Second Chance at Forever (Forever Book 2) (9 page)

I could tell that Marsha wanted to say something after sizing up Samuel, but she held her tongue. A miracle on her part. I watched her clip clop all the way to the elevator. I couldn’t help but laugh under my breath.

“Your friend is quite the character. What exactly do you do, Reese, that requires you to have an agent?”

“I’m a model, Samuel.”

“Wow, I feel stupid. The only magazines I tend to read are medical journals. I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you.”

“Don’t be sorry, Samuel. I am not nearly as famous as you may think I am. I only began modeling full-time a few months ago.”

“Forgive me for asking, but how could you model and be pregnant at the same time?”

I tried not to cry because of the harsh reality hitting me that I was no longer pregnant. Dr. Briggs looked so unsure at the moment, and probably regretted asking me his question. I wasn’t angry with him. He had a shy innocence about him; his awkwardness was adorable, on top of being very handsome.

“To answer your question, I guess I was lucky not to be showing that much yet. Not all my modeling jobs consisted of full body shots.”

“I’m sorry and feel very stupid. I shouldn’t have overstepped with my questions.”

I assured him that he wasn’t prying and that I was not insulted by his questions. We sat down in the lounge of the hotel and ordered a late breakfast. I was in need of a glass of wine, but settled for coffee instead. Samuel was charming and asked me everything about my life. He told me about medical school, his upbringing, and his plans for the future. I had a different vision on how my life was going to be, but after losing the baby, I was only sure of one thing. Reconciling with Walker was never going to happen now.

From what I had read and seen in the papers, Walker has clearly moved on with the daughter who reigns from one of the Hamptons elite families. I’m sure his father was gleaming with delight. I didn’t care what was reported on his lifestyle and all that was being played out in the papers. I believed that once Walker learned the truth behind my reason of leaving him, he would leave Elizabeth and come back to me.

Samuel and I had been talking for most of the morning. It felt good to talk to someone and share my feelings. But I was getting tired and my body was still recovering from all that I went through. “Thank you, Dr. Briggs, oh sorry, I meant Samuel. I need to meet with Marsha, who is waiting on me. But thank you again for breakfast and the talk.”

By the time I had reached my room, I was exhausted. True to form, Marsha was waiting inside for me. She began rattling off question after question, and I was just too tired to answer her. Anything we needed to discuss could be done tomorrow on our flight back to California.

Marsha startled me the next morning by barging into my suite. “Rise and shine, Peaches! We have a flight to catch.”

“What time is it?”

“Time for you to get up and get ready. You slept close to sixteen hours.”

“I did
what?
I can’t believe that I slept that long.”

“You have to be starving. I had room service bring you dinner, but you never answered your door. That must have been some breakfast with that handsome doctor of yours.”

“Stop it, Marsha. He was just being kind.”

“Oh please! I think I saw a little naughty than kindness in his eyes. Did you not see how he couldn’t take his eyes off of you?”

“I’m going to take a shower now. When I get out, I expect you not to be here. The flight will be long enough to endure with all of your incessant questioning.”

“Have it your way, Peaches. I know lust when I see it.”

“Goodbye, Marsha.”

I was finishing getting dressed when I heard knocking at my door.

“Marsha! I said I would meet you downstairs,” I said as I flung the door open. Samuel was standing there with two cups of coffee. He was the last person I expected to see.

“Hi, what are you doing here?” I asked him.

“Didn’t you know coffee delivery was one of our services that we provide?”

I smiled and invited him in.

“Thank you, Samuel. It was very thoughtful of you.”

“You’re welcome. It was my pleasure. Can I ask you something?”

“Of course,” I responded.

“Reese, do you have to go back to California?”

“Yes, I do. I have to get all my shoots rescheduled. I’m going to take the good doctor’s advice, and take some time off.”
Physically I would heal. Mending my broken heart would be another issue.

“What would you say if I asked you to not get on the plane today? I would love for you to stay here with me in New York.”

What?
“Samuel, you don’t even know me. How can you ask such a question like that?”

“I know everything I need to know about you, Reese. You’re amazing, and I feel drawn to you for some reason. If you stay, we can get to know one another better.”

“I’m sorry, Samuel, but I can’t. My work over the next few months will keep me very busy. I will mostly be traveling, and I don’t think that is how you want to start off anything with me. I’m sure you have more important things to take care of than to date me.”

“You, at the moment, are all that I want.”

“I’m flattered, really. But I can’t, Samuel.”

I didn’t have time to respond to him. Samuel pulled me into his chest and kissed me. I let him, and for the first time since I left Walker, I realized this was what I needed. I wanted to feel a physical connection again, and being held in Samuel’s arms allowed me to do so. I returned his kiss, until he broke our connection and placed his forehead against mine.
What am I doing?

“Go to California. Here, take my card. It has all my numbers on it. Finish up with what you need to do, and we will talk soon. I’m on my way to Maryland. I have been offered a position at Johns Hopkins. Maybe once I get settled, you can visit. We can take all the time in the world to get to know one another. I want to, Reese, believe me. There is something about you that makes me want to know you better. I’m probably the most predictable man you will ever meet, but with you, I’m willing to change that. I would be a fool if I didn’t try to court you and show you all that we can be. This is me taking a chance. Will you, Reese? I promise you won’t regret it.”

“I’ll think about it.”

…where past and present collide

WE HAD SOME time before we were to meet Riley and her mother for dinner. I did some work in my study while Jackson settled into his room. The minute our plane touched down in New York, his phone was ringing off the hook. He tweeted to his friends where to meet up later in the evening. Jackson was very excited for his friends to meet Riley. He wanted to go into the Village tonight and show Riley around the city. I didn’t have any objections, but I didn’t know her mother and how strict she was with her only daughter. Jackson was always accompanied by our driver who doubled as his personal bodyguard. I rarely worried when he was under the watchful eye of Richard, who was never too far behind.

I closed the lid to my laptop and looked around my office. This apartment held the best memories of my time spent here with Reese, and the most painful ones. I never would have predicted after leaving her asleep in our bed that it would be the last time I would lay my eyes on her. And the last time my mouth would ever kiss her lips. I kissed her goodbye, and added to memory her beautiful scent. It was a scent that I craved on a daily basis, I could never get enough of her. My family owned this building, and this was my private home that I shared my time with Reese in. After she left me, I could never bring myself to completely abandon it. After leaving New York for California to begin what I believed would be my new life, I packed up my personal things and said goodbye to not only New York, but to Reese.

Over the years, I used this penthouse when I was in town for work. It never brought me joy after Reese, or Elizabeth, for that matter. After Elizabeth died, I had the entire penthouse redecorated, all except my bedroom.

My bedroom was the last place I shared with Reese, and I wasn’t ready to let it go, maybe not ever. Walking over to the safe, I opened it and looked at its contents. I had stowed away some of her pictures, along with her first professional magazine cover. She looked absolutely breathtaking. This lovely girl who I was to share my life with was smiling back at me, and then she was gone. I traced her face with my fingers, trying to remember what she felt like under the warmth of my hands against her skin. She completely submitted to me when we were making love or fucking hard up against a door or a wall. She was mine. Reese was my woman.

Damn me for not trying harder to find her. But then Elizabeth telling me that she was pregnant with my child was the game changer for me. Reese was gone, and Elizabeth was with me and pregnant with Jackson. In that moment, I put away all of my hurt and pain, and I knew I needed to step up and try to be the man Elizabeth deserved. I owed her that much.

I was about to close the safe when my eyes found the old, tattered ring box. I couldn’t handle opening it, so I shut the safe door and closed the painting over it. Why was I torturing myself with the painful reminders of my past? That damn ring! Her grandmother repeatedly returned it to me. I lost count of how many times I attempted to send it to her. That Lila Mitchell was almost as stubborn as her granddaughter. God, I miss that woman. It was years since I even allowed myself to remember her. I wasn’t sure if Nana was even alive.

I fixed myself a drink and clutched the back of my neck.
I have to let this go, I just have to, but how do I do this? This is what happens to me every time I am in this fucking city.
My private line was ringing, and I cringed on who would be calling me. As I expected, it was my mother. I had been dodging her calls for a week now. She must have phoned my office and was told where I was, unless Jackson told her. He loved his grandparents very much, despite how I felt about them. After losing Elizabeth, I was left alone to raise our son. I don’t know what I would have done if Jackson died along with his mother.

His birth was touch and go for a while there. His cord was tangled around his neck and the doctors were unsure if he was deprived of oxygen. My wife was on the operating table. She was declared brain dead after suffering a massive stroke. Elizabeth was never going to recover, would never know our child. Life was incredibly unfair and cruel. I held her hand as I listened to her breaths being controlled by a machine. While the doctors worked on our son, I leaned into my wife’s ear.

“I am so sorry this happened to you, and to us. I never thought I would be doing this without you. How can I do this? I will never be able to thank you for this incredible gift you have given me…our son. I promise you that I will be the best father I can be and always tell our son about you. You were my lifeline when I was drowning. Thank you for loving me, Elizabeth.”

I said my goodbyes to my wife and friend. She deserved so much better than half of a man who loved someone else. I kissed her forehead and was startled by the sound of a newborn crying. Our son made it and was screaming at the top of his lungs. I never heard a more beautiful sound in all of my life. The nurse brought him over to me.

My hands were shaking. I was afraid to touch him. The nurse led me out of the room so the doctors could now finish up with Elizabeth.

I sat down in a rocking chair and was given my son. Jackson looked just like me when I was a baby. His hair was dark, and he had my nose. He stopped crying, and he wrapped his finger around mine. No turning back now; I was hooked. My son captured my heart with one touch. His eyes were so bright, they matched his mother’s.
I would have to tell him one day about her. How would I explain why she’s not here to raise him? It was my job to be mother and father to him, but how?

Jackson was examined by a team of doctors. I spared no expense when it came to my son. He was perfectly healthy and could go home in a couple of days. After our son was settled into the nursery, I was approached by a transplant team. Elizabeth’s organs needed to be harvested, and time was of the essence. I needed to make a decision on what to do. She never told me she was an organ donor, and although she suffered a stroke, her organs were still viable but would eventually shut down.