Chapter Five
Forsomeonewhorarely drank, Isabel was on a roll.
“Okay, okay my turn... Truth or Dare?”
“Dare.”
“I dare you to ... hmm... we already did that one. Wait, wait I’ve got it! I dare you to change your clothes in 30 seconds. Starting now!”
Micah jumped to his feet and made a mad dash toward the bedrooms. Isabel had never laughed so hard in all her life. Their game of truth or dare had taken some crazy turns, and Micah was at the point he’d only answer dare. She was running out of ideas.
“Twenty two Mississippi, twenty-three Mississippi. You’re not going to make it!” she yelled right as she saw him flying down the hallway and bouncing off the corner of the wall. He cursed something fierce, but never slowed down. He made a grand entrance by sliding across the marble floors and taking her out in the process. Everything happened so fast she had no way of panicking. Before she knew it, she was on top of Micah in a laughing pile of limbs. By some genius stroke of luck, he had caught her before she landed with a thump on the ground.
“That’s not fair. You knocked me over trying to get back. And what are you wearing, anyway?”
“Oh this? It’s nothing, just a little something I like to slip into for the ladies.”
Isabel was holding her breath, trying her hardest not to burst out laughing, but she couldn’t take it anymore. She was gasping for air while pointing at him and crying tears of joy.
“What? You don’t like it? Listen, now hear me out. Every girl has fantasies about being with a different man. This outfit just gives them the opportunity to be with a furry one.”
Micah had on a Chewbacca onesie that was covered in brown fur. Still sitting in his lap, she looked behind her to see that yes indeed; they were footed.
“Where on earth did you get this getup?”
“First, admit I won.”
“The game? Fine, fine, you win. Now tell me, how does a man like you have a onesie?”
“A man like me happens to love onesies. Well, not all onesies, but when your niece goes to the store and picks your Christmas present, you fall in love with it no matter what it is. Even if it is too hot to wear.”
“I should have known it was Jenny.”
“Yeah, that girl’s my little light.”
“You miss her, don’t you?”
“More than you know. She’s been through some shit, but she’s doing okay. She adores you, by the way.”
“She barely knows me anymore. I mean, I took care of her when she was little, but I doubt she remembers much of that.”
“She saw what I did when she met you. This enigma of a woman who was someone you can’t help but love to be around, and a woman who could never be forgotten.”
At that moment, she realized she was sitting in her boss’s lap and he was looking at her with a look she hadn’t seen before. One she couldn’t quite place.
“You need to stop saying things like that or I’ll believe them.”
“Iz, you should believe them. I’d be lost without you. Why do you think it was so easy for me to pretend we were a thing? You’re my world, Izzy Diaz.”
She couldn’t take much more. Pushing up out of his lap and into a standing position was a struggle given how much alcohol she consumed, but she did it. “I know Micah. Your business needs me. You’d lose all the old ladies if I ran on you.”
“It’s more than that and you know it.”
“That’s the liquor talking... and maybe the onesie. I should get to bed. It’s getting late.”
“Right,.” he said, standing up to join her.
“Hey Iz?”