Fated Bliss (Bliss #2) (10 page)

My breath came out in a long gush, and I had to pause to get my words together. “Yes, Mags. I do care…a great deal. She’s…perfect. It’s definitely more than a one-night thing.”

Maggie’s eyes closed as she smiled, sniffling softly. “That’s good…so good to hear, Ben. I’ve wanted that for you for so long.”

“There’s still a lot to work out, Mags. We’ve only just met, so don’t get your hopes up.” Maggie would start planning an engagement party if I wasn’t careful. “I still don’t know where she lives. From what I gathered, she lives close to Bliss.”

“Not a lot of talking last night,” Lyric commented, smirking as if she had a secret.

I gave her a devilish look and admitted, “Not really.”

“’Bout time you got laid.” She snorted. “Did you tell her about Lincoln? I bet she wasn’t too happy about you leaving so suddenly.”

“Well…about that,” I stated, uncomfortable.

Lyric and Maggie gaped at me, horrified.

“You didn’t?!” Maggie cried. “Ben! Please tell me you didn’t leave without saying goodbye!”

“It’s not as simple as that. I couldn’t wake her,” I explained, feeling defensive. “I tried several times, but she slept like a rock. I even checked her pulse to make sure she was still alive. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Lyric put her head in her hands, laughing. “Only you, Ben. This could only happen to you.”

Maggie’s giggle joined her laugh. “She’s right. Only you could have this type of luck.” She sobered and stared me in the eye. “You’re going to have some ass kissing to do.”

“Not necessarily. I left her a note.”

“A note?” Lyric questioned, bursting out into a new set of giggles. “That’s even worse!”

“I’ll call her hotel later, too,” I added, unsure.

Would Samantha be mad when she woke?

“What you would do without us is beyond me,” Lyric muttered and calmed a bit. She cocked her head. “Call the hotel and have them send some breakfast to her room as an apology. You can have them write another little note saying you can’t wait to see her again. That should help. Women like small gestures like that.”

“Good idea,” Maggie agreed.

“Fine,” I caved. “I’m gonna shower first.” I pushed away from the window and headed for the stairs, hollering back to them, “Try Linc’s phone again.”

“Aye, aye, Captain,” Lyric returned cheekily.

Had I known Lincoln would be harder to find than that, I would have done things differently that day. If Samantha only knew how much I regretted that.

Chapter 9

Samantha

I squeezed my
eyes closed, willing the tears to stop. I loathed crying, but the bastards had a mind of their own.

How could I have been so stupid?

You knew what you were getting into, Sam.

I told myself to shut up.

Yeah, I had woken up alone (that should have been my first clue), but I blamed myself for that. When I drank, I slept and slept. I’d been teased relentlessly about it in the past. My body wouldn’t allow me to wake until it fully recovered. It happened to be the reason I never, ever had a hangover.

A curse and a blessing, I guess.

Looking back, I should have given Ben a bit of warning or maybe not have drank so much. But hindsight is twenty-twenty and all that.

Nevertheless, Ben had left me that sweet note, telling me we’d get together later, and he sent me breakfast in bed that was accompanied with another note saying he missed me and couldn’t wait to see me.

Once that happened, hope blossomed inside me.

I thought we’d have more time.

Our night together was remarkable. The way Ben couldn’t get enough of me, the way he went from frantic and dominating to attentive and sweet made me believe he held me in a higher regard than someone warming his bed. In the end, I wholeheartedly thought it meant something to the both of us, and I didn’t see the brush-off coming.

Alas, Ben didn’t show at the bar. I waited and waited, then walked up to my room, devastated. I had a message awaiting me, so I hoped again. Ben explained that he had an emergency, that he was so sorry, and that he’d call again in the morning.

His call never came.

I’d been sitting by the phone for hours.

I should have known the man was too good to be true. I should have trusted my first impression of him, but hope was a fickle, fickle game.

When I thought I’d be hurt coming out the other side of our fling, I had no idea I’d be utterly obliterated.

And I thought Patrick broke my heart.

Nothing could have prepared me for Ben, though.

I kept trying to rationalize everything that happened, like why Ben would have sent notes and called if he didn’t plan to follow through. He said there was an emergency, so maybe he was in a car accident or something. Maybe something bad happened to someone he loved.

It was torture not knowing.

I needed advice. I needed to know if I was being clingy when I shouldn’t be. I didn’t want to be
that
girl. I’d never been
that
girl. I needed to talk to someone that had insight on these types of matters.

Grey was out of the question. He’d drop everything and hop on the first flight just to hunt down Ben and kick his ass. I couldn’t talk to Clara about it. She was just as clueless to these things as I was. Chelsea was a definite no. She’d tell me to forget the prick and then start crying about how Justin cheated on her all over again.

That left one person.

I grabbed a beer and sat on the couch next to the window. I dialed Adam’s number as I stared out at the city. God, I wished I could enjoy the sights in front of me, but nope…not me – I was tending a broken heart.

Good job, Sam.

“Sweet Samantha,” Adam crooned, “how’s my favorite girl?”

Attempting to act natural, I turned to our usual banter. “I didn’t realize you had one. I thought the majority of women were your favorite.”

Adam chuckled. “True.”

See, what better person to call?

He continued, “How’s London? Anythin’ crazy going on? You know, if you would have taken me, you wouldn’t be callin’ home right now.” He sighed wistfully. “There’s no tellin’ the fun we could’ve had.”

“No, I’d probably be bailin’ you out of jail for public indecency or somethin’ off the wall like that.”

“You wound me, Sam.” There was a smile in his voice. “Wait, do you post bail in London? Is their system the same as ours?”

I laughed. “I haven’t tried it, and I don’t plan to find out.”

“Spoilsport,” he teased.

God, it felt good to laugh and to hear a familiar voice.

I missed home.

“How’s everythin’ back there?”

“All right, I guess. Chels isn’t mopin’, so that’s a good thing.”

When our friend Justin disappeared, he left Chelsea, his wife, high and dry. She had to move in with Adam afterward. Adam could be a pain in the ass, but he had a good heart.

“So…” Adam drawled. “I know you, Sam, and you wouldn’t be callin’ if there wasn’t a reason, especially bein’ there, where you should be havin’ the time of your life. What’s wrong?”

I heaved a sigh. “God, Adam, I don’t know where to start.”

“Uh oh. That sounds ominous. Are you in some kind of trouble?”

“Not exactly.”

I chewed on my lip, not wanting to admit what happened. I was taking a risk by calling him. He could tell my brother and all hell would break lose, he’d never let me hear the end of it, or he’d be a good friend and be there for me. Sometimes, with Adam, you just never knew.

“Well, get to talkin’, sweet cheeks. I don’t have all day.”

“You know I hate it when you call me that,” I grouched.

“But you’ve got the sweetest cheeks around.”

“Can you be serious?!”

He huffed out a laugh. “You’re the one dallyin’, Sam.”

Shit.

He hit the nail on the head.

Hesitantly, I stated, “Fine. I…well… I need some advice.”

That earned me another chuckle.

“You need advice,” he repeated, disbelieving. “From me? No way. I don’t buy it. Has hell frozen over?”

“Shut up,” I snapped, my voice watery. “I’m serious.”

Oh, no.

I was close to tears again.

Something must have given away my looming meltdown because Adam’s voice came back soft and concerned. “Sam, honey, are you okay? Did somethin’ bad happen?”

That’s it.

I’m done for.

Adam being nice was the last straw, and I broke down, turning into a blubbering mess.

We’d always had a love-hate, brother-sister relationship. It was more in jest than anything. That was how we were together, like oil and vinegar. But Adam was never kind unless it was absolutely necessary or Mom or Dad told him to shut up.

“Samantha, I need you to calm down and tell me what happened,” Adam insisted, his voice steely. “Do I need to come out there? What’s wrong?”

“I met someone,” I told him through my hysterics.

“Shit, Sam. I’m not the right person to call for this.”

I wiped my face, cursing the blasted tears. “Just give me a minute. And don’t be nice to me!”

He laughed softly. “Okay, sweet cheeks. I won’t be nice. Dry your eyes and spill your guts.”

It took another minute to calm down, and when I did, I told him everything, from start to finish. Wrapping it up, I explained why I needed him. “So…I can’t get all the what-ifs out of my head. I haven’t been able to leave my room because I hope he calls and gives me a good reason why it all went to shit. Am I makin’ a bigger deal out of this than I should? I don’t know what to do, Adam!”

“Wow.”

“That’s it? Wow?” I growled incredulously.

“Just give me a moment to process this, Sam.” He stayed silent for a couple seconds. “Even with that asshat, Patrick, I’ve never heard you like this. It’s…shockin’.”

“See! It’s why I’m freakin’ out. This isn’t me!”

And it wasn’t.

I was always level headed. When Patrick broke up with me, I was angry. I didn’t wallow or cry. Even though I was hurt, I didn’t let anyone see it. I pulled up my big girl panties and moved the fuck on with my life.

“I can tell,” Adam agreed, exhaling. “Okay, Sam. Here’s my take on it.”

I grabbed my forgotten beer and took a big gulp. “Sock it to me.”

“For you to like a guy like this, he had to be special. You wouldn’t give yourself to someone if they weren’t. You’ve got to be the best judge of character I’ve ever met. Also, you’re really good at sniffin’ out lies. If this guy was intent on screwin’ you over, you would have seen it comin’ a mile away. You can still trust yourself, Sam.”

“That makes me feel a little better,” I muttered halfheartedly.

“Don’t let it yet,” he warned. “From what you said, he walked away at first. He even warned you about makin’ promises when he saw you again. I think he was just as surprised by you as you were him. But you need to take into account that he was good at hidin’ emotions and facts about himself. That means he has secrets. Maybe these secrets are too dark. Maybe they could’ve hurt you, and he decided that walkin’ away was best.”

“Isn’t that my choice?”

“You’ve known him days, Sam,” he pointed out. “Was this supposed to go on after you left London?”

“Yes…no…I don’t know,” I stammered.

“You know the real answer, Sam.”

“No, it wasn’t. I convinced myself it was worth the night, but he was the one that took it a step further, Adam.
He
started makin’ promises. How am I supposed to react after he broke them?”

“You want my advice?”

“I wouldn’t have called if I didn’t. You know the male psyche better than anyone. I trust you to give it to me straight,” I told him, meaning every word.

“Wow, Sam. We must be at a new turnin’ point in our relationship. For you to admit that…”

“Don’t be an asshole.”

He became serious again. “I think you need to walk away, forget him. You are too invested in this. In my experience, the more power someone has over you, the more they can hurt you. And if they aren’t as committed as you are…you’re fucked.”

I was really surprised by this response. It sounded as if he had personal knowledge of this and that he’d been hurt before, something that I had never known.

Before I could ask him about it, he went on. “You need to do what you planned since day one – see England and enjoy yourself. Don’t worry about this guy or bein’ alone or anythin’ at home. Pack your shit and move to the next town, see everythin’ there is to see. Wring every bit of excitement out of this trip.

“Maybe now that you’ve experienced somethin’ like this, you can come home and truly move on from asshat Patrick. Seriously, you took yourself out of the game before you were ever really in it. There is so much more – a lot of fun actually – to datin’ and relationships than you experienced with him. He was a self-absorbed prick that didn’t appreciate you. And if you’re honest with yourself, I bet you only stayed with him because he was convenient and all you knew.”

“Who are you, and what have you done with the Adam I know?” I teased, slightly blown away.

“Sometimes, Sam, there’s more to someone than meets the eye.”

“Thanks, Adam,” I whispered. “I needed to hear that.”

“Any time, sweet cheeks. But, if you want any more advice, call someone else. I’m tapped out for…say…the rest of my life.”

“And there’s the asshole I know,” I deadpanned.

We hung up after saying goodbye. I felt a lot better now that I talked it out. Maybe forgetting Ben was best all around. It would be a hard feat to accomplish – our night together was unforgettable – but I was going to try.

With a new sense of determination, I found my laptop to make plans for the next stop. There was so much to see, and I still had over half my vacation left.

After doing some research, I found the perfect spot to rejuvenate this trip.

Goodbye, London.

Hello, Bath.