A/N- Hopefully the repeated bit is fixed now.

Tony arrived about half an hour late, and knew before he even got there that she was going to be annoyed with him. He'd decided to bring the flowers as a way to pacify her, and he'd also brought a large quantity of booze. He made his way to her apartment and knocked on the door.

Upon hearing the knock on the door, Michelle felt a glint of hope enter her heart. Maybe he hadn't stood her up after all, maybe he'd just been caught in traffic. She put down her can of beer, the third so far, and went to get the door.

"You're late," was Michelle's only comment. Her words ran together just slightly, although only someone who knew her well would have noticed it. She made no move to let him in.

Tony smiled, she'd already started to get drunk. Not only were her words slightly slurred, but her normally unreadable face had shown a flicker of delight when she'd answered the door. "Sorry," he replied, then offered her the flowers. It was a good move, pushing all the doubts out of her mind and causing her to forget to be annoyed with him.

She moved to the side so that he could slide past her into her apartment. He noticed slight examples of her personality, a few pictures, a computer that was better than the ones they used at CTU, a pile of books shoved into a corner. But what struck him the most was the lack of character. It was pretty much devoid of any life, as if this was just a place that she slept at, rather than her home. In a strange way, it reminded him of her. Her life revolved around work, she worked the longest hours out of everyone there. Even more strangely, it reminded him of his life. He'd lived at his apartment since starting to work for CTU, and so his personality had seeped into it. Even so, it had taken years for the place to feel like home, his life was his job, particularly after Nina had removed all the faith he had in people.

She led him into the front room, leaving him on the sofa whilst she went to get some glasses, feeling distinctly uncomfortable.

He was impressed by the amount of alcohol she had. Most of the girls he'd dated weren't in to getting completely rat-arsed, even Nina. He supposed that traitors needed to be wary of getting drunk and spilling their secrets. It felt good to be able to be entirely himself with her. "This all yours?"

Michelle had returned with two pristine glasses that, if truth be told, hadn't actually been used before. Usually when she got drunk, she got very drunk, and glasses just got in the way. "Yeah, some of the beers are Danny's, but most of its mine." Unsure of how he'd react to this, she busied herself with clearing away the cans that she'd emptied earlier.

"You started without me?" He teased, well aware that she had.

"You weren't here, I wasn't sure if you were actually going to turn up." She said defensively, missing the teasing tone of his voice. She slid onto the opposite end of the sofa. Great, now he was going to think she was a bloody alcoholic as well as an emotional wreck.

Startled by the tone of her voice, Tony mentally kicked himself. These things worked so much better when you didn't accuse your date of being an alcoholic within five minutes of being there. He slid himself close enough to wrap an arm about her. "I think we need to get started before my mouth decides to say something clever again."
She slipped herself into his grip, resting her head lightly on his shoulder, as he got them both a bottle from his bag.

Several drinks later found Tony laid out on Michelle's sofa, his fingers buried in her hair as her soft breaths tickled his neck. They'd talked about everything, although mostly nothing. The only subjects they avoided were work, which brought back the haunted expression to her eyes, and past relationships, which was a painful subject for both of them. They'd both had far too much to drink, but were still drinking more.
For Tony it was nice just to be able to hold her in his arms, but it was becoming increasingly difficult to stop himself from doing more. Not that she seemed to mind, her soft lips were currently feathering kisses across his neck. Even so, he didn't want to be too presumptuous, they were laid in her apartment and had both had a lot too drink, he needed to be careful. Although they'd known each other a while, it was only in the past few hours that he'd learnt that she was allergic to cats, didn't like cooking, and that her favourite colour was purple.

Michelle sat up slightly, taking a swig from whatever drink was in the glass she'd picked up. She knew Tony was holding back from her, and it was making her uneasy. She thought that the evening was going well, she'd got to know him a lot better, and the more she learnt, the more she liked him. Eventually, unable to stand, they'd collapsed into a heap on the sofa, and she'd curled herself onto his chest. But then he'd stopped, and in the state she was in, she couldn't work out why. Was he nervous? Did he not like her? Tired of trying to guess, and revelling in the confidence boost from the amount of alcohol she'd consumed, she pulled herself round so that she was looking him in the eyes, and demanded, "Tony, do you want me?"

Enchanted by the woman curled up on top of him, Tony found himself unable to think of a suitable reply, and so let his sense of humour kick in. "What kind of a question is that?"
This was not a response, however, that Michelle was expecting. The seductive air was quickly replaced by one of vulnerability, and her eyes acquired a look of despair.

"Tony, do you even like me?" Not a question she would have ever asked, but one that the sheer volume of alcohol in her system forced out of her mouth.

Surprise registered in Tony's eyes, of all the things he'd expected, this vulnerability was not something he knew how to deal with. With some difficulty, he managed to sit himself up and pull her into his arms. She looked at him expectantly, no small amount of fear displayed in her eyes. "Michelle… I… Of course I like you, I mean look at you, you're perfect." He traced his fingertips across her face and under her chin.

A satisfied smile slid across her face. "Good," she whispered. She pushed him back down onto the sofa, laying her head on his chest as she reached for another drink. She briefly considered whether it was a good idea, but pushed the thought aside. Her initial thought, however, had been a good one. Clumsiness meant that as she went to open the bottle, it slipped from her grasp, spilling vodka over both of them.

Yelping, Tony jumped up, not realising that Michelle was still perched on top of him, knocking them both onto the floor. They collapsed into a giggling heap as Michelle picked up the bottle and tried to wipe up some of the mess. They were both pretty soaked, Tony's t-shirt clung to his chest.

His laughter stopped very abruptly when he felt Michelle's fingers making there way inside his shirt. He caught her eyes with his.

"Its wet, you'll have to take it off." She explained, her fingers still making their way up his chest.

As she pulled her fingers back down to pull his T-shirt off, he let out a breath he wasn't aware he'd been holding in an audible gasp. This caused more giggling, and Michelle lent against him, her soft curls gently caressing his now bare chest.
This pushed him past his limit, tired of playing the gentleman, he reached down and brought her head up to his, kissing her with an urgency that shocked him. He went to pull back, but she drew him closer. Slowly, they discarded their wet clothes until they were dressed solely in their underwear. Silently, she pulled him back onto the sofa, this time so that he was on top of her.

With the woman of his dreams underneath him, their bare stomachs pressed together, it was all Tony could do to remind himself to breathe. He wanted this so very badly. Even so, the voice in the back of his head, the one that this evening had been about drowning out, told him that this was a bad idea. He remembered the look on Jack's face when he'd learnt that Michelle had spent the night at his. He remembered the vulnerability in her eyes when she'd asked him if he liked her. He knew that if they did this now, this would be the last time he would ever be able to hold her in his arms.
Eventually, he forced himself up, removing his mouth from hers and looking into her eyes, he whispered in a very breathy voice, "Michelle…"

Looking up at him, she found her thoughts mirrored in his eyes. This was not a good idea, no matter how badly she wanted him, she knew this would tear them apart. "I know," she responded, her voice gasping for breath just as strongly as his had, "Go to sleep." Then a teasing look spread across her face, and she pulled him closer, kissing him with all the intensity she could muster. Pulling back, she slid herself out from underneath him, although she kept one leg intertwined with his, and buried her head in his chest, soothed by his heartbeat.

"You did that on purpose," he whispered gently. He felt her smile into his chest even as he felt her breathing become more regular as she drifted off to sleep. Wrapping his arms tightly about her waist, he joined her, her soft breaths tickling his chest.