Page 30 of Lush Curves

“Uh, well…” She had blushed, hearing the wordscum inside meagain. “So… if you do, why don’t you?”

“Because princess,” Sam had said deliberately. “I don’t want to rush anything. I think it’s going to take some time for you to really trust in me and in this. To trust in us, and what we can have. I want you to be sure, and I want that before anything happens between us.”

“You – you what?”

“I think that if we were to go inside, and I did all the things to you that I’m dying to do, then you’d wake up in the morning and start to question it all. You’d look for reasons for it not to work, you’d make excuses, you’d just shut down and run… and I don’t want any of that, honey.”

“You don’t?”

He had shaken his head in an affectionate gesture, gently traced the curve of her cheekbone. “No, princess. I don’t. I have waited for you to walk back into my life for the past three years. You think I’m going to settle for one night now?”

“Wait. Three years?”

“Yes. Three years. Yeah, OK, I’ve had casual girlfriends off-and-on over the years, butyou’rethe only woman that I’ve wanted that whole time, and now that you’re here with me, you think I’m going to screw this all up? Huh?”

“Ummmm…” She’d peered up at him, shocked that he’d thought about her at all, let alonewantedher. “Uh, no. I guess not. But –”

“But what?”

“But…” Annie had screwed up her courage to justsayit, all of it. “But the difference in our ages ishuge. Like, Grand Canyon huge. And our jobs are so different – I mean, doctor and diner waitress? Comeon. And our educations, by which I mean that I have none and you have enough for seven people. And I have kids almost your age, Sam, and you don’t evenhavekids. It’s just – oh, God. We’re so… so different. Maybetoodifferent.”

“And there it is,” he’d said softly. “All those things that you’re worried about and secretly fear, and if I came inside tonight, those worries and fears would just be bigger tomorrow. I don’twantyou to be afraid or feel used, princess, and I sure ashelldon’t want you to question me or what I’m doing here or how I feel.”

“But I will,” she’d said in despair. “Iwillquestion it. I can’t – I don’t know how to believe in it.”

“You think I’m lying to you? Leading you on? Playing with you? Youreallythink that I’m the kind of man who does that, Annie?”

“No… no, I suppose not.”

“You suppose goddamn right.” He’d tugged on a lock of her hair, a sweetly teasing gesture that was somehow still sexy. “I’m going to give you the space and time you need to believe. It’s no hardship and it’s no chore. I’m going towaitfor you to believe, Annie.”

“How can you say that?” she’d scoffed. “How can you promise to wait for something that might take ages to happen? If it ever does?”

“Because, princess,” he’d growled, andthattone was back in his voice. “You’resoworth waiting for, so don’t ask me that again, and I mean it.Neveragain. Oh, and one last thing…”

“Yes?”

“When I do finally come inside?” The words had turned the spot between her legs to a steady, throbbing flame. “We’re not going tohave sex… we’re going tomake love. It’s going tomeansomething, honey. It’s going to mean a hell of a lot.” Those dark eyes had been burning with passion and lust, and she’d known that they’d lookexactlylike that as he came deep inside her trembling, sweating, begging body. “Tobothof us.”

She’d swallowed, hard: in that moment, she’d believed. Only for a few shining, wild, heart-pounding seconds… but yeah. Yeah, she’dbelieved.

“Now.” Sam had released her, and she’d hated the loss of his warmth and closeness. “I’m going to see you tomorrow, honey, and the day after, and the day afterthat. I’m going to see you as much and as often as I can, and you’re going to trust me, in your own way and your own time. I’m not going to spend the night with you until you can look me in the eye and tell me that you have faith in yourself, and me, and us.” He’d opened his car door, given her a warning look. “Keep that cute butt right there, Annie. I’m opening the door for you and escorting you to your home like a gentleman. You need to get used to being treated like a princess, and you can damn well start right now.”

“Oh.” Stunned one more, Annie had just stared at him. “Right.”

And sure enough, he’d taken her to her front door, kissed her goodnight, made sure she got in and locked herself into the house safely. He’d called the next day, taken her for a coffee that had turned into a late lunch that had turned into a late dinner. Again, he’d brought her home; again, he’d kissed her and seen her to her door. On the Sunday, they’d met for lunch and a movie, and for the first time, Annie had managed toalmostignore the double-takes as people saw her holding hands with a gorgeous young man who could – on both firstandsecond glance – be taken for her son. Except for the fact that Sam was all over her, and sons didn’t look at their Moms the way that Sam was staring at her.

Annie had spent the weekend floating on a cloudy haze of lust and happiness… which was pierced every once in a while by doubts and thoughts ofjust how fucking insane am I, anyway?But in those moments, when she’d started to deflate and sink, she’d just looked at Sam, seen the adoration in his eyes, felt his hand holding hers – and she’d roughly shoved the thoughts away.

It had feltgood, all of it. It had felt – right. For all the hundreds of ways that she could argue that it was wrong… deep down inside, she had known that Sam was right about what he’d told her that night in his car.Theywere right.

I want to let myself believe. Please God… just a bit of faith, and just this one thing.

And so now here it was: bright and early Monday morning, and they were both back at work, and now Annie had to figure out how much of all of this to tell her best friend. Not that she thought that Talia would be unsupportive, not at all. In fact, Talia would undoubtedly turn into a Sam/Annie personal cheerleader, complete with uniform and pom poms; she’d probably start calling them Sannie or Annam, or some other ridiculous combined couple name. In short, she’d be thrilled that Annie was seeing someone – beyond delighted that she was being treated well, something that she waswayoverdue for, in Talia’s view.

But… well. Some days, you wake up changed. That change had happened to her many times before, always in bad ways, ways that she was painfully aware of, ways that she’d give anythingnotto have happened. But this change, it was different.

For the first time since she’d changed her boring-as-dirt name all those years ago, Annie felt that samefrissonof glamour – that tiny glimmer of being something a bit special. Not super-special, or Hollywood-level glamorous, but still… she felt… well. Honestly?

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