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Samantha laughed at her enthusiasm. “I haven’t gotten cast yet.”
“You will. And I love Rent, so make sure I get good seats.”
“I love your confidence in me. Listen, thank you guys for last night and for letting me crash here. I need to get home, drink a ton of water, take a nap, and then get practicing. The audition is tomorrow.”
“A little hung over?” Bryce teased.
“A little? It’s been a while since I drank like that and it will be a long time before I do it again,” Samantha admitted. “I’ll, um… I’ll let you guys know how it goes.”
Less than thirty minutes later, Samantha pulled her jacket tighter around herself as she exited the subway station to make the short walk home. The cold wind ripped through her jacket. It was late fall, so she should have been prepared for the cold, but she never was. If she could skip winter, she would in a heartbeat. She walked faster so she could hurry and get out of the cold.
It was peaceful and silent when she opened her door. As often as she was home alone when Brandon was alive, the silence felt different knowing he would never be there. She made her way to the kitchen and drank a bottle of water while she heated water for tea. She really wasn’t feeling great. Between the hangover and not having enough sleep, she was in rough shape. She was thankful the audition wasn’t that day. She needed at least a day to recover.
As she sipped her tea and flipped through her sheet music, her thoughts drifted back to Bryce. Again. He had been nothing short of a gentleman. He’d stayed true to his word and slept on top of the blankets only covering himself with the spare blanket. He’d turned his back so she could take off the robe and get under the covers, even though his shirt kept her covered. Apparently, there were decent men out there. All men were not created equal.
She allowed herself a brief moment to indulge in the slippery slope of what-if. What if she had met Bryce instead of Brandon? What if she had listened to that little nagging voice that told her not to marry him so quickly? And her recent favorite: what if she had gone with him to the charity event?
Chapter 8
It had been over a week since the funeral. Over a week since Bryce woke up next to Samantha. Over a week since he was last able to think clearly. He had been purposely keeping his distance but staying in the loop through Rayelle. Rayelle and Samantha had become fast friends, speaking nearly every day.
It was ridiculous for him to still have her on his mind, but there he was. Sitting at his desk pining away. They should take his man card for that. He ran his hands through his hair and leaned back in his chair trying to get a grip. It wasn’t his fault his brother’s widow was both gorgeous and fun to be around.
“Get it together,” he said to himself.
“Tough day?” Rayelle asked from the doorway.
Bryce quickly sat up straight. He hadn’t heard her come in. “Seriously, you have to stop doing this. I’m too old to have the shit scared out of me like that. What’s up?”
“Dom left for work this morning.”
“You can’t be bored already. It hasn’t even been a day,” he pointed out.
He could never get sick of Rayelle being around, but he loved to give her a hard time. She had once again interrupted his thoughts from going in a direction they didn’t need to go. He knew it must be difficult having a spouse spend most of their time away. Especially a couple as close as Rayelle and Dominic.
“No. Well, yeah, but that’s not why I’m here. Samantha got the part.”
“Oh wow. That’s great. I’m happy for her,” Bryce said with a genuine smile.
“Yeah. So, are you going to tell me why you two are avoiding each other?” she asked. “Oh my gosh did you two have sex?”
“No!” Bryce couldn’t shout fast enough.
“A little touchy touchy then?” she asked.
“No. What is wrong with you?”
“I’m just trying to solve the mystery,” Rayelle said as she pulled out a chair and sat down.
“Make yourself at home.”
“I am, thanks,” she said, ignoring his obvious snark. “Anytime you come up in conversation when I talk to Samantha, she can’t change the subject fast enough. And you get all weird when I talk about her, yet you always want to know what’s going on.”
“So?” Bryce asked, unimpressed.
“So, there must be a reason for the change. What did you do?”
He scrubbed his face with both hands as he decided if he wanted to tell her or not. “She was all awkward and nervous that morning after the funeral. And it annoyed me when she asked if anything happened between us that night. So, I might not have responded to that question the way I should have.”
