Just The Way You Are Part 10

"Sam!"

"Knock-knock."

"I'm not playing."

"Who's there," he said, ignoring her.

"Who's there?" she asked.

"Atch."

"Atch who?"

"I didn't know you had a cold."

She raised her head again to see him smiling. "That was even worse." She grinned back at him. "But thanks for trying to make me feel better."

"Did it work?"

"You've always been able to make me laugh, especially when I'm trying to be mad at you."

"Maybe you should stop trying," he said more somberly.

"We can't make this go away with knock-knock jokes."

"You take everything so seriously, Alli."

"Someone has to."

She rolled over onto her back next to him and stared at the ceiling. "You have to go home."

He turned on his side to face her. "Are you sure you want to be alone tonight?"

"No, I'm not sure at all. But..."

"There's always a but."

"It will confuse Megan. She'll think we're getting back together."

"I'll leave before she wakes up."

She looked at him. "You will?"

"Yes." He put his arm across her waist and curled up to her, resting his head on the pillow next to hers. "Sleep, Alli."

She closed her eyes and felt the comfort of his body and his words seep into her soul. "Sam, I said something I shouldn't have," she whispered.

"Tell me tomorrow," he said.

She hesitated, but he tightened his hold on her, and she felt so warm and secure that she couldn't bear to let go of him, and she knew he would leave if she told him what she'd said to Tessa.

"Good night, Sam."

"Good night, Alli."

True to his promise, Sam was gone by the time Alli awoke the next morning. After taking Megan to summer school, she made her way to the shop, where she pretended to work. But in truth she spent most of her time worrying about Phoebe and thinking about Sam. Restless and too distracted to be of much use, she slipped out of the store just before noon and sat down on a bench outside.

The pier was alive with summer tourists, and the smells of fresh fish, baked bread, and chocolate chip cookies mixed in with the breezy salt air made Alli take a deep breath of appreciation. She loved the wharf, the sea, the town. Unlike Tessa, she had never wanted to leave. Tucker's Landing had been her safe place after her parents died, a warm blanket she wrapped herself in whenever the outside world got too close.

Only now, the outside world and Tessa were intruding on her safe place. Alli looked down the road toward Sam's boat dock. She could see his morning fis.h.i.+ng boat transferring piles of fresh salmon to the truck for Petrie's restaurant, waiting to haul the salmon a few blocks down the road, where it would be seasoned and broiled for dinner that night.

It had been her idea to use the mid-size of their three boats for commercial fis.h.i.+ng purposes. They used the large fifty-footer for deep-sea charters and whale watching and the smaller boat for friends and family looking for some sportfis.h.i.+ng a few miles off sh.o.r.e.

Alli wondered if Sam had taken the morning charter out or left it to one of the other captains. Lately, he'd been more office bound than he liked, taking care of paperwork and bookings. She knew he felt more comfortable on the water. For Sam it was all about what he could touch, what he could feel. Which brought up a disturbing memory of his touch the night before.

It would have been so easy to make love to him. So wonderful. One kiss and she'd been blown away. It had always been like that, for her anyway.

"Alli?" Mary Ann poked her head out of shop. "I thought you were getting us a sandwich."

"I was."

"But?"

"I slept with Sam last night."

"You did what?" Mary Ann stepped out of the shop and pulled the door closed behind her. "Ca.s.sie can handle the customers. You need to talk to me about what you were thinking-if you were thinking."

"I wasn't," Alli admitted, pus.h.i.+ng her short skirt down over her bare legs. There was a cool breeze coming off the water, sending goose b.u.mps along her skin. She had the strangest feeling that a storm was brewing even though there were only a few puffy white clouds dotting the sky.

"So, what happened?" Mary Ann wanted to know.

"Sam stayed with Megan so I could spend the evening at the hospital. When I got home, Sam was asleep in my bed. I tried to wake him up, I really did."

"But instead, you...?"

"Kissed him."

"Oh, Alli!"

"I know, I know. I was weak."

"For a woman who is trying to divorce her husband, you're certainly using some strange tactics. But the real question is-did he kiss you back?"

"Yes, but it was probably just instinct."

"So what happened next?"

"I told him to stop, and he did. I thought we were headed for another fight, but then he backed off, and instead he talked to me about Grams and was really comforting. He told me some of his stupid knock-knock jokes."

"Oh, please, those are terrible."

"I know, but they made me smile. Then we just went to sleep. It was nice."

Mary Ann shook her head in amazement. "Nice. You slept with Sam, and it was nice."

"It was. He can be a good guy at times."

"You don't have to tell me that."

"But I couldn't make love to him, because Tessa is still between us."

"Oh, my G.o.d, you've got Tessa on the brain. So where is your sister today, anyway?"

"I have no idea." Although even as she denied knowing Tessa's whereabouts, Alli was struck by the sight of a slender figure dressed in a figure-hugging sleeveless blue sundress and walking down the road toward Sam's boat dock.

"Hey, isn't that her?" Mary Ann asked, following Alli's gaze.

"And it looks like she's on her way to visit Sam."

"Or not," Mary Ann said as the figure paused along the rail to look out at the harbor and the boats.

"I told her Sam was still in love with her," Alli said.

"Why on earth would you do that?"

"It seemed like a good idea at the time."

"Do you ever hear a little voice in your head telling you to stop and think?"

Alli made a face at Mary Ann. "Obviously, I don't listen to it."

"Maybe you should talk to Tessa."

"And say what?"

"I don't know. She's your sister."

Alli's eyes narrowed as a man in black jeans stopped a few feet away from Tessa and raised a camera to his eye. It wasn't just a drugstore automatic either; the camera looked to be expensive, with a zoom lens. Tessa stared out at the water, seemingly oblivious to his presence.

"I wonder what that guy is doing," Alli murmured.

"Probably trying to snap a photo of your sister. I imagine she ends up in the tabloids quite frequently. Maybe you should warn her."

Alli hesitated. It wasn't any of her business, and no doubt Tessa was used to photographers and other people trying to record her every action on film.

"Go on, do something nice," Mary Ann urged. "It will probably shock the h.e.l.l out of her."

"True."

"That alone should be worth it."

"All right." Alli got up and walked down the road. She was a few feet away from the photographer when she heard Sam call Tessa's name and saw Tessa run down the street toward him. She didn't stop until she was in his arms, giving him a long, very friendly hug.

"Holy s.h.i.+t!" the man with the camera said loudly, lowering the lens from his face as he stared at Tessa and Sam.

Alli glanced over in surprise, wondering why the man seemed so annoyed. She started to tell him to mind his own business, but when he turned his head, she was caught off guard by his face. He was shockingly handsome, with light green eyes that lit up his black hair and dark olive skin. His face was beautifully strong, and very appealing. If he hadn't been holding a camera, Alli thought he probably could have made some money standing in front of it.

"Hi," he said simply, his frown fading when he saw her. "Who are you?"

"I was going to ask you the same question. Why are you taking Tessa's picture? Are you planning to sell it to some cheap supermarket paper?"

"I'd rather die than have one of my photographs in a rag sheet." He held out his right hand. "I'm Jimmy Duggan."

She ignored his hand. "You still haven't answered my question."

His eyes narrowed on her face. "You look familiar. In fact..." He rubbed his chin. "You look like Tessa."

"I'm her sister, and I look nothing like her."

"I didn't know she had a sister," he mused, his gaze swinging from her to Tessa, who had stepped out of Sam's arms but was still in deep conversation with him. "Who's the guy?"

"More importantly, who are you?"

"I told you."

"Your name, not why you're following my sister."

"I'm a photographer. I work with Tessa."

"I don't think Tessa is here to work."

"You're really her sister? Although I'm not surprised. There is something in your bone structure, your expression. It's astonis.h.i.+ng, really. Have you modeled?"

"Oh, please, don't try to b.u.t.ter me up. I know what I look like. I have a mirror, and when I used to ask who is the fairest of them all, there was only one answer, and it was Tessa."

"Well, she is beautiful," Jimmy agreed matter-of-factly. "So who's the guy?"

"Sam Tucker."

"And he is..."

"He's my husband."