Welcome Home and A First Date 3/3

Dr. Merches helped Mia out of the car with a light hand. When she was in full view Timothy swallowed with difficulty. Nicholas didn't seem to be faring any better. He looked dumbstruck. Finally, after a long moment he swallowed and smiled at Mia.

"Why Ms. Lane, you look absolutely delicious." Nick grinned.

"What am I, food?" Mia laughed and stepped closer to the doctor.

"Umm," Nick swallowed hard. "Can I answer that later?"

"You are such a flirt." Mia said slapping his arm with her hand which he caught and tucked into the crook of his arm.

"Guilty as charged," Nicholas smirked, "Shall we, my dear?" At her nod they headed for the entrance.

That smarmy bastard Timothy thought, catching up to the mayor as he headed inside. The look in Nick's eyes as he looked at Mia told Tim all he needed to know about the severity of this current situation. Nicholas wanted Mia badly and planned to take her for himself. While he didn't blame him on the one hand, Tim could not allow it to happen. His life was on the line here and he would not lose everything to Dr. Merches.

Tim and the mayor greeted each other quickly and went into queue for a table and they just happened to be directly behind Mia and Nicholas in line. Tim used that moment to get a good look at her and then wished that he hadn't.

Timothy's eyes skated along the column of her throat, across her bare shoulders, down the line of her mostly bare back and across the swell of her breasts where the satin of her dress drooped in the middle. Tim saw how the thin satin clung to her every curve. He felt his pants and his collar growing uncomfortably tight and was glad his jacket was closed.

Mia dressed this way for Nicholas? Why was she trying to kill him? Tim wanted to grab her and cover her up. No, that wasn't honest, he wanted to drag her out of here cave man style and take her repeatedly until she was unable to even think of being with another man. Tim knew he was going to lose it. If Nick touched her, he would go crazy.

"Oi, Barrett, the mayor called, the line is moving." Mayor Shelbert hailed Tim who seemed to have physically shut down. Mia spun fully around to see Timothy for the first time and a light rosy blush started on her chest and ran to her cheeks. Tim stepped up to the mayor smoothly.

"Good evening, Mia, Doctor." Tim said plainly. Nicholas scowled at him. Tim was trying not to notice the hand Nick had on Mia's back or his fingers tracing along her spine against her bare skin. Nope, he didn't want to notice any of that.

"What brings you here tonight, Tim?" Mia asked, this was exactly what she didn't want to happen. Tim was here, what must he think of her in this dress? His children's mother the wanton mistress.

"Just a simple dinner meeting with the mayor." Tim replied smoothly. "You know Ginger called me, right? She asked me to bring you a sweater. You look beautiful, stunning, enjoy your evening Ms. Lane" Tim smiled softly at Mia and turned away toward the mayor. Mia swallowed hard as she watched him go.

Nicholas was furious that Barrett had come here tonight when he was finally going to try to win Mia over. He was going to make Tim pay and he knew just how to cut him down. If he could just time it correctly maybe he could still come out on top.

Nick could not believe Mia had dressed like this for him, it was like she was screaming that she wanted him. He wanted her; indeed, he desired her more than he had realized possible. Walking was unbearable.

Mia and Nick were seated at a nice table for two near the balcony and private alcoves. It just happened that Barrett and the mayor were in one of the alcoves. Only Mia was unaware of the rather awkward situation. She couldn't see Timothy from where she was sitting but he could see her and Nick. The pair ordered wine and dinner and fell into an easy conversation since they had been friends for years. Unfortunately, Nicholas's phone kept buzzing. He would pick it up, check that it wasn't an emergency and set it back down.

"Are you expecting an emergency?" Mia asked after the seventh buzz.

"Well, no." Nick smiled sheepishly, "but it tends to happen anytime I leave the hospital."

"No one can cover you for a couple hours?" Mia was annoyed. This was not how she wanted to live. Buzz number eight. Nick checked his phone and then stopped as Mia sat back.

"You are annoyed with me, aren't you?" Nick asked.

"It is a turn-off for me when someone can't manage to give me a single hour of their time." Mia admitted.

"What remedy would you suggest for this situation?" Nick frowned trying to think.

Mia held out her hand to Nick. "Give me your phone," after a pause he handed the phone over and she put it in her evening bag and set it on the floor.

"What if there is an emergency?" Nick asked, a little worried.

"Nicholas, darling, you are not the only doctor in the world." Mia purred. Dinner arrived and their wine was refilled. Their easy friendly comradery returned.

*****

"Well, Mr. Barrett, I am sure that you are wondering why I asked you here tonight?" Raymond said after they had ordered their food and drinks. Wine for Raymond and whiskey on the rocks, a double for Timothy.

"Mildly," Tim replied in a neutral tone.

"I would like to propose a collaboration with you, more specifically between you and my daughter Jasmine." Raymond finished dryly. Tim looked up at the mayor sharply.

"Raymond, I have made no secret as to where my attentions lie. I would never do such a disservice to your daughter. Jasmine is a good girl and deserves better than to be bartered away to someone that can only see someone else." Timothy finished speaking and downed his drink.

Raymond pointed toward Mia's table. Mia had just snatched the phone her date kept looking at from him and put it away. Tim smirked, good for her. How dare her date not give her all his attention. If Timothy was in Nicholas's place, air wouldn't be able to get between him and Mia right now.

"Surely you can see that things may not go in your favor in that regard." The mayor asserted gently, as the drinks were refilled. Timothy motioned for the server to make his double a triple. He didn't like talking about this especially not with anyone else but Caleb. Caleb wasn't here though; he had needed to return to Bern City and wouldn't be back for another two days.

"Then I will never marry and will focus on raising my daughter. As it turns out, I am a one-woman type of guy and if I can't have her then I would rather be alone in case she ever changes her mind." Tim replied draining half his drink. The fire was good, it reminded him that the world had not ended yet.

"Then I hope things work out for you the way you wish." Raymond said sadly seeing the toll it was taking on Barrett in the way he was drinking.

"I'm sure it will." Timothy laughed, "I still have a few tricks up my sleeve." Tim and Raymond toasted to the sentiment. Tim was watching for Mia to come back from the restroom while Nick looked at his phone. Mia had given it back to him when she left for the restroom. Nick answered an incoming call as Mia strolled back from the restroom. He looked frazzled, running a hand through his hair roughly.

Nick turned to Mia, touching her upper arm in a familiar way. He said something in a serious tone which made her reach up and touch his cheek and nod her head. When he turned away from her, she let out a big breath of air and her shoulders visibly drooped. When Nick turned back and placed his hand on her back to guide her away, she straightened up again. Somebody was pretending and from where he sat it didn't look like this date was going very well.

Raymond looked at Barrett and smirked, "you better run if you are going to catch her." Tim grinned at the older man, finished his drink and followed Mia.

*****

Nick got called into the hospital. Of course, he did. They hadn't even made it to the hour mark and his phone had never stopped. Mia was fed up. She wanted to be understanding but what kind of life would she be getting herself and the children into if they couldn't even get through a one hour-long dinner?

When they reached the lobby Nicholas pulled her into an alcove to the side of the main area, Nick knew their position would be visible from the staircase that Barrett would be coming down. Nicholas knew that Barrett would follow them.

"Mia, I want to kiss you, can we make a test of it and see how we feel about it afterwards? Can we try that?" Nick asked Mia as sweetly as he could, he wanted to kiss her, but he also wanted to mess with Barrett.

"Sure, that is a good idea." Mia said trying to convince herself.

Nicholas's hand wound around her waist pulling her closer to him. The other hand ran along her cheek into her hair behind her head and noticing that his timing was perfect he lowered his lips to hers. The kiss was nice and sweet right up until her hand wound into the hair at the back of his neck.

Desire gripped Nicholas, hot and heavy. He pulled Mia flush with his body and when her lips parted slightly, he deepened the kiss with his tongue. He didn't give two shits about Barrett right now because he was a man on fire. If a light hadn't flashed next to them, he would have gotten himself into trouble by pushing her into the wall, The Lanes would have heard about it and murdered him. When he pulled away, they were both breathing rough. Nick tucked a strand of hair behind her ear that he had knocked loose with his hand.

Nick's voice was deep and rough when he spoke. "Sorry about that, I think I got a little carried away." He smiled at her warmly which surprised Mia slightly. "Let's get you headed home." Nick wound an arm around her waist and walked her outside.

Tim stood about ten feet away breathing raggedly. That bastard had known he was there. Nick had looked at him and done that on purpose. Tim would've never wanted to see anyone kiss Mia and certainly not like that. Not when she was half naked in Nick's arms and he was ready to devour her. They had looked like a couple that were ready to be intimate with each other. It was killing Timothy that it wasn't him.

Tim stormed outside and was frustrated to see Nicholas still there. Looking down the line it became clear that there was some kind of delay. Now the men stood less than three feet apart and Tim did not think that was far enough to stop a murder.

"Are you having a nice night, Mr. Barrett?" Nicholas asked coldly.

"Shut up." Tim ground out; he was not in the mood to play games.

"Well, I am having a wonderful night. I mean that dress. If that is first-date worthy, by the third we should be eloping. Then I can be your kid's new dad and most importantly make love to my beautiful wife every night, so she never thinks of you again." Nick smiled wistfully watching Tim for a response, but Tim was holding himself rigidly in control.

"I mean it's been a while, but I remember how good she is, but that's probably not your business." Nicholas walked toward his forward as his car got closer. "Ask me where her birth marks are Tim, I dare you."

Tim knew that one was on her right butt cheek, he had been annoyed when he had seen it on accident. "Where?" Tim couldn't help it. He had to know how well the two of them knew each other.

Nick smirked, "One is on her right butt-cheek, kind of cute actually. The other is right about here." Nick tapped a spot on his right side halfway between his pelvic bone and hip bone. "Mia is ticklish there, but you already know that right Mr. Barrett?" The doctor's tone was glacial.

Nick climbed into his car and rolled down the window, "I hope you have sweet dreams, Barrett, I sure will!" Then the car pulled away.

Timothy's car pulled to the curb next, and Tim climbed into the car slamming the door with alarming force. Then he tried to beat the hell out of every surface in the car, kicking and punching until he was too exhausted to move.

A while later Timothy sat with a cigarette in one hand and a decanter of bourbon in the other. He dialed Caleb with the hand holding the cigarette. When his best friend answered Tim recounted the day's event in a monotone voice.

Caleb reminded Tim that Nicholas was a gynecologist and all-around doctor so he could know the things he claimed due to medical reasons. He also pointed out to Timothy that the doctor had said it happened a long time ago which meant even if they had been together, they hadn't stayed together for whatever reason. That line of reasoning helped calm Tim slightly. Caleb reminded him that it had seemed like Mia hadn't really enjoyed the date up until that kiss at least.

"Well maybe what they had between them is just physical and it will fizzle out again." Caleb remarked without thinking.

"How is that supposed to make me feel better? Are you telling me it's better because she might just like having sex with the bastard? Are you out of your mind?" Timothy seethed.

"That's not what I meant. We know at this point currently they have shared one kiss. We are not in crisis mode yet." Caleb sighed. "Man, I know this hurts but you must remember that you are in it for the long game. Unless, her having had sex with the doctor at some point in the past changes what you want with her then I say it doesn't matter. It sucks but it doesn't have any bearing on your future. Right?" Caleb remarked sagely. Tim considered seriously for a moment what Caleb was telling him.

"It doesn't change me wanting her it's way too late for anything to change that." Timothy sighed.

"So, the most important thing now is that she doesn't keep kissing him. If they have been intimate to that level in the past it won't take long for them to end up back in bed together if allowed to continue as they are." Caleb said forgetting how touchy Tim was right now. Tim growled out a curse and Caleb heard a glass shatter into a wall.

"How in the hell am I supposed to stop them from getting together?" Tim asked.

"You said that Ginger told you about the date and where it was, just ask her." Caleb supplied.

"I am not involving my four-year-old daughter in this. She was upset enough when she realized her mom was going out with someone other than me. She doesn't need the stress." Timothy said emphatically.

"Yeah, you're probably right. That was thoughtless of me. Sorry. Hey, I will be back in two days, and we will come up with a plan to get rid of the doctor." Caleb said. "So tomorrow you have visitation and Monday you are going to find the twin's school, correct?"

"That is my plan." Timothy sighed. He hated hewed it felt like he was now in a life-or-death battle with the doctor.

"I think I have the answer to your problem," Caleb said carefully as a possibility occurred to him.

"Really?" Tim questioned.

"Yes, but you are going to have to change a little bit more for it to work. Tim, I know that you are a bit of a prude..." Caleb started but got cut off.

"I am not a prude," Tim scoffed.

"You are a prude my friend; trust me you are. That would be alright except it seems like Mia might like something more than that. All you need to do is make her want you more than him which is a good idea in general to be honest."

"Mia is too nice of a girl to mess with more than one man at the same time. Make sure that one man is you." Caleb grinned imaging the look of terror on his friend's face. He had no idea how any man had the level of control Barrett had always had. The line was silent for a full minute.

"This is embarrassing but I don't really know how." Tim said quietly.

"Physical intimacy is primarily based on instinct. Loosen that control you are so famous for, and let your instincts guide you. Someone is trying to steal your woman and your children and make them theirs. If that doesn't make you want to do anything it takes, I don't know what more I can do for you." Caleb said exasperation seeping into his tone.

"I got it." Tim snapped. "By the way, there is a girl I think you should meet."