Best Thing In Town

What can be said for Hollywood after parties, except...strange? One would think parties after a music awards show would be the candidate for strangeness, but in truth, it was Hollywood all the way. The amount of people who airkissed and gave you fake smiles, toasted to you and then talked smack about you behind your back was ridiculous. At least with musicians they would tell you off, 'cause most of them were rockers who could give two shits so long as they got to play their music and get their check.

Mike was more than happy to walk beside Audrey, proud to have such a lovely woman as his wife, showing her off every chance he could. Matt Damon had invited them personally to the movie's premiere after party and they'd gladly obliged. Julia Roberts and her husband Danny Moder showed up, along with Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner. All in support of Matt. Mike and Audrey had taken a seat, both holding complimentary glasses of champagne as other celebrities came over and hobnobbed with them. It was fun and all, but as the night wore on, both Audrey and Mike became more than a little antsy.

Bidding a few people goodbye, they left the after party and took off in their limo, heading back for the hotel. As soon as they were in the limo, however, they couldn't keep their hands off each other. When the limo stopped moving and the driver pressed the speaker button to announce they were at the hotel, Mike fumbled to break away from Audrey and tell the driver to just drive around Hollywood and LA for about another hour.

Snickering, Audrey climbed atop her husband and began to undo the buttons of his shirt. As the clothes began to peel away, the further they were taking it. And as if they cared one iota. With them, when the moment or feeling arose, they found a way to get together to satisfy that craving they had for one another.

Something they would continue to do for the next three months straight.

* * *

Mike found it rather irritating to think that his wife was dressed as Marilyn Monroe for Halloween. He didn't need anyone getting the impression that they were allowed to stare down at her cleavage. She stood at the punch bowl, pouring a glass of nonalcoholic punch for Katarina as he watched her from behind, giving in and smirking at the authentic platinum blonde wig she wore. Mike, on the other hand, was her equal. In more ways than one, but tonight he was dressed as James Dean, with his hair slicked back. Stepping up to her, he slid a hand around the front of her and pulled her back up against his chest and bent his neck forward to kiss her exposed neck.

"Happy Halloween, Norma Jeane," he whispered huskily.

"Happy Halloween, Jimmy," she giggled in return. She turned around to face him and wrap her arms around his neck while looking over his shoulder with a look of confusion. "Why is Tre dressed like Catwoman?"

Mike laughed. "Don't ask."

"Okay. I like Billie and Adrienne's costumes, though. Jack Skellington and Sally from 'A Nightmare Before Christmas.' I think I was about fourteen when that came out."

Grimacing, Mike buried his face in her shoulder and mumbled, "Ugh, make me feel old. I was twenty-one when it came out. You woulda been jailbait to me then."

"I woulda been worth it though, right?" Audrey asked playfully.

"Oh yeah, definitely," he teased in return.

The holiday was enjoyable. The party in particular. They had all taken the kids out earlier together as a group and then returned to Billie Joe and Adrienne's house for the party. Meanwhile, Audrey's grandma Gloria who had moved into the guest house for the next six months was at home with Lorelei who had just turned four months old.

Everything just seemed to be going so well for them. The kids were healthy and doing well in school, they were financially sound, falling more in love every day, *making* love almost every day...sometimes more than once in a day, and Audrey had been able to set aside some time to start working on her book.

Life was good.

To top things off, the week before Thanksgiving, Audrey found out she was pregnant again. A month along. The baby would be due in July of 2007. A year and a month after Lorelei's first birthday. When Mike found out, he was grinning at every chance he got. Maybe this time they'd have a boy. A son. They had already decided that if it was a boy, his name would be Ryan Michael, just as Lorelei would've been.

They were more than happy. They began planning ahead of time for things here and there. How they'd decorate the extra bedroom. They were gonna have to clean out all the boxes and move them to the downstairs office or go through them to see what was gonna stay and what was gonna go.

And this was the first time Mike would be with Audrey during the first trimester of her pregnancy with his child. He'd missed out on the first three with Lorelei because of Aud's stubborness. But not this time. Things were different this time. Things were better, happier, easier. Their world was buzzing with things to do. Especially the guys who were still in the studio and planning on relasing their first studio album since 'American Idiot' sometime in the late Spring or early Summer.

All in all, life couldn't get any better or get any worse. It was perfect the way it was. And nothing could change that.