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Beth "mmmmms" contentedly, sated and limp with pleasure as she collapses on Mick's cool body. He strokes her back, equally content.
Beth finally shifts, rolling off him and stretching before snuggling into his side. "We're getting pretty good at that, huh?"
"Well, we have been practicing," he teases, "every day this week, and twice today."
She grins and pokes his side. "You do realize I've been completely neglecting work, right? I think Talbot's going to move on from dirty looks to actually complaining if I don't get the Robertson report finished by tomorrow. I just hate leaving."
Mick tugs her back on top of him. "So don't."
"Mick, I know you'd support me, but I really do love my job, and it gives us access to official information without any trouble. I –"
Mick cuts her with a finger to her lips. "No, I mean, you could stay here – all the time. I'll make you as much room as you want. Move your whole apartment in if you want to. I just...I'd love to have you live here with me. Think about it?"
Beth looks down at him. "No." His face goes blank and still before she adds, "I don't need to think about it, you idiot, I'd love to live with you." He lights up, and her heart melts for him all over again. "But what about room? I do have an entire apartment's worth of stuff, and this place is pretty full – and honestly, I'd prefer an actual bedroom, even though this new sofa is incredibly comfortable...."
Mick looks almost guilty even though he's grinning. "Next door's been vacant a while, and I thought it wouldn't hurt to look at it, just in case I needed more room. I signed a lease on it, and the owner okayed joining the two spaces. We don't have to, but..." he trails off when he realizes Beth is grinning back at him, and he stops and kisses her.
"You're making your apartment bigger, for me? Mick, I don't know what to say. Yes, I do. When can I see it?" She looks like a little girl begging for a treat, and he kisses her nose.
"Now? I've already done some work on it, but we can change anything you like." Beth's eyes crinkle up and she kisses his nose in turn, scrambling out of bed and looking for her jeans.
Mick's just laying back watching her, laughing, and she throws his jeans at him, aiming for his face although she knows he'd have to let them hit him for her to succeed. Instead he grabs them and slides them on. "Okay, let's go. I already had a door cut, I just sort of... disguised it, so you wouldn't notice." He looks both guilty and pleased at the same time, and it's Beth's turn to laugh again.
"We don't even have to leave the apartment? I'm ready now, then." She looks so adorable in just her panties and one of his t-shirts that he can't stop pausing to kiss her. Suddenly he tickles her ribs and takes off across the room while she's still laughing and batting at the space he'd been in.
Beth follows a bit more sedately, laughing to see he's moved the "new painting I still need to hang" away from the living room wall and opened the french doors that had been hidden behind it. She runs over and gasps softly as she enters the new space – it's breathtaking. It blends comfortably with his decor, but at the same time it's just a little lighter, a little more feminine. It looks like a blend of his apartment and hers, and she loves it.
She steps further in, taking in the floors – identical to Mick's – and the staircase – different than his; this one is less industrial, more graceful, with simple but elegant carved ballusters and handrails of wood that match the floor. This staircase goes up along the rear wall, right to left, and the door exiting the apartment is opposite the bottom of the staircase on the front wall. The door looks every bit as secure as Mick's with the same type of monitor installed.
In general outlines, the space is very similar to Mick's, but there's no fireplace, and no kitchen area – instead there's an area that looks like it would make a perfect home office, with built in cabinets and shelving already in place. The cabinets and bookshelves are beautifully stained wood in a classic design, and he's paid attention to her shelves at home – there are sections designed for DVD/CD storage as well as books.
Every detail is charming, and she turns to look at Mick, surprised that he looks rather anxious. She grins at him, and he grins back, looking relieved.
"You like?"
"I love. Mick, this is amazing! I can't believe you did all of this."
"Well, I didn't, not exactly. I snuck some photos of your place one day and then got Josef's latest decorator to come over. He's really pleased with the job she's been doing, and if she can please him, I knew she must be good. I told her I wanted something sort of like your place and mine, together, and I think she did it."
"I haven't seen Josef in ages! How is he? Did he help?"
Mick looks oddly uncomfortable. "I didn't see him, I just got the number from his assistant. She told me he's been slightly easier to deal with since his office was finished, and added that he had been so pleased that he'd had her triple the designer's fee, so ...." Beth looks at him, puzzled, and opens her mouth to ask more, but before she can say anything, he asks, "Don't you want to see upstairs?"
Beth lets it go for now, nods, and follows him up the stairs. She frowns thoughtfully at his back on the way up, though. She can tell something's wrong, but he isn't ready to tell her. She hopes he'll open up if she gives him space.
"Oh, my God, Mick!!" She turns in a slow circle, mouth open. The area is huge, almost half the size of the downstairs, and she'd been expecting something more like Mick's upstairs.
Mick notices her taking in the unexpected dimensions. "Erin found out there was a lot of unused space upstairs on my side, too, so she combined it with this side. And look." He throws open a door on the far wall, exposing a short hallway. "My upstairs is through here, and over here," he goes to another doorway and flips a switch, "Is the master bath."
Beth enters the room and gasps. It's like something at a first class spa – enormous tub, enormous shower, vanity, toilet, bidet, all framed in what look like one-of-a-kind tiles with designs of both real and mythical sea creatures, shells, plants, and sea-like abstract designs. Her eyes fill, and she turns and buries her face in Mick's chest. "It's beautiful. I love it so much; I love you so much. I just can't believe you did this."
He strokes her back, kisses her hair, and she just breathes, snuggling into him. When she finally straightens up he smiles at her. "There's more, " he offers, going to another door and looking oddly nervous again. "You know what I am, and that I have enemies. I built this for you to use in case you ever need it." He flips on the interior lights, dimmer than most of the lights. It's a small room or a very large closet, and the door looks like the door of a safe. But when she enters, she notices the air is fresh. The small room is furnished with a wide, cushioned chair, a small table, a smaller cabinet, and a phone. There's a video display from the cameras at both exterior doors as well as the bedroom and both living rooms. She looks at him, bewildered.
"If anything ever happens to me, if I go into blood lust, or go crazy in any way, lock yourself in here and call for help. I won't be able to get in, and there's no way I could cut off the ventilation or phone, even knowing how they're set up. It's completely vampire proof, and fire and bomb-proof as well. The light's battery operated, and there's a solar panel outside to keep it charged, out of reach of anyone – even a vampire – without special equipment. If we're ever attacked and I can't protect you, or if you're home alone and someone breaks in, you'd be safe in here. Oh, there are sprinklers, too, in case of fire, and a case of water, some boxes of power bars, and a blanket and pillow in that cabinet, and the chair folds out into a single bed." He stops himself; Beth looks overwhelmed, and that wasn't what he was trying to do at all. "I just want you to be safe, even from me if you need to be. You'll probably never need it, but I'll feel better knowing it's here, okay?"
Beth looks up at him, searching his face, and nodding. She wonders if this is related to his increasing anxiety the past couple months. "I promise to use it if I ever need to," she assures him, and he smiles again, looking relieved.
"When do you want to move in?" And again, he looks oddly unsure of himself. Beth cocks her head, going over her schedule and trying to think of what'll be involved in packing up.
"I think I could get packed up this week, if put all my extra time in it – and maybe we could spend a couple evenings working on it together? If it's not too soon, I could move in Saturday - and should I call movers, or do you want to be in charge so only people you trust are in the space?"
Mick looks at her, surprised at her forethought. "Yeah, I'd rather have people I know, even though we can lock the dividing door, and –" he stops, laughing, "I hope you'll think this is as cool as I do – we can disguise the door!" Beth snorts out a laugh, shaking her head and gestures down the stairs. Instead Mick scoops her up and speeds down them. "Look!" He sets her down and reaches down for the electrical outlet to the right of the door, twisting it 180 degrees, and panels slide out on either side of the doors on tracks, moving into line with the walls.
Beth stares at the walls and blinks, impressed. The seams aree somehow disguised by the pattern of the paint on the walls and panels. She looks at Mick, shaking her head. "Wow. I watched them close, and I still can't see them! How'd she do that? Your vision is better than mine – can you see the seam?"
Mick grins like a little boy with a shiny new toy. "That was a trick she worked out for Josef's office, and once his people had vouched for me she offered to do the same trick here. I can sort of see it, but it's hard, even though I know where it is. It's almost like it's distorting my vision or something. A vampire who doesn't know it's there will probably never be able to see, if they can't smell that there should be an opening – and these panels are solid steel. Cool, huh?"
"Very cool," Beth agrees with a grin. "Any other hidden rooms or tricks I should know about?"
"I thought about hiding the hallway between my upstairs and your bedroom...then we could play lord and lady of the manor and hide from the servants. Then I remembered we don't have any..." he manages to say it completely seriously, but Beth sees the twinkle in his eye. She tweaks his nose, laughing.
"So how's tomorrow look? I'll finish up Robertson in the morning, turn it in, and try to duck out again. Then I'll pick up some boxes and start packing. You want to come over after you've had some quality time with your freezer?"
Mick nods eagerly, moving to kiss her again. He'll rearrange everything else tomorrow if he has to. Beth moving in is all that matters.