Hey guys I am glad to bring you another chapter. I hope you enjoy. I figure while I am on a roll I might as well update you once again and I love the reviews so keep them coming! Stay blessed and enjoy. Here you will learn one of Sam's secrets.
Mercedes arrived to work bright and early Monday wanting to make sure everything that needed doing was done, when it came to the launch. There were still a few minor details to work out but for the most part her bird was out the nest and flying. There was a slight knock on her door and she smiled seeing Sam walk in.
"Hey, and what do I owe this meeting?"
"I just wanted to see how you were doing, I know its been a rough few days.."
"Oh nothing I can't handle." she said with a small smile.
Sam nodded. "I just wanted to see if you were free for dinner Friday?"
Mercedes looked at him and nodded. "I can do dinner."
"Great!" He said moving closer to her. "Did you enjoy the winds?"
She nodded. "I did, they were a good call on your part. Thank you."
Sam shrugged. "Anything to make you smile."
She smiled. "Well mission accomplished."
Sam rubbed his chin with a sigh. "I have a confession I want to make. I really want to kiss you again."
Mercedes could feel her face get hot. "Oh ummm I think we can accommodate that."
He walked over to her pulling her closer to him. "Do you know how beautiful you are?"
She nodded and he raised an eyebrow. "Good." He bent down to kiss her softly, but that same hunger and urgency that hit them both the other day came back full force and one thing lead to another he had her against the door moaning under his touch. After a few moments he pulled away, stepping away from where she stood.
"Well I need to get back to my office, because temptation to kiss you again is all too real but until the weekend."
He gave her one last once over before leaving and she smiled, moving over to her desk and opening her planner and adding a date for Friday. She was glad he gave her a few days warning because if that kiss was any indication, she needed it.
After Monday morning, Mercedes had seen Sam in passing but for the most part they were both too busy to make anything of it. Fortunately for her, she didn't have to deal with Teddy, she had heard that he had gone scuba diving in the Bahamas. She wondered if it was too much to ask for a big fish to swallow him whole.
It wasn't until Wednesday did she actually get to see Sam again, he caught her right at the door as she was leaving.
"Sam, what are you doing here so late?"
"I am always here late, what about you?"
"I was just finishing up some work before I headed over to see Q and Mike."
Sam nodded. "How are they? I wanted to call but I figured they needed space to deal with everything."
"They are as good as they can be. I mean they lost a child, its a hard burden to carry. Mike and I have been trying to take down the nursery but Q won't hear of it. I was actually going to take some of the things Mike was able to get out of the house to storage for them."
Sam smiled. "Did you need any help?"
Shaking her head she sighed. "No it shouldn't take but a minute to get everything sorted."
Sam shrugged. "It was just a ploy to see you again sooner anyways."
She glanced at him and caught his gaze, it was on her lips, and even though she knew he was going to kiss her, her body tingled at the mere thought of the kiss and when he leaned in and they connected, she couldn't help but whimper the the kiss ended all too fast.
"Just a taste for now." He said against her lips as he pulled away and walked out her office. She glanced after him shocked again by her actions, she just couldn't say no to that man or his kisses. Sam turned her backbone into jelly, and her heart to mush. She sighed wondering if he thought because she gave them so easily that she was easy… she spend so much time telling him she wasn't fast and yet when he took her kisses she gave them to him easily and without care. With the way he responded to her, she knew he wanted her but was this just some fling to see how fast he could bed her? To joke with Teddy? She chewed her bottom lip with a sigh. She could fall for Sam there was no doubt and she knew that if she wanted it, his body was hers for the taking… but what about his heart?
Mercedes had just finished an interview for the secretary full time position that Tina had vacated when she was promoted. The adorable man had his hair gelled back, capri pants and a bow tie that Merce really thought worked for him. He was just starting out after graduation and was ready to dive in head first. He exited the room smiling to Tina when he did and she swooned moving over to Mercedes love seat.
"Merce i swear I am in love! Call Artie tell him I found us a third!"
Mercedes smikred. "Don't you even want to hear his qualifications?"
"Girl I just saw all his qualifications! What was his previous job? Male Model?"
Mercedes held up his resume. "Actually Blaine worked as a performer for a few years while he was taking classes at my alma mater. He wants to work here for business experience."
Tina threw her hands in the air. "Let him work here! I will give him all the business experience he needs. I will give him all he wants both day and night. Please hire him, please!"
"You know he was recommended for this job by his boyfriend, Kurt. And he does seem bright and personable and he can type. I will need you to check his references for me but if they check out I say we found our secretary."
Tina smiled. "Oh I will check all his references."
"Did you not even hear me?"
"Hear what?"
Mercedes laughed shaking her head. "Nothing, nothing at all. Just keep your hands off of him okay?"
"Yeah yeah." Tina said as she made her way out of Mercedes office walking past Sam who had shut the door behind him. He moved over to her couch and smiled.
"Join me?"
Mercedes chewed her bottom lip giving her head a small shake no. Sam's smile turned to a frown as he looked at her. "You've been really busy, if I didn't know any better I would think you were avoiding me."
Releasing her bottom lip she folded her arms across her chest, resisting the urge to chew her fingernails, something she did when her lip just didn't cut it. "I haven't, I have just been really busy, launch time is busy time for me."
Sam nodded. "I just wanted to remind you that i was picking you up at 8."
"I'd actually prefer it if I met you there."
Sam nodded. "That's fine, I had planned on taking you too Truffles. That new spot downtown. The reservation is at 8:30."
She nodded. "Okay, I will see you there."
Sam stood walking over to her, she thought he might move in and kiss her so she looked away. Sam sighed. "Mercedes?"
She looked up to him with questioning eyes.
He sighed. "No regrets about us?" He asked softly. Mercedes hesitated for a moment then she shook her head no. Sam nodded, touching her chin softly, before leaving the office. When the door shut, the breath she didn't realize she was holding finally came out and she sighed heavily wondering if there were.
Mercedes arrived at the restaurant 10 minutes late and she hated being late. The nail salon took forever doing her nails, it wasn't entirely her fault. Mercedes and Chow Kim had worked hard to repair her nails, just to have the last few weeks destroy their hard work. Mercedes used to bite her nails when she was stressed, she moved on to biting her lips because it wasn't as bad but after Quinn lost the baby and her wondering about her feelings for Sam, she couldn't help but nip and bite and ruin her nails. Finally after fussing at Mercedes she applied a special red pepper laden nail polish as a deterrent to nail biting.
As she was escorted to the table she smiled softly at Sam. "I am so sorry I am late."
He held up his hand. "Don't worry about it."
The waiter smiled. "Would you like something to drink?"
Mercedes nodded stating she would have a water for now. After her tardiness wore off, the evening seemed to be going smoothly. They talked about music, how Sam was huge Country Fan, no surprise to Mercedes, and R&B Fan, which surprised her a bit.
It wasn't until the night wore down that Sam got a worrisome look on his face and Mercedes wondered what it was. Sitting up Sam cleared his throat.
"I wanted to talk to you about something."
Mercedes took one last bite of her Chocolate Mousse and nodded. "Okay…"
Sam sighed heavily. "I thought long and hard about asking you out, because I wanted to make sure it was right for us."
Mercedes nodded. "Okay."
"As you know my wife passed three years ago. I have a daughter."
Mercedes glanced at him, at everything he could have said that wasn't what she expected.
"How old is she?"
Sam hesitated for a moment. "Three, and although I admit I'm biased, shes the most adorable little girl. She had a head full sandy blonde curls." Sam said boasting of his daughter.
Mercedes laughed. "And who does her hair?"
Sam smiled. "I do, Mrs. Thornton, she is my housekeeper, tried to come her hair once and Savannah screamed so loud the dogs next door barked and the neighbors questioned child abuse. Since then I have held the task."
Mercedes glanced at Sam as he looked off into space, but then looked back at her with his lopsided grin that sent sparks up and down her back.
"I want you to meet Savannah. I promised her I would take her to the Zoo tomorrow and I want you to come with us. They have a new litter of baby animals at the petting zoo. We would have fun I think."
Mercedes smiled brightly not even having to think about it. "I'd love to."
The rest of the evening was met with Sam walking her to her car and giving her a kiss she felt from the top of her head to the soles of her feet. She drove home, humming excitedly. Sam was letting her into his life, letting her meet his daughter. THis was huge. The phone was ringing when she got in and she already knew who it was.
"Quinn give me a chance to enter the house before you start retailing."
"Sorry I just wanted to know how the date went."
Mercedes laid on her bed and sighed "It was amazing. We are going out again tomorrow."
"Really to where?"
Mercedes smirked. "The petting Zoo."
She heard Quinn cough something up, she must have been drinking. "The petting zoo? Seriously?"
"Yes seriously. Sam has a three year old daughter named Savannah and he wants me to meet her."
"Wow, I mean I knew he was married but a daughter, are you ready for that?"
"I am ready for Sam so I guess so. But hey I am gonna get in the bath then call you later. I love you."
Mercedes hung up the phone doing her nightly routines, she was excited for tomorrow and hopefully he was too. This was the first night she went to bed happily dreaming of her and Sam.
