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“What?”
“Your brother has a point. You’re young. Maybe you should date someone your own age. Someone as innocent and naive as you are. Maybe… maybe you’d be better off.”
Sam’s heart was in the process of climbing its way up her throat as he finished speaking. Was he breaking up with her? He thought she was naive? Was their age gap that big?
“I’m not exactly a walk in the park, Sammy. If you want me to go, I understand. I’ve been talking to Byrd, but I don’t know if…” Aero trailed off, gazing down at the carpet beneath his boots. He’d worked so hard with the Doctor over the last month, trying to reach some kind of breakthrough, discussing parts of his life he hadn’t acknowledged in years, and dealing with the aftermath of that process. He was exhausted.
With the acknowledgment came the nightmares, the episodes of dissociation, and the panic attacks. He wasn’t sleeping, Ma had to force him to eat, and he was exercising so much to cope that his body ached from head to toe. Aero did feel better, but all the time he was spending working on himself, he’d left Sam hanging. Now she was doubting him, herself, and their relationship. His heart ached. He was such a fool.
Sam desperately wanted to reach out, to hold onto him, to sit right on his lap and feel his strong arms lock around her as he had done so many times before. She didn’t touch him, though, feeling like she was frozen in place, unsure how to proceed.
Aero shook his head. “Sammy, I’m trying. I know you probably can’t see it. Maybe I should’ve been more open with you about my progress, and my setbacks. I should’ve told you the truth. I don’t wanna let you go, but if that’s what you need to be happy, I’ll do it.”
Sam let out a whimper. He was trying. She should’ve known. He wasn’t shutting her out, ignoring her, or throwing in the towel on their partnership. He was working, for both of them, for their future. He was trying to be better for her.
Tears spilled over and tracked down her cheeks. She was such an idiot.
“Can I…” She sniffled, holding out her hand toward him.
Aero laced his fingers with hers and held on tight. “Sammy, I…”
“I know,” she said, cutting him off. Whatever he was about to say, she wasn’t ready to hear it. “I’m sorry. I should’ve asked, or paid more attention.”
Aero shook his head, kissing the back of her hand for a long moment before saying, “I wanna be with you. That’s the bottom line. If you want something different, I’ll respect it. If not, we can move forward.”
Sam let out a long, slow breath, and finally met his eyes. They were dark and haunted, stress lines forming around the edges, a deep V forming between his thick, blonde brows. “I wanna be with you. We’ll figure out the rest together.”
A flicker of a smile lit his face.
He leaned his forehead against hers. “Kiss me, Sammy.”
Sam didn’t hesitate, pressing her lips to his.
She was being ridiculous, and maybe she was asking too much of Aero. She could be patient, show him some grace, and give him time. Together, maybe they could take the steps toward healing.
Chapter 11
“Make sure to have your completed evaluation packets turned in on the district website by Friday,” Peggy said to the mostly empty auditorium before dismissing all the teachers from the monthly faculty meeting.
Sam gathered her bag and laptop before walking up the aisle to the back where a coffee station was set up. As she filled her paper cup from the dented metal urn, someone bumped Sam’s elbow and she splattered hot coffee all over the table. “Crap.”
“Oh, my God, I’m so sorry.”
Sam looked up from the mess into the bright blue eyes of Kelly Weaver, who was busy sopping up the mess with a pile of small white napkins.
“Did I burn you?” Kelly asked. Concern was etched into her pretty face. “I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going.”
“I’m fine,” Sam insisted, tossing her cup into the nearby trash and dabbing at the coffee that had splashed onto her sweater. She was fumbling, icy cold panic flooding her. Her feet tingled with the need to flee, to run away from Kelly, to hide, and never ever confront the wife of a man she knew to be a cheater. “It’s black. No one will know.”
Kelly laughed breezily, swiping the used napkins into the trash before pouring two new cups of coffee. “You’re too sweet. How are things going in Kindergarten?”
She handed over the coffee and Sam selected a chocolate chip muffin, picking at it while she spoke and avoided Kelly’s eyes. As much as she wanted to run away, to dash out to her car and speed home where she could hide under the covers, she was trapped between Kelly, the table, and a mass of teachers seeking their own hit of caffeine.
With no other choice, she plastered on a fake smile that would make Barbie wither, and said, “Great! The kids are right on track. I’m so happy with their progress.”
“Awesome. I’m a little worried about the Carter boys. They haven’t been…”
Kelly babbled on happily about students, which teachers were or weren’t decorating the bulletin boards outside their classrooms, and ideas for the annual Christmas carnival.
