Catching Sam: Book 2 of 5: The MacDonald Brothers

by Emily Matthews

He smiled, thinking of all the women he’d taken out over the years who refused to eat pasta because they were counting carbs and calories. Sure, eating healthy and staying in shape were important to him, but you had to live a little too. Annie had a long, lean physique, so she must take care of herself, but obviously not obsessively so.

  He stopped at the same restaurant he’d just been to an hour before and ignored the quizzical look from the same hostess he’d seen earlier. “Super hungry tonight,” he explained with a wink.

  “I have to admit, part of the reason for saying yes to you is because I’m dying to see where you live,” Annie said. “I’m imaging an enormous mansion on the lake, probably with a gorgeous view of Mount Rainier too. Is Bill Gates your next-door neighbor?”

  “No,” he said. “You might be surprised. I mean, it’s nice, but not the most expensive in town. When I bought the place, it was a huge stretch for me, financially. Now, not so much, but I’ve never felt the urge to leave.”

  When they pulled up to the gate at the entrance to his neighborhood, she laughed.

  “What’s so funny?” he asked, using a remote to open the gate. Was she laughing at him because he didn’t live in a better neighborhood? Was she disappointed?

  “Well,” she said. “We must have the same great taste. See that house at the end of the block?” She pointed to what he thought might be the smallest house in the neighborhood. It had a For Sale sign in the yard with a Sold sign plastered diagonally over it. “That’s my new place. We’re going to be neighbors!”

  “Seriously? That’s great.” He made a detour and drove to her new house. They got out and looked around. It was a soft blue, two-story craftsman with a large, wraparound porch painted white to match the trim. Workmen were packing up for the day. It looked like they’d been putting in hardwood.

  “I’ve only actually seen the place twice. Once right before I bought it and then a couple of days ago when I got to town. I’m having new floors put in.” The excitement in her eyes made them sparkle.

  “You wanna check it out?” Sam asked as he headed toward the door.

  “No. I’ll take a look when they’re done. If all goes as planned, I’m moving in this weekend. Don’t suppose you have a truck?” She laughed.

  “I do have a truck. I could help.”

  “I was joking.” She sobered instantly. “There is no way I’m asking my bazillionaire boss to help me move. Do you think I’m nuts?”

  “I see your point. But seriously, I could help.”

  “Absolutely not. I’ve hired a company to do it all. Actually, you’ve paid for me to hire a company to do it all. Samatrix is footing the bill for the movers. Thanks for that, by the way.” Her smile was back.

  “All right, fine. You ready to go then?”

  “Yeah, I’m getting hungry, and whatever you ordered smells divine.”

  Sam lived in the same neighborhood but on the lakeside where the homes were significantly bigger and on much larger lots. When he pulled into the detached five-car garage, she laughed again.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  “Is that the cab from the other night?” she asked, gesturing to the taxi.

  “Yeah,” he answered sheepishly. “I don’t like public transportation, but I don’t want to seem like a snob either, so it comes in handy sometimes. It’s stupid, I know.”

  “Hey, at least you don’t ride around in a limo. The driver?”

  “My personal driver, Steve. He lives in the guest house out back and is close when I need him in a pinch.”

  “Sounds efficient. Must be nice,” she said without a hint of jealousy or malice. She wandered around the garage, checking out his collection of cars. Besides the cab and the SUV, there was an Aston Martin, a BMW crossover, and a brand-new Ford 250 pickup.

  When she finished, he led her to the house via the covered walkway. She held the door for him as he struggled through with the dinner bags, and he thanked her.

  All of a sudden, he was nervous. What if this had been a horrible idea? What if they had nothing to talk about? What if she really was out to screw him in some way?

  “Welcome back, Sam,” Sophie said. Annie jumped in surprise.

  “Hello, Sophie,” said Sam. “This is Annie. Annie, Sophie.” He nodded to the speaker in the ceiling. “She runs the place.”

  “So, you’ve added a few upgrades since the place was built, I take it?”

  “I took her down to the studs and remodeled the entire place to suit me. I may have added on a bit,” he admitted. “Want a tour?” He found himself wanting to impress her. She didn’t seem to be impressed by much, and he wondered what it would take.

  “Can we eat first? I wasn’t kidding about being hungry.”

  “Of course, yes. Let’s eat.” He mustered up some enthusiasm while leading her to the kitchen. Still full from his first dinner, from the same place, he wasn’t as eager to eat as she was.

  They laid out the food, and she dished up and dug in with gusto. He picked at his salad and watched her. Everything she did seemed so natural and unplanned. After a bit, he finally put his finger on what he felt with her. Comfortable. She wasn’t pretending to be someone she wasn’t, which made him feel like he could be himself too. It was like hanging out with family.

  The conversation was light and easy. He asked what kind of work she was having done to her new house and about her plans for moving in.

  “The only work is the floors, and that should be done soon. The moving truck should arrive on Saturday morning. I only have the suitcases I flew in with. My car was a piece of shit, so I sold it and figured I’d buy a new one up here. I’ll just take cabs and ride shares until then.”

  “Did you get a good deal on the house then?” he wondered. He must pay his graphic designers pretty well. Even that small house she’d purchased was probably worth a million dollars.

  “You’re wondering how I could afford it,” she stated bluntly. “Not that it’s any of your business, but it was all thanks to you. Well, your company. I bought stock as soon as I hired on and have been riding your wave of success ever since. Plus, you pay me all right.” She winked. “For the last few years, I’ve been living simply. I sock away or invest as much of my paycheck as possible.” She sobered a bit.

  “What caused you to want to live simply?” he asked, curious about her past. Also wondering what “living simply” meant. Did she live in her car? And eat cat food?

  “Oh, it was after my divorce, but that’s a story for some other time. How about we talk about you?” She wiped her mouth with a napkin and turned her full attention to him. “Tell me about you. Something I don’t already know.”

  “Hm, most of my life is an open book. I don’t feel like I have much privacy, but I’ll try.”

  “Is that why you didn’t tell me who you were the other night?” she interrupted.

  He thought for a minute. “Probably. It wasn’t really a deliberate decision. But when you said you were from out of town and didn’t mention right away that you recognized me, I figured I’d try to see what normal felt like for an evening.”

  “How did it feel?”

  “Weird, but good. I’m used to people sucking up to me. Not that I want that,” he added quickly. “I don’t. But I guess I’ve become accustomed to being treated a certain way, and so it feels different when someone treats me normally.”

  “I think I would hate being in your shoes. The money would be nice, but I’d like some anonymity. I’d want to be able to go to the supermarket and buy groceries without everyone looking in my cart and whispering behind my back.”

  “That’s one problem I don’t have,” he admitted. “Someone else shops for me. I haven’t set foot in a grocery store in years. But I know what you’re saying, and I agree.”

  “Okay. Sorry I interrupted you. What were you going to tell me?”

  “I don’t know if I have any secrets,” he exclaimed. “I do so many interviews and get so many questions. What’s left?”

  “Why did you l
eave New York to move to Washington State?”

  “To go to school. The University of Washington had, well, still has, a great business program and an excellent computer science program. I graduated with a computer science degree, but took as many business classes as I could too.”

  “So you had to move aaall the way across the country, as faaar away from New York as possible, for a good school?” She raised a dubious eyebrow. Damn, just like that, she busted him.

  He was quiet for a moment, and she misinterpreted his silence.

  “I’m sorry. You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to. That was rude of me to push.”

  “No, it’s fine. You’re right. I didn’t have to come this far. I was accepted to several fantastic schools, two of which were in New York. I just couldn’t do it.”

  She waited while he found the words. “You probably already know my dad died when I was fourteen. And that I have four younger brothers?”

  She nodded.

  “After my dad passed away, I fell into the role of ‘man of the house’ and spent my teenage years taking care of my mother, my brothers, and all the household stuff.” He paused before plowing on. “It’s not that my mom is terribly fragile. She had just always left everything to my dad, and especially right after it happened, she was in no shape to take care of anyone or anything other than herself. She loved him very much and took his death extremely hard.”

  “So you took care of everyone and everything. That must have been difficult for a young kid who’d just lost his dad,” she said. It wasn’t a question.

  “I guess.” He sighed. “Luckily, my dad left explicit instructions about what to do with the businesses, how to spend the life insurance money, and all that. He had a great attorney who walked us through everything and made sure we were fine financially.

  “It felt like a ton of bricks at the time, but we muddled through. I didn’t want to seem selfish, but when the time came to pick a college, I wanted to get as far away from New York as I could.” He ran a hand through his hair. “Wow, that sounds terrible, doesn’t it?”

  “Not at all. You spent all those years taking care of everyone. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to live a little yourself. By then, your brothers were old enough to shoulder some of the burden, and I’m sure your mom was doing better by then.”

  “She was. I never would have left otherwise, but, yeah, they all got along okay without me.”

  “Did your mom ever remarry?”

  “No, although I’m not sure why. She’s a wonderful woman, and I know she’s had men ask her out and stuff. She said she kept comparing everyone to my dad, and no one could measure up.”

  “That’s romantic.”

  He smiled. “I’ve never told anyone all that, Annie. I’ve known you five minutes and I’m spilling my deepest, darkest secrets. Please don’t tell anyone. I would be devastated if my family found out.”

  “Of course not! I won’t tell a soul. How does it feel to finally admit it?”

  “Freeing. Yet, sort of wrong somehow too. What kind of jackass can’t wait to run away from his family?”

  “Pft. Only every eighteen-year-old on the planet, that’s all.” They laughed.

  “True. Well, thanks for listening and for not judging me.”

  “Thanks for confiding in me,” she said with a sincere smile.

  She took a final bite and put her fork down, licking her lips with satisfaction.

  “That. Was. Delicious. I’ll have to make a note of the restaurant name for future reference. Thanks for dinner.” She stood, picked up her plate, and went for his. He quickly grabbed it and held out a hand for hers.

  “You’re my guest. I’ll handle the cleanup.” He walked both plates to the kitchen and placed them in the sink.

  She followed him with the takeout containers, which she set on the counter before opening the fridge.

  “Wait!” He jogged over to stop her from opening the door, but it was too late. She stood, staring inside the refrigerator.

  “What the…” She turned toward him. “How many dinners do you eat in one night?” she asked, pointing to a takeout box, identical to the ones she’d just set on the counter. His name and today’s date were written in the same handwriting, in the same place. The only difference was the time. The box in the fridge was exactly an hour and a half older.

  “Ugh.” He felt his cheeks flush. “Fine. You caught me. I was already eating when you called about the flowers. My dinner invitation was kind of spur of the moment. As soon as we hung up, I stopped eating and called in another order.” He shrugged.

  “They must have thought you were crazy.” Annie shook her head.

  “I told them I dropped the original meal.”

  Annie stared at him with narrowed eyes. “I don’t understand.”

  When he began to explain again, she held up a hand to stop him. “No, I mean, why me?” she whispered.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Annie’s head was spinning. How was she standing here, in a billionaire’s kitchen, having him admit that he’d eaten two dinners because he wanted to spend time with her? This drop-dead gorgeous, yet surprisingly humble, man, with more money than God, wanted to get to know her? This must be a joke. Or a dream. There was no way a man like Sam could be interested in a woman like her. In an instant, all of her old insecurities came flooding back.

  It definitely wasn’t the sex. Their first and only encounter had been quick and for him, probably painful. Walking away with a hard-on didn’t make a man want to come back for more.

  He wasn’t after her money. He had plenty of his own and couldn’t know about her secret nest egg anyway. That was money no one would ever find.

  It couldn’t be her looks. She was just an ordinary, plain Jane. Up until a year ago, she would have considered herself homely. Yes, she’d lost some weight, dyed her hair, switched her glasses for contacts, and wore makeup now, but that didn’t put her in any league near the supermodels Sam had dated.

  Even her personality was nothing special. She’d come out of her shell and had more self-confidence than ever before, but years of keeping to herself had left her a little socially awkward.

  “What are you thinking?” Sam asked.

  “Why did you ask me over here? What do you want?” She looked around suspiciously. Was someone waiting to pop out and shout, You’re on Candid Camera?

  “I’m not sure what you mean. I wanted to see you again and inviting you over for dinner seemed like a normal thing. Is it not?” His brows knit in confusion.

  “But why?” she pressed. “Are you wanting to get back at me for the other night? Is the food poisoned?”

  “Why would I want to get back at you? I had a great time.”

  “Because you didn’t, you know, finish?” She looked away as she said it and felt her cheeks warm.

  He chuckled. “Well, that did suck. I’m not gonna lie. But I’m a big boy, Annie. That didn’t upset me. If anything, it intrigued me.”

  “What? You think I’m playing some game?” she exclaimed. “Look, I’m sorry about what happened. I didn’t mean to shove you out the door. I honestly was in shock it happened at all, and I didn’t register your, um, condition. I’ve never done that before.”

  “Done what before?”

  “Any of it. Been picked up at a bar. Had a one-night stand. Had sex against a door. Received flowers from a man. None of it. I’m way out of my league, Sam. You’re way out of my league.” She was beginning to panic, and tears welled up. “And now you tell me you had two dinners just to spend some time with me? What am I supposed to think?”

  “Hey, hey,” he soothed. “It’s okay.” He pulled her into his arms, and she hugged him back tightly.

  “You said you were married. Surely, he sent you flowers.”

  She shook her head. “No, never. He didn’t want to waste money on something that was only going to die.”

  “Asshole,” Sam muttered. “And you want me to believe that a beautiful woman like y
ou has never been hit on at a bar. That’s hard to believe.” He leaned back to look at her, apparently trying to gauge her reaction.

  She snorted when he said beautiful woman. “To be honest, just being in a bar was new. I didn’t do the bar scene in college, and then I got married. Since my divorce, I haven’t been out much.”

  “Annie, I want to get to know you. Is that so hard to believe?” She crooked an eyebrow.

  “Look, just try to forget who I am. Think of me as a normal guy who’s interested in spending time with you,” he said.

  “You could have anyone you want, Sam. I know you’ve dated supermodels and movie stars and real-life, actual princesses. What I don’t get is, why me? I’m nobody.”

  “Don’t say that. Yes, I’ve dated some famous, beautiful women, but just because they’re pretty doesn’t mean they’re perfect or any better than you. Their looks don’t tell the whole story. You’re nothing like those women, and I think that’s why I’m attracted to you. You aren’t intimidated by me, and you don’t try to suck up or tell me only things I want to hear. You speak your mind. You aren’t pretentious and don’t see others as beneath you. You’re easy-going and normal.”

  “So, is this like a Pretty Woman story? I’m an experiment to see what it’s like dating how the little people do?” She put air quotes around little people. Irritated, she moved to get out of his embrace, but he held on tight.

  “No. That’s not it at all. I don’t know how to describe it. I feel a pull to you, a connection. Ever since I saw you at the bar the other night. And for the record, I never have one-night stands like we did either. If my attorneys ever found out, they would go ballistic. That was very out of character for me, and I should probably apologize, but I’m not sorry. I don’t feel like I’m better than you. I just want to get to know you. Is that so bad?”

  “I guess not,” she softened and relaxed a little in his arms.

  “Are you going to freak out if I kiss you right now?”

  “Are you going to ask for permission every time you kiss me?”

  “I hope not.” He tipped her chin up and slowly leaned down to kiss her. When she didn’t move or protest, he closed the gap. He kissed her tenderly, soothing her anguish. She put her arms around his neck and kissed him back. He was a good six inches taller and had to bend to reach her.