He doesn’t remember. He doesn’t remember any of it. The thought should have comforted her, but it did nothing. It did nothing at all.
He lifted his chin to her laptop, likely curious by her odd behavior. “What are you writing?” he asked again. “You’ve been staring at your laptop for over an hour.”
She cleared her throat. “Have I?” But her voice pitched a little higher than usual and she took a drink of water. “I was just…thinking.”
“About?”
She bit her bottom lip and glanced out the window. “About Renee.” It was a lie, but it sounded reasonable enough.
He immediately nodded, but took his sunglasses from his face and threw them to the dashboard. “Tell me about it.” But there was a tone in his voice that caught her attention—he was worried about something—what? She wasn’t sure.
Samantha’s shoulders relaxed a little and she leaned forward to put her laptop away. “She moved to New York only last November, and now she’s getting married. It’s all happening so fast…” Her words trailed off, because she’d already said more than she intended. She hadn’t talked to anyone about Renee since she heard the news. Even Steven, because he was never interested in anything to do with her best friend’s life. But why she felt compelled to talk to Tristan baffled her.
“I guess they’re in love,” he said, causing her heart to lurch before she turned around again.
She shrugged. “Yeah, I guess. Have you met him?”
“Yeah.” He looked over his shoulder, changing lanes, then met her eyes for the first time the whole trip. “A couple of months ago. He’s a good guy, I guess.”
“You guess?”
“Yeah, I guess.”
He didn’t say more, and she didn’t press it. She turned toward the window and adjusted her seat belt. Nervous flutters beat against the inside of her stomach, but she took a deep breath, and tried to ignore them.
“What about you?” he asked. “Are you in love?”
She squared her shoulders, surprised as hell by the question. She hated relationship talk. Hated people butting into her love life… But she lifted her head and looked him dead in the eye, almost asking him to challenge her. “Yes. Actually, I am.”
He squinted slightly and reached up to pull down the sun visor. “And where is your knight in shining armor?”
There it was. The judgment that was unmistakable. She turned to the window, hating the way it made her feel. Because it made her feel insecure. Made her feel slightly angry with Steven for the first time since he’d told her about his internship. She pulled in a deep breath and tried to sound confident. “Work,” she confessed, her stomach dropping a few inches.
“Well that’s unfortunate,” Tristan stated, but there was a tone in his voice that almost sounded like he was pissed off.
She turned back around, slightly confused. “How so?” she questioned, disturbed by the fact she’d been so consumed with the conversation she hadn’t realized they’d pulled off the freeway.
He pulled into a parking space, pushed down the emergency brake, then turned to face her, his expression hard. “His priorities are in the wrong place.”
She shook her head, uncomfortable with the lecture-like tone he was using. Her chest inflated and she grew a little taller in her seat. “He landed one of the most coveted positions of his graduating class. I would say his priorities are right where they need to be.”
Tristan shrugged, unbuckled his seat belt, and got out of the car. “If it were me, there would be no way I’d let the woman I was in love with drive cross-country with a man I’d never met.” He slammed the door behind him and moved in the direction of the restaurant.
“Where are you going?” she shouted through the rolled-down window.
“To eat,” he said without turning around.
“But I have snacks!”
He shook his head, almost laughing. “You eat your snacks, Sam. I’m getting a burger.” But before he opened the door to walk inside, he turned and retraced his steps almost reluctantly. He ducked down, looking at her through the passenger window. “Join me if you want,” he said, tilting his head to the side. “Or don’t. Your choice.” He flashed her one of his first-class smiles, then stood up and walked inside, leaving her stomach filled with butterflies, and the sudden urge to call her boyfriend.
Chapter Eight
Present day
“Good afternoon, Connor and Associates, how may I direct your call?”
Samantha shoved the last bits of jerky into her mouth and rolled down the bag. “Steven Mathers, please.”
Tristan had been gone no longer than two minutes, but it was long enough for her to have a mini panic attack about her relationship. She was still seething over Tristan’s comment about priorities. Possibly because the way he said it reminded her of Renee, or maybe it was the disappointment in his eyes when he said it, but it bothered the hell out of her. Tristan didn’t know her. He didn’t know how her and Steven’s relationship functioned—yet he’d made a split second judgment about Steven’s priorities.
“Hold please,” the operator said, sending Samantha to elevator music while she tucked the bag of jerky back in her purse.
It wasn’t until that moment with Tristan, that she realized she hadn’t told Steven at all that she was leaving. Not because it was a secret. Because he was busy with work and she didn’t want to bother him. But now that Tristan’s words were in her head, she couldn’t help but feel guilty.
What if he was upset she’d gone with Tristan? What if Tristan was right, and Steven didn’t like the idea of her driving cross-country with a man he’d never met?
Though he had met him… A long time ago, but he had.
At first she was angry, but the more she thought about it, Tristan may be right. If the situation were reversed, and Steven was driving cross-country with a woman she’d never met, she wouldn’t like it one bit. And she wasn’t even the jealous type. Her stomached coiled deep inside and she worried her bottom lip.
Steven’s voice came through the line, hurried and out of breath. “Steven Mathers,” he answered, making her anxiety flair and her face to cringe with regret.
She’d caught him at a bad time, she was sure of it. “Hey, it’s me.” She whisper-replied.
“Sam.” He lowered his voice and muffled the receiver. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah, I—”
“Can I call you later? I really shouldn’t be on the phone.”
She bit her bottom lip, determined to get the words out. She glanced through the window of the restaurant, where Tristan could be seen looking at a menu. “I’m calling to tell you I left for New York this morning.”
“What?” he questioned, a little shocked.
“Yeah… You see, Renee’s brother was leaving today, and she thought it would be a good idea for us to drive together.”
“And this was so important you called me at work?”
She frowned. “You’re not angry?”
He hesitated a moment, as though contemplating the question. “Are you a big girl, Samantha?”
She picked at her fingernail, then scrunched her shoulders nervously. “I don’t know? You’re not jealous because I’m with another guy?”
“Should I be?”
She shook her head, looking down to her lap. “No.”
“Honey, I trust you. You’ve never given me any reason not to. You make your decisions, and I make mine. That’s what I love about us. I don’t want to be one of those couples that can’t make decisions without the other. I’m secure enough in my manhood to trust the woman I love.”
Samantha closed her eyes, pulling in her first real breath in the last five minutes. “You’re right.” She sighed. “I don’t know what I was thinking.”
He chuckled. “I really have to get back to work now. Are we good?”
She nodded. “Yes, of course.”
“Okay, be safe baby. I love you.”
“I love you too.”