I was sharing a room with my mother, so reluctantly I left Sam's bed before midnight. He was as disappointed as I was. I promised him I'd be back in the morning.
My mother wasn't asleep yet, and I watched as she opened her mouth as if to say something, but quickly closed it. She had already asked me why I stayed so late, but it was before I had slept with Sam. I was glad not to answer that question again.
In the morning, when I woke my mother was already up. I had been falling asleep easily and sleeping without interruption. Being in the sun every day helped, but Sam was also a big part of my restfulness. He was kind and gentle and I didn't want to think about when he left Maine. I didn't want to accept I might have been falling harder for him than I had planned.
When I went downstairs, my mother was in the kitchen cooking breakfast. The aroma of bacon and coffee filled the air. My stomach growled, although I rarely ate breakfast.
David said, "Callie come sit with me."
I grabbed a coffee and my mother swatted my fingers, as I tried to grab a slice of bacon. "If you want it, you'll eat eggs too."
David nodded. "You could stand a few pounds." I sat down next to him. "Has everything healed?" I nodded. "The ribs?"
"They're fine. Really." Please don't ask me about anywhere else.
"And the police?"
"Still waiting."
I liked how they treated me as a member of the family. Not once this summer had I felt like the housekeeper's daughter.
After breakfast, Paige looked at me. "Would your little friends like to meet Hershey? We could walk by."
"Sure. I'm heading over for the day."
She just wanted to meet Sam. Instead of walking in, I knocked. When Sam came to the door, he smiled and looked from me to Paige and then the dog.
I spoke first. "Paige wanted to meet you and we brought her dog."
Paige assured him. "She's gentle with children."
Sam looked at Paige's belly. "Lucky for you."
Paige laughed as Sam called to Clara and Ian. They ran to me but changed course when they saw the dog. I supervised their meeting, while Paige talked to Sam like a star-struck fan.
He was patient and polite. Paige surprised me. "You should join us today. We'll be boating and having a cookout before the fireworks."
Sam smiled. "I'm not sure. We have a schedule with naps. The kids were getting ready for the beach. Thank you for the invitation. Can we let you know?"
"Of course." Paige smiled before she walked away.
Clara called out. "Bye-bye doggie!"
"I had no idea she would invite you."
"I wasn't sure how to answer. So we would be guests at a house where your mother is the housekeeper and serving dinner."
"It's not like that. They treat us like family, but..."
"But what?"
"When we're together, I want to touch you. It would be hard."
I opted to stay with Sam all day. During naptime we made love. It was slow and beautiful. His wife was a fool, because I never had a better lover.
We took the kids to the beach for the fireworks. We laid on the blanket like a family. Sam even held my hand. Ian was tired and stared with glossy eyes. Clara oohed and aahed.
Once we tucked the children in bed, we were in each other's arms. Sam squeezed me tightly. "I never expected to find you and now I have, I don't know what to do."
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