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Date Posted: 07:13:52 09/27/01 Thu
Author: Leigh
Subject: Holiday Chapter 17
In reply to: Leigh 's message, "Holiday" on 07:12:46 09/27/01 Thu

Holiday Chapter 17


Michael hung up the phone, leaned back and closed his eyes. His jacket was folded neatly in half on the chair next to the bed. His tie was on the table next to it and his shoes sat side-by-side underneath.

Monique had been happy to learn he'd gone out tonight. Her excitement was evident in the speed with which she had fired questions at him; where did he go? Did he have a date? Was she nice? Did he think it was serious? When could she meet her?

Michael had easily sidestepped his sister's probing questions with the vagueness he'd mastered over the years. It wasn't that he didn't trust Monique; he did, more than he trusted anyone else. But he didn't want her to get any wrong ideas. Yes, he'd asked Nikita Wolfe out to dinner, and after tonight, he was willing to admit that he was attracted to her. But that was the extent of what he felt, just a physical attraction. Michael didn't have room in his life for a serious romance and he was fine with that. Work was his first priority and Michael intended to keep it that way.


*


Nikita had planned to sleep in on Saturday but by 6a.m. she was tossing and turning in bed. Finally, still tired from the night before but unable to sleep, she sighed and climbed out of bed. A quick peek into the other room and she saw that Carla was still asleep. Nikita smiled and closed the door. They didn't have to check out till noon.

Returning to her room, she hummed a song to herself as she gathered her things to shower. It wasn't until she was in the bathroom that she realized the tune she was singing was the same one she had danced to the night before with Michael.

"Hmm." Her lips curved into an unrepressed smile as she remembered Michael holding her close. Looking into the mirror, she raised her hand and touched her cheek, feeling the warmth there. A second later she shook her head and turned away. "No," she whispered. "Go slow. Evaluate the situation. Don't jump into another relationship you're not ready for."

Nikita took a deep breath and released it slowly. Satisfied that she had her emotions under control, she undressed and prepared to take a shower.

She spent the morning reviewing reports and checking up on the progress of several accounts. By the time Carla woke and joined her, Nikita had been working for several hours.

"Don't you ever get tired of doing that?"

Nikita looked up from her laptop. She removed her reading glasses and met Carla's gaze steadily. "Do you ever get tired of sculpting?"

Carla sat down and poured herself a cup of coffee. "No. But that's different." She took a careful sip of the coffee, grimacing slightly at its bitter taste before continuing. "Sculpting isn't work. It's fun. Expression, creativity… art."

"People have different taste," Nikita replied with a shrug. "I enjoy my work, and it requires a certain measure of expression and creativity."

Carla gave her a skeptical look. "But is it fun?"

"I think it is."

"Never mind."

Carla finished her coffee as Nikita put away her work. After a quick breakfast, they left the hotel and headed uptown to the gym for an hour of exercise. This was followed by a visit to the salon and then a late lunch.

"Have you thought of what you'll wear tomorrow night?" Carla asked. She'd tried to be patient, waiting for Nikita to bring up the subject of her and Michael's date, but a girl could only wait so long and she wasn't a very patient person to begin with.

"Tomorrow night?" Nikita arched her brows and gazed up with surprise. "Oh, you mean to dinner with Michael." She turned, her eyes shifting and lids lowering to hide the emotion that stirred within. "I don't know," she answered softly, and shrugged her shoulders. "Probably something simple."

"And sexy?"

"Car-la."

"You have to wear something that'll make you irresistible to him so that he won't be able to keep his hands off of you. Are you going to sleep with him?"

"Carla!"

"Surely you've thought about it," Carla said, ignoring the flash of Nikita's eyes. "After all, it is a very possible scenario; dinner, some dancing, one thing leads to another and…"

Nikita leaned forward in her chair and she gazed directly into Carla's eyes. "If Michael and I decide to take this, this --" she waved one hand through the air "--whatever this is, to another level, it'll be because we both want it. Not because of any prodding on your part."

"I'm not prodding," Carla said in a small voice. "I'm merely pointing out the obvious; you and Michael Samuelle have got the hots for each other and you should decide now how far you want to take it."

Nikita looked away. As much as she hated to admit it, Carla did have a point. Just how far was she willing to take this attraction she had for Michael Samuelle? "The last thing I need is another relationship," she murmured, speaking more to herself than to her friend.

"But what if this is the right one?" Carla persisted, her eyes lighting up.

"And what if it isn't?"

"Then at least you'll know that you gave it a shot and things didn't turn out. I mean, tell me, aren't you glad that you went out with Stephen?"

Nikita blinked, surprise coloring her expression. "What does Stephen have to do with this?"

"Nothing. I'm just using him to point out that if you hadn't gone out with Stephen, you'd have never known that he wasn't the one for you. But now you do and you can move on with your life. See? You'll never need to wonder ten, fifteen years down the road when Stephen is a multi-billionaire on Wall Street if you should have accepted his proposal or not because you'll already know that you didn't love him."

Nikita folded her arms, one brow arched high on her forehead. "You have the strangest way of putting things, Carla."

"But it makes sense, right?" Carla asked, smiling broadly.

"A little."

"And so…" Carla pushed, hoping Nikita would relent and speak willingly of her feelings, however new they were, of Michael.

Nikita smiled, and then leaned forward and placed her elbows upon the table. She laced her fingers together and propped her chin upon them. "I already told you, I don't know what will become of these feelings I have for Michael Samuelle. With my track record, it'll probably be nothing."

"You don't know that for sure."

"No, I don't. But I do know that I plan to take things very slowly, Carla. I'm tired of getting involved and then breaking up and having to deal with all the emotional mess that goes with it. And besides, now that you've reminded me with your example, I still have Stephen to think of. He at least deserves an answer from me before I get involved with someone else."

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Replies:

  • Holiday Chapter 18/a -- Leigh, 15:00:38 09/28/01 Fri
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