Here is the next chapter. I hope everyone is still enjoying this story. Please review and let me know. I'll keep posting anyway but I haven't been getting as many reviews as I did the first chapter so I want to make sure people are still with me. Thanks!
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Michael stood there for a moment, staring at Fiona. She looked shocked but relieved. There was no time to waste though, because mere seconds later the sound of Nicole's and Roy's footsteps could be heard approaching from the hall.
"Give me that," Fiona said, ripping the still-smoking gun from Michael's hand and hiding just inside the door to the garage. When the two remaining members of James's team rushed over to where Sonya lay, bleeding, Fiona came out of her hiding spot and shot them both. Michael, having finally snapped out of his daze, grabbed Fiona's hand and led her to the Charger, driving away from the abandoned building as if it were about to explode.
The first few minutes the couple spent in the car were filled with the sounds of them breathing heavily to calm their racing pulses. After they'd both taken a moment to process what had happened, Fiona asked cautiously, "Are you okay?"
Michael let out a short breath. "Am I okay?" he said incredulously. "I nearly got you killed. Fiona, I'm so sorry."
"I'm sorry you had to kill Sonya," she sympathized. Then in a quieter voice she asked, "Do you regret it?"
"Of course I don't regret it Fi! I should have shot her and the others the moment they captured you. I don't know why I didn't." He sounded truly baffled.
"If I had to guess, I'd say that James took advantage of your emotional state. I'm sorry I wasn't with you on this from the beginning, so it wouldn't have gone this far. I was just so...disappointed."
"I was too Fi," Michael returned. There was another moment of silence as both Michael and Fiona dwelled on their mistakes from the past year.
"What are you going to do now?" asked Fiona. "You took down James and his organization. I bet the CIA will be eager to have you back."
Michael let out a chuckle and shook his head. "I'm not going back Fi. It's all been too much; I've lost too much. If I went back, it wouldn't be the same."
Fiona nodded, surprised but pleased that Michael had finally become disenchanted with the CIA. "So...what will you do now?" she asked.
"I'll be wrapped up in debriefings and meetings related to James's trial for a while, so I guess I'll stay in Miami, maybe help Sam and Jesse with some jobs. Are you going to stick around too? Maybe we could do some jobs together," he suggested innocently.
Fiona tried to hide her happy smile. "Yeah, I guess that'd be okay." And with that, Fiona laid her head back against the car seat and drifted off to sleep.
When they arrived in Miami, some hours later, Fiona still had not awoken. Remembering the two blows to the head she had recently suffered, Michael began to worry she might have a concussion. However, as soon as the spy began stroking the back of her neck, Fiona opened her eyes to look at him.
"Where do you want me to drop you off?" Michael asked.
"My place is fine," she said sleepily.
Once they had arrived and parked in the driveway, Michael hardened his features. He didn't want to say goodbye to Fiona yet again, so he simply sat, staring at her. She didn't seem to be in a hurry to escape his presence either. Finally Fiona whispered, "Thank you, Michael, for choosing me."
Upon hearing her words Michael swallowed hard. He didn't deserve her gratitude. He opened his mouth to say as much, but before he could get a word out, Fiona's lips were moving gently over his. It was a brief kiss, but to Michael it felt like a cool rain after spending six months in the middle of a desert. After pulling away, Fiona looked down at her hands. She seemed unsure of herself, which was highly unusual for Fiona. It threw Michael off for a moment, but just as she reached for the door handle, he pulled her towards him again and kissed her passionately, desperately. The two continued kissing, hands wandering, their bodies feeling more alive than they had in about a year.
"Inside," Fiona ordered eventually, and the couple managed to break apart long enough to unlock the door and stumble inside, hands clasped tightly. They resumed their enthusiastic embrace, kicking off their shoes and removing their shirts as they moved towards the bedroom. Fiona fell backwards onto the bed and lay there for a moment, gazing up at her lover with a fully open and joyful expression on her face. She motioned for him to join her and waited, and waited, and waited. Michael stood still at the foot of the bed, looking at her as though she were miles away instead lying half-naked before him.
"Michael?" she asked, trying to figure out what had happened to make him freeze up like that. "What's wrong?"
She was concerned now, as he seemed to have turned a bit green. Perhaps he is ill?
"I don't want - I can't. I'm sorry." Michael turned and began to walk out of the room.
Fiona sat in shock for all of three seconds before feeling ire start to bubble up inside her. "Michael Westen get back here right now!" She felt a bit of pride when the feared-all-over-the-world spy stopped in his tracks. "If you leave me like this, you'll wish you'd let Sonya kill me."
Michael turned abruptly and sent her a glare, "Don't joke about that," he ordered.
"Then tell me what I did to kill the mood!" she shot back.
"It's nothing you did," he started. "It's just that this room-" his cheeks took on a reddish tint- "well, it's - it's...not ours," he finished looking down at his bare feet.
Fiona looked confused for a second, then simply said, "Oh." She had nearly forgotten that she had shared the bed underneath her with Carlos for a few months. Apparently Michael remembered vividly.
"We could go to the loft," Michael suggested. Fiona's jaw dropped lower than she'd thought was possible.
"How is that any better?" She sounded livid, and Michael got some satisfaction that she had clearly been jealous of Sonya.
"That was a mission Fi. I slept with her for the mission." Michael immediately took a step back. Fiona was literally shaking with anger, her fists clenched by her side. Somehow she managed to keep her cool.
"So after all these years of being as faithful as a damn dog, you suddenly have to sleep with someone - for the mission - just after you find out that I'm in a serious relationship? Really?" Michael decided it was safer not to answer this question.
"You did it to hurt me, Michael! Why else would you tell me about it first thing the morning after? Poor Sonya probably thought you were out getting breakfast, but you were bragging about your conquest to your ex!"
"Oh and you were so subtle with Carlos." Michael felt the need to defend himself. "Half the times you kissed him you were just rubbing it in my face!"
"Rubbing it in your face? How was I supposed to know you were watching my every move?"
"You knew!" Michael insisted. "Anyone with your tactical awareness would notice her house was bugged. Don't play dumb! Besides, why else would you change your clothes in the exact same spot every day? A spot that just happened to be directly in front of my bug. Did Carlos know you were giving your ex-boyfriend free shows?"
Less than two seconds after Michael had finished his uncharacteristic tirade, he felt a sharp blow land against his cheek. Fiona had slapped him, hard. He lifted his hand to catch hers, which was coming towards him once more. He already regretted what he had said; Fiona didn't deserve that kind of cruelty.
"I'm so sorry," he blurted out. "That was out of line, Fi I'm -" but he was interrupted by the sob that escaped Fiona's mouth. If he had felt like a jerk before, it was nothing compared to the guilt that rose in him as he listened to the woman before him sobbing. He felt tears burning in his own eyes, and wrapped Fiona in his arms, hoping that would give them both a bit of comfort. She struggled against him halfheartedly for a moment, but finally let her body relax into his. Once her sobs had subsided, he led her back over to the bed and sat beside her.
"I really am sorry Fi. I don't know what got into me. I had no right to be jealous."
Fiona nodded, her eyes still red and teary. "I understand, Michael. It couldn't have been easy to watch your friends and family moving on without you. Just promise you'll stop being so mean about it."
"I promise Fi. I think I just need a good night's sleep."
"Is this bed acceptable for you to sleep in?" she said with more than a hint of sarcasm.
Michael let out a small chuckle. "Yeah, it's fine."
"And Michael?" Fiona asked, lying down on the bed and snuggling into his embrace. "If you tell anyone about those free shows, you can forget getting tickets to the live one."
Michael smiled against her hair. "Duly noted."
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After the horrible past couple of days they had, Michael and Fiona slept soundly through the night and into the morning. They probably could have slept until noon, if they hadn't been woken up by the sharp ring of Michael's cell phone. He reached for it blindly, and managed to answer the call without dropping it. Sam's voice broke through Michael's grogginess before he could say anything.
"Mike! Bad news. Fi's missing. I know you're busy with other things, and I waited as long as I could to call you, but I'm getting really worried." Sam stopped to take a breath and Michael took the opportunity to calm his friend.
"Fiona's fine. She's right here." Michael tried to whisper so Fiona could continue sleeping, but she opened her eyes and began to stretch anyway.
Sam let out a huge sigh of relief. "Thank God. I thought James might have found her."
Michael shot straight up in bed, feeling goosebumps form on the back of his neck. "What are you talking about Sam? James is in jail."
"No he's not, Mikey. Some officers were bringing him to court and some of his people attacked; he escaped."
"Dammit!" Michael shouted, causing Fiona to jump at the volume. He shot her an apologetic look, then spoke into the phone again. "Thanks for letting me know Sam. Can you keep an ear out and let me know as soon as you hear anything else?"
"Of course. Do you need me to come over?"
"We should be fine for now, but I'll be in touch."
Michael hung up the phone and turned to Fiona, concern filling his eyes. "James escaped custody," he informed her.
"Oh no," she replied. "Do you think he knows what we did to his people yet?"
"If he doesn't yet he will soon," Michael confirmed. "He's going to want revenge. You need to go somewhere, where he can't find you."
"Me? What about you? You betrayed him, took down his entire organization. You're the one in danger here."
"Even so, I'd feel better if you went into hiding - just for a little while."
Fiona grabbed his face and aimed it towards her own, to ensure that he saw her eyes. "I'm not going anywhere. Whatever needs to be done, we do it together."
Michael nodded but had one more thing to say. "Aren't you tired of this Fi? I am. I don't want to keep doing one mission after another. It never ends."
Fiona smiled bittersweetly; Michael was finally seeing things from her point of view.
"So then let's not worry about James." Michael eyed her with curiosity. "I mean it. There are plenty of other agents who can track him down. Don't we deserve a break?"
Michael looked reluctant, but nodded nonetheless.
"Good," said Fiona. "Now that that's settled, let's go visit your mom and Charlie. They're probably worried sick about us."
Michael and Fiona's trip to Madeline's went better than Michael had expected. He had thought his mother would be angry when she heard that he had switched sides for a while, but she was fairly sympathetic and just happy to have him safe. Charlie was ecstatic to see his uncle and aunt, and kept them running around for nearly two hours. After the family had a large dinner of take-out, Michael and Fiona said goodbye and headed back to Fiona's place.
When they turned onto Fiona's street, they saw something that made panic spread rapidly throughout their bodies. Fire trucks and police cars lined the street. For a moment, Fiona was still able to hope that the emergency vehicles where there for another house, until she saw the flames and smoke were coming from hers. No, please, not again, she silently begged. But the flames that were eating all of her possessions simply continued spreading.
The Charger slowed to a stop at the barrier of emergency vehicles that lined the front of Fiona's house. Watching all her earthly possessions burn to the ground, Fiona had expected to feel anger, but she felt numb. This was the third time in as many years that she had lost everything. She wondered if she had become immune to the pain.
Turning towards Michael, Fiona saw the anguish that she should be feeling, in his eyes. Before he could voice his empathy though, Fiona ordered, "Let's go."
Michael nodded, swallowing down his emotion. "Where do you want to go?"
Fiona considered his question. Her first thought was the loft, but she didn't want the permeating smell of smoke to remind her of what she'd lost. And she didn't want to impose on Madeline and Charlie.
"Hotel," she finally answered. Elsa's hotel nearly always had a small room open for emergencies, and she'd been kind enough to offer it to Sam's friends whenever they needed it.
Michael nodded his agreement. "That's probably the safest place to go for now."
Neither spoke a word until they had entered the hotel room after checking in. The room was small and out of the way, with no view...just the way Michael liked it. And the soft sheets and thick towels were enough to keep Fiona happy. Michael grabbed a couple bottles of water and joined Fiona where she had settled on the pale blue couch.
"James was responsible for what happened to your house," Michael stated bluntly. Fiona didn't reply, still feeling only numbness. "Your car was still there, and we left some lights on. He must have thought that you were inside." Michael paused for a moment and took Fiona's hand in his. "James is targeting you."
Once again Fiona did nothing but nod, eyes downcast. Michael was beginning to worry about how calm his normally fiery Fi was being.
"Did you hear me, Fiona?" he pushed. She looked at him and gave a small nod, but otherwise remained silent. "I'm going to capture James before he can get to you," he swore determinedly. "I'll kill him if I have to. I should never have saved his life. I'm sorry Fi."
Fiona finally spoke. "You are not going to do this alone. All of this mess happened because you were alone this past year. I'm going to help you this time." She noticed that Michael appeared ready to interject and kept talking. "Don't you dare tell me it's too dangerous. James tried to take you away from me once, and I will not let him do it again."
Michael looked reluctant but agreed nonetheless. Fiona was right. If she had been on his side this past year, he never would have gotten in so deep with James's organization. She was his center, and he now knew from experience that he was lost without her.
Fiona suddenly moved closer to Michael, leaning in close to trace his lips with her fingers. The expression on her face was hard to read, somewhere between curiosity and resignation. He wasn't sure what to expect from her, considering how much she had just lost. So when she moved in slowly to kiss him he let her set the pace.
As Fiona placed her lips hesitantly against Michael's she finally felt something other than numbness. She felt want, need, desire. The loss of her possessions had left her feeling empty, but the man before her had always been able to fill any emptiness she felt. And so she kissed him, with growing intensity, moving herself against him so that there was no doubt what she needed. Fiona's lover seemed more than willing to cooperate. It had been so long since they had comforted each other in this way, in a way no one else could.
As their kisses and caresses grew more passionate, Fiona wrapped her body tightly around Michael's and allowed him to carry her into the bedroom. Both tumbled onto the soft duvet and ripped off their clothes, wanting no barriers between them. They lay on top of each other for a moment, simply enjoying the feel of skin on skin that they had gone for so long without. Soon though, the tension grew to be too much, and their intimate activities resumed. The bodies of the two lovers were so in tune, that it took very little time for them to be ready for the ultimate coupling. And when they joined as one, they finally knew that they were home.
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