Chapter 12

Richie sat on the couch and watched as Mel paced nervously back and forth, her eyes darting to the clock over and over again. It was only 10 pm but she was acting as if it were 6 am and her only child had pulled a disappearing act.

"Mel?" A soft huff of exasperation whistled over his lips as she ignored him and kept pacing. Putting two fingers to his lips he whistled sharply."Will you PLEASE sit down and watch the movie??"

She whirled, her eyes narrowing, "She's out past ten with a guy she just met today, someone she damn near idolizes." She inhaled sharply and wished the ants would quit crawling under her skin. She couldn't tell him she didn’t trust herself to sit down on that couch, no it wasn’t that at all, it was just worry over Shan. Right? Riiiiight. "She never stays out late."

Richie reached out and grasped her wrist as she paced past once more then yanked her down beside him " Jeesh Mel you act like she never dates... the girls what?? 20 now? Quit worryin' so much or are you like this with every guy she goes out with?”

She went as still as a mouse and winced, "Sorta. Hell I'm the only parent she has, someone has to worry."

With a sigh he stretched his arm across her shoulders," look, Jon's not gonna devour her whole ok?" he paused momentarily looking for words. At least I hope he doesn’t devour her. “She’ll be ok, I promise.”

She bit back a sigh and leaned back, and tried to not watch the damn clock. "She's just so trusting, so innocent really." She closed her eyes and tried to push away the worry, she'd done a halfway decent job taking care of her, Shannon would be ok. At least he wasn't asking stuff that was personal. "She's a good kid though; I'll just have to trust she can hold her own."

"We were all 'good kids' at one time Darlin'," he smirked recalling just how "good" the two of them had been. Most of the times he had gotten in trouble, she'd been right there along side him.

She leaned into him, hell she'd done it every time they'd watched TV when they were kids, it just felt right to prop her head on his shoulder. "Yeah, we stood up against quite a few things too. Remember that one guy, kept picking on you cuz of the accordion?"

"Aw man... yeah... I'd rather forget that," he chuckled "what was I thinkin' anyway?? Accordion?"

She shifted slightly and growled, "Hey you were good, just cuz you went all rock star doesn’t mean you gotta forget that, you can still use it in your music you know. It’s not all about noise."

"But the noise is fun!" he exclaimed and gave her ribs a little tickle.

She kicked and bucked before falling over in a yelping heap. "Stop it! Not fair your fingers were always too long."

A deep belly laugh escaped him as he leaned closer in his eyebrows waggling furiously as he continued with the teasing. "All the better to pleasure you with my dear."

She tried to squirm away from the fingers, her breath failing her as she laughed harder, her eyes going wide with innocence as she slid her hand down to that one spot on his side she remembered. Digging in she gave back as good as she got.

"Shit!!" He almost squealed and twisted his long frame away from her, dumping her unceremoniously off the couch and onto the floor. Her ass thudded as she hit which only made him laugh harder.

He watched as she rolled, then slowly pushed to her knees, amber eyes beginning to gleam. Damn if she wasn’t sexy as hell with her hair all in a disarray and those eyes shooting him the *I’m so gonna get you stare.* Hell he wanted her to get him, he wanted to get her, he just wasn’t sure how yet.

"Oh you so didn't!"

"I did!"

She saw the gleam in his brown eyes. Even now they sparkled and twinkled when he was planning mayhem. She couldn’t let him get the upper hand, she just couldn’t. She sprang towards him, pushing him into the couch as her fingers slid back to his one tickle spot. "I'm not smaller than you now," she leaned back, straddling his waist and stopped, "Ok I am, but I’m stronger now."

A half smile played on his lips as he gazed up at her, straddling him, her face flushed, silky light hair flowing around her shoulders all messed yet alluring. What a vision she was. Her open thighs were pressed against the zipper of his jeans and he used all his control not to buck upward into her heat. He could feel it even thru her clothes. She was strong, yes she was, but he was even stronger.

His hands moved slowly, up her back, into her hair, that mass of spun sunlight, as he fisted a handful of hair and pulled, not hard enough to hurt but hard enough that she had no choice but to bend towards him and without thinking he once again captured her lips with his.

She gasped softly as she leaned in even closer, her lips opening to the teasing flicks of his tongue. Her hands slid from his waist up to his chest and beyond, to lock in his hair. As her heart started to thunder in her chest she moved, her nose burrowing into his neck.

It was nice, almost like home, like she was fourteen all over again and sitting in the Sambora's house watching his TV. But that usually led to him pulling her hair or doing something equally dumb to make her fighting mad, he always seemed to love making her mad. "Rich?"

"Hmmm?" he mumbled into her ear as his tongue flicked out to caress it gently

She shivered and nearly had her thoughts derail. Forcing the shivers away she reached up to twist a lock of brown hair on her finger. "Why'd you always try to make me mad?"

"I dunno," he answered honestly. He placed light kisses on her neck as his fingers kneaded the delicate skin at the nape of her hair line "Why'd ya always pick on me?"

She huffed softly, her head shaking, "Not real sure, you were so gangly and well uncoordinated, like me and I couldn't make fun of me so….” Her voice trailed off a moment letting the pause finish the sentence. “But ya know, that was my thing, anyone else did it I stomped 'em."

"I know.. my body guard," he chuckled deeply. She was amusing. Most women would have been putty by now, but not her, nope not his Mellie. His usual seduction techniques seemed to have no effect on her. She was driving him crazy, and as much as he loved getting to know her again, right now he just wanted to kiss her again. "Mel?"

She snuggled closer, her head turning back to the TV as she tried to concentrate on whatever was on the screen and not the huskiness of his voice. "Hmmmm?"

"Kiss me," he ordered.

"Already did. Shhhh this is the good part." She had no idea if it was the good part. God alive she didn't know what she was watching, but the beat of his heart, heat of his skin and his sudden deep and gravelly growl was doing stupid things to her. She couldn't, hell she wouldn't risk another kiss. He had to stay The Dork, for her own sanity.

He gave another growl. Damn her obstinacy. He moved his hips ever so slightly, trying to move her attention back to him. "So... do it again... I liked it."

"You made fun of it the last time you know." She closed her eyes and held her breath as his hips flexed. God in heaven the muscles...It’s just Dork, its just Dork.....its just.....God help me.

" I ain't making fun now....."

His soft sexy words hung in the air between them. He nudged her up and grasped her chin his eyes darkening to near black as he felt the plea that he knew had to be obvious in his gaze. He almost wanted to beg aloud, but knowing Mel she’d take that and run with it just to tease him.

She felt her head turn, his hand firm on her chin, his eyes, those beautiful, droopy brown eyes burning into her soul. It was just a kiss, they'd practiced kissing well out of their parents eye sight to be sure, but it was nothing new. She'd felt those lips before, she could do this.. Dipping down she tentatively brushed her lips over his, and promptly forgot her very name.

He sighed into her mouth and held her flush against him. She felt so right, tasted so right and in that instant he realized exactly what had been so wrong with all the scores of women he’d had. They just weren’t Mellie. He deepened the kiss, his tongue battling hers, seeking dominance, seeking home in a simple kiss.

She lost herself in the kiss, the small inner quakes turning into full on body shivers. Tanned legs twisted with denim clad as tremulous fingers slid into near black hair, so soft and satiny she could get lost in it. As the kiss ended, she dropped her head to his shoulder and tried to breathe, or think, and figured out doing both at the same time might be impossible.

Her breathing was as ragged as his was. Damn the woman knew how to kiss! He wiggled his hips, trying to adjust himself more comfortably without her knowing exactly what he was doing. Any other time, he would have run with it, pushed it, gone for the score, but something told him not to push her that far, not yet. He slid his hands up and down her back instead, willing his control to stay intact as he simply enjoyed the silent contentment that flowed between them.

It'd been so long since he'd shared anything like this with a woman. Sure he'd had sex, lots of it. But this calm, comfortable sense of just being.... he couldn’t find that on the road.

She tried to settle the racing of her pulse, tried to jump start her brain, until she felt him shifting beneath her, Damn she was smothering him, had to be. She wiggled over and slipped to his side, turning to face the TV once again. "Sorry."

He moved enough to settle her perfectly in the crook of his arm. "S'ok Darlin,'" he said softly before turning his attention to the television as well. He sighed in contentment. This is what he missed on the road. Home.... maybe everything would be alright after all.

She scooted back and wiggled to get comfortable, not sure if it was him or the lumpiness of the old couch that had her moving, and as Vinton made one more mistake only to have Mama blast him she started to laugh. "God I love Mama's Family."

He laughed along with her. "Yeah me too."

She finally relaxed as he started to laugh, it hadn't changed in all these years, that laugh that just went full tilt into silly. You knew he was happy by that laugh, he couldn’t fake it, not like most people. "Is it hard?"

He froze and looked at her strangely and almost moved away from her, then swallowed hard before playing dumb with all he was worth. "Is ... it... huh?"

She glanced back and saw that near strangled look on his face. The question wasn’t that hard was it? "You know, traveling so much. You were such a mama's boy, is it hard leaving her so much?"

"Ohhh!" He swallowed hard and relaxed, now that he realized she hadn't been talking about his guilty as charged cock. " It ain’t easy but... it's what I wanted so I can’t complain.... much..." He shrugged and hugged her back against him gently

She reached behind her and pulled his arm out to pillow her head with and sighed. "I guess most girls like you better now that you grew out that hair huh? No more army do?"

"No more crew cut!" he mocked his father’s stern voice.

She rolled over, her head tilting as she studied him. "You've changed so much, I would have never known it was you."

"We all change Mel, we grow up, we learn from our shenanigans ya know?" He touched her cheek gently with his finger

She couldn't restrain the shiver. "Sometimes you get forced to, grow up that is."

He sighed. He knew now her life couldn't have been easy. Nowhere near the fast ride he'd had. But it wasn't too late, she was still young, hell she was younger than him she still had so much time ahead of her. " Yeah... life is like that sometimes but, ya know it doesn’t have to stay that way. So you had to be grown up and responsible but now, look you’ve done your job right? So... maybe coming back here is a good thing. You can have a new start... maybe it’s time for Melanie now?"

She pressed closer, and shook her head, "Wouldn't know how too, been the way I am for a long time. Can't even figure out how you made me so mad, I never have the energy to even feel that usually."

He looked at her then and with an amused grin quipped, "that's because you been away from your dork for too long Darlin’."

She punched his arm lightly, her laugh escaping her again. "That might have been a blessing. They may have put me in a padded cell otherwise."

"Jon threatens to lock me up at least twice a night," he laughed while wincing at her punch.

"Still the whimp?" She laughed at the wince, her hand rubbing where she'd hit, "I didn’t even hit that hard."

He pouted dramatically, "it still hurt Mellie."

She leaned in and pasted a big sloppy fake kiss to his shoulder. "There, boo-boo all better."

"Awww man!!" He faked anger and wiped her slobber off him then grabbed her face in both of his hands and leaned over to lick a path from the corner of her lip to her cheek bone in retaliation.

She bucked against him, screeching, "Ewwwwwwwwww boy slobber!" She wiped her face then placed her hand on his cheek and rubbed, "Take it back!"

"No!" He held her tightly and tried to lick her a few more times, laughing at her feeble attempts to stop him.

She kept wiggling, trying her best to get free, "Darn it Dork!" She kept wiping where he licked and rubbing it back in his face. "Keep that slobber to yourself!"

"Maybe I don't wanna," his tone went all husky again. The bucking of her body was driving him insane.

It went through her like a bolt of static electricity, that husky voice. Hell his voice always cracked and squeaked, she always laughed when his voice broke, but it wasn't breaking now. Now his voice was simply lighting fires, the very tone of it whispering of hot dark nights filled with desire. A desire she couldn’t help but respond too. She stilled, her hands on his cheeks, her eyes widening just slightly as her tongue flicked out to wet suddenly nerveless dry lips. "Oh."

He raised an eyebrow, a little confused by her actions. What was her deal? She ran so hot and cold... but when she was hot.. she was so damn hot. He threw caution to the wind and tried one more time. He wasn’t usually so forceful but she had him on a rollercoaster ride of feelings. His hands snaked once again to her hair, that glorious hair he was finding himself obsessed with and dragging her closer he crushed her lips to his, sucking the breath from her lungs. Leaving one hand entangled in her hair his other drifted sneakily down to the hem of her tank, his finger tips grazing the skin beneath the cotton.

She froze at the feel of calluses against her skin, eyes closing as his lips pressed commandingly against hers, and as he pulled her in tighter she nearly whimpered. She knew she should fight what he was doing, push him away like he'd pushed so many years before, but she couldn't, she wasn't even sure how.