Chapter TEN

Sami's footsteps slowed as walked by her mother's room, seeing her mother inside, reading on her bed.

"Hey Mom," she said, leaning against the door.

Marlena looked up and smiled warmly at her.

"Hey sweetie," she said, "The twins down for the night?"

"I'm hoping," said Sami with a resigned grimace.

"Come and sit with me for a minute," invited Marlena, patting a space on the bed beside her.

Sami walked over and lay on the bed beside her mother, resting her head on her shoulder. It had been a hard day and nobody could comfort like a mom.

"Good book?" she asked.

"Mm," nodded Marlena, "Not bad."

"I don't feel like I've read anything for years," commented Sami idly.

"Well you've got a pretty full plate at the moment," her mother said, "How's everything going with Lucas?"

"Great," said Sami, the lie coming automatically to her lips.

That was all she seemed to say lately - she and Lucas were great, fine, okay - whatever. Anything other than the truth.

"I'm sorry Sami, can you say that again?"

Lucas' voice was hard and angry as he stared at her with a combination of surprise and anger.

"Because it just sounded like you said that you actually helped EJ stay in the country!"

"I did," said Sami quietly, "He was going to be deported and…"

"Good!" snarled Lucas, "Let him get deported, I'll drive him to the airport myself."

"Well that would be the point wouldn't it Lucas?" said Sami, her own anger starting to rise, "You couldn't drive EJ or any one else anywhere could you?! Because you were in prison and I was left with twins to care for by myself!"

"So what, you passed up on the chance of getting rid of that bastard because you needed a baby sitter?!" asked Lucas bitterly, "Sami - he could have been out of our lives for good! Why did you have to help him?"

"EJ is Johnny's father!" snapped Sami, "He's never going to be out of our lives."

"Which is just how he wants it," sulked Lucas, "That man is like a virus in our lives from day one. He's brought nothing but pain and suffering to us all and you go and help him - I just don't understand Sami!"

"I wouldn't have needed his help if you hadn't been so stupid and self centred when you shot EJ!" snapped Sami.

"I was protecting my family!" barked Lucas.

"And so was I!" she countered sharply.

"Great?" queried Marlena, hearing something not right in her daughter's voice.

"Lucas was…" Sami shrugged hopelessly, "… unhappy when he found out that I'd helped EJ get his visa."

"But he understands why you did it though?" Marlena prompted her.

"Of course," lied Sami, "He was fine about it in the end."

Lucas hadn't been fine about it and the rest of their day together had been strained. Sami was making an effort to spend as much time with Lucas as she could hoping that they would be able to re-establish that connection she used to feel with him but it all felt so horribly forced. Nothing about Lucas coming back into her life had been how she'd pictured it. He seemed harder, less easy to talk to then the man she remembered but then he had been in prison and she had to make allowances.

Sami was beginning to think though that it was more than that.

Something had shifted between the two of them and it was beginning to feel more and more permanent. There time apart had given her some perspective on their relationship and now coming back into it with fresh eyes… nothing seemed the same. For so long now she'd clung to the 'dream life' she had with Lucas, built it up in her head, trotted it out every time she wanted to put EJ in his place but now it all seemed so hollow and she was beginning to wonder if anything she believed about her and Lucas was true… or ever had been.

"I'm going to go downstairs for a bit," said Sami straightening up, fed up with thinking such depressing thoughts for the moment.

"Alright honey," smiled Marlena, watching her get off the bed and walk to the door, "Sami?"

"Yes Mom?" replied Sami, turning to look expectantly at her mother.

"You know, don't you, that if you ever need to talk… about anything… I'm here," said Marlena, seeing her unhappiness and as a mother wanting to ease it for her.

"I know Mom," said Sami with a little smile, "Thanks."

Sami walked down the stairs back to the living room to find EJ and John sitting there, John with a newspaper, EJ with some official looking document. They both looked up as she walked into the room.

"Twins down at last?" asked EJ, they'd been a bit fretful today and they'd both had a turn at trying to convince them to settle for the night.

"Yes," said Sami, sticking her hands into the back pocket of her jeans and walking into the room.

"Good," smiled EJ, "And how was your day sweetheart?"

"Fine," said Sami shortly.

"You and Lucas met up at all?"

EJ knew that they had but because he was a masochist he just had to ask.

"Yes," she said sharply.

"And how was that?" asked EJ evenly, "You two kids reconnecting I hope."

"Why would you hope that?" scowled Sami suspiciously.

"Because I want you to be happy Samantha of course," said EJ mildly, "And Lucas makes you happy… right?"

"Of course!" she snapped and then because she couldn't help but goad him, "In fact we were talking about him finding a more permanent place to move into and me going with him."

That was true but what she was omitting telling EJ was that she hadn't reacted very enthusiastically to the idea.

"Won't he need a job for that?" asked EJ pleasantly.

"I've been helping him look for work but it isn't easy," said Sami.

"Well when you see 'Inmate' on a resume under 'Last Current Employment' it can be a bit off putting for the prospective employer," commented EJ dryly, "And Lucas didn't do himself any favours by getting those delightful tattoos whilst he was in prison either. I'm sure he was just trying to impress the 'tough kids' but it doesn't exactly scream corporate king pin now does it?"

"How can you be so callous about Lucas?" asked Sami horrified but even as she asked the question some part of her knew that EJ was right but she stubbornly wasn't going to admit it to him.

Besides, she felt terribly guilty that she wasn't as pleased as she knew she should be at his return and couldn't help herself from over compensating now by defending him to EJ.

"I'm not being callous I'm being honest," said EJ with an arch of an eyebrow, "Something you might want to have a shot at sometime."

Sami's eyes narrowed at the dig but she wasn't going to be put off.

"Of course Lucas would have changed a little," she defended her ex-husband heatedly, "These last months haven't exactly been a party for him! He's been in prison, it was hard! It wasn't like he had a line of people who loved him waiting to tuck him into bed every night!"

"You hope."

Both EJ and Sami froze and turned as one to stare at the man who'd just spoken. Sami had actually forgotten John was still there, he had a way of being so still and quiet it was easy for him to slip into the scenery somehow. John stood up then, tucked his newspaper under his arm and walked to the door, completely unfazed by the look the other two people in the room were giving him.

"I cannot believe John just said that!" gasped Sami when she could finally get over her shock, looking at EJ wide eyed.

"Indeed," said EJ with the absolute best straight face he had.

"Don't you dare laugh about something so serious!" she warned him furiously because even though he wasn't showing it Sami was almost certain that deep down EJ was laughing his arse off right now, "That was a terrible thing to say!"

"Wildly inappropriate," agreed EJ, digging a thumbnail into his palm to stop himself from bursting out laughing, "But remember Samantha - brain damaged, he doesn't know what he's saying. Tragic really, we have to make allowances."

"I'm going to check on the twins!" announced Sami, wanting to yell at him some more but he was giving her no ammunition.

"You do that," said EJ evenly.

He watched Sami flounce from the room and then calmly picked up a nearby cushion and placed it over his face before exploding into gales of laughter.

Okay, it was official, Uncle John was his new favourite relative!