The Anderson Women Pt. 02

"What if..."

She had asked Ashley almost in tears.

"You have to walk the walk!"

Julie had nearly burst out in laughter when she had heard her friend's "advice".

"This is no solution."

She lightly slapped her two cheeks to bring herself out of the funk and picked up the phone to call him.

"Hello, Mike?"

"Listen, I have something to tell you!"

His voice sounded urgent and a little panicked. This, in turn, made her panicked too.

"Okay, alright...I'm listening."

"I think Sarah knows..."

"WHAT???"

Julie's mind as if exploded. She couldn't believe it at all. Her hands turned stiff and she nearly dropped her phone.

"What do you mean she knows? How?"

"It's not definite but I have a feeling..."

"What does that mean?"

"It means that I don't know for sure, but I suspect that she knows."

Mike's voice still sounded the same, though Julie calmed down a lot. She believed that it was just Mike being Mike. For all her life, the years she had spent with Mike, she always believed that he was a scaredy-cat. She often teased him over it.

'He's just freaking out as usual... Wait a sec!'

All of a sudden she had a brilliant idea. An idea that could get her out of her current situation and it won't ever hurt anyone's feelings or make Mike resent her. She did feel bad suggesting it, as it felt to her that she would be deceiving him or taking advantage of him, but she apologized to him in her mind.

"Where are you right now?"

"In my room, alone."

"Good, that's good. We should talk about it only when no one can have a chance to listen in."

She thought she heard him scoff at her but she decided to ignore it for the time being.

"We have to observe her..."

"Hmmm? Why?"

"We have to act like everything's the same as two days ago and see if she says anything or acts weird. We can't let her get any clues..."

"But is it really the best way to deal with this?"

"Yes. You have to listen to me!"

"Bu-"

"We must wait till her marriage; she's already in stress after her engagement. We can't do anything till then. And if someone finds out before we, ourselves, tell them, we will lose all credibility."

"Hmmm..."

Julie waited with her breath stuck in her throat. She knew Mike was mulling over things from his side, and she was praying that he would agree. This way she will get some time to sort out her feelings and won't do anything rash like last night.

'Please!'

"You do have a point, I suppose."

She sighed in relief and clenched her fist in jubilancy.

"Of course, I have a point."

"Hmmm..."

"So we have to be careful and not expose ourselves, you understand?"

"...Fine."

"Even if we think we are alone, we have to be careful!"

"Alright, alright... Geez!"

"I know, this sounds terrible but we have to stay strong. For Sarah!"

"Yeah, alright."

A strange pause enveloped their conversation. Both were at a loss, suddenly, and didn't know what to talk about anymore. Julie also felt terrible and immense guilt in tricking Mike like that, but all in all, she was relieved.

"So..."

"So?"

"What are you up to?"

"I don't know... Joe is with Sarah so maybe I should catch up on my work."

"Oh?"

"There's that meeting coming up with the-"

"Why don't we go out?"

"... Didn't you just now say we have to maintain distance?"

Julie once again found herself in a huge whirl of indecision and dilemma. She cursed herself and her heart. She didn't even understand why she had said it and what she wanted anymore.

"But we can still go out, right?"

"Julie..."

***

(Part 1B)

... His hands took the cup from her and placed it on the counter behind her. She tried to hold back from smiling, to maintain the look of annoyance and defiance. But her efforts tumbled in the face of his soft kisses to her neck.

"Mike, please..." She moaned.

He gently pecked the mole on her shoulder and ran his hands over her bare thighs feeling her heat. Just a few inches shorter than him, she felt his hardness against her stomach. It was peeking out from the top as his shorts were not cozy enough to accommodate his full length. She sighed at the sight and it got deeper when he sensually stroked her artistic, long legs. Despite her groans of gratification, she tried to block his advance, tried to keep him away from her wetness. Mike, though, brandished a devious smile and kneeled down level with her thin waist.

She held the edge of the t-shirt down to shield her sex and pleaded for him to stop, "Not now please, Joe could be up any minute..."

But it turned out to be just token resistance, a futile effort to delay the inevitable. They knew there was only ever going to be one winner after he had run his tongue over her opening.

"He's not up yet..."

The muffled voice tickled her and his fingers took advantage of the moment and slid under the cloth to knead her breasts. A low moan of pleasure sounded above his ears. Even when she had bit her lips to not let out any sound, she could not control herself, putty as she was in his hands.

"You're so..." she spoke between breaths, "... incorrigible..."

Her fingers clutched his hair in between them to pull him in.

"Oh, Mike!"

He ran his tongue over the length of her opening, mixing his saliva with her wetness. His fingers pinched and rolled between them her nipples with practiced ease.

"So delicious..." He winked at her.

She put him to work instantly, maybe because she didn't like the interruption or maybe because she didn't want him to see her reddening face, and he was happy to oblige.

He parted her lips with his fingers and licked around the wet, pink edges. His fingers invaded her opening while his tongue flicked the nub above.

"Ah..." she hummed in approval.

He doubled his effort, not only because her hum was incredibly sexy, but also because he could feel the onset of a momentous flood. His finger gun kept poking inside, encouraged by the squelching sounds and his tongue kept lapping up the nectar sprinkling outward.

Her nub was erect and was in dire need of his touch, so were her nipples, as much as him. She felt him circle her clit with his thumb and a groan escaped her mouth. Her hands on top of his head increased their force and directed him upwards. Compliant as ever, Mike flicked the flesh bud with his tongue and licked it repeatedly.

"Yes... Yes... Yesss-"

Mike stopped just when she was on the verge of falling to the abyss of pleasure and stood up in a flash, his shorts pulled down to his ankle. He was aching, and she was the cure. She opened her eyes to find him smirking at her. His rock hard dick was humping against her vulva, eager to penetrate her.

A panicked look came across her face as she shook her head and pushed him away with both her hands.

Mike twitched his eyebrow. It was the first time she had denied him, and he had to rake his mind to figure out the reason.

Unaware of the storm raging in his heart, she reaffirmed her conviction. With a strong gaze, she spoke, "No..."

***

(Part 4)

Mike lay down on the sofa in Sarah's chamber. The meeting had run long and he felt immense fatigue from it. Sarah had asked him to go ahead while she accompanied their partners to be.

"It went well I think..."

In the past week, he had heeded Julie's words and maintained some distance between them. Still, he felt odd glances from Sarah from time to time, especially when they spent time alone in preparation for the new project. There wasn't any overt action, just sometime he would feel as if she looked at him resentfully or in a wronged way.

Nevertheless, Sarah hadn't given any hint or said anything to make him believe that she had any inkling about Julie and his tryst. He had relaxed quite a bit and was mulling over if he should convince Julie to see his way. Though she seemed a little odd to him, he trusted her and had decided to stick with her decision untill she said otherwise.

"She's good but nobody's that good. It must've been my imagination."

He sighed at the ridiculousness of the whole situation. Many a time he just wanted to flat out admit it to Sarah, barely he held himself whenever she gazed at him with those expectant eyes.

She had always been the one to confide in, and it was painful to hide such a huge thing from her. He comforted himself in the fact that it was only temporary. The memory of that night was still vivid in his mind and he hated that he had to do something that may hurt her.

"Well she's calmed down a little and Joe also seems happier to spend more time with her."

Mike realized that she had been spending a lot of time with Joe ever since she got engaged but he didn't mind it. In fact, he welcomed it. Joe always seemed to light up in her presence more than anyone else's and Sarah also would look serene whenever she spent together with them.

"What are you doing?"

Sarah asked as she stood staring down at him.

"I-uh... nothing," Mike got startled initially and mumbled his way through as he pulled himself away from his thoughts and made room for her on the sofa.

Sarah looked at him funny before seating herself beside him.

"What were you thinking about?"

Mike turned away from her as he tried to evade her question as well as her eyes, "Nothing, just this meeting..."

"Oh yeah?"

"Sure!"

"Mike," Sarah spoke in a calm tone and then turned his face towards her own.

It was quite a shock for Mike to feel her acting so intimate when he thought she was upset with him.

"What are you not telling me?"

He felt her soft hands held his face in them. Her focused gaze, appraising his face like a piece of exceptional art, was soft and yet it felt spiky to him. Inches away, he could feel his breath on his mouth.

"I-"

Her ever accepting aura dulled his ability to lie and the fragrant smell tickling his nose lulled his senses.

In a business suit, Sarah looked exceptionally sharp, Mike thought, a fair divide from the warm and comforting presence he knew her as. Her soft bun, impeccable the few minutes ago he saw her, had nearly come off which was quite unlike her and he imagined was wholly unintentional, something she must have not noticed because of the long afternoon. Her professional attitude, she had continued to take with him in the company, seemed like a distant memory at the moment. She was back to being the Sarah he knew and loved.

He followed the drop of sweat as it rolled down her cheek and neck and towards the proud cleft. He gulped in a breath as he watched the bead head towards the restricted area of her blouse. The rhythmic rise and fall of her most inviting breasts further lulled him into a sense of serenity.

"You're staring," Sarah cleared her throat.

Mike, awoken from the reverie of a buried memory, unabashedly lifted his head. There was a faint pinkish hue on her face and her hands trembled a little, he noticed, as their gazes met. Her glossy brown hair had come undone and her beauty got even more accentuated by the way the odd strands flew down her face.

He lost all manner of speech even as in the back of his mind, he knew she had asked something just then. Her slightly disheveled look had taken his breath away. He was mesmerized by her elegance and was left rooted by the sudden onrush of alien sentiments. All he could do was to hold himself back, but not his mind. He imagined running his fingers through her hair and touching her soft skin, holding her close in his arms and burying his head between the valley that was her breasts.

"Mike, tell me."

"Huh?"

He mumbled despite of his lost self.

"Tell me, please!"

The imploring tone of Sarah alerted him to the fact that he had almost admitted the one thing he was asked to hide.

"There's nothing really."

"Is that so?"

Suddenly the atmosphere turned odd. Her arms didn't feel as warm as before, her aura not as fuzzy. The few inches between them had somehow seemed like an unscalable chasm.

"Sarah re-"

He tried to mend the distance but got shushed even before he could complete his sentence. The desolate look in her eyes and the hurt expression on her face cut deep in his heart.

"Don't!"

"Don't okay? Please?"

Mike felt as if he was hit by a truck. The intensity of her words shook him to the core, made him realize how much it meant to her that he didn't choose to confide in her, that he would lie to her.

"Let's go."

Sarah announced as she got up from the sofa and straightened her features. In a few short moments when he was still contemplating what he should do next, she had composed herself and was back to usual. He doubted himself on whether it was all just his imagination. His only clue that it hadn't been his mind playing tricks on him was the much too real feeling of guilt and the barely perceptible sadness in the corner of her eyes.

He sighed to himself as he stared at her walking out the door.

"She's... that good."

...

The air was quiet and awkward between them on the ride home.

'Maybe I should take my own car from now.'

"Don't be late tomorrow. We have a lot of work to do still."

Sarah took off with those words. Her tone was non-compromising as if she somehow knew what he had been thinking about.

It was just one of those things. Since he started in the company, Sarah had been giving him a ride. He didn't know how it became a thing, but she would usually advise him on the inner workings so as so fast track his understanding. And on the way back it was just light conversation about work or Joe.

"Apparently I'm not allowed to take my own car," Mike had to shake his head at the thought of going through the unbearable torture that was the ride home, over and over.

Joe came running to him as he entered through the gate. He lifted the little guy over his shoulder and made a beeline towards Vanessa who was busy in the kitchen.

"Mike! Put him down!"

Vanessa looked aghast. Her eyes widened at the dangerous "stunt" her son was executing.

"Fine," Mike laughed and gently let down Joe, who was having a riot, from his shoulder to the floor.

"You can hurt someone!"

Vanessa lectured him some more on the dangers involved with raising a child before he could go and change out of his work clothes.

On the dinner table, Mike sat between Joe and Vanessa. He asked as he extended to pour curry in his plate, "Where's Dad?"

"Oh, he'll eat out with his friends."

Vanessa sounded nonchalant but Mike thought otherwise.

"What is it, the third time this week?"

"Yeah... well, it's fine. It means I get to spend more time with the two of you."

"Hmmm...But what do they even do?"

"I don't know. Play poker maybe?"

"Maybe..."

Mike was not convinced by Vanessa's words. It seemed a little too obvious to him. He knew his father liked to gamble and such, still to not want to spend time with his wife for it was too much in his opinion.

'Should I ask him about it?'

He didn't want to meddle in between the husband and wife but seeing as his mother was more often than not left at home by herself, he didn't want to take any chance.

"... Sarah?"

"Huh?"

"Joe asked you about Sarah..."

Vanessa clarified for him when he didn't react to Joe's inquiry.

"Oh, Sarah... she left for her home."

"Its fine Joe, you will see her tomorrow."

Mike felt terrible seeing Joe's sad expression. Vanessa was quick to comfort the little guy but it reminded Mike just how much Joe and Sarah seemed to love each other and made him realize the extent of her anger if she didn't even say hello to Joe.

His thoughts further devolved into the awkward ride home and the weird time in her office. He had somehow avoided thinking about it and her, since he arrived home but the guilt came rushing back and he was helpless but to be haunted as his brain kept replaying her hurt expression.

"Everything alright with you two?"

"Ye-Why? Yeah- I mean yes."

"Really?"

Vanessa raised her eyebrows at Mike's weird reaction. She had already noticed that there was something going on between them but she had left it alone thinking that it was just some work-related issue and nothing serious. But his panicked gaze and voice pointed towards something other than that.

Mike was caught in between two minds. He could really use some advice on how to pacify Sarah but he also knew that if he started talking to his mother, she may very well reach the bottom of the whole situation and he definitely didn't want that.

"I-" He sighed, "I will take care of it."

"Hmmm... alright if you say so. But-" Vanessa stopped and didn't finish the sentence. Nonetheless, Mike understood by her expressions that she had meant for them to keep Joe out of it.

"Yes, I will." He whispered to himself with conviction.

...

Mike lay awake in bed. It was almost midnight and the little guy beside him was fast asleep, not he though. He hadn't been able to catch a single second of shut-eye. He chided himself as he glanced beside him.

'I promised to...'

The unsaid words of Vanessa had really hurt deep. He blamed it all on himself. Though not seeing Sarah for a day couldn't be counted as a big deal, Joe had been quite like his usual self for the rest of the evening, it still had alerted him. He was afraid of the "what ifs..." and didn't want to do something else which could make it a habit.

"Don't forget your priorities," Robin had once advised him.

The memory of his best friend brought a smile to his face. She liked to give advice to him, Phil too; she just loved it when she could display to them how she was worldlier than them. Now, they were gone and he couldn't count on them anymore to wipe up after him. He turned to cuddle with Joe, the last and most beloved part they had left to him.

"I won't, never again."

Mike whispered.

***

(Part 5)

"I'm sorry!"

It was more than a surprise for Mike when Sarah apologized to him. He had been waiting for her with bated breath and thought of various ways to beg for her forgiveness. But not even in his wildest imagination would he have thought that it would be Sarah who was the first to offer an olive branch.

"I shouldn't have behaved that way. I don't have any right to..."

Sarah looked away from him, not giving him a chance to see her expression. Mike, though, could guess it was painful for her to say that, as it was for him to hear it. He steeled himself and softly held her shoulders to make her face him.

"It's my fault, all of it. And I know this is no way to apologize, but you're wrong. You're absolutely wrong! You have every right, you hear!"

"Ouch!"

A small giggle escaped her lips when she saw his animated self. Mike blushed in embarrassment. He had gotten a little too excited and had been clutching her shoulders with considerable force, as well as had raised his voice to great decibels. It wasn't actually all resolved, he knew that, but at least for the time being, they were good. And that was all he had hoped for at the start of the day.

"Um... Sarah, why are you dressed like that?"

That was maybe the first thought that ran through his mind when he had seen her get out of her car. Unlike her usual office attire of a business suit or a blouse and skirt with a dark blazer on top, she had a high-waisted dress on. The blue color quite suited her, as did the chic purse hanging by her shoulder. The light breeze gave sway to her long hair, which she had decided to not tie up in a bun. Mike quite liked her look. It was as simple as it was sweet and warm.

"Are you not coming to the office?"

"Yes, and you aren't too."

"Huh? What?"