SAMANTHA: Never Say Never (The Powell's Book 2) Read online

  “Shoot. I’m sorry, Adam. I keep forgetting. Declan should be keeping you all in the know anyway. We haven’t even decided who’s going to race that car since neither you nor Shane are racing anymore.”

  “Declan’s been pretty good with everything. I can’t seem to pin him down lately. He’s been all over the place,” Adam said.

  “Oh, you mean besides calling me every day, he actually has a life?” Tracey grumbled. They all laughed and made small talk for a full two hours.

  “Oh well. I am full and tired. I’m going to bed. Samantha, you know where your room is. You can watch television in your room or the family room. I know it’s a little early for you all, but I tire easily. Adam, if you’re staying over, you will have to take the other room,” Tracey said, getting up from the table.

  “You two go on in. Shane cooked, I’ll clean up,” Samantha said.

  “I’ll help her, and then I want to catch up on the news. I’ll watch it in the family room. Maybe I’ll even watch a movie,” Adam said.

  “You don’t have to, Adam. I have this. There’s not much to do. I’ll just load most of the dishes in the dishwasher.”

  “If you say so. I’ll just help you bring everything inside.” Adam relented only because Samantha had become anxious. Apparently, she was nervous about being alone with him. He didn’t know whether to be happy or sad. He never wanted her to fear him. No, she wasn’t afraid of him, she just didn’t trust her feelings for him. He knew he was getting to her. If he thought for one minute that Samantha wasn’t into him, he’d back off. They generated too much heat for him not to pursue her. “If you’re not too tired you can join me in the family room for a movie,” he found himself saying out loud.

  “I’ll see after I clean up and shower,” Samantha said.

  “Good,” he beamed, and continued to help her gather the food and tableware.

  “Well, I’m going to make sure my wife is comfortable. Adam, I may join you two. It depends,” Shane said with a shrug and a smile.

  “Okay,” Adam said, not meaning it one little bit. Shane needed to stay with his wife. He wanted some alone time with Samantha.

  They worked quietly alongside one another. There wasn’t much food left, as he and Shane had put a big dent in it. Tracey had left most of hers. There were two pieces of steak and tossed salad left.

  They wrapped up the little that was left and stored it in the refrigerator. Samantha loaded the dishwasher setting it to delayed start.

  Adam looked over at the digital clock on the stove; it was already nine-thirty. That wasn’t late at all, but Samantha had covered up a yawn twice already. By the looks of her, she was tuckered out. He knew that she was an early riser because Kayla was.

  He looked around the outer area of the kitchen and then walked to stand behind her.

  “Why don’t you go on in to bed?” he whispered, pulling her back against his frame. “I’ll shut everything down. You’re dead on your feet.”

  “Adam, you can’t keep doing that here,” she purred.

  “No one’s around, Samantha. Your mouth keeps saying no, but your body says yes,” he muttered, and nipped at her neck. “If we were alone in the house, I’d already have you on top of that island over there, and I’d be buried balls-deep inside of you. Go to bed, before I say to hell with everything and do just that,” he breathed, releasing her and giving her a little push away from him.

  He almost laughed outright when she hightailed it out of the kitchen towards her room.

  “Well, ol’ boy, a cold shower is in order for you,” he said to himself, and headed in the opposite direction of Samantha to his own room.

  Chapter Eight

  Adam took his shower which did nothing to stop his raging hard-on. He wanted Samantha badly. Unfortunately, having her here and now was not possible.

  Adam put on a pair of pajama bottoms, sans the boxers, and went in search of a beer. He then went into the media room, where he found Shane already sitting watching ESPN® sports.

  “What are you doing up? I thought you’d gone to bed with Tracey,” Adam asked, taking a seat on the oversized leather sofa.

  “I’ll be joining her in a bit. I told her I needed to talk to you about something,” Shane said.

  “And what could you want to talk to me about?” Adam said indifferently.

  “Cut the shit, Adam!” Shane barked. “What’s going on between you and Samantha?”

  “Why, Shane, whatever are you talking about?” he replied, not giving in to him. “And lower your voice.”

  “We’re on the other side of the house. No one is going to hear us,” Shane remarked sternly. “Now talk.”

  “Nothing to talk about,” Adam said, and took a swig of his beer.

  “Don’t make me knock you upside your thick head, Adam. I saw the way you kept looking at her. Hell, I had to kick you under the table to get your attention. Don’t bullshit me. What’s going on?”

  Oh, how quickly Shane forgets how he was with Tracey. He barked at Adam so much that he’d had to set up their rendezvous just to put a smile on Shane’s face.

  He may as well get it over with. Shane could be a cantankerous SOB, and frankly he had enough to deal with as it was without his brother pestering him.

  Adam glanced around the open area and entranceway to the media room, and then took another gulp of his drink before placing the bottle on the table.

  “This goes no further than this room, Shane,” he said, and held up his hands when Shane was about to speak. “I mean it. Not even to Tracey. Agree, or my lips are sealed.”

  Shane scowled at him and gave him a nod of confirmation. Adam began.

  “There’s nothing going on between me and Samantha. Yet,” he added. “Before you open your big mouth, yes, I want there to be. I want that woman with fierceness. I have for a while now.”

  “Huh?” Shane inquired. “You’ve never shown any interest in Samantha before.”

  “Haven’t I?” Adam said, eyeing Shane.

  “No, you haven’t.”

  “Who was with Samantha at most of her doctor’s appointments? Who’s the one that made sure she and Kayla had everything during and after her pregnancy. Her parents were there and Declan was there, but when they weren’t, I was. It was easy to blend in because everyone was doing a part. And, consider this; who’s the one that has Kayla most of the time when Samantha doesn’t?” Adam got satisfaction out of seeing the astonished look on his brother’s face. “I was the first one in the family to even know about her pregnancy.”

  The look on Shane’s face went from astonished to shock.

  “How’s that?”

  “The day you proposed to Tracey. Remember, Samantha had left?” With his nod, Adam continued. “Well, she returned and was so distraught, I led her out of the suite and booked another room in the hotel to talk with her to see exactly what was going on. One thing led to another, and we ended up having the best sex I’ve had, more than once, too. Well, after our sexcapade, Samantha dropped the bomb on me that she was pregnant, and that she didn’t want to talk about it. I agreed not to talk about it that night, with her promise to tell me what was going on in the morning. I woke up the next morning and she was gone. After that, she made me promise not to say anything. She’d beaten herself up already. Being the gentleman that I am, I just let it go. Sort of.”

  “But neither of you ever seemed like you were remotely interested in one another,” Shane said.

  “Are you sure about that?” Adam grinned.

  “That y’all didn’t let on that y’all were interested in one another?” Shane’s face showed his confusion.

  “Samantha fancies herself in love with Ashby, so I stayed in the background as the dutiful Uncle Adam and helpful brother-in-law,” he said quietly. “It wasn’t until I saw her reaction to Ashby at the stadium that day that got me to thinking.”

  “Thinking my ass,” Shane cut in. “You were jealous.”

  “Do you want to hear the damn story or not?” Adam snar
led.

  “Sorry. Go ahead,” Shane said, and held up his hands in surrender.

  “I didn’t realize Ashby was Kayla’s father until I saw her reaction at the stadium, and then I knew. She was so upset; I drove her and Kayla home in her car, and left mine at the stadium. Once at her house I kind of let my pride get the better of me and told her that she didn’t get to use me to try to replace another man and run away from me; to consider that man replaced. I slammed out of her house, and this is the first time I’ve seen her since then.”

  Shane’s long whistle through his teeth didn’t make Adam feel any better.

  “Damn, man. Sorry to hear this. I had no idea any of this had taken place.”

  “That’s the way I wanted it. It’s the way I still want it. I haven’t given up on her. Ever since our night together, I haven’t been able to get her off of my mind. I mean, I haven’t been celibate, but hell, in all this time I’ve actually only had sex a total of three times, and it was meaningless,” Adam sighed. “As much as I’ve tried, I just couldn’t go through with it.”

  “As much as I love Samantha and Kayla, Adam, I don’t want to see you hurt. You can’t make her fall in love with you,” Shane said quietly.

  “I know this, Shane. Samantha is just as attracted to me as I am to her. Is it love? No. But neither do I believe that she’s in love with Ashby. I believe she’s in love with the idea of being in love with him, if you know what I mean. At least I hope that’s the case,” Adam said somberly.

  “You’re not sure though,” Shane said.

  “I don’t think that she is, or ever was. Ashby is a dick. Trust me. I know. I lived that lifestyle. I don’t know when they actually had time for a relationship; he’s always been seen with more than one woman, and sometimes at the same time.”

  “That’s for sure. He fancies himself the ladies’ man. Honestly, I can’t see Ashby caring for anyone but Ashby,” Shane snickered.

  “He’s not going to get the chance to ruin Samantha or Kayla’s lives, Shane. I won’t let him. I’ll use every trick in the book if I have to,” Adam said quietly.

  “Let me ask you this: Do you love her?”

  “Yes, I do,” Adam said without wavering.

  “Most importantly, can you love Kayla with the love that she needs, knowing that she’s another man’s child and that her mother may very well be in love with her biological father?”

  “I love that little girl as if I’d fathered her myself. It takes more than a seed to claim fatherhood,” Adam said.

  “That’s true; but from the looks of it, he was never given the chance to be a father. He doesn’t know about Kayla. Can you accept the fact that even if you get Samantha that you would have to share Kayla’s affections with a man you clearly despise?”

  “I doubt if it will come to that, but if it does, I don’t have a choice, now do I? I would rather share her than not have her in my life at all,” Adam voiced. In all actuality he was scared shitless. Nonetheless, he wasn’t going down without a fight.

  “I will say this, and then I’m going to join my beautiful wife.”

  “What?” Adam stared over at Shane.

  “Go get your woman, brother,” he said, and left Adam alone.

  Adam’s lips lifted in a smile. “I plan to do just that,” he said out loud, and then got up and turned off the television and the lights. “Time for bed, Adam ol’ boy.”

  *

  Samantha had just turned the television off when she heard the soft click of her bedroom door opening. The lone figure walked inside and shut it softly behind him.

  The soft glow from the moonlit night danced against his solid form, which was bare to the waist. Only a pair of pajama bottoms covered his lower half.

  “Adam?”

  “Shush,” he said, placing a finger to his lips and stepping out of his pajama bottoms. His member jutted out, bold, and fully erect. He tore open a condom packet and slid it on. He dropped the opened pack on top of the pajama pants that he’d discarded on the floor.

  Samantha watched in astonishment as he slowly approached her, pulled the thin bedspread back, and joined her in the bed. He pulled her against his naked frame, and without saying another word, he took her lips in a scorching kiss. Before she could return the kiss, he’d removed his lips and smiled down into her eyes. She returned his smile.

  Adam rolled her beneath him and used his hands to spread her hair out against the pillow. His thick bulge lay snuggly between her thighs, the only thing separating his hardness from her center was the thin layer of her summer nightie.

  “Beautiful,” he said, before taking her lips again. This time she returned his kiss. She gave just as much as she took.

  Their soft cries of passion filled the moonlit room. Samantha’s entire being tingled with awareness. He slowly pushed her nightie up to her chest, removed his lips from hers, and looked into her eyes. She tried to avert her gaze; he wasn’t having it. His bare skin between her legs felt so good her hips began to gyrate against him.

  Adam removed his hand from her barely there nightie and placed it on her face. His eyes demanded that she look at him. He used his muscled thighs to spread her legs wide. His eyes still held hers as he pulled back and pushed all the way inside of her heated center.

  “Umm,” she moaned, and tried to turn her head again, but again, he wouldn’t allow her to look away from him. He didn’t kiss her or anything, just continued to stare into her eyes.

  Samantha felt each thrust of his hips. He moved slowly in and out of her…her hips mimicked his movements.

  “Ahh,” she cried softly, her eyes closing and her head going back. He kissed her throat.

  “Keep your eyes on me, Samantha,” he said softly.

  Her breath was coming in quick, short pants now. She couldn’t speak…could only nod. Her body felt so good. She was on the verge of an orgasm.

  “Oh goodness,” she groaned, as he pushed harder into her, and then slowed his movements again.

  What is he doing to me? she thought. She needed a release and he was toying with her body.

  “What are you doing to me?” she whispered.

  “Who?” Adam asked, answering her question with a question.

  “You!” she cried as he pushed further into her.

  “Who am I, Samantha?” he asked softly.

  What the hell is he talking about? she thought to herself. It took all she possessed not to beg him to give it to her harder.

  “What’s my name?” Adam asked, moving slowly against her.

  What the hell?

  Adam pulled out of her and stopped. He looked into her eyes again.

  “Say my name, Samantha,” he demanded.

  “Adam,” she whimpered, grabbing his hips and forcing him into her. He sank into her to the hilt.

  “Shit!” he muttered, and rocked into her.

  Samantha held onto his hips, demanding that he give her what she wanted. She met him thrust for thrust. She was on fire. Euphoric even. Samantha lifted her hips up off the bed to meet his thrust and instantly cried out as her body shattered into a million pieces. She felt his hot release through the condom.

  It was a good thing he’d had the foresight to cover her mouth with his, because she was sure her screams would have awakened Shane and Tracey.

  Adam kissed her soundly; his lips and tongue demanded that she return the kiss, and she did.

  “I need to get back to my room,” he whispered against her lips. “You’re beautiful, inside and out. I’ll use your bathroom to discard the condom and then leave.”

  Samantha didn’t want him to leave, but knew that he had to if they didn’t want Tracey or Shane to catch them.

  She nodded and kissed him again.

  “Thank you,” she whispered.

  “No, thank you,” he smiled. He dislodged himself from her and left the bed. On his way to the bathroom, he turned and looked at her. Samantha lifted her brow in inquiry.

  “What?”

  “Say my name, Sam
antha,” he smiled.

  “Adam,” she frowned. What was he up too? He kept telling her to say his name as if she didn’t know his name. Weird.

  “That’s right, darlin’. Remember who just left your bed,” he said, and disappeared into the bathroom. He returned only to pull on his pajama bottoms and then he was gone, closing the door softly behind him.

  Samantha got out of bed, walked to her en-suite bathroom, washed herself off, and then returned to her bed, where she promptly fell asleep with a smile on her face.

  *

  Tracey had her head buried in the refrigerator, looking for something to snack on, when she saw the shadowy figure pass by. She knew she’d left Shane in bed sleeping, and he wouldn’t be coming from that part of the house anyway. It could only be one other person: Adam. Since his room was located on the opposite side of the house, Tracey knew he had to be coming from Samantha’s room.

  “Uh huh, just like I thought.” She smiled to herself. “Those two didn’t fool me at dinner.” She could feel the sexual tension emanating from the two of them all through dinner.

  “Lucy got some splainin’ to do,” she giggled, grabbing a pear and a bottle of water and closing the refrigerator door. She walked silently back to her room and got back into bed beside her husband.

  “Hungry?” Shane whispered, pulling her against him.

  “Kind of. I was going to eat this piece of fruit and drink some water, but I can think of something better I’d rather be doing,” she said, and moved against him. She placed the water and fruit on her bedside table.

  “If you can’t, I damn sure can,” he murmured, as he began to make love to her.

  Chapter Nine

  Samantha awakened to the bright rays of the sun beaming into her room. She stretched, looked over at the bedside clock and shrieked. It read ten thirty in the morning. She’d never slept so late since she’d had Kayla.

  Samantha jumped up from the bed, took out a shorts set and underwear, and rushed into the shower. After she showered and dressed, she took out her cell phone and called her parents.