“I’m not following you.” Sam slid his gaze between the two grinning men.
Tuck sprawled back on the couch. “What he’s trying to say is, we didn’t need to read about you and V in that dumbass article Jaffrey wrote. We already knew about the two of you shacking up at the Marriott because the wives knew, and there isn’t one in the bunch who can keep a secret.”
Sam frowned.
Jake grinned and thumped him on the back. “I’m glad you took my advice and decided to work things out with her.”
He met Jake’s smug smile. “Yeah, well don’t pat yourself on the back yet. V’s proving to be a hell of a lot more stubborn than I remember.”
Jake chuckled. “What did you expect? As an agent, V’s had to deal with some of the most arrogant assholes in the league, but she’s also a woman. Stubbornness is in their genes.”
Sam grunted. He couldn’t disagree. He could barely walk upright when he’d left the hotel, not to mention the sleepless night he suffered after last Sunday’s celebration at his new house. And it wasn’t as if V was unaffected. Christ, he’d given her three orgasms at the hotel, and she’d been teetering on the edge with him on the couch. Yet, she’d held her ground, calling him the next morning to say, “Adios, pal.”
He jammed a hand through his hair in frustration. “Her stubbornness I can handle, but she’s avoiding me now.”
“The Sam Fitzgerald I remember never failed to seal the deal when it came to a woman.” A teasing glint sparked in Jake’s eyes. “Sounds like old age might be taking its toll, buddy.”
“Fuck you.”
Jake grinned and sipped from his beer.
Tuck wore a smile as he cleared his throat. “She didn’t seem to be avoiding you on the sideline this afternoon.” Sam sent him a scowl, and Tuck brought his beer bottle to his lips. “Just pointing out the obvious. Maybe you’re reading her wrong.”
This afternoon on the sideline had been about Lucy. No matter what happened between the two of them, V’s soft heart was firmly in Lucy’s corner. But the DNA test was no one’s business but his and Lucy’s, and wasn’t a subject he intended to discuss.
Sam shook his head. “That was about…business.”
Jake leaned against the back of the couch. “It’s been a lot of years. Are you sure she still has feelings for you?”
Sam pinned him with a hard look.
He held up his hands. “Just asking.”
“She still has feelings, and aren’t you the one who insisted I cut her some slack because there was still something between us?”
“Touché.” Jake winced and cocked his head. “Have you asked her yet?”
“I asked her flat out, but no dice. She isn’t talking, and that’s the problem in a nutshell.” Sam rolled his shoulders against the frustration tying him in knots.
“Asked her about what?”
Sam jerked his gaze to Tuck. The question, and the curiosity on his face, proved V and her friends didn’t share everything. That knowledge brought him some measure of relief. What had happened between him and V had been the topic of conversation for too many people already.
Jake chuckled. “You might as well tell him. The Triple Gs are on the case. CC will cave, and he’ll get the whole story eventually.”
Sam blinked and cursed beneath his breath. “Then he’ll be one up on me. I don’t know the whole story myself.”
“Shall I give him the condensed version, then?”
Blowing a defeated breath, Sam shook his head. “Shit. I thought I’d escaped the gossip mill. Gracie and her girls sound as bad as the Barlow grapevine.”
Jake’s smile went wide, and he rounded the couch to drop to the cushions. “You have no idea, my friend.”
Shoulders slumping, Sam sighed. “What the hell? Go ahead.” He sat down as Jake turned to Tuck.
“Jaffrey’s exposé was a load of bullshit, but he did have one fact right. Sam and V were engaged fifteen years ago, then she took off one day without a word.”
Tuck looked at Sam. “Why?”
He propped his elbows on his spread knees. “That’s what I’m determined to find out.” Turning to Jake, Sam found him watching with the same intensity that had been in his eyes two weeks ago when he’d pushed Sam on his feelings for V. “Which is why I’m here. You were right. There is still something between us, and not just for me. For her, too.” He sat up straight. “She asked if we could start again, and I agreed.”
Satisfaction lit Jake’s eyes. “Shit, yeah. I love being right. So, what’s the problem?”
“The same problem I’ve had for fifteen years. Despite everything, I’m still in love with her, and if it was just the two of us, that would be enough. But that’s not the case. Not anymore. I have Lucy to consider.”
“Kids complicate things,” Tuck said quietly.
Jake nodded his agreement. “How does Lucy feel about the two of you being together?”
An image of the two of them embracing in his kitchen flashed in Sam’s mind and his stomach muscles clenched. He’d raced home from the complex with his heart in his throat, then walked in on everything he wanted. His miracle, however, had been short-lived.
He dragged a hand down his face. “She’s all in.” She’d even used the test results to get V and Sam under the same roof again. A helpless smile formed at his daughter’s matchmaking ingenuity. “If it were up to her, V would already be moved in with us.”
“But?”
Sam met Jake’s question with a sigh. “But Lucy’s already dealt with more loss than any kid should. I have to know V’s not going to split on a second’s notice. Until she comes clean about whatever happened back in Florida, I can’t trust her not to do it again.”
Jake’s mouth twisted into a contemplative line. “It’s been a long time, Sam. She may never come clean.”
Denial was a knife slicing him in a thousand different cuts. “I can’t accept that. She loves me, too. It’s there, in her eyes, but something is holding her back. I need the time and the opportunity to convince her to trust me enough to tell me what it is.”
The door opened suddenly, and Lucy, Gracie, and CC filed in. Lucy smiled at Sam and sat on the arm of his chair. CC slid onto the couch beside Tuck.
Gracie stopped in front of Jake, and he groaned. “Oh, hell. I know that look.”
She grinned and climbed onto his lap. With her arm around her husband’s shoulders, she pinned Sam with a sly smile. “Lucy says you’re here because you’re having a little trouble convincing V to see you.”
Sam coughed and slowly turned his head to stare at Lucy. She shrugged, but her smile was serene.
Gracie glanced between Jake and Tuck. “What about the two of you confirmed ex-bachelors? You chased and caught CC and me. Have you figured out how to help Sam get the girl?” Jake rolled his eyes and shook his head. Tuck grinned, then shrugged. Gracie turned to Sam. “Don’t worry, Sam. We girls have a plan.”
Chapter 22
Sam sipped from his beer and shot yet another impatient glance toward the front door. The girls’ plan to put Sam and V in the same room felt a little like an ambush to him, but he’d been overruled. The Triple Gs had spoken.
Apparently, both Gracie and Jessi were expecting and, according to Gracie, V wouldn’t be able to ignore their small gathering to celebrate. The farmhouse was out, of course, since V would suspect Jake would invite his good friend, Sam, to any party held there. Tuck and CC had volunteered their Long Island home instead. They hadn’t blinked an eye when Sam informed them his cousin, TJ, and Aunt Kay would be in town by party time to attend the Marauders’ matchup with Seattle the next afternoon.
The small guest list had been altered by two and, twenty-four hours later, it was game on.
Jessi and Max Grayson had yet to arrive. They’d been tasked with making sure V arrived for tonight’s impromptu party. Gracie had something up her sleeve she swore would give Sam the chance to speak to V in private, but the rest wo
uld be up to him. A few minutes alone with her was all he needed to put in play the decision he’d made earlier, but that couldn’t happen if she didn’t show.
Where the hell was she?
“Oh my God. Kevin Freakin’ Tucker just poured me a glass of wine.”
At the reverently whispered statement, Sam dragged his gaze from the empty foyer to look down at his cousin. He followed TJ’s wide-eyed stare to the kitchen where everyone else was gathered.
At the large center island, Tuck held a finger to his lips. He squeezed his arm between his cousin, Tim, and his wife, Kris, to whom Sam had been introduced earlier. CC wasn’t fooled. She swatted Tuck’s hand as he attempted to snatch a fat shrimp from the tray she was arranging. Jake took advantage of her preoccupation and pilfered two of the shellfish. He handed one to Gracie, and they both grinned at Tuck’s scowl.
Sam chuckled and turned back to TJ. “Kevin Freakin’ Tucker?” He eyed the glass in her hand. “You gonna drink it or have it bronzed?”
“Shut up.” She tried to smirk, but couldn’t hold it. Hero worship sparkled in her eyes. “Holy shit, Sam. Tuck! I can’t believe you know him, and I’m standing in his house.”
“He shares the place with the little blonde over there. Her name is CC. She’s his wife.”
“I know. I just met her. She’s nice.” A mewling sigh escaped as TJ brought her wineglass to her lips, then she nodded toward Kay and Lucy, who were laughing with Gracie, CC, Kris, and Tim. “Look at Lucy’s face. She’s so happy.”
Sam turned his head and had to agree. She’d smiled more in the last twenty-four hours than she had in four months, and the change dissolved the ball of tension he’d carried since he’d brought her home with him. The lost little girl was gone. Without the haunted look he’d witnessed in her eyes so often, she glowed like a happy fourteen-year-old with a bright future in front of her.
“Have you told your parents yet?”
Sam grunted and turned back to his cousin. “Not yet.”
TJ blinked. “Don’t you think they’d want to hear Lucy is their natural granddaughter sooner rather than later?”
“I wanted to tell them in person.”
“When do they arrive?”
“The last flight tonight. Mom didn’t want to miss her weekly luncheon with her girlfriends. She said she had some bragging to do.” TJ grinned, and Sam cleared his throat. “Listen, there’s something else I have to tell you before the last of the guests get here.”
“Who else…V.” She muttered the name in defeat.
“Right the first time.”
TJ scowled, and he lowered his voice so only she could hear. “These people are her friends, TJ, and tonight is about more than expected babies. I’m trying to convince V we should get back together, for real, and her friends are all here to help me do that.”
Her shoulders slumped, but she took his cue and spoke softly. “For God’s sake, Sam, wasn’t once enough?”
“Apparently not.” His chest heaved on a sigh. “I love her, TJ.” She groaned and shook her head, and he rubbed a hand over her arm. “That’s not what you want to hear, I know, but it’s the way things are.”
“You said you’re trying to convince her. I take it that means she’s resisting?”
He squinted at the hope in her tone. “A temporary setback. It’s…complicated. She doesn’t quite trust me. Yet.”
“She doesn’t trust you?”
He held her gaze. “I love you, TJ, and understand the way you feel, but this is my life. I’d really like your support.”
Color bloomed on her cheeks and, though her eyes held concern, she nodded. “You know I never could say no to you.” That brought a wry smile to his lips, and she rolled her eyes. “Not about the important stuff, anyway.”
He leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her forehead, then straightened. “Lucy loves her, too.”
TJ grimaced, but then sighed. “Of course, she does. V’s always been an easy person to like.” Surprise shot his brows to his hairline, and she snorted. “She was my friend, too, you know.”
He squeezed her elbow. “I know. I’m still working on getting her to tell me what happened but, whatever it was, I get the impression she felt she didn’t have any other choice than to leave.”
“I hate to admit it, but I sort of got that impression myself.” He pinned her with a questioning look, and her mouth twisted into an unhappy line. “On Christmas Eve, when you brought her to Mom’s party, V and I had a conversation in the garden.”
He dipped his head. “I saw that. You had me worried for a few minutes, yet there wasn’t a drop of blood on either of you when you came back into the house.”
“Ha! You’re a funny guy.” She rolled her shoulders. “She told me the reason Caroline Wainwright asked you to fix things with V wasn’t because your job was at stake. Apparently, Caroline didn’t want to have to fire V if things got testy between the two of you.”
Sam looked to the front door. Still nothing. “V said that?”
“Yeah.” TJ swirled the wine in her glass. “Not exactly the kind of thing a heartless bitch would admit, is it?”
“No, it isn’t.” He tucked an arm around her shoulders.
TJ sighed. “I’m willing to give her the benefit of the doubt, but if she hurts you again, she dies.” She shot a quick glance toward the group in the kitchen. “I don’t care how famous or freakin’ cute her friends are.”
He chuckled and squeezed her close to his side.
“Which reminds me.” She tilted her head to look him in the eye. “Patricia’s back, and I think she might have been that creepy Jaffrey guy’s source.”
Caught off balance by the quick change of topic, he shook his head. “What makes you think that?” Damn. The possibility wasn’t all that far-fetched. If he’d been thinking clearly, he might have suspected Patricia himself. Catty paybacks were her style.
“She blew into town like a fire-breathing dragon in heels the day before the article was posted. I bumped into her at the café the next morning.” She twisted her lips in distaste. “You should have seen her satisfied sneer when she asked me if I’d read it. I swear, a puff of green smoke shot from her nostrils.”
Sam laughed, but the humor died in his throat as the front door opened and V stepped inside.
TJ twisted her head, briefly glancing over her shoulder. “Well, there’s the guest of honor. Looks like it’s show time. I assume you and her friends have some sort of plan. What do you want me to do?”
He kept his gaze on V and handed TJ his beer bottle. “Just follow the crowd.”
* * * *
Wedged between Jessi and her husband, Max, V stumbled to a stop in Tuck and CC’s grand foyer. The blood rushed to her head as she stared across the room. In the corner, Sam stood with…. V blinked. Oh, yay. TJ was here, too.
Sam turned his head. The smile slid from his face as his intent blue gaze locked onto V.
Biting back a whimper, she looked away and spoke out of the side of her mouth. “A double baby announcement party, huh? First thing tomorrow, I’m going online and requesting new friends.” Max’s deep laugh scraped along nerves gone taut as Jessi squeezed V’s arm linked with hers. “Admit it. You wouldn’t have come if you’d known he’d be here.”
“Damned straight, I wouldn’t.”
“Which is why we didn’t tell you.” Jessi smiled serenely. “Damn, I need to pee. Oh, look, he’s coming over.” Moving faster than V had known she could, Jessi released her to grab hold of Max’s arm and hurry him toward the kitchen.
Abandoned and seeing no chance for a graceful escape, V did her best to ignore her racing heart as Sam moved in her direction. She should have known something was up when Jessi insisted she carpool with her and Max instead of driving herself. The reigning princess of country music had conned the world with her sunshine-and-innocence act. She was as devious as Gracie, CC, and Kris.
Sam stopped in front of her. He studied
her face for a long moment. “Are you okay?”
She tensed as a shiver ran up her spine. The man didn’t play fair, knowing exactly what happened to her when he used that crooning tone. “Why wouldn’t I be?”
He reached out a hand, then aborted the motion and dropped his arm. “You were upset when you left the house yesterday. Lucy was worried about you. So was I.”
The son-of-a-bitch definitely didn’t play fair. She lifted her chin. “It was a big moment. For both of you. I didn’t want to intrude.”
Disappointment darkened his eyes. “It was a big moment, and you belonged right there with us. You know that as well as I do.”
“Sam, please.” She sighed and glanced around. Suddenly, things had gotten awfully quiet. Leaning to the side, she looked past him toward the kitchen—and blinked. “Um, Sam? Where’d everyone go?”
He looked over his shoulder, then back. His smile was more of a wince. “I’m not exactly sure, but they might be out by the pool.”
Her jaw dropped open. She snapped it shut. “It’s forty degrees outside.”
“Tuck told me he’d set up a bunch of propane heaters.”
“Oh my God.” She slapped a hand to her forehead.
“Don’t be mad at them. They’re just trying to help.”
She dropped her arm to her side and stared. “Gracie and Jessi are pregnant, for heaven’s sake. Did anyone even think to put on a coat before they abandoned ship?” She bent to the side and yelled. “You’re all insane.” Straightening, she spun toward the door. “I’m calling a car.”
Sliding his arm around her waist, Sam stopped her before she’d taken a single step. He moved forward until her back was flush against his chest. “Wait.” He lowered his head until his cheek met hers. “I’m sorry for what I said to you on the phone the other day.”
“Why?” She stared at the closed door in front of her. “Everything you said was true.”
“No, what I said was cruel, and that’s the last thing I ever want to be with you.” He moved his head, just enough to brush the skin of her cheek with his. “Will you take a drive with me?”
To Win Her Back Page 20