Page 66 of Samson

“This sounds personal.”

“It is.”

“Then Samson, do me a favor and be careful.”

“Don’t worry about me. I’ll do whatever it takes to get her to talk.”

“Good luck.”

“Luck’s not what I need.”

Samson hung up and leaned his head back on the seat. His head was pounding, and he wondered what they’d put in thesaketo get his head spinning. If he’d continued drinking when Ito insisted, he may not have made it out of there alive.

He spent the rest of the drive trying not to think about Delilah. It had been a long time since he’d let anyone get behind his walls, but he couldn’t reconcile her breach of trust with the woman he’d gotten to know the other night. He wanted to believe she’d have an explanation, but how could she?

He shook his head. There was no way to know until he confronted her. The thought of it made him hot with agitation. He tried to take off his jacket as he drove, but his arm stung with the movement. When he checked his bicep, he saw blood.

Turning on the car light, he tried to assess his injury, but he couldn’t get a good look at it through his jacket. Judging by the amount of blood, it was a deep cut, but he wouldn’t bother with stitches. Not tonight. Not when all he could think about was how this was God’s way of putting him in his place. Samsonhad begun to believe there were better things in store for his life. He’d begun to hope that he could have a life that satisfied more than his flesh. But he’d been wrong.

A scripture came to mind. It was one his father had tried to use to scare him into behaving differently.

His mind now drifted over the words, letting them burn into his soul like a branding iron, reminding him of the hopeless man he’d become.

Therefore, God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the degrading of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator…

He’d suspected for a long time that he was a lost cause in the eyes of God, and now he knew for certain it was true.

Chapter 15

Delilah woke,stretched, then frowned. It was still dark outside, but she knew her night was over when the urgency to contact Samson returned. It had been several days since her encounter with Marc, and Samson hadn’t been in the restaurant since. It wasn’t unusual for him to not be there for several days in a row, but she needed to see with her own eyes that he was okay.

“Come on Samson. Have dinner tonight.”

She’d tried telling herself she hadn’t done anything wrong. Letting Marc know about Samson’s weakness wasn’t breaking his trust. He’d never told her the information was in confidence. But the guilt continued to eat away at her.

After pacing her living room for several minutes, she decided she didn’t need to be the only one losing sleep over this. She called Luca.

“D, what’s up?” Luca’s voice was groggy from sleep. “Is something wrong?”

“Has Marc said anything about Samson?”

“That’s what you’re ringing me about this early? To check on Samson? Do you know what time it is?”

“If he’s hurt, it’s my fault and yours.”

“I thought you couldn’t stand the guy.”

“This has nothing to do with my feelings for him. I’m potentially responsible for a man being injured.”

“Does that mean you’re admitting you like him?”

“You’re changing the subject.”

“I’m sure he’s fine. Marc said he wouldn’t hurt him.”

“He hasn’t been to the restaurant in days.”

“And?”

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