Vivian nodded.
“I’ll have them come in.”
Sam walked out to the waiting area and asked Penelope to go sit with Vivian in the conference room. “Have you seen Amelia?”
Penelope gave him a grin. “She ran to the corner to get a coffee. She didn’t want Vivian to see her here.”
Sam nodded. She was smart like that. He looked at his mother. “Send her back when you see her.”
Fifteen minutes later Amelia walked into the room where they had the bills laid out on the table.
“I brought you a coffee,” she said to Sam and he took the cup she handed him.
“Thank you.”
“What is all of this?”
Sam and Vivian explained the meeting with his parents and the bills which had amassed.
Amelia sat in the chair next to Sam. “Can his parents do anything? Can they come after me?”
“They could fight his will. But then they’ll be liable for all of this.” He acknowledged the stacks of paper.
Amelia looked toward Vivian. “What kind of people are the Monroes?”
Vivian shrugged. “They’re nice enough.” She rubbed her palms together. “His dad is ex-military. So he was always strict and very blunt. His mother, well,” she let out a sigh. “You know, I don’t have to keep this in anymore. She’s a bitch.”
Her lips twitched and then she let out a laugh which she covered with her hands.
“I’m so sorry.” Vivian tried to be more serious. “She’s a wonderful grandmother and…” She tried to control another laugh that broke through. “But I have never liked her. I doted on her for Adam’s sake. I have her watch the girls because they need their grandmother around. But she’s always been snide to me. There’s always been a comment here, a comment there. It was sort of refreshing to tell her that her son was a lying cheat.”
Sam noticed Penelope tucking in her smile.
Vivian looked at Penelope and her laugh ceased. “Penelope, that wasn’t fair. I’m sorry. She’s the grandmother to your baby. I should have thought before I spoke.”
“That’s okay. I never expected that anyone would accept my baby once Adam died and I found out about the two of you. So I’d never considered her at all.”
Amelia set her hand on Penelope’s. “What about you? What family do you have?”
Penelope shrugged. “Oh I have a mother. But she does her own thing. I haven’t told her where I am. In fact, I haven’t talked to her in months. She doesn’t know I got married. I was afraid if she saw Adam she’d, well,” she looked away and then back at Amelia. “She’s kind of a cougar. You know, an older woman who likes younger men?”
Amelia nodded.
“I was afraid she’d try to steal him from me.”
Sam couldn’t even imagine something like that. But he supposed it existed.
“I should hear from the insurance company here in the next day or so. We’ll get these bills taken care of. But, without anything from Adam, what will you three do?”
Amelia looked at the other women. “We start our business. We’re a team, right?”
He watched as the eyes of Vivian and Penelope both widened and lit up. Amelia Monroe might have just saved them all with that unselfish act. She could simply walk away now. There was nothing holding her there but a pile of debt. But she was willing to keep the bond they’d made in three short days and go with it.
Sam rubbed his damp palms on the legs of his pants. It was very possible he just fell in love with Amelia Monroe.
Chapter Eleven
Sam had missed out on his lunch date with Amelia. As his stomach grumbled he realized that meant he hadn’t eaten either.
The thought humored him.
But he was on his way to pick her up for dinner and he didn’t really have any intentions of taking her back to her hotel after.
He’d toyed with the idea of picking up a bouquet of flowers, but that seemed cheesy. It had been a very long time since he’d been this giddy over picking a woman up for a date, but this woman was different.
Who’d have thought a man like him would have eyes for a strong minded, and bodied, woman like Amelia? After all, Sam Jackson was—and he knew it—a wimp, a nerd, a full out Comicon geek.
And yet Amelia Monroe had pulled him in and kissed him when he’d tried to seduce her. She’d been hinting at more than just lunch today when he’d been hinting at the same.
Now, here he was parking his truck outside her hotel room and sex was a definite possibility. Less than a week—he’d known her less than a week. And even in the moment where he was thinking he’d finally broken the nerd status and he was some kind of freaking hero—he realized it was more than one night. He might have only met the woman and he hadn’t had to woo her or anything out of the ordinary to turn her head. But still, Sam Jackson was a one woman kind of man. He wanted to keep her. He wanted her to stay in Parson’s Gulch. He wanted it to be more.
The heat was rising under the collar of his shirt. Would she ever feel that way about him? Could she?
This was a woman who married a man like Adam Monroe. A woman who had openly admitted that after she’d kicked his ass she took him straight to bed.
Now his palms were sweaty again.
The door to her room opened and she stepped out. “Oh, hey. I didn’t know you were here.”
He nodded toward the two shopping bags she had in her hands. “Going somewhere?”
“To my car. I’m trying to pack up some of the stuff I’ve got. I have the room for one more night.”
“Then what?” he asked, taking one of the bags from her.
“Then Penelope and I are homeless.” She chuckled.
“I have room if you…”
“No.” Her answer was quick and solid. “We’ll get there in time.” She unlocked the back of the Bronco and pulled down the tailgate. Sliding one bag in and then taking the other from Sam she smiled easily at him. “You would let me move in, wouldn’t you?”
“I seem to have a soft spot for you.”
She licked her lips and turned to him. “I’ve had you pressed up against me. There are no soft spots on you.”
For the first time in his life he was praising yoga—quietly.
She pushed up the tailgate and rested her back against her truck. Reaching for his hands she interlocked their fingers. “If we’re going to see each other I suppose I’ll need to tell Vivian.”
“Do you think she’ll take it okay?”
“No.” She smiled. “And I don’t plan on telling her right away.” She narrowed her eyes on him. “We are seeing each other, right?”
“I sure want to.”
“Not just sex?”
He swallowed hard. “No.”
“I would have taken you just for sex too if that was your answer.” She gave his hands a yank that had him nearly plowing into her. “I really like you, Sam Jackson.”
“Thank God.”
He pressed his mouth to hers and she deepened the kiss from there.
When she pulled back, she said, “Where are you taking me for dinner? I can’t stay out too long.”
Sam dropped his shoulder and stepped back. “Do you have plans?”
Amelia’s face grew serious. “Penelope. She’s afraid to be alone.”
“Why?”
“I think Vivian scared her talking about her mother-in-law.”
He cringed. “We could take her with us.”
Amelia raised her eyebrows and for a moment he thought she was going to accept that offer.
With a shake of her head she said, “She’ll be okay until we get back.”
With their fingers still entwined, she held his hand and walked back to the hotel. “I’m leaving tomorrow. Penelope is going to stay with Vivian until I get back.”
“Where are you going?”
“I have to settle my life in Georgia,” she said, slowing as they reached the door.
“Oh.” His voice dripped the disappointment he felt. “How long will you
be gone?”
“I should be back by Sunday.”
Four days. Already he’d done the math and knew she’d be away from him for four days. Oh, he was pathetic.
“Anything I can do for you while you’re gone?”
“Find me somewhere to live,” she said pushing open the door to the room.
Sam’s mind was already thinking of possibilities.
The air was thick and hot, but Amelia let her hair blow free with the window down. Sam had taken her to Oklahoma City for dinner, a bit of a drive, but secluded. There wasn’t a part of her that didn’t want to stay the night with him. But there was time for that. She could be patient.
“What kind of living arrangements are you looking for?” Sam asked when she’d gone silent for too long.
She turned toward him. “Something that has enough space for both of us.” She thought again. “I guess something that has place for three of us. There are going to be three soon.”
It was as if the air had grown even thicker.
“Penelope’s baby.” She pulled out her phone and made a note for Monday. “Do you know of a good OBGYN?”
Sam coughed. “Me? No. I don’t have one in my contact list.”
Amelia ran her hand over her face. “Sorry. I just realized she needs care. I don’t think she’s seen a doctor yet.”
“We’ll find her one.”
“Crap. I need to find a job. She can’t afford all of this on her own.”
Sam reached for her hand and gave it a squeeze. “We can do that too.”
Amelia pressed her head against the back of the seat. “That’s the kind of guy you are, isn’t it? You’re not the kind that lets people just do what they have to do. You’re the kind that steps in and makes things work.”
He slid her a look and then turned back to the road. “Is there a problem with that?”
“Yes there’s a problem.” Her voice was rising over the sound of the air coming into the truck and the highway under their tires. “You just gave Penelope a job. You let Vivian come in and sob to you when all you had to do was read the will and contact the insurance people. I ask you if you know of a place to live and you’re thinking about what I need. You’ll find her a doctor and me a job. Who the hell are you? The Pope?”
“It seems to me you asked me for my opinion on most of those. Would you rather me not give it to you?” Now his voice had an edge. She was used to that. She brought that out in people.
“I just don’t see where any of this is your problem.”
“We’re involved—remember? That’s when it became my problem.”
“And if Vivian or Adam’s parents find out we’re involved then you stand to lose a lot don’t you.”
Sam took the next exit and pulled off on the side of the road. He turned to her. “You’re picking a fight with me. Are you more comfortable now? I may not be trained to kick the crap out of people but I do have a degree in argument. So what’s it going to be? Are you going to let me help you with all of this or are you going to let me take my fee and walk away?”
Men she’d fought with over the years didn’t use their words precisely to argue. They broke things. They broke people. This man would use his words and now she was out of her element.
“I’m sorry,” she found herself saying for nearly the first time in her life. “I’m on edge. I have to close my life out in Georgia. I have to rethink all the plans I made when I asked Adam for a divorce. And then there’s the baby.”
She saw his eyes go wide as though a thought just lodged itself in his head. “Penelope’s baby.”
Sam nodded.
“The more I realize that baby is on the way the more I feel the pain in my gut from what he did. He used us. He cheated on us. He…he…it’s so Goddamned unfair.”
There was the slightest grin on Sam’s lips. “Okay. This sounds more reasonable now.”
He turned back to the steering wheel and put the truck in drive. When they were back on the highway he reached for her hand.
“I have a friend who has a townhouse in the center of town. He bought it a few years back when they put in the new development. Anyway, he rents it out for corporate use.”
“Someone has their corporate headquarters in Parson’s Gulch?”
He laughed. “No, but this certain company is based in Oklahoma City. They fly in CEOs and CFOs all the time who are here for a few months and then go on. Anyway, I could see if it’s open and you two could stay there for a bit.”
Amelia smiled. “That sounds nicer than some rundown apartment.”
“It’ll give you both some space. I’ll call him tomorrow.”
Amelia let out a sigh and turned to look at him in the glow of the sunset. “Thank you. You could have dropped me off on the side of the road back there, but you didn’t.”
“I might someday. Tonight wasn’t the time.”
That made her laugh. Oh, she liked him. Perhaps just a little too much.
Amelia drove away from Parson’s Gulch, Oklahoma for the first time in a week. The sun was just coming up. It was beautiful to watch.
She’d made a few phone calls yesterday to people she knew in Atlanta. Her small condo had furniture that would need to be moved. She needed to close out some accounts. Quit her job. And she needed to rent a trailer because that car loan belonged to the Mustang in the driveway.
As she drove back toward the life she had, she plugged in her iPod and cranked up some Blake Shelton. Maybe some Doin’ What She Likes would keep her mind focused on the task at hand—getting back to Sam.
Chapter Twelve
Because she couldn’t turn off her head, Amelia had stayed the night in Memphis. She ate at an all-night diner and drove by Graceland just because it was there.
She’d finally driven up in front of the condo she’d once called home with Adam around ten o’clock Friday morning.
Home. She let out a snort. What a joke.
Seated on the front step of the building was Carson. She hadn’t been sure about calling him to help her move, but he’d shown up. For that she’d give him the benefit of the doubt—and she’d press him for information.
Amelia parked her truck and turned off the engine. Before she could even climb out, Carson was hurrying toward her to open her door.
“Nice to see you, ma’am.”
Soldier. At least he had manners and some discipline. “Nice to see you, Private.”
“You can call me Carson, ma’am.”
“And you can call me Amelia. I’m not married to your superior anymore.”
The man rubbed his hands against his pants. “Right. I’m very sorry about your loss. He was a fine man.”
Amelia bit the inside of her cheek. He was a fine soldier. He was a lousy man.
“Thank you for coming by. I need to get this all settled and move on.”
“No problem. You mentioned you might need to sell some things too. I just got my own place. Maybe we could make a few deals.”
“I think that would be just fine. Let’s go inside and we can talk there.”
Carson followed her up the steps and into her condo. It felt closed up—dark—dank. She went right to the patio door, retracted the blinds, and opened the door.
“I guess I left in a hurry,” she said looking around. It wasn’t like her to leave breakfast dishes on the counter or laundry on the table to fold, but she had. In hind sight she really hadn’t had much time to think at all.
“What can I help you with first?” Carson asked.
Amelia smiled. “Well considering I didn’t know I’d be moving, I didn’t get any boxes.”
“I can go down to the grocery store and get some.” He tucked his hands into his front pockets. “Have you eaten anything? I could grab a pizza and some beer.”
Amelia let her shoulders drop. “That would be great. I’ll get you some money.”
“No,” he said quickly. “My treat.”
With that he was out the door and she was alone in her own home—but it d
idn’t feel like home anymore.
She looked around. Most of Adam had been removed before he’d deployed, after she’d found out he was married. But on the mantel was one picture. It was taken on the beach in Florida. Her chest pained and she rubbed between her breasts to make the pain she felt there go away. She now knew that while she was celebrating a new life wrapped in the arms of her husband, his wife was home giving birth to a baby girl.
Her stomach rolled and for a moment she thought she’d be sick.
Amelia reached up and lowered the frame so it was facing down. She didn’t want to think about him anymore—but that wasn’t going to happen.
She began cleaning out her belongings and putting her clothes into suitcases. She sorted out Adam’s clothes. There wasn’t much there. Before she left, she’d arrange to have a charity come pick them up.
Carson had returned with boxes and a pizza, which Amelia ate four pieces of and they each had a beer.
“Guess I was hungry,” she said as she finished the crust of the last bite.
“Mourning can do that, ma’am.”
So could anger, she thought.
She and Carson packed away everything into the boxes he’d brought. By the door were four bags of items to donate, which had belonged to Adam, as well as three bags of trash.
“What pieces of furniture did you want to discuss buying for your place?”
“Anything, ma’am. I don’t have much at all.”
She nodded and looked around. She hadn’t had much either. A bed. A dresser. The couch, chair and coffee table, and the small two-person kitchen table. It wasn’t until that moment she realized how minimal her life had been. Her thoughts went to Vivian’s house—the inside of the house. The personal effects. Pictures of her children. Flowers in a vase. There was nothing personal here at all and never had been.
“I’ll make you a solid deal,” she said tying off another trash bag. “You showed up here under no pretense to help a widow clear out her things. The only connection we have was Adam. But you’re a kind hearted man. I can tell that.”
“Sergeant Monroe was a great man, ma’am. It’s an honor to do this.”
Amelia Page 8
