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Owen thought Michelle was crazy, and it wasn’t like it wasn’t warranted, just look at her.
The way that she demanded attention without even saying anything.
The way she was reckless in the field, driven and strong, but also absolutely insane.
The fact that she made him absolutely mad with the way that she flirted with him.
She didn’t even have to try really, to be honest, one simple look and she was driving him mad.
But the fact that she loved him the way that she did.
The fact that she saw through all the cracks and all the broken pieces and didn’t even bat an eyelash at them.
That was probably the craziest part about her.
Sure Gwyn had loved him once upon a time, but he often wondered if she was ever really ‘in love’ with him.
And sure Evelyn had probably at least been infatuated with him for a little while.
But he would never have called what they had, love.
Michelle though, Michelle was different.
She put up with his sass and his bullheadedness.
She stood her ground and pushed his buttons and argued with the best of them.
But she also loved him in a way that he didn’t think possible, especially not his age.
No, rather, here he was nearing 50, and feeling every minute of it, and yet, being with Michelle made him feel anything but old.
He had told TK that once and the boy had gagged, making some crack about their sex life and how it wasn’t any of his business.
But that hadn’t been where Owen was going with it.
Not that their sex life wasn’t amazing.
Rather, he had meant that something about being with Michelle made him feel alive and carefree, a feeling he had lost the minute his son had become a blip on his mind and he had to grow up before he was really ready.
He wouldn’t take anything back, he wouldn’t take TK back, but sometimes he missed that he hadn’t gotten that youthful relationship with Gwyn.
Maybe they would have lasted longer if they had.
“I can practically hear the wheels turning in your head over there.” Speaking of the devil, he smiled as her voice broke through the silence of the kitchen, his head lifting up slowly to see her standing across the island from him.
“Yeah, sorry.” She busted him getting lost in his own head a lot lately didn’t she?
“Everything okay?” He watched as she moved around the small counter and stopped beside him, her hip bumping his slightly as she reached down and picked up his glass. “You’re drinking whiskey. You only ever drink whiskey when you’re in Owen Mode.”
“What does that even mean?” He had heard the others use the term before and while he wanted to know, he figured it was best not to ask them.
“It just means you’re… being… you.” She offered him a sheepish smile before turning to face him, her arm reaching up to bring the glass to her lips, taking a sip as she stared him down.
“What’s wrong with being me?” There were a million things that he could think of that were bad about that actually.
“Nothing.” Swallowing the sip she had taken she shook her head, setting the glass down behind her as she reached out and plucked at the collar of his shirt. “But something weird always happens after you go to that place in your head.”
“What weird stuff happens?” He would never do such a thing. “I don’t do weird things, Michelle. I think you have me confused with TK.”
“You bought a motorcycle the last time, Owen.” Oh yeah, that. “And the time before that, you wanted to turn TK’s room into a yoga studio.”
“We like doing yoga!” Right, it was always something fun that they did together.
“No, Owen, you like doing yoga.” She offered him a wink as she smoothed her hand down the front of his shirt. “I just like watching you do yoga.”
“So all those times you’ve convinced me to try stuff out was purely for your benefit?” She was such a tease wasn’t she?
“You benefitted too mister.” In fact, if he remembered correctly, that was how he got the ache in his back that wouldn’t go away. “And that’s not what I'm getting at, Owen.”
“Then what are you getting at?” Because he really wanted to know.
“Just worried about you is all.” She moved her hand up to cup his cheek against her palm, smiling at him as she pushed her way in between him and the counter. “Judd thinks you’re having a midlife crisis.”
“I am having no such thing.” He rolled his eyes at the comment, although, in hindsight, it sounded exactly like the kind of thing that Judd would say.
“Okay.” She didn’t sound convinced though and he sighed.
“You really think I’m having a midlife crisis?” It would explain a lot though wouldn’t it?
“No, I said Judd thinks you are.” She leaned in and pressed a kiss to his jaw and then to his cheek, her lips moving to hover over his. “I think you’re just being you.”
“I hope there’s nothing wrong with that.” Not that he could really fix that, it’s not like he knew how to be someone else.
“If you were to change anything about yourself, Owen, I might lose my mind.” He raised an eyebrow as she kissed him softly, pulling back only to offer him a mischievous smile. “Although the motorcycle leaves something to be desired.”
“You’re just saying that because you’ve never been on it.” He had tried, oh boy had he tried, but so far Marjan and Nancy had been the only two brave enough to ride with him.
And the twins.
The twins kept pestering him.
But Tommy said ‘no’ and he respected that.
“And you will never catch me on the back of that thing either.” He sighed, watching as she giggled before leaning in and pressing another kiss to his lips, her hands settling against his chest softly.
“Why in the world do you put up with me anyway?” It was such a random question and he had no idea where it even came from, but he was asking it before he knew what he was doing. “I mean, you could have anyone in the world. Why the hell do you want some old bastard like me?”
“Because I love you.” She whispered, her eyes softening as she let her hands wander down his chest and settle on his hips.
“Yeah, but why?” He was getting whiny and he knew that she hated that, but he was all in his emotions right now and he just wanted to know why in the hell someone like Michelle Blake wanted to be with him.
“We’re really gonna do this right now?” Nodding his head he waited, his hands moving to rest on the counter, boxing her in. “Alright. Well… for starters, you’re pretty damn good looking.”
“Michelle…” He knew that she was joking, that she wasn’t just with him for his looks, but it seemed to be a running joke amongst the others.
“Owen… please… we’ve had this talk.” But sometimes it wasn’t enough.
Everyone always assumed that Michelle would be the insecure one in the relationship, but they were wrong, it was him.
“I love you because you’re you.” He felt his heart skip a beat when she said that, mostly because that was what she always said and even though it was vague it made him feel something deep down inside. “You make me laugh, you put up with my shit, you don’t even bat an eyelash when I do dumb things.”
At least, he tried not to, sometimes though, sometimes it was hard.
“You love me, even when I’m a complete disaster.” Which was almost always if you asked him. “You don’t let the fact that you’ve been through hell deter you from, well, being. You make me feel safe.”
He smiled down at her before leaning in and pressing a searing kiss to her lips.
It wasn’t like he could stop himself, all the things she was saying were making him sappy and he just had too.
“I love you.” He whispered when he finally pulled back, watching as she rolled her eyes with a smile.
“And I love you.” She whispered back, her arms wrapping around his waist as she nipped at his bottom lip. “But stop with this weird shit, okay?”
“Why?” He raised an eyebrow before offering her an evil smile. “I was thinking this time spent in ‘Owen Mode’ could get us a vacation…”
“To somewhere tropical?” That sure peaked her interest.
“I think I could arrange that.” He would take her wherever she wanted to go as long as she promised to never stop loving him. “On one condition…”
“What’s that?” She had to know it was coming though, right.
“You never stop loving me.” It wasn’t what she was expecting and the smirk on her lips told him exactly that.
“Never.” She leaned in then and kissed him once more, smiling against his lips when he reached down and lifted her up onto the counter.
He heard his glass of whiskey topple over but he didn’t care.
The mess could wait until later.
Because right now, well right now he was going to work on reminding her just how much he loved her.