Chapter Nine

Lucas wiped the sweat from his forehead as he took a drink from his water bottle and waited for Ginny to catch up to him. Glancing around the park he took in the various sights and sounds of the kids playing in the large fountain in the middle of Salem's largest greenspace. Watching a toddler of about 2 years shriek with laughter as he ran away from his mother, he couldn't help but recall all the lazy afternoons he and Sami had spent in this very park back when Will was just a small boy. He sighed at the memories. He hadn't even known he was Will's father back then. He let out another big sigh, his shoulders slumping in grief over what might have been.

"You know, the way you're always sighing when you're with me is beginning to give me a complex. Either I'm the most boring person in the world, or you're really Charlie Brown. Well Charlie Brown with more hair and a really ripped bod. So which is it?" Lucas closed his eyes briefly in guilt before turning around to face Ginny's mocking green eyes. "Well?"

"Sorry." He shook his head and sighed again.

Ginny watched him and began to chuckle. Lucas didn't know what to make of her laughter. "What's so funny?"

She tried to answer and then took another look at him and laughed even harder.

"Ginny!"

After a moment or two she finally managed to regain composure. "I'm sorry Lucas really I am." She tried to wipe the amusement off her face, but the pout on his wasn't helping matters any. With one last chuckle she finally managed to stifle her laughs. "I just had the funniest vision of you dressed as Charlie Brown, complete with that yellow and black striped shirt."

"I'm glad I could provide some entertainment for you." Lucas replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

Ginny held her hand up to her mouth and let out another chuckle. "Can I help it if you remind me of my favorite Peanuts character?"

Lucas sighed again at her use of the word "peanut" causing Ginny to burst into another round of laughter.

"Stop it Lucas! You're killing me with those sighs. It's a beautiful day, the birds are singing, children are laughing. Look over there, even that baby is laughing." She pointed across the square to where a young blonde woman was holding a small giggling infant.

Lucas' frown disappeared as he followed the direction of her hand. Spotting his sister Jennifer and his new nephew his mouth broke into a wide grin. "Hey! That's Jennifer."

"Jennifer?"

"My sister. Come on, I'll introduce you to her."

The pair walked their bikes over to the bench where Jennifer was sitting playing with her baby son. Lucas smiled at her as he watched her coo to his nephew.

Jennifer heard footsteps and looked up, startled to see her little brother standing in front of her and even more surprised to see the tall redheaded woman with him, she'd grown so accustomed to seeing him always accompanied by Sami over the past year. "Lucas! Hi!"

Lucas leaned down and gave his sister a brief kiss on the cheek before dropping one onto the bald head of his little nephew. "Hey Jen. How are my favorite sister and nephew doing today?"

"We're fine, just enjoying an afternoon in the park." Jennifer scooted over on the bench and motioned for Lucas to join her. Realizing that her brother wasn't in a hurry to introduce her to his new friend she smiled up at the woman. "Hi. I'm Jennifer, Lucas' sister." Holding her baby out in front of her she added. "And this little tyke is my son Hart."

"Oh what a little doll!" Ginny exclaimed as she reached out touch the baby's small fingers. "And what a sweet name!"

"Harcourt Steven Deveraux is his full name. Named for his late daddy and late uncle." Jennifer explained with a smile. "My daughter Abby and I figured that Harcourt was a bit of a mouthful and since he owns our hearts he became Hart."

"How old is he?"

"Six weeks." Jennifer replied proudly. She still missed Jack terribly but her heart was slowly mending with Jack's final gift to her and Abby.

"Can I hold him Jen?" Lucas asked as he held his arms out. He'd fallen in love with the baby from the first moment he'd seen him. Taking the little bundle from Jen he let out another wistful sigh. This was the life he'd planned on having with Sami.

Jennifer observed his wistfulness and decided that she'd have to have a little chat with her brother later on. Looking up at Ginny she smiled. "So Ginny. How do you know Lucas?"

"Oh I work at Basic Black. His mom set us up on a blind date a few nights ago."

Jennifer's brows rose in surprise. According to her cousin Julie, Lucas and Sami had run into some difficulties in their relationship back in June. Heartbroken, Lucas had sworn off dating for a long time. She could hardly believe that Kate had been successful in coaxing Lucas to give it a try again. Hesitantly she asked. "So you two are dating now?"

Ginny could see the skepticism in Lucas' sister's eyes. Okay, obviously his sister knows the score with Sami too. Shaking her head ruefully she answered bluntly. "No. We're not."

"We're friends." Lucas quickly explained.

"Yeah, I don't handle being rebound girl very well, so I decided that Lucas and I would be better off as buddies. Besides he's the only man I've ever met who likes to work out as much as me."

Jennifer's smile widened. She still wanted to have a talk with her brother but she was relieved to hear that he wasn't dating someone new just yet. "So Ginny, you mentioned you work at Basic Black. What do you do there?"

"She models." Lucas answered before she could.

"He's right. I model, but just part time. I'm actually a student at Salem University. Modeling pays for my tuition."

Lucas eyes rose in surprise. He remembered her mentioning knowing Rex from a class, but he hadn't realized she was still a student. "You're still in university?"

Ginny nodded and then wryly explained to Jennifer with a wink. "We've spent the last few days psychoanalyzing Lucas. There hasn't been a lot of time to discuss me."

Jennifer laughed. She knew her that discussing her brother's various issues could conceivably take weeks. She felt a bit sorry for Ginny who obviously seemed to be a great girl. "You're a student. Which program?"

"Civil engineering. I'm in my third year. That's how I know Rex. We had a class together in our first year. Of course with him being a supergenius, he graduated after one year. I still have two years to go."

"You're going to be an engineer?" Lucas silently kicked himself for not finding out more about her before now.

"Yeah, I am." She grinned. "I've always liked building bridges."

Remembering how determined she seemed to be in helping him fix things with Sami, Lucas couldn't help but wonder if her words held a double meaning.

Ginny watched Lucas process her words. Once she was sure that he'd understood her meaning loud and clear she looked at her watch and announced. "Hey look at the time. Lucas, I have to run over to the university this afternoon and get my registration in order and then I leave tonight for a three day photo shoot up North. I'd better get going."

"Do you want me to ride back with you?" Lucas asked as he stood up, prepared to follow her.

Ginny shook her head. "No, you stay here and visit with your sister and that adorable nephew of yours. I'll give you a call once I'm back in town." Turning to Jen she smiled. "It was so nice to meet you and Hart." With a wave she mounted her bike and took off across the park.

Lucas watched her go and then turned back to where Jennifer was looking up at him expectantly. As he handed the baby back to her outreached arms he warily asked. "What?"

"She's nice." Jennifer commented quietly.

"Yes she is."

"She's beautiful."

Lucas couldn't disagree. He nodded silently.

Jennifer shook her head sensing his sorrow. "But she's not Sami."

Lucas sighed and shook his head sadly. "No. She's not."

Jennifer adjusted her hold on Hart before reaching out and placing her hand over his. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Lucas stared into his sister's concerned blue eyes. In the years since Lucas' paternity had been revealed they'd never really been particularly close. Lucas had built a protective wall around himself: a wall that very few people had managed to penetrate.

Jennifer for her part had been so preoccupied with rebuilding her relationship with Jack over the past few years that she hadn't spent a lot of time getting to know her younger brother. Now, facing a life without her beloved husband, she realized how precious life was and was determined that she'd be more involved in the lives of the people who were important to her.

Lucas felt overwhelmed by the prospect of explaining his mixed up relationship with Sami. The pain was still too raw, too new. "Jen, I don't even know where to start."

Remembering her training as an investigative reporter Jennifer decided to treat this as though it were an interview. After returning her son to his carriage she carefully chose questions that she hoped would help Lucas open up to her. "Well let's start with the facts. Lucas how do you feel about Sami?"

Lucas stared down at young Hart who was cooing in his carriage. Reaching out, he held his finger out for the young boy to grab as he answered sincerely. "I love her."

Jennifer smiled, happy that he wasn't in denial about his feelings. "And how do you think she feels about you?"

Lucas continued to play with his nephew, smiling slightly as the boy's small fingers curled around his. Without looking up he answered. "I'm pretty sure she loves me."

"Pretty sure?"

He nodded. "Well she must. She's been as miserable as me these past two months."

"I remember seeing you two at Alice's the night of the grand opening. You weren't together then right?"

"No, we'd just broken up. Or at least I'd broken up with Sami."

"Sami seemed upset that night. I take it that the breakup wasn't mutual?"

Lucas motioned towards Hart, who was beginning to fuss. "Want me to hold him?"

Jennifer nodded, causing Lucas to reach down and carefully pick up the little blue-dressed bundle. Gently he lifted the baby onto his shoulder, allowing Hart to stare out into the park with his wide blue eyes. With an instinct left over from his younger years with Will, Lucas automatically stood up and started pacing back and forth with the fussy baby. Within a few moments, the boy's whimpers ceased.

Jennifer admired her brother's ability to calm her son. "You're a natural."

"I'm a bit out of practice, but some things you just do on instinct." He explained.

Satisfied that her son was in capable hands she continued to gently coax some answers out of Lucas. "Sami didn't want to break up did she?" She remembered the look she'd seen on Sami's face that night. It wasn't the look of a woman who'd just initiated a breakup with her boyfriend. The younger woman had looked completely heartbroken.

Lucas let out a deep sigh. "No, it was my idea."

"But you were and I think still are, crazy about her. What on earth made you decide it was over?"

"She lied to me."

Jennifer tried her best to not make her reply sound glib. "But Lucas, you knew it was Sami. You've known her for years…"

"And I should have known what to expect. You sound like my mom."

Jennifer quickly moved to clarify her statement. "I didn't mean it as a bad thing. I just meant that you know Sami better than anyone. You've managed to see the good in her, even when no one else could."

Lucas nodded his head in agreement. "Jack saw it too, don't forget."

"They were kindred souls I think. Both considered themselves outcasts, never realizing just how important they were to those who loved them."

"Exactly! See you see it and I see it, but Sami never does. Deep down she's still a little girl who craves love and attention."

"And you were the man who gave her what she needed." She nodded, understanding their dynamic far better than Lucas could possibly imagine.

"I was, or at least I thought I was…"

"Until?" Jennifer prompted him to continue.

"Until one night I walked into the Blue Note and found her flirting with another guy at the bar."

That statement took Jennifer by surprise. No matter what differences she'd had with Sami over the years, she never would have pegged her as being unfaithful. In fact, she'd almost venture that Sami's biggest fault, if indeed you could call it a fault, was her undying loyalty to those she loved. "That doesn't sound like Sami."

"No it doesn't. But it's true. She was with another guy. She claimed it was innocent, but I just couldn't believe her."

Jennifer wondered briefly how much of his mistrust had to do with Sami's flirting as opposed to leftover hurt from the other women, like his ex-wife Nicole, who had screwed him over in the past. "So you saw her flirting and you broke up. I saw you two arrive at Alice's, but then you went your separate ways."

"She had car trouble. I just gave her a lift, nothing more."

"Then you met that other girl at Alice's. The brunette, the one who seemed to be all over you."

"Manda." Lucas said softly, wincing as he thought back to that night. In hindsight he wished he'd never gone to the opening.

"And you and Manda started seeing each other?"

"Not really. We danced, we flirted, we made out a bit."

"And?"

"And I brought her back to my place."

Jennifer frowned. "Let me guess, Sami saw the two of you?"

He nodded.

"And did you—?"

The question hung in the air. Lucas, who was still carrying around the baby, paused for a moment to place the now-sleeping infant back in the carriage, before answering.

"No."

Jennifer breathed a sigh of relief. "Good."

"Since when did you become a Sami fan Jen?" Given Sami and Jennifer's past with Brandon he was surprised that Jennifer would have compassion for Sami.

"The day I realized that she puts a smile on your face. It was at the triple funeral last fall. You were standing with Will in the church and when she joined you two, you just suddenly looked complete. A perfect little family, if there is such a thing. And then again at Caroline Brady's service. You were her rock. Everyone could see that you two had grown closer." She paused to study his expression, debating whether or not to keep going. He seemed receptive to her comment so she pressed on. "Lucas you're in love with her and from what I've seen, she's in love with you. Obviously there's issues between you, but don't give up. True love is precious and rare. Some people go their whole lives and never find it."

Lucas moved back to the bench, seating himself next to her as she finished her statement. "And some have it ripped away far too soon. Jen, Sami and I are not the same as you and Jack. You two were soul mates, destined to be together."

"As are you and Sami. Lucas don't give up on your love."

"I don't know how to fix it. I don't think at this point, it can be fixed." He insisted sincerely.

Jennifer smiled wistfully. "Then don't try to fix it. If there's one thing I've learned it's that you can deny love all you want, but if it's meant to be it'll happen. But you can't force it. It takes time." Her mind raced back through various moments she'd spent with Jack. They'd overcome so many obstacles along the way to achieving happiness. Obstacles that had seemed insurmountable at the time, but ultimately only strengthened their bond. Despite how it all turned out, she wouldn't trade a second of that time.

Lucas moved his head dejectedly, unconvinced that he and Sami could ever reconcile.. "No. I think fate has passed us by. We had our chance and we blew it. I just have to accept that Sami and I were never meant to be."

Jennifer shook her head at her stubborn brother. She couldn't scold him because after all hadn't she once felt the same about her relationship with Jack? She knew that nothing she could say could magically make things better. All she could do was offer her heartfelt advice. "Never say never. It's not up to you to decide Lucas. For all you know, the answer to your problems with Sami could be standing outside your door at this very moment."

Lucas pondered her words, admiring the fact that she could remain upbeat about fate when it had so cruelly torn her husband away from her.

At the same moment across town, Sami had just settled back down to her studies with a glass of iced tea when she heard a knock at her door. Not expecting any visitors she curiously made her way over and peeked through the peephole of her door. As she looked at who was standing on the other side she shrieked. "OMIGOD!"