* * *
Sam was in a good mood as he drove to work that Friday morning in June. He was grateful for so many things in his life - wonderful friends, a job he loved and now having found the woman of his dreams. The fact that the woman was his seventeen year old student was definitely a problem, but it no longer seemed the insurmountable obstacle it once was because of her intelligence and maturity and because even his closest friends were becoming more and more open to a relationship that obviously made Sam so happy.
Scott had picked him up early and dropped him at his friends' to pick up Jonathan's car. Even though Scott didn't know the cause of Sam's happiness, even he remarked on the change in Sam as they rode together that morning.
"Hey what's got into you?" Scott asked glancing at his smiling friend.
"What do you mean? I'm fine - I feel great, never better!" Sam said, grinning widely at his friend.
"That's what I mean - you seem really, really happy lately, I mean except for when you were upset with Matt about, you know, at the game yesterday. - Is something going on with Lara or something?" Scott asked tentatively. He knew that Sam normally loathed talking about his girlfriend.
Sam's face darkened as he scowled momentarily at the mention of her name. "We broke up last week," he said quietly.
"Oh, well um, sorry, I guess - sorry to bring up a sore subject," Scott apologized nervously.
He was secretly glad about the breakup because he'd always been a little afraid of Lara and had made it his business to avoid her like the plague. He'd been at the receiving end of her acidic remarks and tongue-lashings more than a few times, but he didn't like to make trouble so he'd never said anything negative about her to Sam.
"No, in fact I feel really good about breaking up with her - it feels good that it's resolved now. It wasn't exactly a great relationship for quite a while now," Sam admitted.
Scott sat in confused silence for a moment. Usually Sam answered all his perfunctory questions about Lara with a terse yes or no response. He wasn't sure how he should respond to Sam opening up to him like this as he didn't want to be in the middle if there were to be a reconciliation between his friend and Lara.
"Um, so that means I guess you're just relieved that things are settled then." He hesitated. "Is that why you seem so cheerful - because you're relieved?"
Sam looked over at Scott and thought about the question for a moment. It wasn't like Scott to ask personal questions, but Sam didn't want to hurt his friend's feelings. He wondered if he really was so transparent now that everyone could see how happy he was. He'd never felt better than he had in the past several weeks.
In the past, Sam had always seemed a little depressed to Scott - He liked Sam and thought he was a great guy, but he had noticed that Sam always seemed to have the weight of the world on his shoulders. They'd only known each other two years so Scott just assumed that Sam was a serious person - he knew he'd gone to Yale and was a smart man who liked to read books. And even Scott hadn't missed the fact that Sam always seemed more withdrawn during the times surrounding Lara's visits.
Then there was the fact that his girlfriend worked in a Wall Street law firm. To Scott they both seemed like really serious, intelligent people - way out of his league in terms of intellect. He had always been a little intimidated; especially on the few occasions he wasn't able to evade Lara. He thought she was an okay-looking woman, but a little too made-up and pushy for his taste. He didn't think she was good for Sam at all, but he'd always kept that opinion to himself.
From their first meeting, she always made a point of letting him know what she thought about the fact that he'd majored in Physical Education at a non- Ivy League college. She'd even asked him if there were any requirements, other than having a pulse, for coaching at a high school. Scott had been so flustered and embarrassed by the insult that he'd spilled his drink then and the woman had laughed at him. Sam had been talking to someone else at the time, so he knew nothing about the incident.
Scott hadn't even known that Sam went to Yale until Lara haughtily informed him of it, along with the fact that she thought Sam had was lowering himself by teaching at South Glen South. Since Scott had taught there for six years, he knew that she'd been inferring that Sam was lowering himself to Scott's level and her remarks had hurt his feelings.
The few times he had actually been trapped into socializing with Lara, she'd tried to embarrass him by asking him pointed questions about his career goals. Scott had proudly replied that his dream was to win the State Baseball Championship for South Glen South. Lara had howled at that, thinking that he must be joking to have something so insignificant as that as one of his life's goals.
Scott also knew that Sam was a person who enjoyed playing and watching sports just like he did, so that was really the main thing they had in common. Then there was the fact that Sam would go out of his way to help a friend and was always there with a kind word when times were rough. Sam always tried to attend baseball games and supported the team in every way he could, even helping Scott out with practices now and then. And the year before, when the team was in last place, Sam had made it a point to come to every game and make positive comments to boost Scott's spirits. Scott really believed that Sam was the nicest, most decent guy he'd ever known anywhere and he sincerely wanted the best for his friend.
And Sam never looked down his nose at Scott the way Lara did - he talked to him as an equal. Now with the recent change in Sam, especially during the past month, it was like he was a different person - much happier and more relaxed most of the time.
He saw now that his friend was struggling to find an answer to his question and the last thing Scott wanted to do was to ruin Sam's good mood.
"Sorry, Sam. I didn't mean to pry. You just look and act so happy lately - I mean happier than I've ever seen you. I think it's great�whatever's causing it. I guess I'm a little jealous and I want to know your secret," he confessed.
Sam smiled and glanced at his friend. Scott was a good friend and he'd gone out of his way to help Sam many times, just as he was now by arranging for Sam to borrow Jonathan's car and taking him to pick it up. Sam never would have asked to do it on his own and he knew that was probably what had motivated Scott. Sam wasn't ready to share the cause of his happiness with Scott yet, but he knew that he was a much happier person now because of his growing relationship with Josie.
"That's okay, Scott. I am really happy. I guess I never realized how much having a relationship like that with the wrong person really dragged me down. I always felt like I wasn't good enough, no matter what I did. Now I'm feeling more like I can be myself and relax - I don't have to meet some impossible standard anymore. It feels good to just be me - you know?" Sam said.
"That's great, Sam. I'm glad for you. Are you seeing anyone else now?" Scott asked, wondering if there might be more to Sam's happiness lately, especially with the way he'd started to dress now. Scott thought it was strange that now that he was no longer with Lara, Sam had started to care more about his appearance. It almost seemed like he was paying more attention to the way he dressed with each passing day, like he was more interested in enjoying life for some mysterious reason.
Sam took a deep breath. "No, I'm not dating anyone - I'm really focusing on this Prom thing this weekend and moving, I'm not thinking beyond that right now," he lied as he pictured himself holding Josie in his arms as he danced with her around the Country Club.
"I guess you know I'm not seeing anybody either with baseball season in full swing and all. You know I was thinking yesterday I wish I could meet someone - you know my age - but someone like that little catcher, Josie- who's nice like that - and well, she sure is cute." Scott sighed, shaking his head.
Sam swallowed and closed his eyes. "I know what you mean, Scott," he said quietly, smiling.
* * *
After Scott dropped him off at Jonathan's house, Sam was actually on schedule to arrive at South Glen South a good hour before he usually got there. He was hoping to have time to gather his thoughts, and then perhaps catch Josie at her locker before school in addition to seeing her in his sixth period class. With the way he'd been running into her lately, he barely had time to catch his breath, much less think about all that had happened between them.
Sam was wearing his new beige shirt over his white T-shirt, tucked in to his black pants. He'd stayed up ironing the shirt the night before when he'd been unable to sleep because of all his restless thoughts of Josie. In the past, Sam didn't pay much attention to what he wore, since he really didn't think much of the way he looked. As long as he looked presentable, he was satisfied. He'd never really seen much point in making an effort to look nice until lately, since he wasn't really trying to impress anyone. He certainly didn't think of himself as handsome, but recently he felt better about himself even in that way.
He knew that Josie was attracted to him, and more and more, he wanted to make the effort to look nice for her. He'd noticed the way she'd stare at him at times, as if she was admiring him. He knew she'd told her little cousins that he was the most beautiful man she'd ever seen and just the fact that she'd said that about him made him feel special - like maybe he was good looking and attractive in her eyes at least. When he was ironing the shirt he daydreamed about whether she'd like it or notice it. He'd shaken his head at his own wayward thoughts. "You've got it bad, Sam," he said, laughing out loud. "Who would have thought Sam Coulson would go clothes shopping and iron shirts to impress a woman?"
He couldn't count the number of times that Lara had chewed him out for not ironing his shirts and not tucking them in. And he adamantly rebuffed all her attempts to take him clothes shopping. He'd stubbornly refused to comply as one small way of standing up to her. More and more, he'd found himself resenting and resisting her efforts to orchestrate his life. But now he cared about how he looked - he wanted to look better and more put together for Josie, just to see the way her eyes would shine as she looked at him.
He was even considering wearing his tux to the Prom, much as he hated it, just to enjoy Josie's reaction to seeing him dressed up like that. He had a sneaky feeling she'd like it a lot. Since she was going there with a date, he knew he wanted to wear something to draw her attention back to where he believed it belonged, and the tux seemed like the perfect choice. Even Lara had grudgingly told him he looked good in it. When he'd worn it with her, she'd focused on criticizing his unruly hair, and not the outfit.
The problem with wearing the tux was that he associated it with so many dreadful dates with Lara to the opera. She had insisted they repeatedly attend too many boring New York functions to count. In all his visits to see her in New York, she'd always promised to, but never actually did arrange to attend even one sporting event with him. Every time he'd gone, he'd ended up wearing that stupid tuxedo and he'd found him self in argument after argument about her insistence that he wear it. He always ended up feeling like the bow tie was strangling him by the end of the evening.
'At least I know for certain there's no chance of any kind of argument like that with Josie at the Prom,' he thought confidently as he focused on his driving.
It was a cool, crisp morning, but the sun was shining brightly and the sky was almost as blue as Josie's eyes, he thought as he fantasized about what she would be wearing at the Prom when he danced with her. He wondered if she'd have her hair pinned up - he'd never seen it that way, but he imagined that she would look even more incredible with her hair up.
As he pulled into the still practically empty school parking lot, to his sheer delight and utter amazement, he saw none other than Josie Geller herself starting to get out of the old car that Rob called Bambi. She had parked in an end space just about as far away from the front door as one could get. Sam pulled in directly across from her and hurriedly unfastened his safety belt to jump out of the car. In his haste to scramble out, he bumped his arm on the door and forgot his briefcase. They were virtually alone in the parking lot, except for a couple of other cars parked much closer to the door.
When he saw what Josie was wearing as she was leaning back into Bambi, he forgot everything, and his mind was a total blank. She was wearing the prettiest, most feminine dress he'd ever seen anywhere. It was white chiffon like material with blue flowers and a V-neck and it clung to her like nothing he'd ever seen, except maybe that peach nightshirt, he thought guiltily. But that had been from a distance and this dress was very close up and personal. Just when he thought she couldn't possibly look more breathtaking, he was once again swept away by just the sight of her. To top it off he had an enticing view of her legs as she reached into the back of the car that made his heart skip a beat.
And then there was her hair - that he had just been fantasizing about - it looked all shiny and soft -she had it fixed in the most sophisticated style he'd seen yet. He couldn't quite figure out how it was different than the day before, but it was and she looked older today - dangerously close to his own age, he realized.
"Hey!" he said hoarsely, trying to find his voice. She didn't hear his first feeble attempt so he cleared his throat and tried again, "Hi, Josie!"
She looked around at the sound of his voice, temporarily confused. She hadn't recognized the car when he'd pulled up and hadn't paid attention until he'd called out to her as she was trying to make sure she had everything she needed in her book bag. She was running so early and ahead of her usual arrival time this morning that she had decided to wait to put on her hated wings camera until after she went into school, since George wasn't due to arrive in the van for another hour at least.
She smiled and her eyes sparkled the minute she realized who it was. "Oh, hi! I didn't realize it was you - different car!" she explained pointing at the Toyota. She saw his appreciative glance at her dress and she noticed he was wearing what looked like a new shirt that he'd tucked in. She couldn't help sighing at how devastatingly handsome he looked.
"I like your shirt; is it new?" she blurted out before she could stop herself.
Sam was thrilled that she'd noticed enough about him to know it was a new shirt and that she'd liked it enough to mention it. Josie noticed how he glowed with pleasure at her compliment.
"Yes, it is - new, that is. Thanks," he said it beaming, glad now that he'd taken the trouble to iron it. The fact that she really did pay attention to what he wore meant more to him then even he had realized. 'Definitely wearing the tux, Saturday!' he instantly decided.
He wanted to say something about her dress, but somehow he just couldn't put the words together as he stared at her. He hesitated, not knowing how to possibly begin to tell her how beautiful she looked to him this morning.
Josie could see that he was struggling to say something and not finding the words, but she knew he liked her dress a lot from the way he kept looking at her as he got more flustered by the second. She noticed the effect she had on him more and more lately. She felt a warm glow just thinking about the way he reacted to seeing her. Josie decided it might be a good idea at least for the moment to get back to the subject of the car he was driving.
"Did you borrow a car?" she asked sweetly.
Sam walked over to her. The closer he got the more stunning she looked and the now familiar scent of peach blossoms surrounded them both. He wondered if she could possibly look this beautiful first thing every morning. As his thoughts drifted to images of waking up in bed next to her, he was momentarily tongue tied, staring at her.
''Explain the car, Sam,' he thought through his haze.
"Oh, yeah - it's my friend Jon's car. Jon and Joanna - he's my best friend - anyway, they went to Maryland for the weekkend, so they offered to let me borrow the Camry," Sam explained.
Josie nodded. "I met Joanna - she's really nice - I'm um glad they let you borrow it so you don't have to be without one. Are they going to the Inner Harbor, where you told me about?"
Sam grinned at the fact that she remembered what he'd described to her. "They'll probably go there, but Joanna's mother lives just outside of Washington, D.C., so they're going to visit her. They'll probably go to the Inner Harbor though because they're going to an Orioles Game and it's right nearby - the stadium, I mean it's nearby the Inner Harbor."
"Since you told me about it, that's the place I want to see the most," Josie said smiling at him. "I'm trying to talk my brother into driving there with me over the summer, but so far he's not agreeing to it. I'm working on him though."
Sam smiled thinking of how he was hoping to take her there for the Fourth of July weekend, in just under a month. He knew he couldn't tell her about it yet, but he could tell she'd be thrilled by the way her eyes sparkled when she said she hoped to go there. He'd also planned to drive, but he hadn't been sure if she'd be agreeable to that. Sam hated flying, but he knew he'd do it if Josie wanted him to. He figured he'd check out her feelings on it even though she'd said she wanted to drive there with her brother. Even if her brother didn't want to go, Sam knew he'd give anything for the chance to be the one to take her and show her everything he'd described to her. He wanted to be the one to see the way her eyes would light up when she saw the Inner Harbor for herself.
He had a sneaky suspicion she'd much rather go with him than that brother of hers.
"So you want to drive there, and not fly?" he asked eagerly, trying to harness his drifting thoughts.
Josie looked at him. "Yes, I think I'd rather drive there. I know it takes more time - that's one of the reasons my brother won't agree to do it. But as you said, Washington D. C. is close by and I've never been there so I want to see all the museums and really look around the area. My brother hates museums, but he will consider going to a baseball game so we're really still in the negotiation stage. He drives a hard bargain, so it'll probably be Labor Day before we go. With all I want to do a car makes more sense. Plus, I don't really like to fly."
"You don't?" Sam asked, secretly thrilled that he was in love with a woman who would never ridicule him for his reluctance to fly the way Lara always had. He knew Josie would never belittle him for something like that and it meant a lot to him that she actually understood his feelings because she felt the same way.
"I had a bad experience with flying, but I can do it if I have to. I don't like not being in control, I guess - that part scares me," she said it wrinkling her nose.
"Me too, Josie, I hate to fly - you know my fear of heights," Sam explained.
"Did your friends - Joanna and her husband - did they fly there?" Josie asked.
"No, they drove their other car, so it worked out pretty well for me," Sam said, smiling. "Coach Romano actually called and asked them - my friends arranged to do it for me."
"All your friends seem so nice - that's wonderful!" she exclaimed. "You're moving in with them aren't you - Joanna and her husband I mean?"
Sam stared into her eyes. "What? Oh, yeah," he blushed then processing her question. He wondered if there could be even more that they had in common. Now that he knew she didn't enjoy flying, he felt even closer to her.
"I'm moving in with them - the movers are coming to get my stuff Monday afternoon so I should be all moved in by the time they get back on Tuesday. I'm packing over the weekend, then I'll be off Monday and Tuesday," he informed her. 'I'll miss you desperately,' he thought to himself, wishing there was a way he could see her after the Prom and before Wednesday. He knew there wasn't much chance of that.
"So, are you packing then the entire weekend?" she asked curiously. She was pretty sure he'd be at the Prom, since he was the faculty advisor, but she figured she'd check and make sure. She was hoping to tell him the truth the day after the Prom, but by Monday at the latest. She was thinking that maybe she could summon the nerve to visit him in his apartment, now that Rob knew where it was.
"Yeah, I've been throwing things out little by little and I'll probably start seriously packing after the Prom tomorrow night," he explained, suddenly remembering how he'd thrown out the pictures of Lara the night before. "I um started by cleaning out my wallet - throwing out old pictures last night after I got home."
Josie wondered if he was talking about the picture of him and Lara, but she was reluctant to ask about it. Something told her that was the picture he was talking about and that this was his indirect way of letting her know that he cared about her feelings. Josie thought he was incredibly thoughtful and sensitive if that indeed was the case.
"So, you'll be there - at the Prom, I mean?" she asked nervously, trying to change the subject.
"Yes, I have to set up during the day, then announce Prom Court and then I'm done," he said smiling at her interest. Then he was thinking of how he planned on dancing with her as soon as he possibly could, but he figured that was something better left for a surprise move at the Prom.
She finished getting her things out of Bambi and shut the door. When Sam saw her book bag he remembered his briefcase.
"Oops, forgot my briefcase," he said blushing. Josie smiled at him and waited while he walked over and got it out of the Toyota. She stared at him, thinking that he'd never looked so handsome and so appealing as he did right now. She had noticed his little awkward, absent-minded mannerisms whenever she spoke to him, especially lately. She wondered how someone so good looking could be so sweet and unassuming. Josie knew now Sam didn't have an arrogant bone in his body, and it was one of the many reasons she loved him so much.
As he was walking back to her, he remembered his conversation of the night before with Rob. He smiled back at her, as he tried to devise a strategy to approach what was on his mind in a way that wouldn't offend or upset her.
'Her eyes looks so blue and her skin is so creamy,' he thought dreamily. 'Car, Sam, Focus, snap out of it!' he tried to organize his jumbled thoughts as he stood next to her, and felt the peach blossoms enfold him yet again.
"Um Josie, can I talk to you about something," he said tentatively.
She noticed how nervous he looked and wondered if he was about to continue their conversation of the night before. Part of her wished that he would just quit talking and sweep her into his arms and take her away from South Glen South, Gus, Rigfort and everything else.
"Sure," she said quietly as she bit her lip, hoping she'd know how to best respond to whatever it was.
"Rob told me about the bet," he started and he immediately noticed she looked confused so he went on explaining, "you, know about you and him trading cars because of the bet you made. He told me that Bambi's his car and the Buick's really yours."
He noticed she looked surprised and a little taken off guard. He also sensed a sudden tension in her stance and expression almost as if she expected an attack of some sort. He definitely felt that he needed to lighten her mood. 'Maybe I'll try a little humor,' he thought suddenly.
"Rob's worried about Bambi here and he misses her. He asked me to intercede for him to see if maybe you'd consider," he paused dramatically, "�returning her to him now instead of waiting for school to be over - you know, out of the kindness of your heart putting Rob out of his misery."
Josie looked at Sam and hesitated while she absorbed what he was saying. Sam saw the light go on in her eyes as she processed what he was telling her. She was momentarily taken aback by the fact that Rob had revealed a secret like this without telling her. She relaxed and took a breath as she realized just how devious her little brother could be when he wanted something. And she knew that it was smart of him to get Sam to intervene because how could she possibly say no to Sam Coulson? 'Leave it to my diabolical sibling,' she thought ruefully.
She suddenly started giggling as she saw the humor in Rob's incessant scheming. "I'd like to put him out of his misery permanently," she said as she raised her eyebrows at Sam who was still trying his best to keep a serious expression on his face. He was definitely relieved to see that she saw the humor in the situation.
"Come on Josie, he's really sad and lonely without her," Sam said sympathetically, but she could see the corners of his mouth twitching as he tried his best not to smile.
Sam was looking at her now with big soulful eyes and his most convincing version of a sad face. Josie realized that he was making his best effort to win her over, and she knew that it probably had more to do with her safety than any real sympathy for Rob. She thought his expression was adorable, but she had decided she wouldn't give in to either one of them without at least a little bit of a fight.
"You know, Mr. Coulson, I let him drive Bambi when he followed me home last night - I should have known that was a mistake - give him an inch, he wants a mile," she said as she squinted skeptically at Sam. Looking at her, Sam was suddenly reminded of Rob.
"Josie, when you squint like that you kind of look like Rob," Sam said before he could think.
Josie blushed and flinched. "Is that supposed to be some sort of compliment? I don't think that's a very good tactic when you're trying to convince me of something -to insult me!" she kidded him.
Sam was flustered and confused at her reaction. "No, sorry, I didn't mean anything bad - it's just that your expression, well never mind - I would never insult you Josie," he said sincerely having completely lost his train of thought now. 'Great Sam, convince her by telling her she looks like a guy,' he thought disgusted at himself.
"I know you wouldn't deliberately insult me," she giggled self- consciously. "Anyway, as I was saying Rob drove Bambi last night and he was bugging me then - I should have known he wouldn't give up so easily." He relaxed as he noticed the sparkle back in her beautiful blue eyes.
"That must have been when he heard her make the noise he's concerned about. He thinks Bambi sounds a little sick and that's why he's worried about her," Sam continued, as he fought to keep a straight face. "Maybe she misses him," he offered as he continued to stare at her with his saddest expression as he got back to the task of making his case for the car switch.
"Not you too?" she said laughing.
"Me too what?" he asked innocently, trying not to smile. They were still alone in the parking lot and he felt like he could stay there all day, just looking at her while they teased each other about Rob and his car.
"Do you talk to your car, too?" she inquired.
"Excuse me?" Sam said still trying to maintain some semblance of dignity. He was enjoying the verbal sparring with her and didn't want it to end. The underlying sexual tension between them was so strong that he almost felt like he was in the middle of some crazy kind of unorthodox foreplay. He'd never had a conversation quite like this in his life - flirting with the love of his life right here in the middle of the school parking lot at 6:45 in the morning.
"You heard me," she chuckled. "He talked to that car non-stop all the way back to my apartment last night. I saw him in my rear view mirror. Rob says all guys name their cars and talk to them. I'm asking if that's true."
"We're talking about Rob, not me," Sam teased. "A man's love for his car is a very sacred thing, Josie."
He noticed her eyes were big as saucers as she looked at him incredulously. "Oh, no!" she exclaimed, "that sounds like one of those stupid rules he's always telling me about. Did you always think like that or did this just happen after you rode alone with him in a car? Are you sure you're my Mr. Coulson and not some replacement sent by Rob to torment me?"
"What rules are you referring to?" Sam asked innocently, pretending to ignore her question while he smiled. He didn't miss for a second that she'd said "my Mr. Coulson." He definitely liked the possessive way she'd said it too.
Josie blushed almost purple thinking about the rules about guys and sex that Rob always preached to her. She knew she wasn't going to bring that up as an example, so she decided to focus on Rob's rules about snacks.
"Like last night, he said something about there being some sort of rule about guys needing snacks - he was telling me that carrot sticks don't qualify as snacks under these supposed rules," Josie explained. She knew she couldn't tell Sam about Rob's sex rules.
"Rob's exactly right about that, Josie. Don't get me wrong, I like carrot sticks, but they aren't technically considered to be adequate snacks for guys - that's just the way it is," Sam said as he continued to pretend to be serious. He'd noticed her deep blush and wondered if some of Rob's rules might be more of a sexual nature.
"Oh, no you sound just like him! So, is he right, are you all indoctrinated at some point? Is there some kind of weird list of rules that guys live by?" she asked, giggling again.
Sam looked at her with the most serious expression he could muster. "I'm sorry Josie, I'm not at liberty to divulge that information," he said quietly.
Before she could think Josie smacked him on the arm and laughed out loud. Sam decided to attempt his most effective pouting facial expression, while he theatrically started to rub his supposedly injured arm.
Josie knew she'd barely touched him, so she ignored him for the moment while she thought about her response.
She decided to try a different tactic. She glanced around the parking lot to be sure they were alone. She knew that no one would really be arriving at school for at least another half hour. They were standing on the side of the car that was farthest away form the school so the likelihood of being seen was very slight.
Josie looked at him with her own version of a sad victimized expression and took a step closer to him and looked into his eyes. He thought he knew what she was doing, but with her just inches from him he was afraid to move back - for fear she'd pull back too. They were dangerously close now right in the middle of the parking lot and instead of doing what he knew he should, he, in turn, took a small step closer to her.
Josie surprised him by moving even closer. She beckoned for him to lean down so she could talk quietly. He wondered if she was about to mess his hair up, but he did what she wanted - it was quite frankly out of his control now.
He was doing his level best not to look down the front of her dress as he leaned over her. She was so close to him that he could feel her hot breath on his ear and his neck as she talked quietly to him. To drive him further over the edge she put her hand lightly on his chest while she spoke to him. Her hand was right at the spot where his shirt opened to the white T-shirt underneath. He couldn't even begin to describe all the smoldering sensations running through him as she spoke, not the least of which was the memory of the incredible dream they'd shared.
"I'm sorry I hit you, but you know, I parked Bambi way out here just as he instructed - I've done everything he's said to take care of her - I even put premium gas in her - I've tried my best to do what he wants and all he does is whine. And now my dearest friend in the world is on his side and against me," she added sadly. "Are you really going to abandon me like this and support Rob when he's being so unfair?"
She said the last sentence and sighed right into his ear. Then she turned to look into his eyes with the most pitiful look he'd ever seen, with that small hand of hers still resting on his chest. He realized she was blatantly using her feminine wiles to try and sway him to her way of thinking and he doubted whether she really understood the full effect she was having on him now.
Sam knew that whatever was going on between them was escalating to a fever pitch right this minute, but he knew he didn't want to put the brakes on�not yet anyway. He had persuasive ways of his own that he wanted to show her so she'd know he wasn't quite the innocent boy at her mercy that she obviously thought he was. He looked back in her eyes and bent over and whispered in her ear. He knew with her hand placed as it was - still on his chest- she had to be very aware of the way his heart was pounding.
"I would never abandon you, Josie," he said in his sexiest deepest voice. He could see the effect he was having on her as she shivered and moved her hand off his chest to brace herself on the car door. "But, I do think you should give Bambi back to Rob," he added. He felt a little more in control now that she'd moved that hand, but his heart was still beating wildly at the memory of her touch.
She could see that he was fighting fire with fire and he was definitely the one with the upper hand now. Josie knew if she didn't hold on to the car door she was in danger of fainting right at his feet, from the intoxicating effect of his nearness, his aftershave and his incredibly sexy voice. She backed away from him and tried to remember what they'd been talking about. She knew she had affected him by the way his heart had pounded. She was almost ready to give him anything he wanted if he'd just talk to her like that forever. She closed her eyes then trying to come back to reality.
Sam was studying her face and he could see that he had definitely gotten to her in the same way she'd gotten to him and he saw that she was trying to compose herself and organize her thoughts. Sam had the definite feeling that a physical relationship between him and Josie would be unbelievably passionate just based on the way they both responded to just being close to each other.
"Mr. Coulson, you know, well, um," she stuttered, staring at the ground. 'Focus Josie!' she thought as she gripped the car. 'Oh, yeah, Bambi, giving her back to Rob.'
Finally she remembered what her argument was supposed to be. "After all, a bet's a bet. Don't guys have rules about those too?"
Sam tried his best not to laugh, but he was still staring at her. He could see that he had completely rattled her and he wanted to give her a chance to recover. For a moment, he'd been shocked by the amazing way she'd reacted to him. It almost seemed as if she was about to faint - she'd looked so pale and disoriented for a moment. It scared him momentarily until he reminded himself who had started this little seductive battle to begin with. He cleared his throat and said seriously, "There are rules and then there are rules, Josie. I'm not on his side and I would never ever abandon you. I would feel a lot better personally with you driving the newer safer car."
He could see that Josie didn't look upset at what he'd said so Sam figured he'd try teasing her a little more to get her to relax, because she still looked a little dazed to him.
"Rob asked me to talk to you on his behalf, but I'm just caught in the middle and now you're even hitting me on the arm," he said pretending to wipe a tear from his eye while he sniffed and stuck out his lower lip as he started to rub his arm again for effect.
She knew he was faking, but when he stuck his lower lip out he looked so adorable and sweet that she felt her heart ache for him in spite of her better judgment. She could just picture him as a little boy and the idea of him looking so sad made her heart melt.
"I said I'm sorry I hit you," she offered as she reflexively reached over and gently rubbed the arm she'd hit. Her spontaneous affectionate gesture surprised both of them and they were both momentarily flustered.
She still continued to gently stroke his arm though and now he was the one feeling slightly weak in the knees. He sensed that she wasn't trying to manipulate him; she just wanted him to feel better. He could feel how much she cared about him by the way she touched him and spoke to him. First she'd touched his chest, now his arm and Sam felt like he'd explode soon if they continued down this path.
After she finally did stop they both found themselves staring at the ground. For a second he couldn't remember for the life of him why she had been stroking his arm in the first place. He only knew that he felt like his arm and all the rest of him was on fire and he was very close to losing all control of the situation right here in the parking lot. And Sam recognized that she had won this little battle between them, even though she didn't realize it. Because at that moment when she'd rubbed his arm in such a loving, caring way, he would have given in to anything she wanted and he knew it.
Josie looked up at him first. "So, how can I make it up to you, if I give him Bambi will you forgive me?" she asked sweetly, willing him to look into her eyes. He looked up then and lost himself in her smile as he tried to remember what she'd just said.
He hesitated then remembering his concern for her safety. He'd been about to tell her he had changed his mind and was behind her all the way.
"If you switch cars with him, I'd definitely consider forgiving you," Sam teased as he started to rub his arm again, but he was really more concerned with trying to somehow recapture the feeling of her gentle touch burning into his skin.
Josie debated the wisdom of swatting him again, but decided against it. She knew that he'd been as affected as she had when she'd stroked his arm. "Talk about being manipulated!" she muttered, shaking her head. "Do you always stick out your lip like that to get your way?"
"No, I learned it from my niece actually. It always works for her - when she does it with me, so I figured I'd try it out on you," he explained, as he waited for her reaction.
"Oh, really. How old is your niece?"
"Two and a half, going on 25," Sam joked.
Josie gasped when he said her own age, but she quickly covered her mouth and changed the subject. "What's her name?"
"Emma. Would you like to see a picture of her?" Sam asked shyly, but Josie could tell he was proud of his niece. She thought it was so sweet that he would carry a picture of her in his wallet
"Sure, I'd love to see it," Josie said, as she nodded eagerly.
Sam set down his briefcase and took out his wallet and held it so Josie could see it as he turned the plastic pages. She was standing close enough to smell his aftershave and their arms brushed together as he showed her his wallet. She noticed immediately that he'd removed the picture of him and Lara that was in the pocket across from the auto club card.
'So that is the picture you threw out,' she thought to herself as she peeked at him while he thumbed through his wallet. He found the pages with the pictures of Emma and showed them proudly to Josie. He was secretly hoping that Josie would also notice the missing picture of him with Lara.
"That one was just taken about a month ago," he explained pointing at Emma. "I saw her at Christmas so she's changed a lot since then."
"She's so adorable!" Josie sighed as she noticed the little girl's cleft chin. Sam smiled and turned the page and showed her the picture of his sister, Abby. "Oh, this must be your sister, she's so beautiful!" Josie exclaimed.
"Yeah, that's my sister, Abby - Emma's mother. They live in San Francisco," Sam said sadly. "I usually just see them on the holidays at my parents' house in Wisconsin now. But my sister is really good about sending pictures and calling me. She always has Emma talk to me on the phone too."
Josie noticed how sentimental he seemed about being so far away from his family and her heart ached for him. She fought back the overwhelming urge she had to wrap her arms around him and comfort him.
"I can see why you'd give in to Emma, she looks like she'd be hard to resist as it is. Then if she sticks her lip out like that, I'm sure you'd do anything to make her happy," Josie gently teased him. "I guess you can tell her the technique worked for you too, at least it worked on me."
They both burst out laughing as Sam put his wallet back in his pocket. Then they started walking through the virtually empty parking lot, up to the school together, side by side.
"Oh, here's your Buick!" Sam exclaimed as they approached it. She was glad now she'd insisted that Rob remove that Tiki Post detailing after her first week at school.
"Yeah, that other manipulator must be here already," Josie said under her breath, but loud enough so that Sam could clearly hear her.
"Josie you're going to have to quit calling me names if you want me to continue to consider forgiving you for striking me," Sam informed her, as he sneaked a glance at her face. He saw her roll her eyes and grimace. "I saw that face, Miss Geller."
As they started up the steps to walk into the school, they both were surprised to hear the sound of someone singing at the top of his lungs. Josie threw her head back and giggled as soon as she recognized the voice. "Shh, that's Rob!" she whispered, holding her finger to her lips. "I don't know why I'm shushing you - he can't possible hear us over that racket."
Jose bent down to peek in the window beside the door and Sam leaned in to look in the window with her. She could feel him just barely touching her from the back. She gently leaned back against him as they both stared in the window at her brother. Sam felt her lean back into him and he held his breath. Luckily the sight that greeted them inside the school distracted them both.
There sliding across the floor, with his socks on, obviously having the time of his life, was none other than Rob Geller. His shoes were on the floor next to Josie's locker and he had donned a pair of huge sunglasses for this morning's escapade. They could see that he was pretending he had a microphone as he sang at the top of his voice in his most exaggerated southern accent in the empty corridor, repeatedly sliding at the end of each chorus.
"You was laughing at me,
I was doing James Dean,
You was the purttiest girl I'd ever seen,
When you rolled your eyes
and twirled my pink fur dice.
I ain't first class,
but I ain't white trash,
I'm wild
and a little crazy too.
Some girls don't like boys like me,
Ah, but some girls do.
Well good 'ole boys
don't get no breaks
And rich boys think
they got what it takes,
But there's someone for each of us they say
Well I ain't first class,
but I ain't white trash,
I'm wild and a little crazy too.
Some girls don't like boys like me,
Ah, but some girls do
Like boys like me
Yeah some girls do!
Like boys like me!"
Sam and Josie were both doubled up with laughter at the sight of Rob singing and sliding in his stocking feet and big shades. Rob was oblivious to the world. Sam reluctantly backed away from her as he tried to compose himself. Sam had never laughed this hard or had this much fun with anyone and it was only 7:20 in the morning.
Josie looked at Sam with tears running down her cheeks. "I thought I was the one that got knocked out yesterday - so why is he the one with the brain damage?" she said as they both shook with laughter. "Are you sure you want to align yourself with that?" she asked pointing in at her brother.
Sam tried to bite his lip to stop laughing. "Actually, Josie - he's got a pretty good voice there," he said in a feeble attempt at mounting Rob's defense. He had to cover his hand with his mouth to stifle his laughter.
"Did you get hit on the head too?" Josie quipped, forgetting whom she was talking to momentarily.
Her hand flew to her mouth. "Oh, Mr. Coulson, I, I didn't mean, oh God, I'm sorry," she said suddenly mortified as she covered her face with her hands, realizing they were almost in school now and she was still his student.
"Josie, forget it -it's okay - I know you were kidding," he said elbowing her. "You were kidding weren't you?" he teased.
"Yes, I guess I got carried away being around that lunatic in there," Josie said, laughing but she was still embarrassed at the sarcastic way she'd talked to him. She knew that she was in danger of loosing all semblance of self-control whenever she was in close proximity to Sam, especially with all the increased touching between the two of them. She wondered briefly how she'd ever manage to keep any sort of distance for the rest of the day, much less until she could tell him the truth. She felt so drawn to him now.
Sam grinned and gallantly pulled the door open for her and they walked in together, catching Rob in the middle of one of his slides. Josie knew that Rob wouldn't be embarrassed since he liked nothing better than an audience.
"Have you just totally lost your mind, Rob?" she asked, starting to laugh in spite of herself.
"Whoa!" Rob said as he squinted at them, ignoring her question. "You two ride together?"
He noticed that they both blushed but neither one answered right away.
"No, we didn't ride together. Speaking of riding, I hear you want Bambi back," Josie said glaring at her little brother. He could see the daggers in her eyes. "What are you doing here anyway?"
"That's for me to know, little Missy, and you to find out!" Rob replied, undaunted. "What did you say about Bambi?"
"I said, I hear you want to go back on our bet and exchange cars, Rob, " Josie said through clenched teeth.
"Uh oh, thanks Mr. C for bringing that up with Ms. Hothead here. That's why I was here at your locker early Josie, to plead my case - Bambi's sick and she needs me. I know a cry for help when I hear one, Josie. Bambi belongs with me. Mr. Coulson agrees with me too," Rob finished smugly.
"Bambi's not the only one who's sick. All right, you win, Rob. Mr. Coulson convinced me that you and Bambi belong together. I'll trade with you after school - I'll meet you outside the front door after sixth period and we can switch cars."
"Oh, okay so you take the Buick to your meeting then?" Rob asked, momentarily forgetting about Sam and protecting her undercover status in his excitement to get Bambi back. He didn't like it when Josie took Bambi into the city for her stupid meetings with Gus.
Sam's eyebrows shot up as he remembered the note on her refrigerator about her meeting with Gus. He felt a stab of jealousy over her meeting anyone but him, especially with the way she looked today in that dress. He really didn't like the idea of her leaving his sight in light of the unbelievable way she'd affected him already.
Josie glared at her brother again for his slip of the tongue. He knew he was in her doghouse, but having Bambi back was worth the temporary discomfort. "Whatever Rob, just meet me and we'll trade. And thank Mr. Coulson since he's the one who convinced me," she instructed.
Sam and Rob both noticed the edge in Josie's voice.
""Yes, mother," Rob muttered under his breath. Josie gave him a sharp glance and he looked at the floor. "Oh, yeah, thanks Mr. C," he said sheepishly, as he suddenly remembered Sam's presence.
"No problem, Rob - I'll see you sixth period, Josie."
She smiled at Sam and relaxed then. "See you then," she said softly as Sam turned away to go into the Main Office.
Sam went in to check his mail slot and spotted a yellow notice in his box meaning a change of schedule. He took it out to read it and cursed under his breath. "Damn it!" he exclaimed when he saw that a pep rally originally scheduled for third period had been changed to sixth period, so his class with Josie was canceled for the day.
He knew he still needed to talk to her about Dartmouth sometime before the end of the day and he had been hoping to do it after his class.
Sam quickly walked to the office door and stuck his head out to see if Josie was still in the vicinity. He could see that she was still at her locker, talking quietly with Rob.
"Josie," he said as he walked up to them again.
Josie and Rob both turned to look at him Sam realized that Josie was in the middle of pointing her finger at Rob when he'd interrupted them. He noticed that Rob looked happy for the distraction.
Josie had just clipped her wings camera on for the day when Sam spoke to her.
"Yes," she responded sweetly, as she turned and smiled warmly at him, pleasantly surprised to see him again so soon.
"I just found out that pep rally has been rescheduled for sixth period. I need to talk to you about something before you leave today. Could I talk to you after the assembly, maybe, before you um have to leave for your meeting?" he asked, staring into her eyes.
Josie's heart skipped a beat. She'd already spent almost forty-five minutes alone with him and she wondered what he might want to discuss alone with her again. She knew it probably wasn't anything personal - he wouldn't talk about anything like that here at school - would he?
She hoped not because now that she had the camera on she knew that whatever it was would have to be filmed and she was hoping she wouldn't get the third degree from Gus about Sam's reference to their meeting.
"Sure, that's fine. I'll come out the side door where they're selling the Prom tickets after the assembly and we can talk. I don't need to leave until after seventh period anyway. Rob and I can switch cars after we talk. Does that sound okay?"
"That sounds perfect, Josie. I'll see you then - in the courtyard," Sam said as he turned to walk back into the office.
To be continued�