A black tie adventure with doesntsing

[allbedestroyed]

For a man whose perfect day involves hiking out into the wilderness alone to track a rare animal, an evening at a fancy party is not something to look forward to. The only consolation is in having good company to share it with. Making sure his friend has a good time is a much better goal than schmoozing the other guests.

After going through the ordeal of renting a tuxedo, and a car, he's around to pick Miriam up at the address she provided. Muldoon is uncomfortable in the unfamiliar clothing, and apprehensive about surviving an upper class dinner, but at least he knows he'll be in some good company. Worst comes to worst, Miriam will have some extra material to work with for her shows.

Ringing the doorbell, Muldoon tries not to look as awkward as he feels.

Comments

[doesntsing]

She smiles tiredly back at him and strokes her fingers through his hair until she has breath enough to speak. “Shit, that was fantastic.” It was definitely a stronger orgasm for her the second time.

They lay side by side, sweaty but satisfied. Midge brushes her nose against his, then steals a look at the clock on the nightstand. “May I stay with you tonight?” she asks quietly.

It’s far too late to even think about getting back into her dress and going out into the cold.

[allbedestroyed]

Few things get as much of a smile as when she says that. When Muldoon does something, he likes to do it well. Especially when this is their first time together. It's important to make a good impression.

The question gets raised eyebrows for being asked at all. "Of course." He kisses along her jaw as he speaks. "You can stay as long as you like."

[doesntsing]

He’s definitely made a good impression.

Midge didn’t want to presume that she could stay, though she’s glad that Robert wants her to. “So much for this not being a date,” Midge teases. It ended up becoming far more than a date, and she can’t say that she’s disappointed about that.

She lets out a soft sigh. “I need to call my mother.” Very reluctantly, Midge disentangles herself from Robert and gets out of bed. Retrieving one of the robes from the wardrobe, Midge slips it on and ties it at the waist.

[allbedestroyed]

The teasing makes his smile twitch wider as well before he does his best to smother it. Hearing that she has to call her mother gets a bemused look, but he doesn't comment on it. Instead he sits up on his elbows, watching her as she gets the dressing gown.

"Want me to get you anything while you're making the call?"

[doesntsing]

“Just some water, thanks,” she tells him. She’s had more than enough to drink tonight and the exhaustion is now hitting her. “If I don’t call her, she’ll think I’m dead in a ditch,” Midge continues as an explanation. She hadn’t anticipated how this night would go and that she wouldn’t be home.

Sitting down at the small desk that held the phone, Midge dials the rotary and listens to it ring.

“Hello? Mama? It’s me…. Yes, I’m fine… I’m just letting you know that I won’t be home until tomorrow morning.”

She awaits the inevitable judgement in her mother’s response.

[allbedestroyed]

He nods his understanding and sets about getting them both a glass of water. Midge's is set down next to her while she listens to her mother. Meanwhile he goes back to the bed and, after a moment, throws the oversheet across him. It feels too strange to be naked while someone's talking to their mother.

Decency maintained, he sits back against the pillows and sips his water, smiling at Midge as she deals with the hassle of dealing with family.

[doesntsing]

Midge meets Robert’s eye and gives him a small smile while she continues her conversation. “We’ve been drinking. He’ll bring me home tomorrow morning… I don’t know what time… 10:00?… Yes, we’re at his hotel.” With a sigh, she gives her mother the name of the hotel and the room number. “I’ll see you tomorrow. Love you.”

After hanging up the receiver, Midge huffs another sigh. “Do men ever have to call their mothers and tell them where they are?” she asks.

[allbedestroyed]

That only gets his smile to widen sympathetically. "My father had the last say on teaching me. And when I was a child he would head back early when the two of us went camping to see if I'd learned the skills he taught me. Sometimes halfway through a trip he'd leave me with some people in a village we were passing through while he went off to do something. Knowing where either my father or I was has never been an easy thing."

"I'm sure my mother would love it if I told her where I was all the time," he offers as consolation. "She'd be very reassured."

[doesntsing]

Her eyes go wide as she stands up from the table. “He left you alone? My father let me wander off in Bergdorf’s once and my mother almost murdered him. I guess that’s—“

Midge is cut off by the ringing of the phone. She gives Robert a confused look, then returns to the phone to pick it up.

“Hello?” The voice on the other end of the line shocks her. “Susie?? How did you know where I was?… My God, you could work for the CIA.”

[allbedestroyed]

When the phone rings he stirs to get up, but when she heads to it before him he opens his mouth to tell her not to but it's too late. He'd expected it to be from his work. The last thing he expects is for her to recognise the person on the other end. Not a name he knows, either.

Muldoon is left sitting on the bed with an utterly confused frown. Did he just sleep with New York royalty or something? Is that why everyone is keeping such close tabs on her?

[doesntsing]

Not everyone. Just her manager.

“Yeah, well, it’s been a good night… I’m fine… Yes, I know about tomorrow night. You didn’t have to call me… 8:00. Okay. See you then. Bye, Susie.”

Midge hangs up and turns back to Robert, looking incredulous. “My manager. She’s like a bloodhound. She went to the party and got the name of your hotel from the people at the party. Unbelievable.”

If that phone rings again, she’s not picking it up. The only person she hasn’t spoken to tonight is her ex-husband and Midge doesn’t even want to go there. She unties the robe and slips it off, then puts it over the chair next to her dress. Grabbing her glass of water, she returns to Robert’s bed.

“She wanted to remind me what time I needed to be at the club for my show tomorrow night… and probably also to make sure I was safe, though she’d never say that.” Susie tends keep her emotions close to the vest, like Robert does. She can’t stand the thought of anyone thinking that she’s not a cranky bitch.

[allbedestroyed]

Muldoon's brows lift at the explanation. He won't pretend he's not impressed. Plus, it's good to know that there are determined people looking out for Midge, even if he's not around.

"I like her already." And he sympathises with keeping up a very particular reputation.

He reaches out to stroke her back, a thoughtful look taking over his features.

"Would you like it if I came to your show?"

[doesntsing]

Midge takes a long drink of her water. “I think she’ll like you begrudgingly,” she tells him. “After she sizes you up. Susie doesn’t want anything to distract me from my career, but I think you two will get along.” Neither of them take any shit and they both have a distaste for socializing.

Her face lights up at his question. “Yes, absolutely,” Midge says with a grin. “I was going to invite you anyway. I’ll write down the address of the club before we leave tomorrow morning.”

[allbedestroyed]

All of that seems fair. He's a stranger and it's clear she's protective. It wouldn't be the first time he's been treated suspiciously. "I'm not about to ask you to be a stay at home mother, so I've got an advantage."

It was a toss up whether Midge would be excited or uneasy about his going along. He's not sure which he would have preferred. It's a little intimidating knowing a performer. Especially when he doesn't know if she's good. He hopes she is. She should be. She's a fun lady, and she managed to get him to laugh.

"Sounds good." After a sip of water he asks, "Anything I should be warned about? Will I have to sit through a bunch of dry performers before you come on? I don't want to be too drunk."

[doesntsing]

“She’ll appreciate that.” Susie is one of the few people in Midge’s life who supports her and thinks that she can actually make it as a comic.

Midge is a little nervous at the idea of Robert seeing her perform, but mostly she’s excited. Hopefully he won’t think she’s too vulgar, though he doesn’t seem to mind her cursing. In her experience with him, not much shocks him — except maybe how attractive she finds him.

“If you come around 9 you won’t have to sit through them. I’ll see what I can do to get a slot as close to then as possible. If you have to sit through the other comedians, you’ll want to be drunk.”

[allbedestroyed]

The way she's so confident about her show in comparison to the others gets a large grin from him. It's as attractive as the rest of her. Maybe even more.

"For you, I'll wait." And given that he's definitely getting there a little bit early, he will have to wait.

[doesntsing]

Midge is normally pretty confident in herself and her abilities. She knows she’s good. Now she has to get others to see it.

She drinks more of her water, then puts the glass on the nightstand. Laying down, she cuddles up to Robert’s side, putting a hand on his chest.

“You lied to me,” she says, her fingers stroking through his chest hair. “You said you never smile and I don’t think you’ve stopped smiling since you left that party.”

[allbedestroyed]

Muldoon isn't generally much of a cuddler, but this is comfortable. He's quite content to sit here, sipping his water, and lazily stroking up and down Midge's back.

"I really didn't like that party. I was more than happy to leave. And then I got to sleep with a beautiful woman. Twice. It's difficult not to smile when that's the case."

[doesntsing]

Midge nods. “Your night turned out pretty well, all things considered.” Robert might not be a cuddler, but that’s not going to stop Midge from trying. Surely he can’t say no to a beautiful woman pressing her body up to his?

Her fingers move from his chest hair to trace one of the many scars on his chest. There are a lot to pick from, but the one she lands on is rather faded. “How’d you get this one?” she asks.

[allbedestroyed]

"I'd hope yours didn't turn out too badly either."

He will not stop Midge from snuggling up against him. He'd never want her to be uncomfortable if he can help it. When she asks about the scar he frowns as he looks down to see which one she's talking about, but relaxes with a not when he recognises it.

"That was a tiger. I was lucky she wasn't fully grown or it would have been a much larger scar." The corner of his mouth twitches in a smile. "You probably don't have any scars. Your skin is flawless."

[doesntsing]

“I’ve had a wonderful night,” Midge confirms.

She won’t ask about any other scars tonight, saving them in the hope of future nights lying naked in his arms. “And what did you do to earn her displeasure?” she asks.

When Robert talks about her skin being flawless, there’s a notable hesitation in her, as if she’s making a decision. Finally, she speaks again. “The most prominent scars that I have are these.”

Midge pulls back from him so that he can see the stretch marks on her lower abdomen. They’ve faded over time and vigorously applying various creams, but Midge has never been able to get them to go away completely.

“Not quite the same as how you got yours,” she says.

[allbedestroyed]

"I stole her dinner." Tilting his head at her he elaborates, "My coworker. He'd make a stupid mistake and ended up in her pen when she wasn't sedated. I got him out, and ended up with a few marks for my trouble."

Muldoon leans to better see what she's showing him and smiles at the sight of the stretch marks before he settles back again. "Much more impressive, though. And you got them for a better reason."

[doesntsing]

“Seems rude to take her dinner, but I’m sure your co-worker was very appreciative. That was very brave of you to go in after him.” That must be what he means when he says that his job makes it difficult for relationships. It’s dangerous.

“Maybe. I think Esther might have clawed me on the way out though.” It would explain a lot. “You don’t mind scars on a woman.” It’s a statement, not a question. Midge takes a deep breath and keeps talking. They’ve shared a lot tonight. She might as well keep going.

“When I was married to Joel, I thought I had to look perfect all the time. It’s not anything that he said to make me feel that way, per se, but I could tell he was proud of his hot wife.” Until he wasn’t anymore.

“I felt like I couldn’t have any scars or blemishes or anything. I tried to get rid of the stretch marks, but you can still see them. That’s why I’ve been hesitant about you leaving marks on me. I don’t… want you to find me ugly.”

It’s irrational, especially if it’s something that Robert wants to do, but it’s something that Midge will try to get over. It’s that fear of wondering if she can still be loved, even if she doesn’t look like a pin-up model.

[allbedestroyed]

Muldoon hums, a vague, noncommittal response. It doesn't feel brave. It's what he does. It's what he's always done, and maybe he's too quick to jump into those situations. But he's not going to mention that. He doesn't want Midge to worry.

As for scars? Of course he doesn't mind them on a woman. It seems bizarre to even think such a thing. The more she explains, however, the better he understands. Even if he doesn't understand fully. There is still a bit of confusion furrowing his brow, though.

"Everyone has scars," he points out. "They don't make you ugly. They're a part of you. A part of your life. And most of my life has been spent in places where looking 'perfect' wasn't an option."

"I'll admit, I haven't seen you when you haven't been pristine..." He tilts his head at her as best he can and smiles. "But I bet you're the cutest thing when you've got messy hair and comfortable clothes on."

[doesntsing]

She giggles when he says she’d be cute with messy hair and comfortable clothes. “Well, I’m about to go take my makeup off, so we’ll see if you feel the same way after that.” The fact that she feels comfortable enough to take her makeup off in front of him is actually a pretty big deal.

Leaning over, Midge kisses him softly. Hopefully he can feel her appreciation in the kiss. “I’m going to get ready for bed,” she tells him.