Sam snorted, continuing to rub my feet. “Seems pretty stupid for a Christmas movie.”
That had me sitting up, ready to defend one of the best movies ever made. “It’s not stupid. It’s uplifting. When he considers killing himself?—”
“Wait,” he interrupted. “The man tries to kill himself?”
“He considers it, but then an angel comes down—” I thought that over, then corrected myself. “Well, technically, he’s not an angel.” I frowned, trying to remember. “No, he is an angel. Second class, but he doesn’t have his wings.”
Sam rolled his eyes at me. “You know, this is too complicated for midnight.”
“Then just watch the movie. Or go to bed.”
And for a moment, I thought he would do just that. He stopped rubbing my feet and looked like he was deciding at what point he should get up. But then he relaxed back into the cushions and resumed rubbing my feet.
It was entirely too domestic and was so bad for my psyche.
In fact, I spent more time thinking about Sam than the actual movie. It wasn’t until we got closer to the end that I stopped thinking about Sam and actually focused on the movie. By then, Sam was fully engrossed.
I had him.
Just not really the way I wanted. Yes, he was watching the movie and even seemed to be enjoying it, but I didn’t technically have him. That would require a commitment, an acknowledgment that we were together, or even a public kiss of some kind.
None of which I was going to get.
But I let myself think this was real, if only for one night. I was enjoying the moment so much that I stopped thinking about what was real and what wasn’t. And before I knew it, I was drifting off to sleep on the couch.
It wasn’t until morning that I woke with a crick in my neck and came to the very sad realization that Sam had slipped out at some point, leaving me alone on my couch.
This was nothing like a relationship, and the inevitable emotional crash made it so much worse than I ever imagined.
I wasa slug as I walked down the street to open my shop. No amount of coffee could ever bring me out of the funk I was in at the moment, or fix the emotional tragedy that was currently my life.
I couldn’t believe he’d just left me on the couch in the middle of the night. Who did something like that? I rolled my eyes at my own stupid thoughts. Of course, he left me on the couch. He wasn’t invested in anything other than my pussy.
Shoving my key into the door, I looked up just as commotion down the road caught my attention. Normally, I wouldn’t think anything of it. I minded my own business and tried to stay out of the fray of gossip.
But Josie was yelling at someone, and JR was barely restraining her. I took off down the road, breaking into a jog as things got really heated. She was yelling at Ben Parker, of all people.
“You can’t do this! You can’t just break into my shop and start throwing things away! That’s my livelihood!”
I got there just as she broke free from JR and launched herself at Ben, slamming her fist into his chest.
“You have no right!”
“What’s going on?” I asked, my eyes wide as I watched in horror as Liam and Michael strode out of the store with the contents of Josie’s shop.
“She got sick from something in here,” Ben said, his voice low and deadly. “What did you give her?”
JR stepped in front of his wife protectively, his eyes turning dangerously dark as he glared at the man. “Watch it.”
Chills skated down my spine at the instability of his voice. I linked my fingers with Josie’s, giving her the support needed as JR defended her in front of us.
“You know Josie had nothing to do with Clara getting sick.”
“Do I?” Ben asked, getting right in JR’s face. “The poison was in her tea.”
I gasped at the revelation, taking a step closer to Josie, knowing she wouldn’t harm a fly. That accusation would kill her business and destroy Josie’s sweet nature.
“Ben, get the fuck out of my face right now. You got what you needed from the shop. Run the tests and do whatever you need, but you will not come here again. You will never step foot in her shop again unless you want me to end your life. Am I making myself clear?”
