Hey hey guys! Here is another one for your enjoyment.
"Your services aren't wanted or needed," Sam said before walking away.
"Mr. Evans, if you will, just listen to me for one second. "Mercedes said, walking behind him, her dress in hand as she did.
Sam scoffed. "I don't like to repeat myself."
"And I don't like to be ignored. You haven't even heard my proposal yet." She said, rushing after him as he walked out the door to a courtyard with a fountain.
Sam threw his mask on the ground and ran his hand through his hair. "You tricked me!"
She let her dress fall and put her hands on her hips. "I didn't know it was you under that mask! And we didn't actually exchange names." She sighed. "Let me ask you one question and then make up your mind."
Sam looked at her and shrugged. "Fine, if it will get rid of you."
She moved and sat on the edge of the fountain. "On Christmas morning, when it's just you and Izzy, do you ever wish she had a mother to share it with. Do you ever wish you had someone to snuggle close to as she opens her gifts? Sipping Apple cider by the fire. Do you look over to the empty side of the bed and wish someone was lying next to you?"
Sam stared at her, he wanted to say no, but somehow he knew that she would see that he was lying. "And you can give me that?"
"My success ratings alone should tell you I can. My life is about giving others happiness; let me give you that?"
Sam sat next to her. "And you?"
"What about me?" She asked, looking at him.
"Do you have happiness in love?"
Mercedes sighed. "Some people are better at finding love for others than for themselves."
"I find it hard to believe no one is loving you," Sam replied sincerely.
"Well, they aren't; I don't have the best track record with relationships." She said honestly. "But I am good at what I do."
"Listen, I don't want a parade of women coming in and out of our lives. Izzy deserves that stability… I will give it one month. That's it." Sam replied.
"I would never do that to her; she won't be brought in until you feel you like who I have chosen." She looked at him and smiled. "I already have a host of women who want to meet you, but I am only choosing the elite, the handful who I think you might click with. You and your daughter are my priority, and I won't rest until I find what you are both looking for."
"You don't even know my type." Sam retorted, and Mercedes chuckled.
"You don't have one besides; I'll vet them after getting to know you and Izzy better, so the first month is just me getting to know you, then you'll start going on dates with the ones that are the best of the best."
Sam nodded. "So you and I will date for a month, then you will pimp me out to the highest bidder?" He teased.
"Pimp you out is a harsh way to put it but yes. I'll be "dating" you and your daughter. She's top priority, remember? So don't worry, I don't bite… much." She joked back.
"So if we are dating, does that mean we do things dating people do?" He questioned, moving closer to her. "Hold hands, flirt...kiss?"
"Mr. Evans, the type of dating we will be doing isn't the type you'll be doing with the women. You're my client, and nothing can come from that." Mercedes answered, slightly flustered when he moved more into her personal space.
Sam moved her hair out of her eyes. "You are a really beautiful Tiana." He traced his hand down her cheek. "You are beautiful, period."
"You're too kind, but again you're my client." Mercedes said, biting her lip.
"What if I wanted to date you instead of all those women?" He said slightly above a whisper.
"We're not a match." Mercedes replied honestly.
"How do you know? We could be?" Sam said, hand still on her cheek.
She sighed. "I always run the compatibility test against myself first to have a starting point."
"And what was our match score?" He asked.
"It was fifty percent; I only pair my clients up with eighty percent or higher."
"If you only went off of what my sister or daughter or Quinn said about me, how can you be sure?"
"Your mother." She answered simply. "She also included a few things, and one thing that dropped the score was you not wanting another child."
Sam nodded. "And you want kids?"
"I want a lot of them, actually."
Sam sighed; it wasn't that he didn't want more kids; he just didn't think anyone was worth giving them to him until now. "Well, then I guess we need to see the other matches. Though…" He said, leaning into her. "We haven't officially started yet, and I really want to kiss you."
"Sorry, but you're not Naveen." She teased before moving out of his embrace. "I would love to meet your daughter, though."
Sam stood and moved closer to her. "That's my condition. If you want me to agree to this, then I would like one kiss. A kiss of what could have been."
"That's not how this works…." She said, looking up at him then down to his lip, unknowingly biting hers again.
Sam backed her against the side of the house and placed his hands on either side of her head. "Tell me you don't want to kiss me."
"I… we can't do this; it'll be a conflict of interest."
"I haven't signed on yet. So all it would be is two people who met at a party, felt an instant pull to each other, and shared a very passionate kiss." He said, brushing his nose against hers gently.
"W-we… Sam…" She stammered, taking a deep breath.
"Shhhh." He said, leaning in and pressing his lips against hers, not pushing in case she wanted to push him away.
"I…" She started before feeling his soft lips on hers, and she slowly slipped into the kiss, moaning softly.
Hearing her moan was all he needed. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close to him as his tongue swept her bottom lip before pushing it between her lips kissing her deeper.
Mercedes didn't lose control, and yet Sam just made her want to. She wrapped her arms around his neck, tongue fighting with his, feeling a hunger she had never felt before.
Sam wanted so much more, needed more. He pulled his lips away, nipping at her bottom lip, sucking it between his teeth before moving to her neck as his hands moved up her breast squeezing them.
"We need to stop," Mercedes said, quickly moving away and breathing heavily. "One kiss, that's all I agreed to do."
"I shouldn't have kissed you." He said, moving closer to her. "One kiss isn't nearly enough." He said, leaning in and kissing her again.
"Sam, stop." She replied, gently pushing him away. "I… excuse me." She said before quickly walking away from him and back inside, looking for the closest bathroom.
Sam ran his hand through his hair, taking a few deep breaths before walking into the house, trying to find Mercedes.
Artie noticed Sam walking towards him. "So...are you going through with this thing or not? Cause you know your family isn't gonna let up."
"I want her," Sam said, sighing.
"Want who?" Artie asked, looking around the room.
"Mercedes," Sam answered, looking around for her.
"Wait, what?"
Mercedes stared at herself. She didn't know why she let Sam get to her, but he did, and she wanted him. God, she wanted him. She bit her lip; she knew what Kurt would say if she texted him. Take a risk. "Okay, I am gonna take a risk." She said to herself before walking out of the bathroom and seeing Sam. She walked up behind him but froze, hearing him talking about her.
"I told her I would agree if she let me kiss her, and it was a mistake… I shouldn't have kissed her."
"A mistake, how?" Artie asked, confused.
"A mistake, a dumb move, being an idiot. I shouldn't have done it because I just…" he let his voice trail off; how could he put into words how much he really wanted her, needed her.
"Mr. Evans, I would like to meet your daughter now," Mercedes said coldly, and Artie shot her a look because he'd never heard her voice like that before.
"Merce, how are you?" Artie asked, giving her a hug which she returned.
"I'm fine, just trying to do my job here." She replied with a sigh before looking back at Sam. "Your daughter, please."
"Umm… yeah, she's with my mom," Sam answered, wondering about her current mood change. He walked them over to where his mother was and smiled when Izzy's eyes grew wide seeing Mercedes.
"You got Princess Tiana to come!" Izzy asked excitedly.
"Well, actually, sweetie, I'm Mercedes. You sent me a video, remember?" Mercedes asked, kneeling down so she was at eye level with the cute little girl.
"You're gonna find me a mommy?" Izzy asked, and Mercedes couldn't help but smile at the question, but there was also a slight pang in her chest.
"I'm going to do my very best!" She promised, and the young girl wrapped her arms around her, hugging her tightly.
"Thank you, daddy really needs someone nice." She whispered.
"I agree," Mercedes whispered back. "How about you help me get to know him better? What do you say about us getting ice cream tomorrow?"
"Yes! We can go to my favorite shop! But, wait, daddy, can I go with Ms. Mercedes?" Izzy asked, looking up at her father, and Mercedes couldn't help smiling when she asked for permission first.
"You have dance practice tomorrow, remember?" Sam asked.
"But afterward?" Izzy questioned.
"It'll be late, kiddo, maybe-"
"I can always pick her up and meet Mercedes there." Mary chimed in, winking at her granddaughter.
"Yes, and I can stay with grandma and pop pop!" Izzy squealed.
"Wait, we're not changing our routine for..."
"For what, a mistake?" Mercedes questioned, standing and looking directly at Sam.
Sam looked at Mercedes confused before shaking his head before looking back at his mother and daughter. "We have a schedule we stick to kiddo, you and Mercedes can get ice cream on Wednesday when you don't have practice," Sam said, earning a look from his mother.
"Mercedes, tomorrow will be just fine. But, Quinn, can you give her the information she needs? I need to speak with my son." Mary said, grabbing Sam by the arm and leading him away from everyone.
"Mom, I'm not in the mood," Sam said, still looking at Mercedes before Mary grabbed his face and forced him to look at her.
"I don't care what kind of mood you are in; you will be nice to Mercedes and act like the man I raised you to be. She is being kind and is willing to help make YOUR daughter's Christmas wish come true; show some respect!" Mary snapped.
"I don't need a wife or a woman," Sam muttered.
"Bullshit, when was the last time you even got laid?"
"Jesus, that's none of your business!" Sam replied, shaking his head.
"Damn, son, it's been that long?"
"I will be nice, but you are never to ask me about my sex life again," Sam said back over to where everyone else was.
"You can get ice cream with Mercedes tomorrow," Sam muttered.
Izzy squealed and jumped up and down. Mercedes looked at Sam. "If it's that big of a deal, Mr. Evans, you can join us; I need to know about you from you too. Make sure you don't make any more...mistakes."
"What are you talking about?" Sam asked, narrowing his eyes at Mercedes.
Mercedes rolled her eyes at Sam and turned towards Mary. "In the next month, I will spend time with Izzy, and Sam, find out how they live, how they work as a family, and then I will start the process of finding him his match. I have a few in mind who might be...right up your son's ally. I will not let you all down."
"We trust you, sweetie," Mary replied, hoping like hell she was able to help her son.
"Well, I should get going; I don't want to take away from your family time. I have already taken away enough," she said, giving a small smile.
"I'll walk you out," Sam said, and she shook her head.
"No, that won't be necessary."
"I wasn't asking," Sam said, placing his hand on the small of her back and escorting her out.
Mercedes huffed, sending a text to her driver that she was ready. "There you walked me out, thanks. See ya."
"Why are you acting this way?" Sam asked, pushing her to the side of the house and cornering her.
"I am a professional, and I have been asked to do a job. So that is what I am doing; I apologize if it's not to your liking Mr. Evans." She said professionally.
"You don't have to be cold; what happened to the woman I met earlier?"
"That woman was a mistake." She said coldly. "Now, if you don't mind, my car should be here in a few minutes."
Sam looked at her and let out a sigh before moving away from her. "Well, I expect the best… the woman I decide to let into my life needs to be warm and loving and not afraid of being in love," Sam replied, leaving her out there alone.
Mercedes looked after him, feeling her eyes water. She knew she shouldn't have let her guard down, shouldn't have allowed him to get so close, and now she had to make sure it never happened again.