Bienvenido A Miami

His phone woke him the next morning, erupting non-stop from his pants across the floor. He was comfortably wrapped up in Liv, however, and he let it ring for a few minutes before she poked him. “Get your phone before I throw it out the window.” He smiled into her hair but extracted himself. Of course it was Willy. A selection of texts filled his screen as he caught it between calls. When Willy tried connecting again, he answered.

“Holy shit, you’re alive.”

“Fuck off. Do you know what time it is?” He shot an annoyed look at Liv who laughed at him.

Willy laughed at him too. “Do you fucking know what time it is? Our tee time was a half hour ago.”

Mike looked around the room wildly, eyes stilling on the alarm clock. It was after 10. “Shit. I totally forgot to set an alarm.”

He could hear laughter in the background of the phone call and the distinctive sound of a golf ball being hit. “No worries. We went without you. Because fuck you. Wanna meet up for lunch?”

Mike looked back at Liv again. She’d thrown aside the sheet and was playing with herself gently. “Um-“his words caught in his throat as she slipped a finger inside. “Maybe. I’ll let you know later.” He disconnected and put his phone on silent before chucking it across the room.

Liv’s sister’s wedding was at four. At noon, she kicked him out of her room with the excuse that she needed to get dressed for her trip to the beauty parlor. Mike had a ridiculous grin on his face as he returned to his shared room, ready to dig out his game day suit because he had a hot date for the evening.

The boys were back, watching some reality TV show and yelling at the screen. When he cracked the door, they ceased their commotion at once. He knew that his activities over the last 12 hours were evident, both with the stupid smile on his face and the general lack of control he had over his hair. Josi was the first to respond, starting a slow clap.

He was glad that he’d brought one of his nicer outfits on this trip as he stood in the lobby a couple of hours later. He’d taken a good shower and then hit up the barber shop down on the first floor. A trip and a shave later and he looked like the superstar he usually felt like.

A sharp whistle echoed across the lobby had him turning towards the elevator bay. Liv had just stepped out of a car, holding the door for the woman he remembered from the night before in a white dress. Liv’s dress was gossamer, hugging her shape one moment and then flowing out to obscure her form the next. The light blue color complimented her fair skin, darker now after a couple of days in the sun. Her hair was down again too, and Mike had a flashback to her head tipped back in a moan. He liked both versions of Liv. He actually really liked all the versions of Liv that he’d seen so far.

“Mike! Hi! I’m Sophie!” The bride swept up to him, her own dress more voluminous than the bridesmaids’ as it pooled around her feet. She stuck out a hand, which Mike shook gently.

“Hi Sophie. It’s nice to meet you. And thanks for the invitation.” Liv slid up next to him and pressed a kiss to his cheek.

Sophie waved a hand dismissively. “It’s no problem. We had a guest cancel last minute so I’d rather the spot get used than go to waste.” She put her hands on her hips in a show of determination. “No refunds this late in the game, sadly.” There was a fierceness in her that Liv also possessed and Mike was suddenly, sharply jealous of Jimmy Hayes for landing one of these women for life.

“We better get going. The cruise is going to leave in an hour or so.”

Liv helped her sister into the chauffeur SUV’s front seat before climbing into the back. She pushed up right next to Mike and kissed his cheek again once they were on their way. “You smell good.” Her nose rubbed gently against his jaw and Mike clenched a hand on his thigh to keep from pulling her into his lap. “I like the tie too.” Her fingers plucked at the silk without disturbing it.

At the boat, Mike left Liv and Sophie at the captain’s cabin, the location of their hiding before the actual ceremony. He headed up to the third deck and was a little surprised to find that only a handful of people were there. The boat would be underway soon so he guessed that this was just an exceptionally small ceremony.

Hayes didn’t look particularly surprised when Mike went up to say hello. They hadn’t particularly interacted on the ice in the year Mike had been in the league. There was a benefit to this as Mike had never tried to punch in his face. It really avoided some serious awkwardness.

“Hey man, congrats.” They did a bro hand shake, ending with a good game hug.

Hayes actually looked carefree as he gave Mike a grin. “Thanks. And thanks for coming. Sophie worries so much about Liv getting lost in her on head. It’ll be good to have someone to keep her grounded today.” He gave Mike’s arm another pat before heading over to an older couple. Mike frowned in confusion. He had seen no inclination that Liv couldn’t keep her focus, ever. She’d always been totally engaged when they talked.

He shrugged off the thought in favor of getting a beer.

The ceremony was as short as the guest list. The boat hadn’t been out of port more than a half hour before the ship's captain pronounced Sophie and Hayes man and wife. The ensuing photograph session was also quick. Mike found himself talking with the sister’s younger brother through most of it. The brother, Eric, was a sports writer for the Chicago Tribune and they shot the shit about the season in depth.

When the last of the family photos were taken, Liv pulled him to the back deck and made the photographer get a couple shots of the two of them. Mike tried to protest, laughing, but Liv would hear none of it. She leaned up and whispered, “Something to keep me warm at night when I go back to Illinois to my empty apartment.” He was sure he could hear a hint of sadness in her voice so he stopped protesting.

The group was good and buzzed by the time the sun went down. He trapped Liv against the railing, bracketing her body against the metal. They watched the sun dip below the horizon together. She turned to him. They were impossibly close.

Her eyes flickered over his face, settling on his lips. “Thanks for coming. I think I would have just gotten drunk and wandered the boat if you hadn’t been here.”

She laughed when she said it, but again there was that sadness. He pressed his lips to hers, drawing the kiss out in the fading light. “It was my pleasure.”

The music was low in the state room when they came back in. Mike fetched them a drink but she put them down immediately, dragging him to a small dance floor instead. He wasn’t much of a dancer, but he could do the two step sway easily enough. He recognized the song, Such Great Heights by The Postal Service but it was slowed down and impossibly sweet. Liv rest her head on his shoulder as they moved to the music.

It was a precious instance, the sort that Mike had never really shared with another person before. He’d never had the opportunity to have this sort of quietness with another person, not with his life style. An ugly thought that this was just a flash in both of their timelines, a blip where they both lived in the same moment. And that moment would be ending soon. Tomorrow. Mike tightened his grip around Liv’s waist.

Liv snuggled closer.

Everyone seemed sad to see the evening end as they pulled back up to the dock. Since his realization that they were really living on borrowed time he hadn’t wanted to let Liv take more than a few steps away from him. She hadn’t complained too much.

Sophie and Hayes had abandoned the group for their one night as newlyweds before the Panthers game against the Red Wings. It was just Mike and Liv in the SUV on the return trip back to the hotel. She held his hand tight, cradled between both of her own. He glanced down at her, her face framed by the passing street lights, and she kissed his knuckles.

He was so far gone.

He made love to her that night, spreading her out and mapping her body with his mouth. He brought her to fruition twice before he ever allowed himself to slide home inside her body. When he bottomed out for the final time, he kept his eyes open, watching a look of wonderment fill Liv’s face.

He was in trouble.

At least he remembered to set an alarm for the next morning; he had to have his shit packed by 10 for check-out lest he get charged for another night. He set his phone early and at 7 AM, his eyes slid open to find Liv already watching him with a sleepy gaze. “Hi.” She sounded well rested and sated despite the early morning.

“Hi.”

“What time do you have to take off?”

He stretched, pulling her closer even as he woke up. “Need to be back to my room by nine to pack, I think. Our flight is at 12:30.”

She had a devious grin as she rolled on top. “So you’ve got a little bit of time.”

His hands framed her hips, pulling her tight. “Just a bit.”

They shared a kiss at the door as he left her almost an hour later. He still needed to pack of his shit. He couldn’t stop pressing his mouth to hers, even though he knew her was drawing short on time. “I don’t want to leave.”

She twined an arm around his neck in a hug. “I don’t want you to leave either. But you need to.”

He was glad at least one of them could see the reality of their situation with a clear head. He kissed her one last time. She unwrapped herself and gave him a light hug. “Good luck at your game tomorrow.”

“Thanks. I’ll score one for you.” It was a silly thing to say but he meant it with his whole heart. Columbus would be an easy win and even if he never saw her again, Mike felt like he’d be scoring a lot of goals with her name on them in the foreseeable future.

They were both quiet for one more moment. They knew this was likely the last time they’d see each other. Liv gave Mike’s hand a final squeeze. “Text me, yeah? Sometime. Whenever.”

He grinned. At least she wanted to keep talking. In whatever fashion they could.

“Too much. Every day.” He got a laugh and kissed her. One last kiss.

Liv shoved him out the door.

He made it to the airport before he sent her a quick text, just to let her know that he missed her already. And then he shut off his phone.

Notes