Chapter 6

One Month Later -

The work day was extremely stressful for Tony Almeida. They had captured a well known terrorist, and interrogated him, only for him to give them no information and be killed. Tony hadn't slept or eaten in almost 24 hours. He was exhausted. He had a date with Allie that night. I can't break it he thought. When he walked into his home, he sat on the couch, kicked off his shoes and picked up the phone.

"Hello." A voice said from the other end of the call.

"Hey, it's me." Tony said.

"Hey, you alright, you sound a little stressed?" Allie asked.

"Yeah, it was a very very stressful day, that's all, be glad you're on vacation." Tony said.

"Tony, if it was a crisis you should have called me. I would have been there in no time." Allie said wondering why he didn't call her for help.

"It's alright, you deserve to relax a little."

"So do you. When are you going to take a vacation?" Allie asked forcefully.

"Really it's fine, but the reason I'm calling, is because I was wondering if we could change our plans for tonight?" He asked getting up and getting a soda from the fridge.

"Sure, what did you have in mind?" Allie asked surprised that they were still going to see each other.

"Do you want to just come over, I'm pretty beat." Tony asked taking a sip when he finished speaking.

"Sure. What time?"

"Now." Tony said with a grin. Allie also smiled on the other end of the phone.

"Sure, see you in a few." She made a kissing noise and hung up. Tony sat back on the couch and clicked on the TV. Tony started watching Law and Order. He loved that show, and trying to guess who the culprit was. He watched about 10 minutes of it when his doorbell rang. He got up, in his socks and answered the door.

"Michelle. What are you doing here?" He asked amazed that she was standing there.

"Can I come in?" Michelle asked. Tony hesitated.

"Well, actually, Allie is on her way over." Tony said. Michelle nodded.

"Good, because she should hear what I have to say also." She said. Tony nodded and let her in.

"Can I get you anything to drink?" Tony asked.

"Scotch."

"Actually, I don't keep any alcohol in the house." Tony said. Michelle's eyes lit up.

"Alright, well I'll take a coke." She said. Tony reached for the handle on the refrigerator.

"Coke I can do." He said opening her can and handing it to her. They sat in silence for a few moments when another knock came on the door. Tony took a very deep breath in and got off the couch and went to answer the door. He slowly turned the doorknob and opened it. He saw Allie in the doorway and gave her a half smile. Allie smiled normally back at him.

"Hey." She said reaching up and giving him a kiss on the lips. She walked around him and into the house where she first saw Michelle sitting on the couch. Allie stopped dead in her tracks. Her facial expression was confusion and suspicion. "Hi Michelle. I'm surprised to see you here. Is something wrong?" Allie asked trying to be as nice as possible.

"Yes, something is wrong, and I'm trying to right it now. That's why I'm here." Michelle said. Allie gave Tony a glance. He couldn't tell if it was a scared look, or a pissed one. "Listen. Allie I want you to know that I thought you should hear this too. I'm sorry for acting the way I've been acting. I really don't hate you, I actually like you, I have friends just like you, but I felt like you were taking something away from me, and I got defensive." Michelle said. Allie could see sincerity in her eyes.

"With all due respect Michelle, what did I take from you? You and Tony were over, and he came to me first, not me to him." Allie said.

"Really? Is that the way it happened Tony?" Michelle asked looking at him hurt. Tony paused before answering, looking back and fourth at both women pleading with their eyes for him to take their side.

"Yeah, it's true." He said not wanting to look Michelle in the eyes.

"Well," Michelle started. She swallowed, and she could feel her throat getting tighter. "I appreciate the honesty. So I'm going to be honest too. Tony, I still am so in love with you. After we split, I felt so empty. I need to feel whole. I want you back, I just love you so much, and I forgive everything that happened in the past. If you can too." Michelle said. Tears were starting to well in her eyes. Allie's face was white like a ghost. Allie too had tears forming in her ducts. Tony couldn't believe what he was hearing. He looked at Michelle who was dying to have him back. He could feel her desperation. Then he looked over at Allie and saw her reaction. He knew that she was crushed and humiliated and angry.

"I really don't know what to say." Tony said softly. He was overjoyed that Michelle still loved him after all this time, but was sad at the same time, because he wasn't lying when he told Allie that he loved her.

"It's really simple Tony, who do you love?" Allie said. Both women were glaring at Tony. He was so overwhelmed. Allie could see the split decision in his eyes. She knew that he didn't want to hurt either of them. She took a deep breath in, and slowly let it out. Her heart was beating so heavily. "I'll make this easier for you. I'll leave." Allie said. Michelle's face took on a shocked expression. Tony's eyes darted to hers. She could see that she had hurt him.

"Allie, no don't go. Let's talk about all this." Tony said walking to her and gabbing her arm.

"Tony, I've made up my mind. You and Michelle were married, that's way more serious than anything we've shared. You two are clearly meant to be together." Allie said. She looked down and began crying. When she looked back up Tony was almost in tears also. She gave him a soft goodbye kiss on the lips. "I'll never forget the time that we had, but you're heart belongs somewhere else, and as much as I want to be with you, I know that it's not possible." Allie whispered. She backed away from Tony and looked at Michelle, and then looked back at Tony. " I hope that everything works out for you two. You obviously belong together." Allie said. She took one more look at the pair nodded in acceptance, and walked out of the house.