Quench Me
      Chapter 21
 

 
When Danny pulls into the driveway, I'm already waiting for him at the door. The khaki pants and red, lightweight sweater I'm wearing are a far cry from the little black number that I wore to his house two weeks ago. I dressed conservatively on purpose, still not sure what's going on with Danny, and why his demeanor has changed since his trip to Atlanta.

As he makes his way up the sidewalk, I open the door and step outside. He looks fantastic in his khaki pants and denim shirt, and I feel myself weakening already. He doesn't say a word as he walks toward me. He just looks at me, with the same look I've seen in his eyes before - the same look that I saw the day he surprised me at school.

I stop walking and just watch him as he gets nearer and nearer. My heart is racing and my muscles quiver. He doesn't divert his stare, and I'm frozen where I stand. Finally, he's standing directly in front of me, and instead of saying "hello", he puts his hand on the back of my neck, lowering his lips to mine, and kisses me with the same gentleness that I felt from him before he left.

I can't say anything. I'm too stunned. This man changes directions faster than anyone I've ever known, and at this moment, I'm suffering from the worse case of emotional whiplash known to man.

"Will you accept my apology for the way I acted on Wednesday?" he asks.

Breathless, and still reeling, I answer, "I guess I have no choice."

He smiles at me, and I melt all over again. "Ready for lunch?"

"Ready," I reply.


During our lunch at Towers, Danny seems his old self again. We talk and joke, not at all in a hurry to leave. He tells me about the stoggy old accountant that he worked with in Atlanta, who wore practically an entire bottle of cheap cologne every day, and nearly gagged the rest of them to death. I tell him about Tanner and his pitiful, lame attempts to catch my eye. I realize that we are talking to each other the way we talked before his trip. It feels normal, and normal has never has never felt so good.

It's almost 2:00 p.m. when Danny's cell phone rings. He reaches in his shirt pocket for the tiny phone and says, "Sorry Michelle. I'll just be a minute."

The phone conversation lasts less than a minute, and when he hangs up a huge grin spreads across his face. "That was my mother's attorney," he begins. "Apparently, everything concerning the deed to the house is taken care of, and all I have to do is go down to the courthouse and sign some papers."

"That's great, Danny," I say.

"Do you want to come with me?" he asks.

"Now?" I respond.

"Now," he answers.

"Let's go," I say enthusiastically.


At the courthouse, I take a seat outside the office, while Danny goes inside to sign the papers. Whatever the process is, it doesn't take him long, and before I know it, he's sitting in the chair beside me.

"I can't believe she really did it," he says. "I can't believe she actually left the business behind and set me free."

"You seem really happy," I say softly.

"I am," he answers.

I take this opportunity to ask him about his trip. Things have gone so well between us today, that I think surely he'll be open to the possibility of discussing things.

"Can I ask you something Danny?"

"Of course," he replies.

"Why were you so distant with me when you called from Atlanta?"

"I didn't mean to be," he answers.

"I know. You just seemed different somehow," I say. "And then the other day in your office…"

"I told you I was just having a bad day," he interrupts.

"I don't want to make you mad, Danny," I say apologetically. "I just want to understand."

"Understand what, Michelle?" he says in an irritated whisper. "You want to understand what? I had a very long and tiring week in Atlanta. It wasn't some fluff trip where I got to take advantage of a nice big Spaulding expense account. It was hard work. And things at the office weren't any better when I got back Wednesday. I've told you all this already."

I start to tell him that I'm sorry, and drop the subject, but I can't. I asked him an honest question, and he could've given me a straightforward answer. Instead, he hid behind the wall he keeps hanging on to, and I'm not going to let him do that. Not anymore.

"Look Danny, I'm not stupid. I know that something was wrong with you. Don't insult my intelligence by giving me the same excuses again. I'm not asking for a blow by blow of your itinerary. I just want you to tell me the truth."

"The truth," he mutters beneath his breath. "The truth is that while I was away, I had an opportunity to think about things - you, in particular. Being away kind of gave me a new perspective. Is that what you want to hear?" His voice is brimming with sarcasm, and I can tell that he's still extremely agitated at me.

"What new perspective?" I ask, not letting him off the hook yet.

"What, you don't think I missed you?" he asks. "Or did I just not miss you enough?"

"Dammit," I say in a whisper, not wanting to alert the other people in the courthouse hallway to our argument. "I'm not asking for a dissertation here. I just want to know what they hell is up with you."

"You wanna know what's up?" he says, standing up quickly. "Well, come with me and I'll show you 'what's up', Michelle."

He grabs my arm and pulls me down the hallway, shoving me into an empty stairwell. He pins me against the wall with the weight of his body as his mouth collides with mine, his tongue totally dominating mine in a battle of wills.

He lifts his face from mine, his body still pressing hard against me, and says, "Now do you know what's up?"

I push him away from me with a force that surprises even me. "God Danny, what do you think I am? You think you can just seduce your way out of this? You think you can just kiss me and that'll make everything disappear?" Even as the words come out of my mouth, I know that his kisses really could make everything else disappear.

"I just wanted to show you how much I missed you, Michelle," he says, his voice still full of sarcasm.

"This was not what I wanted from you," I say, reaching for the door to the hallway.

"I don't think so," he says, as he grabs me by the arm again and drags me up a flight of stairs to the next floor.

When we emerge from the stairwell, he straightens his shirt, and, still holding my hand, begins walking us down the hall as if nothing is wrong. Suddenly, he turns sharply to the right and walks into an office where a young woman is sitting at a computer.

"What are you doing?" I ask softly.

"Don't make a scene, Michelle," he says, not even looking at me.

The lady behind the counter looks up at us. "Can I help you?"

Danny replies before I have a chance to say anything else. "We'd like to get a marriage license please."