THE OTHER SIDE OF LIFE
CHAPTER SEVEN
Sunday, August 29, 1993
9:00 a.m.
The morning sun was up when Al opened his eyes to find Yvette still beside him, her auburn hair laying in multiple directions on the pillow. With his fingers, he gently teased the strands into a less chaotic configuration. As he was doing so, her violet eyes opened to him. "Good morning," she said smiling.
Al sighed at the sight of those beautiful eyes. "Good morning, yourself," he told her gently. "You know, I think you're probably more beautiful this morning than you were when I met you last night."
"I bet you say that to all the girls." She said teasingly.
"Not to all the girls," Al told her seductively, kissing her again. "Just you." He pulled her closer to him, liking the way she laughed as his wiggled his fingers against the sides of her belly. "Breakfast?" he suggested.
She kissed him back before saying, "Breakfast sounds marvelous. But I'd like to fix it for you. Maybe we can just get some coffee and then head back to my place. It's about 20 minutes from here."
"Sounds great to me," he told her honestly. "I haven't had a home cooked breakfast in years." Getting up from the bed, he started towards the bathroom. "We can share a shower if you want," he told her tauntingly.
She giggled. "It may take us awhile to get to the house, perhaps brunch would be better"
She stood up, following him to the bathroom. Al admired her as she sauntered in. She certainly had curves in all the right spots. "Brunch. Breakfast. If you cook like you walk... I may never leave the house."
Yvette gave him a kiss. "You okay now?"
"Why do you ask?"
"I don't know. You talked in your sleep after we finally fell asleep. You were talking to a Trudy. It sounded like you were talking to a child."
Al nodded. "My sister. She's been gone for years. Sometimes I still dream about her but I'd rather not talk about it, if you don't mind."
She shook her head. "That's okay, Al." She smiled. She watched as he turned on the water, checking the temperature before gesturing for her to go in before him. She stepped to the shower and he followed behind. She picked up the soap and ran it between her hands, working up a lather. She reached over to his chest and started the same type of movements with her hands that had lead to last night fireworks.
Al sighed with contentment. Last night's massage was miraculous on his tense muscles. This morning's shower was about as equal to it. But they couldn't stay all day in the shower, primarily because Al was starting to get hungry.
It took only a few minutes after they had actually dried off for the two of them to dress. Yvette put on the clothes she'd had on the night before, Al choosing another coordinated outfit. They headed out of the hotel room. "My car or yours," Al asked. "Are you planning on coming back into Taos tonight?"
"I could be persuaded to come back to town, with the right incentive." Her eyes were showing that she considered him to be such an incentive.
"How's dinner as an incentive?" Al asked, taking her hand and kissing it as he had the evening before.
"Sound's nice. How about Roberto's?" She stopped for a moment. "That's assuming he's open tonight."
Al laughed. "You mean you don't know?
"Well, Roberto sort of opens when he wants to. He figures he has a life and running the restaurant is just a part of it. So, sometimes he's open and sometimes he's not. But the food is always good enough to check."
"I think I like the man already," Al commented as he opened the door to the sedan. "Allow me to be your chauffeur for this day."
"Thank you, sir." She got in, putting on her seatbelt. She waited until Al had gotten into the other side and then gave him directions to her home. It was on the road to the Taos Ski Resort. Al was surprised that the house was not adobe but was more of a chalet style in an A-frame.
She got out of the car and walked to the front door, unlocking it. Al followed her into a two bedroom house. Along one wall, almost two stories's heading up to the loft, he saw her artwork. Beautiful vistas of NM were present on the wall and the way she painted the skies was nothing short of breathtaking.
"Wow! You did these?" Al exclaimed, completely stunned by the beauty that Yvette captured so brilliantly.
"Yes. I've been painting for about fifteen years now. I love it here in NM." She headed to the kitchen and opened the fridge. "How do blueberry pancakes sound?"
"Absolutely scrumptious," Al told her, his eyes still on the artwork. "You really capture the sunset here," he continued, pointing to one particular painting that showed Taos Pueblo in the distance. It had been painted from a view in the mountains. Most pictures he'd seen of the pueblo did not face west, but this one was unique.
"It took awhile to be able to actually get the feeling right. But I'm pretty happy with my technique now. I certainly sell more. It allows me to keep up my lifestyle here."
After dusting them with flour, she poured the fresh blueberries into the batter she had whipped up. She pulled a skillet out of the cabinet and put it on the gas stove top. While waiting for the skillet to heat, she quickly set up the coffee maker to brew some of the dark beverage she knew both of them liked. While it was brewing, the first pancakes were poured on the skillet. Once they were cooking, the plates and silverware were pulled out. Al watched as she put the silver out at two places and kept the plates close to the cooking.
"You do that like it's a ballet," he said appreciatively. "Can't I do anything to help?"
"Just plan on eating a lot of pancakes," she answered smiling.
He grinned and turned back to the pictures again to await the call to the table. "No problem there. They smell wonderful!" He looked over a few more, then forced himself to turn from the paintings and to go into the kitchen to face Yvette. "You should send me your portfolio. You might get another sale." He grinned at her widely. "Wish I could paint like you. You're really good."
"Do you like any of these?" She checked the pancakes and realized she had a little more time before they were done.
"Oh, I'd have to take a little time and really look at them. I like them all a lot." As he looked around, he noticed one painting in particular that looked familiar. "Wait a minute. Are those the San Andres? Looks like it's a view from Trinity Site."
She smiled. "You're very perceptive. I painted that from a picture I took during one of the weekends they allow visitors on the site." Checking the pancakes, she flipped them over.
"It's beautiful," he commented. And it looks right towards PQL, he thought with a smile.
"Take it. It's yours." She retrieved the butter, cream, and syrup and put them on the table. Afterwards, she pulled the orange juice out of the fridge. "You want some of this?"
Al's attention shifted towards Yvette at her words. "Please," he replied. "How much?"
"No, really. If you like it, I'd like you to have it." She poured the orange juice and put the first set of pancakes on a plate. She set the plate and orange juice down at one of the places. "Now sit down and have some breakfast."
Al looked at the painting again before turning towards Yvette with a slight grin. "Thanks. Oooo! That looks good."
She poured out some more pancake batter and waited until those were done before getting her own plate. In the meantime, she poured two cups of coffee.
Al sat at the table and looked at the plate before picking up his fork and digging in, minus syrup or butter. "Oh, these are good!" Al complimented.
She smiled back at Al before sitting down and answering, "Thanks. It's my mother's recipe." She took a sip of her coffee and then asked, "Why did that picture capture your fancy?"
"It's just... I've always loved that view."
"You sound like you know the area well."
"Oh, you know... being military and all..."
"I guess. I just like traveling around NM for inspiration. So... what brought you to Taos this weekend?"
"Team-building exercise from hell," he told her with a sigh before he took a drink of orange juice. "My partner and I have been sent away to resolve our differences, forced into exile from work that will reshape mankind."
"Reshape mankind? That sounds pretty grandiose!"
"Oh, it is. But I can't tell you any more," Al told her. He smiled widely. "It's a secret."
"Okay... but it sounds intriguing! Who's your partner?"
"Dr. Sam Beckett," Al told her. "We don't have much of a partnership going right now. Seems we can't get within two feet of each other for more than five minutes before we start verbally ripping off each other's heads off."
"You don't mean the Dr. Beckett who wrote the article about linguistic patterns in the comparison of ancient languages?
Al chuckled. "I forgot he even wrote that." Al wasn't even sure he'd ever known Sam had written it. He suddenly realized that as close as he was to Sam, there were parts of the man's life that he'd never really known. After all, Sam was more than a physicist and computer whiz. He also spoke multiple languages, was known in archeological circles, had an M.D. and could play piano like no one else he'd ever heard. The fact that this woman had apparently heard of him from something other than physics was intriguing.
"That was one of the pivotal theories in looking at how concepts seem to cross through common formats in linguistic patterning. He pointed out, based on the tracing concepts through disparate cultures, how often thoughts seem to pass from one culture to another, almost through brainwaves."
"Artist, masseuse... linguistics fan?" Al questioned with a slight grin. "The pattern doesn't quite work, there, darling."
"Oh... that was my old life. I was a professor of Hearing and Speech at the University of North Texas in Denton. I decided after several years of teaching that what I really wanted to do was work on my art, so I moved to Taos. That's where I learned to become a masseuse. After all, one has to pay the bills and there's not much need for my academic skills here."
"Well, you could work at the University of New Mexico."
"Not and live in Taos. The satellite programs don't focus on that subject and the main campus is in Albuquerque, 3 and 1/2 hours away. No becoming a masseuse was good. I get to help people that way." She stopped and took a sip of her coffee. "But it doesn't mean I don't keep up with reading about linguistics. As I said, Dr. Beckett's work was quite cutting edge."
"Glad you're impressed. Maybe I should introduce him to you."
"I'd love to meet him. Why are you fighting again?" she asked taking the conversation back to where it had been.
"Oh, a misunderstanding over a requisition. It started out as a misunderstanding anyway. It's sort of snowballed into a continuous argument over our various personality differences."
She looked at him slightly confused. "You don't seem like someone that would let personality differences become a problem. And from what I've read of Dr. Beckett's work, he seems pretty open to other ideas as well."
Al nodded slightly. "Normally he is." He huffed. "Normally so am I. But for some reason, we now can't agree that the sky is blue."
"How long have you known each other?"
"Eleven years last March," Al told her, again drinking from his orange juice.
"That's quite some time." She noted that both of them hadn't touched their pancakes for quite awhile. "Are you finished, Al?"
Al nodded, handing over the plate. "Yes. Thank you. They were delicious." He stood up from the table and again looked at Yvette's artwork. The colors were absolutely stunning to him. "I wish I could paint like you."
She started clearing the table. "Each of us has our own special talents. Art was one of mine. That's why I just wasn't happy with teaching. I had to get out and paint what I saw." She finished rinsing off the dishes and putting them in the dishwasher. Finishing, she came over and put her arms around him. "I know you have talents as well. I mean, you've been up in space. Very few people on the planet can say that."
Al grinned at her words and looked into her eyes. "Few people have hands like yours," he told her cheerily. He started to pull her out of the kitchen. "Come on. I want to see your studio."
She smiled and took him by the hand, leading him to the room where she painted. After showing him around, they ended up on the couch that looked out towards the mountain view.
Sunday, August 29, 1993
7:00 p.m.
Sam held the door open for Michelle as they entered a little adobe building off the main street. As he walked in, he noticed Al and the woman he'd seen him with the night before sitting at a table. He decided that perhaps Michelle was right. Al may have known her before. They sure seemed to be comfortable with each other.
Al looked up and saw Sam and Michelle enter the establishment. Yvette must have seen the look on Al's face because she stated, "That's Dr. Beckett, isn't it."
Al sniffed slightly, forcing himself to ignore the sudden reaction he'd felt to seeing Sam walking in with Michelle. He didn't know why it bothered him so. Hell, he usually was trying to encourage Sam to enjoy the companionship of a woman. "Yes, it is," he finally answered, deciding that the glass of water in his hand was most interesting.
"Why don't you invite them over? We have room."
Al paused and looked at Yvette with questioning before looking towards the couple. "They look fine on their own."
"I guess if you're still fighting, you probably wouldn't be comfortable. Forget I asked." Yvette said it with a smile but he could tell she had really wanted to meet Sam. After all, they did share a passion for one of his fields of study.
Al shook his head at the expression on her face. "No, it's okay. We have to start acting civil with each other sometime, right?" Slowly, he stood up and then kissed her cheek. "I'll be right back." Then, with slight hesitation, he went over to Sam's table. "Hey," he greeted.
Sam looked up at his friend. He and Michelle had had a long time to talk during their hike earlier that day. All Sam knew is he wanted to get things back to the way they'd been before last Wednesday. "Hi, Al."
"I... uh... I noticed you come in and was wondering if you'd care to join us," Al said quickly before he could find a reason to change his mind. He was getting tired of feeling as if he couldn't approach Sam without getting into a fight. He just wanted to make amends, one way or the other.
"You sure?" Sam's voice held both the sound of hope but tinged with uncertainty.
"Sure, I'm sure," Al said with a little grin. "Let's just put all this ridiculousness behind us."
Sam looked over to Michelle. She nodded. She knew that this weekend had been bothering Sam badly. "Sure, we'll join you."
They let the waitress know they were moving. She set two more places at Al and Yvette's table.
Al escorted the couple back to his and Yvette's table. "Yvette Samuels, this is Sam Beckett and his friend Michelle Marshall."
Sam took her hand. "Pleased to meet you, ma'am."
"It's such a pleasure to meet you as well. I've read your work in linguistic comparisons. Quite exciting work."
"You've read…"
"Yes, I'm Dr. Yvette Samuels. I used to teach in the Hearing and Speech Department at the University of North Texas in Denton. I found your work fascinating."
Michelle looked over to Sam, "When did you start working on linguistics research?"
"Um, remember when I left for Cambridge with Dr. LoNigro?"
"Yeah. You said you had some academic pursuits."
"Well, I got two more doctorates while I was there in Archeology and Linguistics."
Michelle looked down at her fingers, counting. "Before you got into the Computer Science program, you had doctorates in Physics and Music. Then you got the Computer Science and M.D. Now I hear you went and earned two more." She looked at him, incredulous. "Sam, that's six doctorates!"
Sam blushed. "Um, yeah. I guess I just really felt comfortable in school…"
Al grinned, "He was working on another one in Electrical Engineering when he got hired on the government project…"
"…where I met you," Sam finished, nodding.
The waitress came over and took their orders. Yvette, knowing the food at Roberto's, made suggestions and the order was taken in little time. Afterwards, Yvette turned to Michelle. "What do you do, Michelle?"
"I'm a Computer Systems Engineer. I worked with Sam during our graduate work at MIT. I'm going to be working at Los Alamos a week from now on a new project."
"I see. Sounds interesting."
Al added, "Yvette is an artist as well. Sam, you should see her landscapes. They are stunning!"
"I'd love to see your work sometime, Yvette," Sam commented. "If Al says they are stunning, I'm sure I'd like to see them."
Yvette nodded. "So what did you and Michelle do today?"
Sam smiled. "We took a hike up to Williams Lake. It's beautiful up there. Have you ever been?"
Yvette smiled gently. "I did a painting of it. It's one of my favorite places. Al?"
Al shrugged slightly. "Never been there. But I'm sure we could find a moment sometime to do that," he told her with a winning smile.
"So what did you two do today?"
"Oh, Yvette invited me up to her home to look at some of her artwork and then she showed me the best way to use finger paint on a canvas."
Sam looked over towards his friend, his eyes narrowing at the suggestive tone to Al's voice..."Finger painting...?
"Yeah, finger painting," Al emphasized. "You know... paint, canvas, easel, making art without the use of paintbrushes."
Sam looked a little sheepish. He couldn't understand why his mind had to assume that Al would be talking about something else. "Um... was that fun?"
"It was a blast!" Al exclaimed excitedly.
Yvette grinned. "Al's really a very talented artist. If what I saw was any indication of the work he has hiding in his home, I can't wait to see his artwork!"
"You paint, Al?" Sam face showed surprise as he questioned this statement.
Yvette looked over to Al and then back to Sam. "You didn't know he painted? I thought that..."
Al took a sip of water to cover for a moment, preparing for Sam's reaction to the upcoming answer. "When I was fifteen. Between acting jobs."
"I guess I don't know Al as well as I thought I did." The statement was said neutrally but the words held a hint of hurt that Al wouldn't tell him about it.
Al sighed slightly. "I didn't think you really wanted to get into all of my deep dark secrets. You keep secrets too, you know. Everyone does. Doesn't mean anything. Right?"
"I guess." Sam took a sip of his water, his eyes down as if thinking.
Al frowned at the answer. He knew that tone too well. "Ah, come on, Kid. Don't be that way. The subject never came up so I never mentioned it. No big deal."
The waitress came over with her tray. She reminded everyone the plates were hot then finished putting food before them checking to see if there was anything else she could do. Hearing a negative to that concern, she left to serve her other tables.
After she left, Sam turned the topic. "Gee, this all looks great. I'm really hungry!"
Michelle was a bit surprised at the way Sam reacted. She decided to probe a little bit. "So, Al... what type of art do you do? Landscapes, abstracts?"
"Introspective," Al told her, cutting into the steak he had ordered. "I don't exactly have a particular style. I just... paint what I feel at the moment. Sometimes it looks like a landscape, sometimes it's abstract, sometimes cubist..."
Sam seemed to be struggling with something. A second later, he announced, "If you'll excuse me, I'll be right back." He got up and headed to the restroom.
Michelle watched him as he left. It wasn't like Sam to get up like that and leave. If she'd realized one thing, it was that Sam was pretty consistent with his behavior. Sure, there were some changes since they'd parted company those 15 years before. Still, he hadn't changed all that much. She figured that based on the flash of expression she'd seen cross his face before he left, he was trying desperately to control himself from saying something.
Al frowned and watched Sam practically bolt. Sam's reaction to his painting wasn't at all normal for his friend. "What's eating him?" he murmured.
"Could this have something to do with your disagreements this weekend, Al?" Yvette seemed confused at the reaction the two remaining people at the table were having.
Al thought for a moment and then shook his head slightly. "Maybe." He sighed.
"I think there might be something to that, Al. When Sam and I talked this weekend, he said that both of you are acting uncharacteristic," Michelle said, still trying to make sense of what she was seeing.
Al looked at her with surprise. "Is that what he said?" he asked, showing signs of annoyance.
"Yeah. All I know is that before coming to dinner, all he talked about was trying to get things back to normal."
The annoyance that had started to creep up had subsided with Michelle's words. "Well, there's one thing we both agree on." He chuckled slightly. "Imagine me agreeing with Sam after the mess this weekend has been so far. It's like... I don't know. Maybe we've got our wires crossed or something. I mean, there are times when I think Sam's completely incapable of taking care of himself when I know that he can."
Yvette looked strangely at Al. "The man has six doctorates. That takes a lot of commitment. Why would you question his ability to take care of himself?"
Al shrugged, looking completely lost. "I don't know. I honestly have no clue why I've reacted the way I did when I met you, Michelle. I guess maybe I was... scared he'd gotten hurt or..." He didn't go further. After all, Naval officers didn't admit to weaknesses like the fear of someone, even if he were only talking about his best friend, leaving them.
"I know that Sam's having a lot of the same confusion. He's not sure what's happening on his side either." As she was speaking she noticed Sam walking back to the table. His hair was slightly damp around the edges as if he'd splashed water on his face. She had seen him do this back at MIT. Usually when he'd come off of his shift at Mass General. If the shift had been stressful, he'd have the same pasted smile he was showing now. If he was doing that, she was sure he was trying to hide how he was really feeling.
Al looked across at his friend, concern on his face. "Sam, are you okay?"
Sam nodded, his voice softly stating, "I'm fine."
"You don't look fine," Al told him. "More like a Mack truck hit you and you're trying to make it look as if nothing happened."
Sam tried feebly at humor. "Well, maybe I'm just trying to keep my secrets."
Al sighed at the feeble attempt. "You aren't very good at it," he murmured a bit angrily. Chewing on a piece of steak, he drank a large gulp of water to wash it down.
Sam pursed his lips and dug into his own food. Yvette and Michelle looked at each of the men and then at each other. Even to them, things seemed off. It was as if, through the evening, the situation had gone from a pleasant evening to something else neither could put their finger on.
After the main course was finished in silence between Sam and Al, the women having gotten into their own conversation, Al was the first to speak of the two. "Dessert?" he suggested.
Sam looked over to Michelle. She shook her head. "Not for us, Al. Let me get this bill and then I think Michelle and I are heading out."
"Fine. Be that way," Al murmured mostly to himself. "Have a good night, then."
Sam fidgeted. "See you tomorrow morning?" It was a simple question but held a bit of searching in it as well.
"I suppose," Al replied. "Don't know what we'll be doing."
"Okay. I'll see you then. Yvette, It was a pleasure to meet you." Michelle also indicated that she was glad to have met Yvette.
Yvette stood and shook both Sam's and Michelle's hands. "A pleasure to meet both of you. Have a good night."
Al watched as Sam took care of the bill with the waitress. He was feeling a bit depressed. Tonight hadn't gone at all like he'd hoped. He and Yvette finished off with some coffees and flan and then they too left.
Sunday, August 29, 1993
9:00 p.m.
Michelle and Sam walked back to the Taos Inn. It was only a few blocks but Michelle was concerned that Sam wasn't saying anything. Finally, once they got to the hotel, she asked, "Sam, what was going on back there? Things were going so well at the start and then... well, I'm not sure what I saw there."
"I know. It's like there was a feeling... I can't really describe it. I started thinking about what Al was saying and it seemed to twist in my mind. The closest thing I can think to describe it as is like nails scraping across a blackboard."
Michelle frowned slightly. "He talked about finger painting, Sam. Unless you have something against that form of art, I can't see how that's anything even similar to nails on a blackboard."
Sam looked lost. Even he knew how insane his explanation sounded. "It was the way he said it, Michelle. It was like there was something more he wasn't saying." He blew out a breath. "I know. It's crazy. Maybe I'm losing my mind!"
They continued back to the room. Michelle stopped and pulled out the key. She opened the door and the two went into the room. She reached out and touched his arm. "I don't think you're losing your mind, Sam. There has to be some explanation for all this. Now, tell me again how this all started. We'll go through the whole thing step by step."
"I don't think I can right now. The feelings are still there and I want to calm down first. How about taking a dip in the hot tub? Maybe that will alleviate some of these feelings."
Michelle smiled gently. "That sounds perfect." She carefully started to undo her blouse.
Sam looked over to Michelle and noticed an immediate physical reaction to her undressing. He closed his eyes for a moment and swallowed. Thinking back through the weekend, he was suddenly amazed that he was here with Michelle. Yes, they'd been lovers before and he felt that this weekend had somewhat rekindled what they had experienced 15 years before, but this was not his usual way of dealing with things. He knew he had to talk with her about their relationship before continuing. He went over to his luggage and retrieved his trunks and stepped into the bathroom to change.
Michelle was just finishing putting on her swimsuit when Sam came back out of the bathroom. "You weren't shy about seeing me change my clothes this morning," she commented with a little grin. "Same Sam Beckett... always a mystery."
"I... I know. I'm not sure what's going on right now. Let's get in the hot tub and maybe I can explain part of it."
She looked at him with almost motherly eyes as she realized just how confused and lost Sam seemed at that moment. "Okay," she told him. Making sure that she had the key to the room, she guided him out and towards the pool area. "A relaxing soak will do us both good." Crossing the courtyard, Sam adjusted the jets and they both got in. No one else was there.
Sam started. He seemed a bit fidgety. "Michelle, this weekend has been absolutely wonderful. I find that I care as much for you now as I did all those years ago. It's like time stopped and picked back up again." He paused a moment and then added. "That's why I pulled back a little. I need you know I'm not leading you on." It was almost as if Sam had regressed to the night they had met again, as if the ensuing two nights and days hadn't been enough to convince him that she was comfortable being with him.
Michelle chuckled slightly at his concern. "Sam, if anyone's doing the leading this weekend, it's me. I've really enjoyed being with you. Honest. Now, why don't you just relax and let those bubbles do their work."
Sam smiled. "They do feel good. But Michelle, I'm trying to say that I don't want this weekend to end. I was thinking that maybe we could keep going with the relationship that we've found again."
She looked at him for a long moment, thinking about his words. "What do you mean?" she decided to ask, not wanting to make any assumptions.
Sam turned towards her and lightly placed his hands on her shoulders, looking deep into her eyes. His eyes were soft as he told her, "I mean that I find that I'm feeling like I did fifteen years ago, before you left for Kentucky and I left for Cambridge. I want you with me. I can make that happen. My project needs..."
"Stop right there!" Michelle exclaimed, sitting upright and shaking his hands off her shoulders. "Just who do you think you are?" To Sam's stunned expression, she continued. "Now, I don't mind the idea of getting together with you occasionally for a little fun but you've just gone right over that to us being practically engaged again! We don't even really know each other anymore, other than what we've learned in the past two days!"
Sam looked down. He fumbled with his hands, not knowing what to do with them. He'd been so sure this was the right path "I...I just thought...I mean...I..." He stopped and shook his head. "I guess I just keep messing things up."
"And why do you do that?" Michelle added upon Sam's comment. "You act as if this is something you can control with a wave of your hand!"
His eyes came up to her again, true pain flowed from them. "I don't think I can control anything. I just figure there must be something I'm doing wrong. I'm not exactly the greatest guy with women." He muttered underneath his breath, "That would be Al."
Michelle sighed. "Oh, Sam, it's not you. It's me. I mean... Look. You obviously got the wrong impression with me during this weekend and that's partially my fault. You're the kind of guy that once you're ready to give your heart out to someone, you do it completely and totally without stopping and thinking about the consequences. That isn't a bad thing... it just isn't for me."
A small smile was on his lips as he stated his truth, "Michelle, the impression I have of you is a lovely, caring, intelligent woman. I know that isn't wrong. You are all those things. Am I wrong to want to continue a relationship with you?"
"Thank you but that isn't what I'm talking about," she told him plainly. "I do care about you. I'm just not interested in the kind of relationship you are talking about. I've been down that road one too many times and I'm not ready to go down it again. Not for a long while. Maybe never again."
"You've been down…" Sam looked at her confused.
Michelle leaned forward, seeing his confusion. "I'm not ready to get into a relationship that may lead into another marriage that will only end up in divorce because we can't seem to figure out whose career should take precedence." She exhaled slowly. "I met someone when I was in Kentucky. We married and then we divorced because he wanted me to give up my career for his. And it seems like you want me to do the same. After all, you talked of making things happen so that you can be with me."
'I'm sorry, Michelle. I didn't know. But I'd never expect you to give up your work. I was going to say my project needs top notch computer engineers. You'd be perfect."
Michelle gave a sick laugh before getting out of the hot tub and grabbing a towel to dry off.
"Where are you going?"
"Back to my room," she told him bluntly. "It's obvious you and I have completely different ideas about careers. Geez, you're just like Jake," she muttered under her breath.
Sam softly cajoled her, "Michelle. Please don't go. I'm sorry. I won't bring it up again. I just thought... but I guess I was wrong. I can't help it that I care for you."
"Damn right, you were wrong! I already have a career, Dr. Beckett! I already have a job! I don't need you to go finding me one!"
Sam acquiesced. "I know you have a job and a career, Michelle. I just thought we made such a good team together before, we could do so again. I promise. I won't bring it up anymore."
Michelle looked at him for a long moment before returning to the hot tub's edge. "I have my own career. I have my own life. I like being with you, Sam, but you have to realize that I'm not ready for a commitment nor am I going to give up my important work." That said she slowly slipped back into the tub.
He nodded. "Okay. I understand. We'll leave it at that. But, since we've reconnected, can we at least stay in contact with each other this time? I mean, you're only three hours away. And I wouldn't mind talking with you professionally either. It wasn't a false compliment that I know you are a top-notch computer engineer. It may have been 15 years since I worked with you, but I know the quality of your work, the insight you bring to the field."
Michelle's lips slowly curled into a smile. "Thanks. Maybe I overreacted. I'm sorry. And I'd love to keep in touch with you so... you've got a deal."
"Okay. Would I be out of line to ask if I can still hold you?" He indicated a desire for her to lean back into his arms.
Michelle's grin widened. "Didn't I just say I like being with you? If it weren't okay with me, you'd never have done so all weekend." She deliberately went to him and kissed him before nestling where Sam had indicated.
He sighed. At this point, he was still feeling rather saddened that Michelle had decided to forego the possibility of furthering the relationship into something deeper. Still, he was enjoying his time with her and at this point knew for certain that neither was abusing the others sensibilities. They were simply two consenting adults enjoying their time together. He decided to leave it at that and enjoy the time they would still have together before Michelle left the next day. Besides, Sam thought as he gently positioned Michelle's face to kiss her, he was still a man who very much wanted to be with this woman and he found he was willing to accept her terms for that liaison.
Sunday, August 29, 1993
9:30 p.m.
After Al and Yvette left the restaurant, they found a place to drop off the film they had used to photograph their finger painting session. Yvette often used film in her art and had a nice photographic setup. Learning that the prints would be ready the following morning, they headed back to Al's hotel room.
They decided that before turning in they'd head out to the hot tub. Yvette had brought an overnight bag with her which included her swim suit, a two piece that looked stunning on her. It took awhile for them to finally reach a state where they were both dressed for a public pool area. Somehow, getting dressed for the hot tub had taken a detour which both had thoroughly enjoyed, certainly as much as the painting session earlier.
Yvette slipped into the tub first, Al following behind her. After they were settled, Yvette turned to Al. "You know there is still that elephant sitting in the room."
"I don't know what you mean."
"Yes, you do. What happened in the restaurant tonight?" She gave him a gaze that indicated she expected an answer.
Al hoped she wasn't asking what he thought she was asking but figured that was just wistful thinking. Still, he tried to deflect it. "You want to be more specific?"
She smiled knowingly. "You and Dr. Beckett… Sam. You started off great and then you both started… I don't know… mirroring each other."
"Mirroring?" Al was surprised. He was slightly confused at the term.
She nodded. "Yeah, mirroring. It was one of the strangest things I ever saw. It eventually got so it was almost a dance. Like a carefully choreographed dance."
Al was totally confused now. He couldn't imagine what she was talking about. He felt he'd suddenly seen Alice's White Rabbit and had followed it down an unfamiliar hole. "I don't know what you're talking about."
She paused, seeing the look on her new lover's face. "You really don't see it, do you?"
Al was intrigued. Something had been nagging the back of his mind almost since this trip from hell began and hearing Yvette's words caused him to consider the discordant feelings he'd been having. Thinking back, they had started a couple of days before they'd left the project. During the next few days, the feeling of something being wrong had continued to escalate until Sam had taken up with that hussy. For the past two days, things had seemed if not normal, at least not as antsy. Until tonight. Then those feelings had reemerged with a vengeance.
Al's head tilted and he requested, interest painting his face, "Tell me about what you saw."
She paused, obviously thinking how to explain it and then started. "Well, if I was back to the clinical and academic studies, I'd say somehow the two of you are on a separate communications portal. It's like you are both tuned into something that no one else can see or hear."
Al chuckled slightly. "So, we're losing our minds?" he questioned with a small grin.
She shook her head, smiling. "I didn't say that. I said that there is something definitely going on and it doesn't fit typical communication theory."
"Well," Al started, lowering himself a little further into the hot tub, "you've got me on that one. There's definitely something going on but I'll be damned if I can figure out what that something is."
"Hmmmm," she started. "Well, we're not going to solve it tonight." She turned the conversation. "You know, I really enjoyed myself today. I can't wait until we get the pictures back tomorrow."
Al gave her a little smile, remembering the afternoon before. "I'm just amazed that you were able to find edible 'paint' for our artwork."
"Oh... it's not that hard to do. After all, foods come in every color." She smiled wickedly. "You know, you're quite the Picasso. I especially like the little twirls you put on my..."
Al finished the sentence for her saying "...beautiful back."
"Yeah... and when you licked them off the same way you put them on... it made my knees weak!"
Al grinned. "Well, I had to clear the canvass for the next artistic endeavor!"
Yvette curled up to him. "I wasn't complaining... in fact, I'd love to see you again so we can see what other directions your artwork will take."
"You know... Christmas is just around the corner..." Gaining a peculiar look, Al defended himself. "Hey, four months away is around the corner. Anyway, I'd love to see what kind of Christmas tree you'd make."
She grinned. "Ohhhhh. We can make cookie ornaments. I'd love to see where you'll hang them."
Al looked her over carefully. "Right where we painted the base of that Statue of Liberty." He pulled her to him and traced his finger over her belly button. "I think a reindeer cookie belongs right here." He continued tracing up her body.
Yvette chuckled. "I guess the next question is... your place or mine for this Christmas tree trimming?"
"I'll let you know. Depends on whether I have my own place by then. But I wouldn't mind finding a little gift under my Christmas tree this year."
"I'd like that." She could feel herself becoming aroused again. This man exuded sensuality and she let herself continue to fall under his spell once more as she had all weekend. "Are you sure you have to leave tomorrow?"
"I'm afraid so," he murmured to her. "I need to figure out what's going on between me and Sam. Okay, right now, he's a pain in the ass. But he is my friend and we've never had pettiness come between us until now. And I don't think the answer is here in Taos. But the distractions here are enough to tempt me to stay," he added with a seductive grin.
She smiled back and then pulled his face to her, giving him a passionate kiss. As they broke away, she whispered. "Let's go back to the room then. I want as much of you as I can get before tomorrow."
"Too bad we don't own this hotel," Al whispered in return, gaining a peculiar look. "We could just stay here and make sure the gate is locked."
She nodded, but then turned to go up the stairs and out of the hot tub. "Maybe when you get your own place, you can make sure it has a hot tub too. Until then, follow me." She seductively gestured with her finger that she wanted him to come with her.
Al grinned more widely. "Yes, ma'am," he replied as he stepped out of the hot tub and grabbed a towel to dry off as he followed.
