Samer has been asleep since earlier, while my mind remains awake. I told myself that I should accept Kate’s presence, but it’s tough. They talked in the other room earlier while I was waiting, and I wanted to approach them, but I felt shy. I was afraid Samer would say I’m being intrusive.
The situation is really difficult for me. Kate is just in the next room because she decided to stay close to the kids. I feel like we have no privacy anymore. Kate has invaded everything. Even at the hotel, people thought they got back together. They said they would make a perfect couple since Kate’s family also owns a hotel business.
I couldn’t tell anyone else that we’re already together except for Rhea.
“Go to sleep, Jamie.”
I was surprised when Samer spoke because I thought he was already sleeping. His body must be tired from the long journey.
“Sorry for disturbing your sleep,” I said.
“What are you thinking? I noticed you’ve been like this for a while. Is there something wrong with us?” He asked, but I just shook my head and smiled at him.
How can I tell him that Kate is still on my mind? We just had an argument about her earlier. That’s why I don’t want to talk about her anymore.
“I was just thinking about what to eat tomorrow,” I lied to him. Well, I did say a white lie.
“And what did you think of eating?”
Damn! I didn’t expect him to follow up with a question, so I quickly thought of something delicious to eat.
“I miss having fries and chicken,” I said.
“Is that all?” Samer asked, so I just nodded, but my eyes widened when he reached for his phone on the side table.
“Who are you calling?” I immediately suspected he might be ordering food.
“Just wait,” he said, and I closed my mouth, sitting next to him. Unfortunately, my suspicion was correct. He asked someone to buy fries and chicken for me.
“It’s late already,” I said when he put down his phone.
“I was craving it,” he made an excuse, and then he turned on the TV.
Oh no, it seems I got caught in my lie. I wish I had just told him the truth, then I wouldn’t be forced to eat chicken and fries this late at night. It will ruin my figure.
“Why did you turn off the TV?” I asked him.
“I don’t want any distractions. I just want to talk while we eat,” Samer replied. “I like that,” I said with a smile.
“Just make yourself feel at ease with Kate,” Samer assured me. “I know why you couldn’t sleep earlier,” he added.
Since we already talked about it, I thought I might as well be honest. “I tried, Sam, to convince myself that I will always see Kate. But it’s really difficult.”
“I know. Whatever you’re feeling for Kate now, it’s the same for me with your ex, Brent,” he revealed.
“Do you know what I’m afraid of right now? It’s losing you, the kids, and ruining our friendship completely,” I sadly shared my true feelings about the things surrounding us.
“I promise, I won’t leave you, Jamie. I’m here to support you, remember that. So, I’m also asking you not to leave me because I won’t be able to handle it,” he said emotionally.
I was speechless with what he said. I just stared at Samer because I didn’t know what to say to him. After a few seconds, I took a deep breath and hugged him tightly.
“I don’t have any plans to leave you, Sam. That’s how much I love you,” I said.
“Me too. I’ve gotten used to always seeing you. Since I met you, seeing you smile is enough for me,” he said.
“You know, if I knew I would be this happy because of you, I would have tried to win you over earlier,” I told him.
“But you can still do that,” he whispered.
“What?” I pretended not to understand what he said.
“To win me over,” he replied.
“Oh, it looks like you have something bad planned for me, Mr. Khalifa!” I teased him, but instead of responding, he suddenly bit my neck. “Hey, are you a vampire?” I asked, but he just pressed his lips on my neck, doing a forbidden technique.
“There, I marked you so they’ll know you’re mine,” Samer said after leaving a kiss mark on my neck.
I don’t know what time it was, but my sleep was disturbed when someone knocked outside. One thing’s for sure, it was still early in the morning. I woke up Samer because I thought it might be his kids outside.
“Sam, someone’s outside. Check, it might be Ameerah.”
I asked him to open the door since I was still very sleepy. I could barely open my eyes. Sam, after all, drained my energy earlier.
Samer quickly got up when he heard his child’s name. Earlier, I could hardly open my eyes due to exhaustion, but I suddenly woke up when I heard Kate’s name. In an instant, my sleepiness vanished, and I got up to follow Samer.
“Baby, is that Ameerah?” I pretended not to hear the woman’s voice. Unexpectedly, I was able to use my acting skills. “Oh, it’s you, Kate,” I said and just smiled at her. Although it felt forced, I returned her smile, trying not to appear nosy or interfering.
“Ameerah said she had a nightmare and was looking for me,” Samer explained to me.
“And then?” I asked for more details because what he said wasn’t enough. One more thing, I was Ameerah’s nanny for years, and she never had nightmares at night. My eyes narrowed as I waited for Kate to speak.
“I’ll just go for a moment,” Sam said, as if seeking permission from me. My heart sank a little.
“Okay, just a moment,” I agreed.
He said it would be just a moment, so I waited.
Three hours later, I woke up in a bad mood, especially since Samer still hadn’t returned! Even in the shower, I kept seeing Samer and Kate’s faces in my mind! I was getting annoyed, so I quickly showered and dressed. I was ready to have breakfast downstairs when Samer finally arrived. He looked sleepy and panda-eyed from lack of sleep.
“You look tired,” I pointed out his appearance since he seemed like a panda with dark eye bags.
“I didn’t get enough sleep,” he replied.
“And why is that?” I asked again.
“It’s because of Ameerah,” he said and went straight to the bed and lay down.
I wanted to tell him that we could have breakfast together, but he immediately closed his eyes. I approached him and kissed his forehead even though I didn’t feel well.
“Don’t forget to eat later,” I reminded him, though there was no assurance that he heard me. “By the way, I might just head to Stonewick later,” I informed him about my plan, but he just nodded.
I wasn’t in the mood to eat breakfast, so I went straight to the office and to the pantry to make coffee. Rhea wasn’t there yet, and I was alone, feeling a bit lonely. While sipping the hot coffee, I opened my computer and started searching the internet for ways to make sure Samer wouldn’t go back to his ex.
I sighed heavily with all the information, so I stopped and closed the browser. I already had two cups of coffee when Rhea arrived with a package.
“What’s that?” I asked her.
“Rice cakes, my mom sent them for you,” Rhea said.
When Rhea mentioned her mother, I suddenly missed my own parents. It has been years, but I still feel guilty about their passing. I know they have forgiven me, but I can’t forgive myself.
“Oh, please tell your mom thank you,” I said and accepted the package from Rhea. I opened it and took one rice cake. “You might want to try this, go ahead and make some coffee in the pantry.” I instructed her, and she quickly left to make coffee.
When she returned, she brought two cups of coffee. “I know it might be cold, so here’s a fresh one,” she said.
“So, when it gets cold, you have to replace it with a hot one?” I asked her, and she raised an eyebrow.
“Did something happen? It’s still early, but you seem to have a lot on your mind,” Rhea said.
“It’s a long story,” I said because I didn’t want to share my issues with Samer to anyone. Even though I know I can trust Rhea, it’s still better to be cautious. It’s complicated. “Anyway, come with me later,” I told her.
“Where are we going?” Rhea asked.
“To Stonewick,” I said, and her eyes widened.
Maybe she thought I had another agenda there. Well, I did. Besides visiting the new staff in training, I also wanted to visit my parents’ graves.