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The Hallmark Channel's 'Chesapeake Shores'
Mick and Megan O'Brien
By Annette Zoaps
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'Fear of Flying'
Chapter 3
Megan pulls her car into a spot at the curb in close proximity to the doors Mick will exit. Though his phone call a couple of hours earlier was brief as he hurried to catch his flight, she smiles when she remembers their engaging conversation of the night before.
"You were the best friend I ever had." She sighs.
Suddenly, striking like a knife through her reverie, a caravan of lights and sirens speeds by, slowing at the far end of the drive and turning in at airport.
"Oh, God, not again!" Her hands fly to her face and she closes her eyes. After a few paralyzing seconds, she turns on the radio and frantically tries to find a news station.
She is startled by the sound of tapping and someone calling her name, and looks up to see Mick at the passenger-side window.
"Oh, thank God!" she cries, reaching across the seat to open the door.
"Megan, what's happened? You look scared to death. Are the kids all right?" He tosses his bag over the back of the seat and climbs in, searching her face.
"I thought it was you!"
"Me! I'm fine. It was a perfect flight." He leans toward her and places a hand on her shoulder, rubbing it gently.
"Look down there." She points to the end of the road where the emergency crew is still engaged. "I thought your plane …"
"Oh, Megan." Though they're separated by the center console, he finds a way to draw her into his arms. "Honey, this has got to stop."
She gives in to his comforting closeness for a satisfying moment, but finally pulls away and sinks back in the seat.
Taking a couple of breaths, she finally forces a smile. "We need to get out of the pick-up lane. Would you drive?"
Mick gives her a sideways glance. "This isn't over. We have to get to the bottom of what's worrying you."
"It's nothing. Anyone can be startled by a few fire trucks racing by."
"Maybe. Maybe not," he says doubtfully. "Let's switch seats and get out of here."
They exit their doors and walk around the front of the car, passing without so much as a touch. A quick snap of their seatbelt buckles, and they're on the road.
"You were fine last night, even after hearing about what happened on my flight." He gives her a look.
"Not now, Mick."
"Later, then. But I'm not dropping it."
"There's nothing to worry about," she says.
"Then why are you worried?"
"Do I look worried?"
. . .
As they enter Megan's house, she asks, "Can I get you anything?"
"Whatever you want." He stands with his hands in his pockets. "We need to talk. Nothing else matters."
"Sit down, Mick. And wipe that serious look off your face."
"Wish I could."
Megan steps into the kitchen, where she retrieves something from the refrigerator and takes two plates from the cupboard.
"This should help." She hands him a plate with a slice of Sally's cheesecake on it.
"A bribe won't silence me." He grins. "Well, not for long."
"Feeling better?" she asks after they've enjoyed a few bites.
"I'm fine. You're the one with the problem."
"That's not what you said last night. You said we both needed help. Want to tell me your troubles?" She closes her eyes and savors a forkful of bliss.
He chuckles. "Way to turn the tables. But I have to admit, cheesecake does seem to make troubles melt away."
"Mmm. Just like its whipped cream melts in your mouth."
He sets his empty plate on the coffee table a few minutes later and gives her a serious look. "My troubles? Where do I start? I used to worry about you — a lot."
"Why were you worried? And how'd you get over it?" she asks casually, as though they're talking about the weather.
"When you were in New York, far from our safe little town, I used to live for Abby's phone calls. I'd catch up with her and the girls, of course, and then subtly ask how you were doing."
Megan's eyes widen. "She spied on me for you?"
"No, she would only tell me you were fine — 'just fine' — and I'd hang on to that. Once in a while, she'd let slip that you'd had a cold, or a pipe burst in your apartment, or you were doing well in your job. Nothing too personal. For a day or two afterward, I felt relieved knowing you were all right. But by the end of the week, I'd start worrying again."
"I never had a clue. Why don't you worry anymore?"
"I still have a concern or two. I mean, you're living alone, and I wonder how safe that is, even in Chesapeake Shores. Don't give me that look — I know you're capable of taking care of yourself. But now that I can see for myself how you're doing, I worry less. And knowing I can call at any time eases my mind."
"Being close to home isn't working for me. It makes me fear for you even more."
"Narrow it down. When do you get anxious? Every day? Now and then?"
She gives thought to his question. "Sometimes I feel panicked when you leave town, especially when you fly yourself or drive far away."
"Then it's not some vague fear. You fear for my safety. My life."
He pauses, and offers a thought. "It's because I'm old, isn't it."
He looks deadly serious, and she can't help but laugh.
Stretching his arm across the back of the couch behind her, he says, "If it's not that, then what?"
When she doesn't answer, his arm drops to her shoulders and he moves a little closer.
"Tell me," he says, his voice low and gentle, willing her to confide in him. "Maybe I can help."
She closes her eyes and holds an internal battle with herself.
"You can say it," he whispers.
Finally, she nods, but keeps her eyes closed while she answers.
"I'm afraid something will happen to you before we have a chance to …"
She still refuses to look at him, instead pressing her forehead against his shoulder.
"Don't leave me in suspense," he says gently.
"If I tell you, we can't go back."
"Go back? To being enemies? To fighting? Being estranged? The last thing I want is to go back."
She shifts her position to put some distance between them, barely gaining the nerve to give him a pleading glance.
"Okay, okay. Let me try to guess," he offers. "You're afraid something will happen before we have a chance to — eat cheesecake together?" He gestures toward their empty plates. "Mission accomplished. I can happily go to my eternal reward: 'Death by cheesecake,'" he pretends to read his epitaph.
As he banters with her, she feels some of her tension drain away.
He continues the game.
"Or, become friends again? I think we're good there." He gives her a smile that proves his deep affection. "Or — maybe become more than friends?" He searches her eyes.
"You're still joking?" She gives him a dubious look.
"I'm a hundred-percent serious. I think you know that. If I'm wrong about how you feel, shoot me down." He caresses her cheek. "But if I'm right …"
"You always have to be right," she teases, leaning into his hand.
"I won't know I'm right if you won't tell me. Say it. Finish your thought. Or if you can't, then answer this: Are you worried right now?"
"My feelings are all over the place," she says nervously. "But my only worry is admitting what I was about to say."
"Say it anyway. Because, you know, I'm all about conquering our fears. Whisper it. You never know, I might be worrying about the same thing."
Softly, she says, "I don't want something to happen before we have a chance to see if we can get back together — if that's even possible."
"There's only one solution," he says, his eyes twinkling. "We have to reunite before something can happen to either one of us. What else can we do? You're worried. I'm worried. You want to keep an eye on me, and I really want to keep an eye on you." There's no missing the look of adoration on his face. "We have no choice. It's out of our ..."
"Stop!" She laughs. "You're going way overboard!"
"Overboard? You know I don't do things in moderation — like eating cheesecake."
He leans toward her, his lips a breath away from hers.
"Or worrying about you," he continues. "Or wanting you back in my life. Megan, I won't stop until …"
She cups his face in her hands and bridges the space between them with a tentative kiss, not entirely convinced he's serious, but unable to hold back any longer.
It's an invitation he can't resist. He presses into the warmth of her lips, one hand holding her slender frame close, and the other tangling into her hair.
"So sweet," he sighs, possessing her mouth again. "Sweeter than …"
"Did you just compare me to a cheesecake?" She laughs, clinging to his neck.
"Only the best, most luscious, incredibly irresistible …"
"I suppose that's better than being compared to an airplane," she says wistfully.
"My airplane is no laughing matter."
"You're right. It's not." Her eyes fill with worry again. "It's always there in the back of my mind."
"We could enroll you in flying classes," he suggests, holding her comfortingly and swaying as though they're floating in a cockpit high above the clouds.
"Seriously, no," she protests, stiffening her posture to make him stop.
"Then I'll give up flying."
"You will not. I can't ask you to do that. Mick, flying's in your blood."
"I don't have to get rid of the plane, but I can stop flying it."
He interrupts another protest by claiming her mouth again, breaking loose a passion they thought they'd locked away nearly two decades before.
"In a choice between you and my plane, which do you think I'll choose? My plane never made me feel like this."
His mouth is insistent, seeking her cheek, her neck, settling on the warm spot where her pulse pounds, exciting her beyond anything she was prepared for.
"I choose you," he breathes. "I'll always choose you."
"But do you choose me over cheesecake?" she teases, kissing him hard as an incentive.
"Don't tempt me, woman!" He laughs. "I aim to have you both."
"Mmm, yes," she agrees. "What a way to go."
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The End
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This story is complete! If you love Mick and Megan as much as I do, be sure to check out my other stories:
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If you love Mick and Megan as much as I do, be sure to check out my other stories:
NEW! Hallmark's Chesapeake Shores Mick and Megan O'Brien, The Whiskers of Machu Picchu, 2 chapters
Hallmark's Chesapeake Shores Mick and Megan O'Brien, Come Let Me Love You
Hallmark's Chesapeake Shores Mick and Megan O'Brien, Fear of Flying, 3 chapters
Hallmark's Chesapeake Shores Mick and Megan O'Brien, The One That I Want
Hallmark's Chesapeake Shores Mick and Megan O'Brien, Where the Wind Blows
Hallmark's Chesapeake Shores Mick and Megan O'Brien, Once a Promise
Hallmark's Chesapeake Shores Mick and Megan O'Brien, Mother of the Bride, 2 chapters
Hallmark's Chesapeake Shores Mick and Megan O'Brien, Love Song
Hallmark's Chesapeake Shores Mick and Megan O'Brien, First Kiss
The Hallmark Channel's 'Chesapeake Shores' — Mick & Megan O'Brien, 9 chapters
Chesapeake Shores — Megan at the Met — Mick and Megan O'Brien, 6 chapters
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I want to take a moment to thank everyone who has been reading and making positive comments about my stories!
I appreciate it more than you know!
Annette Zoaps
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