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That was probably one of those lines that should have made me wary of Samuel. Instead, I felt protected. Not that I was going to take him up on his offer to fix my problem.
“I don’t need you to solve my problems. I can handle it.”
His lips turned down. “Like you’ve been handling it so far?”
“I’m still in one piece, aren’t I?”
Samuel pushed off the counter, and a second later my back hit the tiled wall beside the toilet. His hands landed on either side of my head, caging me in. “For now. It only takes a second to not be in one piece.”
“I don’t understand you,” I whispered. Breathing felt more difficult than it had a few seconds ago. My skin tingled, and I was hyperaware of every inch of space between our bodies.
His lips curled in a bitter imitation of a smile. “You’re not the only one, princess.” He lowered his head until our foreheads touched. “Let me help you.” It wasn’t a request; there was no hint of asking in his tone.
“No.”
“You are so stubborn,” he growled, his voice low and dangerous.
“I have four siblings.”
He laughed softly. “Do they all find you as infuriating as I do?”
“Probably.”
Samuel stepped back and held out a hand. “Come on. Let’s get out of here.”
“What?” I stared at his hand, trying to figure out his game. “What happened to us staying away from each other?”
“It’s not practical. I work with your brother. Our paths are going to cross. We might as well accept that.”
“Where do you want to go?” I asked, narrowing my eyes at him in suspicion.
“You can pick. Surprise me.”
How could a girl say no to that? Okay, so I would have said no if it were anyone but Samuel. But thiswasSamuel, and no matter how difficult he was or how hard it was to keep up with his mood swings, he was still the guy who’d spent an evening with me on a rooftop garden. He’d been a listening ear when I felt alone. He was the person who told me to be myself without apology, the only person who ever made me believe that I could decide what I wanted my story to look like. I’d gotten the tattoo on my back because of him. I’d lived my whole life differently because of him. And no matter what happened in our future, he’d always be my first kiss.
I placed my hand in his. “Okay.”
He smirked, reached over and unlocked the door that led to the kitchen, and then guided me out the other door into the short hallway that led to the living room.
Samuel didn’t pause for so much as a second as we walked down the hall, through the living room, into the entry, and out the front door. He didn’t let go of my hand as we walked down the street, straight past the three windows into the dining room.
“So, princess, where are we going?”
“I thought you told me to surprise you.”
He chuckled, a genuinely amused sound that made warmth gather in my chest. I was in so much trouble.
Ten
Samuel
Piper spenttwenty minutes directing my driver from Brighton to South Boston until she finally had him stop outside a short brick building.
“This is where you’re taking me?” I eyed the painted windows announcing the tattoo shop.
“Have you ever considered getting a tattoo?” she asked, sliding out of the car and leaving me no choice but to follow her.
“No.”
