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Sam walked past him to get to her closet, and he reached out to grab her, but she sidestepped quickly.
“Sam, please sit and talk to me.”
She grabbed some clean clothes from the closet.
She stopped directly in front of him. “The last thing in the world I want to do right now is talk to you. I have this nasty little temper that luckily doesn't come out very often, but when it does come out, it’s ugly, and that’s right now. I need a shower and several more cries before I can speak with you.”
She walked into the bathroom and slammed the door. For good measure, she locked it. She stepped into the shower and sobbed.
Her fingers and toes were pruny—her whole body was when she finally felt like she could come out. She dried off, buttered up, got dressed, and dried her hair. She didn't put any makeup on because she wasn't sure if she was finished crying yet. She never should have let herself believe this relationship would work.
When she opened the door, Gray wasn't there. She took a deep breathOkay,so she could collect herself. She slowly walked down the hall to get a glass of wine from the refrigerator. Gray sat on the sofa, waiting for her. She could tell he felt bad, but she didn't give a shit right now. She couldn't be in a relationship like this. Shewouldn'tbe in a relationship like this. She walked into the kitchen and grabbed a wineglass from the cupboard and a bottle of wine from the refrigerator and poured. She leaned against the counter and took a sip and let herself feel it flow all the way down her throat. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath and exhaled very slowly.
When she opened her eyes, Gray stood at the kitchen door watching her. They stared at each other for a long time. She didn't have anything to say. She took another sip of wine and waited.
Gray took a deep breath. “Can you talk to me yet? I really do want to explain.”
She could see the pain on his face, in his eyes. She supposed he could see it in hers as well. She shrugged her shoulders and pushed herself away from the counter.
“You want a glass of wine?”
He nodded. She turned to grab a glass from the cupboard and poured him a glass. Handing it to him she made sure her fingers didn't touch his. She saw the pain flash across his face and her heart hurt.
Sam walked from the kitchen to the living room and sat on the sofa. Gray followed behind her and sat at the opposite end. He faced her and rubbed his face in his hands.
“I'm so sorry, Sam. I shouldn't have lied to you. I didn't know how you would handle the fact that I was going to be there with Suzanne. I know we’ve talked about being open and honest and I am so, so, sorry. I swear to you; I’ll never do it again, ever. And for the record, that picture was not what it looks like. We did not spend a happy day together. I got there at the very end of the Grandparents Day gathering, and Suzanne told Lily to come and ask me to have her picture taken with me. We were posing for our picture and Suzanne jumped in the picture at the last minute. I swear to you that’s what happened.”
Sam turned her head and looked out the window, trying desperately to find a critter to watch as it played to lift her heavy mood.
She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I can't be in a relationship like this. I want better—no lies, no manipulation. We’ve talked about this. I can't do it.”
Gray gasped like she’d knocked the wind out of him. “Sam, please forgive me. I swear to you; I’ll never lie to you again, I swear it. I didn't want this scene, that's why I didn't say anything.”
Sam jumped up off the sofa, pissed. “This scene is happening because YOU LIED, you son of a bitch! I know that both you and Suzanne are Lily and Lincoln's grandparents. I’m not an idiot. I asked you this morning if you had anything special going on today and you said it was a regular day. YOU LIED! Did you know yesterday that you were going? For that matter, how long have you known you were going to Lily’s school for Grandparents Day?”
Gray looked up at her. His eyes glistened. “I knew Wednesday.”
She was stunned; he had been lying for three days.
“You fucking jerk! You make me fall in love with you, and you lie to me. You son of a bitch!”
She turned to walk away, but Gray jumped up and grabbed her. She tried squirming, but he wouldn't let her go.
“Please calm down and talk to me. Don't run away.Please, Sam.”
She fought to get away, but he held her tight. She finally quit fighting him and stood there, tears running down her face.
“Bastard.”
“You can call me all the names you want. I deserve it.”
His breathing was ragged, and he was sucking in deep breaths, trying to calm himself down. He wrapped his arms tightly around her.
“Sam, you said you love me. Is that true? Do you love me?”
Oh, my God, she did say that! Crap, she said it, and shedoeslove him, but right now was not when she felt like saying it to him again. He tightened his arms around her; they stood that way for a long time. After a while, he began rocking them back and forth , slowly, back and forth. She heard him sniff and she could hear his heartbeat, strong and solid. He put his hand on her head and pulled her head to his chest. He put his arm back around her and held her tight. He smelled good, too, dammit. They rocked back and forth for a long time—no talking, just soothing, sensual motion.
When he sensed that she had calmed down, he pulled his arms away slowly, reached down and put his fingers under her chin. He tilted her face up, so she was looking him in the eyes. She saw that he’d been crying, too.
