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“Hey,” she says back after a confused pause. “I, uh... I gave everything some thought and... yeah, I got pissed, but I also overreacted.”
My eyebrows go up. A woman I am sexually interested in is actually apologizing first after an argument.
Holy shit.
I am suddenly so horny that my heart is pounding.
“I didn’t do too well on that score either, sweetheart,” I admit without any hesitation. It’s easy when she’s doing it first. “I said things I shouldn’t when I knew you were already heated over the whole thing.”
“Yeah, you did. But you know what? I want to give this another try anyway.”
I have never been so happy to hear someone offer me a second chance in my life. I want to rush over to her hotel room and fuck her right now and again... all night.
“That’s great news,” I say when I can trust my voice to sound calm, cheery, and in control. “Did you mean the working together thing or the fucking each others’ brains out thing?”
She laughs, which worries me for about half a second before she reassures me by saying, “Definitely the working together thing. The sex thing... well... it’s certainly still on the table.”
I’m grinning now. “Guess I better go clear it off then.”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake, Michael.”
And that makes me laugh. And I’m so damn happy to be laughing with her again.
When I catch my breath, I ask, “So... when should we get back together?”
“I need a while longer to catch up on my sleep. Tomorrow afternoon?”
I think about it. “I have a yacht that doubles as a liveaboard. It is very private. We should head over there. We’ll get takeout, use the hot tub...”
“How’s the Internet connection?” she breaks in, sounding just a touch annoyed.
I’m pushing it. I smirk and push only a little bit further. “Good enough that we can get the job done early and enjoy ourselves.”
She’s silent for a heartbeat as I wait to see if I have gone just that step too far. Then, she scoffs again and says, “First, we do some work on finding and utterly fucking up the lives of our enemies. Then, we can talk hot tubs and wine.”
“And sex?” I ask eagerly.
She snorts. “Maybe.”
And for now, that’s good enough for me.
I am smiling as I walk back into my parents’ house to check in and grab some more clothes. It’s about noon, and Mom is having lunch made while she oversees the cooks. When she sees me, she glances away quickly, awkwardly, then slowly looks back at me.
“Have you been out drinking?” she asks out of nowhere. I’m dead sober and don’t smell of booze.
“Uh, no, I have been out at my condo so I can have a quiet place to work. What did I miss?” I feel like I’m walking into the middle of a conversation where I have no idea what is actually going on.
“Your sister has been very... vocal today. She has some strong opinions about your not being able to get all that money back yet, and it’s been... well, we had some interesting conversations. You should know, you know, in case she tries to confront you or, God forbid, goes off during lunch.”
I stare at her. I’m now almost certain that I’ve missed a whole hell of a lot more than that. But I am not interested in prying it out of her when she already looks tired and harried.
“You know, I have never in my life understood why Maria has it in for me, and I don’t think I ever will,” I mutter, shoving my hands in my pockets.
“Oh, Michael, honey, you can’t take it personally. She’s just really immature.”
“It’s more than that, Mom. I know you love her, and she’s your special girl, but... she does a lot of malicious and destructive stuff, Mom. She expects to get away with it. And I have never understood why I get to be the target of that so damn much.”
“Oh, honey.” She smiles, but her eyes are tired and troubled. “Your sister just has problems. She’s jealous of you. You really shouldn’t worry about it so much.”