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She nearly lost her balance again, and Michael immediately reached to steady her, but she waved him off and managed to keep upright on her own.

She suddenly bent, grabbed up the hem of her dress, found one side seam and began to rip it apart. She split it all the way up, well past her knees, then quickly tore sideways, ripping away the bottom three-quarters of the skirt all the way around. Once finished, she was wearing a dress that only covered her to mid-thigh.

"It was ruined anyway." She straightened and tossed the detached material in a trash can. She then added wryly, "It's a bit short but I can move more easily."

"Yes," Michael agreed absently. The skirt now started where the tops of her stocking seams ended. The stockings themselves were caramel net and covered what appeared to him at that moment to be nearly a mile of leg.

"The woman is all legs," he thought. And fine legs they were too, muscular, but still slender and feminine, tapering down to tiny little ankles.

"I guess we should get moving." Sabrina said.

"Yes, I guess," he agreed quietly.

An old bottle blond clerk stood at the desk.

"We want a suite, please." Michael said, placing his credit card on the desk.

The woman began to tap on her keyboard, took two keycards out of a drawer full of them, ran them through a machine, tucked them in a small cardboard holder, and scribbled a room number on it before handing it to Michael, all without lifting her eyes from the keyboard.

Michael took them and turned to lead the way to the elevators,

The suite was two normal hotel rooms connected by a living/dining area, with a dining table and chairs at one end and a couch, chair, and television at the other. It wasn't very grand, but then the hotel wasn't exactly one of the grand ones either.

"It will do for our needs," Michael decided as he glanced over their accommodations.

"I get this room," Emma announced peering into the bedroom on the right. She then turned and arched an eyebrow as she asked, "Which one of you gets the other and which one takes the couch?"

"Nice try, smarty pants." Michael joked, tossing the packet of room keys on the dining table. "You and Sabrina get that room. I get the other."

"No way. I'm not sleeping with her," Emma protested at once. "She probably snores."

Sabrina laughed. "It won't be so bad. I can braid your hair and we can exchange gossip."

"Okay. I'm taking a bath. A long one. You should too, you both stink."

On that charming note, she stomped into the bathroom of the room she was to share with Sabrina and closed the door behind her.

Michael shook his head, then looked at Sabrina and suggested, "You can use my bathroom."

"Thank you."

"You're very patient with her." He said.

"I'm a patient woman. I used to be a lot like her," Sabrina grinned, and Michael found himself relaxing completely and grinning back.

"I know it's none of my business, but I think you should talk to Emma."

"Talk to her?" Michael asked with dismay. "What about?"

"About what she's been through," she said quietly. "Other than your sister, you can probably help her more than anyone."

"Me?" Michael squeaked with disbelief. "What makes you think I can?"

"Because you lost a brother and a sister-in-law" she said quietly. "Of anyone, you should understand at least part of what she's going through."

Michael felt himself closing up. It was as if something was squeezing tight around him. The death of his brother was a subject he never allowed himself to think of.

"She can never see her parents again. She can never enjoy their love and support again." she pointed out quietly.

"She has Molly and me," Michael insisted grimly.

"Were you paying attention to what she said in the car? Now that Molly got married she's terrified she is going to be dumped. She feels alone in the world," Sabrina explained to him, then added quietly, "Talk to her. She's as alone and lonely as you are."

Michael simply looked at Sabrina while a small storm of emotion rolled through him. Alone and lonely? Where the hell had she gotten that idea?

"You can take a bath in my room. Take as long as you want. I'm going to go out and see if I can scrounge up some clothes for you and Emma." He tried to sound calm without succeeding. He needed to go out and settle himself.

Sabrina bit her lip as she watched him walk to the door, suddenly worried about his being on his own in a strange city at night. That surprised her. When did she start to care for him?

"Don't you want to at least shower or something first?"

"And go back into the rain freshly showered with new clothes just to get all wet again?" Michael asked dryly, pausing at the door. He glanced back at her and smiled. "Take a shower. I'll try to get you something dry and clean to wear"

Sabrina entered the bathroom and quickly stripped off her ruined clothes. Sighing, she turned on the shower and stepped under the hot spray. She turned under the showerhead, rinsing away the worst of the mud and dirt, and then grabbed the hotel soap, her mind on what she could possibly say to Emma to help her through this.

Unfortunately, there wasn't anything anyone could really say to make it better for her. No one could ever replace the family she had lost. Christmas or weddings, or any other holidays would always remind her of her own lack of family. She'd felt like that before Paul, her adoptive father, entered her life. He had married her mother and adopted her. She loved her dad deeply.

Maybe she could let her know she understood what she was going through and perhaps take her under her wing as her dad had done with her.

She stepped out from under the shower and wrapped herself in a towel thinking she should text her parents and let them know she was okay.

CHAPTER 4

Michael returned from his hunt with several bags in his hands. One held sandwiches, chips, and various soft drinks, the others held tourist wear. There were T-shirts, tank tops, yoga pants, joggers and casual sport jackets, all in various sizes.

It wasn't ideal, but they were better than the clothes Emma and Sabrina were wearing and he hoped the girls would agree.

While shopping, Michael had been thinking about what Sabrina had suggested. She was right, even if he didn't want to admit it. The problem was he wasn't sure he was any good at that kind of thing. He didn't have a lot of practice.

He hadn't really opened himself up to anyone since the deaths of his brother and his sister-in-law. When his editor suggested he should talk with a shrink he almost chewed her head off.

Sabrina could do a better job than him talking with his niece. The woman was like some irresistible force. Michael just didn't like to care about people; it meant pain should you ever lose them.

What could he possibly say to help Emma? The girl had been sad, angry, resentful and hurting and still probably was.

She had never really healed from her loss but simply refused to acknowledge it. They were really similar in that. Thing was, he didn't have a clue how he was supposed to draw his niece out and help her.

Sabrina was giving him way too much credit in thinking he could.

"Ooh, is that food I smell?"

Emma hurried to his side. Much to his surprise, she was wrapped in a hotel robe. Few hotels had robes in the rooms anymore.

"I called down to the desk for the robe. Most hotels have them to purchase. They'll put it on the room bill," Emma explained absently as she began plucking at the bags he held.

"What is this? You found clothes too? You're the man, Uncle."

"I found a twenty-four-hour market. It's amazing what they carry in those places," he murmured. She started poking through the contents. While she'd at first been interested in the food, she now ignored that bag and began dumping out the contents of the others to sort through them.

"Nice." Emma held up a black T-shirt reading the quote 'I'm not short. I'm concentrated awesome' across the breasts. "Where is Sabrina?"

"My bathroom," Michael guessed, and she quickly headed in that direction. "Be careful, she might have just come out of the shower."

But he was too late. By the time he even started the warning Emma had already passed through his room, and burst into the bathroom. He winced and looked away as he heard Sabrina's squawk, curse, and ask something about the girl having any boundaries.

"Sorry." Emma's voice sounded deflated, and there was misery on her face as she turned toward the door, muttering, "I used to talk to my mom all the time while she was in the bathroom. I guess I wasn't thinking."

Emma shifted to leave the room. Sabrina was now biting her lip, regret on her face. "So did I."

Emma paused and turned back uncertainly to ask, "Really?"

"Yes, she is a great mom. I'll tell you about her while I try to dry my hair."

Both girls started talking and Emma closed the room's door.

Not wanting to get caught eyeing the door, Michael busied himself emptying his pockets in preparation for stripping to take his own bath.

He retrieved some clothes from his traveling bag and also took a black tank top, a medium-sized T-shirt, and the medium-sized pants for Sabrina and some clothes for Emma.

Michael knocked on the room door and he heard Emma's voice inviting, "Come on in."

He was leaving the clothes on the bed when the bathroom door opened and Sabrina appeared, wrapped in a towel. The sight brought him to a dead halt. It wasn't that she wasn't covered at all the important points, but he couldn't help but be aware that she was completely naked beneath the towel.

She paused on spotting him.

Michael couldn't seem to drag his eyes away from their inventory of the naked flesh visible above and below the towel, but did manage to murmur, "I'm sorry. I brought you some clothes."

"You found clothes?" Sabrina expression brightened.

He completely understood her happiness. He'd been pretty thrilled himself when he had spotted the clothes in the store.

"I guessed you were a medium, but wasn't sure which you'd prefer. I thought probably the tank top, but it is cold, so..."

"Cold doesn't bother me, anyway," Sabrina assured him, choosing the tank top as he had hoped.

Her words made him wish he had brought the short shorts as well. She probably wouldn't have worn them, but he could fantasize. He wasn't at all surprised to see his pants tenting outward. He tried to cover himself.

"These are great," Sabrina said happily as she took the yoga pants as well. "They cover more than a towel."

"Yeah, that's what I thought," he admitted, his eyes dropping to run over the back of her legs as she spun away and headed for her own room. He supposed it had been too much to hope that the towel might slip or something.

Emma took her clothes from the bed, stopped at Michael's side and commented in a low voice, "Your eyes are about to pop out of your head, Uncle."

She winked at him and raising her voice added, "You can shower now if you want. A cold one," she added, then slipped through the door and out of sight.

Michael shook his head as the door closed behind them.

*****

Michael had finished his shower, dressed, and was now toweling his hair when Emma knocked on his door.

She smiled at him and she sat on a bed, eating a sandwich.

"Sabrina was changing and I gave her some privacy." She explained.

Michael nodded.

"Does it ever get better, Uncle?"

"What?" Michael asked with distraction.

"The pain of losing them?" Emma said quietly. "It hurts so much sometimes..."

Michael stopped rubbing the towel on his hair and sat beside his niece. There was real agony on her face, which made panic well up inside Michael. He wasn't good with emotional stuff. In fact, he generally avoided situations that involved it like the plague. However, Emma was hurting, and there was no one else there to help her. He swallowed thickly, stared at her briefly and then opened his arms and wrapped them around his niece.

Clearing his throat, he said, "It does hurt. It hurt me especially on Christmas. That's when I missed Curt more. He used to dress as Santa when I was a kid." He made a pause. His heart aching with longing.

"They say time heals everything. Well, it hasn't healed me yet, at least not completely. It eased the pain a bit, made it easier to bear."

Emma swallowed and nodded solemnly. "Do you miss him?"

Michael felt his throat close up and nodded. He grimly swallowed away the lump.

"Every day," he said quietly. "It was difficult for me to carry on after Curt's death. We were really close as you know. My editor told me that holding onto the pain and not letting it go is like picking scabs off and not letting the wounds heal. It leaves a sore that's likely to become infected. I didn't get what she meant at that time, but I do now. Living like a hermit in my apartment didn't help. Repressing my pain only made it worse. This trip is really helping me, but don't tell Aunt Molly." He smiled at his niece.

"I won't." Emma assured him. "You know..."

"What?"

"You remind me too much of him."

"Really?"

Emma nodded.

"Yes, really. The way you smile and grin. The way you talk and move. Even the way you wake me up when I oversleep is just like him. When I'm with you I feel that a part of Dad is still with me."

"I feel kind of honored, you know? To be compared with someone like my older brother. He was my hero."

The two spoke softly and smiled warmly at each other.

"I love you, Uncle Michael."

"I love you too, Emma." Michael squeezed Emma really tight. "You're my favorite niece."

Emma pushed him away and slapped his chest playfully. "I'm your only niece!"

They both laughed.

"Uncle?"

"Mhm?"

"Can I live with you instead of Auntie?"

"Really?"

"Yes, really. Aunt Molly is married now. It will be painful to be around them."

"We'll see," Michael murmured, unwilling to make a promise unless he was sure she could keep it. "I have to talk with Aunt Molly about it first."

"Fair enough. Thank you, Uncle." She wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a tight hug.

"You should go back to your room and try to get some sleep. I want to head out as early as we can in the morning." he said kissing her cheek.

Emma nodded.

"Good night, Uncle." She kissed his cheek back, lingering there. "Thank you for the talk."

"Good night, Sweetie. I'm here for you any time you need me."

CHAPTER 5

Michael stepped through Wal-Mart's sliding doors, and then paused as Emma sped past him to pull a cart from a small collection of them waiting directly ahead.

They have travelled a bit more than 300 miles in the morning. Emma had asked to make a stop to buy some clothes and have lunch.

Shifting uncomfortably, he glanced around, his gaze barely touching on Sabrina before it slipped away. "I can probably find something to entertain myself with in the books department if you girls would rather shop without me trailing you around."

"Oh, no," Emma protested. "It won't be as much fun without you, Uncle Michael. Besides, a guy's opinion is always vital when it comes to fashion."

"Vital, huh?" he said with a faint smile.

"Very vital. No woman can tell another woman what looks best on her, only a man can," she assured him. "And Sabrina and I want to look our best in case we run into some hunky guys when she takes me to lunch."

"Hunky guys?" he asked with a frown. "You're too young to date."

Sabrina shook her head and laughed, playing along with Emma's schemes again.

"I promised Emma we'd go to lunch after shopping, but that was when we were going by ourselves. I suppose that's out now," she added.

"I'll take you both to lunch," Michael said quickly.

"Really?" Emma brightened at once. Beaming happily, she gave him a hug. "Thank you, Uncle. You're the best. Here, you can push the cart while Sabrina and I throw clothes in. It will give you something to do. Come on, Sabrina. I need lots of clothes."

"Hmm," Michael muttered, taking her place at the cart when she danced out in front of it to lead the way. He had the distinct impression he'd been played here, an impression that only solidified when Sabrina chuckled "sucker" in a soft voice as she followed Emma into the aisles.

Michael shook his head and followed the pair, sighing when he realized his eyes had seemed to fasten on Sabrina's ass and appeared unwilling to leave it. The yoga pants she was wearing weren't helping. Her ass was practically begging for his attention.

Sighing, Michael forced his eyes from Sabrina's behind with some effort as she paused to examine some item of clothing they had approached.

"What do you think, Uncle Michael?"

Blinking, he shifted his attention to Emma and raised an eyebrow uncertainly. "What do I think of what?"

"Of these," Emma said with a laugh, and held a pair of panties in front of Sabrina's groin. They were red silk with black lace trimming. "Do you think men would find her attractive in these? There's a matching bra too." She held that up in front of Sabrina's breasts next and peered at the effect with a tilted head.

"I think they're gorgeous, but Sabrina says the material of the bra is too flimsy and her nipples would show through when it's cold. Do men mind nipple bumps?"

"I..." Michael stared, his mind suddenly in hiatus as he imagined Sabrina in the outfit, her nipples erect and pressing the material outward. "...don't..."

"See? He said 'I don't.' I told you men don't mind nipple bumps," Emma said with a smile, and tossed the bra and panties into the cart.

"Brat," Sabrina shook her head, laughing.

Michael stared helplessly at the scraps of material and shook his head. He hadn't meant he didn't mind nipple bumps. He wasn't sure what he had meant. Emma was... well, he didn't know what to think about what his niece was doing.

She appeared to have really come out of her shell with Sabrina's arrival on the scene and was being rather precocious. He didn't think she had a clue how her suggestions and words were affecting him, though.

Sabrina appeared unconcerned, completely oblivious of his presence, her expression serene as Emma held up a black and red bra in front of her.

"You're so lucky to have the body to wear this stuff."

Emma was sighing as he tuned in to what she was saying.

"You have nice breasts. They're full and round, just like those girls in the movies. I hope I have breasts like yours when I finish growing."

Sabrina laughed with open disbelief.

"With a figure like yours I could get a nice man like Uncle Michael, following me around with his tongue hanging out."

"I'm not following her with my tongue hanging out," protested Michael embarrassed by her words.

He forced his eyes and ears away from the pair as his mind again filled with the image of Sabrina's full, round breasts in the silky lace. Was this how females talked when alone together?

Sabrina was blushing too, pleased at the thought that Michael might find her attractive.

Michael was more than relieved when he heard Sabrina said, "Okay, Emma. Enough lingerie, let's go to check some actual clothes."

At least he was until Emma insisted Sabrina tried on a slinky little black dress and model it for them.

The dress was nothing special... until Sabrina put it on. It looked to him as if Emma had given her the wrong size.

"Perfect," Emma pronounced, jolting him out of his stupor.

He peered from Sabrina to Emma with disbelief. "Surely it's the right size?"

"Actually, it's just my size," Sabrina said, peering at herself in the mirror. "Do I look fat?"

"No! You look great. But it's..." He paused, mouth open when she turned her back to him. Michael closed his eyes and just managed not to whimper.

"It's cute, just not my style. I think I'll be more comfy wearing jeans, Emma. We should probably get you some sneakers too," Sabrina announced as she slipped back into the dressing room to return wearing her tank top and yoga pants.