Page 13 of Theirs to Treasure

What?

Sam took advantage of her bewilderment to guide her around to the passenger side of the car. He gently helped her into the seat, buckling the seat belt around her.

“It’s a quick ride over to my house. I’m alone for the next couple of days, so we can get this sorted out.”

“There’s nothing to sort out,” she said when he climbed behind the wheel and started the car. She’d just wanted to show Sam what her body looked like. No false impressions, nothing hidden. She knew she was overweight, she knew she wasn’t in his league. Just get it out there and move on down the road, she thought. They could be yoga classmates. No more of this kissing business. What the hell was wrong with the Northwest, anyway? She hadn’t even been here a month and she’d already been kissed by the two best-looking men she’d ever met in her life.

“We’re here.” Josie looked up in amazement. This wasn’t some little house. This looked like a log cabin mansion some influencer on Instagram might gush about. Sam laughed at the expression on her face. “Yeah, that’s what I thought when I saw it the first time. You know I live with Chance, right?”

This couldn’t be happening. Everything seemed so surreal. Sam and Chance lived together? Sam was bringing her here after she had done everything to chase him away.

She watched Sam as he parked the car and came around to her side to open the door. When she didn’t move, he crouched down and reached over to unhook the seat belt.

“Why did you bring me here? What’s the point?”

“Just give me fifteen minutes. You trust me, don’t you?”

She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, I take off my shirt for every man I don’t trust.”

He barked out a laugh.

“Seriously, I have to be at the bakery in less than an hour.”

“You can leave in less than fifteen minutes, I promise.” Sam held his hand out for her, and she took it. She followed him up the stairs to the front door, noting how pretty the sunrise was. When he saw her looking at it, he stopped and put his arm around her shoulder. He nuzzled his chin against the top of her head, “It’s gorgeous, isn’t it?”

“Yes,” she breathed.

“And what if I told you that you were gorgeous?”

Josie couldn’t stop the involuntary jerk, and her head ended up hitting Sam in the chin. Mortified, she heard him chuckle, which made no sense at all. Sam opened the door and pulled her through the foyer to a back hall. Soon she found herself in a bedroom.

“This is my room. The bathroom is there.” Sam motioned at a door that was ajar. “Why don’t you take a quick shower and I’ll scrounge up a fresh shirt for you to wear? Would you like coffee or hot chocolate for the road?” Josie just stood in the middle of the room, staring up at him.

“It’s simple, Baby. You’re going to shower, and then it’s a choice of coffee or hot chocolate. That gives us a little more time before you need to get back to your Sweet Dreams Dessert’s apartment.” Josie’s brain moved through molasses. How did he know she lived above the bakery? Oh, hell, she’d just take the damn shower.

“Sam, if you have some extra sweatpants, that’d be great too,” she called over her shoulder as she headed into the bathroom. When she was done with the shower, she peeked out the door to make sure the coast was clear before exiting in her underwear and wrapped in a towel. The bedroom door was closed and a shirt and sweatpants were laid out on the bed. She quickly donned them, rolling up the waist four times and cuffing the legs so that she wouldn’t trip on them, and headed out of the room and down the hall.

Sam waited for her in the foyer. He looked her up and down and gave a slow smile. “You look good in my clothes.”

“You’re full of it, buster.” Josie couldn’t believe how ridiculously flirtatious this man was. Her insides warmed at what he said, as if her body believed the words her mind could not accept.

Shaking his head, Sam led her to the kitchen. “Since you didn’t tell me if you wanted hot chocolate or coffee, I made both. I also cut up some fruit. My doctors have been telling me I have to eat healthier.”

Josie looked at the selection on the island, as well as the two place settings, then back at Sam. “I want the hot chocolate.” She sat down at the stool and scooped up some melons and berries, while Sam poured the chocolate into both her mug and his. Then he sat beside her and put fruit on his plate as well.

“Aren’t you going to ask me about my doctors?” he asked.

“I was actually going to ask you how you knew Chance. I figured if you wanted to tell me more about the doctors, you’d tell me.” Josie looked over at Sam, and for the first time really studied the scar above his eyebrow. Most of the time his hair covered it, but this morning, he must have really worked up a sweat from his run and pushed his hair back because she could see that the scar extended from right above his eyebrow into his scalp.

“Yep,” he pointed to the scar. “A head injury in Afghanistan. The doctors say I’m recovering nicely, whatever the hell that means. But it’s been almost a year.”

“Is that it? Is a head injury’s all that’s wrong, or did you end up with more issues?” Josie probed.

Sam looked at her shrewdly. “Now, Baby, what made you think to ask that? Did you serve?”

Josie looked down at her plate of food and cursed herself for asking the question. She knew better than that, it was just that she was concerned. She could see the pain in Sam’s eyes, and it went deeper than just a physical wound. God, could she relate to that. Just because they treated you for the injury, it didn’t mean that the deeper pain was addressed.

“Josie, I asked you a question,” Sam said again sharply. Josie’s head shot up immediately at the authority in his voice.