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Gray sighed. “Yes, thanks for checking, Dani, I appreciate it.”
“We all love her Gray, and we love you too. I’m sorry I bitched at you; I’m sure you feel awful.”
He took a deep breath. Shit, he felt like crying again.
“Thanks, Dani. I love you, too. Ihaveto find her.”
“I know, Gray; you will. Let me know if there’s anything I can do.”
He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. Shit! “I will. Thanks again, Dani.”
After hanging up, he felt lost and hopeless. He was exhausted, frustrated, and worried. Finally, his phone chirped a text, and he grabbed it so fast he almost dropped it.
A text from Sam.I’m fine.That was it; just she’s fine. He tried calling her right away, and it went straight to voicemail.
He needed to get his head on straight, and he needed to work the words around in his head that he would say to her. For some reason, he didn’t think “sorry” was going to cut it. He was going to have to beg, grovel, beg some more, then beg some more after that. He just needed to be face-to-face with her to do that. His phone rang, and without even looking at it, he answered.
“Sam?”
“No Gray, it’s Cheryl. Is this a bad time?”
The air left his lungs, and he blankly stared out the window of his office.
“Actually, Cheryl, itisa bad time. I’m waiting for a call.”
“Gray, I’m sorry to bother you. I just wondered if I could see you again. I know you’re involved with someone else, but I can’t stop thinking about you. I’m having a hard time. I still love you, Gray. Can I see you?”
Honestly? He had no intention of seeing her again. Especially not now.
“Cheryl, that’s not a good idea. I’m sorry you’re having a hard time, but I never led you on, and I never gave you any indication there would ever be more between us. I love Sam. I love her with my whole heart.”
He could hear soft crying on the other end of the phone. He sucked in a long breath and swallowed the litany of profanity he wanted to spew. He had no patience for this stuff right now.
“Please Gray, just for a little while. I can come over to your place. You don’t have to go anywhere.”
“NO! Cheryl, there’s nothing that needs to be said that I haven’t said already. I’m not interested, and as I told you earlier, this is a bad time. I need to go. Goodbye.”
He tapped the end call icon and shoved his phone into his back pocket. Standing abruptly, he grimaced at the sharp pain shooting through his back. His hands flew to the spot as his fingers began rubbing away the pain. He paced his office a few times; then it occurred to him that Cheryl may just decide to come to the house anyway. He sure as hell didn’t need that, and if Sam did come home and Cheryl was here, it sure as shit wouldn’t look good. Exhaling sharply, he grabbed his keys from the hall table and climbed into his SUV. This was bullshit!
It was close to four-thirty in the afternoon. He decided to go back to Sam’s house and see if she was there. When he opened the garage door, her car was there, and he almost cried from relief. His hands shook as the magnitude of feelings rushed through him; this was the moment that could make or break them. Opening the door, he stepped lightly into the back of the house into the dining area and softly walked around the fireplace to the living room to see Sam sleeping on the sofa. He had to fight back a sob from escaping his lips when he saw her lying there. Tears had already formed in his eyes. He carefully sat on the sofa by her head and watched her sleep. Even while she slept, he could tell she looked tired. Her eyes were red and puffy and dark smudges marred the skin under her eyes where her lashes rested.
He could hold back no longer. Softly, his fingers smoothed her hair then gently massaged her scalp. She lightly sighed and his lips curved into a smile. Her hands peeked out from the blanket covering her body and gently rested under her chin, her fingers curled around her thumbs. He enjoyed the feel of her hair, the soft silky strands gliding through his fingers. No hairspray or gel impeding his soft strokes. She brusquely shot up, her eyes wild as her brain caught up to the fact that it was him here with her and not a stranger. He silently stared at her, unsure of what his first words should be.
She closed her eyes, then opened them again, lightly rubbing under them. She pulled her knees up to her chest and looked out the window behind him.
“Go away, Gray. I can't deal with this right now.”
“NO!” He said louder than he meant. Softening his voice, he continued, “No, Sam, I will not go away until you talk to me.”
“Well, apparently, youcansay no—only to me, though, not Suzanne. Perfect. Go away.”
“Sam, please talk to me.”
She shook her head. He inched closer, and she moved back quickly and almost fell off the sofa. He jumped forward to catch her, but she pulled away like she’d been stung by his touch. He sat down next to her, closer than before and turned to look directly into her eyes.
“Sam, I’m so sorry. I could see she was going to be bitchy and start making things hard on you. She would have dredged up past events and made it sound like we were one happy family and try to make you feel uncomfortable and hurt your feelings. I didn't want that. Once Nate walked over, I thought you had someone to talk to as well as Dani, Nick, and Jamie. I thought if I walked away for a couple of minutes, it would satisfy Suzanne and you would be okay.”
“One hour! One fucking hour, Gray! And please tell me what you think she could have said that would have been more hurtful than you walking away, parading her around like she’s still your wife with her arms wrapped around yours. Tell me what could have been said that would have been worse than that!”
