CHAPTER FOUR

ANOTHER ACCIDENTAL RUN IN

The rain was pouring, she was soaked to the bone when she dashed into the elevator, which had been left open as if someone had held it for her. She leaned heavily against a wall and Michael asked with a shake of his head, "Do you not own an umbrella?"

"I do, but.. That blackout last night knocked out my power. Which killed my alarm. Which is why when I woke up almost 10 minutes later than usual, I didn't think to grab the damn thing on my way out the door. So.. How was your first day as a suit?"

"It was interesting. My aunt's going to fight for her position in ELQ. I really, really hope this doesn't get as messy as I'm afraid it will." Michael said quietly, as she looked at him and then shrugged, said calmly, "So what if it does? I'd think restaurant manager suits you better anyway.. You were always in the back, cooking. I found out, sadly, today at my lunch break.. You are the magic behind the pizza at Pozzulos."

He blushed a little then said "I am not."

"You are. The guy who was makin 'em today got the damn crusts all wrong. So in order for me not to starve, Michael, might be best if you go back?"

He chuckled. She'd been trying to make him feel better about his lousy day at work and it was obvious by his laughter that it'd worked to some degree.

His phone rang. It was Kiki and he slid it back into his pocket after hitting ignore for only the fifth time that day. Every since he'd seen her with Morgan and known the two of them would never be done as far as each of them went, he'd been distancing himself until he'd finally broken things off with her as best as he could.

Morgan, as a result, was thriving now. He had Kiki back, he was in Michael's old job at Pozzulos, things couldn't be better for his younger brother and Michael, while being a little less than happy, wasn't entirely displeased with the way things had worked themselves out.

His uncle Jason had always told him that things would work themselves out for everyone, eventually.

Lana's cell phone rang and she had a dark look in her eyes for a moment, then swearing in what sounded like either Spanish or Portugese, she put the phone into her pocket.

"Everything okay?" he asked in concern as she shrugged and said "Considering how good at being an idiot I am, they're not better nor are they no worse than the usual." keeping her answer deliberately vague. She looked at him and said offhandedly, "My ex."

"Ahh."

"Yeah. He's your typical lying douchebag who'll fuck anything in a skirt then try and blame you for it. I'm amazed that I lasted as long as I did with the guy, honestly. And disgusted. Very disgusted with myself."Lana said as she thought about what lie ahead for her, raising a child alone.

Because somehow, by the grace of God above, her kid was never going to grow up in the hell she had. And she'd die before she told her ex about a child. Or go back to him for that child's sake. She was old enough to know that staying together for the kids was a bad idea.

He hadn't hit her or anything, but he hadn't treated her with the respect and love she'd deserved, either. And Lana wasn't about to stand for that.

She loved her kid enough to know that those kinds of relationships between parents didn't make for a stable and healthy or happy childhood.

And her little baby, whether it be a boy or a girl, was going to have normal, damn it, no matter what price Lana had to pay for that to happen.

The door to the elevator slipped open on another floor between the floors they lived on, and the reporter stepped on, looking at Michael with a predatory look.

"She your new girlfriend?"

"You always this nosy on an elevator?" Lana retorted, making the mockingly almost acidic smirk drop from the male reporter's face as he mumbled something.

Michael edged closer to her, almost as if an insinct took over and put his arm around her, in a friendly way, that neither of them mistook but the reporter, of course, did, and commented on it, something to the affect of asking "So.. Is this why you and Ms. Jerome ended things? You were cheating on her with a common stripper?"

"Actually, you halfwit, I'm not a stripper.. Just a bartender who on occasion gets on top of a bar and shakes her ass. No clothing comes off. I have been a stripper before.." Lana answered candidly, smirking when she looked at the reporter and said calmly, "Whatever you think you got, sir.. I'd give it up now. Because there's nothing going on here, anybody with half a brain can see that.. Why in the hell would a rich guy like him associate with the likes of me?"

The elevator doors slid open and Michael chuckled as he looked at her. She sighed and said quietly, "Sorry. It's just been a really, really rough day."

"I can tell.. Wanna go get something to eat and talk about it." Michael asked as Lana shrugged and then said quietly, "It is what it is. Just hope that asshole didn't cause you too much trouble."

"I'm not worried about him."

"Don't worry about me, either. I've got me." Lana informed cautiously as he looked at her and said with a shake of his head "You're my friend. I'm gonna worry about you whether you want me to or not." as she looked at him, smiled warmly and then said in a softer tone of voice, "Thanks.. I mean I don't have many people willing to call themselves my friend. Kinda standoffish." to which Michael nodded and said casually, "Me too. But I think you're my friend, I mean we had drinks the other night, we talked until well into early morning. That's kinda what friendship is.. I mean last time I checked."

"Me too." Lana said as she looked at Michael and bit her lower lip then said quietly, "This guy, he's.. He thinks that he's gonna be bigger than Tony Montana one day. I mean he's got an ego that's out of this world. It never fails to amuse me just how highly he thinks of himself. Problem is, he thinks I belong to him. I didn't see it that way. I got out now he's hell bent on making me pay for it. I'm better off, really." as she twisted a strand of hair around her fingertips and studied him intently.

Why couldn't she have ran into Michael again before she got herself into this mess? Why couldn't she have had the nerve to tell him back then, how she felt? And why couldn't she just accept the fact that now might just be too late. He was probably only talking to her to be nice. He'd always been a nice guy, even if he was one of the most closed off and private guys that'd walked the halls of Madison Prep when they were both students there.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Michael asked as he looked at her intently and wondered why it looked like the weight of the world was on her mind and her shoulder. She'd had a bad day, it wasn't any of his business. That's what he kept telling himself at least, but it wasn't working yet.

There was just something about her that made him want to protect her or something. And for a split second, before they parted ways, he found himself wondering why he hadn't met her before he'd ever met Kiki? And then common sense took over and reminded him, 'Even if you had, Michael.. You'd have been a basketcase, a walking time bomb. She didn't need or deserve that. But you have a chance now. All you can do is try, right?' as he looked at her and said quietly, "So.. How about that bite to eat? We could both use the conversation and distraction.. Please? You'd be doing me a favor, I don't wanna go into my apartment and warm up yet another microwave meal."

"Sure." Lana said as she smiled and let him push the down arrow, then let him lead her out of the apartment building, and to the car he drove. Her heart raced in her chest as she tried to sort out whether this was a date or just two people going to get food and talking to keep from being lonely. She figured that for her own sake (as well as her unborn child's) she'd better not go assuming anything. After she told him what she was up against, he'd surely stop being her friend, she figured, so it was for the best that she didn't let herself fall any harder or get anymore attached.

But she had the feeling, as they ate and talked, and she told him more about herself, personal things that hardly anyone knew about her, it was going to be a harder task than she anticipated.