A Friendly Arrangement

by Sarah Bates

  “Those are sealed, personal records. How,”

  “I have may ways.” He glanced down at his watch, as though his time was pressing. “Now, I have an appointment.” He looked back up to her and arched a brow. “Are you really willing to risk the chance that I won’t spill it all to the eager press?”

  She folded her arms protectively over her belly. “How do I know you won’t turn around and sell your story any way even if I did get you the money?” she asked.

  “If you pay me the amount I ask for, why would I have a reason to?”

  She considered him for a moment, then took in a deep breath. “How much do you want?” she finally asked.

  He smiled. “That’s my girl.”

  “I’m not your girl. Now how much?”

  “Fifty thousand dollars.”

  Samantha almost choked when she tried to repeat the amount. “Fifty,…That’s,”

  “Pocket money for your husband.” he interrupted. “And that’s just for starters.”

  “But,”

  “Just think of the peaceful future that you’re ensuring for your daughter.” he advised.

  She straightened her shoulders and lifted her chin. “Fine. But it’ll take a couple of days. Whatever you may believe, fifty thousand dollars is not pocket money, not even for Alex.”

  He very pointedly turned to look at the new SUV, then looked back to her and arched a brow. “Two days, no later. Meet me at the Harrison Grand, in the dining room at noon. If you don’t show up on time, I’ll call it all in. And, Samantha,” He waited until she turned to look at him as she unlocked her car. “Be sure to have it in cash. I don’t want to have any problems with a check.”

  She glared at him and yanked her door open. “I’m sure you don’t.” And with that she climbed in, locked the doors, and drove away, her heart pounding.

  By the time Alex got home and walked through their bedroom door later that night the only thing he wanted to do was make love to his beautiful wife.

  But Samantha, her mind still reeling from her encounter with her father that afternoon, made no move to put her book aside, or even look up to him.

  He frowned, watching her chew on her lower lip, which was something she only did when she was nervous or couldn’t make up her mind. “Everything okay, Sami?” he asked, sitting down by her feet.

  She wanted to tell him that, no, everything was not okay, that her father was blackmailing her, but she didn’t know what he would do if she told him, and knew only too well what her father would. He’d do exactly what he’d said he would do. Not willing to risk the happiness that they had found together, she simply nodded her head and tried to concentrate on the page she was reading, and still didn’t dare to look up to him.

  Alex’s frown deepened and he reached out to take the book that she was pretending to be reading. “I’m sorry I wasn’t able to make it to your appointment. Is everything alright with you and Serena?” he asked.

  “We’re fine.”

  When she made no move to expound any farther on that he gently nudged her foot. “Did you speak to the contractor or the decorator about Serena’s nursery today?” he asked.

  She nodded, a bit distractedly, and took her reading glasses off. “The contractor said that he would have the shelves up by Friday and the interior decorator will start work on Monday,” she said, setting her glasses aside. “They both said that they would send you the bill.” she frowned over that last part and finally looked at him. “I really wish that you would let me help pay for it.”

  Alex scowled softly at that. “I wish that you would stop doing that. I’ve already told you that the price doesn’t matter. And besides, we’re married, Sami. What’s mine is yours.”

  “Alex,”

  He reached up and pressed a finger to her lips. “I want to take care of you and Serena, Sami. You’ve given me so much the last couple of months.” He leaned forward and kissed her softly. “I love you.”

  She hesitated, then nodded and looked down at her hands.

  “Are you sure that everything is alright?” Alex asked when she didn’t say anything.

  “Yes, Alex, everything is fine.” She sighed and reached up to ran a hand through her hair, tousling it. “It’s getting late. I love you.” She leaned forward and kissed him. “Goodnight.” She shifted and laid down on her side, facing away from him.

  Alex watched her for a moment, then shifted and gently rubbed one of her feet. “I can give you a foot rub or back rub if you would like,” he offered, his hand slowly trailing up her long, smooth leg.

  Samantha moved her leg away from him, shifted to make herself more comfortable. “Thank you, but I really would just like to go to sleep,” she mumbled.

  Disappointed, Alex straightened. “Are you sure? I could get the lavender oil that you like and,”

  “I’m just really tired, Alex,” she interrupted. “I know that you’ve worked all day, but I just,…I just can’t tonight. I’m sorry. Goodnight.”

  Before he could say anything else she reached up and turned her lamp off.

  Alex waited a few minutes longer, then, when she didn’t make any move to say anything else, he sighed and stood, crossing over to his dresser in the dark. He placed her book on top, then stripped out of his clothes and slid into bed beside her.

  He stared at her back for a long while, then sighed and rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling instead, wondering what it could have been that had her acting so strangely.

  * * *

  Two days later Samantha walked into the dining room of the hotel where her father was staying, and felt her stomach lurch when she saw him stand and wave to her.

  “Ah, Samantha, darling.” He stepped forward, his gaze locked greedily on the briefcase she held. He smiled and reached out and took it. “Why don’t you order something,” he suggested, his smile widening when he opened the case and saw that it was filled with his money.

  “I’m not hungry,” she said stiffly, folding her hands in her lap.

  He tisked and shook his head as he lowered the case down by his feet. “You need to take better care of my granddaughter.”

  She bristled at the tone of his voice. “You’re not going to have anything to do with my daughter.”

  “We’ll see,” he said casually as he looked over the menu.

  “No,” she corrected him in a firm tone. “I gave you the money, now leave, and stay out of my life. Stay away from me and my daughter.”

  He merely set his menu aside and sat forward, folding his hands on the table in front of him. “Well, then, if you want me to stay out of your life, and out of your daughter’s life, then it will cost you a whole lot more than fifty thousand dollars.”

  “Excuse me?”

  “As I said before, the fifty was only for starters. If you don’t want any problems in the future, if you don’t want me coming back here and paying a visit to my granddaughter, then you’ll have to pay me more. Otherwise, - Serena, is it? Yes,” he nodded when he saw her hands go to rest protectively on her belly. “Otherwise Serena and I may go on a little trip someday.”

  Her heart stopped and her blood froze as she stared at him, tears slowly slipping down her cheeks. “Did you just threaten to kidnap my daughter?” she asked. Her lower lip trembled as she wrapped her arms more protectively around her.

  He scoffed and lifted his water glass. “Of course not. I merely stated that maybe someday I would take Serena on a little vacation until you became more reasonable.”

  Furious, terrified, the tears spilling more quickly over her lashes, she swallowed at the lump that had formed in her throat. “How much more do you want?”

  “Oh, not much. Enough to compensate for me giving up my grandfatherly rights,”

  “You have no rights to my daughter,” she said fiercely.

  “And if you want to keep it that way, you’ll give to me whatever I ask without fuss. You’re married to Alexander Steel, one of the wealthiest men in the country, possibly the world. I think y
ou can afford it,” he said, sitting back in his chair, taking a perfectly relaxed pose.

  “And what if Alex and I simply go to the police?”

  “Oh, I don’t advise that. In fact, I don’t recommend you even tell dear Alex about any of this. As I said the last time we spoke, if I should hear from him or his lawyer, I will cause so much trouble for the both of you. In fact,” he smiled and straightened a little as an idea came to him. “If you go to anyone over this, Alex could even end up in prison. Oh, there are so many things I could say. Imagine, Alexander Steel sent to prison for beating his wife and step-daughter. And then, of course, there’s the possibility that if that should happen the judge would place poor little Serena in the custody of her loving, fearful grandfather.”

  Samantha slowly shook her head and reached up to wipe her damp face. “Alex would never hurt me, and he would never hurt Serena. He loves us,” she said.

  “And if you want to keep your perfect little world then you better do as I say.”

  “How much more?”

  “Ten million.”

  Her eyes widened and she quickly sat forward. “Ten million dollars? How am I supposed to come up with that kind of money?” she demanded.

  “I’m sure you’ll figure it out. Don’t worry. I realize ten million dollars is a little harder to arrange. I’ll give you a few weeks to get it. We’ll meet here again in say, four weeks?”

  She slowly shook her head. “Four weeks for ten million,”

  “Is more than generous. And don’t worry, I’ll be calling to make sure you don’t forget.”

  Feeling as though her whole world had begun to spin out of control, Samantha slowly stood and headed for the front door.

  Chapter Eleven

  A few weeks went by and Samantha was still acting strangely with Alex. He wondered what it was that had caused her to become so distant. These days she barely spoke to him.

  His worry for her had slowly begun to grow until she was the only thing he could think of, which wasn’t helping him any at work.

  Trying to concentrate on the task at hand, he went over the proposal he was meeting Franklin for, and absently ordered a sparkling water when someone came to a stop at his table.

  “I’ll be sure to tell your waitress,” Angela said as she sat across from him.

  He looked up and blinked in surprise when he saw her. “Angela,”

  “It’s good to see you too, darling,” she said, crossing one long, sleek leg over the other.

  He grunted and turned his attention back to the proposal. “What do you want?” he asked, flipping to another page.

  She huffed indignantly. “I just wanted to see how an old friend was doing.”

  “We’re not old friends,” he reminded her, finally looking up when his waitress come to a stop beside the table. “Sparkling water. She’s not staying,” he added when she turned to Angela.

  She hesitated and looked between them, then nodded and hurried away.

  Angela glared angrily at him, but he really didn’t care. “Look, I’m meeting someone to go over some business for work. Just tell me what you want.”

  “I only wanted to check and see how you were doing.”

  He frowned and knew that there was much more to it than that. “I’m fine. Thank you for asking.”

  She sighed and leaned forward, gently stroking a fingertip over the hand he had resting on his file folder. “I’ve been so worried for you since I found out about what Samantha did to you, and,” she shrugged, as though lost for words.

  His eyes narrowed and he pulled his hand away from her. “What are you talking about?”

  She blinked, her dark eyes widening as she sat up straighter. “Samantha’s affair,” she said, then seemed to catch herself, and groaned when he scowled at her. “Oh. Oh, Alex, you didn’t know?” She sighed and leaned forward to cover his hand, making sure that he got a good view of her cleavage in her tight red top. “I’m so sorry. I thought that you knew.”

  Yeah, right, he thought, pulling his hand away again. “I don’t know where you get your information from, Angela, but Samantha’s not having an affair,” he said.

  She smiled and sat back. “Of course she isn’t,” she replied in a condescending tone. “I suppose that the man I saw her with the other day was just another old friend. The fact that they were meeting in the lobby of a hotel means nothing at all.”

  His eyes narrowed and she smirked and stood. “I do so hate it when there’s trouble in paradise.” She blew him a kiss then turned and walked away.

  Alex felt a greasy ball of uncertainty work its way into his stomach as he watched her go.

  Samantha would not have betrayed him, he told himself. Not when everything had just started to go right between them. No, it had to be something else that was causing her to be stressed.

  He went through the rest of his day trying to ignore what Angela had said, telling himself that she was just being her usual, nasty self.

  Sami wouldn’t cheat on him. Not after everything they had shared back on the island. They were in love.

  By the time he got home that night he had almost completely brushed off what Angela had said to him, but the moment he stepped into their room he knew that something was very wrong.

  Samantha’s frame of mind was worse than it had been that morning. “Sami,” he said her name softly as she paced along the foot of their bed.

  She jerked to a stop and turned to look at him and he frowned. Her cheeks had grown fuller as her pregnancy had progressed. Now they were thinner than ever, and there were dark smudges under her pale green eyes. He frowned softly, worry for her replacing any other thoughts he may have had.

  “What’s wrong, Sami?” he asked, taking a step towards her.

  She jerked a shoulder, almost nervously. “Nothing.”

  “Nothing? Sami, something’s got to be wrong. You’re not sleeping, you’re hardly eating. What’s wrong?”

  “I said, nothing,” she snapped. She closed her eyes and turned from him, covering her face with her hands. “I’m fine, Alex,” she said more calmly.

  “Sami,”

  “Back off, Alex!” She spun back around to glare at him. “I said I’m fine. Leave me alone.”

  “You’re not fine!” he finally snapped as he tossed his jacket to the floor. “Look at you. Just how much weight have you lost?”

  “I’ve only lost a few pounds,”

  “That’s bullshit, Sami. You’ve lost a whole hell of a lot more than just a few pounds. If something’s wrong with you, I need to know.”

  “It’s none of your business.” Hands braced on her back, Samantha began to pace again.

  He stared at her, heartsick. “I can’t help you if you don’t tell me what’s wrong. If there’s something going on with Serena, please tell me. I love you, Sami,” he whispered, coming up behind her and resting his hands gingerly on her rigid shoulders. “Please, let me help you.”

  “You can’t.” She pulled away from him and headed for the door.

  “Where are you going?” he asked, turning to watch her go.

  “To sleep in another room,” she replied.

  “But,” He looked between her and their bed. “Why?”

  “Because I can’t sleep in the same bed with you.” She didn’t even look at him as she said it. She just closed the door between them.

  Stunned, hurt more than he’d ever been, Alex slowly lowered himself down onto the end of their bed, and wondered what he had done to cause such a change in the woman he loved.

  * * *

  Samantha rubbed at the ache in her lower back as she paced the length of the guest room, her nerves too on edge to settle into bed just yet. She couldn’t get the look of pain in Alex’s eyes out of her head. Couldn’t stand the fact that she was hurting him. But what other choice did she have? She couldn’t risk the chance that her father wouldn’t follow through with his threats.

  She groaned when her cell phone rang and she looked at her caller ID. She considered
not answering, but knew that if she didn’t her father would just continue to call until she did. And couldn’t risk the chance that he might call the house. “Hello?”

  “Your time is almost up. Do you have the money?” Marcus demanded.

  She sighed and massaged a twinge that began in her side. “I need more time. Four weeks isn’t enough to get that kind of money.”

  “That’s not my problem. You deal with the time constraints.”

  “If you want the full ten, without suspicions raised, then I need more time,” she insisted, continuing her pacing. Her back was still aching and she moved her hand back to knead at her tensed muscles.

  “Fine. But you better hurry up, or information is going to start leaking about your dear loving husband.”

  “Please, just leave Alex out of this.” She stopped her pacing and took an unsteady breath, willing the twinges and aches to go away. “He doesn’t have anything to do,”

  “If you want me to leave darling Alex alone, then you’d better pay up. I’m getting tired of waiting, Samantha. I’ll give you one extra week, but that’s it. And you had better not tell anyone, or when little Serena comes along she and I will be taking that trip. Do I make myself clear?”

  She swallowed hard, tears welling in her pale green eyes. “Perfectly. I’ll get your money.”

  “Excellent. Sleep well, my darling.” And with that, he hung up.

  She turned her phone off and stared down at it. Somehow, she was going to have to find a way so that her father wouldn’t be able to go after Alex. But, as the hopelessness began to settle with a sharp ache in her chest, she realized that there was only one way that she could do that. The only way to protect him was if she was no longer with him.

  The tears came then, and there was nothing she could do to stop them.

  * * *

  Working late as usual, Alex sifted through the countless stacks of files on his desk, and thought longingly of the time he and Samantha had spent on Nassau. Everything had been so much more simple then, so much happier.