Better Man

As the hottest month of the year began to wind down, as did the recording in the studio, Mike was finding less of an excuse to be there at all. But that's not to say he didn't show up anyway. All his parts for the album were basically over and all that was left to do was for Caroline to lay down extra vocal layers, as well as the guys for the background voices where needed.

They'd asked Mike if he wanted to help sing back-up on a song, but he turned down the offer, sticking to his bass duty. This was their album, not his. He was just helping with the bass and that was it. Not that he wasn't honored they'd asked, of course.

And on one of his final days at the studio, Mike found himself to be alone. Caroline had gone out for coffee for everyone, but it seemed that everyone had dispersed and left right after she'd gone out, to go do other things for the afternoon.

Mike was stretched out on the couch behind the console, bored out of his mind. He didn't leave simply because he didn't want Caroline to return to the studio and find it empty. And also, it was an excuse to be with her one on one. Alone. It was a rare chance to have lately. Alone time with Caroline.

But he also had to admit, waiting was driving him nuts. He wanted to move. As he sat up with his legs over the edge of the couch, his left leg bobbed up and down and he rolled his head back, letting out an exaggerated sigh.

"I gotta go for a walk or something," he muttered to himself.

Standing up, he cracked his neck and began to move toward the studio's door.

On the other side, walking up the hallway, Caroline was holding a copy of Soap Opera Digest in one hand and a carrying tray of Starbucks coffees in the others. She had her purse flung over her shoulder, her car keys dangling from a finger and she would have to somehow master opening the studio door without spilling anything because the Starbucks assholes had no more lids, so two of the four coffees were lidless. It's a good thing she was a good driver or else the coffees would've been all over her car.

As she reached the door knob, she twisted it open as she felt it yank out of her grasp. She stumbled forward a bit and before she could react, she ran smack dab into Mike who yelped just as the coffee tipped over and splashed all down his gray T-shirt.

"Ow, shit!" he grimaced while Caroline's eyes went wide.

"Oh...damn. I'm so sorry," she apologized. "I didn't think anyone was gonna be walking out and two of the coffees don't have lids...I'm so sorry."

Mike bit his lip as he pulled the front of his shirt away from his chest, looking down at how it was more or less soaked with hot coffee, and also on his pants and the floor. As she began to set everything on a chair beside them, she fumbled over what she should do.

"Do you want me to get you a paper towel from the bathroom or...uh...shit, I'm really sorry, Mike."

He looked up at her and shook his head. "It's okay. It was an accident," he assured.

"I know, but...still. I'm sorry."

"It's okay," he reiterated, smirking a little.

"Let me get some wet paper towels," she said as she disappeared into the studio's small bathroom.

Caroline looked at her reflection and mentally smacked herself, feeling embarrassed; accident or not. Well, obviously it had to be an accident. There was no way it would've been on purpose. Letting out a frustrated sigh, she soaked a few paper towels and exited the bathroom, rather focused on cleaning up the mess on the floor and offering Mike some of the towels when she stopped dead in her tracks; her mouth parting ever so slightly.

Standing there, topless, Mike was holding the coffee-drenched T-shirt in his hand, mopping up the bit that was on his pants. Not that it was really helping. He looked up through his eyebrows at her, a little confused by her expressionless, well, expression.

"You okay?" he wondered.

"Uh...yeah. I, uh, got towels," she muttered lamely as she handed over a few, while trying to subtly study his chest.

Sure, she'd seen him topless before. In Tre's pool. Playing 'Chicken.' But that was under different circumstances. And this was different, too. This was in the studio, and she was alone with him. And it was really hot in the studio.

Was the air conditioning broken or was it just her?

"Thanks," Mike responded, taking the towels from her and trying to clean off some of the coffee from his pants.

Biting her lip, Caroline moved closer to him and reached out her hands, surprising Mike a little as he felt the coolness of a wet towel on his skin, brushing over his chest hair like a feather. He met Caroline's eyes and smirked a little nervously as she smirked back.

"I feel like a klutz," she remarked.

"You're not," he insisted, his heartbeat quickening at how she wiped away the sticky coffee mess that had soaked through his shirt onto his chest. He was sure she could feel the vibration of his heart through the towel she held and hear the shudder in his voice as he quietly inhaled a breath.

And, oh, the images that slowly began to play in front of his mind's eye. Picturing himself taking advantage of this moment; ripping the towel from her hands, ripping off her clothes and his, throwing her onto the couch and fucking her every way possible. But he had to stop himself from visualizing any further before parts of him got too excited and caused him to be morbidly embarrassed.

As Caroline pulled her arm away, crumpling the towel in her fist, she looked down, not really thinking much about it, but her eyes went...elsewhere. She didn't mean to do it, it was just...instinct? Curiosity? Caroline wasn't sure why, exactly, so she looked back up a little shyly as she realized neither of them had said anything in a while. She had simply been standing there, wiping his chest. His lean, bare chest that rose and fell with his breath as he just stood there.

"Uh...there. No more coffee on you, well...on your chest, anyway," she rambled a bit.

"Well...it's on the floor, still," he commented with a nervous laugh.

"Uh...well. It doesn't look like it'll stain."

"Yeah, it's a pretty dark carpet anyway," he added lamely. When they met eyes again, his heart began to damn near pound. How was it possible that one person could make him feel so...so...enthralled?

A moment of strange silence fell over them and, for a brief second, the only thing Caroline could think of was the dream she'd had a couple weeks before, with Mike standing before her, shirtless, much like he was now.

And, oh shit. She could smell his cologne now, too!

It was as if her senses perked up as the light and sweet, musky scent of his cologne wafted to her nose. It was almost a heady experience. As she bit her lip to keep herself focused, she felt as if the small gap between them was subconsciously closing. Mike didn't seem that aware of their surroundings while Caroline seemed to be sensitive to every sound and movement...and scent, obviously.

"Mike..." she spoke, trying to interrupt the silence, not realizing she had taken a step closer to him.

"Y-yeah?" he stuttered a little nervously. His mouth was a tad dry as he met her step halfway, surprising himself by placing his hand on her arm.

And then, slowly, he leaned forward, not able to resist the temptation any longer, as he softly touched his lips down upon hers. For the first second, he didn't make any further movement, but as the second passed, he kissed her a little deeper; his other hand snaking to the top of her hip and just about dying from joy at how she hadn't hit him over the head...yet.

Caroline was a little more than surprised by the kiss, but oddly, it was almost as if it were expected.

Closing her eyes, she tilted her head up a little more to allow Mike the access he was craving. His tongue slipped passed her lips, grazing her teeth as both of his arms began to snake further around her waist and underneath her tank top, pulling her body up against his.

As they kissed, Caroline and Mike stepped in time, backward for her, as she ended up against the studio door, her hands gripping his arms and arching further into his lips. His kiss. And shit, he could kiss.

"Caroline," he quietly moaned into her mouth.

But then reality came slamming back into her head like a Mack truck doing 90 on an interstate. Her hazel eyes popped open as one person came to mind.

Tre.

Oh shit, shit, shit.

Abruptly, Caroline pulled Mike away, a little disappointed herself, for some odd reason. She looked up at him, guiltily and then dipped her head.

"Mike, I'm sorry, but I..."

He understood without her even having to finish her sentence. As she broke away from him, it felt like his heart broke a little as well and not just the distance between their bodies and lips.

"It's okay...I'm sorry, too," he replied. "I shouldn't have---"

"No, I should've stopped you, but---"

"You didn't," he deduced, smiling on the inside.

"No, I didn't," she repeated, shaking her head. "But I did now, and I'm sorry if I was leading you on in any way. I guess I was just..." she trailed off. "I dunno. I, uh..."

Mike touched his fingers to his lips and then folded his arms across his chest as he looked at Caroline with cautious blue eyes. "You don't have to say anything. It's...it's just a thing that happened," he assured. "Forget about it."

NEVER FORGET IT, NEVER FORGET IT! his mind screamed at her.

Caroline dipped her head as she bent at the knees to pick up her purse and keys from the chair beside them. "I, um...I need to go," she said suddenly. "If the guys return, just tell them I spilled the coffee and then got tired of waiting for them to show up."

"Where ya gonna go?"

"Home." To Tre's, she added to herself, although her mind was conflicted.

She wasn't sure she wanted to go see Tre right now or go home to the apartment where she'd be taking her chances at being alone there because who knows if the guys were there or not at that moment.

Mike just nodded solemnly as she turned from him and stepped out of the studio without another glance or another word. Just shutting the door behind her and leaving Mike alone in the studio with the taste of her still on his lips. And the memory still fresh of having kissed the woman who had a hold on his heart, so tightly. The woman he had a crush on.

The woman who was dating his best friend.

And he'd kissed her.

Mike had kissed Caroline.