“Okay.” She closed her eyes. “Goodnight Nick.”
“Goodnight Samantha.” He said softly. He lingered a moment before ending the call. He stood up and brought the tumbler glass to the sink. He turned the glass over and watched the amber liquid swirl down the drain. He no longer needed to escape his life. He set the empty glass down in the sink and turned around and headed towards his bedroom, one night down, one day closer to going home.
Chapter Twenty
Nick stepped out of the company car that drove him to the high rise corporate offices, dressed in a sleek fitting pinstripe suit. He radiated a certain confidence as he buttoned the jacket of his suit and strode towards the building. His phone rang inside his jacket as he caught the door the man before him held open. Reaching inside the inner pocket, he pulled out his phone. He mouthed thank you to the man who held the door as he answered the call.
“Hello?” He said as he tucked the phone between his shoulder and his ear walking towards the elevators that would take him to the fiftieth floor. He was ahead of schedule, but he would bet that the investors would be waiting in the boardroom despite his best efforts to beat them to it.
“Good morning.” Sam said, smiling as she sat in her car.
Nick stopped mid stride and his lips curved at the sound of her voice. “Good morning, beautiful.” He wasn’t expecting to hear from her and was pleasantly surprised.
“Am I interrupting any meetings or anything? I wasn’t sure what time you started your day.” She bit her lip slightly as she ran her hands up and down the steering wheel in a nervous gesture.
“No, I’m just heading into the office.” He hit the button for the elevator and leaned against the wall. “How is your day going over there?”
She stared out the window at the apartment complex she sat in front of. She hadn’t been there since Jake had passed away, but her concern for Cara was what brought her there today. “I’m actually sitting in front of Jake’s apartment trying to muster up the courage to go inside.” She frowned at herself. “You know after dinner at my parent’s things got carried away and I forgot about Cara and Luke’s little outburst.”
“Have you spoken to either of them?”
“No. That’s why I thought it would be best if I just showed up. I don’t think she could avoid me if I’m standing in front of her.” She sighed. “Luke has been avoiding me like the plague.”
Nick shook his head. Luckily for him, he didn’t need Luke to convince Sam he’d return. His friend was in a world of his own, and he couldn’t really blame him for not making good on his promise. For so long he had been the man who had everything under control. Now, he seemed to be in a downward spiral completely out of his comfort zone.
“He’ll come around.” Nick said, hoping he would. He made a mental note that once he was back in Riverdale, he needed to sit down with Luke and try to get inside his head.
“I hope so. Anyway, maybe I can get somewhere with Cara. From the little I overheard, Leah stormed out on Luke because she thinks he’s obsessed with taking care of Cara.” She paused and pondered if that could be the case. “I think he’s more obsessed with the promise he made to Jake.”
“What promise?” She asked softly.
“Jake asked him to take care of Cara, to make sure she went on with her life.”
Sam grew silent. Sounds about right, she thought, Jake would trust Luke to make sure Cara was living life for the both of them. She smiled slightly as she thought of her brother, the ache in her heart evident. “Sam?”
“Sorry…” She said shutting down her grief. “I’m here.”
“You miss him.” Nick stated, understanding the silence that fell upon them.
“I do.” She waited a beat and then spoke softly into the phone. “I miss you too.”
His lips curved with the slightest hint of a smile. “I miss you too.” The elevator doors opened. “I’m stepping into the elevator. I might lose you.”
“Go. I just wanted to hear your voice.” She took a deep breath. There was so much she wanted to say. She wanted so badly to tell him that their future now had so much waiting for them. “You’ll be home soon right?” She asked, needing the reassurance.
“Soon, baby.” He didn’t want to tell her, he may be home sooner than he thought. It all depended on how things went in, the board meeting this morning. He didn’t want to make a promise he might not be able to keep. He would just surprise her if he could.
“Okay.” She waited her voice just above a whisper. “Have a good day.”
“You too, sweetheart.” He said as he held the doors open. He waited a moment to see if she said anything else. When she didn’t, he ended the call and stepped into the elevator. He stood in the center as the door closed. He rode the elevator up to the office and all the while he smiled at the thought that he had someone waiting for him back home. He never thought it would be a comforting feeling, yet alone one that warmed him.