When Love Is Unexpected: A Sweet Fake Relationship Friends To Lovers Romance

11. Chapter 11

When the song ends, he lets me go, and I instantly miss him.

”The steaks must be cold,” he says, walking into the kitchen.”

”It”s okay,” I say, pulling myself onto the countertop and crossing my legs. ”We”ll make some steak salads. Just cut them into thin slices.”

”Your wish is my command,” he says, pulling a knife from the butcher block.

”Not true!” I say.

He puts the knife down and looks at me. ”Go ahead,” he says, ”ask me for anything.”

Gotcha!

”Okay,” I say. ”You said kissing is your love language. I want you to show me how well you speak it.”

”Trust me,” he says. ”I”m fluent.”

When he walks over to me and gets really close, my heart starts fluttering like a butterfly caught in a net.

I wait for him to make a move, but he doesn”t budge.

I stare at him. He stares back.

When he lifts my chin, I close my eyes and pucker up, ready for my kiss.

When nothing happens, I open my eyes. His turquoise-blue eyes are looking at me, assessing me.

”The freckles on your face have always begged me for a kiss.”

”Always?” I ask.

”Since the first moment I saw you.”

”That was a long time ago,” I say.

”That”s how long I”ve been waiting,” he says.

Our eyes are locked on each other, conveying a message only our souls can interpret.

”Every detail of your face is etched in my memory,” he says, moving his hand to the crook of my neck.

”You must have a great memory,” I say, as his thumb starts tracing a gentle path across my face, touching every freckle.

When he moves his hand to the back of my neck, I close my eyes and surrender to the sensation. He begins a light massage on the nape of my neck, and I feel the day”s tension melt away. I think of my little nephew, Jon, giggling and arching his back with delight every time I tickle him. If Sam continues down this path, I might do the same thing.

His thumb touches my bottom lip before his lips dust my face with featherlight kisses. He kisses my cheeks, nose, forehead, and neck. When an involuntary sigh escapes my lips, he nips my ear and whispers, ”I told you, kissing is an entirely different language.”

”Point taken,” I say when I open my eyes and watch him go back to slicing the steaks.

During dinner, we talk about the itinerary for next week, the week before the wedding.

”You”re going to be busy,” I say. ”What am I going to do while you”re off playing golf and getting entertained by a stripper at the bachelor party?”

”We”re not a stripper kind of family,” he says. ”The party”s at a bar, but I guarantee the most we”ll do is drink and maybe watch some sports.”

”I do have some shopping to do,” I say. ”Do you think one of your sisters, if not both, will want to go with me to find a dress for the reunion?”

”My sisters love to shop,” he says, ”so that could turn into a whole day event.”

”I hope they like me,” I say.

Reaching for my hand, Sam says, ”They”re both pretty good judges of character. They”re going to love you.” He lifts my hand to his lips and kisses the knuckles.

”Are you still doing software development?” I ask, trying to remain focused. Why do I feel flustered?

”Yes,” he says. ”I have four major clients that keep me busy most of the year. A few months ago, I got my degree in software engineering. With that, I plan to take on more complex jobs.”

”So, are you on vacation right now?” I ask.

”Yes. The development teams I work with in each company can handle things in my absence. If something pressing comes up, they can contact me. We can fix most issues over the phone or via video chat.”

”So, when you freelance, you can live anywhere in the world,” I say.

”As long as I have good internet access, a laptop, and a phone, yes.”

I nod, looking at him.

”Your wheels are turning,” he says, reading my mind.

”Yes,” I say. ”When you said your life is here, do you mean here in Cold Spring?”

”My family wants me back in San Diego.”

”I understand,” I say, thinking about Brian and the decision we never had to make.

”What about you?” he asks. ”Are you still working as a research assistant at the medical center?”

”I did that part-time for four years. About seven months ago, I started volunteering in the pediatric wing at the same hospital. With school, I found I could only do one, so with my parents” blessing, I quit my job.”

”I remember you told me you wanted to volunteer more hours, but I don”t think you told me you had quit your job.”

”I quit almost three weeks ago,” I say. ”You stopped calling around that time, remember?”

”It was worth it,” he says. ”The surprise on your face when you saw me was priceless.”

”As soon as I saw the runny eggs, I knew you were here.” I smile, and when he smiles back, my insides turn to mush.

”How”s your volunteer work going?” he asks.

”It”s the most rewarding thing I”ve ever done.”

”You always sounded excited when you talked about it. You”re going to be an amazing pediatrician.”

”Technically,” I say, ”I already am.”

”I”m sorry I missed your graduation. Will you ever forgive me?”

”It hurt. I”m not gonna lie. But I”m fully aware that you couldn”t leave Greece to travel five thousand miles just to see me in a cap and gown.”

”It means a lot more than that,” he says, ”and I”m cognizant of what you”ve accomplished.”

”Then why weren”t you here?” I ask, feeling guilty for making him feel guilty.

”Laila, I was in a relationship at that time. I don”t think it would”ve been well-received if I had just picked up and left for a week to visit a girl friend.”

”That was six weeks ago! Five if you count the week you”ve been here. When exactly did you end that relationship?”

An uneasy feeling settles in the pit of my stomach when he doesn”t answer, but just stares at me.

”Wait,” I say. ”Do you still have a girlfriend in Greece?”

When he doesn”t say anything, I stand and walk away.

”Wait,” he says, reaching for my arm. ”Wait.”

I spin around to glare at him.

”Do you have a girlfriend?” I ask, deliberately enunciating every word very slowly.

”No,” he says. ”I don”t have a girlfriend.”

”Then why did it take so long to answer the question?” I ask, looking away, my unease quickly turning to anger.

”Laila, look at me.”

I look at him just as his hands move up my arms. They”re big and strong, yet gentle.

”I don”t cheat,” he says.

”Why would you say that?” I ask, his comment taking me by surprise.

”Because I”ve spent the last four days doing my best to keep my hands and lips off of you.”

”Sam, I—.”

”When I knew I was coming back, Helga and I broke up.”

”Helga?” I ask, smiling, raising an eyebrow, and holding back a chuckle.

”Don”t let the name fool you,” he says. ”She”s an intelligent young woman with auburn hair, big brown eyes, and a fantastic smile.

”Fantastic? Wow, well, she sounds great.”

”She is,” he says, ”but I don”t love her, just like you don”t love Eric, the guy everyone says is great too.”

”The spark isn”t there,” I say.

”Exactly,” he says.

”Do you know what the spark feels like?” I ask.

”I do,” he says. ”I”ve felt it at least twice.”

”That”s right,” I say. ”Twice. Listen, it”s getting late. I should probably go.”

”Okay,” he says. ”I”ll see you tomorrow?”

”Yeah,” I say, looking at him. ”See you tomorrow.”

When I get home, I shut the door behind me and lean against it, realizing that, one, I”m jealous. I chuckle under my breath and shake my head. I”m jealous. Two, he still owes me a kiss.

Walking into my bedroom, I find Mom sitting on my bed.

”You heard,” I say.

”Yes, your sister called earlier.”

”There”s nothing to worry about, Mom. Eric is upset, and understandably so. I hurt him, and I can”t expect him to get over it overnight. Adam and Aaron have been good friends to him. They”ll talk some sense into him.”

”Okay, that makes me feel better. I”ll let you go to bed now. Do you have plans with Sam tomorrow?”

”We”re having dinner with Loren and Aaron.”

”Just to let you know, everyone is coming over for breakfast in the morning. Have a good night, Sweetheart.”

She gives me a hug and a kiss before leaving the room.

I get up early in the morning, planning to help Mom fix breakfast.

When I walk into the kitchen, Mom is peeling potatoes, and Dad is sitting at the table drinking coffee.

”Sit down, Princess,” Dad says. ”Tell me exactly what happened with Eric.”

When I finish giving him a complete account of what transpired between Eric and me and then between Sam and Eric, Dad doesn”t say anything, but his face tells a story.

”You”re worried,” I say.

”You”re my daughter,” he says. ”I”m not going to apologize for wanting to protect you.”

”I don”t want you and Mom to worry,” I say. ”Sam and I are leaving tomorrow. Putting some distance between Eric and me will help him gain some clarity.”

”I think so, too,” says Mom, handing me a pan.

Together, we make eggs, sausage, pancakes, and hash browns. By the time Katherine and Loren show up with their families, the topic of Eric has been put to rest.

”Where”s Sam?” asks Adam, piling his plate with pancakes and sausage.

”He”s at the studio,” I say. ”They hired a couple more people to help Zoe, and he wants to meet them.”

”I don”t know how you did it all by yourself,” Aaron says, reaching for Loren”s hand.

”When I ran it by myself, it wasn”t as busy as it is now,” says Loren.

”Daddy,” says Holly, ”can Tori and I go to Mommy”s studio to paint new plates?”

”The studio isn”t mine anymore, Sweetie,” says Loren. ”But I”m sure we can stop by. Maybe tomorrow?”

”We want to paint some plates with the new babies on them,” says Tori.

”I think that”s a great idea,” says Katherine. ”How about if Loren and I take the kids to paint a project while you two go to lunch with Eric?”

”Make that three,” Dad says, ”I”m going with you.”

I glance at Mom, who gives me a look that says, ”Don”t contradict your father,” so I don”t say anything.

”Are you and Sam still planning on faking a relationship?” asks Adam.

”Faking a relationship?” Dad asks.

Oh boy.

I spend the next half hour explaining the situation to Dad while trying to field everyone else”s questions and opinions.

”Laila,” Aaron begins, ”if Sam is in love with you and you”re not feeling it, you should be completely honest with him before you go on this trip.”

”I don”t know what I”m feeling,” I say.

”You were miserable without him,” says Katherine.

”Sam has been in love with you since the day he met you,” says Loren.

”When in doubt, kiss him to find out,” says Adam.

”Kiss him, Auntie Laila,” exclaims Tori.

That makes everyone at the table laugh out loud.

”With all joking aside, Princess,” Dad says, ”whatever your feelings for Sam are, just be honest and open with him.”

”Don”t give him mixed signals,” says Katherine.

”You guys all think the situation with Eric is my fault,” I say defensively.

”That”s not what we”re saying, Sweetheart,” says Mom.

”Let”s be mindful of the baby ears in the room,” Loren says. ”How about if we table this conversation for a later time?”

”You”re talking about us,” says Holly, chuckling and showing everyone her new smile, missing a front tooth.

”Holly,” I say, ”did the tooth fairy leave you a dollar on your pillow?”

”She left me five dollars,” says Holly.

”I only got a dollar!” I say, looking from Dad to Mom and back again.

”That was twenty years ago,” says Mom, smiling.

”It”s called inflation,” says Aaron.

”I”m gonna miss you all so much,” I say, getting a little teary-eyed.

”Don”t get me started,” says Loren. ”I”ve been getting emotional lately, and—.”

”Nooo!” we all exclaim together.

”It”s part of your charm, Babe,” Aaron says, leaning over to kiss my sister.

The way this man looks at my sister is truly mesmerizing, but it”s no longer foreign to me. I recognize it because I experienced it last night with Sam.