Here is another chapter. Now I want you guys to know that I map out my stories, but sometimes, my muse takes a turn that surprises even me. That is what happened here. This was not the plan, but I am so loving where it's headed. Enjoy!
Sam glanced around the perimeter, making sure the place was secured. He checked the windows on the outside as he walked back around the front. Securing the back gate, he heard Mercedes scream and ran around the front.
"Mercedes? What's wrong?!" He yelled as she screamed again. Making it to the front, he stopped in his tracks. "Oh my God." He said, pulling out his phone and hitting record.
Mercedes screamed, gripping the trash bag in her hand and hitting it toward the Chicken currently chasing her.
"Get away! Stop chasing me, you crazy ass chicken!" Mercedes ran as the Chicken squawked and chased her angrily.
"What did you do to make the chicken angry, Merce?"
Mercedes ran across the yard with the Chicken hot on her tail. "I didn't do anything! Sam, stop this damn thing! It's gonna bite me!"
"Not bite, more like a peck." Sam teased.
Mercedes tossed the bag at the Chicken as she ran towards him, tripping over herself and falling forward as Sam ran towards her putting his phone away.
"Mercedes, are you okay?" He asked, helping her up.
Mercedes stood and immediately winced; she looked down and frowned at the her ankle. "I think I tweaked it."
Sam looked at her, his eyes wide. "You're bleeding." He said, pointing to her arm. "Let's get you inside so I can take care of that."
Mercedes nodded, and Sam bent down to pick her up, carrying her bridal style into the house. As they made it over the threshold, they looked at each other.
"Never thought I would get the chance to carry you in the house like this," Sam said.
Mercedes leaned into him. "Me neither."
Carrying her over to the couch, he sat her down. "I am going to grab the first aid kit, so we can take care of you."
Mercedes nodded as Sam left, looking at her arm as blood ran down it. Sam returned, and she sighed, removing her shirt, and he turned his head away from her.
"What are you doing?"
"It's not like you haven't seen it before." She laughed. "Besides, the cut starts up here." She said, pointing to her shoulder.
Sam didn't say anything, just nodded toward her as she turned her back to him. He noticed a bruising gash on her shoulder, not deep but bleeding. "I can fix this up, no problem."
He grabbed the peroxide, cleaned the wound, bandaged it, and cleaned the blood that fell onto her arm.
"They're good as new." He said proudly.
"Thanks, it still hurts but thanks."
Sam laughed. "Maybe I should kiss it and make it better." He teased.
"Maybe you should." She said before she could stop herself.
Sam smirked, kissing her wound softly, causing her to freeze for a moment. He leaned in again, kissing it, then moving to her exposed shoulder. Mercedes shivered at his touch.
Sam swallowed as he placed a series of soft kisses over her shoulder and back, enjoying the little whimpers she was making.
Mercedes was afraid to move, afraid he would stop, and she didn't want him to stop when she was enjoying every soft kiss he gave her.
Sam ran his hands down her exposed back and continued kissing his way across to her other shoulder.
"Sam…" Mercedes whispered with a moan as his hands moved to her side, caressing the side of her breast.
A smile fell upon his lips as his tongue darted out of his mouth to lick a trail up to her neck, causing her to gasp. "You always were so sensitive to my touch." He said softly.
Her head fell back as he slowly moved his hands around and gently gripped her breast, still covered by her bra. "You were always a tease." She breathed.
Sam pulled her body against his, moving his lips to her ear. "And you loved every single minute of it." He whispered as she turned her head to look at him.
"I did. Every damn minute." She said, leaning in and kissing him.
Sam took her lips to his without hesitation, kissing her slowly, taking his time and memorizing every groove and curve of her mouth as she turned in his arms.
Sam's hands moved on their own, unhooking her bra as his tongue explored her mouth, a loud groan leaving him when she sucked on it. No one could ever make him feel the ways he had; it was one thing he tried and failed at. And feeling her in his arms, he knew no one ever would.
Flinging her bra behind her, she pulled Sam's shirt off of him and pressed herself against him as her hands went to his hair.
"Fuck I hate how good you feel right now." Sam breathed.
"No, you don't…help me with my pants." She laughed against his lips.
Sam pulled her hips to him, gripping her pants, but stopped and shook his head, coming back to his senses. "I can't."
Mercedes pulled back and looked at him. "You can't?"
He shook his head no and sighed, moving her hair out of her face. "I want you, Mercedes. God, I want to take you right here right now. You are still so beautiful, so addicting. But I can't. I am here for one reason: to do a job, not to get back with you. And if I…if we do this, then we will get back together."
"Is that a bad thing? It's clear we still have feelings for each other, Sam." Mercedes said.
"We do. And we are still attracted to each other. But as bad as I want you, I don't want to be hurt by you. Nice words and one or two good conversations don't make up for the past 8 years. Nothing is resolved, and it will all just be one big mess if nothing is resolved." Sam stared at her kissing her forehead. "I just need more time."
She nodded, looking away from him, and Sam turned her face back towards his. "You understand, right?"
She smiled and nodded. "I do. Sam… I know you are here for a job, but maybe you would like to have a movie date tonight? Maybe while you do this job, we can get to know the people we are now and see if this attraction is worth anything?"
Sam beamed. "I would love that."
She nodded. "I would too. But if I am gonna make us some popcorn, then can you wrap my ankle? It still hurts."
Sam nodded. "I got you."
Sam and Mercedes both awoke with a start as lightning snapped in the sky. After Sam wrapped up her ankle, they loaded a tray of snacks into the bedroom and fell asleep during their Marvel Marathon. Mercedes laid back, trying to settle back in his arms when a crash caused her to jump.
Sam moved quickly, grabbing his gun from the side table.
"You keep that there!" She hissed.
"Where else am I gonna keep it?" He whispered back. "I have to have a gun in each room."
CRASH SMASH
Mercedes Jumped and Sam slipped into his shoes, going to the door.
"We are not done with this conversation!"
Sam smiled. "Didn't think we were." He looked out into the dark hall. "Stay here; I will be right back." He warned.
She was going to argue, but the look on his face told her not to, so she just nodded.
Sam slowly and silently moved from the room out into the foyer and around the small ranch home. He made his way to the kitchen, where the back door was wide open, and the window above the sink was broken, and a tree branch was in the sink. He glanced around, moving to see if he had missed anything.
Mercedes sat in the bed, waiting for Sam to return and growing impatient, but they were finally in a good place, and she was not about to upset him by making his job harder. She looked up, seeing him return with a worried look on his face.
"What happened?"
Sam sighed. "The back door was open, and the kitchen window was broken. Now it all could be a coincidence. I mean, the storm was terrible, and the wind could have blown the door open as well as knocked the branch through the window."
"Or they could have used the storm as a diversion?"
Sam nodded. "I checked the house; there isn't really anywhere for them to hide but in here, and no one is here, so it could be the storm, but I am going to call Blaine and Puck in to do a sweep."
"Won't it take a while for them to get here?"
Sam was quiet for a moment, and Mercedes nodded. "They are at your parents, aren't they?"
"It wasn't safe bringing you here alone. I needed backup, but if I told you, then you might not have trusted me."
Mercedes sighed. "I really don't know what to say to that, but the sooner they get here, the sooner I can sleep, so call them."
Sam nodded, walking out of the room as Mercedes made her way to the bathroom. She wore an oversized shirt that fell below her thighs and a pair of short shorts.
After she freshened up and ruffled her hair, she heard a car pull up.
Walking out to the living room, she paused as she saw Blaine staring at her, a man she hadn't seen since before she left.
"Hey, Blaine, Puck."
Puck smiled, walking over to her. "Damn…I should have taken this assignment. Even dressed down, you are the sexiest woman around."
"Nice to see you again, too, Puck." She said, rolling her eyes. "You can't even say hi, Blaine? We were friends once upon a time." She said softly.
"Yeah, once upon a time when I thought you were decent and good."
"Blaine," Sam warned.
Mercedes offered Sam a small smile. "He's right to be angry just like you were, Sam. Blaine is like your brother; I hurt you, and I know he hates me."
Blaine shook his head. "That's the thing; I don't. Tina doesn't even hate you; we just are so disappointed."
"Somehow, that's worse." She said. "I never…" She exhaled. "Leaving Sam wasn't something I planned, and I never wanted to hurt him."
"And yet you did." He said, sitting down, pulling out his computer, and going to work.
Mercedes nodded, walking back into the bedroom, and Sam followed her. "I am sorry about that."
She shook her head. "Don't be. They are just as mad as you are; I deserve their anger, Sam. I hate it, but I deserve it."
Sam moved closer to her and pulled her into a hug. "You apologized, so now it's just gonna take time."
She looked up at him. "I don't deserve your forgiveness, but I am so glad you are willing to try and forgive me."
"Yo Evans!" Puck called out.
Sam smiled, kissing her forehead. "Rest your ankle; I'll come to check on you, okay?"
Mercedes nodded, sitting back on the bed as Sam walked out of the room.
"You are way too chummy with her." Blaine said, not even looking up at him.
"Can we not?" Sam asked.
"Why? Has she gotten you back in her web? Sam, we went over this; you know she can't be trusted." Blaine said, finally pushing his computer away from him and standing. "We are here to do a job; get your head in the game; it's not too late to swap you for Puckerman."
"I would gladly take over. That body needs to be watched over 24/7." Puck teased.
"I can't help that I still love her. And I get why she left, and I can forgive her."
"But we can't!" Blaine said. "There is no excuse."
Sam laughed. "Not that it's any of your business; she left because she was scared. She thought she was pregnant, and then her life flashed before her eyes, and all the things that scared her took hold. So instead of staying and making us both miserable, she left and made us both miserable. But she regrets how it happened."
"And you believe her?" Blaine questioned.
"I do, you are my best friend, and I know you don't want to see me hurt, but I got this. I am not jumping in with both feet, but I am not slamming the door in her face. So for right now, can you focus? Go through the surveillance and see if it was just the wind. And Puck, help me board up the window and door."
Mercedes walked out to the kitchen to grab something to drink as Sam and Puck put the finishing nails into the wood over the window.
She sat next to Blaine. "And if by some miracle Sam gives me another chance, I can promise you I won't hurt him. I give you my word; it's the only thing I have."
Blaine didn't say anything; he just looked straight ahead.
"I didn't want to get engaged and married and have kids and then resent him. I love being a lawyer, and I am glad I finished my degree; I have helped so many people. But B, I promise not a day went by when I didn't think of Sam and wish I did things differently. My mom married a Military man, and I had this huge scare that made me realize just what I would give up if Sam and I got married. He wanted a career in the military."
She sighed. "I handled it poorly, and I regret that; I regret not talking to you. And T. But I promise I won't repeat what happened."
He looked at her and gave her a stiff nod; she smiled softly and stood, walking into the kitchen. Sam offered her a smile. "I am gonna check on Blaine, then grab some more wood from the truck they brought."
"Okay." She said, watching him as he went to check on Blaine. Puck sauntered over to her.
"Hey beautiful, anything I can do to help?"
Mercedes smiled, shaking her head. "Noah, I humored you earlier, but I need to know you realize that nothing will ever happen between us."
"Like never ever?" He asked.
"Never ever, ever. I like you as a person, but you are not the guy for me."
"And let me guess, Evans is?"
Mercedes smiled. "Always will be. I have spent years comparing every guy who looked at me to Sam, and none compared. I was young and foolish for letting him go, and I am gonna fight like hell to get him back because he is worth it."
"That's a beautiful sentiment. You know Blaine and Tina will never let you and Sam be a thing."
She shrugged. "I am not worried about them; I am worried about Sam. And how he feels about me. They may not like it, but it sucks for them because I am not going anywhere."
"Sucks for them?" He questioned.
She nodded with a smile. "I've changed."
Puck sighed. "I am glad you have changed. I see it, and I think Sam does too. But the thing is, we didn't know you changed."
"We?" Mercedes asked, looking at him.
"Me and Tina. We didn't know, and so…well, what's about to happen right now, that is gonna suck for him."
Mercedes raised an eyebrow. "What?"
Puck frowned. "I'm so sorry." He said, and before she could react, he placed a cloth over her nose and mouth, causing her to pass out almost immediately in his arms. Peering through the door, he watched Sam sit with Blaine and took his chance dragging her out of the back door.
Picking her up and carrying her to the awaiting car, the trunk popped, and he hesitated. "You sure we have to do this?"
"Puck, she deserves what she gets, and we need to get her away from Sam."
"But giving her to him."
"With the money he is paying us, we can finally start our life together. His case gets dropped, Sam is free of Mercedes, and no one knows we betrayed them. It's a win-win."
"Don't you care what he is gonna do to her?"
Tina shook her head. "She didn't care what would happen to Sam; he isn't thinking with the right head; none of you do when Mercedes is involved."
"Don't be jealous; you're my girl; it's why we are doing this now."
She grabbed the tape covering her mouth before moving to tie her up. "Okay good, now get back inside before Sam knows you are missing. I'll finish tying her up and take her to the meet spot."
Puck sighed, leaning in and kissing her. "I love you, T."
"Love you too, now go."