Chapter 32
Mikey watches Liz, his heart breaking for her as she looks toward Riley’s room.
He can see how much she wishes she could go to him.
He hates that it has to be this way after everything she has been through.
He holds up his wrist and looks at his watch, it’s barely noon, unsure of what to do with the rest of his day, he turns his attention back to Liz.
“What does a robot do after a one-night stand?” he asks, fighting off his laughter. “He nuts and bolts.”
“Did someone drop you as a baby?” Liz asks, wondering what the hell he is doing.
Mikey bursts out laughing, rich and deep, unable to hold it in any longer. Liz just yawns in response, the events of the morning draining away any energy she woke up with.
“Go take a nap, darlin. When you wake up, we can hit the gym.” Mikey gets up and goes into the living room.
Liz lingers in front of Riley’s door before ducking into her own. She crawls into her plush bed and replays every detail of her morning with Riley, over and over again until she finally drifts off into sleep.
Sometime later, Liz wakes, the feel of Riley’s phantom hands all over her body, lingering from the dream she was having.
She climbs out of bed, quickly changes, and heads out of her room in search of Mikey, the house eerily silent.
Looking around the living room, she doesn’t see anyone hanging out, so she prances over to the hall and heads down the stairs.
As soon as she hits the landing, she sees Mikey on the treadmill, starting without her.
She walks into the gym and heads over to the second treadmill when she spots Riley working out.
The second her eyes land on him, it’s like all the air is ripped from her lungs.
She wasn’t prepared to see him like this.
No mask, no shirt, just a glorious expanse of tan skin, tattoos, and incredibly sexy scars.
Liz can’t seem to pull her eyes away. She watches, jaw on the floor as he continues his pull-ups, large, tattooed biceps flexing every time he lifts himself to the bar.
Her eyes start to drift lower, to his strong chest and well-defined abdomen, with a deep V leading below his waistline, a thin layer of sweat making him glisten.
“Enjoying the show, love?” he asks, pulling himself up again.
Mikey’s laugh on the other side of the room makes her blush.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t want to interrupt. Can we talk later?” she asks, hoping the flush in her cheeks is gone. He pulls himself back up and holds, looking down at her. He nods his head before slowly lowering himself. Liz gives him a small smile and heads to the treadmill.
“Don’t fucking say it,” she snaps, pushing buttons on the machine until it turns on.
The next two hours are spent doing an intense workout, simultaneously trying to listen to Mikey explain this is her new regular so she can pass the OPAT.
She desperately tries to focus but finds her eyes drifting to where Riley is doing his own workout, smiling to herself when she catches him watching her.
Riley finishes his workout and leaves, not able to say anything to Liz while she’s doing her squat reps, the image of her without her pants flashing through his head each time she drops.
“What did the fish say when he swam into a wall?” Liz asks fighting to lift the weights back up. “Dam,” she says, racking the weight before the giggle fit hits.
Mikey just watches her, a big smile spread across his face, enjoying having someone to joke around with.
When they finish their workout and head back upstairs, Liz goes right to her room, taking a quick shower to wash the sweat off.
She leaves and heads next door to where she hopes Mikey is.
Lucky for her, his door is wide open, and he is lounging, flipping through a small stack of papers.
Liz waltzes in and throws herself across his bed as if they have been friends their whole lives.
“I’m bored. What do you guys have to do down here?” Liz asks, sounding frustrated.
“Nothing, darlin,” he says, sitting up a little straighter to talk to her.
“Ry didn’t build this for fun. I know it’s home, but neither of us are here much, usually just a few days between missions.”
“Oh,” Liz says with a sigh adding, “Is he going to be mad if I use the pool?”
“Sweetheart, there isn’t a single thing you can do to make that man mad,” Mikey says.
Her cheeks flush and she gets a tight feeling in her chest at that. She gets up from his bed and walks to the door.
“Want to come play mermaids with me?” she asks, joking.
“I can’t, darlin. I have human work to do unfortunately,” he tells her, giving her a sad smile as she turns and walks out.
Thinking a lonely swim is better than nothing, she heads down the hall.
Stopping at her door to change, she thinks about what she can wear but quickly remembers she has nothing.
Liz starts again for the stairs, deciding to just go topless, hoping Mikey doesn’t change his mind and come looking for her.
Liz makes it down to the pool, her footsteps echoing around the silent space.
She finds a small stack of towels and takes one, walking back and peeling out of her clothes before diving in, temperature be damned.
. Liz lets out a small groan, not expecting the water to be warm and feel so good on her aching muscles.
For the first time in years, she decides to just relax, float around and let the warm water soothe her.
With no clocks anywhere, Liz loses track of how long she is floating around the oversized tub.
“You down here, princess?”
She hears a deep, velvety voice call out, unsure of how close he is to the pool. She rights herself, looking around for somewhere to hide. “Yeah. Hang on, I’m naked.”
Heavy footsteps echo through the silent chamber as Riley approaches, growing louder with every step. Liz starts swimming for the edge, hoping to hide herself against it when the door opens and Riley strides into the room, eyes going wide before filling with want at the sight of her.
“I thought you were joking,” he says, averting his eyes. He listens to the water sloshing against the pool's edge as she pulls herself out, her wet feet slapping on the floor. She quickly picks up her towel and wraps it around her body.
“This is why Mikey said I need to go shopping,” she snaps, a little harsher than intended.
Riley turns to her, eyes dropping to the towel she’s wrapped in, not leaving much to the imagination. She squeezes her arms tighter around herself, only causing the swell of her breasts to be more accentuated.
Riley quickly looks away, knowing he won’t be able to stop himself from staring.
He listens to her delicate footsteps splashing through the small puddles as Liz walks back to the pool and sits, dipping her feet and gently kicking them under the water.
He looks back to her arms stretched behind her so she can lean back, long black hair falling to the floor.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it to come out like that,” she says nervously.
“I’ll take you shopping, love, just say the word,” he says, his deep voice sending a shiver down her spine.
She tips her head back so she can look up at him. “No. I can make do with what I have. I still owe you for what you’ve already got me. Besides, I don’t have money for a shopping spree,” she says, smiling at him, trying to convince him she really is fine.
“You do have money, or will when the paperwork is settled, still, I wouldn’t let you pay. It’s the least I can do after causing all this.”
Liz opens her mouth to question him about why he thinks any of what happened to her is his fault, but before she can, he steps over and sits next to her, putting his feet in the water.
“I think we should do what Mikey said, use me to get to Dmitri.”
“I’m not going to put you in more danger than I already have.”
“That’s not for you to decide.” Liz says, resting her head on his arm.
“People died because of me. I shouldn't even be here, I should have died with my family years ago, if I did, none of this would have happened. It’s not fair I get to keep going while they don’t.
If this is what it takes to make sure that doesn’t happen again, then I want to do it,” she explains, hoping he understands her guilt.
“Do you remember the day I found you? I remember every inch of that cell, every smell, every drop of blood that stained the walls. I remember how scared you looked when you saw me. I still see you bloodied and broken, clinging to life when I close my eyes.” He takes a deep breath, growing uncomfortable with the openness she brings out of him.
“When I carried you out, I told you I wouldn’t let anything happen to you again. I made a promise to keep you safe, and I already broke that. I hurt you when I found your brother, I let you get hurt when the base got attacked… I keep fucking up. If we do this, I have no way of keeping you safe.”
“You’re the one who wanted me to live, to find something worth fighting for.
” Liz looks up at him, his eyes dancing with the reflection of the water.
She reaches over and takes his large hand in hers, interlacing their fingers.
“Well, I found something. I can’t really live if you keep me from this just because you’re afraid of me being hurt. ”
“You’re right,” he finally says.
“If this is what you need to do, I’ll support you in any way I can. Just know I’m going to train you twice as hard. I need to know if anything happens and I’m not there, you will be able to handle yourself.”
Liz gives his hand a squeeze, and looking up into his eyes, she asks, “When do we start?”