

Rebound

Pamela Swyers

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead is entirely coincidental.

Rebound

Copyright 2010 by Pamela Swyers

www.pamelaswyers.com

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

Published by Swyers Publishing at Smashwords

May 2010

Smashwords Edition

This book is available in print.

ISBN (for hardback edition only): 978-0-9843113-2-3

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not bere-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

For Megan

The hunger for love is much more difficult to remove than the hunger for bread. ~Mother Teresa

When love is not madness, it is not love. ~Pedro Calderon de la Barca

Forget love - I'd rather fall in chocolate! ~Sandra J. Dykes

Chapter One

Sam

Schlepping lattés all day, yep, that's just what I had in mind when I was in college. Actually most days I loved my job. I loved the smell of coffee and have always adored espresso and I didn't even mind that I went home every day covered with coffee grounds; under my nails, in my hair... I mean, it could've been worse. I could've be mucking up in a zoo or something.

An associate's degree from Georgia Gwinnett College looked great on my resumé (and it had helped my bosses decide to make me a barista trainer faster than anyone ever had in Chez Café's history) but that wasn't really what I dreamed about as a child. I kind of saw more of a huge corner office somewhere with many assistants at my beck and call.

"Grande mocha latte up!" I shouted, then placed the drink on the counter.

"I'll take it over to them," said Shane. He was my latest trainee; a nineteen-year-old cutie. Shane Jacobs was tall with sandy blond hair that hung down over one eye. He was in his first year at Gwinnett Tech, studying computers and this was his part-time job.

It was my full-time job.

I started working at Chez Café to earn a little extra money while I was in school, and after two years, I decided to take a break from classes and join the full-time work force. I put in applications all over town, looking for an administrative position, but no one was hiring. Gradually I worked more and more hours until barista-ing became my full-time job. It happens.

Chez Café had been around for a couple of years and was owned by someone who—let's just say—was not going to run out of capital for a long, long time. The owners were quite financially secure.

They had built in a great location with tons of foot traffic toward the southern end of the Buckhead district in Atlanta. The décor was Pottery Barn on crack. Great comfortable chairs and sofas, bar tables and high stools, every kind of coffee-related paraphernalia one could imagine and lots of earth tones; deep rich golds and reds. It felt very homey. When you grabbed a cup of coffee and sat down to read the paper, you really did feel like you could stay until lunch-time. That's a good thing.

My boyfriend Zak delivered messages to muckety-mucks by bicycle in downtown Atlanta. He was in great shape (needless to say).

Zak's parents supplemented his income because, well, Zak was spoiled rotten. He grew up in up-scale Hamilton Mill, a community that was less than a decade old, northeast of Atlanta in a million-dollar home. His dad was some sort of pro golfer or something, rolling in dough. Between Zak and his folks, they covered seventy-five percent of our rent and I took care of the remaining twenty-five. Nice of them, I figured. We had a great (if small) townhome in Buckhead, minutes from work for both of us. The total rent was super high and neither of us would be living there if we had to pay it alone.

These are the kinds of things I thought about when I contemplated life as a barista.

I looked up just in time to see Zak come in the door. He had on his usual bike-riding attire, complete with knee pads and helmet, backpack slung across one shoulder. It was five-thirty and he was off. I'd leave soon and let Shane close up at ten.

"Hey, sweetie," I said and pulled him a shot of espresso like I did every afternoon.

He grabbed it and downed it in one gulp like a shot of whiskey. "We need to talk," he said. He looked serious. Rare for Zak.

Uh-oh.

I went out and sat with him; it felt great to be off my feet. "What's up?" I said.

"You and I have been together for like, what, two years?" Zak looked down at the table and not at me. He picked at some icing someone had dripped onto the table. Zak had longish curly blond hair like a surfer. He was so dreamy.

"Two wonderful years," I agreed, reaching for his hand. He moved it out of reach.

"Samantha, I've met someone else."

I stopped breathing.

I mean I seriously gasped for air.

When I could speak again I said, "What?!"

"Sorry, babe," he said. "I need you to have your stuff out before Monday morning." He got up and left, getting on his little bicycle and pedaling away, leaving me to pick up the pieces.

Chapter Two

My father left when I was twelve (preferring another family to the one he already had) and my mom drank herself into a stupor. Mom still lives in Jonesboro (south of Atlanta) in a tiny apartment, drinking her Social Security. I'd sooner live in a cardboard box under the highway than go home to her.

Where was I going to live?

I packed up my clothes in my two worn pink suitcases, filling them up pretty quickly, then started filling boxes I had dragged home from the coffee house. Thankfully when I got there, Zak wasn't home. Packing was taking a lot of time, not because I had so much of my own stuff, but because I kept crying and wandering around touching Zak's things and smelling his clothes.

As I was finishing up, my boss, Dana, called and said I could crash at her place. I'd left her a teary voice mail earlier, telling her of the break-up and bemoaning between sobs that I had no place to go.

Finally I loaded everything into my used Mini Cooper (it barely fit) and headed for my boss's house a few blocks away.

Dana and Rob Tucker owned the Chez Café and had become my second family, er... maybe my first. Dana was in her forties, but still youngish and great-looking with shoulder-length blonde hair and a hippy attitude. Rob was some sort of corporate bigwig (I didn't really understand what he did, but it had something to do with stocks and the financial industry). I figured he was on track for being another Donald Trump.

The Tuckers' McMansion had little grass but lots of square footage. The place was gorgeous. It's what I always dreamed my home in heaven would look like.

I pulled into the drive and tooted my horn. It was Saturday and Shane was on top of things at the shop. Dana and Rob both came out to greet me in jeans, T-shirts and no shoes. As soon as I stepped out of my car, Dana grabbed me in her arms and I cried all over her; like huge hiccup-y sobs. Rob patted my back and said something like "there, there."

Finally we made it inside. Dana put a glass of peach iced tea in my hands and Rob emptied my car, taking all my worldly possessions into the largest of the guest rooms upstairs.

I blew my nose.

"Honey, I'm so sorry this happened. He's a jerk and an idiot," Dana said.

"Yeah, I never liked that guy," Rob said unhelpfully.

"I know. You said he was flaky," I said, taking a sip of my tea.

"And? Wasn't I right?" Rob left the room on that note, ticked off.

Dana put an arm around me and squeezed. "Now, let's get you settled in upstairs. I have a key for you and I wrote down the alarm code." We got up and headed upstairs.

My room was more of a guest suite. The bedroom was likely fifteen feet by twenty and had a full bath, not much smaller than the master. I had a desk complete with desktop computer, a flat-screen TV with cable and a mini-fridge. The tub was more like a small pool complete with whirlpool jets.

There was a little balcony and deck off the bedroom. I opened the French doors and looked out over the pool and back gardens. What a view! Gorgeous flowers were everywhere. I didn't know a whole lot about what kinds of flowers they were, recognizing only the roses and hydrangeas, but there had to be dozens of different varieties out there.

A gentle breeze wafted in and I let it caress me as I closed my eyes and just breathed it all in.

The luxurious surroundings hadn't helped heal my broken heart yet, but it was certainly nice. I didn't know where I'd be without the Tuckers.

After unpacking and making use of the dresser and the huge walk-in closet, I sat at the desk. I went on-line and checked my Facebook account. I changed my profile picture, substituting a picture of Zak and me together at last year's state fair with a picture of myself from college. I looked so young and innocent back then... pre-Zak. I shared the sentiment "Love Stinks," then logged out.

I fell onto the bed and tried hard to keep the tears at bay, but they came. And they came and they came. I grabbed the box of tissues on the nightstand.

Eventually I must've fallen asleep, because I suddenly woke up with a start, thinking I was in a pile of snow, then realized I was seeing used tissues everywhere. I smelled something wonderful and followed my nose downstairs to find Rob and Dana eating. Looked like baked chicken, mashed potatoes and salad.

"Sweetie! You're up!" Dana cried, and jumped up to get me a plate. Rob grinned at me as he chewed. Rob looked a lot like Tom Hanks to me, with dark, curly hair and a mischievous grin.

Despite "break-up stomach" I managed to eat a decent amount of dinner. I helped Rob with the dishes and Dana went out back to sit by the pool. We soon joined her. It was October but still beautiful out. The pool had been covered for a couple of weeks, the weather having begun its inexorable turn toward cooler. We all sat in companionable silence for a few minutes.

Rob finally got bored with us and went inside, probably to get on the computer and buy and sell some planets for fun.

Dana said, "You okay? Want to talk?"

"Nah, not really, I guess it'll just take time. He said we'd get married..." I sniffed, determined not to cry again. "Not sure I even wanted to, but still."

"Honey, that's what they all make us believe," Dana said. "Rob notwithstanding, men are pigs."

"Currently I will not argue," I said. My cell phone vibrated in my pocket.

"Hello?" I said.

"Samantha Wells!" my best friend Regan said. "Tell me it isn't true!"

"What?"

"That you and Zak broke up? Oh... my... stinking... gosh..."

"Yes, he dumped me, kicked me out of the apartment," I said. My voice cracked and I knew tears were coming. Dana slipped inside and gave me some privacy.

"No way!" Regan said, full of sympathy. "Where are you? What are you going to do?"

"I'm at Dana and Rob's right now," I said. "I don't know what I'm gonna do."

"Oh man. We only have two bedrooms here or I'd ask you to come stay here..." Regan had a roommate of questionable sexual orientation named Chaz. He worked at Macy's and was a dear friend to Regan.

"I understand. Dana says I can stay as long as I need to. I feel like a heel though. They won't even talk about letting me pay them anything. Told me to save up my money."

"Wow, they're so great."

"Yeah, I've often wondered if they'd adopt me, even though I am twenty-one," I said.

"Working tonight?" Regan asked.

"No, Dana says I'm not to go in for a couple days. I probably need to though... too much time on my hands."

"I'm so sorry, Sam. Wanna go out or anything?"

"Maybe tomorrow? Lunch or something?"

"Okay, lunch it is. I'll call ya in the morning," Regan said, and we disconnected.

I went upstairs and plugged the mammoth tub and turned the water on. I put a tad of bath oil in then took the band out of my hair. I looked in the mirror. I looked pale and drawn; dark circles under the eyes. My auburn hair hung down to my shoulders in long layers. It was dull and lifeless, needing a good shampooing. My hazel eyes looked extra brownish today. I wondered if sadness did that.

I found where I'd stashed my toothpaste and toothbrush and began to brush my teeth, thinking about a pint of rum raisin ice cream and wondering if it'd make me gain weight instantly if I ate one. I'd always been naturally slim and athletic, but I had a tendency to eat emotionally if I didn't watch myself. Maybe just one pint.

I threw on my robe and ran downstairs. I found a pint (yes, she had rum raisin!) down in the freezer and took it up to the tub with me. Spoon in hand, I turned the water off and the jets on and cried some more as I slipped into the tub, careful not to slop the ice cream all over. I could just see raisins getting stuck in the jets... that wouldn't be good.

By the time I killed off the pint, shampooed my hair under the running faucet, then got out and dried off, it was ten o'clock. I'd soaked so long my skin had pruned on my fingers. It had felt good, though.

Zak Manning: Surfer dude, gorgeous, shallow. Jerk, I thought. I couldn't help but wonder who he'd hooked up with. I said I wasn't going to, but I dialed his cell. It went to voice mail. I left the following message: "It's me, Samantha. I'm out of the apartment. I left the key under the mat. I'd like to talk. Call me." I resisted the urge to go downstairs and look for even more ice cream. I finally fell into bed and passed out.

The next morning I woke up a little disoriented. I brushed my hair out. It looked horrible. I went into the bathroom and plugged in my hair straightener. There was an iPod base in the bathroom and I dug mine out and popped it in. I shuffled the songs and Daughtry began to sing about going home to the place where he belonged. I felt the tears start, and willed them away. I straightened my hair and looked almost human again.

I got dressed and went downstairs in search of coffee. Rob and Dana were at the table eating toast and drinking coffee and juice. I helped myself.

"Good morning," Rob said.

"Hey, sweetie," Dana said with a smile. "You look better today. Feeling any better?"

"Marginally. Hey remember you asked me about the fall party for the employees at the shop?" I asked, artfully changing the subject.

"Yeah, don't worry about that right now."

"No, I have some great ideas. I want to help," I said, stirring creamer into my cup.

"Oh, well if you're sure. Should we have a traditional costume/Halloween party or just a fall party?" she asked.

"Either is fine with me. I kind of want to dress up like a vampire this year," I said with a smile.

"O-o-o," Rob said from behind his newspaper. "That sounds wonderful! I think I'll be... a rock star this year. Carry a guitar and all," Rob said and Dana and I laughed. "Maybe not, then," he said.

It was nice to be thinking about something besides my stinky love life for a while.

We worked on plans for the employee party over the next hour or so. It would be fun. And I would have fun. I had a couple weeks to get in the mood.

Chapter Three

Noon Sunday came and I met Regan for lunch at Mimi's Café by the Mall of Georgia. The Mall of Georgia bills itself as the largest mall in the eastern United States and one could literally shop until one dropped there. The mall boasts such big-name retailers as **Dillard's** , **Macy's** , **Nordstrom** , **JCPenney** , and **Belk** , plus more than 225 others including Coach, Solstice, Dick's Sporting Goods, Barnes & Noble, Banana Republic, Pottery Barn, Sephora and Williams-Sonoma and so many more. Plus restaurants out the wazoo. You get the picture.

It was a bit of a drive for me, but closer to where Regan lived, so I didn't mind driving the extra distance. Also Mimi's was one of my favorite places to eat. They had some of the best sandwiches in all of Atlanta.

I spotted her as I came in, already seated in a booth. I joined her, giving her a quick hug before sitting down.

Regan Walker was my age, with short blond hair that went in every direction. She had a different job every month and seemed to love it. She had done three years at Georgia Tech, then got bored and dropped out, at least temporarily. She didn't have a very long attention span so three years was pretty good.

"So what are you doing these days?" I asked.

"Right now I'm running errands for a friend, sort of a personal assistant kind of thing. This lady has a lot of money and no time to do anything. She's a famous hairstylist in the area. She did my hair the other day and we got to talking and bam! I have a new job. I love when that happens," Regan said with a bright smile. Her eclectic style of dress would always draw attention. This day I noticed she'd put some—temporary I assumed—red highlights in her hair and had on this long, sixties-style tunic top and bright purple leggings. She could always light up a room and lighten my mood. Utterly fabulous and contagious.

"Cool, girl! That is awesome," I said. She picked up on the underlying sadness in me.

"Tell me all about it," she said. The waitress came and we ordered our lunches. Regan got the turkey, pistachio and avocado sandwich and I got the albacore tuna salad on croissant.

"He just dumped me. Came in the shop after work, sat down and dumped me. He said there was someone else. I have no idea who it is, though. He is not answering or returning my calls," I said and sipped my tea.

"Man, that sucks," she said. "I could punch him."

"I kinda wish you would," I said and we both giggled. It felt good to be able to joke about it.

"You gotta get back out there," Regan said. "Show him who's boss. Get yourself a hotter guy."

"I don't think I'm ready for that, Regan. It'd be nice to have someone to hang out with, though. No strings, no attachments, just a date for parties and junk," I said, thinking about the upcoming Halloween party.

"Hey, are you coming to the party?" I asked. "I'll email you the deets."

"Yeah, I'll come by. I have about four parties to get to, though," she said with a smile and a wink, then dove into her sandwich.

"Sounds like you," I said.

The day before Halloween Shane and I were at the shop discussing costumes.

"H-m-m, I think I'm gonna come as a barista." Shane said, oozing with sarcasm.

"You're just being lazy! Come on, think of something... something out of the box."

"H-m-m-m-m, let's see. What about a chocolate-covered espresso bean?" Shane picked up a box of them and wiggled his eyebrows at me.

"That I'd love to see," I said.

Shane's cell vibrated and he grabbed it. There was no one in the shop so he answered it. "Yo!" he said. "Man! I can't! We're having a party here at the shop. The bosses always make it really cool, too, especially after-hours once the doors are locked to the public," he said. Then, "Hey, why don't you come here? Okay, cool. See you then, bro," he said and hung up.

I looked at him curiously.

"My brother. He wanted to hang out, but I invited him here. Crap, is that okay? Are we allowed to invite people?" He was afraid he'd done something against the rules.

"That's fine! You know Dana and Rob, they're pretty laid-back. How old is your brother?" I asked.

"You met him once, but you might not remember. He just popped in once when he picked me up. His name is Max. He's twenty-two, tall and slim like me but darker hair. Ring any bells?"

"Maybe," I said as I tried to remember. "Does he have a tattoo on his arm?" I asked. "A rose and a vine or something?"

"Yeah, that's him. He has to hide it when he's at work. He's an executive assistant for some lawyer downtown. Has to wear these long-sleeved dress shirts and all."

"Wow, sounds like a great job," I said wistfully.

The bells on the door jangled and a middle-aged couple came in and studied the menu. The rest of the day was steady with business.

Halloween day came and we chatted with customers and made scary faces on top of drinks with chocolate and caramel sauces. There was a dish of orange and black foil-wrapped chocolate candies by the register and on the tables for people to enjoy. Shane had gone all out with black and orange streamers, cardboard black cats and pumpkins everywhere. The place looked wonderful.

Shane had shown up for his shift wearing a wolf-man costume, stating that he had to since I was coming as a vampire. He said it brought balance to the Force. I told him he was mixing his metaphors.

Dana had helped me with my costume. My hair was wavy and worn long, parted down the middle with black streaks running through the auburn strands. (Fortunately the black dye was temporary and would wash out in a few shampoos.)

My make-up was wicked, black and dark blue liner and blue eye shadow with gray around the edges. I had a set of fake teeth I could pop in and out at will but they were kind of uncomfortable so I left them out mostly. Deep red lips and some fake blood dripping down helped set the tone. (I hoped I didn't scare any children who came by before closing time.) I had on a long black dress that Dana had dug out of a closet somewhere. It was appropriately low cut and bosomy without being X-rated. For foot ware I had to settle for black Doc Martens. I'd gone to the nail salon and had black tips put on and tiny pumpkins drawn artfully onto my thumbnails.

Shane had decided to eyebrow-pencil on his facial hair. I had to wonder if it would wash off before Christmas. He didn't think he'd be able to work with a mask on, though, and I couldn't blame him. We were both working until closing time; nine this night, due to the party, then we would lock the doors and the real party would begin. Meanwhile, we would give out candy to any children who came by to trick-or-treat. I looked forward to punching out and relaxing for a while.

Chapter Four

Max

I'm Maxwell Jacobs. My brother Shane works over at the Chez Café and tonight he wants me to forgo all other Halloween parties and go to his employee party. Sounded boring to me, but then, Shane probably wouldn't go himself if it really was. I'd give it a shot. I hadn't gone out much lately.

My girlfriend of over a year broke up with me about a month ago. Truth is, it had played itself out, but I still missed her. Well, more like I missed having a beautiful woman on my arm in the evenings. We kind of hung with the same crowd, so to avoid the awkwardness I stayed home a lot these days.

I decided to go as James Dean to the party—I have the coolest black leather jacket ever and I don't get a chance to wear it out much. I have an adult job these days and my bosses frown on me coming to work looking like a biker dude. My bosses are pretty much all thirty-something up-and-comers and are for the most part very nice and easy to work with. They love my tattoo but feel like it is inappropriate to have "out" around the clients, and I understand. People tend to make snap-judgments about others based solely on looks. It's just the way things are.

As I shaved, I thought about Monica, my ex. She was gorgeous but dumb as a rock. I mean, she knew all about hair and fashion and shoes, but just was not the most hyper-intelligent gal on the planet. Somewhere along the way, I think we must've grown apart. I was ready to work hard, make some money and get a great apartment... grow up. She wasn't. She wanted to party until three a.m. every night, drink and dance until she went home puking on her shoes. I was kind of over that stage of my life.

I couldn't believe it myself but, despite my rebellious teenage years, my true nature kicked in. I'm like my father; steady, hard-working and maybe, let's face it–dull. Dad is an investment banker and I used to carry around a toy briefcase and pretend to be him. (Think Alex on Family Ties, that TV show from years ago) although I don't look much like Michael J Fox. My dad had even built me a little desk for my bedroom where I would sit and play "office." Other boys my age played football and soccer... I played office. It made me really popular with the neighborhood girls, not-so-much with the boys.

When I was thirteen I began to think that wasn't cool anymore, so I set it all aside for a time and tried my hand at sports in high school. I was decent but not spectacular in football. The girls did love the football players though, so that worked in my favor. By the end of my senior year, I had made some good friends, and began to care less and less what others thought, and—in talking with my career counselor—determined that I had an affinity for all things administrative. I just loved an office environment. I had considered attending one of the local universities but eventually decided to go to Gwinnett Technical for some administrative classes.

Through a friend of my dad's I was able to get a job this year with a law firm in Atlanta; an un-real opportunity for a guy my age. They were willing to train me up from the ground floor. They really liked my dad. He's their biggest client.

I slicked my hair back with massive amounts of gel and checked out my mug in the mirror. Not bad. I was not going out tonight looking for a woman, though... at least not a serious relationship. It was time for me to set aside a love-life and concentrate on work for a while. Tonight was about spending some time with my brother. We didn't get to hang out much anymore.

Chez Café seemed like a cool place.

I grabbed my jacket and tossed it over my shoulder. I had on a white T-shirt, low-slung faded jeans, and black Doc Martens; ready to go.

I got to the shop at about a quarter before nine and saw several little ones leaving in various costumes: princesses, fairies, frogs, and all manner of fairy-tale creatures. I looked up at the counter and saw the most amazing thing: a surreally beautiful vampire. A vampire serving coffee. My breath caught in my throat and I realized I was staring. I walked toward her and tried to smile.

"Hey, is, uh, Shane around?" I asked.

"Yes, are you Max?" she asked. She knew me?

"Yeah. How did you know? Have we met?"

"Shane said you had a tattoo... I think I saw you once when you picked him up."

"Oh, well. Nice to meet you," I said and held out my hand. She took it and I got a shock.

"Nice to officially meet you. I'm Samantha Wells. Sam." She smiled and I forgot where I was.

Damn.

Concentrate, man. Tonight is not about meeting girls. I noted that she and I had on the same shoes.

"Uh," I said, smooth-talker that I am, and Shane came out from the back room. He smiled when he saw me and came around the counter. We half-hugged, slapping each other on the back. Shane was a good kid and I made it a point to spend time with him at least once a month. I felt some pressure to set a good example for him but we were also close enough in age that we could hang out and get along well... most of the time. Our dad, kind and good though he was, wasn't around very often due to his long work hours, and Shane needed a little direction now and then. He never did anything illegal or even intentionally mean or wrong, he just had a knack for being at the wrong place at the wrong time. Once when he was sixteen, he'd found himself in the car with some kids who decided to throw rocks through a window at a downtown convenience store. The police were called, and they eventually believed that he hadn't known that was going to happen and had nothing to do with it. They gave him a good talking-to about who he hangs out with.

Then there was the time he'd been right outside of a bank when it got robbed. When the police arrived, they had noticed him standing somewhat near the perpetrators (they actually came outside and just happened to be near him). He had gotten tired of waiting in line at the Starbuck's next door and had walked ten feet down the sidewalk into a nightmare. They eventually let him go, and it scared him a little. I think he pays more attention to where he is and where he's going now.

We sat down and Shane practiced his wolf growls on me. Samantha began to get ready to close up and Shane jumped and helped her with locking things up and closing out the register, wiping down tables and all, then they began to bring things out from the back. Dana and Rob (I'd met them on one of my visits before) came out from the back, looking great. I assumed they'd had their costumes custom-made. Rob was an espresso bean and Dana was a coffee cup. I cracked up. Dana barely made it through the doorway from the office.

Shane recruited me to help and we gathered the snacks and drinks for the party. Apparently the guests knew to come to the back door after nine and soon they began to arrive.

A cute blonde came in dressed as Marilyn Monroe. Samantha introduced her to me as Regan Walker. She was perky and smart. I wasn't zinging with her though. I didn't want to zing, so that was good.

Dana concocted some sort of orange punch. Rob played deejay and people started to dance. There were probably thirty or forty people and that was almost more than the place could handle. Who were all these people? I assumed staff and their friends and family. Most of them seemed to know and love Dana and Rob as well as Sam. Shane seemed to have made quite a few friends. I was happy for him. It seemed like a nice group of people; like a family.

I sat at a table up against the window and sipped at a cup of punch. Sam caught my eye and started walking towards me. She had something on a plate in her hand. Oh man but she was pretty.

Chapter Five

Back to Sam

The Halloween party was really lifting my spirits. I was so glad I had decided to jump right into things and not sit at home and mope. Working was doing me good.

Shane's brother Max was gorgeous. Short dark hair that was all slicked back, sexy sideburns, and in his T-shirt I could see his tattoo more clearly. I liked it. I couldn't believe Shane said that Max worked as an executive assistant. In this outfit, he sure didn't look like anyone who'd work in an office. He looked a little like Freddie Prinze Jr.

Not that it mattered, of course... that he was cute. No new relationships for me. I wasn't ready for a relationship yet and I knew it. I still cried most every night over stupid Zak. I decided to take a piece of bloody severed-head cake over to Max, though. He looked lonely. It was red velvet cake made up to look like a severed head. The hair on the head was a dark chocolate frosting... not for the weak at heart.

I caught his eyes and smiled. "Can I sit?" I asked.

"Sure, of course!" he said. I put the cake in front of him.

"Trying to scare me?" he asked and smiled.

"No, not at all. You looked lonely so I brought you some cake." I felt a little like a nervous school girl, but pressed through.

"Oh, is that what it is?" he lifted the plate and sniffed. He seemed satisfied and picked up the fork and took a bite. His face broke out into a grin, chocolate frosting covering most of his teeth. "Yum."

"So Shane says you work in an office?" I asked, trying to start up a conversation.

"Yes, I'm an admin over at Benson and Keifer off Peachtree Street," he said. He worked his tongue over his teeth for a moment, trying to get the frosting off. "I really love it. I have a very... organized mind, so the work appeals to me."

"Cool. Sounds like a great job. I bet they don't let you come to work dressed as James Dean, though," I joked.

"No. Strictly suits and ties Monday through Thursday and sometimes—if they're in a very good mood—we'll have casual Fridays, which means khakis and Polo's."

I changed the subject, knowing this guy would look breathtaking in anything he wore. "Shane's great. He's a fast learner. Great guy," I said.

"Yeah he's a good brother. Only gets in trouble occasionally. Never anything serious. He used to drive me crazy, following me around when we were kids, but now... well, he's okay. He seems to like it here; likes you and Dana and Rob. I think this job has been very good for him."

"Yeah, the Tuckers think a lot of him."

Awkward silence.

"So are you dating anyone?" Max asked me. He didn't look like he was flirting so maybe he was just making conversation.

"No, I just... we broke up. My boyfriend sort of dumped me last week," I said, then regretted sharing so much. I grabbed some hair and twirled it around my finger nervously.

Max grabbed my hand and looked at my nails. "Nice," he said, then dropped my hand. I tried to hide the fact that my pulse raced from his touch.

"Thanks!" I said. "How about you? Have a significant other?"

"Nah, not right now. Kind of taking it easy on the ladies." He smiled and my heart skipped a beat. I really needed to get a hold of myself. I tried to relax and breathed deeply.

"Relationships are tough, huh?" I said. I put my elbow on the table and propped my chin in my hand.

"And how. I'm kind of tired of them honestly," he said, looking bummed out.

"Me, too! I don't want to put myself out there again for a while. It's just too hard... too painful."

Max looked at me with what seemed to be real sympathy. "I agree. It's too bad ya can't just have a best friend of the opposite sex; someone to go out with, go to parties with, without all the entanglements..."

"Yes! Exactly! Without attraction and sex messing it all up," I said.

He chuckled. "Man that'd be great. Someone you could just be yourself with. No weirdness, no nervousness... just be you, because sex and love... they're not even in the picture. Not even on the table."

"Yeah," I sighed and looked around the room.

Another silence.

I looked at him and he was looking at me. Was it possible he was thinking the same thing I was?

"Hey, that's it! Let's do it!" Max slammed a hand on the table and I jumped.

"What?" I said. "Do what exactly?"

"Sounds like we both want the same thing. You're on the rebound, I'm on the rebound... neither of us wants anything more than a friend of the opposite sex to go out with occasionally, take to all of those infernal weddings and dinner parties..."

A light went on in my head. "Wow. That is a wicked awesome idea! I can be your rebound girl and you can be my rebound guy... for like what... wanna say a year?"

"A year? That sounds great. Long enough for both of us to heal, and at the end of that year, we shake hands and go our separate ways, right? No strings?"

"One year, no strings." I stood up and stuck my hand out. "I'm trusting you based on Shane. Trusting you aren't a serial killer or anything," I said.

He grabbed my hand and shook it. "Not a serial killer, I promise. Have we got a deal?"

"Deal," I said and jotted down my email address and phone number on an orange napkin. He did the same, giving me all of his info. "You seem harmless enough." I smiled.

"What happens if one of us breaks the pact? There should be consequences." Max rubbed his chin, thinking.

"Yeah. Whoever breaks it has to... do the other's laundry for a month," I suggested.

"Deal." He smiled back then grabbed my hand and led me out to dance. We danced to Michael Jackson's "Thriller", trying to get all the moves down by watching Rob and Dana who seemed to have it down pat. We finally gave up and free-styled it for a while.

This was going to be great.

Around midnight Marilyn Monroe, a.k.a. Regan, came over and pulled me away from Max.

"What gives? Are you crushing on Max?" she asked.

"Him? Shane's brother? Not crushing, just hanging out."

"Yeah. You look like you're having fun." She elbow-nudged me.

"You have no idea," I said. I told her about our agreement.

"Oh. My. God. You guys are crazy. It'll never work," she said. We were standing in the back storeroom.

"Why not? I get all the good stuff... well not the really good stuff, but the friendship good stuff, with no commitments."

"Mark my words girlfriend, this will end badly. Or you'll fall in love. Like I said—badly."

"Oh lighten up. Neither one of us is really open to that sort of thing."

"Sam, do you think he's cute?" she asked.

"Well, duh. He's gorgeous."

"I rest my case. It's obvious he thinks you're hot. I can tell by the way he looks at you," she said.

"Nah, it's just—he's being nice," I told her. "You worry too much."

She patted me on the top of the head. "Are you sure you aren't blond in there?" Then she walked over and asked Shane to dance.

I went back to Max at the punch bowl. He smiled when he saw me. "Ready to dance again?" I asked.

"Let's do it," he said, and we did.

A couple of hours later the party began to break up; people were moving on to other parties. Dana and Rob said they were pooped out and going home.

"Well, girlfriend," Max said with a smile. "What next?" he grabbed my hand.

Wow. That felt good.

Stop it.

"U-m-m-m-m, I don't know. Let's sit and think for a minute."

Everyone left. Shane had done most of the clean-up and I told him I would finish the rest in the morning before opening.

Max and I sat right there and talked until nearly four a.m., just getting to know each other. I found I really liked him; enjoyed being with him.

This deal could be awesome.

Chapter Six

The following Friday night came and I was trying to decide what to do with my night off. I'd seen Max almost every night last week.

I sent him a text message:

Hey. Want to do something 2 nite?

I tried not to hope that he would say yes. It wasn't good for me to start looking so forward to spending time with him. I couldn't help it. He was fun.

My phone beeped. I read his reply:

Sure. Pick u up 6 pm. Casual.

Sounded good to me. I loved looking forward to going out. I loved that I was no longer thinking about Zak. In retrospect, he was such a jerk. Why is it we never notice these things until after the break-up? What did I see in him (beyond the obvious good looks? No, great looks). Was I really that shallow?

Regan called and asked what I was doing. I told her I was going out with Max. She laughed. One of those know-it-all I-told-you-so kind of laughs.

"It's not what you think," I told her.

"Right, girl," she said sarcastically, then hung up.

I got dressed in boots and jeans and a nice lavender V-neck cashmere sweater. It looked great with my hair color. I did my hair and make-up perfectly. It felt good to look good, and know it.

I went downstairs and passed Rob on my way out. "Going out?" he asked.

"Yes. Just my friend Max," I said casually.

"Max. The pact guy," he said, and flipped to another page in his paper.

Cripes. Did everyone know? "Yes. Shane told you?"

"Yeah. Be careful," he said.

"My middle name. I am totally in control of the situation so don't worry."

"Right," he said, and I gave up and went outside. There was Max pulling into the drive in his five-year old blue BMW.

I got in. "Where to?" I asked.

"I thought we'd go to dinner at Atlantic Station then take it from there," he said.

"Sounds fun." Atlantic Station was relatively new in the downtown area; lots of outdoor shops, restaurants and the like. Million-dollar condos and townhomes and a huge IKEA store were close by. Students from Tech and Georgia State were close enough to take advantage of the nightlife but real estate in the area was very cost prohibitive for struggling students.

The melting pot that was Atlanta was many things, but never, ever dull. With over five million people in the metro area alone, cultures and backgrounds clashed on our sidewalks every day, as we all struggled to blend together into a cohesive city. It definitely had that big-city feel, but I had grown to love it.

We started at the ESPN sports bar with drinks and appetizers. All evening long, we chatted like we'd known each other forever. We had so much more in common than Zak and me. We loved the same music, enjoyed the same kinds of things; overall a fantastic evening.

He dropped me back at the house around ten. I said good night and jumped out of the car, turning and giving Max a wave. I vowed to never hesitate at the end of the night. Got right out of the car and went inside. That way, no pressure thinking about how a "real" date would be going (kiss good-night time and all that).

I hoped Max was enjoying our deal as much as I was.

A few months later, Zak and his new gal just waltzed right into Chez Café. As if he didn't realize I worked there.

"Can I help you?" I said just as I looked up and saw who it was.

"Hey, Sam. Can we get a couple of lattés to go?" He was acting as if he barely knew me.

Fine.

What really threw me was who he was with; his boss. She was at least forty-years old. They were holding hands. He looked like he was with his mommy. I knew who she was but I just had to say it.

"Oh, Zak, is this your mom?" I said with a smile. He knew I knew his mom.

"No, this is Zeva... you know from work," he said like a total dork. She stuck her hand out to shake mine. I acted like I didn't notice. She walked over to the mugs and browsed. I rolled my eyes and went to make his lattés. I almost totally spit in them, then decided that would be unprofessional.

"Here ya go." I put the drinks on the counter. They were kissing; like with tongues. In the café. I swear I swallowed a little vomit.

After they left, Shane came out from the back where he'd been busy stocking shelves with supplies. "Who was that with Zak?" he asked.

"His mother," I said.

"E-e-e-e-w," Shane said. "That's just wrong."

I'd explain later.

Regan came in just as I was getting ready to punch out. "Wanna go to a dinner party?" she asked. One of our mutual friends, Kaitlyn, was having a get-together.

"No date? You want to take me?" I asked.

"Yeah. I want to take YOU. Unless you have previous plans..."

I knew she was testing me. "Nope, no plans here. Not like I have a boyfriend I have to check in with." I went and cleaned up in the bathroom and changed my clothes. We took off. In her car on the way I found myself wondering if Max would be expecting me to go out with him.

Just as we pulled into Kaitlyn's drive, my phone beeped. I had a text. I looked at it.

"Who's that? Max?" Regan asked.

"Um, no one," I said and jumped out of the car. It was Max. He asked if he could come get me. I said my hellos to everyone inside and went straight to the powder room and texted him back, telling him I wasn't available tonight.

"So what'd you tell him?" Regan asked as I sat down.

Bugger.

"Okay, so it was him. I told him I wasn't available. No biggie."

"What? What'd I miss?" Kaitlyn said. We were seated around a long dining table in Kaitlyn's small but warm and well-decorated home. Regan and I had known her since high school. Three guys sat across from us three girls. I suddenly felt set up.

"S'nothing," I started to say.

"Yeah, Sam has this pact with this guy..." she said, then proceeded to tell everyone the whole story. I tried kicking her under the table. She just kicked me back and kept going.

Two of the three guys were complete strangers to me and it seemed to Regan as well. It looked like Kaitlyn planned this little gathering to set me and Regan both up with someone. Kaitlyn's boyfriend was Ethan. They'd been together since high school and were engaged. His buddies, Trenton and Derrick, wanted a fix up and Kaitlyn threw us under the bus.

Derrick sat across from me. He was okay-looking; clean cut, short hair. He had an aggravating snort-laugh that was getting on my nerves. Trenton was total preppie. I couldn't see him and Regan together, but you could never tell.

I decided to just enjoy the evening.

After dinner we all decided to go to Jillian's. At Jillian's one could find a variety of arcade games to play, you could bowl, eat, hang out, have a beer; it was a very fun place to go when you didn't know what else to do on a weekend.

Derrick stuck close to me as I made my way from game to game. Kaitlyn and Regan came over and asked if we wanted to bowl a couple of games, so she put our name in and we waited for a lane to open up.

"So you don't have a boyfriend, right?" Derrick asked me.

"No, I'm kind of between relationships... on purpose," I said, trying to drop a hint.

"This Max guy Regan mentioned... you and he aren't...?" he lifted an eyebrow.

"No, we aren't. Just friends."

"Cool," he said, as if I'd just given him the green light. That wasn't my intention.

They called us over; our lane was ready.

I'm a terrible bowler, yet I love it to distraction. I'm not sure why. It didn't make sense. It presented a challenge to me, maybe that was it. My highest score ever was barely over one hundred but normally I bowled closer to fifty.

It was my turn and I stepped up to the ball-holding deal and grabbed an eight-pound ball. I managed to get it down the lane almost to the end before it schlumped over into the gutter. So it was a place to start.

Derrick went next. He got a strike the first time. Figures. He gloated and preened a little.

Regan took her turn and hit three pins. I gave her a high-five and we did a little victory dance; it was our standard routine. Any pins down was cause for celebration. Trenton was being very attentive to Regan and she put on her standard act of flirting, then acting disinterested.

I sat down next to Derrick (it was the only available spot) and he turned towards me. "I could give you some pointers if ya like," he said.

"No thanks," I said. I grabbed my beer and took a sip. He looked offended.

Just as it was my turn up again I saw a familiar figure out of the corner of my eye. It was Max with a couple of his buddies. I watched him until he looked up and caught my eye. I quickly looked away. Of all the places to go have fun, he ended up here. What were the chances?

I threw the ball. It rolled ever-so-slowly until it barely tipped a pin over. I shouted and jumped up. Regan bumped my fist with hers. I walked over to where Max was standing and watching me with a grin on his face.

"Hey," I said.

"Hey yourself," he said. "Fancy you being here."

"Yeah. Weird. You on a date?" I asked.

"Nah, I'm with some of the guys from the office... you?" He looked over my companions.

"Just a group of friends."

"Oh. See ya later then," he said and walked three lanes down where his friends were putting their stylish bowling shoes on.

Regan came up to me. "Max? What's he doing here?" she asked.

"I dunno. Coincidence, I guess," I said. Morris Day's "The Bird" played in the background. Bright colorful lights played across the screen.

"He isn't following you, is he?" she said, a wary look on her face.

"No, no, he isn't. He wouldn't do that," I said.

"Okay. You say so." She squeezed my arm and gave me a look then went to throw her ball. Regan wasn't thrilled with my arrangement with Max.

I went and sat down and Derrick came up to me. "Was that him?"

"Him who?" I asked, trying to seem innocent.

"You know, Max or whatever. Your contract guy," he said.

"Yeah, but it isn't a contract... more of a pact; a verbal agreement."

"Does he always follow you wherever you go?" he asked, seeming irritated. The sounds of pins being smashed kept making me jump.

I stood up and got a little too close to his face. "He didn't follow me here."

"Okay, okay!" he held both hands up and backed away. "It's just... weird, that's all," he mumbled as he walked away. My Chemical Romance played "Welcome to the Black Parade." The music video played on the screens.

I sighed and prayed for the night to be over. For some reason I wasn't having fun anymore. Kaitlyn walked over and put an arm around me.

"You having fun?"

"I'm okay. Just in a mood, I guess."

"Sorry about the set up. Are you mad?"

"No, no... it's fine."

"I see Max is here," she said and gave me a sideways grin.

"Yeah, I noticed," I said and looked over where he was just throwing his ball down the lane with a flourish. Looked like he made a strike.

"You seemed happier before he showed up," she observed.

"I did?" Oh crap. "No, no, I think I'm just a little tired, that's all."

The rest of the evening passed without incident. When they dropped me off at the house Derrick said, "Call me sometime," and smiled at me.

"Sure," I said, not knowing why. I knew I had no intention of calling him but somehow thought it was important not to make a stink about it.

I went inside and didn't see anyone about. Dana and Rob were obviously out. I went up to my room and closed the door. I fell onto my bed and hugged my pillow. What in the world was wrong with me? Was I still sad about Zak? I didn't think so. I was feeling SO over him. He had moved on and so had I. A couple months' time had brought some perspective on that whole deal.

Was I upset about Max? We had a good thing going. I really liked him, but there was no pressure. He'd never tried to kiss me or push the relationship. I should have been happy about that. I really should. So why wasn't I? It occurred to me that I had really wished I had been over there bowling with him and his friends instead of with my group.

Wow. That's not good. I was SO getting attached.

My love-life so far had consisted of me avoiding any sort of true intimacy. All through high school I had dated casually, but anytime things started to heat up, I found a reason to break it off. I think I was so afraid of turning into my mother that I decided it'd be better just to not have a relationship at all. Men were fun to have around, to fool around with, but you weren't really supposed to fall in love with one. With Zak I had let my emotions go a little too far and I'd paid an emotional price for it.

We'd gotten into a routine that had felt so homey and so right. I think I'd wanted a family so badly that I had allowed myself to dream that he could be the one and that we might actually be together long-term. Big mistake.

Zak had all the right moves; he was suave and charismatic and always knew exactly what to say to a woman. Somehow I'd convinced myself that his words were specific to me. They, of course, were not.

Now here I was letting myself get attached to a man again. I sighed and rolled over. Eventually I got up and went into the bathroom and stared at myself in the mirror. "You are stupid," I said to myself. I ran my hands through my hair, splashed a little water onto my face.

Now what?

Chapter Seven

Max

About four months had passed; eight months to go on our agreement. We'd seen each other several times after the initial week; a quick run to the ice cream parlor, a movie once or twice. I was trying to figure out how I felt about that as I got ready to go out with my friends from work. Part of me wanted to see more of her, and part of me was scared to death of going down that road.

Sam was... well, she was awesome. She had held true to her word; none of that womanly pressure to step the relationship up to the next level. She hadn't so much as given me a look or tried to kiss me or anything. In fact, it was almost downright insulting. No games, no manipulation. It was everything a guy could ask for... right?

I finished shaving and threw on my clothes; a black T-shirt and my favorite worn-out jeans. I stood in front of the mirror and flexed into a few Schwarzenegger-like poses. I shook my butt around. I wondered the age-old question "Does my butt look fat in these jeans?" I sang a few lines; "Do a little dance, make a little love, get down tonight." Just how was Sam resisting my charms? I laughed at myself and hit the road.

When we got to Jillian's I was looking forward to a night out with the guys. Then I saw her. Sam. What was she doing there?

I went over and said hello. I had some secret hope that she'd decide to blow off her other friends and insist on hanging out with me, but that didn't happen. She didn't look too happy.

After bowling I got back to my place and took a shower, threw on my favorite pajama bottoms and fell into bed. As I tried to fall asleep I thought about Sam. I tried not to think about Sam; thought about her some more.

I dreamed that she and I got married and had four kids. Just before I woke up, we were making out in our home on the lake.

I sat straight up, covered with sweat. I could still feel the feelings... I felt... in love with her—for just a few seconds. It was the most powerful feeling I'd ever had. My heart hurt, my chest hurt. I breathed hard and waited for it to go away.

By breakfast the dream had faded and I was becoming myself again. I rarely had such vivid dreams. I rarely remembered what I had dreamt at all. I began to feel better as it faded.

That was damned scary. I didn't think I wanted to feel like that ever. It was too much, it was overwhelming to say the least; it was loss of control.

I got dressed and went out on my patio and sipped my coffee. I held my cell phone in my hand, wondering, thinking; eight more months. God, get me through this.

Chapter Eight

Sam

Five months in. Max and I were going to a wedding; one of his closest friends, Rodney, was getting married. He and Max had gone to school together most of their lives.

It was a Saturday and I was scrambling to get dressed and ready before he came to pick me up. Dana was trying to help; she'd done my hair for me. I put the finishing touches on my make-up and tried to breathe.

There was a honk. "He's here," Dana said. "You look great. Have fun."

I ran downstairs and went out to the car. He looked up and smiled when he saw me. What a great smile. I couldn't help but smile back as I got in the car.

"How are you?" he said. It had been a couple weeks since we'd gone anywhere together. I realized I'd missed him a lot.

"Fine... you?" I said. He looked great. He had on a charcoal gray suit, blue shirt and tie with paisley print; very GQ. I wondered if this is what he looked like when he went to work every day. Next I wondered if he worked with any women.

"I'm good. You look great, Sam."

I had on a purple dress with an empire waist. It accentuated my curves I had to say. Dana had put my hair up in a twist with a few strands artfully arranged around my face. I had on dangly earrings that matched the dress and some rockin' heels by Chinese Laundry (borrowed from Dana). I hoped I could manage to walk in them.

Were we feeling awkward around each other suddenly? I decided to ask him.

"Do you feel awkward? Tense? Why would we start now... feeling that way?" I grinned at him, laughing nervously.

He laughed. It relaxed us both. I loved his laugh. It made his whole face come alive and his eyes sparkle. "What are we doing, Sam? Is this working for you?" He smiled then lifted an eyebrow.

I gulped. "Us? This? The agreement? Sure, why not? I love spending time with you."

He looked at me for a moment, then just drove to the church in silence. We were both lost in our thoughts, but it was comfortable silence.

I met several of Max's friends at the reception. I'd never remember all of their names. Rodney seemed great. His wife was sweet. We talked about getting together and I swallowed the uneasiness that kept creeping in. I was beginning to understand why all of my friends were telling me this would end badly because I could tell I was beginning to truly have feelings for Max. I decided to go get a drink, then pull Max aside and talk to him.

I went up to the bar and ordered a white wine. I looked around, took my glass and headed in the direction of Max. He was with a group. As I got closer I saw him loop his arm through a girl's arm, getting her attention. He smiled at her. I stopped walking and just watched them. She smiled up at him and giggled. She was flirting. A woman always recognizes flirting in another woman. I found a place by a tree to just watch them together. She reached for Max's hand and grabbed it. He didn't pull away.

Okay, I was here as Max's date so did that give me a right to be jealous? Because I was definitely jealous. She had long blond hair. She was gorgeous. I wondered briefly if she was his ex or someone else entirely; someone new.

I thought about what to do. I decided to play it cool. I found another group of people and chatted with them, asking if they were on the bride's side or the groom's. Max kissed the girl's hand as if saying goodbye, then came over to where I was. I pretended I hadn't seen what I had just seen.

He came up and put an arm around me. I smiled up at him. We all chatted. I couldn't help myself so I looked over and saw the blonde watching us. She didn't look happy.

Uh-oh, she started coming over.

"Hey," she said and put a hand out to me. "I'm Monica." She looked me up and down and tried to smile but it didn't reach her eyes; they remained cool.

"Nice to meet you," I said. "I'm Samantha. Call me Sam."

She looked at me and then Max. She turned and walked away without another word.

Max shook his head and grinned. The others in the group had wandered off to the dance floor. "What's the deal with you guys?" I asked.

"She's my ex. She dumped me for someone else. It seems like lately... she's been regretting that."

"Yeah?" I gulped.

"Yeah. She's having trouble moving on. I told her there was no chance of our getting back together." He looked deep into my eyes.

"Oh," I said. I looked away quickly. "Why?" I asked.

"You know, it's just... too over. There is nothing there for me." He looked off into the distance.

"Oh, too bad." I said, then felt stupid for saying it. "Listen, this agreement we have..."

"Yes?" that got his attention.

"If you want out..."

"Me? Nah, it's okay with me. But I do have a question."

"Shoot," I said.

"Well, we know what you and I are supposed to be—to each other. The question is, are we supposed to be allowed to see other people?"

I tried to read his face, but couldn't.

"Why? I mean, I don't care," I said, totally flustered by the question.

"Are you? Seeing anyone else?" He looked at me closely then took a sip of his wine.

"No, but I mean... if you want to or if I wanted to... I don't see why we couldn't," I said. My heart started pounding.

"Nope. No reason why we couldn't." He looked into my eyes. "Right?"

"Right," I said and turned away, sipping my wine. My glass was empty. I went in search of another. Max followed me. We both grabbed glasses of wine from the bartender, then just stood there; sipping.

Finally I said, "So Max, tell me more about why you and Monica broke up."

"You really want to know?" he asked.

"Sure, if you want to talk about it."

"She got tired of me. She's like that... a little flighty. She doesn't like anyone she can't control."

"Really. Sorry. Are you... ya know, sure you're over her?" I looked off in the distance, not wanting to look at him as he answered.

"Totally. She isn't really my type anyway." He grabbed my chin and turned my face towards his. "You okay?"

I jumped a little at his touch. "Yeah, me? Oh of course, I'm wonderful; fine." I realized I was rambling.

He chuckled and my heart jumped.

Holy crap.

"Ya wanna get outta here?" he asked.

"Sure," I said, feeling a little sweaty. We set our half-filled glasses down and headed for the car. He opened the door for me and I got in.

Before he started the car, he turned and just stared at me.

"What?" I asked. "Something in my teeth?" I pulled the mirror down and looked.

He laughed again. I was loving that laugh. "Nah, I just... I just wanted to say, I like you, Sam." He turned and started the car.

"I like you, too."

We drove to the Tuckers' house, not talking, just listening to the stereo. "Stop this Train" by John Mayer was playing. It was nice.

When we got there, I asked him inside. The Tuckers weren't home. We sat in the living room and I got us some coffee.

I plopped down next to him. "This is a first," I said.

"What?"

"You coming inside here... with me," I said.

"This is a beautiful place. You're lucky to have such good friends."

"Yes, I know. Dana and Rob are like family." We both sipped our coffees. I sat my mug down.

I turned and looked at him; he was looking at me. We both smiled. Before I knew what was happening, he leaned in—he was going for a kiss. I didn't know what to do. My heart ker-thumped. I gulped. I closed my eyes.

Ever so slowly he kissed me. Once, twice... they grew in intensity. He cupped his hands on either side of my face. Wow. I didn't think I'd ever had a kiss like that. He was making my head swim. I totally forgot who or where I was. Finally we broke apart. We were both breathing a little too heavy. He leaned his forehead on mine. We tried to get a hold of ourselves.

"Wow. I've been wanting to do that... forever," he said.

I giggled. "Yeah?" I kissed him. We kissed for several minutes. I heard the garage door opening and I jerked away, coming to my senses.

"Oh, gosh, I'm sorry, Max." I sat up straight and moved a little apart from him.

"Why?" he asked with a wicked grin.

"I just got a little caught up in the moment."

"Me, too. Is that bad?"

"I, I... I gotta go," I said jumping up.

"You're home. Where are you going?" he stood up and tried to grab my hand. I moved just out of reach.

"I mean it's time for you to go. Sorry, but the Tuckers. I don't want them to..."

"What? You don't want them to see me here? Why?" He looked offended. He probably should be.

"Sorry, Max, I just am not ready for this."

He grabbed his jacket and headed for the door. "I overstepped, Sam. I'm sorry," he said, and then he was gone.

I said a quick hello to the Tuckers then shot upstairs. I fell onto my bed and felt the tears come. What was wrong with me? Why had I let him kiss me? Why had I kissed him back?

I rolled over on my back and grabbed onto a pillow for comfort. That kiss... that kiss was the best kiss I'd ever had, possibly the best kiss that has ever taken place in the world. I was in deep trouble. I needed to fix this. I needed to date around, meet other guys. I didn't want to fall in love. I refused to. I damned sure didn't want to be the one to break the pact and end up doing his laundry. I'd tell Max no the next few times he asked me out.

My cell vibrated. It was Derrick. I ignored the call and let it go to voice mail. I didn't feel up to dealing with him right then.

Chapter Nine

Max

That kiss. What was I thinking? I wanted to kiss her, then... I just did.

She didn't want it at first, and she seemed a little upset after... but during... oh during. She could've told me that it was a pact-breaker, but she didn't, thankfully.

I was getting ready for work on Monday, remembering the weekend, remembering the kiss, remembering how I'd screwed everything up completely. I hadn't heard a word from Sam since the wedding and I was thinking I shouldn't call her. I should give her time; time to realize how much she loved that kiss. I mean seriously, she was into it. She kissed me back.

Ouch! Cut myself shaving. Damn. Distracted.

I worked through lunch, then didn't really remember anything I did.

I worked closely with a couple of legal secretaries, Janie and Carlos. They were great work family but even they couldn't distract me from thinking of Sam all day. Twice they'd found me day-dreaming over my computer and hit me on the head with a file to get me started again. Janie ordered sandwiches from the deli up the block. They delivered so they ended up being lunch at least four days out of five. I got my standard Rueben but it tasted bland. I ate half of it, then stared into space again. Janie and Carlos were cracking jokes, carrying on a conversation, but I couldn't keep up. Sam was affecting me like a drug. I seriously needed to detox.

I knew Monica had been jealous of Sam, and I have to admit, that gave me a little pleasure. I hoped seeing me with someone else would help her let go.

"Right, Max?" Janie asked with a giggle.

Damn, I'd missed something again. "Uh... right. Whatever you say cuz... you're always right," I said to Janie with a wink.

Janie knew I had no idea what she was talking about. She was thirty-something, divorced and had a little girl. She had become a great friend to me over the years, sort of a big sister. She kept her long, dark brown hair back in a bun or pony tail at work but I knew (from experience) she could let her hair down if the occasion called for it. I'd seen her get a little loose at a couple of the office parties.

Carlos was a few years older than me and what we called around the office a "metro-sexual". He always looked great, perfect hair, got manicures every other week and likely spent half his paycheck on grooming and shopping. He was single and determined to stay that way. He was the office "player." Every Monday Janie and I were subjected to a re-telling of his weekend exploits. I'd certainly zoned out on all of today's.

"What is up with you, man? You're totally distracted," Carlos said. Janie finished up her yogurt and chucked the container in the recycle bin.

"Yeah, whut up?" she said with a grin. "Girl troubles?"

"I told y'all about my friend... Sam."

"Samantha! The 'pact' gal! What happened, did she break contract? Wanna get all litigious on her ass?" Carlos said wickedly.

"No, I won't be suing her. She hasn't broken contract. But I.... I think I may be, ya know—starting to have feelings for her."

Janie gasped and scooted her chair closer to mine. "No way! You're totally falling for her, aren't ya?" She smiled knowingly. "Tell us all about it."

"Come on you guys, I don't wanna talk about it."

Carlos leaned in on an elbow. "Spill, buddy – NOW."

"I just... I kissed her. It was out of this world."

Janie gave a heavy sigh as she got up and went to wash her spoon off. She was a sucker for love stories.

"So you kissed her? What's the big whoop? I kissed five girls last weekend alone..." Carlos chimed in.

Janie hit him on the head with her spoon, then had to re-wash it. "You lie," she said.

"Okay, maybe only two, but still."

"I think this gal might be special. That's the scary thing. I have no idea what to do. We have seven months left on the agreement. This can't happen. I won't be the one to break it. I'll just have to wait until it's over, then we can see what's what."

"You're pretty competitive. That is what this is about. Your hesitation to close the deal, I mean. You just don't want to be the one to mess it up, to go back on the agreement, right?" Carlos said.

"You may be right. Also, I don't want to freak her out or scare her away," I said.

"Sounds to me like you're in love with her already. Better watch yourself," Janie said.

"Yeah, it wouldn't take much encouragement," I admitted.

"Hey, we want to meet her!" Carlos said. "Let's all go out. Friday night."

"What? No, you guys... you'll just do something stupid. Like tell her how I feel or something."

They both got innocent puppy-looking faces. "Us?" they asked in unison.

Chapter Ten

Sam

Max called and asked me to please go out with him and his work friends Friday night. I finally caved. The truth was that I missed him horribly. Sheesh.

I finally got around to listening to Derrick's voice mail. He wanted to go out again and suggested Friday night. I called him and left him a voice mail saying I already had plans. I wondered when Derrick would get the message—the message that I wasn't sure I really had room for another guy in my life right now.

I worked all day Friday and business was slow but steady. I left Shane in charge around five and headed home to shower and wash the coffee and espresso off. Max picked me up at seven and we went to Longhorn Steakhouse near the Mall of Georgia. We met up with Janie and Carlos out front and Max put our name in. We had a half hour wait so we crowded ourselves up to the bar to have a drink while we waited.

"So, you're Sam. Love the outfit, dear," Carlos said, giving me a quick side-hug. I had a white halter-style top on with black leggings, and comfy black flats. I had brought a cute neon-green sweater. Spring was in the air, but I always ended up cold in restaurants.

"Nice to meet you, Carlos... Janie," I said.

Janie grabbed my hand and said, "Any friend of Max's... well, you know. Now tell me all about yourself." She propped her face on her hand, elbow on the bar and gave me her full attention. She was very attractive. I wondered if there had been anything between her and Carlos. Then I wondered if there had ever been anything between her and Max. She was older, but these days no one seemed to care about these things.

"Not much to tell." I smiled and accepted my light beer with lime from the bartender. "Just a barista, trying to get by," I said.

"I love that coffee house. It's so cool that you work there. I've probably ordered a latte from you before," she joked.

"There's a great chance of that if you go in there much. What's your drink?"

"Grande caramel latte with whip."

"Yum. Great choice. One of my favorites." I liked Janie. She seemed relaxed and real and likeable.

"I go for a double-shot of espresso," Carlos interjected with a grin. "Helps me keep up with the lawyers... and these two." Carlos had his shirt unbuttoned a little too far for my taste, but the player look suited him to a T. His teeth were perfectly straight and perfectly white.

Max reached over and put a hand on mine and grinned. I think I may have blushed a little and I didn't pull my hand away. Yikes.

Something in Carlos' hand started vibrating and blinking red. "That's us!" he said, holding up the flashing gizmo that told us our table was ready. We palmed our drinks and followed our hostess to a nice large booth and settled in, Max and me on one side, Janie and Carlos on the other. Janie was across from me. I was glad. I had the feeling Carlos would've been checking out my boobs through the whole meal.

Carlos was saying something to Max about some work issue and Janie leaned across to me. "So Max speaks very highly of you, indeed. I hope you don't mind, but he told us about your pact."

It was a day for blushing. I could feel the color on my cheeks. "Oh?" I squeaked out. I took another drink of my beer just as the waitress appeared. We paused our conversation and placed our orders.

"You were saying?" Janie said when the waitress left.

"Oh... uh. The pact. Yes, I guess everyone knows now." I un-rolled my silverware and put my napkin on my lap.

"It's going well, don't you think, Sam?" Max chimed in.

"Yeah, it's great. I always have a date. Don't have to stay home alone unless I want to."

The waitress brought fresh drinks and fresh, hot bread.

We chatted and got to know each other and soon our food arrived and we tucked-in—in earnest.

Carlos was a nut. He was constantly cracking some kind of joke. He flirted with the waitress and anyone else with breasts that passed by. He was quite the charmer.

"Um, Max, can you let me out? I need to go to the little girls' room," I said. The beer was going straight through me.

"Oh, of course," Max said, and slid out, lending me a hand.

"I'll go with you," Janie said and nearly shoved Carlos out onto the floor.

We did our business and met at the sink, washing our hands. Janie dried her hands and went for a tube of lipstick in her purse. "I'm so glad we got to meet you, Sam," Janie said. "I like you. I'm glad I like you. When Max first told us about this agreement, I didn't know what to expect," She made a face and put lipstick on then tugged her skirt down to make sure it was in place.

"Oh, good," I said nervously. "It was just a dumb, spur-of-the-moment thing that happened. We were just talking about relationships and break-ups... it just sort of happened." I dried my hands and smoothed a wild hair down.

"I probably shouldn't be telling you this," she said as she put her arm through mine and led me out the door. "He really likes you. He may have to do some laundry soon."

Just then we got to the table and Janie smiled at the men innocently. They stood and let us back into our seats.

When we had gotten the best of our meal, Carlos, Janie and I got another drink and Max declined, saying he would be designated driver for the night. I gave him a smile and ordered my fourth beer. I didn't know what a fourth beer might do to me. I'd never had one.

Eventually we piled into Max's car and headed to Jillian's, deciding we were all in the mood to bowl. Carlos and Janie were in the back joking and carrying on. They just seemed to be really good friends... kind of like brother and sister.

Max looked over at me as he drove. I looked over at him and burped really loudly.

"Oops, excuse me!" I said, embarrassed. He laughed.

When we got there Max came around and escorted me inside to the bowling area. There happened to be a lane just coming available, so we went over with our rented shoes and plopped down. The black lights were on and Carlos' teeth were so incredibly white. I caught myself staring at them.

Max came over and hugged me. "You okay?"

"Fantabulous," I said, barely slurring. Carlos took care of setting up the screen with everyone's names.

I leaned in to Max. "Hey, are those two... did they ever date or anything?"

"Carlos and Janie? Nah. I think they're like BFF's or something."

"How about you and Janie?" I asked.

"Me? No. She is sort of in a position over me at work and I don't know. I think we have entered the friend zone, so... holds no attraction for me."

"Oh," I said, looking down at my feet.

"You're up!" Janie said.

I went and found what was possibly the only eight-pound ball in the place. I warily stumbled up to the line, shook my head and tried to pull myself together. Smash Mouth played "I Can't Get Enough of You, Baby" and I wanted to strangle someone for it. It was too appropriate. I did my little move and the ball was down the lane. It was moving so slowly I thought it was going to stop and I would have to go after it. Finally it got all the way down the lane and managed to knock over one pin. My standard play.

"Woot!" I shouted and jumped up and down. Janie ran up and gave me double high-fives and we danced a jig together. Max and Carlos just laughed and shook their heads. I tried dancing "the lawn-sprinkler" and sort of fell over. Janie cracked up and grabbed me before I hit the floor. The guys were very good. The men would definitely win the night.

Next time Max was up I caught myself staring at his butt. Janie was sitting next to me. She giggled and elbow-nudged me.

I turned and looked at her. "What?"

"I saw that! He does have a cute butt. I should know," she slurred, "I work with it every day."

Janie was up and she did a cute little butt-wiggle move and managed to throw off a pretty good shot. She knocked at least two pins over. We tummy-bumped and high-fived. The people next to us kept giving us looks and I couldn't figure out why.

I was up. I downed several gulps of my beer and headed towards the lane. I don't know if I was exceptionally wobbly or what but Max jumped up and ran over and decided to help me throw this one. The two of us threw it down the lane together. It sort of jumped up, then banged down with a thud and finally rolled into the gutter. I looked over at him and busted out laughing. He grabbed me and swung me around.

'Whoa, Nellie," I said when he put me down. The place was still spinning after I stopped. Max kept an arm around me and took me back to my seat.

"You're cut off, woman," he said.

"Me? Really? And why is that, mister? I've only had three."

"You've had at least four at this point. Don't argue," he said and leaned over and kissed me. My head was swimming again but it was accompanied by a warm tingly sensation. I threw my arms around him and kissed him back. Then I realized I was in public and pulled back.

"You're up again," Carlos said, looking at me.

"I'm up all right," I said.

Finally we headed out and dropped Carlos and Janie off. I felt myself starting to pass out, but I didn't want to, so I decided talking was the way to keep myself awake.

"So," I said.

"Yeah?" Max said.

"Did you have fun tonight?" I asked.

"I had a ball—pardon the pun—but I think you had more fun than me."

"Yeah, I totally had fun," I said.

"Sam, Sam... what am I gonna do about you?" he asked.

"Do? About me? What do you mean?" I asked, all innocent.

We pulled into the Tuckers' drive and Max killed the engine and lights. He turned towards me and cupped my face in his hands.

He looked into my eyes, then looked at my hair, my chest, then back into my eyes. He looked up towards the roof and rolled his eyes, sighing. Finally he pulled me towards him and kissed me. He made himself pull back after a few minutes.

"I'll walk you to the door," he said, and he got out and came around.

"Okay but you shouldn't come in... cuz... last time and all," I said. He grabbed me and walked me up to the door.

"Are you gonna make it in and up to bed okay?"

"Yeah. I'm totally getting my second wind. I think that last kiss... cleared my head a little." I fumbled with my key and he grabbed it, unlocked the door and put the keys back in my hand.

"Ya know... I really like doing laundry," he said, then he turned and walked back to his car.

I went inside and leaned against the door and blew out a breath. "Laundry?" I thought. I scratched my head as I walked up the stairs. Then the light bulb came on. "Oh, he likes doing laundry!" I said and felt a huge grin spread over my face. So long as HE caves first, I thought, then I passed out on my bed.

I woke up around nine confused and head-achey. I had dreamed about piles of clean folded laundry being dumped on my head.

I made it into the shower and woke myself up. As I was getting out of the shower I remembered just how tipsy I had gotten the night before.

Wow. Max had cut me off. I wasn't sure how I felt about that. Actually I guess it was a good thing. If I'd had any more, I'd have been in really bad shape in the morning. And I would have been that night too. Maybe he just didn't want me getting too drunk, because he was afraid of what would happen. Maybe I was afraid of what would happen.

I had to be at work at ten so I dressed quickly and grabbed my apron and ran down the stairs. Rob and Dana weren't about, but there was coffee in the pot, so I grabbed a mug to go.

Shane was behind the bar and I was taking a lunch break (munching on a sandwich) when Max walked in. He came over and plopped down.

"Hey, babe," he said. Something inside my tummy jumped.

"Hey," I said with a smile. "Want my pickle?" I asked, holding it up.

"Sure," he said. He grabbed it and started munching away. "I am on my lunch break. Think I could get a sandwich too?" he asked.

I caught Shane's eye and made some convoluted hand motions. He understood me and grabbed another sandwich and brought it over for Max.

"Hey, dude... what are you doing here?" he asked. They bro-hugged.

"Just thought I'd come see two of my favorite people on my lunch break."

"You normally don't work on Saturdays, do you?" I asked.

"Nah, but we have this case we're preparing for. I'll probably be done around two, so it's not so bad." He dug into his sandwich.

"I'll grab ya a Coke," Shane said and walked back behind the bar.

"I'm glad you came by today," I said.

"Yeah? Why's that?" he asked.

Just then, in came Zak, of all people.

"I just wanted to see you," I said, nice and loud, and I grabbed Max's hand. Shane was watching all of this, taking it all in.

"I wanted to see you, too," Max said and gave my hand a squeeze.

I leaned in and kissed him. Zak walked right up to our table and cleared his throat.

I gave him an annoyed look. So did Max.

"What, Zak?" I said.

"This is Zak?" Max asked.

"Zak, Max. Max, Zak." I said.

"Um, can I see you for a minute—over there?" Zak asked me and pointed towards the restrooms.

"All right," I said and got up and went over with Zak.

"New guy, huh?" Zak asked. He leaned in and kissed my cheek before I could stop him.

"What do you want? Where's Zena?"

"Zeva. We broke up. And I lost my job."

"So sorry. Why are you here, Zak?" I asked, arms across my chest.

"I was just wondering if maybe we can get back together... give it another shot." Zak was grinning and nodding his head, like it was a done deal.

My jaw dropped. I was speechless. I looked over just in time to see Max leaving the shop.

Chapter Eleven

Max

So. Zak was back in the picture.

I was walking back to work after lunch and I couldn't stop thinking about what just happened. Sam was crazy about Zak. He totally broke her heart. I felt I should step aside and let her get him back... I had no claim on her. I had no rights to her. We were free to date others... right? What I really wanted to do was punch the guy right in the face.

I got back to the office and dove back into my inbox. Tons of copies had to be made, contracts had to be ready... I buried myself in work.

Around three I finally got the things done that had to be done, so I locked up and headed home.

Back at the apartment, I let myself in and grabbed a beer from the fridge. I grabbed my cell. I started typing a text to Sam, then decided against it and aborted the message.

Damn it. I had no claim on her.

I flopped onto the sofa and turned the TV on. My phone rang and I pulled it out of my pocket. It was Sam.

"Hello?"

"Hey, where'd you go so fast?" she said.

"Well, I thought I should give you your privacy."

"That was just my ex. I wish you would've stayed. I had ten minutes left on my break." Sam sounded cheerful. Maybe I was making too much of it.

"Sorry. I thought maybe you two were... you know, talking about getting back together." I changed the channels rapidly, not paying any attention to what was on the screen.

"Oh crap. Customer. Yeah, he did say he wants to get back together. I gotta run. Talk soon!" She hung up.

What did that mean? Did she want to? Why am I thinking about this so much? God... I knew I must've been falling for her. I needed to run in the other direction. This was not supposed to happen.

Chapter Twelve

Sam

Taylor Swift was singing "Fearless" on my iPod. Stinking Zak. I was enjoying my lunch with Max and in walks Zak. Perfect timing as always.

I'd worked until seven and came home pooped. Listening to the old iPod helped me relax. I had my headphones on in the tub just like Julia Roberts in "Pretty Woman". The bubbles were fading and I was pruning but I wasn't ready to get out yet.

Shane had confronted me at the end of shift. He accused me of kissing his brother just because Zak was there. Huh. The nerve.

Wait. Maybe I did. Oh my God, did I? I think maybe I did.

Agh!

Why were men and relationships so hard? That was why I was supposed to be with Max; so I didn't have to deal with that crap. So I decided I wasn't gonna. I was gonna enjoy it while it lasted and worry about what came later... later.

May was here and flowers were in bloom all around the Tuckers' house. Dana spent her spare time elbow-deep in dirt and Miracle Gro. You could really tell. The flower beds never looked better.

Derrick had phoned me again and left this long convoluted message about how he was beginning to think I was avoiding him. Duh. Maybe the boy was smarter than I thought.

As I was driving into work I was thinking about how I hadn't heard from Max in a couple weeks. I caught myself jumping when my phone would ring, hoping it was him. I could call him, but I just didn't trust myself. I just wanted to get through this agreement with him, with my heart and mind intact, then we could see what could happen next.

What would happen next?

My phone rang. I tried not to run up a tree as I grabbed it and answered it.

"Hello?"

"Sam? It's Max."

"Oh," I said, then giggled. I looked at myself in the mirror and mentally told myself what a retard I was.

"Whatcha doin?"

"I'm driving to work. What are you doing?" I said, trying not to be too excited.

"I got invited to another wedding, one of the lawyers here. Can you be my date?"

"Oh. Yeah, I'm sure I can. When?" He gave me the details of the Stone Mountain venue the weekend after next.

Stone Mountain was a popular tourist attraction and local hang out. The mountain has the world's largest relief sculpture, sporting the figures of Confederate President Jefferson Davis, Generals Robert E. Lee and Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson. I had hiked up it once myself and rode the sky-lift down. There was lots of beautiful scenery at the park and places to eat, games and all kinds of things. They featured outdoor laser shows at night that everyone should see once in their lifetime. (Of course, you had to brave Georgia's giant summer mosquitoes, but it's usually worth it and no one I knew had lost so much blood they needed a transfusion yet.) This would be the first wedding I would attend there, though.

I mentally marked my calendar for the third Saturday in May so I could make sure and arrange to be off that day.

When I got to work I said hey to Shane—who seemed to still be angry with me.

"Shane, I thought about what you said and you're right. I did kiss Max that day... because Zak was there. I'm sorry. It was stupid and manipulative and I'm ashamed of myself. Forgive me?"

"Sure, I do. You ought to apologize to Max though."

"To Max? Really?" I asked, scrunching up my nose. "He doesn't know."

"I know. You should tell him."

Dang Shane. He was right.

Around six I hugged Dana as she came in to work the evening shift. I passed her my apron that I had managed to keep from getting too yucky.

"How are you, Sam? We haven't talked in ages."

"Good. Just same old, you know."

"How are you doing with Max?" She gave me a look.

"We're doing... fine," I finally said.

"What? Don't tell me you've fallen for him already." She winked.

"No!" I said a little too quickly. Shane came out from the back and I gave Dana a look that said "Not now!" and nodded my head towards Shane. She got my meaning and shut-up.

"Hey, Sam. Max is picking me up. Ya want to go outside and kiss him?" Shane said.

I looked over at him to see if he was joking or what. He had a big grin on his face.

"What if I did?" I said and threw a dirty hand towel at him.

Just then Max walked in. I got all nervous all of the sudden. Shane noticed and shook his head and laughed.

"Hey, Max. Do you care if Sam comes with us to dinner? She has something to say to you," Shane blurted out.

I wanted to crawl under the coffee bar. "What? No, really. You two go out together, have your brother time. I'll just..."

"Please come," Max said and grabbed my hand.

My heart was beating so loud I was sure Shane would hear and tease me about that, too.

"Okay, I guess. I'm not dressed fancy and I smell like coffee," I said.

"No problem. So does Shane," Max said, pointing a thumb towards his brother.

We went to Del Rio's Mexican Restaurant. It was casual and crowded with people having a good time. We took a booth towards the back of the bar area.

We placed our drink orders then Max said to me, "So, you have something to tell me?"

"Nope. Ship-shape. I'm good," I said. Shane stomped my foot under the table. "OW! Okay, okay, yes I do have something to say to you."

"I'm listening."

"Remember that day you came by at lunch... that Saturday and Zak was there?"

"How could I forget?" Max said, oozing with sarcasm.

"Well, I think I sorta maybe kissed you because I saw him coming in the door."

"You did?" he said and chuckled. "That's okay. I kinda put my arm around you at Rodney's wedding because Monica was there. We can call it even." He smiled.

I melted. What a guy. "Thanks. Wait," I said, eyebrows bunching together. "You did?"

"Yeah. Not that I didn't want to... or anything..." he said—flustered.

"Okay then," I said. "Let's just forget it. Put it all behind us."

"So," he said.

"So," Shane said.

"So," I said.

"So are you back with Zak? I've been meaning to ask you..." Max took a sip of beer.

"What? Me and Zak? No! No way, he just asked me to get back together but I... wasn't up for it. Did you think we...?"

"No, no I just wondered, I mean, I don't care or anything," Max said.

Shane rolled his eyes and took a big swig of his Coke.

"Oh. You wouldn't care if I got back together with Zak?" I said, feeling irritated as my tacos came to the table.

"Nah, I mean, whatever you want. It's your life."

"Oh," I said. "Fine." I angrily bit into my taco and half the meat spilled out, some on my plate, some on my lap.

Shane laughed and pointed.

"Not helpful, you!" I yelled as I dabbed at my taco meat mess.

"What is up with you guys? Why don't you just... date each other already?" Shane said.

Max and I looked across the table at each other, saying nothing.

Finally Max said, "It isn't that simple. Sam and I have an agreement."

I nodded. "Yeah. What he said."

"Man, you guys could screw up a free lunch," Shane said, then devoured his meal. Conversation was light and a little awkward after that.

I got in my car and drove home to the Tuckers' house. When I got there I saw Regan's car in the drive. Regan, Dana and Rob were on the back patio by the pool, chatting and having iced teas.

"Hey!" I said and hugged everyone. I grabbed a can of Sprite out of the fridge and joined them again.

"We were just all talking about you," Dana said. Rob grunted in agreement.

"So, do tell. What is the latest in the saga?" Regan winked at me.

"Good grief," I said. "Don't you guys watch soaps on TV or something? Do you have to follow my life so closely?"

"It's the best soap in town!" Regan said.

I told them about my dinner with Shane and Max. They all laughed and looked at each other like I was the only one who didn't get some private joke.

Great.

"I know you're all thinking what Shane said... why don't we just give it up and date each other... right? Is that what you're thinking?"

They all looked at each other and nodded. "Um, yeah. We all know you two are crazy about each other. Obviously Shane knows, too. Why don't you two get it?" Dana asked.

"Hey, we have until October first. And I do like him, but a relationship is not what I'm after. Men are just... trouble."

"Don't I know it," Dana said, and Rob pinched her arm playfully. "But I'm thinking you two already care about each other anyway. May as well go for it."

"Yeah. We all knew you'd fall for him, Sam. I said so in the beginning, didn't I?" Regan chimed in.

"Oh—my—God!" I said, angry. "You guys! We have five months to go, and I have not fallen for anything... or anyone."

They all rolled around laughing it up like a bunch of hyenas.

"I'm going to my room!" I said and stormed off. They got real quiet, then busted out laughing again.

Fine. I'd show them. I'd show everyone.

Chapter Thirteen

Max

The day of my boss's wedding finally came. His name is Brent and he's a very smart guy. He reminded me instantly of Bill Gates. His wife-to-be was plump and pretty and very happy. I was happy for them.

The wedding was beautiful. There must've been over a hundred people in attendance.

At the reception Sam and I found ourselves huddled over a couple of chicken breasts. We caught eyes over our plates and tried to grin with full mouths. I couldn't help but think about what my wedding day would be like. Would I ever be the one up there, the groom? Did I even really want to be? I have heard it said that when it is the right person, anyone and everyone will want to get married.

Sam put down her fork and took a sip from her water glass. She was so beautiful, that was the problem... and totally unaware of her beauty, which made her all the more attractive. Could I be with her? Could I marry her? I caught myself thinking these things and nearly choked.

"You okay?" Sam asked, concern etching her face.

"Um, yeah." I cleared my throat. "Your beauty suddenly and unexpectedly overwhelmed me," I said only half-joking.

"You charmer. Really though. Whatcha thinking about?"

"Just... thinking about how many weddings I've been to."

"Me, too. Always a bridesmaid or guest, never a bride. I'm still young though," Sam said. "The whole idea of me being up there, everyone staring at me, it intimidates me a little."

"You'd make a beautiful bride," I said, then felt funny about it and suddenly picked up my fork and started playing with my Brussels sprouts. Katie Herzig's "Forevermore" blasted from the speakers. It only made me think more about weddings.

"How about you? Do you want to get married some day?"

I gulped. I chewed. I took a drink of my water. "Well, I never really thought about it that much... until recently."

"Really? And why is that?" Sam asked.

I broke out in a cold sweat. I shrugged. "I dunno."

Just then Brent—the groom—came and asked Sam to dance.

Whew.

Chapter Fourteen

Sam

Another wedding. Max was so cute and sweet. He got so nervous when I asked him if he ever wanted to get married. You'd think I had just popped the question myself.

It was Monday and I was at work sweeping up espresso grounds behind the bar, contemplating my life. Dana and Rob were in the back looking over the books and Shane was cleaning tables.

It was almost June and we were nearing nine months into our pact. It wouldn't be long before it was over. It was so obvious to everyone including me and Max that we were developing feelings for each other, but I had to laugh at the thought that we were both so stubborn. Neither of us wanted to be the one to bring up breaking the pact. We've come this far, so let's just wait it out I thought.

I looked up and saw Monica, Max's ex, coming into the shop with a couple of girlfriends. They all plopped down around a table, gushing about shopping and cell phones and guys.

Great. Where was Shane? He could wait on them.

He was outside emptying trash cans. Damn the torpedoes.

I walked over and said hello and Monica acted as if she didn't recognize me at first... maybe she didn't.

"Oh! Hey! It's you! Max's new girl," she said. She sounded as though she was trying hard to be nice but couldn't quite manage it. "Girls, this is... what is your name again?"

"Sam, I'm Sam. Max and I aren't really..."

"Sam! Her name is Sam. I knew it was some guy's name," she said and nudged a friend next to her.

I tried not to roll my eyes and asked, "What can I get you ladies today?"

The friend on Monica's right said, "I want a small, half-caf, sugar-free mocha with whip."

The friend on the left said, "I just want an iced tea, please."

Monica said, "H-m-m-m. What's the most amazing drink you have? I want something sweet, but not-too-sweet. No sugar and no caffeine."

"How about one of our sugar-free frozen tea drinks? We have some without caf—"

"No, no. That won't do. How about a non-fat frozen coffee drink with low-fat whip? I'll take one of those, and give me a double shot of espresso. I'm going to take it over to Max. He likes a little pick me up now and again." She grinned wickedly and winked at her friends.

"Sure thing," I said between gritted teeth. I went and gave Shane the order and asked him to make and deliver them, then I went into the back office where Dana and Rob chatted over their laptops.

"Hey, sweetie. What's up?" Rob asked.

"Max's ex is in the house," I said, making a face.

"Really?!" They both said, jumping up and peeking out. "Which one?" Rob asked.

I looked over their shoulders and saw Shane chatting Monica up, doing his friendly barista bit and handing her a napkin. "That one, Shane is talking to her now."

"Pretty," Rob said, and Dana and I smacked him at the same time.

"Ouch! What?" he said, clueless.

"Feeling a tad jealous, hon?" Dana asked.

"Monica is a pain in the —"

"Now, now, no need to be catty," Rob said.

"She is not a nice girl, that's all I'm saying. She used Max and now that she thinks he has moved on, she is back nosing around."

"So, go mark your territory. Men do that stuff all the time. Go right up and tell her to step off." Rob raised an eyebrow.

"What? Me? I couldn't," I said, wishing I had the nerve. I walked back out to the bar area and Shane finished up making their drinks and took them over to the gals. Everyone said thank you except for Monica. She just rolled her eyes at Shane and tasted her drink, grimacing as if it wasn't exactly what she had asked for.

"Where's the double-shot to go?" She asked, looking over at me.

"On its way," Shane said and headed back over to the bar. "She's a piece of work isn't she?" Shane said.

"No argument from me," I said. Shane pulled the shots and put them into a to-go cup. "Here, let me," I said, and took the cup from Shane's hand.

I walked over and handed the cup to Monica with a huge forced smile. "Here ya go. Max's espresso is all ready to go. Be sure and give him my love and tell him I'll see him in a little while," I said, dripping with compassion and grace.

Monica's face went red. She jerked up her drinks and stormed out, her gaggle of friends running close behind to catch up.

"What did you say to her?" Shane asked, coming out of the office. "She looked like she was at a loss for words."

"Not much. I will admit I didn't like the fact that she is buying him espresso and toodling off to take it to him."

"Jealous. I knew it," Shane said, dipping his hand down low and behind him and getting two low-five slaps from Dana and Rob.

"You guys!" I whined, then pulled myself a double-shot.

Chapter Fifteen

Max

Monica just brought me espresso from Sam's shop. What is wrong with this picture? I was getting the sinking feeling I was going to have to lay some things down for Monica and set her straight. She was so obvious in her plotting and manipulation. A few months ago, she probably could've wheedled herself back into my life, but not now. Not when I'd seen the difference between her and Sam.

Monica was shallow, selfish, ignored me when we were together, had no sense of humor and got depressed if every man within two hundred yards wasn't staring at her.

Sam is... well, she is Sam. Unconcerned with what others think, fun to be around, kind, genuine... I could go on and on.

Ow! Janie. "Do you HAVE to do that?" I asked her.

"Pummeling you with files seems to be the only way to get your attention these days."

"Sorry, I suppose I am a little distracted today." I thought about tossing out the espresso Monica had brought me then thought better of it, downing it in a couple of swallows. Wasting espresso was a sin, after all. Janie and I got back to work.

After work I drove by the coffee house and noticed Sam's Mini was no longer out front. She'd no doubt left for the day. I thought about our pact and began to get flustered. My mind wandered.

Monica had gotten all flirty and girlie when she dropped off the espresso. I hadn't seen her like that in so long... since the earliest days of our relationship.

Why were women so danged confusing? They were always so perfect in the beginning then—at least in my experience—three to six months into the relationship the gloves and the masks came off and I'd find out there was a shrew hiding underneath it all. They would get demanding and naggy and the games would begin. This would happen every time in my past, in every relationship.

I'd known Sam for nine months and I still liked her. But were we in a relationship? What kind of relationship was it? I knew the answer. I was becoming really good friends with Sam. I was becoming attached to her but at the same time, I felt like I really knew the real Samantha. I could be totally fooled, but since we supposedly weren't boyfriend and girlfriend, I felt like she wasn't wearing any masks. I felt like I was getting to know the real Sam; fears and hang-ups and all.

In my reverie I'd driven home on auto-pilot. I got out of my car and went up to the door, lost in thought. There was a note on my door. Maybe Sam had stopped by.

Nope. It was from Monica. She had written "Call me." Yeah, that was gonna happen. Maybe I should call her and tell her to back off. Unfortunately with Monica, any contact tended to be viewed by her as a positive sign. I let out a huge sigh and went inside.

Just as I opened a beer and plopped down onto the sofa, my cell rang. It was Sam. Good.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Max! What's up?" I couldn't stop a grin from spreading across my face.

"Not too much. Did you see Monica today?"

"Yeah, she brought me espresso... I guess you know that."

"Yeah. I don't think she likes me very much," Sam said.

I laughed. "Don't be losing any sleep over that."

"No, I won't. Hey, I'm bored. Wanna come hang out and watch a DVD or something?"

"Absolutely. Want me to bring some pizza?"

"Sure, whatever. See ya in a bit."

Going to see Sam. Why did I feel so giddy? Did I just think the word "giddy?" Man... I was hopeless. I'm not sure I cared, either.

Chapter Sixteen

Sam

Max was coming over for pizza and a DVD. I was in the mood for a classic movie so I dug through Dana's stash and found "The Wedding Singer". Okay so a new classic. Max was sensitive enough for that kind of flick.

I was beginning to realize that I really and truly enjoyed spending time with him, and I was getting tired of arguing with myself about it. He was becoming my new BFF. But I didn't want him to be JUST a BFF... did I?

Paramore belted out "My Heart" on my iPod as I waited for Max to arrive. Uh-oh. I was singing along with love songs and thinking about Max. Gulp. Just three more months! I can DO this! Just friends, just friends, just friends...

The doorbell rang and I fell off the couch. Once I was upright again, I ran to the door, then stopped and composed myself. Rob and Dana were out at a concert or some such downtown and wouldn't return for hours. Just us... alone.

I opened the door and smiled. My heart skipped a little. Crap!

Max smiled and handed me a pizza box. Mellow Mushroom! For me, pizza had to come from Mellow Mushroom or Buckhead Pizza or it just wasn't worth messing with. See how well he knew me?

He came in and I grabbed us some plates and napkins and we parked in front of the TV.

We ate and occasionally said a few words to each other, but mostly just watched the movie. Adam Sandler as a good, sweet guy really got to me. I loved this movie.

Afterwards I turned the TV off and we kind of turned towards each other on the sofa. I grabbed a brown, velvety throw pillow and squished it against me. "So, what'd ya think? Had you seen that before?" I asked.

"I sort of watched it once, but this was the first time I really watched it all the way through. It was good. I liked it."

Silence.

"Ya want anything else to eat?" I gestured towards the kitchen. "We have fruit and lots of other junk."

"No, I'm good, thanks."

Silence.

"Sam." Max finally broke the ice. "Can I be honest with you?"

"Please, of course."

"I um, really, really want to kiss you. Would you mind?"

I cracked up. "Hold that thought." I jumped up and ran over to the mirror in the hallway and did a quick tooth check, ran back and sat down, closer to Max this time, grinning hugely.

He leaned in slowly. I felt my heart zooming at a thousand miles an hour inside my chest, my head, my everything. He kissed me slowly and gently. My world stopped. The kiss grew in intensity and I actually felt my eyes welling up. Oh God, what an idiot. I can't cry! Not now! I willed the tears to go back inside. That was only mildly successful. We continued kissing and I hoped fervently Max wouldn't notice.

Max began to touch my face as he kissed me and I got anxious because I knew... and then it happened. A tear rolled down and he wiped it off with his thumb. Damn.

He pulled back and looked at me, concern on his kind face. "Are you okay, Sam? What is it? What's wrong?"

I jumped up and walked over towards the kitchen, feeling like such an ass. What was wrong with me? I really could screw anything up; even the most beautiful of moments.

Max walked over and forced me turn and look at him. I hiccupped loudly, still feeling stupid. "What? Did I do something? Please just... tell me."

"I, I just..." I started bawling, full-out, like a three-year-old.

Max held me and just let me cry for a few minutes. I grabbed a tissue off the counter and blew my nose loudly. Twice.

"Max, I don't even know what is wrong with me. I just feel a little... overcome."

"Are you upset with me? Did I do something?"

"No, no, not at all. Well, if you did something, it was all good and right and just perfect." I peeked up slowly, wondering if his feelings would show in his face. He looked a little perplexed.

"Max, could we just sit for a little while and could you just hold me? I know that sounds... ridiculous," I said.

"Yes, and no it doesn't." We walked back over to the sofa and snuggled up. He had his arms around me and I had my head on his chest and we just sat there and it was the best, most wonderful, breath-taking moment. I hoped he didn't speak because then he might expect me to say something and I was beyond the capacity for words. I wasn't sure what I was feeling and I knew I had a lot of residual mess that was likely pouring out of me; my pain from my hard up-bringing, my relationship with Zak, every bad, hard thing that had ever happened to me... it was all surfacing. But Max holding me felt cleansing; cathartic.

Suddenly I woke up with a start, not sure where I was for a moment. I had drooled all over the front of Max's shirt... e-e-e-w. Max? Why is Max here? Omigosh! I sat straight up and startled Max awake.

"Hunh?" He mumbled. He looked so cute with his hair all smashed into the side of his face. Captain Bedhead.

"What time is it?" I grabbed his watch at the same time I noticed it was light outside. "Eight? A.M.?"

"Guess we passed out, huh?" Max yawned and stretched and I loved him. Yikes, I loved him? Really?

"Sorry, Sam! I've got to fly and get home and shower and change for work," he said, jumping up and grabbing his keys off the coffee table. I felt awkward and didn't know what to do with my hands and wondered if my bed-head was as bad as his. He leaned in and gave me a quick kiss on the head, then flew out the door.

"Bye," I said and waved at the door he'd just gone through. Then I fell over on the brown pillow and cried some more.

Chapter Seventeen

Sam again

August first came finally. Summer was a killer, the heat rising over a hundred on many days.

I'd just returned from Lake Lanier with Kaitlyn and Regan on my day off, and my cell rang. I had purposely stayed away from Max over the last few weeks, making excuses every time he'd call me.

Looking at the screen of my cell, I saw it was Max and decided to pick it up. "Hey," I said, master of conversation that I am.

"Hey, Sam. Where ya been? Haven't answered my calls lately. Are you upset with me?"

How could I tell him that it was so opposite of that? How could I tell him that I was avoiding him because I knew I was falling for him and it was the last thing I wanted for my life?

"No, no I am definitely not upset with you. I guess I've just needed some time with my friends," I said, feeling how lame it must sound.

Max was very quiet then said, "Okay. I'm going out with some friends tonight myself. Call me... when you feel up to it." He hung up.

I knew I was hurting him but felt like I had to. I just had to stop this thing before it got out of hand. What I needed was time alone. What I needed was time to figure out who I was and concentrate on my career and... oh hell, who was I fooling? I knew I was falling hard for Max. I figured I was just biding my time until October first and then, if I hadn't pushed him completely away by then, I'd no doubt declare my undying love for him.

A smile spread across my face. It felt good to finally admit it, if only to myself.

How to get past all of these fears though? If I fell for Max, if I really let myself totally love him, the potential pain was enormous when it all came crashing down. Notice I said "when," not if. I really needed some help.

Chapter Eighteen

Max

Janie, Carlos and a few other work friends asked me out to a club and I figured, what-the-heck? I called my buddy Rodney to see if he wanted to come but he said his wife wouldn't let him out. That's the second time that had happened since they married. What was up with that? Was he in jail?

I had nothing else to do on a Saturday night. Sam obviously was blowing me off, at least for now.

Carlos picked me up and we met everyone at the club around nine. It still seemed early. People were just starting to arrive. I kept asking myself why I'd come. Clubs were SO not me these days.

Eventually our whole office gang had arrived and we grouped around a huge table and ordered a few pitchers of beer and margaritas. They were playing good music, so I actually found that I was enjoying just sitting around chatting and hanging out. No one in our group seemed real interested in "hooking up"—though Janie did have three guys ask her to dance. One of which she said yes to.

I suddenly heard a voice I recognized and turned slowly to my left. There was a table of girls talking and laughing loudly, as if to draw attention to themselves. Egads. Monica was one of them. I slowly sank down in my chair. Carlos noticed.

"What's up, dude?" he asked. "You hiding?"

"Yeah... Monica and friends at nine o'clock," I said, trying hard to be invisible.

"Oh, dude. I get it. Uh-oh, too late. She's spotted you. Here she comes."

"Hey guys!" Monica said, as if we were all the best of old buddies. "Mind if I join you?" Before I could say move-your-ass, she plopped down next to me, bangle bracelets banging against the wood table. "How are you, Max?" she asked. She tossed her hair behind her in that way she had. Her perfume wafted over me like a cloud.

"I'm good. You?" I said, not really caring. I poured myself another beer.

"I'm great. Where's Sam tonight?" she said, barely disguising a sneer.

"Dunno. Not here," I said.

"Oh, too bad. So how is that pact thing going with you guys?"

"You know about that?" I asked.

"Yeah, I wormed it out of your brother, but he says you and she are... close."

"You could say that, I guess." My mind was so fuzzy from too many beers and I couldn't quite concentrate. Somewhere in the back of my head, a voice screamed, "Danger, Will Robinson! Danger! This woman means you harm!" I couldn't quite figure it out though. Honestly, for the first time in a long time, I kind of wanted to get toasted and not think about Sam. It was really bugging me that she seemed to be blowing me off. I mean, what was not to love? "Sam and me... the pact, yeah," I said, then burped loudly. "I'll be glad when that pact is over. Nothing but trouble," I said out loud.

"Yeah? Me, too, babe. Listen, I want you to think about something," she said, leaning in so close to my ear that I could feel her lips and warm breath, "once that's over, you call me. I can make you happy again. I did once, and I will again." She kissed me on the cheek, then got up and went back to her table.

"Dude." Carlos was sitting there staring at me with his eyebrows raised.

"Whu?" I managed to get out.

"What did she say?"

"Oh, you know Monica. Trying to get back together as usual."

"She had a look on her face... a satisfied look. Why would that be?"

"No telling with her. She's convinced herself of something no doubt. Confidence is one thing she does not lack."

"I'm gonna go dance with her friend... the one in the tight blue skirt and legs up to her ears. Then I'll drive you home, okay buddy?" Off he went.

Chapter Nineteen

Sam

Second week in August. Time was going by so slow. I felt I might have to call Max and see him at least once before October, because I didn't know if I could wait that long. Now that I'd admitted to myself that I was crazy about him, it was harder to be away from him.

The bells on the door of the café jangled and I looked up to see Monica and her posse rolling in. Shane was off and I was working alone. Dana was due in at any time. I heard the gals start to chat, loudly.

"Yeah, so then Max said 'I can't wait for that stupid pact to be other with' and then he said she was a lot of trouble and he couldn't wait to be done with her."

I sat down behind the bar, hiding behind the espresso machine. Pact? She had to be talking about Max... and me. My chest hurt. That was totally planned and on purpose. Would he really say that? Desperate as Monica was, I couldn't imagine she would just totally make up lies like that. Max could so easily deny it and I would believe him, unless... unless he really said it.

Was he really tired of me? I had been kind of ignoring him lately, probably treating him badly in his eyes. Maybe he'd grown tired of it. Maybe he'd written me off as just another failed relationship with a woman; a failed experiment.

Oh my gosh, I'd really done it now. I'd pushed him too far. Me and my careful self-protecting ways, my confusion, my pain... I'd let it be all about me and now I'd lost him. I'd lost Max.

I heard the bells jangle again and peeked around to see that they had left. She had dropped her bomb—mission accomplished—then left. A tear escaped and slid down my cheek.

Someone came in the back door. It was Dana. I removed my apron and ran out the back door, brushing past her, trying hard not to cry, barely trusting myself to speak. I called out behind me, "Bye! See you at home later!" and I jumped in my car and headed home.

In the car I couldn't keep the tears from coming. Max couldn't wait for the pact to be over... well then it would be over. It would be over that night. But how should I do it? I'll send him a text. I can't talk to him right now, I just can't.

As soon as I got home and up to my room, I fell on the bed and hugged my pillow and cried, angry with myself... so angry. I grabbed my cell and texted to Max.

Game over, I lose. I've met someone else. I am breaking the pact. You're off the hook. Drop off your laundry anytime.

I hesitated, then hit send. I cried and hurt and felt like a knife was going through my gut. Eventually, I cried myself to sleep.

Much later I woke up to my phone vibrating on my ear... I'd fallen asleep on top of it. I looked down and saw a message from Max. I didn't want to look at it but I had to know what it said.

I'm sorry this didn't work out the way we had hoped. Take care of yourself. Forget the laundry.

I closed my phone and cried some more.

Around seven the next morning I heard a tap at my door. It was Dana. "Come in!"

"Hey, you ran out pretty quickly last night and then when I came to check on you after work, you were asleep. Everything okay?" She seemed to notice my blotchy face all of the sudden. "Have you been crying?"

I looked up at her and burst into tears again. I knew I'd been doing way too much crying but felt hopeless and helpless to stop it.

She ran over and sat on the bed and held me and just let me cry.

Around ten I finally ventured downstairs for a cup of coffee. I hadn't told Dana anything really but she had rightly deduced that it had something to do with Max. She knew I'd talk to her more when I was up to it.

I called Regan and she and Chaz (her roommate) were on their way to pick me up. They insisted on taking me out and hearing the whole story. I tried to get out of it, but Regan alone was hard to say no to; combined with Chaz—impossible.

I slurped down my coffee as I threw my hair up in a pony tail and threw on the first pair of jeans I came across. I looked like hell and I didn't care.

I heard the horn beep on her car and went out and got inside. Chaz had nicely jumped in the back so that I could have the shotgun seat.

"Spill, girl. Now. What'd he do? You wanna go find him right now and demand an explanation?"

"Slow down, Regan, you don't even know what happened yet."

"So... I'm waiting...?"

"His ex apparently overheard him say—or maybe he said to her, that he couldn't wait for our pact to be over and that I was nothing but trouble. So I ended it. I broke the pact."

"What?! First of all, this seems like a bunch of hearsay and from the ex-girlfriend, of all people to believe! Have you spoken to Max?"

"No, just texted. He didn't seem too upset when I broke it off though."

"Sam, if you care about him at all, you need to go and talk to him, in person. No texting, no calling, just go and see him."

"I just can't. You see what a mess I am? I can't face him knowing what he said."

"But what if he didn't say it?"

"Girl," Chaz chimed in, "she's right. You never take the word of an ex-girlfriend. She has an agenda, and it's probably to do just this—get you all upset and split the two of you up."

"What 'us'? There supposedly isn't any us to begin with." I pouted.

We got to an ice cream parlor and got out and went inside. "Order anything you like," Regan said. "On us."

"Tell us the whole story," Regan said, so I did. As we talked, we sat and ate ice cream until we couldn't move.

"Oh, that's just so wrong on so many levels," Chaz said, shaking his head. "The bee-atch."

"So when are you going to talk to him?" Regan said.

"I just can't face him right now. I should have told him how I was feeling to begin with. He probably really is tired of me and I'm sure he really does think I'm trouble."

"But you won't know absolutely for sure what he did say and how he feels unless you talk to him. At least call him. He's worth a little more effort, isn't he?" Regan wiped the chocolate mustache off of her face and patted me on the arm.

"He is worth it, I'm just a chicken. What if I talk to him and find out for sure that he really is done with me? Somehow a little doubt feels better than knowing for sure."

Chaz smacked me on the back of the head. "Love is hard to find. Don't let go of this so easily... trust me on this. Be brave and strong and go and find out for sure how he feels about you."

They dropped me back at home and I kept thinking about their advice. I knew on one level that they were so right, and I did need to talk to Max, but working up my nerve to do it was another matter. He was worth it; the risk. I rubbed my head where Chaz had smacked me... ouch!

Chapter Twenty

Max

Man!

I could not believe this had happened. Out of the blue, Sam just blew me off. I knew she'd been avoiding me like crazy but I didn't know she was contemplating breaking the pact, or worse yet, seeing someone. I wonder who it is? I hope she didn't get back with that loser Zak. She was way too good for him.

It was a Saturday in late August and it had been a couple of weeks since I got that text from Sam. I needed to go see her, but I didn't want to be that weird stalker guy who can't let go. I miss her so much. What happened? Exactly what in the hell happened?

It was Monday lunchtime and Janie and Carlos were trying to cheer me up.

"So what happened again?" Carlos asked.

"She just broke it off. She broke the pact. Said there was someone else."

"What'd you do? Because that girl was so totally into you. You must've done or said something..." Janie finished off her sandwich and looked glum on my behalf.

"I didn't do anything. Maybe that's the problem."

"Have you spoken to her at all? What was the last conversation you had with her like?" Janie wondered.

"We haven't really talked since that night... the night she cried on my shoulder and fell asleep on me over at her house."

"Whoa. Heavy. Maybe she just got cold feet?" Carlos wondered.

"The last conversation I had with any female whatsoever must've been that night at the club when Monica came up..."

"Monica. I wonder," said Carlos. His eyebrows were scrunched up in thought. "I danced with one of Monica's friends that night. She talked like Monica was still very into you; almost sounded like you were a free agent already. But Sam hadn't broken the pact yet... that night..." His eyebrows shot up and we could all see the light bulb pop up above his head.

"What?" Janie and I asked in unison.

"That night, when Monica came over, repeat to me exactly what you said to her, I mean exactly."

"I dunno, something about how I couldn't wait for the pact to be over... oh crap. And I said that it was nothing but trouble." I slammed my hand down on the table so hard that both Carlos and Janie jumped. "Monica has something to do with this, doesn't she?"

"Yeah, dude. I think you're onto something. Find Monica and get her to confess what she's been up to."

"That's the plan. Right after work, I'll go to Monica's... no, I don't want to go there, I'll meet her somewhere. I'll get the story outta her." I went back to work with renewed enthusiasm, feeling like I had a plan at least—a way to figure out what in the world had gone wrong.

After work I got out my cell and asked Monica if she would meet me at Del Rio's restaurant. I wasn't leaving there until I had the full story.

Chapter Twenty-One

Sam

Monday evening came and I had been off all day, nothing to do but pout and whine. I was mustering up my nerve to go and see Max when the doorbell rang. I saw through the front window that it was Shane. I opened the door and invited him in.

"Hey, Sam. Can we talk for a minute?"

"Sure. What's up?"

"I don't know what's going on with you and my brother, but he is miserable. What happened?"

We sat on the sofa and I turned toward Shane. "I did it, I broke the pact."

"Why? Are you back with Zak?"

"God, no. I'm not seeing anyone. I just, well, I overheard that he said something about how desperately miserable he was and how he couldn't wait for it to be over so I put him out of his misery." I explained what I had heard.

"And Monica and her buddies came in, dropped that bomb, then left? That doesn't seem suspicious to you?"

"Well, obviously she wanted me to hear, but that doesn't mean..."

"Sam, we're talking about the most manipulative woman on the planet. She made sure you heard exactly what she wanted you to hear. You can't possibly be breaking off a great potential thing with Max based on her word."

"I was just so hurt when I heard her say that. So devastated. I know I need to confront Max... I was actually thinking of doing that this evening."

"He is crazy about you, Sam, trust me. I've never known him to feel this way about anyone."

"He sure didn't argue much when I broke the pact." I said, pouting like a two-year-old.

"I'm sure he was just trying to give you what you wanted."

I grabbed a throw pillow and buried my face in it and screamed. "Do you really think this could all be a misunderstanding?"

"Doi," Shane said. I reached over and ruffled his hair. "Thanks. I'm gonna go and talk to him. Do you know where he is?"

"I talked to him for just a second a bit ago, he said something about being on his way to Del Rio."

"Thanks. I'll go there now."

Shane left and I fixed my hair a little and put on a tiny bit of make-up; tried to make myself look like I'd done something besides cry for the last week and a half. I grabbed my purse and keys and headed out.

I got to the restaurant and saw Max's BMW. As I was walking up to the door, I saw him through the window and smiled... then I noticed that Monica had just walked up, sat down and reached across and grabbed Max's hand. I stopped.

What was she doing here? Did they have a date? Already? I turned and went and sat in my car for a few minutes. What kind of loser was I? Here I was sitting in the car outside of a restaurant where Max was sitting and talking with his ex. I started my car and went straight to the café to find Dana... I seriously needed a shoulder to cry on... again.

Dana saw me coming in the door and came over and gave me a hug. She had on her standard outfit of jeans and a T-shirt, her hair hanging loose around her shoulders. I told her about my talk with Shane and about mustering up my courage, just to feel let down again. We sat and talked through the whole awful mess.

"Wow, sweetie, I'm so sorry. To hear Shane tell it, Max was and is crazy about you. Are you sure it was a date?" she scrunched up her face in thought.

"Whatever it was, they were there... together. She held his hand. Maybe I just need to bow out gracefully." I could barely speak, my voice was so full of emotion. "Ya know this... right here, this pain I am feeling is exactly what Max and I both vowed to avoid. It was the sole reason for making our pact. There wasn't supposed to be any weirdness, any sexual tension, any jealousy... how did I get myself into this mess?"

Dana, being way too kind to say "I-told-you-so," just held me.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Max

"Monica, I want the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, or so help me God..."

"What are you talking about?" She tried to play innocent.

"You said something to Sam, or in front of Sam, on purpose," I looked down and realized she'd grabbed my hand. I jerked it back.

Monica's face was red and fierce. "Is she whining to you? All I told her was what you told me the other night. You know, that you couldn't wait for the pact to be over with and that it was all nothing but a bunch of trouble for you. And anyway, I was just talking to my friends. I can't help it if she got the wrong..."

"Don't even, Monica. You and I both know you went there to talk so loudly in front of Sam that she would hear you and be hurt by what you said."

"What I said? It was what YOU said!" She was shouting loud enough that we got a few looks from the other customers.

"Monica," I took a deep breath to keep myself from jumping up and screaming at her at the top of my lungs, "there is no more you and me, get it? We are over, forever. Give it up. Stop trying to manipulate me and Sam to your own advantage!"

"Max, why are you being like this? I just love you..."

"You love one person and that's Monica. You wanted nothing to do with me when we were together, you just can't stand seeing me with someone else. It's over, Monica... right here, right now, today. No more calls. I don't want you going near Sam or her café, do you understand?" I got up and stormed out of the restaurant. I was so angry I could hardly keep from punching something or someone.

I hated being so cruel to Monica but it seemed she needed me to be tough in order for her to get the message. I was also angry at myself for saying what I said in the first place so that Monica had something to use against us. Stupid beers. I'd had way too many that night and should've known to keep my bloody mouth shut. I had to get to Sam and explain and apologize. I only hoped I wasn't too late despite her last text and that she hadn't fallen for someone else.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Sam

Wednesday evening and Dana had let me have another day off that week. I was too much of a mess to work. I was just cleaning up the dinner dishes when my phone rang. Derrick. Sheesh.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Sam. What's up?"

"Nothing, Derrick. How are you?"

"I'm good. You wanna do something?"

I sighed heavily. "Derrick, I need to be honest with you. I did sort of get involved with Max, at least emotionally. I don't think things are gonna work out between me and him but I'm still pretty emotional right now and I think I just need to be alone, okay? At least for tonight."

"Oh, okay. I don't mean to pester you. I just liked you that night we met, and hoped that maybe one day we might go out or something."

"Thanks, Derrick. What I need right now are friends. You seemed like a nice person to me, I've just been a little—okay a lot—emotionally unavailable these days. I'm sorry."

"No problem. Friends it is. If you ever want to hang out as friends, maybe get a guy's point of view on things, I'm here for ya, otherwise I'll let you make the next move."

"Thanks, that means a lot to me right now."

We hung up. He seemed like a decent guy after all, just really bad timing.

The doorbell rang and my heart jumped into my throat when I saw it was Max. I felt actual fear gripping me. I had some serious issues I needed to deal with. I knew I was so afraid of being hurt that I was beginning to close myself off emotionally. Max had gotten in there, but that too was scary for me. I walked to the door with a tangled up mix of emotions.

"Hi." I said.

"Sam, I need a few minutes of your time. Can I come in?" I let him in and we sat on the sofa. I had flashbacks of making out with him and my cheeks turned red.

"I finally figured out what Monica did, what she said, and I just wanted to apologize. I did say that I couldn't wait for the pact to be over, but I didn't say, or at least I didn't mean that YOU were trouble, I just meant..."

"It's okay, Max really. No biggie."

"No, it is a biggie. It caused you to break the pact."

"You and I both know the pact was just a silly little thing we came up with on the spur-of-the-moment... It was stupid."

"Still," Max said, "I would've liked to follow things through and... see what happened." He gulped and looked over at me.

"Max, even before that happened, I was playing games, I admit it. I couldn't make up my mind how I felt about you so I thought it'd be best to stay away for a while."

"I see. Did you ever figure it out?" he asked with a grin.

"No, not really. Part of me wants to grab you right now and never let go, but the truth is... the truth is, I need to figure myself out a little. I don't want to go through the rest of my life hurting others or being hurt myself."

Max looked down at his feet awkwardly.

This entire thing was so much more awkward than I had imagined it would be. I wanted him to come see me and now that he was here I froze up and didn't know what to do.

"Max, I'm really struggling right now, to figure out who I am and what I want, and I feel like I have a tendency to fall too hard and too fast and get myself hurt, time and time again. I don't know really what I'm trying to say." A lone tear slid down my cheek and I swiped at it. I was determined not to break down.

"Sam, I really like you... a lot. I'm glad we got to know each other, and I'm glad we made the pact. Because otherwise, I wouldn't know you. I do feel like I know the real you, and the real you is... something else. I've had a series of unsuccessful relationships myself and it is so scary."

"Very scary," I interjected.

"But I want you to know that I'm sorry for saying something stupid when I was a little drunk and feeling down that we hadn't seen each other in a while. I was an idiot. Can you forgive me?"

I smiled and reached out for his hand. He took it in both of us his, then we hugged. "Max, I kind of lied to you, I mean now we're being all honest with each other."

"You did? When?"

"When I said in that text that I was seeing someone else. I'm not. I don't know why I said that I guess I thought it'd be the best way to break the pact, if you thought I was seeing someone else. I knew you'd be too much of a gentleman to interfere if you thought I had feelings for someone. Can you forgive me? For lying? It's not something I make a practice of—I was just hurt and confused."

"Of course. There seems to be a lot of hurt and confusion going around." He grinned.

"But," I began.

"Yes?"

"There is a friend, a male friend, who has asked me out a couple of times. I've told him no so far."

Awkward silence.

"Do you like him? Do you want to date him?" Max seemed flustered and upset.

"I've told him what a mess I am right now, and he sort of knows about you... about us."

"What 'us'? Is there anything going on here between us, because I thought there was."

"Max, I really care about you. My friends, Rob, Dana... they were all right when they said this was a mistake and that I'd develop feelings for you. Obviously I have. And that's the last thing I wanted when we entered into this."

"I see. So because you care about me, you don't want to see me anymore? That doesn't make sense." Max wiped a hand down his face.

"I'm not saying no forever, I just need time. Honestly, what I feel for you scares the living daylights out of me."

"Sam, I don't know what to say." Max looked down at his feet for a moment. "I guess I'll go now. Give you time to think." I walked him out and closed the door, then leaned my back against it.

What just happened? Where do we stand now? Where did I want us to stand?

You guessed it, I cried again.

After a good night's sleep I felt marginally better. At least I'd gotten some sort of closure with the whole misunderstanding with Max, but it felt like we had ended things. I wasn't sure how I felt about it because my insides were an un-Godly mess. As painful as it was to think of Max and me just walking away from each other, there was a small part of me that was relieved, because if I never fully let myself love, then I couldn't get hurt. I didn't want to open myself up for total annihilation of the heart again. Of course, the majority of me was sad and disappointed and thought that I should maybe run screaming down the block after his car. A still small voice told me not to, though. I knew I needed to get myself together first. I needed to be healed and whole so that I could pursue a healthy relationship. I needed to find myself and my courage again. I vowed then and there to do just that.

Chapter Twenty-Four

Max

"Sam was great about accepting my apology but we didn't end up all back together as I had hoped." I was having lunch with Shane, Carlos and Janie at our favorite Mexican place. "I think maybe she just needs some time to heal. I think she must have some issues she's dealing with right now. Then again, aren't we all? Baggage."

"Yeah, I think she still isn't totally over feeling abandoned by her parents and then Zak and every other failed relationship she has ever had... it's a lot to sort through." Shane could be pretty deep for an almost twenty-year-old.

"I'm so sorry, sweetie," Janie said and put a hand over mine. "Maybe if you give her some time."

"Time. Yeah. Meanwhile I feel like I'm missing a vital organ."

September rolled in and I was hard at work, up to my elbows in a case involving a man who murdered his wife and hid her under the shed for a year. The lawyers were trying to prove he was not competent to stand trial. At least it took my mind off Sam.

The evenings were the worst; nothing to do and not really wanting to do anything. Most nights I would work late and roll home at about seven, grab a sandwich and hit the sack by nine. I was becoming a workaholic.

Sam needed a little space and time to work through her problems and fears, so I was determined to give it to her. My mom used to always say—if it's meant to be, it will be. That had always seemed a little too passive for me, but maybe she was right. My way had always been to press forward and get things done, make it happen, whether in relationships or at work. Check one thing off the list, then on to the next. It was hyper-efficient. If you knew what you wanted, why wait? I guess that was the issue... Sam didn't know. Not yet anyway.

Time... what a concept. Suddenly it was something I had in abundance.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Sam

Dana was smart. I was beginning to learn just how smart. We had gotten to where we would talk for hours on end when we had time off at the same time. I got the feeling she was trying to mother me a little, but I really didn't mind. It was nice to have someone in my life who cared so much.

One afternoon we got into a particularly deep conversation about men and relationships.

"The thing is, you have to have a home environment that allows both partners to be themselves, completely. Rob, for instance, is a workaholic; always has been. I haven't tried to change him, I just let him do his thing.

"I—on the other hand—could spend hour after hour working in my garden. I love it with a passion. He could complain about the amount of time I spend out there, but he doesn't. He doesn't always offer to help, but he will occasionally. We just... let each other be who we are, ya know? So many times couples get together and try to change the other person. Or, as with you and Zak, after a hard break-up you come to realize that you never really knew each other at all. What you had was a physical attraction and not much else."

"Yeah, for sure. The truth about Zak is, he is shallow. He never thinks beyond the day's needs and wants and rarely thinks of another's feelings."

"Did you know your father at all, Sam?"

"No, I have a vague memory of taillights driving away on a rainy day... that about sums it up."

"And your mom, did she ever have relationships around you?"

"My mom's idea of a relationship consisted of talking a man—any man—into thirty minutes in the sack. There could have been a revolving door, really."

Dana winced. "Yikes. Poor girl. No wonder you're so confused. You don't know what a normal, functioning relationship looks like, do you?"

I had to chuckle. "No, I suppose not. I don't even have any friends who have ever had a relationship last over a year or so. One friend from high school is about to get married. They've been engaged for a couple of years and it seems to be going well. I don't really know a lot of happy couples... besides you and Rob that is."

Dana smiled. "Here's some wisdom to put in your pocket. A long-term relationship is the single hardest thing you'll ever accomplish, and if you do succeed, it will be out of sheer dogged will. Tough times come in all relationships; I do mean all, even ours. But the bottom line is, we truly care about and respect each other and we enjoy each other's company and we're best friends. It's a great foundation to fall back on when the spark seems to fade or we get upset with one another."

"Friendship; what a dating strategy." I smiled and sipped my iced tea.

"Not too popular of one I don't think. In this day of Jerry Springer, people just expect and accept that things will burn out over time. They expect arguments and drama and that's what they get. It seems like people fall out of respect with each other or something."

We both looked at each other and busted out singing "R-E-S-P-E-C-T, find out what it means to me!" then cracked up laughing.

I shared a little more about my childhood with Dana; not something I ever really enjoyed talking about, but I found I really trusted her and she had a way of listening without judgment that I found so refreshing. I told her about one particular weekend of my childhood—I think I was around fourteen at the time—when I counted no less than five men coming through my house, and two of those hit on me on their way out the door, once my mother was asleep.

Love had always been a scary concept to me. Relationships in general were like walking a minefield. I'd basically grown up believing that love was temporary, if it did in fact exist. Maybe there wasn't any such thing as real love; only temporary, fleeting but—for the more fortunate—full of heat and passion. The entire concept of long-term love, real love, was as foreign to me as a Happy Meal to a starving kid in Africa. My whole life I'd hoped to have one or two good, close girlfriends, and date some half-way decent men from time to time. I'd really never considered marriage as a viable option.

I vowed to watch Dana and Rob together and try and learn from them. They were so, so good together and apparently still so in love. I knew better than to think anyone was above the possibility of problems, but these two really had found something... something I wanted for myself.

I went up to bed and put Rod Stewart's "It Had to Be You" album on my iPod and listened to some great old love songs. I fell asleep and dreamt of love; real love, mature love. The man I dreamed of had a face. And I'd wait for him. I'd wait until I was ready for him.

I looked up at the calendar that hung in the office and noted that September was nearly over. Only a few days left. I couldn't believe it had been nearly a year since I'd met Max and we had embarked on our silly little pact. I missed him so, but somehow still didn't think it was time for us yet. I knew that I would know when I was ready to put myself out there again. When it came to Max, I wanted to be sure. I liked him and cared about him too much to move forward if I wasn't absolutely positive that I was ready to give it my all and totally commit.

Friday night came and Regan and Kaitlyn convinced me to go out bowling with them and they warned me that Derrick would be coming, too. I told them it was fine, that he and I had talked things through.

We had a great time and somehow or another, I ended up in Derrick's car as he drove me home.

He parked in the driveway and I invited him in for a soda. We sat and chatted in front of the TV. He asked me about my relationship with Max, but somehow it felt both too special and too complicated to discuss with Derrick, so I changed the subject and we talked about pretty much everything else. He grew up in Texas in a small town and had moved to Atlanta with his parents at eighteen. He'd gone to college here and graduated. He was twenty-four and worked at an accounting firm in the city. He had met Kaitlyn in college, (they had a couple of classes together) and although they didn't make a love connection, they'd become part of the same group of friends. She'd set him up a couple of times, but he'd never connected with anyone before.

"I hoped I could catch your eye," he said. "Bad timing on my part, I guess."

"Sorry about that. I was, well, I'm still kind of a confused blob of mess. I really don't know what I want, but I know I need to do some healing." I smiled up at him and caught him looking at me with a sincere kindness in his eyes. I could tell he really found me attractive... a girl knows these things. He was minding his manners though and hadn't pushed me in any way.

"I enjoy spending time with you, Sam. No pressure." He smiled and I noticed the way it really made it all the way to his eyes and they crinkled around the edges in a charming way. He really was not bad-looking at all. He's no Max, though, my mind said.

Around midnight I began to yawn, unable to control myself. Derrick got the message and got up, heading for the door.

"Derrick, thanks for hanging out with me. It was fun."

"Any time, and I mean that. You're a great gal. I'll call you." I closed the door behind him.

He was a wonderful young man who was obviously very interested in me. A part of my mind wandered down a path where Derrick and I dated, but I was having a little trouble picturing it, mainly because his face kept becoming Max's face. That really irritated me. How had I let Max get so under my skin??

All I knew was, I was determined to get myself figured out; especially whether or not I thought I could handle a real, long-term adult relationship. I could see dating Derrick but I couldn't even imagine him as forever; at least not at this point. Derrick was therefore safer for me to be with. I wasn't too worried about losing my heart and my very self with him.

I went up to bed and thought and thought, unable to shut my mind off. When I finally fell into a restless sleep, I dreamt of Derrick and Max. The two of them were playing Rock, Paper, Scissors.

Chapter Twenty-Six

Max

It was Saturday and I was sitting alone out on my deck, thinking about Sam (like I spent any time thinking of anything else). I had actually tried to forget her, to move on. I sort of "tried on" not loving her, and it didn't fit well at all. It bugged me that I seemed to have no control over loving her—as if I ought to be able to just flip a switch and shut it off. I was doomed to a life of misery or...

Or, I had to get her back. It had been over two weeks since we had spoken and I wondered if that had been enough "time" for her. Probably not. Two weeks was nothing. Not that I begrudged her taking the time she needed. But how was I to know when to make a move again? And what move should it be?

I sat there in horrible limbo, staring at the stars, asking God to send me a sign. I remembered that scene from the Jim Carrey movie "Bruce Almighty" where Bruce plops down in the middle of a busy road and asks for a sign... at least I wasn't in any danger of being hit by a Mack Truck on my deck. Well, I supposed there was a one in a million chance.

I didn't see any shooting stars. Finally I gave up and headed toward my room.

It would take a lot of work, but I'd win her back, and this time, for good.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Sam

I couldn't believe October first was almost here. Tomorrow was the thirtieth; the next day was the first. I didn't know why the date was important to me anymore, now that I had already broken the pact, but I still found myself checking off the days over the last week. I took my black marker and drew a diagonal line across the date since the day was all but over.

I took a hot bubble bath then crawled into bed feeling more peaceful than I had in some time. I wasn't sure why, but I felt pretty happy and pleased with myself. Dana had really helped me process through some junk and I had been feeling so much better emotionally. I had to work from seven a.m. until four the next day so I rolled over and fell off into sleep, seeing Max's face and wondering how it would all come together... if it would.

I called Derrick after work and we went to a movie. I told myself that I couldn't hang out with Max because I was trying to slow down with him, and so Derrick was the natural choice for how to spend my evenings. We laughed and had a great time and I found myself truly enjoying his company. Part of me thought that maybe I could be leading him on, but then I made it a point to let Derrick know how I felt and where I stood at all times, so I just let me be myself be with him.

The next morning I saw a package on the front stoop as I went down for my morning coffee. I went out on the porch and picked up the cardboard box with my name on it. It hadn't been mailed, it just had my name in big blue letters across the top. Scary.

I took it inside and sat it on the dining table and circled around it once, wondering if Monica was capable of leaving a bomb on my porch, or if maybe she'd left me a dead animal like in one of those movies.

I worked up my courage and gently peeled the lid back. It looked like a pile of clothes. There was a note on top.

Sam,

Just to be fair, here is my laundry, or at least the first installment. There will be many, many more to come – Max

I cracked up laughing. I took the box into the laundry room and started washing his work shirts. I did break the pact, after all.

The morning of October first came and I woke up grinning, feeling like there was a whole new world out there and a whole new year for figuring myself out and getting myself ready for a real relationship.

At work, Dana and Rob called me into their office. They looked serious and I got a little scared.

"Sam, you've been such a great employee," Dana began, Rob nodding in agreement, "and so Rob and I wanted to offer you an opportunity."

"You'd be doing us a tremendous favor," Rob chimed in.

"Yes, huge! You see, Rob and I are starting a new business venture downtown, and well, since you've taken to the work here so naturally, we wondered if you might want to, ya know, take over here."

I gulped and sat down in the only empty chair in their over-crowded office. "You want me to take over?"

"I know it's a huge responsibility. You'd manage it all. You'd be responsible for hiring, firing, training, scheduling... the whole nine yards." This from Rob.

"But," Dana said, "it comes with a whopping pay raise. You'd get an annual salary and some pretty amazing benefits, not the least of which is all the free coffee you can handle." They both looked at me with hope in their eyes, sitting on the edge of their seats.

"I... I don't know what to say! First of all, I am so flattered that you'd offer this to me."

"So, what do ya think?" Rob asked, impatient as always. His mind was already on the new business, you could tell. He was practically twitching with excitement and impatience.

"What's the new business going to be?"

"A bar and grill downtown with a stage, karaoke, all kinds of neat stuff." Rob pulled out the plans they'd been going over and showed them to me. It looked wonderful. I was so happy for them.

"Well," I began, and they both grasped a hand of mine, waiting for my answer. "I will think about it for twenty-four hours and give you my final answer, but I kinda think... yes."

They both shouted and jumped up and hugged me. At that moment Shane came in and asked what all of the fuss was about. We told him and he was thrilled. The rest of the day he called me "boss".

That evening I got home exhausted. Despite the fact that I hadn't given them my final answer, the Tuckers had trained me all day, and I had only scratched the surface on all I would need to know.

I kicked off my shoes and ran upstairs for a shower. As I showered I thought about what a true honor it was that the Tuckers trusted me so much. I really felt like part of the family. I knew I'd say yes. They had offered me health insurance that would be covered by the company and a damned good starting salary. There would be a lot of administrative work (which is what I had gone to school for) so that satisfied that part of me, and I could combine that with my love of all things coffee, so it really was the best of both worlds.

I got out of the shower, dressed and dried my hair. When I turned off the hair dryer, I heard a banging on the door. I ran downstairs.

No one was there. I stepped out onto the porch and nearly tripped over a basket; a laundry basket, full of what looked like dirty T-shirts. Next to it was a huge wicker basket full of laundry soaps, dryer sheets, bleach, stain pens and everything one could possibly need for doing laundry. Oh, and a box of chocolates. There was no card, but none necessary. Max had struck again.

I'd been wondering what to do with my evening. Laundry it would be.

As I was folding laundry, Derrick stopped by and brought me a burger.

"Whatcha doing tonight?" he asked.

"Just laundry," I said, showing him the shirt I had in my hand.

"That's a man's dress shirt... doing Rob's laundry?" he joked.

"Actually it's Max's." I reminded him about the pact and the consequences of having broken it.

"Oh," he said, and he got a funny look on his face. "Well, I'm gonna take off. Just wanted to bring you dinner."

"Thanks, really. I hadn't eaten yet." Things felt awkward. I walked him to the door and let out a heavy sigh as I closed it.

Around ten o'clock my cell vibrated. I looked at it and saw a text from Max.

You still up?

I texted him back:

Yes.

The door bell rang and I ran to the door. I opened it and there was a pile of clothes, taller than me... but with legs sticking out from under it. I heard a muffled "little help here..."

I grabbed at the clothes and took as many as I could. Max followed me into the laundry room where we plopped it all into a pile.

I looked up at Max and couldn't keep a stupid big grin off my face.

"Hi," I said.

"Hi, you. I just had to see you today. October first and all." He looked gorgeous. Fresh out of a shower apparently; damp hair, smelling all fresh and musky—like his deodorant—and looking like an angel.

We stood there awkwardly for a moment—it seemed to be the thing to do today—then he chuckled. "I'm gonna go," he said, and turned to leave. I grabbed his arm.

"Max, wait." I kissed him on the cheek. Then I took his hand and said, "I appreciate you giving me the time I need. You're the best." I walked him to the door. "Oh, and just how much more laundry is there?"

He turned and kissed me on the forehead. "I think that's all... for today." He left.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Max

October first was almost over. I got back from Sam's, floating on a cloud. Something turned over inside of me when Sam kissed me... it confirmed how I felt about her.

Let's see, the month of October would be laundry month. I needed to plan for reasons to have to see her some; at least through November, then of course, the holidays. I'd have a party and she'd have to come... January... h-m-m-m. I'd think of something.

By Christmas I had managed to see Sam at least a couple times a month. Our relationship was so odd. I'd never waited for anyone in my life. It was always:

  1. Meet girl I'm attracted to

  2. Ask girl out

  3. Make out

  4. Go out exclusively, and see what happens. Usually entailed sleeping together, but not a lot of talk.

With Sam it was a whole new deal. It really felt like my first "real" relationship ever. I had gotten to know her really well. She was getting to know me. When we were together, we talked about our lives, our families. We talked about what kind of lives we wanted for ourselves long-term; our goals, and all of that. We found we really did have a lot in common.

I wasn't sure exactly what was happening, but it felt like a very good thing.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Sam

As the holidays approached, I seemed to see Derrick more than Max, again, because I felt like I needed time away from Max. Despite my best efforts not to, I was becoming closer and closer to Derrick. He was so easy to be with, sort of like a brother. I'd never had a brother, but thought Derrick would have been a great one for me.

One night, just before Christmas, Derrick had stopped by and we were in the living room by a roaring fire. He'd just made some cornball joke and I laughed. Next thing I knew, he leaned over and kissed me. It was just a short quick kiss, and we both seemed to realize it was happening at the same moment. We pulled away from each other.

"Derrick, I..."

"Wait, Sam, you don't have to say it. I'm sorry, I was out of line. You've made your feelings clear and I shouldn't have kissed you. I just... got caught up in the moment." He stood up and paced.

"I'm so sorry, I wish... I don't know what I wish. I really do like you, Derrick. You're a great guy."

"But. I know all the buts, Sam." He was frustrated and I could hardly blame him.

Derrick looked hurt. "Look, maybe I should just go."

"I'm sorry, Derrick. I just can't go there right now."

"I know, I know. And I won't push you. I'm gonna leave now. I'll call you tomorrow." He looked at me and I just knew. I knew he was in love with me. What had I done? Why hadn't I stopped this from happening?

He turned and left.

Derrick didn't call the next day or the next. I was at a loss as to what to do. I knew I needed to talk to him eventually and I truly missed him. My need for a male friend had over-ridden my common sense and I'd selfishly sat by while he fell in love with me. I should've seen it coming.

Finally the holidays were over. I'd spent New Year's with the Tuckers along with Regan, Kaitlyn, Chaz and Shane. It was fun. Dana and Rob were in the kitchen most of the night making experimental drinks and preparing all of the appetizers that they would serve at their new bar and grill... we were the guinea pigs. Everything was unbelievably wonderful.

Max came by toward the end of the evening. I was still kind of reluctant to spend a lot of time alone with him, but I could feel myself becoming more open and more at ease around him. Max never pressed the issue. I was sure his patience was being tried and I appreciated that he'd continued to make the effort.

Before I knew it, the weather was beginning to turn warmer and I was packing away my winter coats and boots and pulling out the sundresses, tanks, shorts and flip-flops. Part of me was anxious to pursue a relationship with Max, but part of me wasn't sure how to proceed.

I spoke with Derrick a couple of times but things continued to be a little awkward. I continued to apologize and he'd act as though everything was fine between us, but it obviously wasn't.

I'd managed to get myself into a position where two men were waiting on me to get my act together.

It made me think deep thoughts; about monogamous relationships and how I would handle meeting someone new, if I was in a serious relationship. I kind of felt like—if I did give it enough time—I could fall for Derrick. That got me to thinking about the idea of destiny and whether or not there really was just one person for everyone on the planet or if you could make it work with any number of people. Deep thoughts indeed.

Yet, at that very moment, I knew that if I had to choose, it was still Max, hands down. We seemed to have a very unique and wonderful combination of physical attraction and friendship. We had a lot in common and just got along really well. In my experiences in the past (limited though they were) I had found this combination to be quite rare and precious.

One April night, Max and I had just visited the Sonic drive-in for burgers. He walked me to my door.

"Come in," I said, with a sly grin.

"Sure." Max followed me in, looking pleased and we went straight through to the back patio. Rob had just removed the pool cover the day before and had the pool cleaning company out to get it all ready for the season. It looked beautiful with the sun setting across the water.

We sat.

"So, how are you, really?" Max asked.

I thought and grinned. "I'm doing pretty well. I finally feel like I'm processing through some of my baggage. Dana has been such a help."

"That's great."

"Yeah. She is kind of like the mother I never had. And maybe I'm the daughter she never had. Living with her and Rob has been a real eye-opener. It's like I've magically fallen into the household of my dreams. I mean, they occasionally argue and stuff, but they have so much love for each other, it's like they can't stay mad at each other. And they never yell and scream at each other and call each other names. I wasn't sure that was even possible."

Max grabbed my hand. "It's possible. My parents are like that with each other, too. I know these amazing couples are few and far between, but they do exist. I'm so sorry you didn't have that," he said, rubbing his thumb over my hand.

"Thanks. Me, too. But I'm glad I kind of have it in my life now. It helps take away some of my fear of relationships."

"Good. That's really good to hear, Sam. I think... well, I think you'd be great in a relationship. I think you have a truly kind and generous heart. Any man would be so lucky... if you chose him."

"Thanks. I needed to hear that."

Max said goodbye and headed out. After he left I found my mind a-whirl with thoughts on love and marriage. For the first time I could almost picture myself taking that plunge, and with the hope that it would truly be forever.

Chapter Thirty

Max

Sam had mentioned this Derrick person a couple of times. She mentioned they had just hung out on a few occasions, but my mind kept going to a bad place... I kept imagining that—if I tarried too long in my approach—she'd have time to fall madly in love with him, just in time to realize she was well and whole enough for a serious relationship. I just had to nip this thing in the bud, if only for my own peace of mind.

Wouldn't that stink? All this time waiting and planning, just to have some other guy swoop in and win Sam's heart. I'd just die.

I began to put my plans into place. I called Sam's favorite Italian restaurant and talked things through with them. I called Dana on her cell and asked some pertinent questions about some of Sam's favorite things, to fill in the gaps in my knowledge. Sam wouldn't know what hit her.

It was a Friday evening in May, much like many other, except that this was the night... the BIG night; the night I would lay my heart at the feet of the one I loved and hope like hell she didn't crush it.

I had my tux on and the limo was on its way. I'd even (in my nervousness) gone to the local salon and had them tame my wild eyebrow hairs. Dana had reassured me that Sam was home and that she was trying to find a way to convince the love of my life to get dolled up for a fun evening out on the town with her and Rob. She said she'd tell Sam it was a benefit dinner or something and vowed to have her ready on time.

I saw the limo pull up outside and ran out and jumped in the back.

Here goes nothing... or better yet, here goes everything.

Chapter Thirty-One

Sam

Mondays were stinky enough but this one was really a downer. Derrick showed up at my door. I knew I had to talk it out with him.

We went out on the back patio and just sat quietly for a few moments. There was a cloud of emotional tension hanging in the air.

"Derrick, I know—or at least I think I have some idea—of how you feel about me. I care about you, I really do."

"The air is pregnant with a 'but'," he said.

"Yes. But. I'm not saying I could never ever love you, but as we determined months ago, the timing is just off for you and me to pursue a relationship. You're a great guy and one day..."

"And one day I'll meet someone who feels the same way about me. I just got that speech from my mother, too. It doesn't make it hurt any less." He paced in front of the pool.

I felt like a horrible, awful person for hurting this kind and wonderful young man, but the fact was, my heart already belonged to another, and I was finally, finally realizing that there was nothing I could do about that.

I went over to him and hugged him for a long moment. I pulled back and kissed him on the forehead. "Bye."

Friday evening came before I knew it. I'd worked on cleaning the house for the Tuckers all morning. I tried to work through all of my emotions by taking them out on the floors and the counters, scrubbing away every little pain in my life, killing time until it would be time for me to get ready to go to a benefit dinner Rob and Dana had invited me to. They'd invited Max to come along as well. They were even driving us there in a limo—how exciting! I'd never even seen one up close, so I was looking forward to it. It had been a good while since I'd had a reason to get all dressed up and go out, and I had to admit I was excited about seeing Max as well.

Dana let me borrow a dress of hers; basic black, wrap-around style with a tie at the side. I dug through the bottom of my closet and found a pair of heels I hadn't worn in a while... they were my fanciest pair of pumps. I had to admit they did great things for my calves. Now I just had to make sure I could walk in them. I did a trial walk through the bedroom to the balcony and back. Pretty good.

I decided to wear my hair down with curls and spent a good hour getting to know my curling iron. I picked out some cute costume jewelry that set off my outfit, and decided things were as good as they were liable to get, so I headed downstairs. I kept one eye on the door as I quickly put on my make-up. The bell rang and I ran to the door and let Max in.

Wow. Hubba-hubba.

The man looked awesome, like he'd just stepped off the set of a James Bond movie. He leaned in and kissed my cheek.

"Ta-da!" he said, and pulled a huge flower box from behind him. I gasped and grabbed the box, ripping the red bow off. Inside were two dozen roses of the most amazing color. They were yellowish and changed gradually to red around the edges; breath-taking. They looked a lot like a type of rose Dana had in her garden.

Dana came around the corner from the kitchen with a huge crystal vase and took the flowers from me and hustled off back to the kitchen to get them all sorted out.

I hugged Max fiercely and gave him a thank-you kiss.

Max looked at his watch and gave Rob a look as he came down the stairs.

"Time to go, I guess," Rob said. We all hustled out the door and climbed into the limo.

After a few minutes, I said, "Why is everyone so quiet?"

Suddenly everyone started chatting about inane things like how gorgeous the weather was and who was beating who in baseball.

Okay.

Rob poured out some sort of clear liquid in glasses and passed them around. He downed his in a single gulp. I guessed he was nervous about dinner.

After about fifteen minutes we came to a stop. The limo driver helped us all out of the car and I noticed that we were at my favorite Italian restaurant. What a coincidence! I already knew what I wanted to order. They had an amazing spinach-filled ravioli with a white creamy sauce. I began to look forward to the meal.

When we walked in, the hostess led us to a long table with room for about thirty people. Max and I sat toward one end, Rob and Dana right next to us. Apparently we were the first to arrive.

Violin music began to play, and I noticed out of the corner of my eye that the musicians were getting closer and closer to us. How nice.

The waiter brought out champagne, but left it sitting, I assumed to wait until everyone else arrived.

Then the crazy stuff happened.

Suddenly, Max stood up and came to stand right next to me. I looked over at him, wondering what was going on, when he suddenly plopped down on one knee. Holy crap, I thought. What was he doing?

He grabbed my hand and said, "Samantha Wells, you are an amazing woman. You're beautiful both inside and out. I met you as a vampire on Halloween. You were as lovely then as now and as I know you'll always be. We met, then immediately made a pact to be nothing but friends. We couldn't have known that that moment would lead to this. Sam, I love you with all of my heart and I'm asking that you allow me to spend the rest of my life proving that to you." He pulled a blue velvet box from his pocket.

I was completely speechless.

"Doubt thou the stars are fire, doubt the sun doth move, doubt truth to be a liar but never doubt my love."

That sounded a lot like Shakespeare, from Hamlet. The tears began to flow down my cheeks.

He opened the box and showed me the most amazing, sparkly thing, that I assumed was a ring, but the tears were blurring my eyes. I wiped them with my napkin, then looked again. My hand was over my mouth and I could barely breathe. It was gorgeous. It looked exactly like something I would've picked out myself. There were three diamonds on each side of the center, and the center was multi-tiered circular layers of diamond chips... it was such an unusual and intricate design.

Suddenly I realized that Max, Rob and Dana were all staring at me, along with everyone else in the restaurant; diners and employees alike. I knew they were all waiting on me to say something but it took me a moment to find my voice.

"My God, Max. Here? At Rob's charity benefit dinner?" Everyone cracked up laughing. "Yes, yes, of course, yes I will marry you!" He managed to place the ring on my shaky finger then I stood up and hugged him with all of my might, and then he kissed me.

The loudest shouts rang out and I wondered why these people were all so excited for me, then I turned and saw that all of my friends were there! Regan, Kaitlyn, Chaz, Janie, Carlos, Shane... everyone! They were all applauding and cheering for us. It was a dream. It had to be a dream. Rob popped the cork on the champagne, and we celebrated. I tried not to notice that Derrick wasn't there. That was one friend who would have to miss out on the night's festivities.

As dinner progressed and the wine and champagne flowed like, well, wine, I found myself getting a little tipsy. I couldn't remember ever being so happy; I thought my heart would burst right through my chest.

Eventually the Tuckers and Max and I climbed back into the limo and went for a little drive through Atlanta (making the most of the limo rental) then went back to the house.

As Rob and Dana went towards the stairs I cried out, "Wait!" I ran over to them and grabbed them both into a fierce hug. "I love you guys. Thanks for your part in tonight."

Rob looked a little teary-eyed, and Dana, well she'd been crying off and on all evening. "You're welcome, sweetheart. We love you, too." Rob kissed me on the forehead and it was the most fatherly gesture I had ever known.

I went over to the sofa and kicked off my shoes, plopping down next to Max. I snuggled up onto his chest as he put his arms around me, and I felt more at home than I ever, ever had before.

"I love you," I said, voice thick with emotion.

"I love you more." We kissed and I saw fireworks and all the stars aligned and everything, simply every little thing in the universe was as it should be. So this was what love felt like... the letting go. It was jumping off a cliff to find angel wings carrying you into the heavens.

Epilogue

Meeting Max's parents was an amazing time. They immediately embraced me as one of the family and I dreamed about holidays now. All my life I'd get depressed from Halloween through New Year's, always hanging out with friends, never really having a home and a family of my own. Now I had two families; the Tuckers and the Jacobs.

Max and I married on October first. It would always have a special meaning to us, so we wanted to make it our anniversary date.

We honeymooned in Panama City Beach, Florida, and came back after a week, tanned and happy.

Both our families pitched in and helped us put a down payment on a townhome not too far from our jobs and families. Everyone had blessed us so much at the wedding shower, we hardly had room for all the gifts we received.

After finishing the unpacking from our trip and carrying the dirty laundry into the laundry room, I gave a shout out to Max in the next room. "Hey, get in here! You think I'm doing your laundry forever?"

He came up behind me and put his arms around me, nuzzling my neck. "Yes, yes I do."

Acknowledgements

As always, I want to thank editing queen Laura Marshall for her hard work and insight. Anne Harris and Rose Buck also contributed to the editing of this book. Their POV is invaluable. Any mistakes in this manuscript are my own.

Bill Swyers is once again the best publisher/assistant/advisor/partner and friend.

Hats off to ATL, my hometown for many years now, and to all baristas everywhere who put up with grounds under their nails and petulant customers. Having managed a coffee house or two, I feel your pain.

Most of all, thanks to you, the reader.

Gratus ut Deus

Discover other titles by Pamela Swyers at Smashwords.com:

Boys with Cars - http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/6554

Married with Children - http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/7654

Dylan's Cause - http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/23979

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