Page 18 of Finding Jess

Tiana gave her a warm, but curious, smile as she replied, “You too.”

Jess nodded once more before turning to leave.

Tiana remained quiet for a few moments before turning to look at her. “Is that the one you told me about? From a while ago?”

Sam looked down at the desk as she gave a small nod. “Yeah.”

***

Three Years and Ten Months Earlier

“And cheers to us for absolutely crushing it and closing our third official client,” Caleb said, grinning from ear to ear as he clanked his glass messily against Sam’s.

She laughed, pulling her glass back to take a sip.

Jess squeezed her thigh under the table of the booth. “Congrats, babe,” she said with a proud smile, before placing a gentle kiss on her cheek.

Sam’s stomach fluttered the same way it did anytime Jess called her that.

“Thanks,” she replied softly, taking in the beautiful girl beside her.

“And cheers to me,” Caleb continued, raising his glass in the air, “for being your permanent third wheel every time we go out.”

Sam laughed, rolling her eyes.

“Hey,” Jess said, “don’t blame us. I tried to set you up twice, but you’re the one who said no.”

Caleb took a long drink before setting it down with a shrug. “Someone at the company needs to stay focused and not get distracted by pretty girls.”

Sam snorted. “Right. We’ll just pretend that’s the reason you said no, and not because you got nervous at the last second before meeting them.”

Caleb shot her a mild glare. “Anyway,” he drawled, leaning back against the red cushioning of the booth. “I think we needto find a way to meet with more clients in person. I have a prospect in Austin who wants to use the software, but only if we can spend a few months there with their team, training them on how to integrate it with their workflow.”

Sam nodded slowly, looking down at her drink.

They’d already had that conversation twice that week, and each time she’d cut it short. They’d just finally started to settle in New York. Moving again didn’t sound appealing.

She looked back at him, catching the way his gaze bounced between her and Jess.

“I mean,” he continued, softening a bit, “we can still grow without doing that. But it would definitely take longer.”

Sam pursed her lips, scratching the back of her neck. “Yeah,” she mumbled.

Jess shifted away from her, sliding out of the booth. “Gonna go to the bathroom real quick.”

Sam turned, watching as Jess crossed the busy bar.

“Is that why you don’t want to do it?” Caleb asked.

Sam looked back at him. “What do you mean?”

Caleb gave her the look he always did before he was about to give her a hard truth. “Jess. Is she the reason you don’t want to go?”

“No,” Sam answered automatically, although it sounded hollow somehow. Like her own voice knew the truth better than she did.

“I—“ she started, clearing her throat. “I’d never be selfish and put myself before what we’re working on.” She twisted the glass in front of her, watching the way the ice swirled in the remaining bit of liquid. “I just—I want to be worth some—” She shook her head, slightly frustrated. “The company, I mean. I want the company to be worth something.”

She kept her gaze fixed on the drink in front of her as she felt Caleb’s stare burning into her.

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