Desire. Passion. She and Michael would experience them both. Tonight. It all came down to one thing: the art of seduction.
It was the name of the game. To get what she wanted, Maria knew she was going to have to play the role of temptress. She would have to be Michael's siren. His enchantress. She was going to have to make him an offer he could not refuse.
*****
For the most part, the car ride had been quiet; usually a foreign concept when these two were in the same room. Both Michael and Maria had discovered that they were in no mood to argue with each other so they thought quietly to themselves.
Michael spent his time trying to push aside the growing ball of anxiety in his stomach. He hadn't really thought that this trip with her would affect his control. He had been doing really well lately, lying to even himself about his feelings for Maria, but six hours in a car with her, and that control was rapidly diminishing. Just listening to the sound of her breathing was pure torture at this point. But it wasn't the loss of control that had him so worried as much as what lay ahead. His worries concerned being alone with her in a hotel room all night long. He tried to tell himself that it would be no different than when they had gone to Marathon, but he knew he was kidding himself. So many things had changed between them since then. They had at one time developed a certain familiarity with each other . *Double beds are going to be a necessity,* he thought to himself.
Maria had spent a good deal of the remainder of the car ride mapping out a seemingly flawless plan. She knew it was going to take major guts on her part, that she was going to have to be bold, but she was fully prepared to sacrifice her dignity, her pride even, to lure him back into her arms.
*****
They had arrived in Flagstaff, a city just forty miles north of Sedona, at a little past 9 a.m. The clerk at the last gas station had suggested that they find lodging in Flagstaff, and drive down to Sedona when they were ready. He gave them directions to a back road which he stated had much better scenery than the interstate, and swore they would absolutely love driving down it.
They checked into a hotel on the west side of town, adjacent to Northern Arizona University. While registering at the front desk, they learned that Flagstaff was mainly a college town, as well as a tourist city because Route 66 ran directly through the majority of the city, and because it was just a few miles away from Snowbowl where there was great skiing and snowboarding on the San Francisco Peaks
Because of the snow on the mountains, Flagstaff hotels were mostly full. The only room they could get had a single bed. Maria was secretly delighted with this new development - it would make going through with her plan a little less difficult. Michael on the other hand, found himself silently groaning. *This is not good,* he thought. *There is soo not good.*
After check in, they dragged Maria's bags up the stairs that led to their second story room. The room itself was nice. Much nicer than the nookie motel on 285 south. The bed was a large California King, and was covered with a comforter that was southwestern in design. There was a full- sized couch in one corner, similar in design to the comforter. The bathroom was extremely large, and it had an large Jacuzzi-style tub.
"I need to get some sleep," Michael said, yawning. "I don't think I could stay awake for another minute."
"Yeah, sleep. Sleep sounds really good..great in fact. We should do that," Maria said rambling, trying to fill the impregnable silence in the room.
"Did you want me to take the couch?" he asked looking unsure.
Maria felt the corner of her lips turn up and she said, "No, we can share the bed. It's definitely big enough for the both of us."
"Uh, okay. Thanks." Michael took off his shoes and removed his shirt, then pulled the covers back from the head board and climbed in the bed. He laid on his side, facing away from her. "Maria?"
"Yeah?" she answered, as she rifled through her bag in search of something suitable to sleep in.
"Sleep tight."
Maria smiled. "You too, Michael." She pulled a pair of white, ribbed, cotton boxers with a matching v- neck t-shirt out of her bag and made her way to the bathroom to change.
Once dressed, she stopped to take a good look at herself in the mirror. She looked like hell. Her eyes were slightly unfocused and red from lack of sleep, and her hair was matted and in total disarray. But that was okay. She would take care of that after she woke up. It was all part of her plan.
She took a deep breath, let it out and smiled, "Tonight's the night."
~~~~~~~~~~
Maria opened her eyes to a red blur which slowly transformed into three familiar shapes. It was the clock on the nightstand and it read 5:13. She yawned and then attempted to roll over for a stretch when she realized that something was weighing her down.
She craned her neck back to discover Michael lying behind her with one arm lazily draped over her waist. She stayed still for a moment, trying to decide what to do. She wanted to look at him more than anything just then so she decided to turn over. She was able to successfully maneuver her body in his direction without waking him. She watched him for several minutes before she dared move again. She knew that if he woke up, he would take his arm back and things would get awkward between them. She sighed. Gorgeous. The words fell soundlessly from her lips. His ravishing good looks never ceased to amaze her; it seemed that he grew more and more beautiful everyday.
Without realizing what she was doing, she raised her hand and lightly ran it over the side of his face. She took her index finger and ever so lightly traced his lips. They felt like satin. She sighed, letting her hand drop away from him. She was suddenly hit with an uncontrollable urge to touch his lips with hers. It had been so long since she had last felt them and she was tired of fantasizing about them, of daydreaming about her memories of those sweet days a few months ago. She felt her body slowly inch forward. She very softly laid an open mouth kiss on his protruding lower lip and felt an electric current run between them. She recoiled and brought her hand up to her lips. The were throbbing in a non-painful way. "What the hell...?" she muttered.
She slowly pulled his arm off of her and placed it next to his own body. Then she got up and went to the bathroom. She was shaking uncontrollably and her face felt extremely hot. She took some deep breaths and splashed some cold water on her face. She needed time to compose herself before she woke Michael up.
*****
Michael waited until he heard the door to the bathroom click shut before he opened his eyes. He grabbed one of the pillows and threw it over his face. "Oh my God! What is she trying to do to me?" he groaned. A few seconds later he put the pillow back where it belonged and stretched out on his back, staring at the ceiling.
He had woken up when he felt her turn to face him. He found it odd that even when he was asleep, he needed to be near her; that he had sought her out and made an attempt to wrap her in his arms.
When she had touched him, he had to fight to stay still. Her smooth palm caressing his face was a foreign gesture. He wasn't used to being touched by anyone, let alone having his face lovingly caressed by a girl. Not just any girl but Maria DeLuca, the only girl he had ever felt anything for.
When she had leaned in and kissed him, it took every ounce of energy he had, not to wrap her in his arms and physically express every feeling he had ever had for her. This was pure torture!
After a good stretch, he sat up, swung his legs over the side of the bed, and placed his elbows on his knees. He rubbed his face and then threw his head back. "I don't know how much more I can take of this," he said to the empty room.
"Hey sleepyhead," he heard her voice from behind him.
"Hey Maria," he said, turning around to look at her. "How did you sl..." he broke off in a gasp, his throat having gone dry.
Maria stood before him wearing nothing but one of the small hotel towels. It was extremely tiny and left very little to the imagination. He couldn't help but stare at the extreme amount of cream colored, baby- soft flesh that was exposed.
Maria flashed him a dazzling smile, ignoring his blundering, and said "How did I sleep?" He nodded. "Well, I slept really good. That bed was very comfortable," she said, stretching her arms above her head, making the towel ride up even higher. "How about you,"
"Uh, uh, yeah, I slept good too," he said.
"So, did you want the fist shower or what. I don't mind waiting if you do." she said sweetly.
"No you go...go right ahead." He said. Maria had to bite her lip to stop from laughing when she heard his voice crack.
"Okay. Thanks," she smiled at him and then walked away. She allowed the towel to begin to slip off of her as she walked away. It fell off just as she reached the door, and he caught just a glance of her completely bare back side. "I'll be out in a little bit," she called before closing the door.
Michael sat staring at the door where she had disappeared, not able to say a word. The image of her bare back side was burned into his mind, and he couldn't think of anything else.
*****
Maria leaned against the bathroom door and let out a rush of breath. He heart was racing and she was shaking just a little bit.
It took a few seconds for her to calm down, and then she smiled triumphantly and murmured, "Phase one down. Now onto phase two."