CHAPTER FOUR

~ GRAND TOUR ~

"Hmmm I wonder where Kevin is." commented Kristin, nearly five hours later, to Micah and Leighanne who were all still in the same position that Nick had left them in earlier. "It's getting late and he still has to pack for tomorrow." Neither of the trio had realized it was so late until they looked up to see that virtually everyone had left.

Leighanne laughed and nodded in agreement. "I'll probably end up packing Brian's things like an hour before he has to leave tomorrow." she responded. Micah nodded but stayed quiet because she hadn't finished her packing yet either.

"I've already packed for your information." Brian interrupted, walking over to the women, with his arms crossed over his chest. "And Micah Nick is looking for you. He wants to know if your ready to leave."

"I guess..."

"He's playing pool with AJ and a couple other people but he's loosing miserably."

Micah laughed and stood up. "It was nice meeting you guys." she told Leighanne and Kristin with a smile before waving and walking into the massive house, praying she wouldn't get lost trying to find the room that held the pool table. She walked into the kitchen and tried to decided where she wanted to go.

Then just as she chose to exit the left door, Nick appeared in the door to her right. "Hey Micah. Long time no see." he greeted her, walking to the fridge and pulling out another beer. "You ready to leave? It's almost two."

"I CAN tell time, Nick." Micah teased him, "But yeah I'm ready to leave if you are."

"Kay...Umm I guess we should go find Bone to say good-bye." Nick suggested as Micah walked towards him. Silently they walked back to the pool room to say good-bye to AJ and whoever else was in the room. When they entered the room AJ was resting in a large arm chair while Dave and Andy -- two of the band members -- stood next to the pool table debating quietly over something.

"Hey guys."  AJ greeted his face lighting up into a smile. "You leaving too?"

"Yeah." Nick responded, as AJ got out of his chair.

"Okay...see you tomorrow." AJ answered, quickly giving Nick a brotherly hug and then pulled Micah into a much less brotherly hug. "I'm glad you came."

"Thanks for inviting me. I had fun." Micah assured him, squeezing him back before pulling away.

"Your turn, J!" Dave called out.

"All right. Bye guys." AJ said, with a quick wave before heading back over to the table.

"Bye." Nick and Micah chorused before leaving the room. Micah and Nick quietly walked out of the house and didn't say a word to one another until they were driving halfway down AJ's street.

"You didn't come into the pool with me." Nick informed her, looking quickly over at her with a pouty look.

"Next time." Micah promised with a giggled as she leaned her head against the back of the leather seats, as she recalled what Leighanne and Kristin had "warned" her about. If all Nick or AJ wanted was casual sex she could handle that. She had been handling THAT since she and JC had broken up. But if they wanted a relationship...that was a little different. She didn't want to get emotionally invested in anyone at that moment and she had her reasons.

'Why are you analyzing this to death? Just let things happen. For once you don't have to plan every little detail out. Chill.' she told herself, looking over at Nick. He looked incredibly cute sitting next to her. He was moving with the beat of the music that was playing lightly from the radio as he drove down the highway, oblivious to pretty much anything.

"Finished packing?" Nick asked so suddenly that it scared Micah and caused her to avert her eyes to the moonlit road in front of them.

"Halfway. I'll probably just throw everything together after my meeting." Micah explained, with a shrug as she cautiously looked over at him. Thankfully he wasn't watching her.

"Meeting for what?"

"My record company."

"Your what?"

"Record company."

"You own a RECORD COMPANY?!"

"Yup. It's called Duckie. A third of it is owned by Jive. They approached me with the idea of it when I was 18 and I figured I might as well."

Nick nodded in stun. This girl did it all. He would have never expected that from Micah. "Whose on it?" he questioned, after a few moments of silence.

"Umm...I just signed a two new girl groups, and three punk groups and one rock band. A couple rappers too. I have a couple big artists too - Destiny's Child who got dropped from Columbia right when Duckie was starting up, Christina Aguliera, Jennifer Lopez, Britney Spears, Willa Ford, Pink, POD, Linkin Park, Sum 41, Incubus, DMX, Ja Rule, Jay-z, Usher, Sunshine Anderson, Blu Cantrell, Alicia Keys, 112 and City High...umm...After *NSYNC's contract with Jive expires they are coming over. There's some other artists too...Oh and I just signed Wes Borland -- from Limp Bizket --...his new band, Big Dumb Face." Micah explained nonchalantly.

"Wow..." Nick breathed, even though two of the names she had mentioned didn't suit him all too well -- Willa Ford, his ex, and *NSYNC -- but he wasn't about to mention it.

"Yeah..." Micah responded, with a shrug suddenly feeling uncomfortable. She looked out of the passenger's side window and quickly realized her turn-off was coming up soon, so she told Nick that.

"Okay...It's the next one right?"

"Yup."

The last five minutes of the ride Nick and Micah sat in a semi-comfortable silence, listening to the radio. As Nick pulled his Durango into Micah's gravel drive he turned to her and said, "I had fun."

Micah smiled at him. "Me too...Hey um you wanna come in for a little? I know it's late or whatever..." She had to bite back a groan. She probably sounded like SUCH a dork.

"Sure!" Nick answered with a bit too much excitement and pep for his liking.

Micah nodded and tried to be nonchalant while waiting for Nick to get out of the car and walk over to her. Once he had finally done that they continued up the drive, and walkway to her front door. She quickly unlocked it and deactivated the alarm before stepping into the house. "Welcome to Casa de Saro." she said, as Nick walked into the front foyer. It had large cathedral ceilings with a black hard wood floor, white walls, and black and white art hanging on the wall. "It's kinda messy right now. I haven't really had time to clean, and I'm too stingy to hire a maid."

Nick laughed. "Don't worry. My house is messy and I HAVE a maid." he assured her, as she lead him out of the foyer and into a sunken living room with the same cathedral ceilings. A humongous white leather sectional hugged the back wall of the room. Caddy corner to the couch was a white grand piano. Hanging on the walls was abstract art by artists who Nick had never heard of. The hard wood floor glistened in the spot lights that were built into the high ceilings.

"You want the grand tour?" Micah asked, looking up at Nick.

"Sure." Nick answered, not really wanting the night to end. Besides it wasn't like he had to get up at the crack of dawn. He had to be at the venue by three and his packing - for once - was already done.

"Well this is the living room. No one really goes in this room because the couch was like half a million dollars or something like that. Plus someone accidentally snapped a whole bunch of strings on the piano." Micah explained, rocking back and forth on her heels. It had been Chris Kirkpatrick who had broken the piano and Micah hadn't had time to fix it yet. "Come on..." She reached down and grabbed Nick's hand as she lead him through a wide hallway with family pictures on either side of them. She came to a stop in the kitchen.

"We've got the basics...table, stove, cabinets, fridge...all that..." Micah explained waving her hand at each item and then she pointed at the window. "That's the reason I bought the house. The sunset on this lake is inCREDIBLE. Sunrise is pretty nice too. You can't really tell now..." It was pitch black outside -- even the moon was hiding so you couldn't see the lake glittering.

"I bet. I love watching the sunsets and I've seen some pretty sunrises too..." Nick commented, not too able to concentrate on much, curtises of Micah's hand.

Micah smiled up at him before leading him through a wide archway into another big room. This time it was the dining room. There was a huge mahogany table that seated twenty with ornate wooden chairs placed around it. A floor to ceiling China cabinet was full of China that had been her great-grandmothers and had been left to her in her Grandmother's will. A huge crystal chandelier hung from the center of the room, shooting prisms of light everywhere. "I don't really use this room much. I think like once or twice. In fact...I think the only room I actually use on this floor is the kitchen."

Nick laughed and let her pull him back into the kitchen, where she - much to his dismay - dropped his hand. "Coffee? Water? Soda?" she asked walking over to the fridge and pulling it open. She grabbed herself a bottle of water and then turned back to Nick. She felt a bit weird to have him in her house. It was an UNCOMFORTABLE feeling...just a weird one. "I don't really have any beer...Sorry."

"Water would be fine." Nick assured her.  She turned back to get the water and Nick saw her calf and thigh muscles flex. He had to tear his eyes away from her before he got too excited. After all they were friends. When he was able to look back she was holding out the water bottle. He took the cold bottle with a grateful smile. "Thanks."

Micah nodded, watching him with an eyebrow cocked. "You okay?" His face was slightly flushed and he didn't seem able to hold still.

"Err yeah. I'm fine." he quickly dismissed her, before taking a sip of water. "Where to next?"

Micah smiled mischievously. She had suddenly realized SHE was probably the source of his discomfort. "The bedroom, suit you?" She had to bite her lip to keep from laughing as she watched Nick's face turn the deepest shade of red she had ever seen. "Aaww Nick...I'm sorry." The smile changed from mischievous to apologetic. She shouldn't tease him the way she had.

Nick rolled his eyes. "It's okay." So much for being suave, cool and sophisticated. He was acting like some thirteen year old boy.

"Let's go down to the third floor." Micah suggested, moving towards a staircase located in between the fridge and the back door. Nick followed her down the stairs -- careful to keep his eyes away from places that might make him look even more like thirteen year old boy. "This is basically the rec room. It was like four or five rooms before but I just had all of the walls knocked down and made it into one big room." Micah explained as she walked down into the room.

Nick's mouth fell as his eyes wondered around the large room. There was six or seven arcade games pushed against the far wall. Across the room from them was a pool table with the Duckie logo in the center of the pool green. Behind the pool table was a large dart wooden looking  dart board. The wall to Nick's left was three sets of glass sliding glass doors that lead out into the back yard. The wall to Nick's right was a big screen TV, with a black suede looking sectional in front of it. On either side of the couch were black recliners. Set up under the TV was Playstation 2, Dreamcast, and Nintendo Game cube. This was almost as good as his game room at home. "Sweet!" he cried, walking towards Ms. Pac-man.

Micah watched him with amusement. "I figured this would be your favorite." she commented, sitting down on the stairs. "Should we do the rest of the grand tour or do you just wanna play?"

Nick looked anxiously at the games. "Can I play tomorrow?" His gaze snapped back to Micah and gave her a boyish smile. He walked over to her and without thinking put his arms around her waist and gave her the puppy dog face. Tomorrow? Micah thought to herself.  "Pretty pwease? With cherries on top?"

Micah grinned at him. She just couldn't let his last comment slide. She reached up and placed her hands behind his neck and gently pulled his towards hers. She put her mouth right next to his ear and whispered, "With whipped cream too?" Then, just to add effect, she opened her mouth and slid her tongue around the edge of Nick's ear. Nick's jaw dropped so low it hit Micah's shoulder. Micah felt his jaw hit and could no longer hold in her laughter. She dropped her forehead onto Nick's shoulder and began giggling uncontrollably.

Nick groaned and dropped his hands away from Micah's waist. He should have realized THAT was coming. "I prefer honey." he shot back. Micah looked up at him still laughing.

"S-s-ounds kinky." Micah responded, as Nick started laughing with her. Nick nodded as they both started to calm down.

"So can I?" Nick asked, once his laughter had subsided. The tension had seemed to have left with the laughter.

Micah looked at him a bit bewildered and perturbed. "Excuse me?"

"Play later?" Nick told her. He reached up and pulled lightly on one of her braids. "You've got a nasty mind."

Micah grinned coyly. "If only you knew." she teased him, walking towards a wooden door next to the arcade games.

"Can I find out?" Nick retorted, walking after her.

"Depends." Micah told him, as she opened the door she had walked too. There was a small landing before some more steps that lead down into the fourth floor. Directly across from the doorway Micah was standing in was another door. She pointed towards it. "Bathroom." Then she started down the stairs, with Nick once again in tow.

"Where are we going now?"

"Down the stairs."

"Duh." Nick grumbled shaking his head and they stepped down from the last stair. To either side of him there was a door.

"Pick a door." Micah entrusted and Nick opened the door to the left one. This was a relatively small room compared to the rest. There was an antique looking desk pushed towards one wall. Across from the desk was a built in floor to ceiling book case that was filled to capacity with tapes all with dates and initials on them. There was several gray metal filing cabinets all over the room. A yellow IMAC sat on the neatly organized desk, along with a fax machine and a small copier. "This is my office. Recording files and things like that in these bad boys." Micah patted the top of the closest filing cabinet. "And these are all the tapes from the recordings I've done here."

"You produce too?" Nick asked. He was no longer shocked by any of this. He had learned to expect the unexpected from Micah. Micah nodded absently. She was staring up at the tapes as she played with the hem of her dress, unconsciously pulling it up to give Nick a better view of her legs. "How come you tape it?"

"Legal reasons." Micah shrugged. "This is just what I've done this year. Every year my assistants and I transfer it all to the storage space at Duckie."

Nick nodded, his eyes never leaving her legs. "Where's the recording studio? Is it here?"

"Uh-huh. That's the other door down here," she responded, turning to face Nick and quickly noticing where his eyes were. She rolled her eyes and pinched him lightly as she walked by him and out of the room.

"Ow! What was that for?" Nick cried, rubbing his arm as he followed her into the adjoining room. He looked appreciatively around the room. There was the actually recording part that was incased in glass and then the mixing table with a whole bunch of other mix mastering tools. There was a large deep purple couch against the back wall and that was about it.  

"For checking out my legs."

"But they're NICE legs."

This time it was Micah's turn to blush. "Well in that case..." she muttered, walking away from him.

"You know," Nick began, plopping down unceremoniously onto the purple couch. He had a feeling AJ would like this couch. "You don't take compliments very well."

"I take them better when the person whose giving them too me isn't flirting mercilessly with me." Micah retorted, sitting in a leather rolly chair she had sitting in front of the mix mastering board.

"I am NOT!" Nick lied, gazing around the room. It was a normal studio. Except for the paraphernalia around the room. There was guitars, basses, several cymbals, a piano key or two, and a few other things all autographed and hung neatly on the walls. One wall Nick noticed was bare of the paraphernalia. Instead there was writing covering it. He leaned in closer to read the wall.

"Everyone who I produce down here, signs the wall. I was helping Lance Bass record some stuff with a few of his new artists and Justin Timberlake had stopped over and I turn around to find him writing on my wall and he gave me the suggestion. It's easier than wallpaper." Micah explained, rolling the chair back and forth over the carpet. Nick nodded as he checked out the names. All of the artists she had named earlier, several uknowns and several big wigs had all John Hancocked the wall. He was impressed to say the least. He was also suprised his record company hadn't suggested Micah a while ago for BSB's own recording. She had obviously doing it for quite a while. "Penny for your thoughts?"

Nick looked back at Micah startled. He had forgotten she had been in the room. "How about a quarter instead? For a condom?"

Micah snorted and rolled her eyes. He certainly had some balls...'Now if only he'd KISS me...'  Micah's eyes widened slightly at the thought. Where the HELL had that come from? "Whatever might you need a condom for?" she shot back, tilting her head slightly, as she pushed the previous thought out of her mind.

"Harsh!" Nick exclaimed with a laugh. 'If she's not the perfect girl for me...I don't know who is. She's smart, funny, sweet, BEAUTIFUL, knows how to handle herself, successful...' Nick knew he could continue on with the list, even with the short amount of time he had spent with her. He WOULD have continued if he hadn't noticed Micah was already out of her seat and heading out the room. He got up and followed her. "Where now?"

"First floor." Micah responded, sounding a bit preoccupied. Nick considering asking her what was on her mind but wasn't too sure if she'd respond truthfully. Or even if it was his place to ask. He wondered if HE was the source of her preoccupation. Maybe he had over stepped the line. Or maybe he was just overanalyzing everything... something he tended to do with girls. Nick followed her silently through the rooms they had already been through and up the stairs to the first floor. "These are all the guest rooms. Nothing special. Just bedrooms." Micah announced finally, waving at the five rooms that they had just past.  "I had NOTHING to do with the decorating. My sister did two of the rooms and then I let the guy I was dating then and two of his friends decorate the other two. Letting the guys decorate was somewhat of a mistake but if I changed it they'd get mad at me."

Nick nodded. He had originally tried to decorate his own house. Thankfully he had let Willa - his then girlfriend - and a professional decorator step in before he made and irreversible mistakes. And they had been able to paint over the magenta mess he had made of the master bedroom's bathroom. The magenta had been BRIAN'S idea though. "Live and learn right?" Nick commented as they walked into an open and airy looking sitting room.

It was small compared to the other rooms in the house but nice. The room was painted a pale creamish color and carpeted with thick, soft carpet that was several shades darker than the walls. Comfortable wicker chairs and couches with deep seats were around the room. Unlit candles sat on wicker tables and on metal stands all around the room. Double French doors, curtained by flowy cream floor to ceiling curtains, opened out onto a balcony over looking the lake. Across from the doors was a built in floor-to-ceiling book case packed with American and English classics along with a few other "newer" books sprinkled in. The walls were filled with pictures of what Nick assumed were Micah's friends and family, along with a few remakes of very popular art work.  A wide ceiling fan spun lazily above their heads. It was a very romantic room. It had a old class to it, yet had a comfortable, lived in look about it.  

"Everyone calls this the "Reflections" room. I'm not too sure why but this is the only room I decorated myself. My sister and my friends kinda took over everything else while I was touring. I would come home and find new things for like two years. It kinda weirded me out but was a bit fun too." Micah commented, chewing on the inside of her lip. Nick was so close to her that she could feel his body heat, warming her own body.

"I thought your sister lived in Albany." Nick commented and Micah was surprised he remembered. Combined with the talk she had had with Leighanne and Kristin and the way she and Nick had been acting, she had just come to assume Nick was just one walking hormone who was interested in nothing from a girl, other than a piece of ass. She hadn't actually thought he was retaining what she was saying. Simply waiting until he could get her upstairs and out of her clothes. She had become comfortable with her assumption too for reasons she knew all too well.

"She did," Micah assured him, flicking a light switch that did nothing to light the room they were standing in. Instead Nick saw a light go on beyond the French doors, out on the balcony. "But she and her ex-husband were having problems and she and her two kids moved down here for a little so Cee could get on her feet again and work out the divorce finalities. I mean why have this much when you can't share it with your family? I loved having them here...when I was actually here."

"I love having my dad and siblings with me. We don't get too spend much time together and my sisters and brother have grown up so fast it's scary." Nick responded, following Micah out onto the balcony. It was approximately twelve-by-twelve feet around. Directly in front of the doors near the four foot high ledge was a cherub bird bath. Several wicker and plastic lounge chairs mingled, and overlooked the lake. Even in the dark, Nick saw what Micah was talking about with the view.

"I know. Celia's girls are twelve and eight now and it feels like just yesterday that they were babies." Micah replied, walking to the ledge and leaning on it, looking down over a large in ground pool, that was shimmering in the light Micah had turned on. Micah pointed down to a small building by the dock that lead into the lake. "I keep the jet-skis and pool stuff in there. And when the weather gets bad I put the boat in there too...You have a boat don't you?"

Nick was a bit befuddled by how quick Micah had changed the subject but let it slide. "Yeah...The guys teases me about it all the time." He walked over to the ledge and leaned down next to Micah - there shoulder touching. He genuinely liked hearing more about her personal life.

"Why?"

"They tell me that there's no point in trying to get a girlfriend because I'll probably spend more time on the water with the boat than I would her..."

Micah giggled and looked over at him. He looked so vulnerable and cute, with his face barely illuminated by the light from the house, and glowing in the moon that had finally decided to make an appearance. It made her want to kiss him intensify and she turned her head to look back down over the lake. "Being on the boat's a great way to get away from everything. Sometimes I'll take mine out onto the middle of the lake and just sit there. It's so quiet and peaceful and calm and undisturbed. So unlike my life."

Nick's mouth dropped. The words that had just come out of Micah's mouth were as if she had been reading his mind. "Weird..." he muttered.

"Huh?"

"Weird...It's just weird because that's exactly how I feel too." Nick explained. Micah turned her head up at him and have him a little grin. "It's like the complete opposite of the hectic life I lead and just being out on the water with no one to bother you or interrupt is so calming."

Micah nodded in agreement. Her "piece-of-ass" assumption was slowly dying hard death. She could tell simply by the look on her face. She had been with several guys who the "piece-of-ass" assumption applied to and the look on Nick's face was not one of them. It made her more attracted to him and more warily of him at the same time. "We've got one more room left..." she commented offhandedly, looking down at her nails. Then she suddenly straightened up and headed towards the other end of the porch where Nick noted another set of French doors.

"Have you saved the best for last?" Nick teased.

"Oh yes." Micah responded rolling her eyes. "The whipped cream, honey and cherries are all set."

Too bad she's only kidding... Nick told himself, following her into the massive master bedroom. There was a king sized antique looking open top canopy bed, several feet off the ground with sheer, gauzy drapes hung around it. There was clothing everywhere - the set of armchairs she had in one corner of the room, the long dresser, the high make-up table, the night tables on either side of the bed and the TV - but the floor. The baby blue carpeting was spotless. "Last minute packing?"

"Something like that..." Micah replied. More like two hours of trying to figure out what to wear. She walked over to the bed and pushed open the drapes to reveal a pillow covered bed. Nick followed her and sat down on the edge of the bed. He looked around the room as Micah began picking up clothes and chucking them either into suitcases or into the closet.

As Nick looked around he spotted a black silk thong hanging over the edge of her phone that was on the night table closest to him. For a SPLIT second he considered pocketing them but then decided it was too deranged and nixed the idea. "Nice undies." he commented, picking them up and slingshoting them at Micah. He missed and enjoyed watching her blush.

"Oh like YOU don't wear them!" Micah shot back, snatching the underwear from the place they had fallen on the floor and dropped them into a suitcase. Nick was so caught-off guard by the remark that he couldn't do anything but laugh. He shook his head and for some reason looked upward and choked on his laughter.

Mirrors. Micah had MIRRORS over her bed. Now if THAT wasn't kinky...Even AJ didn't have mirrors over his bed. Micah giggled as she walked over to join Nick on the bed. "I was waiting for you to notice those." she said, looking up and smirking at the stunned, and somewhat...happy look on Nick's face. "And just for your information," she started, poking Nick in the ribs, "They were NOT my idea and I had NO idea they were going up. It was my brilliant ex-boyfriend and his friends who came did this while I was touring one time." It was all completely the truth too. JC had sent a car for her at the airport and when she had gotten home he was waiting for her in the Reflections room and he QUICKLY started heating things up and lead her into the bedroom, for her to find the mirrors. At first she had been completely freaked out and had to tack curtains over them, much to JC's dismay but eventually she just got used to them and didn't even really care anymore.

Micah could see the wheels working in Nick's head. HE obviously had no problem with the mirrors. Without really thinking she leaned in, placing her hands on either side of Nick's legs on the bed, and got centimeters from his face before he looked down at her. "Do you like them?" she purred lowly, lifting an eyebrow. She watched him gulp and his eyes widen. He had such beautiful blue eyes, she noticed. Crystal clear and deep.

"Mmmm...Mmmhhmm..." he mumbled nodding nervously. Jesus Christ she just LOVED screwing with his mind didn't she? His thought process was basically non-existent with her this close.

Unable to take it anymore he reached up, placing one hand on the back of her neck, and pulling her towards him. Micah went willingly, her thought process also gone. It took a few seconds for her to return the kiss but when she did both she and Nick could practically SEE the fireworks flying. Emotions neither of them had ever felt ran a high and wild rampage through their bodies, fueling the kisses.

After a few minutes of the fervent make out session both Nick and Micah needed to come up for air. After less than a second though Nick grabbed the fabric of Micah's dress, pulling it up even higher and revealing her PERFECT thighs, and attempted to pull her back in. This time though, much to Nick's dismay, Micah resisted.

Micah sighed and untangled Nick's hand from her clothing before she got up from the bed. "It's getting late..." she muttered, looking away so she wouldn't see Nick's face fall.

"Micah I-" Nick started, hurt. He didn't understand.

The emotions they had felt SCARED Micah. That wasn't supposed to happen. She wasn't supposed to let it happen. "Will you be okay to drive?" she asked him, straightening her dress and running her fingers over her braids. She still couldn't look at him. She wasn't mad at him. She was mad at herself.

Nick watched her in disbelief. Had he done something wrong? He didn't think so...WHY the hell did women have to be so fucking complicated? He wanted Micah SO bad and not even just sexually. Emotionally and mentally too. And he had never wanted a girl like that before. EVER. He found himself mad. He didn't know at what but he knew he was mad. And he also knew if she didn't get back over there he was gonna need an ICE cold shower, pretty soon. "Micah, what the-" he tried again.

"If not you can stay in a guest room." Micah continued. She heard the bed creak and knew Nick was getting up. For a second the room was quiet, until he appeared directly in front of her. Luckily Micah was shorter and she was eye level with his shoulders. She didn't have to meet his eyes.

"What's wrong?" he pleaded, cupping her chin and forcing her to look at him.

"Nothing Nick. Just leave it okay?" she responded, harsher than she meant. "Will you be staying in the guest room or what? Because I have a meeting tomorrow. Today. Early."

"If you don't want me too..." Nick said, letting his hand drop from her chin to her shoulder. She immediately shrugged it off. What had he done that was so wrong?

"If I didn't want you too, I wouldn't have asked you."

"I guess then..." Micah didn't even hear his answer because she had walked off to show him to the guest room. She chose the one farthest from her room at the other end of the hallway. She could hear Nick's footsteps behind her. She felt guilty, frustrated and confused and she wanted him more than anything. But she COULDN'T. She'd only end up hurting herself and him in the long run. She opened the door to the guest room. "My guys friends have left clothes and stuff here before. It's in the closet. You can take what you need. There's a bathroom right next door. Would you like me to wake you up when I leave or would you just like to stay here?"

Nick couldn't tolerate the curt tone Micah was using. "Wake me up when you leave." he answered, running his fingers through his hair and stepping into the room. "Can we talk-"

"Good night Nick. I'll see you tomorrow." Micah interrupted again as she walked down the hallway. Nick watched her go down the dark corridor until he heard her bedroom door bang shut.