Chapter Eleven
JAMIE
Sam’s effort to show me how much he is committed to working on our relationship really made me feel special. Meeting his family is such a huge step, especially considering how different everything is being from Sutton Hills.
It was different to be around so many of the elite as a guest instead of a performer. Typically, I’m an outsider due to being there as an entertainer with the band, but today it was merely because I wasn’t from the same neighborhood. I felt different like I was in a foreign language. Everything was intimidating because I didn’t speak the language.
My eyes drift over to Sam, as I wonder if he could tell how difficult of a time I was having. Some people were welcoming, like Alyssa, but he had to realize that I was alone for most of the party. It’s still shocking how much I revealed to him about my past, and even more surprising how well he took it.
Sam has had a dream upbringing, so I feared he wouldn’t be able to empathize with my hell of a childhood. In some ways, I think it could have brought us closer together. Lowering my guard is a good thing because he gets to see more of me, and that’s necessary for a healthy relationship.
I want to build with Sam, so I’m willing to go out of my comfort zone, like sharing details about myself and even going to parties with his family and friends, despite their exclusive nature. Time will probably force them to accept me, especially if Sam makes a point to help bridge the gap.
Alyssa will be a good ally because she is close with Sam and seems to like me. Although I don’t know her husband, I could tell he isn’t from Sutton Hills either, so I’m sure she can understand the difficulty of trying to blend in a tight-knit community like that one. She was sweet and made me feel like I had a friend, which was all I really wanted.
Nikki, however, was more closed off. I could tell from the moment she answered the door that she didn’t like me. Her attitude was just off, and for the rest of the time at the party, I just felt like she didn’t want anything to do with me.
Her group of friends act like the popular girls in high school, very cliquey and mean, but that wasn’t going to be enough to scare me off because Sam meant more to me than some prissy bullies.
I’d be lying if I said I didn’t wonder if those girls were more his type. When Nikki took that beautiful blonde girl over to meet him, he seemed to have a good time talking to her. She was so close I couldn’t stand to watch after a while, and now that I replay the scenario, I feel a weird feeling in my stomach.
Knowing it’s best to keep everything in the light, I try to decide on the best way to just ask Sam about her, which isn’t easy because the last thing I want to do is come across as needy or jealous. That type of behavior will scare a man of Sam’s caliber away. He’s too mature and successful to be jealous, and I don’t want to make him uncomfortable.
“Can I ask you something?” I ask, disturbing Sam from what looked to be deep thoughts.
“What’s up, babe?” He turns to me, rolling over to lean up on his elbow.
“The girl at the party… Did you used to date her?” I decided it best to just go right out and ask.
“What girl?” He asks, his brows scrunching together.
“The blonde one. Your sister brought her over to you; she was beautiful, like a model,” I admit, hoping to jog his memory. She didn’t seem like the type of girl you would forget speaking to.
“Oh, Tasha,” he smirks, and something about the way his lips curl while saying her name makes me uncomfortable.
“That’s her name?” I try to sound casual. She even has a model name.
“Yeah, that’s just Nikki’s friend. Well, I met her a while ago she said, but I don’t really remember,” he shrugs, and that makes me feel better.
She must not have meant too much to him if he didn’t even remember meeting her, but why the smirk when he said her name? I can’t help but feel like there’s more to the story that he’s not telling me.
“She seemed to like you,” I hint at my curiosity, hoping he doesn’t shut down because I know I’m prodding.
“Tasha probably likes everybody in my position,” he shakes his head before rolling onto his back.
Without his focus, I feel a bit bolder. It’s easier to ask him something without having to look into his deep eyes. Sam is a powerful man, and that doesn’t just go away when he leaves the boardroom. Every time we talk, I feel his presence, and sometimes it’s intimidating.
But there’s no way I’m going to hold back when I know something is bothering me. This girl was obviously flirting with him, and I want to know if I should be worried. I mean, she is from Sutton Hills, and while he claims she likes anyone in his position, does he like anyone in hers?
“How did you meet her?” I ask.
“According to her, we met at a wedding, and I offered to teach her how to surf, but I don’t really remember,” he answers casually.
“Oh, so you never taught her?” I ask for clarity.
“No, but she seemed dead set on holding me to it,” he chuckles, standing from the bed.
“What do you mean?” I push on.
“She said I still owe her, so I said I’d teach her,” he explains while stepping into his pajama pants.
“You what?” I blurt out, hoping I'd misheard him although I know I haven’t.
“I told her I’d teach her to surf,” he looks at me, his eyes confused.
“Sam, why would you tell a girl that obviously likes you that you’ll go out with her?” I quiz.
“Jamie, relax. I didn’t say I would go out with her, I said I’d give her a surfing lesson,” he adds as if I didn’t understand.
What he didn’t get was how women work. Tasha may have posed it as a surf lesson, but all she wanted was time alone with him, that I was sure of. She’d spend the whole day fawning over him, asking for hands-on assistance to everything. He was too smart not to see that.
“She was flirting with you the whole time, Sam. There’s no way she just wants a surf lesson. If she did, she’d go to an actual instructor,” I reason, my frustration building.
“Babe, it’s really not that serious,” he responds lightheartedly before leaving the bedroom.
Rushing to my feet, I wrap the sheet tightly around my frame while following him into the kitchen.
“It is serious to me, Sam, because I wouldn’t do that to you,” I cross my arms, waiting for his response as he opens the refrigerator.
“Jamie, she’s just my sister’s friend. There’s never been anything romantic between us. She’s just a bit desperate, but you have nothing to worry about because I already have the girl I want,” he smiles.
“You have to be careful of girls like her, Sam,” I warn him as he fills two glasses with orange juice, his smirk flashing across his face as he shakes his head.
“Baby, you have nothing to worry about,” he chuckles, sliding my glass across the table.
He may be right. Tasha is just the type of girl that is all over guys that are successful because that’s how Sutton Hill women are, but I don’t like it. Nothing about this sits well with me, especially how I’ve had to bring it up and pry every ounce of information out of him.
If the shoe were on the other foot, I would rush to tell him everything and do anything in my power to assure him I wasn’t interested.
“So, you’re going to give her the lesson?” I ask, my glass still full as I focus my attention on Sam.
“If she calls me, probably,” he holds his hands up as my mouth drops open.
“You gave her your number?” I shriek, unable to contain myself.
“Come on, Jamie, we’re not teenagers. No, I didn’t give her my number, but it’s a small circle, and she’s friends with my sister. If she wants to get in touch with me it won’t be the hardest case to solve,” he jokes, but I don’t find any of this funny.
Sam heads back to the bedroom, and after a long while, I follow him. He’s already fast asleep by the time I climb into bed beside him, but his arm instinctually reaches out for me, pulling me into his side.
Sleep evades me that night as I lie awake wondering how we could be so close, yet so far from understanding each other. It just didn’t make sense how he couldn’t see my perspective. He could tell me I had nothing to worry about as much as he wanted, but I wasn’t comfortable with his behavior or his unwillingness to change.