by Liwen Ho
She averted her gaze to the window behind Lucas. “The truth is I’m a little behind on my payments. No biggie though, I’ll figure something out. For now, I’ll have to use God’s light, and pray the studio can stay open.” Even if she did believe in prayer, she didn’t think it would make a difference. She wasn’t one of those good girls who went to church every Sunday or did all the right things. God couldn’t care less about her or her problems. Her current situation was probably a punishment for her past mistakes, especially the one she made in Paris. She took a sip of coffee and closed her eyes, wishing she could permanently shut out her troubles.
“Why am I not surprised.”
Sam’s eyes flew open. Lucas had muttered the words quietly, but she still picked up on the mocking tone in his voice. She didn’t know why, but his disapproval hit her harder today than it ever had. Her throat grew raw, compelling her to take a large gulp of coffee. The hot liquid burned its way past the lump in her throat and brought tears to her eyes. Struggling to pull herself together, she escaped into the adjoining classroom. Don’t cry, don’t cry. A sob escaped her lips, and she coughed to cover it up.
“You okay, Sammie?”
She sensed Lucas’s warm hand through the sheer fabric of her tunic top. “I’m fine. The coffee—it went down the wrong tube.” She took a deep breath and wiped her face before turning around.
“Hey, sorry about what I said. I guess old habits die hard.” Lucas grimaced. Sam’s face had crumbled the moment the words left his mouth. It was fun to tease his old friend, but he knew this time he had gone too far. She seemed to be in a real bind, and all he did was insult her. He hadn’t meant to hurt her, or worse, to worry his daughter. He spotted Lucy watching them over the top of her muffin with her eyebrows drawn together. It was the same pensive expression she had whenever she found him flipping through old family photos.
He sighed and placed his hands on Sam’s shoulders, drawing her to himself, and rubbed her back. He often embraced Lucy like this, and the act was so natural he didn’t think twice about it … or have time to consider its ramifications. In that instant, a dozen memories flooded his mind of the last time Sam had been in his arms. How he forgot to breathe when she met him on the dance floor in her red backless dress. The heat that flooded his body when his fingers brushed against her skin. The pounding of his heart when she looked up at him, just like she was doing now.
He swallowed hard, his gaze landing on her pink lips. Those lips that incited trouble. Years ago after the Homecoming dance, Sam had teased him mercilessly for his lack of dating experience. Despite his popularity with the girls, he wasn’t one to play around, and she knew it. He soon found out she wasn’t one to back down from a challenge.
In the darkness outside their school gym, she had sweet-talked her way past his convictions. No one saves their first kiss for the altar. Come on, Lucas, she’d insisted, it’s just one kiss.
And like a moth drawn to a flame, he had claimed her soft, warm mouth with his.
“That wasn’t hard, was it?” Sam murmured minutes later in between their fervent kisses.
“Not at all,” Lucas realized with dismay.
In fact, it was all too easy. He had fallen so hard for Sam. She had a way of getting under his skin like no one else could. She was a whirlwind of emotions and desires and impulses wrapped up in a tempting package. There was something he couldn’t resist about her, and also nothing he could control. That was why after that night, he trained himself to focus on her faults, and convinced himself of their incompatibility. He eventually chose Lauren, someone far less complicated in his eyes.
But now as he held Sam in his arms, all those old feelings rose to the surface again. Except this time, he was ready and eager to give into them. It had been far too long since he had felt anything other than grief or loneliness. With Sam, he felt free. Free and happy.
Could God be giving him a second chance at love?
A loud, long slurp halted his thoughts. Behind them, Lucy worked hard to sip the last drops of her orange juice through a straw. The reality of the situation hit him like a punch to the gut, and he dropped his arms. He and Sam weren’t teenagers anymore. He had a daughter now who was grieving her mother’s death. He was learning how to be a single parent. Life was difficult enough without adding someone new to the picture, especially someone who still needed to grow up.
He stepped away from Sam as she blinked in surprise. He had been so close to kissing her, and the confusion on her face showed she was aware of it. Shoving his hands into his pockets, he muttered, “Old habits …”
Sam crossed her arms and spoke up, her cheeks taking on a rosy tinge. “I know what you’re thinking. Just say it. You screwed up again, Sam. Why can’t you be like your sisters and do something that makes money or at least marry a guy who makes money.”
He held up his palms. “I would never advise you or anyone else to marry for money. Let me take a wild guess—you’ve been talking to your mom?”
Sam snorted. “If this cop thing doesn’t work out, you could make it as a private eye. Yeah, that was her on the phone. I asked if I could borrow some money, but she’s not willing to give me one cent. She told me to move in with them to save money on rent and food.” She shook her head so hard, the towering bun piled on the top of her head swayed back and forth. “I would never do that.”
“Free room and board? Seems like a good deal to me.”
“Nothing is ever free with my mother. If I lived at home, she’d be inviting guys over from church every night of the week for dinner. She’s ready to marry me off to the first available bidder.”
Lucas smirked at the thought of Sam being put in the hot seat, an idea he liked very much, except for the part about her being matched with other guys. He berated himself for feeling jealous when he had no say over how she spent her time or who she spent it with. Nevertheless, he was relieved she refused her mother’s offer. “Well, you’re smart enough not to fall for it.”
Lucy bounded over with a juice box in hand, interrupting their conversation. “Daddy, I’m done. Can I have a doughnut?”
Squatting to his daughter’s eye level, Lucas smiled. “You still have room for a doughnut? Where are you going to put it?”
Lucy pointed to her round belly peeking out from under the hem of her pink shirt. “Right here. I have lots of room in here.” She proceeded to lift up her shirt.
“Sweetheart, keep your tummy covered so you don’t catch cold.”
“Lucas,” Sam admonished, “the AC’s out. It’s like eighty degrees in here. She’s not going to get sick.”
He opened his mouth, but Sam cut in before he could speak.
“I know, I know,” she declared, lowering her voice to sound more masculine. “One can never be too careful.”
Their eyes met, and he couldn’t help but chuckle. Her teasing smile, along with the glint in her eyes, flooded his chest with a warm sensation. “But one can be too paranoid,” he countered in a high-pitched squeak.
“Daddy, that’s funny! Do it again!”
Lucas cupped Lucy’s chin with one hand and sighed happily. The sound of her laugh made all the pain of the past year disappear. He couldn’t get enough of it. He did as she commanded, and she clapped her hands in delight. Seeing the joy in her long-lashed hazel eyes emboldened him, and he chose to take a leap of faith. He first addressed his daughter, “You can have half a doughnut. Let me finish talking to Miss Sam, then we’ll go to the park.”
She nodded and ran back to the box of pastries.
Lucas stood up and turned to Sam who had a grin on her face. “What?”
“You can be kind of fun when you loosen up, old man.”
“Old man?” he scoffed. “I’m only six months older than you. But that does make me six months wiser.”
Sam rolled her eyes.
“Speaking of being wiser, I’ve come up with a brilliant plan to help you pay your bills.”
“You have? Let’s hear it.”
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p; “What you need is a partner, someone who’ll invest money in this place and help you manage your finances. This person would get the business back on track while you focus on what you do best—teaching.”
“That sounds heavenly, but where am I going to find someone like that?”
“You’re looking at him.”
“You? You want to be business partners? Do you have extra money laying around? What’s the catch, Lucas?”
“There’s no catch. I’ve got some money saved up and I want to help.” The dubious look on Sam’s face made him eager to calm her fears. “After all you’ve done for Lucy, this is the least I can do for you. She loves coming here and she really benefits from it. The last thing I want is for the studio to close. Believe me, this is a win-win situation for both of us.”
“I don’t know. Don’t get me wrong, I would do anything to keep this place open. I just don’t think we could work as partners. You and me are an argument waiting to happen.”
“You and I,” Lucas corrected with a small smile.
“Seriously? We can’t even have a conversation without disagreeing about something.”
“We’re not disagreeing; we’re learning from each other. It’s about perspective. And from the way your situation is looking right now”—he pointed to the nonfunctional lights in the room—“you need my help.”
“Ugh … I hate it when you’re right. I haven’t even told you about the eviction notice.”
“Eviction notice? How far behind are you on rent? How could you—?” He shook his head and sighed. “Never mind. How much are we looking at?”
She winced. “About seven, maybe eight grand.”
“Seven or eight, which is it?”
“Um, more like ten.”
“Ten grand?” He let out a long whistle as the muscles in his shoulders knotted. This was turning out to be messier than he expected. But he had opened his mouth already; there was no going back. For Lucy’s sake, he would get Sam out of debt. “Okay. From now on, I’ll be in charge of the books. We’ll get them in order and pay any outstanding bills you—I mean we have. Then we’ll think about ways to increase our income. We’re going to dig ourselves out of this hole and make the studio even better.”
“We? Our? Oh boy,” Sam groaned, and the line between her brows deepened. “I know that look. It’s the same one you had when you made me stay three hours after school to redo an experiment. You wouldn’t settle for anything but an A plus.”
“It’s all or nothing, Sammie. If you want to keep this place open, you have to put in a hundred percent. I need to be sure you’ll give it your all. If I say cut costs, we’re going to cut costs. If I say—”
“Jump, I say how high?”
“If you roll your eyes any farther, they’re going to stay that way.” She was so cute when she got annoyed. A bit immature, but cute nonetheless. “Come on, we both know I’ll do my all to make the business successful. The question is, will you? Are you with me?” He stuck out his hand and waited for her to concede. He was her best hope at this point. If she was smart, she would take his offer.
Nodding, she reached out and placed her hand in his. “Okay, I’m in. One hundred percent.”
He closed his fingers around her palm, surprised at the trust in her eyes. “This is one of the smartest decisions you’ll ever make.”
Lucas only hoped that promise held true for him as well. He felt himself being drawn to Sam once more, and he wondered how long it would be before he regretted getting close to her again.
SIX
Sam couldn’t be happier or more well-fed. Over the past week, she had become a regular fixture at the Choi residence, partaking in their delicious and entertaining family dinners. She also had a budget for the studio and had settled all her bills. It was unbelievable how her luck had changed in such a short amount of time. If she didn’t know better, she would have thought someone was looking out for her. Maybe not all of her desperate prayers bounced off the ceiling?
“Your turn, Miss Sam.” Lucy placed a penny on the dining table. “What’s your high and low?”
She turned to the little girl who insisted on sitting beside her every time she came over. Her expectant smile warmed her heart in a way that made her feel unworthy. She wasn’t the sentimental type, but Lucy’s adoration took her breath—and even her words— away. “Why don’t you go first. I feel like I say the same thing every night. I need a minute to think.”
“Daddy says guests go first.”
“I would hardly call Miss Sam a guest.” Mrs. Benson spooned some meatloaf and potatoes onto Sam’s nearly empty plate. “She’s like family. Wouldn’t you say so, son?”
The question seemed to catch Lucas off guard. “She certainly plays a part in our lives.”
His hesitation left Sam feeling unsettled. Ever since Lucas had almost kissed her, he had been acting distant, even formal. At first, she chalked it up to his determination in getting her finances in order, but now that they were past that point, there was no good explanation. His behavior, however, wasn’t new. It was exactly how he had treated her back in high school. One minute he was red hot, with his mouth glued to hers; the next, he couldn’t seem to get far away enough from her. What was his issue? If she didn’t know better, she’d think he was scared. A tough cop like him afraid of her? A snort escaped from her lips before she could stop it.
“Sounds like you thought of something?” Lucas smiled at her unexpectedly, and the corners of his light brown eyes crinkled.
“I—uh, just the usual stuff.” That flutter in her stomach was becoming a regular thing. He only had to look her way, and she was a mess. He was the last person she should be considering for a relationship, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t entertain her feelings a little. “I’ll go. My high is getting to eat such great food again, and my low is the fact that I could never cook this well.”
“Why cook when someone can do it for you?” Mrs. Benson remarked with a shake of her head. “I enjoy feeding you.”
“Can Miss Sam live with us?” a high-pitched voice piped up. “Grandma can feed her every day.”
“I have my own home, girlie.” Sam gave one of Lucy’s braids a light tug. “I have food there, nothing as good as this, but it’s enough.”
“If you’re family, you’re ‘posed to live with us.” She turned to Lucas with her fists at her hips. “Daddy, I want Miss Sam to live here.”
“Sweetheart, it doesn’t work that way,” he answered with a frown. “Come on, finish up your milk. You need it to grow tall and strong.”
Lucy pouted. “I want to live with Miss Sam.” She turned to Sam and pled, “Please?”
Sam swallowed her surprise, along with a mouthful of buttery mashed potatoes. The expressions around the table couldn’t have been more different. Mrs. B. thought her granddaughter’s plea was endearing, while Lucas appeared disturbed. Was it so awful that Lucy liked her? Did Lucas disapprove of her that much? Her defensiveness gave way to sympathy, however, when she saw his shoulders drop. Perhaps he was just feeling insecure. “That would be fun, Luce, but your dad would miss you. You’re also too young to move out.”
Lucas gave Sam a small smile. “That’s right.”
“Maybe when I’m five?”
Sam chuckled. “Maybe. We can talk about it later, okay?”
Lucy set her cup down with a soft thud and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. “I’m done. May I be ‘scused?”
“Please use your napkin, sweetheart,” Lucas urged. “Yes, you may be excused.”
Mrs. B. stood up as well and began clearing the dishes. “I’m done, too. I’ll give Lucy a bath and put her to bed. You two have work to do.”
“Thanks again, Mrs. B. I’ll help as soon as I can roll myself out of this chair,” Sam laughed. “I lost count of how many servings you gave me.”
“I’m happy you appreciate my cooking. You sit, dear, and digest.” She turned to Lucas who had begun wiping up drops of milk on the table. “You, too, son.
”
“Thanks, Mom.” Lucas sat back down with a crumpled napkin in his hand. He leaned back in his chair and tapped his fingers on the table. Lines stretched across his forehead as he stared at the cherry wood.
Something was off about him, but she didn’t know what. “Rough day at work?”
“Just the usual.” He quickly changed the topic. “You said earlier you want to buy more supplies. What do you need?”
Sam’s ears perked up at the mention of shopping. “Let me show you the catalogue.” She returned from the living room with an inch-thick book. Scooting her chair closer to Lucas’s, she flipped to the first page she had bookmarked with a yellow sticky tab. “Aren’t these mini easels and canvases cute? I’ve wanted them for the longest time, and now that I—I mean we—have money, we should stock up. Plus, they’re forty percent off.”
“How many do you want to buy?”
“Well, I teach three to four classes a day with anywhere from six to eight students, so that would make …” Sam scrunched up her face as she did a mental calculation. “Stop smirking and help me out.”
“A hundred and sixty a week,” Lucas answered, still smirking. He grabbed a pad of paper and pen from the kitchen counter and jotted down some numbers. “Multiply that by $4.96 and we have a total of $793.60.” Shaking his head, he frowned. “That’s way over our budget. We’re barely breaking even as it is. What’s wrong with using paper? You can buy a ream for $6 or $7. The kids won’t know the difference.”
“How can you say that? There’s a huge difference between paper and canvas. Paper isn’t thick enough for acrylic paint; it just soaks through and the colors don’t stand out. With a canvas, the parents can display it at home or at work. Wouldn’t you rather hang up a painting Lucy did on canvas?”
“I personally prefer paper.” He nodded to the refrigerator on the other side of the kitchen. “You can’t stick a magnet on canvas.”
“You’re so cheap.” Knowing better than to argue with the keeper of her money, she decided to try a different tactic. “Okay. What if we buy a dozen first and I’ll add an extra $5 or $6 to the materials fee if the parents want their kids to try out the canvas.”