Christine woke early. She felt more comfortable than she had the night before on the couch and somehow more free. Free as in naked. She sat up quickly and looked next to her then groaned. Maybe she could just slip out of bed before he woke up and then avoid him for the rest of the day. No such luck. Michael was awake. Her brilliant plan of escape wouldn't work. Clutching the duvet to her chest, she ran a hand through her tangled curls and groaned again. Humiliation also came with an alcohol induced headache. Christine rubbed her forehead and wrestled with her hair, all the while trying to ignore the superstar in bed next to her. But when he sat up next to her and moved her hair behind her shoulders, she looked up at him. His expression was thoughtful, not angry or ashamed. She could have cried.

"Are you alright?" Michael asked, stroaking her hair down to the middle of her back.

"Alright? Michael, I...I...date raped you!" To her great surprise, he laughed and pressed gentle kisses to her shoulder and cheek. Satisfied when her eyes slid closed and she sighed, he took his chances and pulled her back down next to him in bed. Her hands covered her face and he took both of her small wrists in one of his hands to pull them away. He saw her blue eyes glistening and sighed to himself before pulling her tight against his chest. She allowed him to do this, feeling not entirely comfortable with herself. They were both still very naked and very close to one another. She also wasn't entirely sure that all of the alcohol had worn off.

"You're not angry with me?" She asked softly. He chuckled and pushed her hair out of both of their faces.

"Why on earth would I be angry with you?" He asked. "If anything, you should be angry with me. You were the vulnurable one last night, remember?"

"I kissed you first,"

"I kissed you back." She groaned again while he chuckled and squeazed her tightly around the shoulders. "How about this? It's no one's fault. It just happened." Michael was actually surprised at himself. He normally would have been very embarrassed at this, but he was a little offended and amused at how embarrassed she was.

"Would you rather pretend like it never happened?" He asked. "We could go back to the awkward small talk, the shyness."

"Let me know how that works for you." She grumbled and sat up again, clutching the sheet about her chest. He sat up with her and took her face in his hands, forcing her to look at him.

"Do you really want to leave it like this? Do you think that's best?" With her face squished between his big hands, she wasn't able to make much expression. She couldn't even shake her head, but she tried. "Christine. What do you want?" She opened and closed her mouth several times before...not answering. Christine didn't know what she wanted. But he was leaning toward her again and she still couldn't move. He was going to kiss her after she'd date raped him. She didn't deserve this.

"Are you really that ashamed?" She could feel his breath on her face, feel his hands trembling, and she nodded as best she could.

"I'm ashamed of myself, Michael. I'm ashamed of what I've done."

"And what have you done?"

"In case it's escaped your notice, we're naked in bed together." His hand traveled across her stomach. She shivered but she couldn't decide if it was from delight or something else. "I seduced you...while we were both incredibly intoxicated. You can't tell me you don't resent me a little bit for that."

"I can and I am." He said. His tone was final, leaving Christine without an argument. None that she would voice, anyway. While her shoulders slumped, Michael dragged her back down again and she allowed it.

"What happens now?" she murmured, holding more tightly to the arm he'd wrapped around her waist than what was entirely necessary. She thought she felt his lips against her hair but kept still. "I mean...I'm your employee. It's not entirely appropriate to form a relationship. But then, what other choice do we have? It's not like this is something silly that we can just shrug off and forget about. I've read about employers that--"

"We're not them." He whispered. "Let's try this out. Are you attracted to me?" A small blush rose in his own cheeks as he asked her this and she fidgeted next to him.

"I--well--Yes..." He wouldn't let her know that his own heart actually lept a little at this.

"Give me one good reason why this wouldn't work, then."

"You're paying me. I'm not paying rent to live with you. I'm eating your food without paying for it. ...You're paying me."

"It doesn't bother me." Christine scoffed and rolled her eyes up to meet his. She was surprised to see that he was smiling.

"If this blows up in our asses---Oh, shit!" Cecil was calling their names. Christine wasn't sure how her old-fashioned mother was going to take this strange discovery.

"Don't curse, Christine." Michael practically groaned. She pushed herself away from him, taking the sheet with her to stay concealed and dashed out of the room. She'd hoped to avoid her family, but ran head-on into her brother. Liam righted the both of them and then snatched his hands back when he saw his half-naked sister. His eyes darted from the bedroom door and back to her several times before it clicked in his brain.

"You did not just come out of there like that! Christine, are you out of your ever-loving mind? He's your boss--!"

"Liam, keep your voice down! I don't want Momma knowing about this! Now get out of the way so that I can get into the bathroom."

"You're in trouble, little girl. I promise you..."