Not sure what happened so I deleted and reposted. Hopefully it works this time.
A/N: Thank you for all the follows, favorites, and reviews! All of it really means a lot. Know that I read all of them and appreciate all the kind words and the criticism equally!
Don't hate me…but what's a rom-com without a little conflict?
Chapter Eight - Complications
I'm sorry but something came up and I won't be able to make it to game night tonight. I'll just have to kick your ass next week.
Michonne read that text over and over again trying to dampen her disappointment over Rick not coming to game night. On a rational level, she knew it was for the best. Every conversation she had with the man whether it was in-person or over text made her like him a little bit more and that wasn't a good thing. He had a girlfriend and if she allowed herself to fall for him, it would only end badly. The rational part of her brain was shouting all of that to the rooftops, but the irrational part wasn't hearing it.
She was just about to answer his text and she wasn't sure if it was going to be a rational response when she saw Sasha walk through the door. Yes, Sasha was Glenn's friend first, but over the years they'd grown very close. She shoved the phone into her pocket and went over to greet her friend with a warm hug.
"Hey Sasha…" Before she could even get the words out, Sasha grabbed her arm and dragged her to a corner. "What the hell…" A nervous smile appeared on Sasha's lips as she started talking.
"Look, before Abe gets in here, I need to tell you something…" Michonne raised an eyebrow and immediately started to worry. She couldn't remember the last time she'd seen her friend this edgy and she couldn't believe that it had anything to do with Abe. Even though they seemed like the most unlikely couple, those two were so in love that it was almost sickening.
"What is it? Is everything ok?", she asked, bracing herself for the slight chance that the perfect image she'd created in her head about Sasha and Abe's relationship was completely flawed.
"Yeah, yeah…everything is fine it's just that someone else is going to be joining us tonight and don't be mad, but I invited him specifically to meet you." She felt the air rush out of her body as Sasha's words hit her like a truck. No wonder she was acting so nervous. If there was one thing Michonne hated it was being set up and Sasha knew that.
"You didn't!" Sasha nodded and her nervous smile faded into one of self-satisfaction even though she had to know that Michonne wanted to kill her with her bare hands.
"Listen, his name is Mike Anthony and he's been working with me at the CDC for a few months now but I wanted to make sure he was cool before I set him up with you. He's smart, funny, loves all of that arty stuff you like and he's also a fine specimen of a man if you get my drift…well built in all the right places!" The irritation escaped Michonne in the form of a deep sigh as she began to defiantly shake her head.
"Sasha…"
"So when I finally told him all about my smart, sweet, and hilarious friend who happens to be a straight dime he seemed very interested in stopping by." It took a minute but she finally gathered enough of her wits back to speak in coherent sentences.
"Why did you do that? You know I hate being set up!" Sasha narrowed her eyes and placed a hand on her hip making Michonne feel like she was 10 years old and about to get fussed out by her mother.
"Michonne Bishop! When was the last time you dated anyone? Spencer was what? Two years ago?" Michonne cringed at the mention of his name. They'd dated for close to a year when he just decided that she wasn't good enough for him. He'd told her, "I need a woman who can enhance my political career and that's not you". She'd angrily thrown him out of her apartment almost as soon as the words left his mouth but that was mainly because she wasn't about to let him see how much he'd hurt her.
She folded her arms across her chest defensively and refused to meet Sasha's eye. "It was a year and a half ago and I've been on dates since then", she argued.
"Yeah, two. Two dates in a year and a half! Don't you miss it? Don't you miss sex?" Michonne felt her face growing hot. So what that it had been a while! She was fine! She didn't need a guy…especially one her friends set her up with out of pity.
"Oh my god…"
"No, I'm serious!", Sasha continued, "I'm not saying you need a man or anything but it is kinda nice not having to do everything yourself…especially that!"
"I'm not going to go have sex with some guy I just met!"
"I'm not telling you to! Just meet him! Flirt with him a little bit…and if you like him, see where it goes from there." Michonne shot her one last angry look before accepting her defeat. There wasn't much else she could do other than leave and knowing her bad luck, she'd probably run smack into he guy on her way out the door.
"You could've at least warned me!" she'd never been one to whine so even she was surprised at how how pitiful she sounded. Sasha must have heard it too because she immediately felt her hugging her tight.
"Now you know you wouldn't have showed up if I'd done that." Michonne laughed cynically at the truth in her words. "Don't hate me, Michonne. Spencer was a jackass. You deserve so much better and I just want to help you find it."
"Oh, I'm going to hate you at least until tomorrow morning." She felt Sasha's body shake with laughter before pulling away from their hug. Michonne had to admit that she had the best friends in the world even when they were blindsiding her with unexpected blind dates.
"I think you're going to really like him. Trust me."
"Ok…I guess I have to. Is he with Abe now?", she asked glancing down at herself to make sure she was presentable. She was wearing jeans and a yellow sleeveless blouse that she loved, making her more put together that she usually was for game night. She remembered picking that shirt because she thought he was coming…but he wasn't. She closed her eyes and tried to rid her mind of thoughts of Rick. Maybe Sasha setting her up with this guy was for the best. Maybe it would help her take her mind off of the one man she'd really wanted to get know since the debacle with Spencer. The one man she definitely couldn't have.
"Yeah, they're parking the car…there they are." Opening her eyes, Michonne followed Sasha's gaze to the front of the bar where she saw Abe walking past the window talking animatedly with another guy. They walked into the bar and she saw Abe scanning the room for his wife and when he found her, his face burst into a wide grin.
"There they are! Chonne! Get your ass over here and give me a hug, girl!" Michonne smiled broadly and stepped into the burly ginger's waiting arms. He squeezed her tight; lifting her from her feet as his wife rolled her eyes and watched in amusement.
"Abraham, try not to suffocate my girl, ok!" He lowered her to her feet and released her from his strong embrace.
"Sorry, darlin'! I'm just so damn happy to see her! It's been how long?" Michonne's head dropped shamefully. It had been entirely too long since she'd seen them. That was the first game night she and Glenn had actually been able to make in at least a month.
"Months…I'm sorry for that but you know me and Glenn have been killing ourselves getting the firm going…" Abe nodded but she could tell by the look on his face that her excuse wasn't quite cutting it with him.
"Sasha's been keeping me updated but it would be nice to hear it from the horse's mouth every now and then."
"I'm gonna do better!", she promised.
"I'm going to hold you to it.", he answered, reaching for his wife's hand. Michonne realized that she'd stalled long enough. Finally, she allowed her attention to fall on the man standing next to him. He was tall and like Sasha said, extremely fit. His dark jeans clung to his thighs and the t-shirt he wore stretched across his well-defined pecs. He kept his hair cut low, almost shaved, and he had an expertly edged mustache and beard. His soulful dark eyes pulled her in as they carefully studied each other.
"Michonne…this is Mike Anthony. He works with me at the CDC. Mike, this is Michonne Bishop."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mike." He took her extended hand in his and Michonne's furrowed her eyebrows he brought it up to his lips. She couldn't help but think he was being a little too extra with that move, but she shook those thoughts away and put the smile back on her face.
"You're even more beautiful than Sasha described…the pleasure is definitely all mine!" Michonne caught Sasha smiling in satisfaction before gently tugging on Abe's arm.
"We're going to go say hi to everyone and let you two get to know each other." She watched as her so-called friends walked away leaving her with her "date". His was the voice that brought her out of her thoughts.
"Did you know your friends were setting you up tonight?" He asked. She gave him her full attention and shook her head.
"No. Did you know it was a set up?" He gave her a wide, toothy grin and quickly nodded.
"Pretty much. Sasha's been talking about you for weeks but you know how set ups can go so I've been kinda blowing her off." Intrigued, Michonne had to ask the question that was floating around in her head.
"What made you finally give in?" He looked away and shrugged before shoving his hands deep into his pockets and turning back to her with a sheepish grin.
"Honestly? I saw you when you came for that meeting last week and I kicked myself for not listening to her sooner." Michonne tried not to let it bother her that he was only interested after confirming that she was indeed the "dime piece" Sasha had described.
"I'm sure that earned you some I told you so's from her…"
"Yeah, I was being an idiot and she gave me hell, but it was worth it to finally meet you." Even though she'd been on the sidelines for a while, Michonne had been around the block a few times and she'd met guys like Mike before. Smart, handsome, dripping with charm and a walking lexicon of all the right things to say to a woman. Those kinds of guys had never really been her type. But he'd come all the way there just to meet her and she couldn't just blow him off. If there was one thing Michonne wasn't, it was cruel.
She sighed deeply and glanced over to the table where Glenn was proudly introducing Maggie to Sasha and Abe. It'd only been a week and those two had already become mostly inseparable. Seeing him so happy made her happy too and it also forced her to see what could happen if she'd only take a chance. She turned her attention back to Mike and gave him small smile.
"Well…my friend Glenn is usually my spades partner but I think he's a little preoccupied tonight…think you got what it takes?" Mike burst into a wide grin and nodded.
"Oh yeah!" They turned to head over, and forgetting that there was a step there, Michonne tripped and would've hit the ground if not for Mike's quick reflexes. "Careful…I want to sweep you off your feet, but not like this."
"Are you always this smooth?", she asked with a laugh.
He turned to her with his eyes shining and whispered, "I guess you're going to have to get to know me and find out."
XX
About two hours and a few games later, Michonne stood at the bar waiting for the two beers she'd ordered. Mike had offered to get them, but she'd insisted on going mainly because she needed the break. Her "date" was going as well as could be expected especially considering she wasn't expecting anything at all. Still, it felt like too much. Mike's spit game was strong and he took every chance he could to drop lines on her. That was one of the main problems. Even if he was being sincere, every word out of his mouth felt like a line. But maybe that was just her.
Aside from that, he was everything Sasha had described and any woman would be glad to be set up with him. For some reason that she pretended not to know but really just didn't want to admit, Michonne just wasn't feeling it or him. Sasha had been giving her dirty looks all night to the point where sweet, oblivious Glenn even noticed and asked what was going on with them. That was a lot, especially considering how wrapped up in Maggie he was.
Jesus appeared in front of her holding her beers with his long brown hair pulled up in a man bun and his bright blue eyes sparkling. Everyone just called him Jesus because of his long brown hair and beard, but his real name was Paul and he was the owner of the place. She'd been coming there with her friends for so long that he could be considered one of their friends too and Jesus was a new age kind of guy who always had something meditative and inspiring to say.
"Here are your Hilltop Brown Ales, madam."
"Thank you…"
"You're welcome…so who's the guy?", he asked tipping his chin toward the table where the group was. She took a deep breath before answering.
"That's Mike. Sasha ambushed me with a blind date." Jesus raised an eyebrow and his lips curved into an appreciative grin.
"Well…at least you were ambushed by a sexy blind date!" Michonne had to laugh at that one. "So how's the date going?"
"He's ok…horrible at spades though." A deep laugh escaped Jesus as he leaned across the bar to rest his chin on his palm.
"Demerit!" She smiled, but she glanced back at the table where Mike was laughing with Abe about something, and sobered quickly.
"Exactly…but other than that…he's ok." A frown crossed Jesus's face as his eyes searched her face for clues to what was happening in her head.
"That's not exactly a glowing review!"
"I know! I'm trying…it's just…I don't know…", she sighed, unable to meet his stare.
"Yes you do. Come on…tell Jesus all about it. Don't worry, we have bartender-client privilege." He persuaded with a sincere smile and there was something about Jesus that made her want to open up to him.
"You know that spark you get when you meet someone you may be interested in?" She began and he immediately started to nod.
"Oh yeah…it's like fireworks made out of butterflies are being shot off inside of you."
"Yeah…", she agreed. "I'm not feeling that with him, but I did feel it with a guy I met last week…" His jaw dropped and she felt the heat rising to her cheeks.
"Spill!", he pressed, but she knew it wasn't because he wanted to know all of her business. It was because he genuinely cared.
"There's nothing really to spill. We met, I felt the butterfly fireworks and something tells me he did too, but he has a girlfriend." He shook his head and squeezed her hand which was resting on the bar.
"Ouch…that seriously sucks. I'm sorry, Michonne.", he empathized.
"Me too. The problem is, now that I know that kind of spark actually exists and I've experienced what it feels like, I want it…"
"…And it's not there with Mr. Blind Date", he said, finishing her sentence for her. She closed her eyes and nodded slowly. "Just because it's not there with him, doesn't mean it's not going to be there with someone."
"I know…"
"But the real problem is the fact that you're hung up on a guy you can't have." She opened her eyes to find Jesus looking at her like he could see into her soul. She found that under his intense scrutiny, she couldn't deny it.
"Isn't it ridiculous? I honestly can't believe this is my life right now. I mean, I just met him! If Sasha had introduced me to Mike last week, we wouldn't even be having this conversation." Jesus shrugged and she could see the wheels turning behind his eyes.
"Lightning strikes without warning. There was nothing you could've done to stop it." She heard what he was saying and she saw the truth in it but it didn't resolve her issue.
"So what do I do now? I have a perfectly good guy waiting for me over there, but I'm not into it because there's no fireworks made out of butterflies." He stroked his beard in thought as he considered his reply.
"Whatever is meant to be will be but don't put yourself on hold waiting for what you think is supposed to happen. Life is way too short for that." It sounded simple, but it was exactly what she needed to hear to get her out of neutral. She smiled at Jesus and squeezed his hand.
"You're right. Thanks, Jesus." A wide smile appeared on his face and he gave her a kiss on the cheek before straightening to his full height.
"You're welcome…and tell Sasha she can set me up with a hot guy she works with anytime!", he said with a wink. She picked up the beers with a grin and turned to go back to the table.
"I'll pass that along!" She was almost there when she ran into Glenn and Maggie. "No! You guys aren't leaving are you?"
"Yeah, Maggie has an early class tomorrow and I'm not as young as I used to be."Glenn explained with an apologetic smile.
"Fine! I'm sure we're not too far behind you." Suddenly, she found herself wrapped in a slightly drunk Maggie's arms.
"Thank you for almost breaking my brother's ankle! If you hadn't, I probably wouldn't have met Glenn and he's the best!" Michonne laughed to herself on the inside and graciously returned the hug.
"You're welcome?" Maggie took a step back and her supermodel smile was pasted on her face.
"Rick is such a dumbass! You're so much cooler than the Basic Barbie he's dating…" Glenn's eyes grew wide and this time, Michonne couldn't hold in the laugh.
"Ok, Maggie! Let's go…" Glenn interrupted by gently draping his arm over Maggie's shoulders and they starting moving toward the door again. He looked back over his shoulder and gave Michonne a smile. "See you at the office tomorrow." She nodded and smiled back.
"I'll be there!" She watched them exit the bar before continuing her journey to the table. Mike looked up and gave her an appreciative once over as she handed him his beer.
"There you are! I thought you got lost.", he said with a sly grin.
"I was talking to Jesus." She offered, forgetting for a moment that he had no clue what she was talking about. The look on Mike's face was one of extreme confusion and both Abe and Sasha burst out laughing.
"Jesus is the bartender", Sasha explained and Mike nodded as understanding dawned on him.
"Oh…I was lost for a minute there. I mean…I'm all about religion but that would be a little strange, you know?" That time Michonne joined their laughter as she sat in the chair next to Mike who absently draped his arm across the back of her chair before turning back to the conversation.
The rest of the night was much of the same; the games had ended so it was just conversation until everyone finished their beers. Michonne made herself really pay attention to Mike and she found that he was more than ok. He was smart, funny, and attentive to her whenever she spoke. He would casually touch her whenever he could, leaving no question in her mind about his attraction to her. While she still wasn't there, she had to admit that after she'd given him a real chance she found him more interesting.
After about another half hour, and after paying their checks, Abe yawned and squeezed Sasha's shoulder.
"It's getting pretty late and I've got to get this little lady home before it's too late to make the Bisquick…" Michonne's eyes grew wide and she covered her mouth with her hand to hide her amusement.
"Abraham!", Sasha exclaimed, hitting him kind of hard on his thigh. Abe only laughed and shrugged.
"Sorry, darlin' but it's true!" Sasha rolled her eyes and looked to Michonne.
"Oh lord, let me get this man home because he definitely doesn't know how to act in public! Give me the keys, Abe!" They all rose from the table and started walking as a group toward the door, Abe and Sasha detouring toward the bar to say good night to Jesus. She and Mike continued outside to wait.
Once on the sidewalk, Mike turned to her wearing that smooth grin of his and she knew what was coming.
"I really had a good time with you tonight, Michonne," he said with a smile and Michonne returned his smile with one of her own.
"Yeah…me too…even though you might just be the worst spades partner I've ever had!", she teased causing him to laugh self-deprecatingly.
"Come on! You're never gonna let me live that down are you?" She folded her arms across her chest and tilted her head with a shrug.
"I can't believe you've never played joker, joker, ace!" He shook his head and shoved his hands in his pockets.
"My people play kings high, no jokers!" She shook her head as his explanation, not quite buying his excuses.
"Maybe next time we should play Uno…" His jaw dropped but after a moment he laughed at her insinuation that he needed to play a kid's game.
"Oh you are so wrong! Imma get you for that one!"
"What? Are you going to make me be your spades partner again?"
"Man, you're cold!" She laughed loudly at his description and nudged him with her shoulder.
"I'm just playing with you…kinda." For the first time that evening, she felt completely comfortable with him. It was like he was showing her a glimpse of who he was behind all of the smoothness.
"So…you said next time…does that mean you're going to give me your number so I can take you out sometime…this Friday hopefully?" The smoothness was back, but it wasn't quite as blatant and Michonne decided that maybe she should give him another chance.
"Sure…", she answered with a little nod and by the smile that appeared on his face, you'd think he'd just won the lottery. He pulled out his phone with a victorious smile and handed it to her to input the digits. After inputting the numbers, she handed it back to him.
"That's what's up…I'll text you with the details."
"Alright." Just then, Sasha and Abe came out of the bar and she walked right up to Mike and handed him the keys to their car.
"I'm going to drive but do you mind going to get the car with Abe?My feet are killing me in these shoes!" Mike nodded and took the keys from her. Michonne watched as he and Abe started off toward the garage, waiting until they were far enough away to turn to Sasha with a raised eyebrow and a frown. "Could you be any more obvious?"
"What? I needed to talk to you in private!"
"I know. I think Mike and Abe know that too."
"Whatever…so, it started off a little rough but it looked like you two hit it off…" Michonne released the breath she was holding and nodded slowly.
"I'm going out with him Friday night." She couldn't believe it, but Sasha actually did a little happy dance right there on the sidewalk.
"Oh yeah! I knew you'd want to get with him! The man is fine!"
"Yeah…I guess", she answered with a noncommittal shrug. Sasha's jaw dropped.
"You guess?! Are you blind?!" Of course Michonne could see that the man was fine and he had a lot of good qualities, but there was something missing but she didn't think Sasha would understand.
"No! I'm going out with him aren't I?", she offered, but it didn't change the skeptical expression on Sasha's face.
"Yeah, but you don't seem to excited about it…" Not having the time or the inclination to get into her true motivations and fears, Michonne chuckled and waved her hand dismissively
"You know me, Sash. I'm just overthinking things as usual." Sasha rolled her eyes and pulled her in for a hug.
"Well stop thinking and start living!", she whispered. Knowing that Sasha only wanted the best for her, Michonne hugged her back tightly and decided to give her a little something.
"I'm going to try. I promise." she conceded, making Sasha squeeze her a little tighter.
"That's all I ask." At that moment, Mike and Abe pulled up in their SUV. Mike got out and walked back over to where they were standing as Sasha released her. "Do you need a ride home?"
"Nah, my Uber will be here any minute.", she answered with a slight shake of her head. Sasha walked around the car and climbed into the driver's seat, leaving her and Mike sanding on the sidewalk.
"Ok then, bye girl! Call me!", She called out with a wave.
"Bye Sash!" Abe rolled down the window and stuck his head out.
"What? No love for me, Chonne?" She laughed and walked over to plant a quick kiss on Abe's cheek.
"Bye, Abe!" The window went back up and effectively gave her and Mike as privacy as you could get on a street in Buckhead at 11pm. A nervous feeling started to brew inside of her when she felt him gently take her hand in his and give it a gentle squeeze.
"Good night, Michonne," he said quietly, giving her one of those looks that could only be described as wanting. "I'm gonna be looking forward to seeing you again all week."
She smiled at him nervously, trying to figure out exactly how to respond. He must have taken her silence as her being stuck speechless by him and her eyes widened as she realized that he was leaning in closer to her like he was going to try to kiss her. She contemplated the sheer boldness of that move for a second too long, leaving her only a brief moment to quickly offer her cheek instead. Just as quickly as his lips touched her face, she was pulling her hand out of his and taking a step away from him. She was willing to try, but she wasn't willing to go that far. Not yet anyway.
In her periphery, she saw her Uber pull up behind Sasha's car and she stepped around Mike to head toward the car.
"Good night, Mike." She climbed into the back of the Uber and saw Mike climbing into the back of Sasha and Abe's vehicle. As the car pulled away from the curb, she leaned her head back against the seat and released a sigh that fittingly punctuated the evening she'd had. Even though it hadn't been what she was expecting, she was filled with hope that it would be the first step toward getting over the unavailable man who haunted her dreams.
XX
Uh-oh… what is Michonne going to do when she finds out that Rick broke up with Lori? What is Rick going to do when he finds out about Mike? More importantly, can Michonne respect a man who sucks at spades? Things are starting to get juicy! Thanks for reading and please review!
