“You’re kidding! And she raised… you?” Thomas almost shouted, shocked that this plain woman sitting next to him could have any relation to someone so closely tied to the beauty profession.
Sam paused, as if she might have missed something. “Why is that so surprising?”
“Because you don’t seem to care a thing about makeup. There’s a living in that?”
She turned her head toward him. “Oh, yes.”
He grinned, trying to imagine a motherly type forcing beauty on a younger, littler Sam.
“Anyway,” she said, “obviously the beauty regimens didn’t take.”
“You’re beautiful in your own way, Sam.”
“Not that I care what you think,” Sam said, appreciating his proper use of her name. Maybe she did care what he thought. “But my mother’s talent for time traveling makes her stand out.”
“Wait. What’s this about time travel?”
“She’s able to shave years off a woman’s face with just a few skin regimens,” she said, reverting to her passion for nature. “Did you know apple skins contain phloridzin, which is why they stay ripe for so long? When extracted and applied to your skin, it can reduce wrinkles and fight aging.” She grinned proudly. “After I told my mom that tidbit of information we went through apples like they were going out of style.”
“Is that what got you interested in homeopathy?” he asked in wonder.
“I guess it is.” Sam had always credited her father for her interest, but upon further reflection, her mother had been the catalyst. “I should thank her for that. I had always thought it was my father.”
“Why so?”
“Because he died,” was all Sam said, because she couldn’t tell Thomas the truth, that it was his medicine that killed him.
For a fleeting moment she wished she could be truly honest with Thomas. As Sam had her fair share of death, she never considered that someone else might have more than her share.
“Oh.” Thomas sighed a compassionate sound. For so long he thought he was the only one, but Sam had suffered too. “Who took care of you and your mother after your dad… passed?”
“We did, of course!”
“But… how? You’re women!”
“You act like it’s impossible for a woman to be resourceful and smart and talented. That kind of thinking is exactly why I said you clearly don’t know very many women, Thomas.”
“What if I told you it’s only you I want to know.”
Sam still couldn’t understand his interest in her when there were so many other potential victims.
“I want the truth, Thomas. Why are you so determined to have me? I’ve read the tabloids. I know I’m not your usual type.”
He paused as if searching for an honest answer to this obscenely simple question. Thomas picked up her hand, weaving his fingers through hers.
“Because I love you,” he finally said, his voice so low she barely heard him.
“But what if I don’t love you back?” Sam asked, barely above a whisper. “Will you still turn me in for taking your ledger—which I don’t have, by the way.”
His hand tightened, squeezing hers until it hurt. “Stealing is a crime, Samantha.”
“But we had a deal, Thomas. One date and you’d let me off the hook.” She slipped her hand free of his grip, scared of the strength she felt in it.
“That deal is no longer on the table. Instead I have a new deal for you.”
Certain it would be just as bad or worse, Sam dreaded hearing this one. It would probably require her to sleep with him… or, God forbid, listen to more of his spoken poetry.
“Okay?”
“I need that ledger back, period.”
“Like I said, I don’t have it.”
“Well, then I suggest you give me a chance—and officially be my girlfriend.”
“How does that fix things with the ledger?” Sam could not for the life of her understand his logic.
“I can easily discredit anyone who tries to use the ledger against me. When you have enough money, you own the media. But the only way you can make it up to me is if we’re dating.”
“And if I say no?”
He stared at her with a dark look that held a deadly threat.
“Trust me, you don’t want to find out what a man with power can do to a woman with just a single word.”
