lightly, was wondering why it had taken him so long to notice this endearing trait. Still, he hadn't ever particularly wined and dined his wife, their relationship happening more on the lot than off. And, when they were off, they had mostly talked--before they had begun taking up more passionate pursuits. Certainly, he had never wanted or tried to get her drunk, had yet to even share his love of wines with her. From the note, it seemed that this was probably for the best. Apparently, his wife was a rather cheap date.
The laughter continued lightly, his love for her knowing no end. He was certain that, even in this state, she was still beautiful, still achingly sweet. Of course, it was probably for the best that he wasn't there. If he were, he would want her desperately. But, married or not, he wouldn't have been capable of taking advantage of her like this.
This fact was obvious, Michael never a man who had needed to coerce his partners--the very idea the end of all desire for him. His own passion always stemmed from his lover's. If she wanted him desperately, he was more than capable of returning the sentiment; if not, he could easily let her go. If they had some wine, then, it was only because he enjoyed it. Getting a date drunk had always seemed like a very cheap trick to him.
He knew he was close on time, that his duties here were about to interfere with his more important life with his beloved; his eyes scanned her words, loving her so. Fortunately, he wasn't particularly worried about Nikita's state being caused by anything other than wine--even if the evening had been ordered by Madeline. He had been to too many dinners like this himself. The food and drink were provided in such bulk, to so many diners, that drugging just one portion would be a true technical feat--and drugging all of them, even if it were some substance which would only hurt a woman in Nikita's condition, would be likely to be noticed by someone through the taste, if nothing else. Besides, at least one of her guardians had been there. Had Fredericks or Annie suspected anything, they would likely have taken her to a doctor, rather than letting her spend her time quietly writing a letter; the smile went deeper. And it didn't allay his suspicions of her real state any to see just how silly her words had been.
There were probably many drugs in the world which could cause such an intoxicated state, but his wife's letter seemed to argue otherwise. After all, he had certainly known a few happy drunks in his life; Rene in particular could become a real chandelier swinger, if left to his own devices for too long. The rambling, silly thoughts of the letter were in the style of many he had heard before. He had no particular fears for her safety here.
There was one more reason why he didn't worry, however. The letter had to have been posted with Fredericks and Annie nearby. Had anything happened to Nikita, they would have stopped it, before it went out, would have added a postscript, or something of the sort. His heart nearly sighed. But all he had were the lovely, ridiculous notions of his rather drunk wife; he almost laughed aloud. He had had no idea that she could be so incredibly sweet.
He was just cherishing the letter again, when he realized what time it was, knew he needed to go; it didn't change his thoughts. As a last note before he saw her again, this was actually a welcome change. Through it, he could tell that his wife was well, that her guardians were doing their jobs. But one more, far more important, thought trumped that one. They truly had protected her, had protected her inner innocence; that was only too plain. And he couldn't have wanted to thank the world for it more, had he been given the most expensive gift.
His heart thumped in happiness, even as he moved toward his daily routine--knowing that every step brought him another second closer to her, knowing the truth her words so clearly showed. In many ways, being drunk tended to bring out a person's hidden sides, sometimes ones they weren't willing to acknowledge themselves; the results were often quite unpleasant. He had seen puritanical women offer any man around them the lewdest acts, men who hated homosexuals with a vitriolic passion indulging in incredibly-crude displays with the nearest man, and almost-eerily-quiet people doing their best to fight every single person in the room. He himself had, fortunately, only opened up a bit more, relaxing enough to enjoy his life. Of course, this had also led to Adam's existence, but that was too far in the past to regret anymore. That Nikita simply became silly and unguarded was actually quite endearing; he felt warm. He couldn't wait to get home to her again.
He moved on into one of his last few days with this pleasant thought in mind, knowing that only unexpected news would prevent such joy. It was enough. Soon, he would be with her--and then he could reward her for being the sweet, loving woman that she was.
Extra note: It's only been in the last decade or so that studies about the dangers of any sort of drinking during a pregnancy have come out. For centuries before that (and still, in many countries), women drank quite liberally, even when they were carrying children; most of their offspring don't seem to have been particularly damaged by it. Nikita's not being at all reckless here, then, by the standards of her time.
[End of Part 286]
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