He admittedly felt uncomfortable too. Lexie was the first woman he'd dated since divorcing Jessica, and honestly, he never thought he'd have this conversation with Amy.
"I'm sorry dad." Her cheeks flushed. "I didn't mean to pry. I just don't want you to be all alone."
He watched the little girl who once believed that the moon was made of cheese, and the forest filled with fairies. She wanted to be a princess and wore her hair in pigtails. She seemed so much older now.
She pulled in a breath and continued. "No one talks about what mom did. Like it never happened. It affected me too and the older I get, the worse it feels to me. Particularly because she's purposely gone through so much trouble to stop you from seeing me." Sadness filled her little voice, making his heart ache. "I've decided that if things get bad again, I'll fight to come and live with you."
"Amy, have you talked to your mother about how you feel?" It grieved him that she was caught up in the middle of this.
She shook her head. "I don't want to. She'd never understand, and she'd tell me I'm constantly bringing up the past when she tries so hard to give me everything. Dad, I don't want all the designer bags in the world, or clothes, or my hair done, or whatever. I just want to be able to see you whenever I want." She huffed.
He sighed feeling frustrated with himself and with Jessica. "You know I'd have you live with me in a heartbeat if I could."
She nodded. "She knows that too. Anyway," she sat straighter, and the smile returned to her little face. "I was talking about you. I can deal with my own worries as long as I get to see you. I just wanted you to know that it would be good if you were seeing someone. It would be cool. You deserve someone who makes you happy."
Her words surprised him but put him at ease. She leaned forward with an eager expression on her face, "Are you?"
"Yes," he replied.
"I was right. Dad, what's she like?" Amy looked excited.
"She's um..." this was hard. How could he fully describe Lexie? There were so much amazing things about her. "Amazing and super smart."
"Will I get to meet her?"
Meet her? He hadn't really thought about that, or that far ahead. And, now that he was thinking about it he realized that he wanted Lexie to be somebody that he could introduce to Amy. He did, however, wonder how she truly felt about him and wished he knew.
"I hope so." He decided to say, hoping for the best.
He was thinking about it the next day as he reviewed the messy records he was given for Miko Motos. The company accounts were a disastrous mess and the reports askew. Last week was all about meeting with the current owners and investors and going over the acquisition proposals and contracts. The contracts and agreements were pending approval after his review of the records. Having quickly reviewed all that was here Sam knew it was going to take him the whole week to go through everything. He could have definitely done with Zane's help on this. No matter what Sam did, he couldn't concentrate.
He managed to categorize the records and reports, just to make it a little easier to go through. The plan was do something easier to start off with, and hopefully, by tomorrow, his brain would kick in.
That plan, however, didn't work and it was enhanced by the caution he detected in Lexie's voice last night when he called her. She asked what would happen to Cervantes now that the investigation was complete and he'd made the mistake of saying he could go on another project which could be anywhere in the world. He'd simply passed the comment not really thinking, but that was when she started to sound cautious. Sam didn't want her to be cautious with him, and he wished she knew just how much he missed her. Telling her wasn't enough.
When the next day proved to be worse than yesterday, he decided he wasn't doing anyone any favors by working like this. There was a lot to be done, and his job required deep concentration. One mistake or oversight could cost them greatly. That kind of concentration wouldn't come if he was worried about Lexie. She didn't know how much he missed her because he hadn't told her how he felt about her. That came with an explanation of everything else, and he couldn't do that over the phone.
Sam looked at the clock and a crazy plan brewed in his mind. The only way to obtain the concentration he needed, and to be more productive was to see her. It was five now. If he was quick about it, he could be back in San Francisco in a handful of hours. On that thought, he sprung from behind his desk and dashed straight to his father's office.
As always, his father brightened on seeing him.
"Dad, can I talk to you for a second?" Sam began.
"Sure slugger, what's up." His father replied, putting his pen down on top of the file he'd been reading.
"Would you mind if I took the rest of the day off? I know we had to meet with the auditor at six but can you do that without me? I have something I have to take care of."
His father stared at him, with keen interest. "Must be important." He commented.
"It is." Sam nodded. "I'll be back tomorrow by eleven. Eleven-thirty at the extreme latest."
"Yeah, that's fine." His father leaned his head to the side, looking curious. And, suspicious. "Everything okay?"
"Oh yeah, everything's fine. It's just something that's come up." It wasn't exactly a lie, but he didn't want to go into details. He hadn't told his father about Lexie yet, and he was guessing his mother hadn't mentioned anything to him either. She wouldn't have done so without asking Sam first. It wasn't that he didn't want to tell his father about Lexie, it was more the case that he wanted to have her to himself a little while longer. Unlike his mother, his father would interfere too much, thinking he was helping. Sam didn't want to risk that. There had already been too many obstacles that threatened to keep him away from Lexie, and he didn't want to risk another.
"Alright, well, call me if you need me." His father smiled.
"Sure, and thanks. See you tomorrow." Sam left before any more questions could be asked.
One thing at a time. Right now he was ecstatic at the thought of seeing Lexie.
* * *
"Hayley, you can't ditch a guy just because he doesn't like chocolate." Lexie scolded. Tamar started to laugh.
Hayley folded her arms and rested back into Lexie's fluffy pink cushion. She wrinkled her face in distaste. "Who doesn't like chocolate? That's just weird." She flicked her legs up and crossed them over the arm of the sofa. Tamar threw popcorn at her.
"Plenty people don't like chocolate Hayley," Lexie insisted.
Her sisters had come by to keep her company for a few hours. They must have detected her need for some sister support in their phone calls. Her emotions were on overdrive and she felt like her thoughts alone would drive her mad. Shopping hadn't helped, pampering at the salon had only relaxed her mind so that she could think about Sam even more, and watching her movies were an even worse trigger.
She just couldn't seem to shake the worry of what she'd do when Sam went back to Chicago. Being the worrier she was, she hadn't been able to help herself, and her worries grew worse the deeper she fell for him.
She looked at Hayley, with her carefree composure and her couldn't care less attitude for her most recent guy. Maybe Lexie should have been more like that. Laid back and easy going. Chilled to the max. But could she be like that with Sam? Just be with him and not care about how she felt. Maybe Hayley hadn't met anyone she'd cared that deeply about yet. Hayley literally had a different guy every week.
Then there was Tamar. Lexie looked at her. She always thought Tamar looked a little like Princess Jasmin from Aladdin. And a princess she was with her many suitors before Jay. When she met Jay, she knew he was the one, and she hadn't taken caution with him. But then Jay didn't live on the other side of the country with a daughter from a previous marriage.
That was another thing she had to consider, and remember. Sam had a child.
"I dated this guy once who was so obsessed with chocolate he covered me in it and -"
"Stop!" Tamar balked cutting Hayley off. Lexie giggled as she watched a sl
y expression form on Hayley's face. From the other side of the room Tamar threw more popcorn at Hayley.
"What? You don't know what I was going to say."
"I think we have a pretty good idea." Lexie continued to laugh.
"We don't need to hear about your sexcapades," Tamar scolded.
"But they're so good. Maybe I could give you ideas. Lexie, I'm sure could do with the tips. Imagine how shocked Sam would be if you covered him in chocolate, or certain parts and -"
"Hayley." Tamar interrupted again, this time she threw a cushion at her.
"What? We're all adults here, and I'm just giving you ideas to spice up your lives."
"Our lives don't need spicing up, thank you very much," Lexie informed her.
"Okay, so what do you guys do? Drink hot chocolate and watch old movies while you talk about work?"
Lexie frowned, she didn't know why everyone kept thinking she and Sam were so boring, drinking tea or hot chocolate and eating biscuits. Hayley always had a dig at Lexie's love for classic films anyway, so that was nothing new. "No, of course not. We do fun stuff."
Did. Aside from their trip and the night she spent at his apartment, Lexie hadn't really spent much time with Sam.
"Okay, so you were on a boat whoo hoo." Hayley rolled her eyes
"Hayley, just because I don't go around talking about sex all day doesn't mean I don't have fun or that I need ideas for spicing things up." At least this was taking her mind off worrying about Sam, although she was talking about him.
She wondered what he was doing now. It was nearly seven. He would hopefully have left the office by now and was maybe eating dinner. He usually called around eight or nine, so they could have a good hour or so to talk.
A sly look crossed over Hayley's face again. "You know you still haven't given us all the details about that little boat trip of yours."
"No, you haven't." Tamar jumped in, tossing popcorn at her now.
Lexie smiled and leaned back into her chair. She'd told them all they needed to know, but from the mischievous looks on their faces, she knew what they meant. They wanted bedroom details she'd never give. "Maybe it's because I figured you wouldn't believe half of what I told you." She giggled.
Hayley sat up quickly, and Tamar laughed even more. "Lexie, you little minx."
"You have to tell us," Tamar beamed.
Lexie shook her head. "Sorry, but I'm going to have to leave this one to your imagination." Serve them both right. They always teased her so much. It was about time she did some teasing of her own.
"Well, you know how wild my imagination is. I could imagine something completely bizarre." Hayley cooed.
"Me too." Tamar joined in.
Lexie shrugged and laughed at them. "Well, that's absolutely fine with me."
They both glanced at each other and shook their heads.
"Okay fine," Hayley stood up. "I'm going to eat all your ice cream and hot chocolate."
"Both?" Tamar asked
"Yes, I'm conflicted like fire and ice."
Lexie rolled her eyes. When she returned with the ice cream and hot chocolate, Hayley started talking about her latest plans for the spa retreat which Tamar happily joined in.
Lexie looked at the clock just before eight and then every other minute till eight thirty. Her phone hadn't rung at all.
When nine came, she thought maybe Sam was busy. At nine-thirty she started wondering if perhaps he'd had other plans.
Business, or pleasure plans. What if he'd ran into an old girlfriend while in Chicago, or someone who worked in his office that took his interest.
No, that was silly of her. She shouldn't be thinking that.
But...
Maybe he had. Why was that so impossible?
"Hey, Lexie. We're gonna bounce. We don't want to intrude when Sam calls," Tamar said with a sly grin. Lexie chanced a look at the clock. It was nearly ten, if he was going to call he would have already. "And we should get home."
Lexie nodded and smiled to cover her worry and anxiety.
"Thank you for coming."
"We should hit the club Friday. There's this gorgeous guy whose been coming every week for the last three weeks." Hayley gushed batting her lashes. Tamar laughed.
"I'm amazed you haven't asked for his number yet. Or worse." Tamar eyed her with suspicion. If Lexie hadn't been so distracted, she would have teased too.
They argued until they got to the door, took a break to say goodnight, and then went back to arguing. Lexie heard them outside the apartment door even after she closed it.
Hayley telling Tamar she was more guy crazy than she was before Jay had come along. Tamar defended herself and called Hayley a man-eater. In all honesty, they were probably both as bad as each other.
Oh, Sam what are you doing to me? Lexie wondered slumping against her door. Maybe she should call him. That would be okay right? They both called each other normally. She just figured it would be best to let him call when he could because he was doing something different to his regular routine which was so busy as it was.
Okay, she'd call. And it would be fine. If he was tired, then it would be a quick hello, and she'd let him go. She grabbed her phone and dialed his number. When it rang, the strangest thing happened. She heard the ring, but then it was like she could hear his ringtone. How odd.
She walked towards the corridor where she was certain she could hear it, and now she was sure it was getting louder. Geez, maybe she had gone crazy. Before she got to the door, the bell rang.
She opened it and gasped. Sam stood before her holding his phone. A heartwarming smile brightened his face making his green eyes beam.
"Hi," he said making a show of holding the phone to his ear.
"Sam." She could barely get his name out. Excitement overpowered her, and she threw herself into his awaiting arms.
She could believe he was here. Here, at her front door, in her apartment, right there with her and not miles away. She hugged him hard taking him all in. The way he felt molded to her, the smell of his sandalwood aftershave and that sharp masculinity about him weakened her. The magic she felt when she was with him surrounded them and blocked out the world, making her feel truly alive.
His eyes sparkled as he gazed down at her, then their lips met with a desperate hunger that consumed her. She heard the door close, and his bag fall to the ground. Then he lifted her on to him with his big strong arms. She wrapped her legs around him as he held her and moved with her up the stairs into her bedroom. They devoured each other with heated kisses, feeding on passion and tearing at each other's clothes.
He set her down on the cool silk sheets that covered her bed and kissed her clothes right off her. She managed to undo the buttons on his shirt and backed it down his shoulders revealing his amazing body that drove her wild, but he stopped her when she attempted to kiss his chest.
"Baby I won't last. You kill me when you do that." He breathed hard.
She couldn't answer. Right now her brain couldn't communicate with her mouth to form words.
He finished stripping her and ran his fingers down her thighs to part her legs. She just about managed to pull in a breath before he slid into her, trapping her within the grasp of passion as they became one.
Her body welcomed him and blazed from the fire that consumed her as he thrust into her. The world shifted out of existence just like it did the first time, transporting her to pure contentment that overwhelmed her.
Pleasure racked her body and trapped her within the wave of the first orgasmic bliss. Her ears stung and her body tingled from the energy that overwhelmed her. When another wave hit she gripped onto his hand and called out his name on the edge of a labored breath.
They were pure heat and passion, but there was something more. Something different in the way that he held her. Something that made her heart burst with elation. Something that told her she was his.
A deep feeling of peace entered her being as he stilled against her and slipped his arms around her, bringing
her closer. She lifted her face up to him and kissed the edge of his jaw then rested her head against his chest, absorbing the rapid beat of his heart.
Only he could make her feel this way. Like she had everything, and that everything good in this world was right next to her.
Only he could make her feel this ... love. Like a tangible being that surrounded them.
* * *
Lexie laughed as Sam galloped the giraffe-shaped biscuit down her chest and on to her stomach.
They lay side by side, their bodies so close you couldn't tell where one began, and the other ended. A bag of chocolate covered animal shaped biscuits rested on the stack of pillows next to them. Sam had abandoned eating and decided he had other things in mind for the biscuits.
"And so the adventurous gazelle ventured from the mountainous peaks," when he glanced at her breasts she giggled again. "Down to the desert where he came across the smoothest sand imaginable." He ran the biscuit across her navel.
Lexie was still having trouble believing he was here. She couldn't believe he'd come all the way from Chicago just to see her tonight. They only had a few hours left together, and she was determined to relish every second with him.
"Sam, isn't that a giraffe?"
"Today it's a gazelle." His eyes widened with delight.
"Okay. So what's it doing in the desert?"
"Looking for his soul mate. They were separated in a giant sand storm twelve years ago. Since then the adventurous gazelle wandered around, lost in the wind."
His words held her immediate attention, warming her heart and Lexie listened carefully.
"Did he ever find his soul mate?" she looked deep into his eyes, eager to hear his response.
"Yes." Sam gazed at her, and his hand stilled against the flat of her stomach. There was a sad look in his eyes as he continued. "He found her after he'd given up on hope. He never thought he'd see her again." A small smile lifted the corners of his lips as he galloped the biscuit across her stomach. "He was happy to see her and..." he paused for a moment and stared at her stomach as if he were contemplating his next words.
"She was happy to see him too." She filled in. "She never wanted him to leave her side." Words from her heart that she couldn't withhold. He lifted his gaze back up to her and her breath caught in her chest. She wondered what he would say, if anything.
Complete Me Page 26
