Make Me Stay

by Jaci Burton

  "I'm in postproduction right now, so I have a few scenes left to add in to a film I just finished. I won't start another until after the baby arrives. And other than a premiere where I have to do a press tour in a couple of months, I'm free and clear."

  "That's great. You've been working nonstop for a lot of years now. You deserve the time off."

  "I'm sure I'll drive Logan crazy, but Martha and I are excited about clearing out one of the spare rooms upstairs next to the master bedroom to decorate the nursery. And Emma and I have so much shopping to do."

  Sam grinned. "I can imagine the fun the two of you are having being pregnant together."

  Des laughed. "We didn't plan it, but we're delighted that it turned out this way. Plus, the cousins will grow up together, and that's kind of awesome."

  "It is."

  "Okay, enough about me and baby stuff. I want to know about you and Reid."

  Sam really didn't know how to explain her relationship with Reid. "We're having fun together."

  Des gave her a look. "And that's it?"

  "I . . . guess. I mean, both our lives are kind of complicated right now. He lives in Boston. I don't think that's going to change. I have Grammy Claire to deal with. Neither of us is looking for a relationship."

  "So . . . just fun times and sex and there's no emotional attachment?"

  She'd like to answer yes to that question, but that wouldn't be the truth. She was becoming attached to Reid--emotionally and otherwise. "I don't know. And even if I had feelings for him, it wouldn't make any difference. His life isn't here."

  Des crossed her arms. "It's not here at the moment. That could change, you know. My life wasn't here when I was filming a movie on the ranch. And then I fell in love with Logan, and we all know how that turned out."

  "True. But your situation is entirely different."

  Des's lips curved. "Really. How is it different?"

  "I--" She didn't have a comeback.

  "Exactly. So if you think you might be falling in love with Reid, don't give up just because of his geography, okay?"

  She didn't necessarily believe that, but she nodded. "Okay."

  Des leaned forward and grabbed her hand, giving it a squeeze. "Love has a way of making everything work out for the best."

  Did it? She'd like to think so. But she didn't know if she was falling in love with Reid, or grasping at someone--anyone--solid to hold on to because her world was turning upside down.

  She supposed she needed to figure that out.

  In the meantime, she should head home, so she helped Des with the dishes, despite all of Des's complaints about that, then headed outside to find Reid so she could tell him she was leaving.

  She found Not My Dog wandering.

  "Hey, Notty. Where's Reid?"

  The dog wagged his tail and wiggled his butt, so she bent and petted him, then ran off a few feet and came back with a stick.

  "You want me to throw this, don't you?"

  More tail-wagging, so Sam threw the stick across the front yard. Notty ran like crazy after it, then brought it back to her and dropped it at her feet. She picked it up, careful to avoid the part of the stick Notty had slobbered all over, and threw it again.

  This went on for about ten throws.

  "He'll do that all day long."

  She looked up to find Reid walking toward her, wiping his hands on a towel.

  "Yes, I was beginning to grab a clue."

  "Go play with your stick, Notty."

  Stick in his mouth, the dog ran off to sit under the tall oak tree and gnaw on his prize.

  Sam smiled. "I see the nickname has stuck."

  "Apparently."

  "I was actually on my way to find you. I'm going to head home."

  "Oh? I thought maybe we'd spend the day together. Do you have important things to do today?"

  "Well, I was going to check on Grammy Claire and see what she and Faith are up to. Then I need to run some errands and do a little shopping."

  "Okay. Let's do that."

  She cocked a brow. "You want to come with me to run errands."

  "Sure."

  "Don't you have things of your own to do?"

  "Not really."

  "Reid. I might even have to go into Tulsa--to go to the mall."

  He opened his mouth, paused, then said, "I'll still go." She laughed. She couldn't believe that any man would want to go shopping with a woman.

  "Fine. You want to follow me to my house?"

  "Actually, I got a little greasy working with Logan, so let me go clean up. I'll meet you there?"

  "Okay."

  She got into her car and headed off the ranch property, still unable to believe Reid was going to shop with her today.

  He must be really bored--or really want to spend time with her.

  Either way, she was looking forward to spending the day with him today.

  Chapter 28

  REID LEARNED A lot of things about Sam after spending the day with her.

  One, she liked underwear. Two, she could spend an hour in the lingerie store. He wasn't sure if she did that on purpose to see if he'd flinch and run like hell, but hey, a guy could learn a lot about a woman by hanging out with her in the lingerie store.

  Plus, he could indulge in some serious fantasies about her while she browsed. Who knew these places were so sexy? Or maybe it was envisioning Sam wearing this stuff that got to him. Either way, she wandered, and his mind went crazy while she held up hot pink silk panties with flimsy little ties on either end and asked him what he thought.

  "I think I can get those off of you in about two seconds."

  That made her blush. And made his dick twitch. Which he learned after she did that to him the third time wasn't a good idea in a lingerie store filled with women. So he learned to keep his dirty thoughts to himself.

  "You know I think you'll look sexy in every single thing here."

  That made her smile. "Well, I needed some new underwear and I've been meaning to go shopping. It's just a bonus that you're here with me today so you can help me pick them out."

  Bonus? By the time she started choosing black and pink lacy and silky bras, all he could think about was getting his hands--and his mouth--on her breasts. So for him it was more torture than anything, but he hung in there.

  Next up was dress shopping for Molly and Carter's wedding. Reid found a seat while Sam tried on dress after dress and modeled them for him.

  He thought she looked beautiful in all the dresses, but Sam apparently didn't. One was too tight in the hips, the other was too short. She didn't like the particular green color on one dress, and with another dress something called a bodice squeezed her boobs.

  Who knew that being a woman meant you had to deal with so many issues trying on dresses?

  It made him glad to be a guy. He owned several suits, and he'd wear one of those for the wedding.

  She finally came out wearing a red dress that nearly made him fall out of his chair. It hit her just below her thighs, and it showed off her curves in a way that made him want to put his hands all over her.

  "That one," he said as she stood and looked at herself in the mirror.

  She turned around to face him. "Really?"

  "Yes. That one."

  She turned back and stared. "It does fit well, and I like it. But you're not just saying that because you're tired of sitting there, are you?"

  He got up and stepped behind her, laying his hands on her hips. "Sam, you look sexy as hell in this dress, and if we weren't in a public place right now, I would definitely show you how sexy you look."

  She met his gaze in the mirror, her eyes flashing hot. "This one."

  "Yeah."

  She went back into the dressing room and changed, then bought the dress.

  "Are we done?" he asked as he held on to the dress for her.

  "Not quite. Now I need new shoes to go with the dress."

  He resisted the urge to groan. Instead, he held all her bags while she sat and tried
on about twenty pairs of shoes. They all looked the same to him, but to Sam they were all different. And just like the dresses, some didn't work for varying reasons. One pair was too tight in the toe area, one rubbed her ankles, on one pair the heel was too tall, and another the heel was too short.

  It was like shopping with freaking Goldilocks.

  She finally found a pair she loved--thank God--and they were finished in the shoe department.

  "What's next?" he asked.

  "Oh, we're done here."

  He breathed a sigh of relief.

  "Now we're off to the flower store."

  A florist at the flower store? He wanted to cry.

  "But I'm kind of hungry," she said. "Are you?"

  He didn't know about hunger, but he sure as hell needed a beer. "Sure."

  "Great. How about we stop for lunch first?"

  "Sounds perfect. Where would you like to go?"

  She thought about it for a few seconds, then said, "You choose."

  Reid drove them far away from the mall, just in case Sam got inspired during lunch and decided she had to have socks or perfume or something else that might require two damn hours to select.

  He took them to the Dirt Road Bar and Grill, one of his favorite burger places, that also doubled as a sports bar. It was off the beaten path, a place bikers liked to stop in because it was on the back roads, but he'd often come here because he liked the old building and the ambience.

  "I don't think I've ever been here before," she said as they walked inside.

  The place was dark and cool inside, with original brickwork walls and an old, scarred bar he'd love to pony up to and down several beers. But since Sam was with him, he found them a seat at one of the booths, choosing one that had a prime view of all the big-screen televisions.

  "This is kind of like Bash's place, though on a larger scale," she said as she slid into the booth.

  "Yeah, though it caters to the biker crowd."

  "I noticed all the bikes when we came in. There were some awesome ones out there."

  "Yeah, there were."

  "What would you like to drink?"

  "An iced tea if they have one."

  His lips curved. "They have one. I'll be right back."

  He went up to the bar, ordered their drinks, and said hello to Casey, the owner and bartender who'd been there for as long as he'd been coming here.

  "Hey, Reid. Haven't seen you around here in years."

  "I've been in Boston."

  He and Casey caught up while Casey made their drinks.

  "You staying for lunch?"

  "Yeah."

  Casey grabbed two menus from behind the bar.

  "That your girl?" Casey asked, motioning with his head to Sam.

  Reid didn't quite know how to answer that, so he went with a nod. "Yeah."

  "Pretty."

  "Thanks. I'll let you know when we decide on lunch."

  He took their drinks and the menus back to the table.

  "You know the bartender."

  "That's Casey. He owns the place. I used to come in here for drinks when I was home for breaks from college."

  She gave him a look. "And maybe before?"

  He laughed. "Yeah. But he wouldn't serve me alcohol. Casey's a straight-up, no-bullshit kind of guy. But sometimes I'd go for long drives when I needed to get away from the ranch. I found this place on one of those drives. I liked the looks of it, I could watch sports on TV, and Casey and I became friends."

  "It's always nice to have a place where you can run away from home."

  "Where's yours?"

  She fiddled with the edge of the menu. "I guess it's the flower shop."

  "That's work, Sam. That's not a place where you can forget about your problems."

  "But I like it there. It relaxes me, and I enjoy creating bouquets. It's not really a stressful environment for me."

  "Still, it's work. You need a play place, somewhere you can go, either by yourself or with friends, where there's no work and no stressors."

  "I don't really have a lot of stressors. Or at least I didn't until this whole issue with Grammy Claire surfaced."

  "Where do you go with your friends?"

  "Oh, we hang out at each others' houses. Go to the movies or to Bash's bar. Trust me, I get out plenty."

  "That's good. And you're beautiful, so you obviously date a lot."

  She laughed. "I can't tell you how much I appreciate that compliment. But no, I don't really date a lot. My calendar is full with work and with my grandmother. Plus, I'm kind of choosy about men."

  He arched a brow. "Is that right?"

  "It is."

  "So I should feel complimented that you're spending time with me."

  She gave him a wicked smile. "Very."

  Since they were sitting on the same side of the booth, he leaned over and brushed his lips across hers. "Thanks. I feel the same way."

  She brought her finger up to his lips. "You do very strange things to me, Reid McCormack."

  "I do? In what way?"

  "You give me very warm feelings in parts of my body."

  Yeah, he was getting hot, too. "Care to be a little more descriptive about which parts?"

  She laughed, then gave him a light shove. "No. What I'd care for is one of these chicken sandwiches."

  He could tell she was hot and bothered, but also very aware of their environment. The bar was crowded for a Saturday afternoon. Not exactly a romantic atmosphere--but for a few minutes it had only been the two of them.

  He took their order to Casey, who ran it back into the kitchen and told Reid it would be about fifteen minutes. Casey refilled their drinks, and Reid carried them back to their seats. He and Sam settled in to watch some sports, Reid zeroing in on one of the baseball games.

  "Have I ever mentioned my utter love of baseball?" Sam asked.

  Reid slanted a surprised gaze to her. "You have not."

  She nodded. "Grammy Claire and I share this love. My Grandpa Bob always had a baseball game on TV in the summer. We'd watch games together all the time. St. Louis is my favorite team. I've been watching since I was a kid."

  "Have you ever been to a game?"

  "No. We often talked about heading up for a weekend of games, but we never did. I was always a little sad about that."

  "We should go to a game. Take a weekend and drive up for a game."

  "Oh, I couldn't do that. It sounds fun, but I couldn't be that far away from my grandmother."

  "Of course. I hadn't thought about that." He wished there were a way that he could take her, though. He knew she'd enjoy it. He'd gone to plenty of games in Boston. He loved baseball--any baseball game.

  Casey finally brought their food, and they started to eat.

  "Oh my God, this chicken is fantastic," Sam said after she'd taken a few bites of her sandwich. "And the fries are so good."

  Reid nodded. "Yeah, this place has awesome food. I think I've eaten everything on the menu over the years. There's nothing bad on it."

  They watched the baseball game, arguing over balls and strikes. If it was possible, Sam's knowledge of baseball made her even more attractive to him.

  "Isn't that Brady Conners?" Reid asked as the door opened and a dark-haired guy came in.

  Sam looked over. "It is. Hey, Brady." She called out his name and waved at him.

  He smiled and walked over, shaking Reid's hand. "Didn't expect to see you two in here."

  "I used to come here a lot when I lived here," Reid explained.

  Brady nodded. "It's a great hangout."

  Reid motioned to Brady's helmet. "Out riding today?"

  "Yeah. Road testing one of the bikes I was working on, so I decided to stop in for a burger and a beer."

  "You can join us if you'd like," Sam said.

  "I don't want to interrupt you two if you're on a date."

  "No interruption at all," Sam said. "We'd love the company."

  Reid said, "Take a seat."

  "Okay. Let me grab
a beer and order a burger and I'll be right back."

  He wandered off.

  "I hope you don't mind that I invited him to sit with us," Sam said.

  "I don't mind at all." Reid hadn't gone to the same high school as Brady, but he'd known him. They were the same age, so they'd hung out in the same circles.

  He'd known Brady's brother, Kurt, and had heard about what had happened to him.

  He felt bad for Brady and his family. When you suffered a loss like that, it had to be tough to get over.

  Brady sat and took a long pull of his beer. "Warm day outside for fall."

  "But great bike weather, isn't it?"

  Brady grinned. "That's the best part."

  "So it's not your bike you're riding?" Sam asked.

  "No, it's a client's. I replaced the clutch and brake lines, so I'm testing them out on a long ride before I give it the all clear."

  "And since you're here and unscathed, I assume it's all working well."

  He smiled at Sam. "It's running perfectly now."

  "Carter tells me business has been really good for you since you started working for him at his shop," Reid said.

  "More than I thought it would be, actually. I estimated I'd get a small amount of bike repair along with some paint work. But I've stayed busy every day."

  "There are a lot more bikers on the road than ever before," Sam said. "And with the weather staying warmer longer, it makes the bikers happy. Which means more work for you."

  "Yeah."

  "So your goal is to eventually open your own bike shop?" Reid asked.

  "Yeah. My specialty is custom painting. That's what I really want to do. For now, repairs and things are fine. They pay the bills."

  Reid understood that. "But not your dream job."

  "Exactly."

  "Are you planning to stay in Hope?" Sam asked. "Will you do your custom paint work at Carter's auto shop?"

  Brady shook his head. "That's not my plan, no. I mean, I don't know about staying in Hope. My parents are here, so I might. But as far as setting up shop at Carter's place, I doubt it. My plan is to set up my own shop someday."

  "And is that someday soon on the horizon?" Sam asked.

  Brady tipped his beer to his lips and took a sip, then set the bottle down on the table. "Not yet. But soon, I hope."

  "Well, I hope you decide to stay in town when you do set up your shop. A lot of people would be very happy if you stayed."

  Reid saw the glimmer of a smile on his face. "Thanks. That's nice to hear."

  Reid could tell Brady wasn't one of those people who shared his emotions. He understood that. Some guys held it all close to the vest, the quiet kind of guys who, when they had something important to say, said it. Otherwise, they were observers.