forbidden { michael gray } ON TEMPORARY HOLD

s e v e n

"This is not a good idea."

Michael let out a puff of smoke as he rolled his eyes at Talya, who was pacing anxiously through his room. "We've been over this."

"But they're going to know!" She said, stomping her foot slightly. "They're going to know who I am, and this will all be ruined."

"They won't," Michael said in the most reassuring tone he could manage. He'd even managed to convince himself.

Talya groaned before examining herself in the mirror. She was wearing the only dress she had brought with her to Michael's: a borderline contentious, khaki green dress which just about covered her knees with a beaded strip across the waist. Of course, Michael was very impressed with the choice but Talya wasn't sure if it was too short. "What if they think I look like a flapper?"

"Well, you practically are a flapper."

"That is beside the point." She whined as she flopped the bed. "This isn't going to end well, Michael."

He stood up from his armchair, stubbed his cigarette and climbed on top of Talya, pinning her arms by her head so she couldn't get away. "Look at me. Talya - look! - thank you. Now, we're going to go, and I'm going to introduce you to my family. They will love you, and you will love them. Alright?"

"Alright," Talya said with a pout. "What are you going to introduce me as?"

"My girlfriend, obviously."

"What's so obvious about that? I'm not your girlfriend."

Michael looked taken aback, and Talya patiently watched as he tried to figure out where he'd gone wrong. "You aren't?"

"You haven't asked me to be."

He cleared his throat formally, which earned a laugh from Talya. "Talya Ivanov, will you be my girlfriend?"

"Why, I thought you'd never ask!" She said with a giggle before kissing him. As he began to kiss her back, she pulled back. "You're going to smudge my lipstick!"

He rolled his eyes and climbed off of her before pulling her to her feet and jerking his head towards the door, indicating for her to leave. As she walked, he smacked her arse and gripped it as he whispered in her ear. "You're my girlfriend now, if I want to smudge your lipstick I will."

Talya batted him away in mock indignancy, but the grin on her lips didn't leave until they were outside of his mum's house.

"What are you waiting for?" Michael asked as he was halfway up the drive and Talya was still stood on the pavement.

"This really, really is not a good idea."

Placing his cigarette in his mouth, Michael stormed down the path and grabbed Talya's hand before dragging her along. "Talya, please, don't be a twat. Just this once."

Talya knew he was right. She was being a twat, but she was just so scared in case the perfect bubble in which they had been existing in was popped and they fell down to reality. "Fine. Fine!"

He nodded, planted a thankful kiss on her cheek and rapped the doorknocker. It was opened by a young woman holding a child, whose face lit up upon seeing Michael. "Here he is! Come in, come in."

Michael ushered Talya in with his hand on the small of her back, almost having to push her into the house before hugging the woman. "Ada, this is Talya, my girlfriend. Talya, this Ada. She's my cousin."

"Lovely to meet you," Talya said with forced kindness as he went to shake Ada'a hand, but the woman wrapped her free arm around Talya before making the child wave at Talya.