Richonne (Short Love Stories) In Name Only (Chapter 34)
A/N: Thank you all for the wonderful reviews, the follows, the favorites, and most of all for reading. I appreciate you all so much.
One week later
"Well, I guess congratulations are in order," Ms. Gladys salutes her son. "Michonne….uh, your wife couldn't join us?"
Rick leans over to kiss his mother on the cheek before taking the seat across from her. They were meeting for lunch at her insistence since he told her he had gotten married and remained silent about the details.
"She's working, but I'm sure you'll insist we come over for dinner soon, right?" Rick asks.
"Of course and not just any dinner. I'd like to honor your union with a small reception since you two were so anxious and couldn't plan a church wedding," Ms. Gladys observes.
Rick ignores her quip. "A reception sounds nice. I'd have to check with Michonne first."
"Listen to you. Already a dutiful husband." Ms. Gladys smiles knowingly.
Her son looks a bit uncomfortable as he grabs his menu and starts perusing with feigned interest. "So, how's Dad?"
"Busy as usual. Won't slow down for one…." Ms. Gladys trails off as Rick interrupts.
"I mean, how's Dad with all of this?" Rick inquires with caution.
"Well, he wasn't quite sure how he should react, but he's fine as I explained my take on the whole thing," she answers.
"And what's your take?" Rick counters.
"You and Michonne have been friends for a while now. She brings something out in you and I've always admired that about you two. I guess it was just a natural progression, right?"
Rick nods absently, his mother's words sinking in deep. He is grateful she moves the conversation to her plans for their reception.
Over the next few weeks, Rick and Michonne fall into a routine. She moves in with him but decides to maintain her residence as well. Rick is not happy with it, but secretly decides to work on persuading her to change her mind. She transfers enough of her personal items to transform one of Rick's guest bedrooms into a nice little homey haven. He also allows her to make any changes she wants to other rooms in the house, wanting her to feel completely comfortable.
Michonne is content, especially after attending his parent's dinner reception in their honor and realizing that Mr. and Mrs. Grimes were convinced that their friendship had blossomed into love. She can't help feeling a little guilty about it, but this is to help Rick and everything seems to be falling right into place.
Her work schedule requires her to arrive at work no later than 8:30 and Rick usually starts his work day around 10, so he dutifully rises with her and they share breakfast each morning. Michonne tells him he doesn't have to do that but he always comments that it's what a good husband would do. She is thrown off balance even more when he walks her to the door to say goodbye and kisses her on the cheek every morning just like a loving husband would do.
Most evenings, she closes up in her room for a couple of hours after work just to work on a few things for her newly realized practice. She just needs to get some things lined up as far as finding a conducive office space to rent or purchase, furniture, filing the correct paperwork, obtaining statutory and official legal books for the state of GA, etc.
Rick offers to help but she is so determined to get as much done on her own that she politely declines. She lets him know that it's a goal of hers and it would feel better if she did most of the work herself.
He is still willing to help out as much as he can, so he either prepares their dinner, orders out or picks up something on his way home from work.
Another Friday night arrives and they have plans with their friends. Rick calls Michonne early and asks if they should meet at home and drive over together. She declines, saying she has a couple of things to finish up at work and would meet him there.
They are now ensconced in their evening out, enjoying drinks, food, and conversation. Glenn has asked Maggie to join them for the last two gatherings and she fit in seamlessly. Michonne is laughing with her about something when Rick notices her ring finger is bare. Before he knows it, he taps her hand to get her attention.
"Where's your ring?" He asks.
Michonne stops and looks at her hand as if it's the first time she has done so that today. She frowns slightly. "I must have forgotten it again. I'm still getting used to wearing it." She turns back to Maggie, the issue over and done with for her.
Again? Rick thinks to himself. He frowns as he lifts his glass to his mouth for another sip of his drink. He locks eyes with Daryl and looks away quickly.
A couple of hours later, they are preparing to call it a night and the ladies are away from the table, getting in a bathroom break.
Glenn looks over at his friend and ponders whether he should say this or not, but decides to throw caution to the wind. "Hey, ummm….Rick?"
"Yeah?"
"Are you sure this marriage thing was a good idea?" Glenn asks.
"What do you mean?" Rick returns.
"I don't know. You just seem….really invested in this," Glenn tells him.
"I am. Michonne and I have an understanding. This is basically a business deal," Rick assures.
"You sure about that?" Daryl chimes in.
Just then Rick hears Michonne's laughter across the restaurant. He's not even sure how he could detect her with all the buzzing noise surrounding them, but he did. She is laughing and talking with some guy he's never seen before. The guy politely touches her arm as they continue to converse.
"Who the hell is she talking to?" Rick moves to get up out of his chair, but Daryl places a hand on his shoulder.
The latter shakes his head as he looks directly at his friend. "Rick, what's going on with you, man? Are you falling for her?"
Rick scoffs, grabbing at his drink as a distraction. "No."
"But you noticed she wasn't wearing her ring and you were upset about it. Now you're questioning who she's talking to. You better pull up dude before it's too late," Glenn surmises.
"Too late for what?" Michonne asks as she returns to their table, picking up on the last of their conversation.
Glenn opens his mouth but Rick interrupts him.
"Nothing. You ready?" He asks Michonne.
"Yeah, but I'd like to say good night to Maggie and Sasha if you don't mind," Michonne relays as she claims her chair to wait for their friends.
Rick nods as he avoids the stares he is getting from Glenn and Daryl. He turns to Michonne. "So, who was that guy you were talking to?"
Glenn laughs as Daryl lets out a soft expletive.
The next morning, Michonne is preparing for a jog through the neighborhood. It's hard to include exercise during the week, so she tries to get something in on the weekends. Rick is seated in the kitchen, perusing the daily newspaper and partaking of some fruit and coffee.
Michonne grabs a couple of strawberries. "Good morning."
"Morning," he returns but never lowers the paper.
Michonne doesn't want to explore the reasons why but detects that Rick is just a tad miffed about her not wearing her band. She can't help but notice he hasn't taken his off since he put it on. That makes her feel a bit guilty so she is determined to bring a smile to his face.
"Care to join me on my jog this morning?"
"No, thanks. I'll see you when you get back. Anything you wanna do today?" He asks while still keeping the paper between them.
Michonne moves closer to him. "I'm sorry I forgot to put the ring on. I'll do better. I promise."
He finally puts the paper down and looks up at her. Before he can reply, she holds her hand up, her palm facing her and wiggles her fingers to show him she is wearing her band.
He smiles. "Thanks." Neither of them bother with coming up with an excuse why wearing the bands is important. They just accept it and move on.
"Well, I'm off. I'll see you in a while." She steps to him and surprises herself and him when she places a kiss to the top of his head.
They spend the next two or three weekends looking at office space to rent or purchase for Michonne's practice. She recalls how she wanted to do most of the leg work to get the practice off the ground, but she is glad Rick wanted to help. She values his opinion and knows he only wants the best for her.
A little more time passes and Rick has taken care of providing a copy of their marriage license to the family attorney, therefore starting the process to claim his inheritance. In the meantime, he assures Michonne about procuring personal loans for her practice. He relays that it should only be a matter of weeks before the inheritance comes through and she can pay everything off at once.
Michonne is sitting at her desk, enjoying a slow day at work and can't help reflecting on Rick and their friendship. She knows it's just that….a friendship but wonders if an actual marriage to him would be as good as what she's experiencing right now. He is thoughtful, he is kind, he has surprised her with little gifts, he still kisses her every morning before she leaves for work, he cooks, he listens when she talks….she surmises that he did most of those things anyway before they got married, so why do they matter so much now? A vision of her and Rick during their marriage ceremony in Vegas floats to her mind and she fantasizes about the kiss they shared. She swallows soundly as she realizes the only thing missing in her relationship or marriage is sex.
She almost laughs at the thought since she hasn't been sexually active in over a year now. She gave up on taking birth control six months ago as it was evident she wouldn't be getting laid again for a while. She believed what she had with Mike was special, but it became painfully obvious that she carried that belief on her own. While she remained faithful during their year long relationship, he cheated for half of the time they were together. Rick was there for her as he was going through something similar with Lori. They both thought they had found the people they would marry and they were both fooled. It's amazing to her that neither of them ever talk about that dark time in their lives but maybe their current predicament mirrors the effects of those relationships. Although this business arrangement of a marriage benefits both of them, she can't deny that they are a safe bet for each other. It has been over a year since either of them dated anyone seriously and they end up marrying each other. What is wrong with us? Are we that afraid to try again? She shakes her head as her thoughts are taking her down a path she'd rather not travel.
Meanwhile, Rick is seated in a small café on the campus of the university about to have some lunch. He gives the waitress his order and sighs deeply as he takes in his surroundings. This place is always teeming with college kids, but faculty and staff frequent it as well. He notices a colleague and was about to wave him over when the red-haired gentleman is joined by a beautiful dark-skinned woman who immediately reminds him of Michonne. He watches as the couple greet each other with a kiss before being seated at a table. He looks away as he doesn't want to stare and he especially doesn't want them to catch him staring. He can't help but wonder if he'll ever have a significant other again. He knows legally he already does, but this is a marriage of convenience. He now second guesses himself and wonders if he and Michonne made the right decision.
He smiles as the waitress places his order in front of him and tells him to enjoy it. He welcomes the distraction as he prepares to partake of his lunch.
She brings something out in you and I've always admired that about you two. His Mother's words come back to him clearly as he ponders on his relationship with Michonne. He has to agree as he does feel that he's a better person because of her. She challenged him and continues to do so. She is always there for him, she listens to him, she believes in him, she encourages him….that kiss on the head only started little gives and takes of affection between them. Nothing overt, just a hand squeeze or an innocent kiss or even a shared glance. She has come to mean so much to him that he can't think of them not being this way with each other. They never discussed what they'd do after he received the inheritance. Whether or not they'd annul the marriage or let things remain as they are. He wouldn't mind if things stayed the way that they are. He wonders how Michonne would feel about it.
He thought he would have a chance to talk to her about it, but she called and said she'd be working late. On a Friday night? He doesn't dwell on it. He almost joined Glenn, Daryl, and some other friends to watch a basketball game on TV, but declined. He opted to watch a movie and order a pizza, wondering how long it would be before his wife arrived home.
Rick's eyes pop open and he realizes he fell asleep on the couch. He wonders about the time as it feels kind of late. He looks at his wristwatch and determines it's almost 3 in the morning. He scrubs his face with his hands and peels himself off the couch. He switches off the TV and the lights and makes his way upstairs, assuming Michonne is asleep in her room. He notices her door is slightly ajar so he walks over to look in on her and close the door all the way. He peeps in and notices a completely empty, made up bed.
She's not home?! He races back down the stairs and grabs his cell phone off the kitchen counter. He checks the missed calls, but none are from Michonne. He dials her cell quickly only to get her voice mail. He tried again with the same result. He contemplates calling Sasha or Maggie, wondering if she could be spending time with one of them. Before he could decide, he hears a key in the door and turns toward the living room area.
Michonne walks in slowly, closing and locking the door behind her. She turns around to start tiptoeing towards the stairs and freezes as she encounters Rick coming from the kitchen area.
She straightens up to her full height. "Hey. I didn't know you'd still be up."
"Michonne, it's 3 o'clock in the morning. Where have you been? You couldn't call and let me know you were ok?" Rick asks with concern.
Feelings of guilt assail her so her response is more defensive than intended. "First of all, I know what time it is, secondly, I was out having drinks with friends, and thirdly, I didn't know I had to check in with you."
Rick frowns. "I was just worried. That's all. It's not like you to stay out like this."
"Without you….you mean?" She sighs heavily. "I just needed to try something different, so I went out with some co-workers."
"Let me guess. The co-worker you saw at the restaurant a while back?" Rick guesses.
Michonne eyes him. "Yes, he was there. So what?"
"Are you seeing him?"
"You're asking me if I've been unfaithful to you? And just how faithful have you been?"
"I've been nothing but faithful. You should know that," Rick tells her.
Michonne deflates quickly as she does know it. "Why?"
"What?"
"Why have you been faithful?" She inquires.
Rick looks down at his sock covered feet, wondering how to answer her. "I….I don't know. I….we got married and isn't that what married people do? Stay faithful to each other?"
Michonne closes her eyes against the image he is presenting. A handsome man unsure of what he is feeling, unsure if he is supposed to be feeling the way he's feeling. She opens her eyes and looks at him. "Yes, we stay faithful to each other because that's what we're supposed to do." She hesitates. "I haven't been unfaithful to you, Rick. The thought has never crossed my mind."
He gives her a slight smile, his relief so evident that Michonne makes a decision right then and there. She's not sure if the slight buzz she received from her alcohol intake is the culprit or if it's her heart or her head. She just knows what she wants and she's going to go for it.
"We're always going to be friends, right? No matter what happens between us?" She asks cautiously.
"Of course. Always." Rick assumes she means their marriage and how it could possibly end between them.
"I want something from you. Is that ok?" She takes a step toward him.
"Anythang you want. You know that," Rick tells her sincerely.
She walks over to him, her chest brushing his as she looks up and searches his eyes.
"Michonne?"
She leans in and places her lips against his.
He pulls back to look at her. "You've been drinking…..you…."
She shakes her head as she places her hands on his shoulders. "I'm not drunk, Rick. I know exactly what I want."
She pulls him toward her and kisses him again, moving her lips against his until he responds. She opens her mouth to taste him with her tongue as he wraps an arm around her waist and brings their bodies flush against each other.
A/N: Part III?