Winter Hopes (Seasons of Love) (7 page)

Sam shook his head with a soft grin. “Something like that.
Again, you’re very smart.”

“Yes, I am. I also know you by now, even though you usually keep your cards pretty close to the vest. Hey, don’t get me wrong,
I’m not
complaining,” Hailey said, still teasing him. “You were out of
control. Totally hot. I always suspected you had that lurking in you, but… huh! I’m proud of you, Sam.”

He chuckled. “Well, thanks. I think.”

“Did this Lydia know how much you wanted her?” Hailey asked.

“Oh, yeah.” He gulped down more water.

“Are you going to see her again?”

“Yes. Next weekend.”

“Where?”

“She lives in New York. I’m going to go see her.”

Hailey snickered. “Well then! Lucky me. I guess I’ll have more fun like this over the next ten days, with horny little you on my
hands.” She stood up and smiled down at Sam, who smiled back benignly but said nothing.

“I’m going to take a quick shower,” she said. “Back in a few.”

Sam watched Hailey from behind, taking in her long, slender
body
as she disappeared into the bathroom. He finished his bottle of
water, then leaned back against the pillow and closed his eyes. He felt the
calm wash through him, the ebb of the adrenaline rush that came from release after sex, and glanced at the clock on the end table. He
knew he had to get back to work soon, but didn’t feel like moving just yet. Allowing himself a few minutes to relax, he breathed slowly and let his mind drift.

Lydia’s face appeared in his mind, as it had many times since she’d driven away from him at the hotel in Connecticut. This time,
he felt a twinge of self-reproach, of… guilt. Huh. He brushed it away. Lydia wasn’t his girlfriend. She wasn’t his anything. He was a free man.

Then it occurred to him that it wasn’t true. Lydia had him, even after only one weekend together. His thoughts often drifted to her, he’d texted and called her every day… no, he wasn’t totally free. He stared at the ceiling as he realized how strongly he felt about her after such a
short time, which surprised him. Whether it was infatuation, or more than that, whatever it was, it was there, and it was real. He felt something.

Hailey emerged from the bathroom, wrapped in a long, white towel. “You know,” she said, “I’m free on Sunday evening. Want to
meet up again? Get some more of this pent up lust out of your system?”

Sam opened his eyes and sat up to look at her. She was smugly amused, and obviously enjoying teasing him. “Maybe.”

“I tell you what—you don’t have to buy me dinner, you’re off the hook. How’s eight o’clock sound? We could meet here again, or at the Drake, if you prefer. You’ll let me know…” Her eyes narrowed on him. She studied him closely for a few seconds before she said,
“You’ve got a major look of guilt on that handsome face of yours. Knock it off, Sam. You just met her. Even if you like her, you owe her nothing. You’re allowed to do this. You’re allowed to do whatever
you want.”

The corner of his mouth turned up. She could read him
astoundingly well. “Thanks, but don’t worry about me. I’m good.”

“Mm hmm. Just trying to help a friend.” Hailey smiled and went
to retrieve her clothes from where they lay in a heap. “Have to say,
though… long distance relationships can be a real drag. Think on
that before you dive in.”

“We’ll see,” Sam said quietly, and went to take a shower.

“JUST THINK—A WEEK
from tomorrow, you’ll be gallivanting around the city with Sam.” Tracey grinned at her best friend. They
stood side by side at the counter, cutting up pizza into bite sized pieces for their toddlers. “Are you excited? Nervous? Both?”

“Definitely both,” Lydia said. She cut up Andy’s slice as quickly
as she could. Friday pizza dinner was in full swing at the Sheflin
house. She glanced over her shoulder at where her son and Tracey’s family
sat around the kitchen table, chattering away. Andy was making
silly
faces with Emily, who was seven, and Ian, who had just turned
three. Neil, Tracey’s husband, was laughing right along with the kids.

“You didn’t say anything to Neil about Sam, did you?” Lydia said under her breath.

“No, you asked me not to,” Tracey replied.

“Thanks. I just want to keep this quiet for now, you know?”

“I know. Sooo, what are you going to wear?” Tracey asked.

“Oh God, I have no idea,” Lydia said. “I’m no fashionista, you know that. In fact, I’m clueless. Feel free to throw me some advice. Hell, feel free to dress me.”

Tracey chuckled. “Well, when are you going? What time of
day?”

“Noon, I think. And probably staying for dinner. Jeans and a nice top? Is that okay?”

“Depends what you’re doing, where you’re going. But that’ll
probably be fine. We’ll figure out something,” Tracey said. Across the room, from within her bag, Lydia’s cell phone rang.

“Oh man,” Lydia groaned, looking towards where her bag sat on the chair.

“Go get it,” Tracey said. “I’ll give Andy his pizza. Go.”

“Thanks,” Lydia said, rushing across the kitchen to grab her
phone while it was still ringing. “Hello?”

“Hey, it’s me,” Matt said, sounding morose as usual.

“What’s up?” she asked.

“I wanted to talk to you about tomorrow,” Matt said.

“Tomorrow?” Lydia leaned in the doorframe and watched
Tracey place Andy’s food in front of him. “What about tomorrow?”

“Well, it’s Halloween,” Matt said. “And it’s a Saturday. I won’t have work.”

“And?” Lydia asked impatiently.

“And I’d like to do some trick or treating with my son,” Matt said, as if it were obvious.

Lydia felt irritation seep in and tried to keep her voice neutral. “Well, we’re leaving from Jane’s at two o’clock. We’re going with
her,
Tyler, and the kids around their neighborhood, like we always
have.”

Andy looked up at Lydia from where he sat and waved. “Hi, Mama.”

“Hi, baby.” She smiled and waved back at her son.

“I assume you’re talking to Andy, not me,” Matt said
sarcastically.

“Oh, please,” Lydia snorted. She turned and left the kitchen. She stomped to the living room. “So, what do you want, Matt? We’re about to have dinner.”

“I told you. I want to go trick or treating with my son,” he said, his voice edgy.

“Fine. Come to Jane’s at two. That’s when we’ll be leaving.”

“I don’t want to go trick or treating with Jane and her family,” Matt complained. “She and I aren't exactly each other’s biggest fans.”

“Well, that’s what Andy and I are doing for Halloween,” Lydia said firmly. “Take it or leave it. You’re welcome to join us. But that’s the plan.”

“You can’t change it up a bit?”

“Nope. Especially not the day before. You’ve got to be kidding.”

“I only realized this afternoon,” Matt said.

“You realized midday on October 30
th
that October 31
st
is Halloween?” Lydia couldn’t help but snicker. “That’s how important
it was to you. Andy’s a child. He’s been looking forward to Halloween since Labor
Day. Everywhere you look, there are Halloween decorations. And
you realized
today
that maybe you should make a plan with your son? Sorry, but no, I’m not going to ‘change it up a bit’, especially at the last minute.”

“You’re really going to be a hardass about this?” Matt said angrily.

“No,” Lydia said in a cool tone. “I told you you’re perfectly welcome to join us. It’s your choice.”

“Not giving me much of a choice,” he grunted.

“I’ve laid it out for you. I’m hanging up. We’re having dinner now.”

“Fine. I’ll call you in the morning and let you know.”

“You don’t have to call. Just show up at Jane’s at two, or don’t. It’s really quite simple,” Lydia said.

“Ah, always a pleasure talking to you,” Matt sneered.

“Likewise,” Lydia spat. “Good night.” She snapped her phone
shut and threw it at the couch in fury. Her hands were cold, as they always were when she got upset. She balled them into fists. She
didn’t want Matt joining them for Halloween. He hadn’t ever taken off work for
Halloween before. Lydia had gone trick or treating with Jane and her kids since they were babies, long before she'd become a mother
herself.
Since she’d had Andy, they’d gone trick or treating in Jane’s neighborhood all together, a big happy traveling clan. It was fun.
She loved Jane’s beautiful area, she loved watching Andy and her niece and nephews
enjoy themselves. She didn’t want her crabby ex-husband coming along, with his sullen demeanor, changing the mood by making
everyone uncomfortable, ruining the day in any way.

“Dammit,” she snarled in frustration. “Dammit, dammit.” She
closed her eyes and took a deep breath, picked up her phone, lifted her chin, and marched herself back into the kitchen.

***

“I’m glad you guys could hang out,” Sam said. He looked across the table at Everett and John, who had been his two closest friends since junior high school. Outside of his family, there was no one he trusted more than them. “Been too long already.”

“Like a month or so,” Everett remarked. “And I want to hear more about this Lydia. That’s a hell of a story you got going on there.”

“Same here,” John said. “We’re old married men. We’ll live
vicariously through you for a bit on this, if you don’t mind.”

They all laughed at that as a young waitress appeared at the table with three bottles of dark beer. She smiled as she handed each man a bottle, but her eyes lingered on Sam before she walked away.

John let out a low whistle and wiggled his eyebrows at Sam.
“She
liked
you, son.”

Sam shrugged it off with an almost bashful grin. “Got Lydia on the brain. Not even looking right now.” He raised his bottle to his
mouth and took a deep swallow, welcoming the taste of the dark,
cold beer on his tongue.

Everett coaxed, “So, tell us about her. It’s, like, turning into a thing, right?”

“Yup.” Sam nodded, then raised his bottle in salute. “Off to New York next weekend.”

“Can’t believe you’re doing that,” John said with a shake of his head. “You romantic, you. Who knew?”

Sam shot him a mock scowl before snorting out a laugh, but
didn’t deny it.

“She must be hotter than hell,” John said. “Do we get to see a picture or what?”

“I’ll show you one after the weekend in New York, if it goes
well,” Sam replied. “And I think she’s gorgeous.”

“
If
it goes well?” Everett peered at his friend. “You sound
nervous. Are you?”

“A little, sure. I’m still trying to figure out where to take her,” Sam admitted. “I want something nice, something cool. Something memorable, but nothing over the top. And… I’m choking.
Everything I think of seems to suck.”

“I can’t believe you’re nervous about this,” Everett said with a teasing grin. “It’s so
cute
.”

“Shut up.” Sam laughed, and looked away in embarrassment.
The restaurant was crowded and loud, with plenty of rowdy
customers
enjoying themselves. He glanced around as he tried to ignore the
loud buzz of conversation and music, stimulation overload. He usually
wasn’t one to go out for a boisterous Friday evening Happy Hour, but it was the only time that both of his friends had been able to
meet him. They could meet him out if they went straight from work for a while before they had to return home to their families. “Can we talk about something else for a while?”

They talked about work, caught up on each other’s families over a few beers.

After a while, Sam opened up and told his friends more about Lydia. Before he realized it, he’d been talking about her for ten
minutes straight. When John called him on it, he actually flushed.

“Oh man, he’s in this deep already,” John groaned, shaking his head in mock disdain.

Sam snorted and took another swig from his beer. His phone vibrated in his pocket—he had a text. He pulled it out and glanced at it.

Hi, it’s H. Wanna get together this weekend? Sunday? Let me know…

A muscle twitched in Sam’s jaw, and his brows creased again.

“What’s up?” Everett asked. “Your whole face just changed. You look pissed off.”

“I kind of am,” Sam admitted. He scowled and blew out a
frustrated sigh. “At myself.”

“Spill it,” Everett demanded. He and John focused on their friend.

Sam held up the phone. “Hailey. Wants to get together again.”
In all the time Sam had known Hailey, he had told only two people about her and their ongoing arrangement. Both were sitting at the table with him.

“What’s wrong with that?” John asked. “Hailey’s hot.”

“I wasn’t sure if you still saw her,” Everett said. “You haven’t
mentioned her in a long time.”

“Yeah, once in a while we still meet up,” Sam said. He put his phone down on the table and rubbed his jaw forcefully. “I called her
a few days after I got back from the weekend, after I met Lydia. I was all… pent up, shall we say. So I called Hailey, and we got
together. Okay, fine. But then again a few days after that. Usually it’s once or
twice a month, not once or twice a
week
. Now she’s asking if I want to
get together again, and, well… it doesn’t feel right. Not when I’m talking to Lydia almost every night now… we’re really getting to
know each
other, I like her a lot, she’s starting to trust me, and I don’t feel…
right… seeing Hailey now. I feel like I made a misstep the first time I called her, as it was. I was already into Lydia.”