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If it was, there’s no way I’d be pulling the starfish out. I really, really like Sam. He makes me laugh; he’s charming; he’s sweet; and dear God, he’s amazing in bed. The O’s that man has given me will stay with me for life.
AMY ~WELL IT SHOULD BE!~
My eyebrows shoot up at her rapid response.
ME ~Wow, shouty caps. I’m impressed. But it changes nothing. I have to do this. Sometimes a girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do to protect her heart. ’Cause nobody else is going to do it for me.~
AMY ~Yeah, well, in the past I could understand why you felt that way. But Sam is different. You’re so happy with him. And Tommy says he’s never seen Sam happier either.~
I can’t do this with her, so I turn my phone off and put it in my bedside table. Yeah, Sam does make me happy. And we click, despite coming from completely different worlds. But it’s not that simple—matters of the heart never are.
I’ve got a little while before Sam is coming over, so I go out to the living room and dig out Levi’s pellets. I drop a few in his tank and smile as he scuttles out of his hidey hole to retrieve them. “You’ll never break my heart, will you, buddy.”
I swear he stops and looks at me. I give him a couple of extra pellets for his undying loyalty.
In the kitchen, I pull out the ingredients to make a quick pasta dish and get to work.
I’m pouring myself a glass of wine when a knock sounds from my front door, and I go to let Sam in. I invited him over for dinner with the intention of tonight being the night The Starfish Method is put into action.
When I swing the door open, it’s not the smiling face I’m used to being greeted with. Rather, he’s frowning at his phone. I reach out, touching his bicep. “Everything okay?” I ask, genuinely concerned.
His head jerks up. “I don’t know. Maybe you should tell me.”
I’m taken aback by the sharp edge to his words. “What? I—what’s wrong?”
He pushes past me into my apartment, going straight to my fridge where I’ve started keeping some of his favorite beer on hand. Taking one out, he pops the top then downs the whole thing and reaches for another.
I’ve never seen him like this before. I approach with caution. “Tell me what’s going on with you.”
He shakes his head, and when his eyes meet mine, they’re . . . sad.
“Sam?” I step closer, reaching for him.
His fingers curl around my outstretched hand, and he tugs me into his hard body then kisses me soundly. I fall into it, letting him take what he so clearly needs from me.
His hands slide into my hair as he deepens the kiss and walks me backwards along the hall, all the way to my bedroom.
The back of my knees hit the edge of my bed, and I tumble onto it.
Sam hovers above me, determination blazing in his blue depths. “Come to my birthday celebration next weekend.”
I shake my head but keep my mouth shut as I fumble with his belt. We’ll be over by then. Only he doesn’t know it yet.
His hand covers mine, stilling my progress with his pants. “I want you there, Hannah. I won’t take no for an answer.”
My throat thickens, and I shake my head again. “I can’t,” I murmur and finish unfastening his pants.
A frustrated growl ripples through Sam’s chest, and he tugs my hands up, pinning them to the bed above my head. “Why?” he demands.
“I just can’t.”
His eyes narrow. “Can’t or won’t? ’Cause I haven’t even told you when it is yet.”
Crap.
I shrug. “I’m working the whole weekend next week.” I’ll have to swap some shifts around, but I’ll make it happen.
Sam shakes his head and slams his mouth on mine. This kiss is different, demanding and possessive. It feels so good I never want it to end. I need to touch him. I pull my pinned hands, but Sam squeezes them tighter until I stop struggling.
