Sam threw her hands in the air frustrated. “Hello? I’m standing right here. And have no fear there is absolutely nothing going on between me and him!” She pointed a disgusted finger towards Nick.
Cara raised an eyebrow at her, calling bullshit. “Then you better figure out what happened to your clothes.” She said as she tried her best to hide her smile.
Traitor! Sam thought, but before she could reply, Nick’s hand closed over her elbow and he shuffled them outside of the garage. Once they were outside, she jerked her arm away from him. “The clocks ticking, Foti.” She said as she tapped her foot impatiently.
He blew out a breath and slid his hands into the front pockets of his jeans. “You’re a pain in the ass.”
“Way to win me over.” She said sarcastically and crossed her arms defiantly across her chest. He took a step closer and she fought to stand her ground. Maybe she should’ve backed away because the scent of his cologne fogged her head, bringing her back to the delightful smell of his sheets. He removed one of his hands from his pockets and reached out. Before she could object or even smack his hand away, he pulled her sunglasses off her face.
“Hey!”
“That’s better.” He said and folded one arm of her glasses; he tucked the other arm in between her breasts. His hand lingered for a moment. “I haven’t decided if I want to win you over yet.”
She swallowed. “But you decided I’m going to sleep with you.”
“That’s a given.” He said and shoved his hand back in his pocket. “You can ignore it all you want, but this thing between us will eventually come to a head.” He cocked his head and studied her expression. She hoped she portrayed herself as a woman who was glaring at a man she hated rather than a man who made her insides quiver at the promise of sex.
“I hate to be the one to take down your ego, but I’m not attracted to you.” She said sternly. She wouldn’t admit that she had never been more attracted to another man or the fact that the last seven years had been so good to him. He was even more appetizing than before he left.
He grinned at her. “Keep telling yourself that.” He pulled her cell phone out of his pocket and handed it to her. “You left this last night, before you threw up all over your beautiful little dress that I had to peel you out of.”
She grimaced. Well, that explained her clothes situation. “I threw up?” He nodded and she simply stared at him. “Be happy my parents taught me manners.” She swallowed and as if it pained her, she continued, “Thank you for taking care of me.”
“No problem. I’ll let you contemplate ways you can return the favor and take care of me.” He winked at her devilishly. His sexual innuendo sliced through her and she decided his three minutes were indeed up. She pushed his chest and reclaimed her air that he had seemed to steal from her. She walked around him and back towards the garage. She knew he followed her, she could
Luke looked up at them when they emerged back inside the garage. “You two square your shit away?”
“We’re all good.” Nick said from behind her.
Sam stood there uncomfortably for a moment, as all eyes were on her. She cleared her throat and Jake turned to Cara.
“Give them their letters, babe.” He told Cara and all eyes wandered to her as she reached into her purse and pulled out two envelopes.
“Sam?” She held out the envelope addressed to her. Sam stared at the white envelope she offered. The moment of truth, it didn’t even matter to her that she hated needles. She would let them handcuff her to a hospital bed and poke and prod her with all the needles in the world if it meant she’d be able to save Jake’s life. The thing is Sam learned a long time ago that Jake was the heart and soul of their family. Long before the Cancer was even an issue, she had seen it. He held all of them together, he was the glue. Her palms were sweating, so she wiped them along her shorts. She smiled at her brother.
He wrapped his arms tightly around Cara’s waist and nodded over her shoulder, urging her to take it. She bit her lip and reached for the envelope her eyes never leaving his. She hoped he saw in the depths of her eyes, in the depths of her soul, how much he meant to her and how badly she wanted to be able to take away his pain. He winked at her, and then she knew. He saw the love, he felt it.