Remembering You by Sandi Lynn

Chapter 15

We packed up the car for our road trip back to California. Ida looked out her window, smiling at us and waving goodbye. I gave her a wave, got into the car, and fastened my seat belt. I looked over at Sam, who was wearing light-colored jeans with a slight hole in the knee and a black, tight-fitted t-shirt. His light brown hair was tousled perfectly, and he had on his black Ray Bans. He looked over at me as I stared at him.

“Why are you staring at me?” He smiled.

“Because I’m so in love with you.”

He reached over and stroked my cheek with his hand. “I’m so in love with you too, baby.”

I popped in a Joshua Radin CD and we sang duets together. It was only us and the open road. I sat and looked out the window, giving thought to everything that was going on. As soon as I reached Newport Beach, I was going to find out the truth of my life before the accident, and I was going to start with Rachel and Ally.

“Are you hungry, babe?” Sam asked as he patted my thigh.

“Yeah, I am. Is there anywhere close to stop?”

There was a sign up ahead with a list of restaurants. My phone chimed with a text from Ally.

“Hi, Claire. I’m super excited you’re coming home for the shower. I can’t wait to see you.”

I smiled as I typed my reply.

“I can’t wait to see you either.”

Little did she know it was going to be on my terms, and my terms only. Nobody knew I was driving back with Sam. As far as everyone was concerned, I was flying. Harry offered to pick me up from the airport, but I told him Ally and Rachel were picking me up so we could have some girl time.

Sam pulled into McDonalds. “Is this okay, babe? I’m really craving a Big Mac.”

I laughed. “It’s fine. I like McDonalds.”

I didn’t care where we ate. I just needed to get out of the car and stretch my legs. We sat in a booth, ate our burgers, and headed back on the road. I fell asleep for a while and woke suddenly to the bright flashing lights going off in my head. I grabbed my head.

“Sam!” I screamed.

He immediately pulled over to the side of the road as I rocked back and forth, and tears fell from my eyes. He got out of the car and opened the passenger door, grabbing me and held me tight.

“Breathe through it, Claire. It will be over with soon.”

The lights stopped flashing and my mind turned black. As I loosened the grip on my head, I took in a deep breath.

“Is it over, babe?”

I nodded my head and he let go of me and kissed my lips. He reached into my purse and got out my pills.

“Here, take this,” he said as he handed me the pill and his pop.

I could tell Sam was tired. We left a day early so we could stop overnight.

“You look tired. Let’s find a hotel and get some rest.”

“I think I saw a sign that there’s a hotel in a couple of miles. We’ll stay there,” he said.

“Just make sure it’s a nice hotel first. I don’t want to stay in some motel out of a horror flick.”

He threw back his head and laughed. “I’ll see what I can do, babe.”

I loved when he called me babe and baby. It felt so right and gave me tingles every time he said it. We found a hotel that met my needs. It was the third hotel we drove to. Sam inserted the key and opened the door. I walked in and set my bag down. I turned to Sam, lifted his shirt off, and started to unbutton his jeans.

“What are you doing, Miss Montgomery?” He smiled.

I softly pressed my lips to his neck and nibbled on his ear.

“I know you’re tired, so let me do the work.”

I worked off his jeans and then his black boxers. I wrapped my hand around his erection, softly stroking it up and down while I guided him to the bed. Soft groans escaped his throat as I pushed him down and stripped for him. He pushed himself up to the pillows as I climbed on top of him, kissing his lips. As I hovered over him, he fondled my breasts and pulled at my erect nipples. He took each breast in his mouth and sucked with passion.

“Come up here and let me get you wet,” he whispered.

I scooted up to him as he licked my aching spot and sucked me lightly, making sure I was ready for him. I could feel myself swell, so I moved down and softly grabbed his cock and guided him into me. He moaned and moved his hips up to reach deep inside me. I sat up and rode him up and down, clasping his chest with my hands. He kept his hands on my hips pushing, me down as I moved around in circles. We both were ready to come as we moaned and my body tightened, causing him to explode inside me. I collapsed onto him and buried my face into his neck. As my breathing began to slow down, the pain in my head emerged and bolts of bright lights filled my mind.

“Ah!” I yelled as I rolled off of him and grabbed my head. “Fuck!”

Sam immediately sat up and grabbed a hold of my arms. He knew to let me just ride it out because there was nothing he could do. Flashes of a bed and me lying in someone’s arms flipped through my mind. We were both naked. I closed my eyes tighter, trying to focus on the man next to me, but I couldn’t see his face. Suddenly, the pain was gone, the lights were gone, and so was the image. I let go of my head and fell into Sam’s arms.

“I wasn’t a virgin,” I said.

“What?”

I looked up at Sam’s face. “I wasn’t a virgin. The flashes I just had were of me and someone lying in a bed.”

He pulled me into him and sighed. “It doesn’t matter to me whether or not you were a virgin. What matters is that we’re together and we’re going to get through this.”

I knew deep down in my heart that he was one with me before the accident. I could feel it every time he touched me.

* * *

The next morning, we hopped back on the I-5 S and headed out of Oregon. It wouldn’t be too much longer before we arrived in California. I put up my feet on the dash as we listened and sang along to Queen. Sam was looking extra sexy because he hadn’t shaved in a couple of days and he had that sexy man scruff going on. I took my hand and rubbed it. I was finding it very difficult to keep my hands off him. He turned his head and looked at me with a wide grin.

“You like that?”

“I love it.” I smiled.

All of a sudden, something hit me. “Oh shit, I never got Zoey a baby gift.”

“How did you forget that?”

“Gee, I wonder, Sam. You’ve been a huge distraction.”

He laughed. “Oh, so it’s my fault you didn’t get your sister a baby gift?”

“Yeah, maybe if you weren’t so damn sexy and so loveable, I would be able to think about other things.”

He reached over and grabbed my hand. “I know the feeling, babe. Don’t worry. As soon as we get into California, we’ll stop and buy something.”

I stared out the window, in deep thought, while biting down on my bottom lip.

“You okay, Claire?”

“I’m just a little nervous about seeing my family, that’s all.”

Sam put his hand on my thigh. “I know, but if you want, I’ll come with you.”

“You know how much I love you, right?” I asked.

“Yeah, of course.”

“I don’t know if I’m ready for you to meet the Montgomery family. I still have questions left unanswered and it could get ugly.”

“It’s okay. I understand, but I do want you to meet my mom.”

I looked at him and smiled while taking hold of his hand. “I can’t wait to meet her.”

We were just a short drive to Newport Beach.

“My iPhone says the nearest Babies R Us is in five miles.”

“I know. Remember, I lived here too.” He smiled.

Just another coincidence, right?

We pulled into the parking lot and walked hand in hand into the store. I pulled Zoey’s registry up from the computer and glanced at it.

“Oh my God. All that for one baby?” Sam exclaimed as he looked at it with me.

“I guess so. Good thing she lives in a big house.”

“I think you might have waited too long, Claire. It looks like everything’s been bought.”

I shrugged my shoulders. “That’s okay. I’ll get her some baby clothes.”

We walked over to the clothes section and to the boys’ area. Zoey was having a boy and I could tell she was secretly disappointed. I was at one rack and Sam was at another. He was so cute, looking through the sleepers and holding them up for my opinion. It made me think that maybe one day we’d be doing this for our baby. Okay, I was getting ahead of myself, but the thought did pop into my mind.

“Claire, is that you?” I heard someone familiar.

I turned around, and across the aisle were Rachel and Ally.

“Eek, it is you,” Ally squeaked as she ran over and almost knocked me down.

Rachel followed and the three of us shared a big girlfriend hug.

“What are you guys doing here?” I asked.

“Last minute shopping for your sister’s shower,” Rachel answered.

Sam strolled over and put his hand on the small of my back. Ally and Rachel gasped, and Ally covered her mouth with her hand.

“Rachel, Ally, this is Sam Snow, my boyfriend.”

I noticed the strange reaction and the looks on Ally’s and Rachel’s faces, and then I got a sick feeling in my stomach.

“Hi, nice to meet you both.” Sam smiled as he extended his hand.

Both girls stuttered and acted nervous.

“What’s going on with you two?” I asked.

“Nothing, Claire. It’s just that your boyfriend is incredibly sexy and we’re so happy to see you with someone,” Ally said.

Sam blushed and looked down.

Rachel looked at her phone. “Shit, look what time it is. Ally we’re late for that thing. We have to go.”

“Okay, well, I’ll see you guys tomorrow at the shower. Please do me a favor and don’t tell my parents or Zoey about Sam. I want it to be a surprise.”

“No worries, Claire. Our lips are sealed,” Ally said.

As they walked away, I could see something in their faces as they whispered to each other.

“That was a little uncomfortable,” Sam said.

“Yeah, no kidding. Something is going on with them. They know something.”

I paid for the baby items and we walked back to the car. Sam looked over at me as he fastened his seat belt. “I’ll drop you off at home and then go to my mom’s house.”

My face turned sad. “I can’t bear to be without you tonight.”

Sam ran his finger down my jawline, “I know, babe. I can’t either.”

“I want to meet your mom now. I don’t want to go home first. In fact, can we get a hotel for the night and I’ll go home tomorrow to attend the shower?”

Sam’s face looked surprised. “Sure, I’ll take you home with me now, but you better tell your mom you aren’t coming today.”

I pulled my phone out of my purse and dialed Corinne.

“Hi, Claire.” She sounded stressed.

“Hi, Mom. I wanted to let you know that my flight was delayed, and I won’t be in until tomorrow.”

“What? Claire Rose Montgomery, you better not be late for your sister’s shower.”

Sam’s eyes widened because I had her on speakerphone and she was yelling.

“Calm down, Mom. I’ll be home in plenty of time before the shower, I promise.”

“You better be, Claire; this is very important to your sister and Dylan.”

“Bye, Mom.” I rolled my eyes as I hit the end button.

“Wow, you would think the world revolves around Zoey,” Sam said.

“Yeah, it pretty much does,” I said seriously.