A Bad Bit Nice (25 page)

“Sweet Janey Mac, that’s the ugliest thing I’ve ever seen,” muttered Mick. “Em will love it.”

He looked at what Em had called a “beautiful example of a Depression-era Carnival glass lemonade set,” but he just saw four ugly glasses and an even uglier pitcher.

“Isn’t it stunning?” the shop clerk asked, who went on to gush about the rich color and to point out the various aspects of the lemonade set that made it so special.

“It’s definitely…something,” Mick agreed. “I’d like to purchase it.”

The lemonade set in his possession, Mick made his way home.

He’d hoped that the set wasn’t too much. Em had been eyeing it for weeks, but couldn’t bring herself to actually buy it. Most of her beloved glassware had been destroyed when Tripp pulled his little stunt, and Mick knew she missed it.

He hurriedly wrapped the gift, knowing that Em was going to be popping down soon for their early Christmas celebration. Duke had gone downhill rapidly after their reunion in Wisconsin, so Mick had decided to spend the holiday with Colin and Duke.

“Knock, knock,” Em called as she bustled in the front door. She paused to give Mick a kiss on the cheek and then continued into the kitchen to set down her bags. She pulled out a brightly wrapped, be-bowed package and set it on the coffee table.

“That’s for you,” she said with a wink. “You can try to guess what it is.” Mick grinned.

He picked up the package. It was very light and didn’t shift when he shook it, but he heard a small rattle. He frowned. He had absolutely no idea what it was.

Em grinned at him as he scowled at the gift. “Can you guess?”

“No idea, ducky. I’m totally stumped,” Mick said. “I like it. Your gift is over here, but I’m not going to let you shake it.”

Em stuck her lip out in a pretend-pout, but soon grinned. She set a tray of finger food down on the coffee table and plopped down next to Mick.

“You ready to go see Colin and Duke?” she asked, popping a canapé in his mouth. Mick nodded.

“You sure you don’t want to come with me? I know the guys would love to see you.”

“You need to see them by yourself. Spend some quality time with them.”

“Colin asked me to stay with Duke through his fight. Duke’s not up to traveling to Vegas.”

“You definitely need to do that, Mick.”

“What about you? I don’t want to leave you alone for the holidays.”

Em shrugged. “It’s not like this is the first holiday I’ve spent alone. I’ll be fine.”

Mick looked skeptical but wasn’t going to argue with her, at least tonight. “How about we open gifts now?”

Em squealed in delight and thrust Mick’s present back into his hands. “You first!”

Mick opened the gift carefully, not really wanting to tear the thick paper. Em’s eyes danced with excitement. When he pulled off the top of the box, he laughed. A paperclip sat on top of the record albums.

“The rattle,” he said, shaking his head. “You’re a sneaky thing, Em. I love them. Where on Earth did you find these?” Mick pulled the vinyl records out of the box: the entire 2 Tone Records catalogue.

“Oh, here and there,” she said. Em must have scoured every used record store in every city she visited.

“Thank you,” he murmured and kissed her sweetly on the lips. “Now you.”

Mick lifted the heavy box to the coffee table. Em narrowed her eyes. “And I can’t shake it?”

“Nope. Just open it, love.”

Em pulled open the paper with a grin, and then her mouth dropped open. “How did you remember this? We saw this set months ago!” Mick just grinned in answer.

“I love it, Mick! Oh, I love it!” she exclaimed.

Em lifted up the pitcher to more closely examine it. “Oh, it’s so beautiful. Thank you, Mick.”

“Merry Christmas, Em,” Mick whispered.

“Merry Christmas.”

They sat on the couch for the rest of the evening, snacking and kissing and listening to Christmas carols and then kissing some more. Mick twirled a piece of her hair in his fingers and gazed at her.

“I’ve got something else for you, if you think you’re up for it,” he said softly.

“Oh?”

“It’s in the bedroom.”

“Oh? Should we go see it?”

“Yeah, I think so.” Mick stood up and offered Em his hand. He led her into the bedroom, where she saw another box on the bed.

Em gave out a little laugh. “I didn’t realize you meant an actual present, Mick.”

“Well, it’s a bit for both of us.”

Em’s eyes sparkled as she slipped the bow off the package. Her eyes popped wide when saw the contents. Gathering the box into her arms, she started towards the bathroom when Mick lightly caught her arm.

“I meant it when I said only if you were up to it. I’ve had bruised ribs before and I know they take a while to heal.”

Em stroked the side of Mick’s face. He was so conscientious. And bossy. He had essentially moved Em into his place while she recovered, even going so far as to bring Beauregard and all his accessories down. Mick was intent on taking care of her.

But they hadn’t made love since Tripp’s attack. Mick was treating her like a piece of delicate stemware, and it was driving Em crazy. Em truly did appreciate his sweet and tender treatment, but she wanted, no, she
needed
to feel the weight of his big body pressing her against the bed.

Em kissed Mick on the mouth. “I
am
ready, Michael. Oh, God, I’m ready,” she breathed, gave him another kiss, this one open-mouthed, and disappeared into the bathroom. Mick chuckled as he stripped off his clothes.

Mick’s breath caught when Em emerged from the bathroom. The filmy chiffon shimmered as she walked through the room, the layers of material almost, but not quite, obscuring the fact that Em was bare under the peignoir.

This is beautiful, Michael,” she whispered in a throaty voice. “I’ve never had anything like it before.”

Em climbed on the bed, moving to straddle Mick where he lay on top of the covers. Mick’s hands immediately slipped under the hem of the short nightie to touch Em’s bare skin.

“Did you get this because of the bow?” she asked, pulling on the satin ribbon at the neck of the robe. “I think you might have.”

Mick licked his lips. He was so aroused, he couldn’t speak. Em smirked and shrugged the soft robe off her shoulders, leaving her covered in nothing but a translucent layer of pink. Mick could see the dark curls between her legs and her taut, peaked nipples pressing against the filmy material.

Em leaned forward to whisper in his ear. “Touch yourself for me, Michael.”

Mick was already complying, fisting his hard cock and gazing hungrily at Em. Em rubbed her chiffon-covered breasts against Mick while she dipped her tongue in his ear and around his neck. Mick’s free hand wandered beneath the hem of the short gown, discovering that Em was dripping with arousal.

Em moved her attention from Mick’s neck to his mouth. She kissed him deeply, thrusting her tongue into his mouth while Mick’s big hands kneaded her bare ass.

Em, who was usually quiet during their lovemaking, whispered in Mick’s ear, “I want to suck your cock, Michael.” Mick had to will himself to not come as soon as she whispered in his ear.

She slithered down his body, the cool material of the peignoir lightly rasping over his sensitive member.

Mick gazed at her as he stroked her dark hair. Ass in the air and her eyes locked with his, she circled the head of his cock with her small pink tongue, and then licked the thick vein that ran on the underside. Rocking back and forth, she engulfed the length of his shaft slowly, one hand circling the base of his cock and the other applying pressure to his taint. Mick groaned in pleasure, fighting to keep his eyes open so he could watch her.

Blessed with no gag reflex, she swallowed him until the tip hit the back of her throat. Mick stroked her hair back from her face so he could see her engulf him completely, lips straining around his girth. She literally hummed with her arousal, sucking and licking him.

Mick felt a familiar tightening in his balls, and placed both hands on either side of her head. “I need to be in you, Em. I need to feel you around me as I come.”

Em released his cock with a pop, and suddenly, he was on her, kissing her face and neck, biting her breasts just hard enough to make her gasp. Mick ran his fingers over her slick folds and chuckled as he dipped two fingers shallowly inside her. Em squirmed, needing to get him deeper, wanting the fullness of him filling her.

He raised himself up on his arms, lording over her, and just gazed down at the beautiful woman underneath him. Em’s mouth was swollen from sucking him off and from his hard kisses, her breasts already marking with his love bites.

He was completely overwhelmed with love for Em.

“Michael, baby, where did you go? Mickey?”

He felt soft fingers on his face, in his beard, and his eyes snapped back to Em’s face.

She smiled up at him, “Hey there, you’re back.” He returned her soft smile as he sank into her at last, both of them sighing.

Em draped her arms over his broad shoulders and closed her eyes, luxuriating in the rhythm of their lovemaking. Mick rested his head on Em’s shoulder as he rolled his hips into her, two shallow pumps, followed by a long, deep thrust.

Mick grasped Em’s face in one big hand and held it still, kissing her deeply and increasing his rhythm. He felt Em shatter beneath him, his mouth swallowing her wail of passion. She pressed into him, her heels digging into his buttocks, and her hands gripping his hair almost painfully. Her core gripped and throbbed around him, and Mick succumbed to his own climax, this time Em’s mouth catching his groan.

Mick continued to slowly pump into her until both of their pleasures crested, leaving their bodies slick with sweat and boneless with relaxation.

Mick kissed Em’s eyes, mouth, chin before he rolled to his back. Em lay sprawled on top of Mick, still joined to him. She kissed the rapidly thrumming pulse at the base of his throat and nuzzled her nose into space behind his ear.

Mick chuckled a bit. “Merry Christmas, Em,” he said, smiling tenderly at her.

“Merry Christmas, Mick,” Em answered, giving him another kiss on his jaw.

Em vibrated with excitement as she watched Bailey get dressed. Skankin’ Janey Mac was back in town and she was ready for some fun and music.

“I think you’ll enjoy the band, Bailey. Even if you don’t like ska, they’ve got a lot of energy and are a lot of fun.”

“I don’t even know what ska is, Em, but I’ll take your word for it. I’m going for one last night of fun! After the baby comes, I’m not going to have time to do anything but be a mama.” She rubbed her huge belly. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you so giddy, Em.”

“She’s just remembering the after-show festivities from the last time they were in town,” smirked Ashley with a suggestive eyebrow waggle. Em blushed. She remembered that first night on her big divan and was very much looking forward more of the same.

The three of them walked into the familiar pub, looking for the rest of their crew. Em spied Colin and Rory at a high top table, but Mick was nowhere to be seen.

She hugged Colin and gave him a light kiss on the cheek. “Hey Colin, how are you doing? You’ve been pretty scarce. You remember Bailey, right?”

“Hey, Colin. It’s nice to see you again,” Bailey said shyly. She had pinked up under Colin’s watchful gaze. Em wondered what he was thinking. “I’m sorry about Duke. He seemed like a nice man.”

“Thanks, Bailey.” Colin’s father had passed away shortly after Colin’s big fight in Las Vegas. It was almost as if the man was making sure the brothers would find each other so neither would be left alone.

Colin had retired after his last fight and relocated to Atlanta to be a trainer. He was working on building his own professional facility, but was also teaching some classes at the rec center.             

“Mam! Da! You made it!” Rory said, hopping down from his stool and going to greet his parents with a hug. “I didn’t know if you would.”

“I didn’t know y’all were coming down!” Em exclaimed. She hugged them both fiercely.

“It was a spur of the moment decision,” Sheila explained. She looked like she was going to say something else, but instead turned to Bailey. “Ach, Bailey, you’re looking lovely. How are you, dear?” Sheila kissed the young woman on the cheek.

“I’m feeling very big these days, Sheila,” Bailey laughed.

“I think you look really pretty, Bailey,” Colin said softly. Rory barked a laugh but quickly quieted when he caught Ashley’s scowl and her elbow in his ribs.

“Where is our Mickey?” Paddy asked, looking around the pub.

“You know, I haven’t seen him,” Em said with a frown. “I saw his car in the parking lot, though. I’m sure he’s around somewhere.”

The crackle of the sound system brought everyone’s attention to the stage.

“Hello Atlanta, it’s nice to be back!”Paul Sullivan said, Skankin’ Janey Mac’s lead singer. “Normally we do this later, but tonight we have something special for you. A friend from Southie is going to join us on stage, but not on drums as usual. Hell’s frozen over, because Mickey Brennan is going to sing!”

Em clapped her hands and hooted with pleasure, beaming. Mick took over the microphone from Paul, looking nervously around the pub until he caught Em’s eye. She gave him a wink and he seemed to relax.

He took a deep breath and Rory, who had slipped up to the stage without Em noticing, began playing a simple piano intro. How he managed this with a broken hand, Em didn’t know.

Em gasped as she recognized the opening strains of “It Must Be Love”. She felt tears forming in her eyes as Mick sang the familiar lyrics, his eyes locked on hers.

As the song ended, Mick called Em to join him. She felt very self-conscious as she moved toward the stage and gave a startled yelp as Mick pulled her to his side and kissed her deeply. The audience whooped and clapped as Mick fumbled with the microphone without breaking the kiss. Rory finally just took the microphone out of his hand and put it in the stand, shaking his head and grinning. When Mick finally finished kissing Em thoroughly, they stood looking at each other on the stage. The audience quieted down, the air heavy with expectation.

“Okay, this is going to be cheesy as hell, but Em, it truly
must
be love. I love you, and I want to marry you.” Mick dropped to one knee and took a small square box out of his pocket. Em’s jaw dropped open. “Ermengarde Maude Davidson, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife? Please?”

Em’s face shone with a mixture of a beaming smile and joyful tears as she threw her arms around his neck.

“Yes, Michael Ian Brennan, I will marry you.”

Mick opened the box and slipped the ring on her finger. And then they kissed again, the audience hooting and shouting and applauding their approval.

The two of them made their way back to their group, stopping for congratulations and back slaps and hugs along the way. When they got to the high top, Mick lifted Em up into the chair and stood behind it, arms wrapped loosely around her waist, his head resting on her shoulder.

Em narrowed her eyes at her friends. “Did y’all know what he was going do?”

“I, for one, had no idea, Em,” Ashley said, holding up her hands as a show of innocence.

“That’s because you can’t keep a secret to save your life, Ash,” Rory quipped.

“Oh, I can’t, Rory? Really?” Ashley said, eyes flashing and lips pursed. Rory rolled his eyes but grinned, dodging Ashley’s jab at him. “Whatever, y’all. Let me see that ring, Em.”

As the women chattered and fawned over the ring, Colin shook his head at Mick with mock disgust. “Thanks a lot, big brother. You’ve set a high, high bar for the future.” Mick chuckled and Colin slapped him on the back, grinning widely.

“Duke knew, Colin. I think that was the final piece he was waiting for.”

“I bet you’re right, Mick. I bet you’re right.” Colin bumped his brother’s shoulder.

Em nudged Mick’s shoulder and whispered in his ear, “Is there someplace private we can go for just a few minutes?” She grinned wickedly at him.

“Oh hell, I’ll find us somewhere to go,” Mick answered, taking her by the hand.

As Mick pulled Em toward the back of the pub, he heard Colin say while laughing, “Rory, you owe me a hundred bucks! They lasted a whole seven minutes!” Em cackled as Rory’s cursing faded into the distance.

“So, now that we’ve gotten those two sorted, do you think we can go on a proper date, or do we have to keep skulking around?” Rory asked, quirking an eyebrow at Ashley.

“I don’t know, you’re a pretty good skulker, Rory.”

“Oh, I’m good at lots of things, Ashley, lots of things.”

Ashley considered the question. “Can we still skulk if we want to?”

“I suppose we could,” Rory said with reluctance, but also a grin.

“Then yes, we can go on a proper date in the future, but I’d rather do this right now.”

Ashley kissed Rory deeply, throwing her arms around his neck and thrusting her tongue into his mouth. Rory slid his hands down her back to her rump and squeezed both cheeks.

“Oi, Rory! Your Mam is sitting right here, boyo. Don’t be stickin’ your tongue down that missy’s throat, right here in front of God and everybody!” Paddy scolded with a grin.

Sheila put her arms around Ashley’s shoulders. “So, now that we’ve moved to Atlanta, I’m going to need to find out where you buy your unmentionables. They’re deadly sexy.” Sheila wiggled her eyebrows at the younger woman.

At Ashley’s look of confusion and embarrassment, Sheila explained with a conspiratorial wink, “We found a bitty pair of knickers stuffed in the couch cushions over at Rory’s place.”

“Oh God,” Ashley moaned while Rory turned a shocking shade of red and Paddy laughed so hard he almost threw up.