by Diana Gardin
“Ah! There you are, sis. Sam Waters, meet Aston Hopewell. The one and only.”
Reed smirked at Sam, as if he were expecting a certain reaction from him.
Sam held out his hand. “Nice to meet you, Aston.”
The girl who took his hand shook out a long tumble of dark hair, pulled off to the side to hang over one shoulder and pinned in place with a glimmering clip. Her crazy high heels and short white sundress showed off her tanned legs to perfection. Her face was exotically beautiful, her bright blue eyes a stark contrast to her raven-colored hair. The clear gloss on her lips made her mouth look deliciously kissable. For the briefest moment, Sam wondered what she’d taste like.
“Hello.” Her voice was strong and clear. She rolled her eyes at her brother. “They bringing in strays again?”
“Always,” Reed answered solemnly.
Sam quickly brought himself to reality…and Ever. Aston was the opposite of the girl-next-door type, completely unlike anyone Sam had ever met back in Duck Creek.
As Sam pulled out Aston’s chair for her, he caught her mouthing, “Is he for real?” toward her brother.
Reed merely smirked, then motioned at a chair for Sam next to his seat.
“Now that Her Highness has arrived, can we eat?” Reed grumbled.
“Don’t tease your sister,” Mrs. Hopewell admonished. “Louise?”
A tiny woman carrying a tray of dishes bustled into the room.
Sam gazed around the table as he ate, trying to take mental notes so that he would be able to describe it all perfectly to Ever in his next letter.
“So, Sam,” Mrs. Hopewell began. “Greg has told me how lucky Leon feels to have stumbled upon you earlier this spring. We’re glad you’re with us. How long do you plan on staying in Nelson Island? Do we get to keep you past August?”
Sam took a bite of a crab cake, chewing slowly to savor the delicious flavor. He thought of the best way to answer her question so as to discourage any further wonderings.
“I’m not sure, ma’am. I’d like to stay on at least until the end of summer. My plans depend on, uh, a friend back home and a special situation. So after summer ends I’ll have to play things by ear. I’m grateful to y’all for having me, though. I really needed the work.”
“Dude, you’ve gotta drop the ‘ma’am’ thing. I can’t take it much longer.” Reed leaned forward, lacing his fingers together above his plate.
Sam shook his head. “Can’t help it, man. It’s called manners. You ever try them?”
“Oh, low blow, Sam! Low blow. You don’t need to impress them, dude. They clearly already love you.”
Mr. Hopewell cleared his throat. “Stop it, Reed. Sam, don’t listen to him. We really do appreciate your hard work. We want you to know that you can think of yourself as part of the family while you’re here.”
“Yeah right, Daddy.” Aston rolled her eyes skyward again. “One of the family who works in the fields, right?”
“Actually,” Mr. Hopewell began. “Leon has seen some management potential in Sam. He told me about the improvements you’ve made to the efficiency of the ranch. But you realize raising horses is only one arm of Hopewell Enterprises. Most of the capital comes from our energy division. And finding efficiencies is our biggest goal there. Leon mentioned that you were employed in automotive repair previously?”
Sam nodded. “I worked on a lot of cars at the garage back home. None ran on alternative fuels, but I know something about it. I rebuilt the engine on my Harley myself.”
“Well, if you’re interested, I thought you might help out my assistant. She’s got her hands full with a brand-new baby at home, and Leon found a few more people to do day-to-day labor at the ranch. I thought this could give you the opportunity to learn more of the business end of things. You remind me of a young me. I didn’t grow up with the kind of advantages my children”—he shot pointed glances at Aston and Reed—“enjoy. I had to work my way through college, and I started Hopewell Enterprises from the ground up. You’re a hard worker and I think all you need is a break and the right hand guiding you.”
“I don’t know what to say, sir—”
“Of course, I’ll increase your hourly wage as befits the new position,” Mr. Hopewell added.
“Mr. Hopewell, that’s beyond generous. I don’t even know what to say.”
Sam had been so busy worrying about how he could help Ever for as long as he could remember, he’d never thought much about what came next for him. His 3.5 GPA in high school had gone untapped because, even though he was scouted by some D III schools for football, he hadn’t ever been able to think about leaving her and going to college. Her father would have never let her go.
“Just think about what you want for your future, son. That’s all I’m asking. And I can help put you on the path to get there.”
Sam nodded slowly. “Thank you, sir. I will.”
Louise brought out the main course, Cornish hens laden with dried fruit and tiny pearl onions and potatoes. Sam inhaled every bite, dimly aware of Aston’s crystal blue eyes burning into him from across the table.
Two
Why are you doing this, Daddy? What does this guy have that makes you so eager to help him succeed? He’s a complete stranger.”
Long after dinner was over and Sam was gone, Aston stood arguing with her father in his office, glass French doors shut and rattling from the volume in her voice.
“Usually I’m the one who fills in for Lonna during the summers,” she continued.
Aston had been working for as long as she could remember toward a place in her father’s corporation. She’d attended the best private school in the area, and now she was earning a double degree in business and finance from Xavier University. She’d earned the right to work under her father as soon as she graduated, and one day she hoped to run the entire company. She’d worked for it.
So seeing her father hand this Sam guy a job out of nowhere with no regard to his lack of training and education…it burned her from the inside out. Fury shot through her veins like fire in a rain-starved wood.
“Sweetheart.” Gregory’s tone was placating, which made her seethe. Daddy’s Little Girl had been her role for as long as she could remember, but she was made with hard edges and a tough center. She didn’t need his patronizing.
“Don’t do that, Daddy. Don’t give me something to settle me down. I want the truth. Who is this kid?”
“First of all, he’s not a kid. You can see that, surely. He’s a grown man. A young man, yes, but grown. And I can see myself in him, just like I said at dinner. It’s been a long time since I’ve run into a young man with Sam’s heart and goodness, and his strength and work ethic. It’s not something I see every day in the business world, my dear. And I value those qualities more than you could possibly know. I don’t know much about him, it’s true. I don’t know exactly where he came from or why he’s struggling, but he is. He’s gotten himself into trouble in his past, I’m sure of that, and I want to help him move forward with his life, because the boy deserves that. I’ve been watching him for months now, Aston, and you’ll just have to trust me.”
“But he’s—”
“That’s enough!” His open palm slapped down on his desk, effectively silencing her.
Aston took an involuntary step backward, and his tone softened when he spoke again.
“I love you more than the entire empire, Aston, you know that. And I’m proud of how hard you’ve worked. I’m offering Sam my guidance and that takes nothing away from you. You’ll still have a place at Hopewell. In fact, I thought you could help supervise Sam—show him the ropes a bit and introduce him to the people he needs to know. If he has the initiative I think he does, I can see him becoming quite valuable to the company.”
“And you don’t see me being valuable?” Aston bit out.
“Of course, sweetheart. But someday you’re going to want more than Hopewell Enterprises. You’ll want to get married, settle down with kids of your own.”
Aston turned her face like she’d been slapped. “I don’t know what kind of 1950s world you’re living in, Daddy, but you’ll see this is a big mistake.” There was obviously nothing she could do to change his mind. She turned on her heel and strode for the French doors.
“I’ll prove myself to you,” she called back over her shoulder. “You’ll see that I’m the future of this company. Who is this Sam Waters? You don’t even know him. When you find out, he may be a big disappointment to you. And I’ll be there to pick up the pieces, as usual.”
Her voice trailed off on her last words until it was no louder than a whisper.
She grabbed her purse and stalked outside, pulling out her phone as her heels echoed on the brick steps outside the house.
“Prince? It’s me. Yeah, I got here earlier today. Can you come and get me?”
She clicked END on the phone and stuffed it into the red leather bag hanging from her shoulder. She began walking down the long paved drive that led from the Hopewell property to the main road. Halfway down, she stopped to pull off her heels and then continued the rest of the trek holding them in one hand.
When she reached the end of the lengthy stretch of pavement she sat down on the asphalt and pulled out a cigarette, stretching her long legs out in front of her. She lit it, covering the flame of the lighter with one hand to shield it from the May breeze. She took a long drag, and tilted her head backward to stare up at the stars.
Being the backbone of her family sucked. It was a role she’d filled for years, especially for her father. She’d been there for him when he’d walked in on her mother screwing one of his business consultants, and she was there when they unbelievably reconciled. She’d been there when his favorite horse died; she was there when the company had gone international. She’d grown up before she had to, because she knew her mother was too weak to stand by her father’s side the way he needed. She figured that out at an early age. So she stepped up.
And this was how he repaid her.
You’re going to want more than Hopewell Enterprises one day, Aston. His words echoed in her head over and over again until the cigarette smoke that wafted in rings around her head was blurred from the tears stinging her eyes.
Pounding footsteps jerked her out of her reverie. Her head snapped up to see a runner coming down the road. As he got closer, she could make out his muscular legs, a flat, muscled stomach rippling with total abdominal beauty, and a hard, toned chest. Then her gaze locked onto the chestnut brown eyes of Sam Waters.
He took his earbuds out as he studied her, breathing hard and glistening with sweat. “Aston? Are you okay?”
She angrily brushed away the tears of frustration. The fact that he’d seen her crying infuriated her, but the beauty of his body definitely wasn’t lost on her. Which made her even angrier.
“I’m fine,” she snapped. “You’re running in the dark? On this road? Do you have a death wish?”
She couldn’t stop herself. Her eyes traveled back down his body, stopping at his stomach. He had a tattoo stretched out over his muscles; Old English letters spelling out the word RISE.
He smiled and squatted until his face was level with hers. She quickly pulled her legs underneath her as he reached out and brushed a stray tear away. The tender gesture sent a shiver through her body, and she told herself to stop acting like a hormonal teenager and get it together.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
She sighed, pressing the cigarette butt into the ground beside her. Hating him wasn’t going to be easy if he was going to be this nice. But she would be damned if she was going to melt into a puddle over the man who was pulling up a front-row seat in her father’s life.
“I’m really fine,” she said. “Just go on with your run and forget about me.”
He sat, grinning and pulling his knees to his chest, settling in. “I’m done with my run, actually. So I have nothing to do now but sit here and wait with you. What are you waiting for, anyway?”
That smile was dangerous. Infectious, boyishly rogue with one side of his mouth tilting up. Wide eyes crinkling at the corners. Aston was sure it was a smile that made all the girls back where he was from just sink into mush at his feet and drop their panties at his bedside.
She wasn’t one of those girls.
“I’m waiting for my boyfriend, actually.”
“Boyfriend, huh?” he drawled. He definitely had the country boy charm turned up on high tonight. “Well he can’t be the reason you’re so upset, he’s not even here yet. And it can’t be me, I just got here.”
He raised his eyebrows at her with an unspoken question.
“Oh, get over yourself. I told you I’m fine.” She was quickly losing the ability to snap at him, and it was driving her mad. Her body language was softening as she attempted to keep the anger turned up in her brain. She flexed her fingers, fisting her hands in her lap. She wanted to hate this man. So why couldn’t he be a jerk?
“I’m over myself. I’ll just wait with you until he gets here. After all, you just told me this was a dangerous road.”
They sat in silence for a moment, close enough to touch but not doing so, the heat from his body rolling off him and stretching out to meet hers.
She jumped up when she heard the engine of Princeton’s Corvette tearing up the road. Relief swirled through her as she pulled on her heels.
“He’s here,” she announced.
“I can see that,” answered Sam, solemn amusement scrawled all over his face.
Princeton pulled to a stop at the curb and left the engine idling. He stepped out of the driver-side door and approached Sam and Aston.
“Babe, you ready to go?”
She nodded, walking up to Princeton and wrapping her arms around his neck. His eyebrows rose as he gazed down, and his mouth dropped the slightest bit at each corner.
“I missed you, baby,” she crooned, loud enough for Sam’s ears.
Sam watched silently for a moment before moving over and extending his hand.
“Hey,” he said. “Princeton, right? I’m Sam Waters. Working out here on the Hopewell property this summer.”
Princeton disentangled himself from Aston’s arms and shook Sam’s hand. “Nice to meet you. Thanks for, uh, waiting with Aston here.”
As the two stood side by side, it was easy to see how dissimilar they were. Aston noted Sam was a few inches taller than Princeton and definitely more muscular—like the difference between a tennis player and footballer. Princeton was all perfectly pressed in his khaki shorts and white polo. Whereas Sam looked like the type who wasn’t afraid to get a little down and dirty. The sweat from his run still gleamed on his chest, and his tousled hair was practically begging to have her fingers run through it. Eep, Aston immediately cut off the thought.
Sam nodded. “Yeah. Kind of dangerous for a woman to be sitting out here by herself at night.”
Aston rolled her eyes. “Okay, Dad, thanks for the babysitting service. I’ll see you around. Let’s go, Prince,” she said as she climbed into the low-slung Corvette.
She couldn’t help turning back once after they drove off to see Sam standing in the road watching them go.
Dear Ever,
I miss you. You know that if I had any other choice, I wouldn’t have left you, right? It was the only way to keep you protected. You shouldn’t have to suffer any more because of that man. You’ve already gone through a lifetime of pain. You deserve to be happy now. The truth never needs to come out.
On a brighter note, you’ll never guess what happened to me here. You know the family I’ve been working for? Well the man, the business owner, offered me a different position in his company so I can learn more about how the operation runs. He wants me to begin thinking more about my future, and that’s something I need to start doing. How will I support you if I don’t start making something of myself? And I really do think we could have a great life here together when things die down back home.
Amazing things start happening in pla
ces you never expected them to. I can’t wait to see you again.
Love you For Ever,
Sam
He folded the letter, stuffed it into a crisp white envelope, and addressed it. He left no return address, just in case. It didn’t matter. Hunter knew where he was.
He stuffed the letter in his little mailbox for the postman on his way out to work. It had been a few days since Mr. Hopewell had made the new job offer, and Sam hadn’t yet had a chance to see him to accept.
“Morning,” Leon greeted him when he arrived in the stable. “Heard you might not be with me much longer.”
“Did Mr. Hopewell tell you that?” Sam asked. “I haven’t officially accepted yet.”
Sam grabbed a large, heavy bag of pony feed and hefted it over one shoulder. He hauled the bag to the back of Leon’s truck, exhaling as he threw it down onto the bed. Returning for the next bag, he faced Leon once again.
“Well maybe not, but you’d be a fool not to take it.” Leon’s tone sounded as if he were scolding a disobedient teen. “A chance to quit workin’ in these fields and learn somethin’ about that fancy business out there isn’t somethin’ Mr. Hopewell gives too often. Actually, to my recollection he’s never given it. So take it and run, boy.”
Sam placed both hands on top of his head and wandered over to one of the softly whinnying horses in its stall. He stroked the mare’s snout, smiling when she nuzzled the side of his head.
What Leon said made perfect sense. It just all seemed too good to be true. These weren’t the kinds of things that happened to people like him. He wasn’t used to being treated this way. It was unnerving. No one, apart from Ever and Hunter, had ever shown him that he had value. His father had left his mother before he was old enough to have memories. His mother never forgave Sam for his dad’s departure, and she never let him forget it. The man hadn’t left after Hunter was born; it was after Sam had arrived. She laid the fault at Sam’s tiny feet. She’d never hit him like Ever’s father had done to her, but she let him know every chance she got what a mistake he was.