“Fair enough.” Alex smiled at her. “But I’m going to hold you to that.” The mood shifted, and Alex reached up and idly played with Sam’s hair again.
“I do not doubt that.” Sam leaned back against Alex’s hand.
“And,” Alex continued, “I want to take you on a date first.”
“A date?”
“Yes…you know, it’s where two romantically inclined people go out and do something together. Typically, it leads to at least a kiss at the end.”
Sam rolled her eyes. “I know what a date is.”
“Then go on one with me.” Alex’s smile was big and wide and hopeful. “And not to Easton’s this time.”
Sam couldn’t contain her smile. “A date it is.”
“Great!” With that, Alex spun around and planted her feet on the ground. Pushing herself up, she reached a hand back to pull Sam up. “Now, let’s go look for more pie.” Her grin was mischievous.
Chapter Eighteen
“I’m telling you both, it was amazing.” Sam was back in the city with Jordan and Dallis. After the recent events with Alex, she needed someone to talk to. The two of them were eager to hear the details, so she drove up to the city for the day. They met at the same diner down the street from Jordan’s apartment.
Sam was also happy for the break. After Sunday dinner, she avoided all thoughts of Alex and their moments together by spending the next few days immersing herself in work on the house. She had plenty to keep her busy. Brad and his crew had come by to finish the roof, and she even pitched in when one of Brad’s guys got sick and couldn’t make it. Once the roof was finished, she’d painted the trim on the outside sills and doors. She also hauled in five more loads of donations. Her mother’s room was primed and painted. She reflected on all she had accomplished with their help over the past several weeks. Overall, she felt like things were in a good place. All that remained was to clean the garage, then she’d be ready to put the house on the market—her ultimate goal all along. Get in. Do what she needed to do. Get out.
But now it felt like everything had changed, and Alex was a huge piece of that—but she wasn’t the only one. Sam had also reconnected with old friends, building those relationships back up. She forgot how comfortable home could feel. She forgot how different she felt in Hicksville. Now just thinking about selling the house made her panic. She knew that once she put it on the market, there was no reason to prolong her stay.
Except for Alex. She had no doubt now about her feelings for her. She knew she had never truly stopped loving her and was very close to falling in love with her all again. But could they have a future? Alex’s family was in Hicksville, but it had always seemed like staying there was temporary for her. Sam had built a career, but not really a life, in Boston. Would Alex come to Boston? Was Sam ready to be a second mother to Sophie? She was still trying to figure all of that out, which was why she was having lunch with Jordan and Dallis.
Sam had just spent the last twenty minutes filling them in on the events of the past few days—the hurried kiss outside the bar, Alex showing up at her house the next morning, and finally, what had happened on the swing after Sunday dinner. Sam’s face flushed as she shared the details, but Dallis and Jordan said they needed more context. Or maybe they were messing with her. Knowing Jordan, it was probably the latter.
“I can’t believe Nadine Weaver baked you another pie.”
Sam kicked him under the table. “I can’t believe you’re still stuck on Nadine Weaver and the pie!” She was trying not to let her exasperation show. “What about all the other things I just told you?”
“I heard you.” He forked a bite of his salad. “And we’ll get to that.” He stole a fry from Sam’s plate and popped it into his mouth. “But this is Nadine Weaver we’re talking about. I’ve never heard of anyone doing such an about-face like that.”
“She seems to genuinely care about Alex’s happiness.” Sam shrugged. “She told me thatI make Alex happy, and that’s enough for her.”
“Well, I think that’s amazing,” Dallis chimed in. “Coming from a strict Catholic community myself, I’ve seen how something like this can tear a family apart. I’ve seen it happen more times than I can count.” She took a bite of her burger and chewed. “People can change, Jordan. Look what happened with Ciara’s family.”
“Hmm, I guess,” Jordan conceded. “But I’d have to see it to believe it.”
“I also spoke to Emily. At Easton’s.” Sam frowned. “I kind of took what she said as a warning. Or at least aproceed with caution.”
“Emily said what, now?” Jordan reached for more fries.
Sam scowled at him. “Why don’t you just get your own fries instead of eating all of mine?”
“Because this way I can at least pretend to be sticking to this ridiculous diet my trainer put me on.” He shrugged. “Besides, you’re not going to eat them anyway.”
“So back to Emily…” Dallis said, steering them back on track. “What was the warning?”
Sam sighed. “She said that Alex was devastated when I left, and that I needed to think about what I was doing with her.” Sam shrugged and looked up at the two of them.
“Sothat’swhy you were acting so strangely?”
Sam nodded. “I panicked and didn’t know what to do,” she whispered. “I still don’t. I mean, I know how I feel. But what about all the other stuff? Like work. I’m waiting to hear about this promotion…”
“Let’s not put the cart before the horse.” Dallis reached across the table and patted Sam’s hand reassuringly. “You’ve figured out the hard part,” she said. “Now you know how you feel about her. The rest will figure itself out.”
