It was six o'clock at night and Michaela closed up the office and started to walk to her car. With her keys in hand, she moved down the sidewalk and around the corner to the parking lot of her office. On her small journey, she heard her phone ring in her purse.
"Sully," she read, once she retrieved her phone. She smiled, and a rush of endorphins flooded her body, "Hello."
"Hi," he said on the other end, "I know this is short notice, but would you like to go out with me tonight? Alone, without children."
"Um…" she answered.
"I'm not askin' for all night. Maybe an hour or two," he said. He had his mother at home watching his kids, and if her answer was no because she couldn't find a sitter, he could likely help her make arrangements for that or alter his plans. He did want to hear her answer though.
Her short answer was yes. She would like to go out with him, but he was right, it was short notice. Her ability to go anywhere that night, alone and without children, was entirely dependent on Dorothy. If she was willing and able to stay late, then Michaela could go. If not, the answer would have to be no. Well, she probably could invite him over to her home, however, the children would be present.
She hoped Dorothy could stay late. They hadn't spent much time together since Halloween and that was two weeks ago now. They did send text messages back and forth, and she saw him on the last two Saturdays when she dropped Matthew off at his baseball camp, but they weren't able to really interact with one another.
It wasn't that they didn't want to interact, they both found themselves to be very busy. Since the kids started school at The Evangelical Christian Academy, they had more homework than before, and they were behind and needed help catching up. Zachary was much further behind than Colleen and Matthew, according to Sully, so he had to spend a lot of time helping him. Colleen and Matthew weren't as far behind as Zachary, according to Michaela, but Michaela had to spend about the same amount of time helping, because she had two kids that needed to catch up and not just one.
Other than schoolwork, Michaela had just enrolled Colleen in dance classes, and she attended three times a week. Michaela also wanted to spend some extra time with Brian, who wasn't enrolled in a new school or any extra activities, but still needed her attention.
Sully also had a cattle show coming up. When he wasn't with his kids or running the baseball camp, his time was focused on getting everything ready for that.
Though they both had life going on around them and had a lot to think about, they were missing each other very much.
Michaela reached her Mercedes, opened the door, and gently tossed her purse inside. She climbed in the vehicle and said, "Would you mind if I called you back in a few minutes? I need to call Dorothy."
"Sure," he replied, and smiled when she ended the call. At the very least, she wanted to go out with him. He hoped that Dorothy could stay late. About a minute later, she called him back, "Hey."
"Dorothy said she could stay as late as 9:00 o'clock," Michaela informed him, "That gives us roughly two and a half hours, depending on where you want to go."
"The place I'd like to meet you is maybe two minutes from your office," Sully said, "It's a mom-and-pop coffee shop called The Brew."
"I know where that is," Michaela said, looking ahead. She could see the place from her car, "How long will it take you to get there?"
"I'm there," Sully revealed, "I'm sittin' in a booth as we speak."
"Oh," she answered, "then I guess I'll see you in a couple of minutes."
"Good," Sully replied, "I'm in the corner booth, on the right, as you walk in."
"I'll find you," Michaela said.
Michaela found Sully very easily and was now sitting next to him in the corner booth of The Brew. She looked around the place and noticed that it had the typical trendy décor that she saw in several coffee shops. The main difference was this place had booths for seating around the perimeter of the establishment, rather than the typical free-standing tables, couches, and mid-century modern accent chairs. It was quiet and dimly lit, with low lighting over their booth and each of the booths present. In the middle of the room, it looked like there was electrical equipment set up for local artists to play live music, though there was nobody playing that night.
Sully sat with his coffee in front of him and said, "Thanks for coming out tonight. Want me to order ya somethin'?"
"It's a little late for coffee tonight," She said, "Perhaps a mineral water. Do they have scones?"
"You hungry?" he asked.
"I just got off from work, I haven't eaten dinner yet," she informed him, "I just need something small."
"What? No. I'll getcha somethin' more substantial than a small scone, " Sully replied, "They have soups and sandwiches here," He reached for the small menu that was in a top loading sign holder. There was one on their table and one on all of the tables in the place. He read it quickly and found the food options. Then he put it in front of her so she could choose what she wanted.
Michaela looked at the menu and decided on their vegetable soup. It had a healthy array of vegetables, including potatoes and beans, and it was garnished with cheese on top. She felt confident that because the soup provided all of the food groups that it would be filling, "I want The Hearty Bean and Veggie Soup."
"And a mineral water?" he double checked.
"Yes," she confirmed.
"Sit tight," he told her, "I'll be right back."
She reached for her purse to get him some money.
"Put that away," Sully said with a bit of a chuckle, "I asked you out, I've got this," then he left her to go to the counter and place her order. He came back with a chilled bottle of Perrier. He sat back down next to her, and placed the bottle in front of her, "They'll bring the soup to the table when it's ready."
"Why did you call me tonight?" Michaela asked him, "Were you just in the neighborhood or do you need to talk to me about something?"
"I do enjoy your company," He said, smiling at her. He believed her to be a little uptight because of the way she analyzed everything, but he didn't mind. It was part of her personality, and she was right, he wanted to talk to her about something, "I wanted to talk to a mature adult, that I can trust, who isn't my mother, about somethin' important to me."
"Okay," she answered, feeling a burst of self-esteem. He viewed her as mature and trustworthy, and he certainly had enough faith in her to disclose something that was important and likely private to him.
Before Sully could answer, the barista that had been working behind the counter approached their table with a tray that had her soup, a few packets of saltine crackers, and a soup spoon.
"I have a bean and veggie soup," she said.
Sully pointed in Michaela's direction, and the young woman set everything down in front of her.
"I forgot your napkins," The barista said, "Sir, would you like another coffee?"
"Yes," Sully said, "I had a low foam cappuccino, no sweetener."
"I'll be back," she said and left their table.
"No sweetener," Michaela commented, slightly disgusted, as she silently wondered how he could drink that. She didn't like her coffee drinks to be overpowered with sugar, but no sugar wasn't palatable either.
"I drink black coffee mostly," Sully told her, "I felt like havin' a little milk with it today. I like the bitter taste of coffee. I don't wanna be hit in the face with it, like the bitterness of burnt coffee, but a well brewed cup is nice."
The barista returned, bringing napkins and Sully's cappuccino.
"Thank you," they said in unison.
Once she was gone, Michaela asked, "What did you want to talk to me about?"
Sully took a sip of his cappuccino and contemplated how to start, "There is no doubt in my mind," he said and paused for a couple of seconds. He wanted to make certain he used the right words as he opened up to her, "No doubt at all… that Miss Dorothy has… disclosed… to you… certain events from my past. I prefer to keep my personal business to myself, until I am ready to talk about it. Now… my late wife was her niece, so… it's not a total… violation… of confidence, but I do wish she wouldn't gossip."
"What do you want to know, Sully?" Michaela asked. He was correct, Dorothy liked to gossip. In fact, when she called Dorothy to ask if she could stay longer that evening to watch the kids, Michaela made sure to not tell Dorothy that she was meeting Sully, so she couldn't blab about it to her brother-in-law. Dorothy did divulge a vast wealth of Sully's personal information. Michaela wasn't sure how her telling him what Dorothy said would help matters? To Michaela, it simply felt like she was the one gossiping now.
"I'm not askin' you to repeat exactly what she said,'' Sully explained, as if he could read Michaela's thoughts, "I don't want ya to go back on your word, especially if you promised her that ya wouldn't repeat it."
"I didn't promise that," Michaela interjected.
Sully nodded and continued, "I know that Dorothy talks, she runs her own gossip blog. I'm not gonna say what you told me, if ya tell me. I give ya my word on that. I just…I wanna talk to you about somethin', and it would help if I knew what you already know about it."
Michaela mulled over it for a minute, and took a bite of her soup. He already concluded that Dorothy told her about his life, without Michaela saying a word. There was no reason to deny that or to keep from him the information that she knew about his life, "She didn't say it just to gossip. She was apologizing for what your father-in-law said to me that night."
Sully nodded, he'd forgotten all about that.
Michaela continued to explain what she knew, "I'm aware that your father-in-law isn't exactly fond of you; I guess I could have put two and two together about that, simply due to his behavior at the ice cream parlor. Your father-in-law seems to hold you accountable for the actions of your wife's first husband, because you have similar looks? I think that's what she said."
Sully chuckled aloud, but let her continue.
"I'm aware that your wife died because of a heart problem," Michaela said, "I think that's it."
"Did she explain the paternity of my son?" Sully asked.
"Yes," Michaela said, remembering more, "She told me that Zachary is your wife's son with her ex-husband, but you adopted him. Apparently, her ex-husband is in jail."
Sully nodded, Michaela was aware of what he hoped that she would be aware of.
"Did she tell ya anything else about Hank?" Sully inquired, "If she didn't tell ya his name, Hank was my wife's first husband."
"She told me his name," Michaela stated matter-of-factly, "She described some of his uncouth personality traits. He was raised by his grandmother, apparently, and that he's in jail."
Sully nodded again. Michaela already knew most of the important points.
"Zachary is my son, legally," Sully said, "So no one has the right to see him, unless I say so."
"Yes," Michaela agreed. Having a legally adopted child herself, she knew her rights. Sully had the same rights when it came to Zachary.
"One of the reasons why Loren is so angry is because he is a blood relation and I'm not, yet anything involvin' Zac is my decision and not his," Sully said, "But I'm not a hard guy. I want my kids to have a relationship with their grandfather. I would let Loren in if he could just calm down."
Michaela didn't say anything, she just listened.
"Loren is not the issue that I'm havin' right now," Sully confided in her, "Hank's grandmother, Miss Ilsa, or Nana, comes to see us every couple of months. When Abagail was still livin', she stayed away. When she died, Miss Ilsa attended the funeral and asked me if she could be in Zac's life. I don't hafta let her see my son, but as I said, I'm not a hard guy. She came to see him today, right after school. She usually don't stay that long. Maybe an hour or so."
"And what happened?" Michaela asked.
"She told me, not in front of Zachary, that Hank is up for parole in a few months. Apparently, he's been on his best behavior in jail and it's likely that he'll get out and be allowed to serve the remainder of his sentence basically under house arrest. He won't wear an ankle monitor, but he will have to carry a portable tracking device with him, and have daily check-ins with his parole officer, " Sully said and let out some nervous laughter, "She's already askin' that I share custody of Zachary with Hank."
"No!" Michaela said quickly. Sully must be a very nice man, because if someone made that kind of suggestion to her in regard to Matthew, she would kindly show them out of her house, "That is an unreasonable request."
"I agree," Sully said, "I promised my wife before she died that I would never let Hank have Zac. I don't have a problem with Hank seein' him. My son still remembers him. But the way Miss Ilsa talked about it today, it made me feel like I'm only a temporary babysitter while Hank's unavailable."
"She's Hank's grandmother, so she probably feels that way, but it's not true," Michaela said firmly, but was also confused about something, "Since she feels that way, why would she request shared custody and not full custody?"
"Zachary loves Hanna," Sully said, "He tells her that every time she visits. Hanna is his sister, by blood, so she believes that they should have a relationship. Hanna belongs to me so…"
"You are important in his life too," Michaela said, "Zachary just adores you. Don't tell me that she can't see it."
"She's never said it. She might know that, but I think she ignores it," Sully explained, "She said she wants the custody exchange to be gradual. She suggested that for the first few months, Hank would get one Saturday a week. Then she wants it to be a couple of days a week, then eventually, she wants Hank to have him full time, and have him only come to me one Saturday a week, to spend time with Hanna."
"Out of the question," Michaela stated sternly, and then became impassioned, "There will be no custody exchange, Zachary is your son! Hank doesn't get to be his father simply because he provided the sperm. Women can pay upwards of a thousand dollars monthly to inject sperm into their bodies in hopes of conceiving a baby. Do you know how many of those sperm donors have rights? None. Like any other sperm donor, he has not cherished and loved this boy on a daily basis, you have! I know your situation is more complicated than that, but it appears to me that Hank already had the opportunity to be Zachary's father, and he squandered it! The least he could have done is keep himself out of jail! Why is he even in jail?"
Michaela became increasingly frustrated, and began vigorously eating her soup. Sully smiled when he watched her eat. He didn't expect this conversation to arouse her passions the way it did. He enjoyed her passion. It aroused his passions to watch and listen to her, but in a different sense, a more libidinous sense. He kept that little nugget of truth to himself and focused on what she just asked him.
"Dorothy didn't tell ya why he's in jail?" He inquired, "That's usually the first thing she tells people."
"No," Michaela said.
"Hank is a drinker," Sully said.
"Yes, she said that," Michaela said, now thinking that a DUI was likely part of the reason that he was in jail.
"Especially when he got together with his friend Jake," Sully said, "I've never met Hank personally, but I do know Jake. Jake came from a poor family with an alcoholic mother. They used to move from house to house. Based on where he was livin', is where he went to school that month or coupla months. He spent time at my high school, and time at the high school that Abagail and Hank went to."
Michaela didn't say anything, but felt very bad. These people, as young kids, had way more problems than she ever had.
"Jake drinks to get drunk," Sully continued, "I'm not a drinker usually, but I did get a little tipsy when I was sixteen and I just lost my second father and my brothers. I still remember it. There were five of us; me, my brother Daniel, our girlfriends at the time and Jake. Me, Daniel and the girls had enough to get tipsy, but Jake got wasted, I mean totally trashed. According to my wife, Hank used to get wasted like that, so you can imagine what happened when he and Jake got together."
Michaela nodded at him.
"Abagail," Sully said, "God bless her, thought that she could change him, but she never could. He would have times that were better than others, but old habits die hard. One night, Abagail came home from work and found him, and Jake wasted in the livin' room of their apartment with Zac sittin' right there watchin'. She threw Jake out and got into a huge fight with Hank. It was so bad that Abagail walked out of their apartment, taking Zac with her, and drove to her parents' house."
Michaela sat listening and was preparing to learn how bad this story was about to become.
"Hank wasn't done talkin' or arguin', I guess," Sully said with a sigh, "He got into his car and drove to her parents' house."
Michaela was watching him and listening intently; she felt like holding her breath.
"When Abagail got to her parents, her ma, Maude, didn't have any dinner ready, so she was gonna go pick up some fast food. She was gonna bring Zac with her, but Loren found a movie on T.V. that Zac was interested in, so he stayed home at the last minute, and Maude went out alone," Sully explained, "While she was leavin' their neighborhood, Hank was turnin' in. He was so drunk that he didn't know what he was doin', and he turned hard right into Maude's car. The crash killed her almost instantly."
Michaela closed her eyes, covered her face with her hands and slowly shook her head.
"Abagail and Loren were of course devastated," Sully continued telling the story, "But what was really painful and insightful for Abagail, was that she coulda lost Zac too. Do you know how close he was to gettin' in that car that night?"
"Sully," Michaela said, "I understand forgiveness, but Zachary doesn't need to have anything to do with a man like that; a drunken father that got so drunk that he killed his grandmother."
"I know," he agreed, "But I know too that as soon as Hank gets out, and it looks like he will make parole, that a problem is headed my way."
"Problems are part of life," Michaela said, "This problem can be dealt with, and you are in control. Just because the grandmother wants Zachary to live with Hank, doesn't mean that Hank wants to take on Zachary. If Hank does want him back, that doesn't mean he gets him back. I wouldn't allow that in my situation."
"Hmm?" Sully questioned. He didn't know she had a situation.
Michaela sighed, realizing what she just said and revealed, "You told me something personal about your life, so I will share something personal about my life."
"Okay," Sully said with a nod.
"The reason why I'm so passionate about this, especially about your rights as a parent, is because I am in a similar situation." she explained to him, "Matthew is adopted. He's my ex-husband's son with his first wife."
"Does he remember her?" Sully inquired, still letting what she told him settle. He knew Michaela was divorced, she'd said it in passing a few times, but they never discussed it. They discussed parenthood quite a bit, though, and he liked having another single parent to talk to. He just didn't realize that she was not only a single parent like him, she was also an adoptive parent like him. That was another way that they could relate to one another.
"Bits and pieces," Michaela informed him, "He was three-and-a-half when she died, so he doesn't remember much."
"You said before that you have full custody," Sully stated, "Did you sue for that? Were his rights terminated?"
"No," Michaela said, "He signed over all three of the kids to me, even Matthew. Like you, I wouldn't have an issue if he ever wanted to visit with the kids, but if he asked me to share custody of them now, after he gave them up, I would show him the door. You and I both have to look out for the best interests of our children. It's not in their best interests to be in the custody of men that think they can come and go as they please. Ethan chose to go when he signed the paperwork. Hank chose to go when he picked the bottle over his wife and son."
Sully smiled at her warmly. He gazed into her eyes, but not with his eyes full, they were instead half-open and dreamy. With his left hand, he reached for her right. She was done with her soup, and her right hand was resting on her lap. He squeezed her hand, and let both of their hands sit together on her thigh.
Michaela squeezed his hand back and felt warmth radiating from both her hand, and from the place on her thigh where she could feel his bent fingers through her skirt.
Sully walked Michaela to her Mercedes, holding her hand as they walked. When they reached her vehicle, he said, "Thanks for meetin' me tonight. Thanks for listenin'. Thanks for givin' me advice. I knew I picked the right person to call."
"I'm glad you did call, and that I could come out tonight," Michaela said. She let go of his hand so she could open her door and put her purse inside her car, "I can't always come out alone, neither can you, but if you want to talk alone, you can always call me."
Sully leaned forward to give her a hug. He put his arms around the small of her back and drew her in so she was close to his body. Michaela reciprocated by putting her arms around his neck and held him close too.
While they were in their embrace, Michaela lifted her head and dropped a small kiss on his cheek. Sully reciprocated by pressing his lips to her cheek, and then giving her a second kiss closer to her mouth.
He stood up straight so he could look into her eyes but kept his arms around her waist. Then he leaned in so there was only about a centimeter between their faces and stayed there, giving her a few seconds to adjust to his closeness while they were face to face, and gazing into each other's eyes. Since she didn't move away, he took that to mean that she felt comfortable with his proximity and he closed his eyes, leaned forward and brushed his lips against hers.
When Sully opened his eyes, he knew at that moment that one little taste wasn't enough for him. He tightened his arms around the small of her back and continued to hold her as he pressed his lips against hers a second time.
Michaela felt as if her whole romantic life had been cloudy until the second that his lips touched hers. Now the clouds were parting, and the sun was shining. Everything was turning bright and lush after a long cold winter.
She tightened her arms around his neck and started to kiss him back.
Now that she was kissing him too, his heart started pounding from the added exhilaration, and confidence took over his mind and body. Once that happened, he applied more pressure to her lips and prolonged the kiss. As his lips pumped against hers, he removed one hand from the small of her back but kept the other there to keep the closeness. Next, he did something that he'd been dying to do since they first met, something other than kiss her. He ran his fingers through her long, silky hair. He inched his hand up so he could hold the back of her head as strands of hair hung between his fingers.
Michaela's hands were in his hair as well. Then she moved them to the sides of his face near his jaw line and used her thumbs to caress his cheeks.
The kiss itself was warm and satisfying, but relatively chaste despite the passion that was flowing through both of their bodies. The kiss was deep, and it became necessary for them to open their mouths slightly to continue, however they seemed to have the same understanding that they would keep their tongues to themselves. They wanted to savor the lip-to-lip contact and not push it farther.
Michaela was the first to break contact. She removed her arms from around him, and looked up at him. She was panting heavily, trying to catch her breath.
Sully removed his arms too, and looked down at her, panting himself. When he finally caught his breath he smiled and said, "That was nice."
"Very nice," she said back, smiling up at him.
To be continued. As always, please review and share your thoughts with me.