Rated R
The moon was full and the light illuminated the path on the shore on which she was walking. It was almost etherial how all of the stars were hanging in the sky where God had placed each and every one.
The beauty of the night escaped her as she walked along the beach. The cool sand felt good between her toes and she scrunched them up to feel their full effect. She needed validation that her senses were indeed intact. She was a human being and possessed the full range of emotions and she had felt like she had exhausted every one of them in the last month.
She usually found walking on the beach theraputic, but not tonight. She was going to make the most important decision of her life. Every ounce of her common sense and self preservation told her to get away from here. Away from Springfield and away from Danny. She could go and see her dad. She could handle the millions of questions that was sure to come from him but at least she would be far away from her source of pain. Far away in miles but not spirit. It hadnt hurt any less when she had thought he had gone to California she remembered.
If she were smart, she would listen to that part of her but she had never been very smart when it came to her feelings for Danny. Something inside of her was telling her to stay and fight for Danny even though he had told her that he didnt love her. He had been dead serious when he had said it too. He had looked her straight in the eye, but for the briefest of moments, she thought she had detected a flash of pain in his brown eyes. It was so brief that she wasn't even sure if she hadn't imagined it. Those brown eyes hadn't been twinkling when he had said it, in fact they had looked burdened.
She had assumed it was because of his grief over his grandmother's death, but now she was not so sure. Could that pain have anything to do with their separation? If so, didn't he know that all he had to do was crook his finger and she would come running to him?
She continued her self examination stroll along the moonlit path. The only sound was the gentle calming sound of the waves as they met with the shore. All of her insecurites and doubts were being soothed away by the gentle sounds of the night.
There were few things in this life that she was sure of. She was sure she wanted to be a doctor and help people the way her dad and brother did. She was sure that if she ate tomatoes that she would have an allergic reaction, and she was sure that if she had to live without the man that she loved, then she would surely die.
She was certain Danny loved her too. He wasnt strong enough to fight for that love, but she was. She would fight with every breath in her body for him, no matter what he had told her a couple of hours ago. That was his mouth talking but not his heart.
She had learned a lot about herself since she had fallen in love with Danny. No longer was she the vapid homecoming queen but a woman of subtance who had the courage and the fortitude to love a man like Danny Santos. No longer was she the scared little princess but had been transformed into a woman who fiercely loved her man and she wouldnt give up on them. The unsure prima donna was replaced by a confident young woman who was going to stop at nothing to make a way for them to be together.
She was upset to find out that he had not gone to California and had cried bitterly at home about it but something had happened. She had recalled the look in his eyes when he told her he didnt love her. His eyes betrayed him. For some reason, he was trying to convince her that he didnt love her. It was that knowledge that gave her the stregth to get up, dry the tears and find a way to be with Danny.
The lighthouse had been her place of planning. She had determined that she was not going to run away with her tail between her legs like the Michelle of old, but would face her challenge head on. She would make Danny face his love for her and she knew just how to do it.
She found herself back at the lighthouse. She walked up the stairs to get her purse and keys. She thought she caught a faint whiff of Danny's aftershave as she reached the top which only served to stregnthen her resolve to fight for Danny.
The two halves of the same person that she and Danny were, had been separated too long and it was time to put them back together.
She was going to pay Danny a surprise visit tonight. She didnt care what she had to do to get to him. She would go through Jimmy, Carmen, hell she would even climb up the ivy trimmed lattice on the outside of their once shared bedroom if she had to to get to him.
Before the night was through, Danny Santos wouldnt know what hit him.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Danny was sitting on his grandmother's bed thinking. Carmen was in jail. He had gotten the news when he came back from trying to find Michelle. The thought should make him deleriously happy but it was marred by the fact that Michelle was gone.
Things were about to get real ugly around here. Michelle was still in danger. He had found that out tonight also.
Ben had called him to tell him of Carmen's predicament. She had requested that he come to the jail and he had been too curiuos not to. Ben had explained on the way there that Frank had caught her coming out of Dietz' room after an attempt has been made on his life again.
Danny had has to feign shock at hearing about Dietz still being alive and the new attempt on his life. He couldnt play his hand just yet. True, Carmen was in jail, but it was neither the first time nor, he doubted the last time she had been arrested and they had yet to find something to stick. She had wiggled out of worse situations than this and he wouldnt underestimate her again. He would not show his hand until all the cards had been placed on the table.
Victory would ultimately be his and Michelle's since he had all the proof he needed to get the company away from her. He was sure though that Carmen wasnt going to go without a fight, she would still have a few tricks up her sleeve and he had found out exactly what she had.
Ben had accompanied him to her holding cell where she had tried to gain his sympathy by crying. Oh please, she really didnt give him any credit. Danny recognized the crocodile tears for the pathetic attempt at pity that they were and he was not moved in the slightest by this display.
She had pled her case and told him she was innocent, that she had only been checking on Dietz well being. She needed to be free, she had wailed, to go to grandmother Santos' funeral. Danny was still unmoved until she mentioned Michelle's name. He had perked up then.
She had mentioned that she had been worried about Michelle and had asked some of her associates to follow her to make sure she stayed safe, after all they had an enemy out there, the same one who had shot Dietz. She had implied what a shame it would be if something happened to Michelle during that surveillance and Danny understood it for the threat that it was.
Danny silently thanked God that Michelle was safely out of the country. He would sacrifice his happiness again as long as she were kept safe. He had looked sternly at Carmen and told Ben they were leaving. He had left without saying goodbye.
Danny looked at the clock and noted the lateness of the hour. He needed to go to bed. Carmen's hearing was in the morning and he had an oh so suspicious feeling that Carmen's bail would be set and she would be free to go. Sometime tomorrow afternoon, Carmen would be back home and barking her orders as if nothing had happened. She would then go and taint his precious grandmother's funeral with her presence. He had a hell of a day ahead of him tomorrow and he called on Michelle's love to get him through it.
He heard the door chimes ring downstairs. Who on earth would be calling at this late hour? Bill, probably, coming to check on Pilar. He was really beginning to like Bill. His loyalty to his sister was remarkable and he had a feeling Pilar felt the same way about him.
SInce noone called for him to come down, his assumption must have been correct and he went to his room. He began undressing and was just unsnapping his pants when he saw his door know slowly move.
"Just a minute" he called. Pilar usually knocked but it was only when the doorknob continued to turn and click and the door begin to open did he know that it wasnt Pilar. It was Michelle.
He drank in the sight of her and then suddenly panicked. She couldnt be here. Oh God, why was she here? Oh, he was so happy to see her, but... oh damn...
"What are you doing here?" he asked in unbelief. He tried to steady his shaky voice. He didnt want to hurt her again. He had done enough of that in the last month to last her two lifetimes.
She never said a word but just slowly put her handbag down. What was she doing???? She began to walk towards him slowly taking off her pale pink sweather. She was wearing a sleeveless, button up cream colored dress. It was short and was held together by six or seven buttons that buttoned in the front. She continued walking in his direction and her hands moved to the top button and ever so slowly unbottoned it.
Oh God, Danny thought, what the hell was she doing? His eyes were glued to what her hands were doing though. His legs threatened to fail to support him so he sat down in the chair in front of his desk and tried to act unaffected by her actions.
The next button was undone and Danny's eyes widened when he noted that she wasn't wearing anything underneath. The tops of her creamy breasts were exposed and all of the breath left his body.
His arousal was pressing painfully against his zipper. He shifted in the chair to try to make himself more comfortable and relieve some of the pressure but it was futile. He was ready to go off like a rocket.
He had to stop her. Nothing had changed since their talk earlier. She was still in danger. Oh god, how was he going to stop this?
Michelle watched Danny's reaction to her brazen attempt of seduction. He looked pale. She watched the corded muscles in his stomach contract and expand with his breating and she also noticed that his adam's apple was bobbing up and down in a very rapid pace.
She had felt no embarrassment or shame at her stripping in front of him She was simply going to remind him how much she loved him and that she was not going away again.
She pulled open the dress where the two buttons has already been undone. That movement revealed almost all of her breasts and the cleft in between them.She undid the third button and then her upper body was completely bared for him.
This was not the first time she had been naked in front of Danny and her love for him gave her the courage to continue. She had purposely not worn any undergarments. She could tell by his difficulty in breathing that she was having an effect on him. If this was how he was reacting by just seeing her top, then he had more of a surprise awaiting him.
Danny was mesmerized by Michelle's seductive striptease. All sense of reason was rapidly leaving him. He had to put a stop to it though. She was still in danger after all.
Michelle noted the despair that had washed over his face. Clearly he was confused by what she was doing. "I love you Danny" she said as she opened the next button to reveal both breasts fully and a good portion of her trim stomach.
"Then button back up and leave me in peace" he said.
"But you wont be in peace Danny. You'll be aching. You want me. You cant deny it Danny. The evidence is right in front of you for both of us to see" she smiled sadly.
Danny muttered a single harsh word.
She let the gutter word roll of her back "That is the general idea Danny, but in our case it would be called making love" she said.
"I dont love you" he said and Michelle faltered but she didnt stop. She unbuttoned the last two buttons and was completely bare in front of him.
"I dont believe you" she said and completely opened the dress. He tried to look away, God help me he did, but he couldn't. She was his own dream walking towards him, calling to him and he was powerless to resist.
Danny look tortured "Dont do this baby" he pleaded.
"Youre a big strong man Danny, stop me" she said as she straddled his lap. "If you dont love me, stop me" she said.
If he hadnt already been sitting down the savage torment of her on his lap would have brought him to his knees.
She put her hands on his zipper and began to lower it. He found him and freed him and began to caress him to the point of madness. Between each caress, Michelle whispered her love to Danny and somewhere between initial refusal and final acceptance, Danny threaded his fingers in her hair and lifted her onto him.
She used her feet against the floor and lowered herself onto him burying his hungry flesh into her completely. He was fighting an internal battle with something she could tell but she was determined to win this battle.
He made no effort to stop her neither did he make one to help her. She was on her own. She continued her upward movements and then placed herself down on him again until she was at the point of completion. His tortured look told her he was rapidly approaching the same point. She could feel him swell larger within her until he lost his futile fight for control.
He wrapped his arms around her and buried his face into her neck as they both plummeted over the edge into blissfulness.
"Think about this Danny when I'm gone" she said. "Remember what it is like to be loved by me and then come to me Danny. I'll be waiting for you and loving you" she said and rebuttoned her dress, picked up her handbag and disappeared out of his bedroom door.