| no catch , mjj | ✓

☆ - 𝘵𝘸𝘰.

author's note: majority of the rest of these chapters are going to be shorter than chapter one. i do apologize for that. :')

Michael grits his teeth to himself and reaches for a bottle of vodka, trying, and failing, not to watch Leigh-Anne and Shauna swoon over a couple guys that've taken a seat next to them as Jermaine pours them drinks.

'What the fuck is Leigh-Anne thinking, going out dressed like that? Is she trying to get me arrested? Because that's exactly what's going to happen if that schmuck's hand drifts any lower down that irresistible curve of her back.'

Michael feels like he really needs to get himself together. He still hasn't recovered from seeing Lei in that tight, black fabric Shauna calls a dress—especially from also having his mouth on her, tasting just enough of her to torture him. He had to walk away before he did something stupid or embarrass himself. He's still as hard as a rock, even with the distance between them.

When Leigh-Anne climbed up onto the bar, Michael didn't know what he was going to do, but he sure as hell wasn't thinking family-friendly thoughts. Perhaps he would've brushed her curls back from her pleading brown eyes. Kissed her. Brought her to the back room, got that dress off of her, and touched her in every way imaginable until she promised not to leave him.

'That's what I should be doing. Making her see me differently. Giving her something she won't be able to live without.'

He rubs his lips together, reigniting the taste of her, causing him to stifle a groan. "Is Ronald letting every horny asshole in Charlotte in here tonight, or is it just me?"

Jermaine shakes his head and chuckles as he mixes a drink up next to Michael at the counter. "Are you referring to all the horny assholes in general, or just the one talking to Leigh-Anne?"

Michael huffs a little in response and focuses on making a drink for a woman pressing her chest up against the countertop with a 'come-and-get-me' smirk. Of course, he isn't anywhere close to being interested.

For almost a year, he hasn't been interested in anyone other than the one person he's unable to have. It was easy to ignore his feelings for Leigh-Anne when she was with Andre. He was able to go out, find a woman, and take her home for a night of fun and pleasure, even though in the end, he never felt truly satisfied. But after Andre had cheated on Lei, leaving her broken and needing someone to stitch her heart back together, it became impossible for Michael to lie to himself at that point.

He loves her. As much as he's always tried to deny it, she's forever a voice in his head, in his heart, pushing him to always be more, to be better with every coming day.

And now she wants to go to a place for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, yet she would also carry the risk of never returning. It's a place where he can't protect her.