AJ leans against her hand, staring at him. "Do you feel safe there?" she wonders quietly. It's late, George and Sara are asleep. Taya and John had left hours ago, going back home for some time to themselves. He and AJ had sat in silence for awhile before this.
He blinks a few times and then tentatively reaches out for her. She allows his fingers to curl around hers and smiles a little. "I do," he admits. "I mean, they're finally testing. That's a good thing. John and I have consecutively tested negative, so I feel confident staying with him. Honestly, I'm more concerned about traveling than anything to do with the performance center itself." He strokes her knuckles. "I know this isn't easy on you, especially with the kids so young, and I'm so sorry about that. If I could do anything to make it easier, I would."
She groans and pulls him closer, kissing him slowly. "I hate how earnest you get when you start saying stuff like that. It makes it very difficult to stay mad at you."
He smiles down at her and strokes her hair. "How about if I say... I love you very much." He nuzzles into her when she sighs, and kisses her jaw. "I love our kids. I love our life. I don't want to risk any of that, I really don't."
She frowns up at him and shakes her head, slowly curling her free arm around his neck and drawing him in even closer, pressing her lips to his and humming, The instant she parts her lips under his ministrations, she lets out a needy whimper when he tastes her, pleasurable tingles curling her toes as the kiss deepens and lingers. "Mike," she moans into his mouth and he hums, eyes fluttering. "God, I love you too."
He grins against her lips, his fingers slowly trailing down her side until he finds the hem of her shirt, lifting it up and breaking the kiss only long enough to drag it off over her head and toss it aside. Leaning back, he looks down at her and exhales, his hands following the same path of his gaze, enjoying how her stomach quivers more the lower his fingers glide. "You're so gorgeous," he murmurs, barking out a laugh when she claims his shirt, tossing it in the same general direction of her own.
She presses back against him and he sighs, skin on skin always this heady pleasure between them. "You're not so bad yourself," she informs him, tangling her fingers in his hair and easing him back into another, all-emcompassing kiss that leaves him gripping her hips, hungry and desperate for something to hold onto. He smirks, fingers trailing over the edge of her shorts, and she swallows as he moves slowly, clearly in no hurry to move this along. "Mike," she warns him, closing her eyes as his deep blue eyes, so similar to Sara's, searches hers. "Mi-" Words fail her out of nowhere and she clings to him, lips parting in shock as her entire body seems to tremble under his touch.
"Something you need, sweetheart?" he teases her and she grits her teeth, eyes flashing as she stares up at him in awe. "So beautiful." He presses his free hand to her jaw, easing her chin up so he can see her better. "AJ, you are the most incredible woman I've ever met," he informs her adoringly and she whimpers, arching up into him.
"Mike," she exhales, breathy and low. "Please-" His mouth muffles her pleas, swallowing her soft noises, and she arches into him, relieved when he finally lays her down on the bed, the pillow soothing and cool against her flushed face.
"I miss you so much every time I have to leave," he whispers against her skin, kissing slowly down her spine. "I wish things were different, easier for all of us. But you're being so amazing through all of this, I know it's hardest on you, with our kids, and everything going on with our friends." She tangles her fingers into the bedding, breathing shallowly, and he chuckles before rolling her over, resting his head on her stomach and staring up at her lovingly. "What do you want from me?"
She could answer that any number of ways. Stay. Keep talking like this to me forever. Hold me. But she bites her tongue from all of that and closes her eyes, stroking her fingers through his hair. "I want you to be happy and safe," she finally confides in him and he kisses her just below her belly button, warmth curling deep inside of her at the simple, yet intimate pressure.
"Right now, I am," he tells her with a soft smile, his gaze proving the sincerity behind his words.
It's not enough. But it'll have to do.
-x
Matt Riddle is already grating on Mike's nerves. He doesn't like the guy. He says bro too much, for one thing. Whereas Zack Ryder has some sort of charm and humor when he gets on a tangent, Riddle is lazy and hard to listen to, and Mike wonders what all this guy is on as he's forced to try to focus on his comments. How, exactly, it leads to a match between him and John, Mike isn't sure, but he remains at ringside, alternating between impressed with how well things flow between the men's vastly different styles, and frustrated when John loses. He helps him out of the ring and supports him on the outside as John grumbles about it all, clearly unhappy with yet another loss between them.
"It's ok," he says, stroking John's shoulder. "It's going to be ok." He glares up into the ring, not liking the vague grin on Riddle's face. There's something about the guy, Mike realizes he's starting to really loathe the guy and the distant look in his eye. "Come on, let's get out of here," he mutters, guiding John up the ramp towards the back. They visit the trainer's briefly, John gets a bag of ice as a precaution, and then they're back in the locker room they'd claimed when all of this began. "Feel alright?"
"Frustrated, but yeah, physically, I'm fine," John mumbles, slinging the ice back and forth in his hands. He looks over at Mike and shrugs. "Guy's good. I just couldn't get a read on some of his stuff in there. It was weird."
Mike nods. "I had that sense too." He reaches out and squeezes John's arm. "It was a really good match, either way. You held your own for quite awhile, considering neither of us know anything about this guy."
John smiles at him and finally plops the ice onto the floor, batting it around with his feet. "The lack of shoes thing was weird too, right? I mean, who does that?"
"No one who wants to perserve their ankles, I'll tell ya that," Mike says with a slow smirk, shaking his head as he watches John continue to play with the bag of ice. "You'd think the trainer would know better than to give you anymore of these by now."
John shrugs with a laugh. "Ah, y'know." He surprises Mike by abruptly kicking it at him and Mike grunts, just barely catching it with his shoe and twisting his leg to kick it back. "Hey, nice," John says approvingly, the two of them kicking it back and forth for a few moments before John notices Mike's interest is waning, sending the bag in a clean arch into the trash can on the other side of the room. "Three points!"
"Hell, that should be ten points," Mike says, eyes wide as he marvels at his best friend's ability to do pretty much anything he sets his mind to.
John chuckles and stands. "Let's go, I wanna shower at the hotel really quick, and then we can get something to eat." He squeezes Mike's shoulder on his way out of the door and Mike hums, hesitating just long enough to glance once more at the melting bag of ice before following him.