“Thanks,” Anthony said as he shoved his hands into his jean pockets. “We had to switch quarterbacks in the fourth quarter. Jason broke his wrist so… We’ve got a few tough weeks ahead without him.”
Anthony took a step forward, taking his coffee from the woman behind the counter.
“Who’s next?” she asked, before Laura could ask him any more about the local high school football team he coached.
“Two Americanos and two Taylor Ham, egg, and cheese on a hard roll, please.”
Laura cleared her throat, and Anthony’s eyebrows rose, but he didn’t ask her who she was ordering for. They were friendly, but not that friendly, and it had taken them a while to get to where they were. Anthony knew enough not to mess with that by quizzing her. They were both free to see whoever they wanted.
“Well, I better get going,” Anthony said with a lopsided smile. “See you around, Laura.”
“Bye.”
Laura slid her phone out of her black pants while she waited for her order and opened up her calendar app. She had some editing work to do this week but nothing that needed her immediate attention. She bit her lip to keep herself from smiling. Even the idea of spending more time with Sam made her heart beat a little faster.
She knew she was scared, but if she was honest with herself, it was too late to protect herself from the things she was worried about. She’d fallen for Sam in the months they’d spent together ten years ago, and she could already feel herself falling again. Running away from her wasn’t going to help.
Laura paid for her order, the smell of their breakfast sandwiches making her stomach rumble. She made the short drive back to Sam’s cabin feeling a lot better than she had not even an hour ago. Laura parked behind Sam’s car and got out, surprised to see her sitting on one of the Adirondack chairs on the porch.
“Hey,” Laura said with a smile as she got closer, climbing the three steps up to the porch. Laura couldn’t miss the questioning look in Sam’s eyes, like she knew that Laura had left without intending to come back. She couldn’t know her that well, could she? “Are you hungry?”
“Starving.” Sam pushed herself off the chair, and Laura followed her inside.
“I wasn’t sure what you wanted,” Laura said, leaving the two coffees on the kitchen counter and opening the brown paper back with their sandwiches.
“Is that…?”
Laura met her eyes. “Yes,” she said, sliding hers across the counter to her.
“On a hard roll?” Sam asked before she even opened the aluminium foil.
Laura nodded, laughing softly as Sam practically groaned when she saw what was inside.
“You used to like them so…”
“Why haven’t I had one of these since I got back?” Sam asked from the other side of the counter as she took a bite, closing her eyes as she savored the taste of the famous New Jersey sandwich.
“Well, I figured I couldn’t go wrong with that anyway.”
“Thank you,” Sam said, wiping her lips with a napkin. “You have no idea what this is doing to me right now,” she said, taking another bite, followed by another moan.
“I can imagine,” Laura said, unable to keep the grin off her face. “Should I be worried? You’re making almost as much noise for your breakfast as you did for me.”
Sam held up her hand, waiting until she swallowed before she spoke. “You can’t compare the two… I haven’t had one of these in years.”
Laura just cocked her eyebrow as she started eating.
“Okay,” Sam said with a smile as she realized what she’d just said. “I haven’t kissed you in years either but… That is completely different. I’ve been all over the world, had some of the most amazing food, but you really can’t beat a Taylor Ham, egg and cheese,” Sam said as she took the last bite.
“I’m still not feeling great about this comparison.”
“Then we should stop comparing you to a breakfast sandwich,” Sam said as she wiped her mouth and took a sip of coffee. “I was thinking about going for a hike today, but my legs are killing me. Maybe, tomorrow.”
“Oh? Why’s that?”
Sam just smiled as she wrapped her hands around her coffee, a few wisps of hair falling across her face.
“You’re more confident,” Sam said when Laura had finished eating, Sam’s eyes raking over her. “You’re… I don’t know. At ease with yourself now, I guess.”
Laura nodded. “It’s taken a while, but yes… I feel like I’m a different person now. The only thing I was confident about back then were my photos.”
“Well,” Sam said as she joined Laura on the other side of the counter, her hands on Laura’s hips. “You have a lot more to be confident about now.”
“Really?”
“Yeah,” she whispered, tilting her head as she leaned in, pressing her lips against Laura’s.
“So, last night… Last night was okay?” Laura asked, daring herself to meet Sam’s eyes.
She thought last night had been unbelievable, but Laura was pretty sure that they’d had different experiences when it came to sex. Laura’s few tumbles in bed hadn’t been nearly as exciting as she’d hoped they’d be, and Sam was… Well, she was stunning. She probably had women throwing themselves at her everywhere she went.
Sam took a step back, the glint in her eye gone as she stared at Laura. “Are you being serious?”
“Yes.”
Sam drew a deep, audible breath, and Laura felt a fluttering of nerves in the pit of her stomach. She’d been the one to ask, so now Laura braced herself for Sam’s opinion.
“Last night was…,” Sam said, her voice low, shaky almost as she darted her eyes away from Laura’s. “Last night was incredible, better than anything I could have possibly even dreamed up,” she breathed, her eyes returning to Laura’s. “I don’t even have the words. You have nothing to be worried about.”
Laura smiled, breathing again as she reached up to cup Sam’s cheek, pulling her in to a tender kiss.
Laura sighed as Sam’s tongue glided across hers, deepening the kiss. This all felt too good to be true, having Sam back, finally giving into this, but Laura had waited a long time for this. Maybe things were finally falling into place for her.
Chapter Seventeen
Sam was starting to question her decision to ask Laura to go on a hike with her today. Yes, this part of the world was beautiful this time of year, with the last of the rust colored leaves clinging to the trees, and the views across the Delaware River made the last hour worth it, but Sam’s calves were throbbing. She considered herself to be in decent shape, but going for a daily run wasn’t the same as having sex.
Laura had left the cabin yesterday afternoon. They’d gone back to bed after Laura brought breakfast.
Sam had nothing to do yesterday, but she didn’t want to seem clingy either so when Laura mentioned going home to feed her cat, Sam didn’t invite her back that night. They did text back and forth, and that’s when Sam suggested going on a hike.
Sam crouched down, bringing her camera up to her eye. She was a few steps behind Laura who was hiking in the middle of the path, surrounded by fallen leaves, and the afternoon sun was peeking through the branches falling directly on Laura. Sam pressed the shutter a few times before catching up with her.
“Don’t think I didn’t hear you snapping away,” Laura said, brushing away a strand of blond hair that had fallen out of her pony tail.
“It’s not my fault you didn’t bring yours. You’d be doing the same thing.”
“True… So, did you miss this?”
“Hiking with you? Yes, of course.”
“No, I meant the weather, the foliage. You said you’ve spent the last few months in Southeast Asia, but I’m glad to hear that you did. I know I did… I actually gave up hiking for a few years.”
“Really?”
Laura nodded, giving her a weak smile. “It reminded me too much of you, and when I finally accepted that you were gone, I did my best to stop thinking ab
out you. So, hiking was out of the question. That was something I only ever did with you.”
“I’m not really sure what to say to that.”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean it like that. Look, it’s in the past, Sam. We’re here now, doing whatever it is that we’re doing.”
“Yeah,” Sam said, glancing at Laura as their shoes crunched over the fallen leaves. She couldn’t quite decipher her tone. Did Laura want to put a label on what this was? She’d always been so direct in the past.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if you booked yourself a flight to Florida, a weekend in the sun.”
“Well,” Sam said, slinging her camera over her shoulder. “I just got an email last night about a job in Italy. It’s for a week, and I have to let them know by tonight.”
“Are you going?”
“I think so. Yeah. It’s only for a week, and I already miss it, taking photos I mean. The traveling?” she said with a shrug, “I’m kind of enjoying have a place to call home.”
“You got lucky with that cabin,” Laura said as they came to a lookout, the Delaware River below them.
“I did. Michelle really came through for me. You were doing her wedding the night we met.”
“Yeah. I remember,” she said as they took in the view, the river winding in an ‘S’ shape through the mountains.
“Can I take a photo of you?” Sam asked, adjusting the shutter speed before she brought her camera up to her face.
“Sure.”
Sam took a few steps back, wanting to get Laura and the scenic backdrop. She took several shots, some with Laura admiring the view and a few of her smiling, her cheeks slightly flushed from the cold.
“What about a selfie?” Laura asked when Sam lowered her camera.
“Why not?”
Sam stood beside Laura, wrapping an arm around her waist as she lifted her camera, the weight of the DSLR heavy in her hand. She held down the shutter, lowering her tired arm to see how they turned out. She’d managed to get both of them in the frame with the river in the background.
Laura’s hands were on her waist as she peered over her shoulder, her chin resting on Sam’s. “There was only one photo of us together.”
“I remember,” Sam said, turning in her arms. “That night in your studio…” She didn’t need to finish that sentence. It was one of those nights where they’d almost given in, but Laura had eventually backed away, buttoning up her shirt and apologizing while Sam tried to tell herself that it would be worth the wait. “You took plenty of photos of me though.”
“If you weren’t so interested in photography, you easily could have been a model.”
Sam felt her cheeks flush at the compliment.
“I mean it, Sam,” Laura said as she pushed Sam’s dark hair behind her ear. “I don’t even know if I said it back then, but I was definitely thinking it. I was just too afraid to voice it. You’re beautiful,” she said after a second, her eyes never leaving Sam’s.
“Thank you,” she said in just above a whisper.
Laura leaned in, tilting her head as she pressed her lips against Sam’s. Her hand cupped Sam’s cheek as her lips parted, and a tingling sensation crept over Sam’s body as she kissed her back.
This wasn’t the same place where they’d kissed for the first time, but there were so many similarities that Sam felt like she was reliving that moment. The gentle breeze that fluttered through her hair and the way that Laura’s lips softly met hers reminded her so much of that day.
Laura pulled away, a smile on her lips as she slid an arm around Sam’s waist, and they both took one last look at the view before continuing on with their hike.
When Sam got that email last night about going to Italy, her first reaction had been to turn it down. She didn’t want to leave Laura so soon, but things were different this time. They were older. They’d both been hurt, in different ways, but she got the feeling that they both needed those years apart to get to where they were now, and Sam was confident that a week away wasn’t going to ruin whatever this was.
Chapter Eighteen
“What did we do for your fortieth?” Kate asked, bringing her coffee to her lips, blowing on it for a second before taking a sip.
“Nothing,” Laura said, shrugging off her coat.
“Oh. At least that means I didn’t get so drunk that I couldn’t remember it.”
“I was having a midlife crisis around that time,” Laura said, unfazed by the fact that her best friend had forgotten about that stressful year of her life.
“Yeah. That’s right. Sorry.”
“Why? Are you thinking of having a party for yours?”
“No,” Kate said, drawing a sharp breath. “Maybe. I don’t know. I’m just not ready to be forty yet.”
Laura nearly choked on her coffee. “And who is? Look, age is just a number. If it makes you feel any better, I’m forty-four, and I feel no more like an adult than I did when I was thirty.”
“Really?”
“There’s a few more lines around my eyes, and I can’t seem to handle as much alcohol as I used to, but… That’s about it. I’m no closer to having my life together.”
“That’s not true,” Kate said, lightly hitting her arm. “You could have stayed right where you were, but you made a serious change. So, you haven’t met the right woman yet. So what? You’ve only been looking for four years.”
“I’m kind of seeing Sam,” Laura blurted out.
Kate just stared at her. “But I thought she wasn’t staying?”
“She’s not. I don’t think. She’s renting a cabin, but I don’t know how long the lease is for.”
“Why don’t you ask her?”
“I don’t know,” Laura said with a sigh. “The time we’ve spent together in the last few days has been… Amazing. I don’t want to get into the details or make her feel like she has to stay for me.”
“But Laura, the way you were talking about her that night that you ran into her at the wedding, when we were at the bar… I don’t know. You just seemed so… Taken by her. I just don’t want to see you get hurt is all I’m trying to say, and if she’s not staying, how can you not?”
“I know,” Laura breathed. “I know.”
Laura’s phone vibrated on the table, and she swiped her finger across the screen to unlock it. It was a message from Sam, wondering if she could see her for a few minutes on her way to the airport.
“What’s that smile about?” Kate asked as Laura typed a quick reply, telling her that she was at the coffee shop.
“Sam is meeting me here in a few minutes. She’s on her way to Newark… She got a job in Italy for a week.”
“Does she still do portraits?”
“No. Travel photography.”
“Oh wow. That’s a great job. Well, you know… Except for the traveling part,” Kate said with a lopsided smile.
“She just didn’t want to pass this gig up. She’s not going back to full-time travel, not in the immediate future anyway, or at least that’s the impression I got.”
“You should really just talk to her,” Kate said, finishing her coffee.
“I know.”
“I’ll leave you to it,” Kate said as she stood up and put on her jacket.
“You don’t have to go.”
“You can introduce me when you’re ready,” Kate said with a wink. “Seriously, just be careful, Laura.”
“I will.”
“Bye.”
“Bye,” Laura echoed as she watched her leave.
She knew where Kate was coming from. She did need to look out for herself, but there was no easy way to know where she stood with Sam without coming across as needy or clingy. Laura didn’t want to do casual though, so what exactly was she doing? If she didn’t know that Sam was staying, then they were just having a fling with no future.
Laura smiled to herself. Things had really changed in the last ten years. Sam had been the one begging her to leave her husband, and now, if Sam told her that she was going back to tr
aveling full-time, Laura would be the one pleading her case, asking her to reconsider. Laura would do just about anything to get her to stay, and that was before things even got serious between them. What would she be like in a few weeks or a few months?
Laura didn’t have time to think about it. Sam was coming through the door, wheeling a compact black suitcase behind her with her camera bag slung over her shoulder. Sam gave a wave to the man behind the counter before she made eye contact with Laura, her lips immediately moving into a smile.
“Hey,” Sam said as she wheeled her suitcase over. “Sorry for being so last minute, but I just wanted to see you before I head off.”
Laura returned her smile. “It’s fine. So, Italy?”
“Yeah. The Amalfi Coast. I’ve been there before, but I was only passing through. This job is specifically for that thirty mile stretch of coast, so I should have plenty of time to explore and get the shots I’m looking for.”
“It’ll be warmer than it is here, I’m sure.”
“Yeah. Low seventies, so I’m leaving my winter coat at home.”
A dark haired man delivered Sam’s coffee. “Leaving already?” he asked with a smile when he saw her suitcase.
“Just for a week. I’d tell you if I was going,” Sam said with a laugh.
“Alright. You have to give us plenty of warning though. I think Natalie wants to throw you a going away party,” he said before glancing at the counter. “I have to get back to work. Safe travels.”
“Thanks,” Sam said, adding some sugar to her coffee.
“So, that’s…”
“My brother-in-law, Zach. He owns this place. I’m surprised you didn’t already know that. Small town living and all.”
“I’m the last to know everything,” Laura said with a weak smile, trying not to let what Zach said get to her. Of course he thought Sam would be leaving again. Why wouldn’t he? Why did she really think that Sam would be staying?
“So, do you have any weddings lined up this week?” Sam asked, taking a sip of her coffee.
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