For a moment, Michelle and Danny stood frozen, their fingers intertwined, their eyes locked. Michelle was the first to break the spell. She looked down at Danny's drenched clothes and laughed. "Look at you! You're soaked to the skin! Didn't you think to bring an umbrella or a raincoat?"
Danny smiled ruefully. "No. I was in kind of a hurry."
Michelle looked up at him and Danny was taken aback by the warmth in her eyes. "You always come when I need you, don't you?"
"Yes." he replied in a husky voice. "And I always will."
Michelle smiled and raised up on her tiptoes, her mouth dangerously close to his and a kiss in her eyes.
Danny closed his eyes and felt her breath whisper against his lips. But before their lips could meet, he stepped away. Michelle's eyes opened in surprise and dismay. "Danny?"
Danny quickly moved to the other side of the room, his back to her. It was safer if he couldn't see her.
"Don't do this, Michelle."
"Do what?" Her voice held a spark of anger in it now.
"You know what. I told you I'd keep you safe even after this marriage was over, didn't I?"
Michelle placed her hands on her hips and glared at his back. "What does that have to do with anything, Danny?"
"I know you think that if you look at me...that way and you kiss me and you lead me to delude myself that you actually give a damn about me, I'll just say to hell with the annullment and stay married to you so that you and your precious Jesse-" God, it hurt just to say that name " will be safe. But it's not going to work,Michelle. Not this time."
For a moment, fury kept Michelle immobile. He still thought this was an act! After all the tears she's shed over Danny, thinking how broken hearted he must be, feeling as though her own heart had been ripped out, he actually thought she was lying. Michelle crossed the room radiating anger. She grabbed Danny's arm and whirled him around to face her."I don't believe you!" she shouted."I have been miserable for ever since the night you 'set me free' as you so graciously put it and now you're standing here telling me that you think it's all an act?!"
Danny raked his hands through his hair in frustration."Why the hell should I believe you, Michelle?"
Tears glistened in Michelle's eyes as she said,"I would never use your love for me against you to get what I want."
Danny gave a humorous laugh and yanked his arm from her grasp."Of course you wouldn't,Michelle. What happened that night after you met with Mrs.Silva was just a one time thing right? Let me guess, I drove you to it, right?"
Michelle lowered her eyes, her anger leaving her."You're right, Danny. I did use you that night. I was trying to... distract you."
"Right. Like you're trying to 'distract' me now from the annullment."
Michelle swung her gaze back up to his."You seem to be forgetting that I'm not the one who came looking for you. It's the other way around, Danny."
Danny took a deep breath and shut his eyes. Damn, why did she have to be so beautiful, so perfect?
Anger was coming off of her in waves and her brown eyes were nearly black with it. Her dark blond hair was a riotous mass of curls around her face, which looked so young, but so brave. He turned away from her. Desire for her may have been weakening his knees, but it sure as hell wasn't going to weaken his resolve. He was getting out of here.
"I told you" Danny said through clenched teeth."I was worried about you up here during the storm. I didn't expect you to try to seduce me yet again."
"Seduce you?" Michelle gasped, her face flaming. He had hit a little close to the truth. Only moments before, hadn't she been wishing for an infinitely sexier nightgown? Of course, had Michelle known the things Danny was thinking looking at her in the nightgown she was wearing, she wouldn't have been worried that the gown was too plain.
"Yes,Michelle. You're trying to seduce me into staying married to you. And don't even bother to deny it. I'm so tired of being lied to."
"I have never-" Michelle began weakly but Danny cut her off.
"Oh just stop it, Michelle." he said, grabbing her arms."Remember the lighthouse? Our wedding night?"
"It was different then." she said softly.
"Really?" Danny said, lifting an eyebrow sardonically."How?"
Michelle couldn't meet his eyes."Well..."
"Let me guess," Danny said, his voice nearly shaking with controlled fury."You were a completely different person then."
"No, not-"
"Or maybe you weren't really Michelle at all, but a doppelganger."
"Danny, plea-"
"Or an evil twin."
"Dammit, Danny, stop this!"
"Or, hell, maybe you were kidnapped and replaced with a robot. How about that?"
"No, Danny, it was different because-"
"Or maybe you just-"
"It was different because I didn't love you then!" Michelle shouted.
They both froze, Danny's hands grasping her shoulders, Michelle's hands clutching his wet shirtfront.
Both of them were breathing heavily, their anger slowly draining away. The silence seemed to go on forever.
Finally, Michelle said in a voice almost too soft to even be a whisper, "I didn't love you at the lighthouse or on our wedding night or after my meeting with Mrs. Silva. But I love you now, Danny. I don't know how or when it happened, but it did. And you know I'm telling the truth. You know it. You can see it in my eyes, can't you?"
Danny's gave a shaky sigh and said roughly, "You have no idea how much I want to believe you, Michelle."
"Oh God, Danny, believe me." Michelle breathed as she fell into his arms."Please believe me."