Chapter 27

For a week now, Sam had wanted to know if Jeremy had asked Chan out on a second date. Every time he opened his mouth to make the inquiry, however, he got interrupted, and it was driving him crazy. Then, of course, he chided himself for caring, for being too interested. After all, it was supposed to be none of his business.

He took another sip of his beer, put it down, and relaxed back in his chair as he watched Jeremy on the other side of the lively, busy restaurant. His cousin was talking on his cell phone. A few seconds later, he hung up and returned to his seat with them. Sam wondered if he'd called Chan to finally ask her out for that second date.

The restaurant was busy tonight. It was, after all, a Saturday night. No doubt, the bar next door was packed full of people as well.

At their table, sitting beside Sam, was Nina, while opposite them was Jayden McCartney and Alec Hasting. At the head was Jeremy, who kept flicking his eyes to his cell phone.

Jayden eyed Sam and cocked his head to one side. "What's up? Looks like you're having some love trouble."

Sam turned his attention to his friend. "What love trouble? I'm not even dating."

"It takes time to do that sort of thing," Alec said in his strong Scottish brogue.

The men understood, as Alec himself had been divorced from his first wife before meeting Ruby. It had taken him a while before he finally accepted his ex-wife Amy really was leaving him for another guy. The hurt. The betrayal. The loneliness.

But Sam's wife Sarah hadn't left him for another guy. She had died in a car accident. And yes, for three years now, he'd felt the pain and the loneliness of losing her, his other half, the woman he'd loved with all his heart.

Jayden glanced at Nina sitting beside Sam and wondered if perhaps there was something more than just friendship between the two. He had been sure the two were in a serious relationship since he and his wife had first met with them on Wednesday night for dinner.

Of course, Alex had told him in the privacy of their bedroom later she didn't like Nina much, and in her opinion, Sam deserved someone better. When he asked her what she meant, she said there was something beneath all that charm and all that beauty that was just plain wrong. Jayden didn't understand what his wife was mumbling on about and suspected Alex just didn't like Nina.

"Love trouble?" Nina asked, raising her perfectly shaped brows at Sam. "Our Sam? Since when do you have love trouble? You didn't tell me you're dating?"

Sam didn't miss the accusation beneath her tone.

Jeremy said, "If anyone were to have love trouble, it'd be me."

Jayden turned his attention to Jeremy. "Oh?"

"A serial dater like you?" Nina laughed. "Surely, Jeremy, if you're having love trouble, it's because you're serial dating. What? Are all those girls finally catching up to you? Have they finally found out you're dating more than just one?"

Jeremy frowned at Nina and thought what a bitch the woman was. He often wondered how Sam could put up with her. Couldn't the woman read the atmosphere, that none of them wanted her in their lives? Most of all Sam? Yes, she might have been Sarah's best friend. But Sarah was dead, and it wasn't Nina's job to take her place. Jeremy knew that was exactly what she was trying to do. To become Sam's next wife.

Jeremy turned his attention to Jayden and Alec. "Come to think of it, how do you two do it?"

"What?" Alec asked.

"How'd you get Ruby to fall in love with you?"

"Well, that's different for everybody," Alec replied, shrugging.

Jayden nodded in agreement. "Yes. Definitely different for everybody."

Jeremy leaned forward. "How did you meet Alexandra? I'm pretty sure you two weren't in the same circle."

Jayden chuckled. "Yeah, well… a friend, Peter, introduced us. I was on vacation in Queenstown at the time, and Peter was considerate enough to help out. Things got off from there."

He kept his mouth shut after that. Like hell was he going to retell the tale of his love life, where he hired the innocent, shy Alexandra to be his girlfriend in order to fool his family. He had been a selfish jerk back then; he knew that. Although, he didn't regret it one bit, because, man, thanks to that, he now had Alex, the love of his life. She and their son Andy were everything to him. They were his light and his life, and he loved them to bits. Every time he thought about them, his heart glowed with happiness. A smile was never far from his lips whenever their image popped up in his mind. He'd admit he was one of the luckiest men on the planet.

"Why are you interested in this all of a sudden?" Sam inquired.

Jeremy chuckled. "Maybe I've finally found the woman I might really fall in love with."

"Oh?" Sam raised his brows. Though he seemed relaxed to everyone, he was, in fact, quite tense.

Nina laughed. "I feel sorry for the woman who's falling in love with you, Jeremy. She's going to have a lot of heartache."

Jeremy was offended. Sam wasn't impressed with Nina's behavior either.

Jeremy said, "So, Jayden, any advice you can give a guy about relationships?"

"Are you having trouble?" Sam asked his cousin.

"Not usually," Jeremy said. "But this one didn't appear that willing. Normally, we'd be on our second or third date by now, and you know…"

Sam understood what Jeremy meant. Under normal circumstances in Jeremy's dating life, he'd be on to second or third base. He and the woman would be having hot, intense sex almost every other night. But the thought of Jeremy and Chan being so intimate made Sam sick to his stomach. It made his heart ache with jealousy. It was such a strong, powerful emotion, a type Sam had never felt before until he had met Chan, and he didn't know how to deal with it.

Nina suddenly got up from her spot and said, "Excuse me."

The men nodded at her as she headed toward the restroom located outside the restaurant, across the corridor.

Jeremy leaned forward and said, "Bro, is Nina really organizing Lilly's birthday party?"

Sam nodded.

Jeremy looked uncomfortable. "What about Marian? Is she okay with that? More importantly, is the little princess okay with that?"

Sam said, "Nina insisted she do it this year, and Marian and Lilly gave her the okay."

Alec asked, "Your daughter's birthday?"

Sam nodded. "She's turning seven this year. It's next Saturday."

"We're still around," Jayden said. "Mind if we join in?"

Sam laughed. "Of course not. Bring Alex and Andy around. Lilly would love that."

Jeremy chimed in. "And Alex's friends, too. Sam told me there are lots of girls?"

Alec said, "Are you sure that's okay? There's a few of them."

Sam laughed. "No problem. The more the merrier."

Jayden nodded. "I've just met the Chandler sisters for the first time this afternoon. They're charming. But yes, Alex has quite a number of very close friends."

Alec laughed wholeheartedly. "Ruby being one of them. Seriously, I never thought the world was that small."

Jayden chuckled. "Yep."

"The Chandler sisters?" Jeremy asked, curious. Suddenly, his phone rang, distracting his train of thought. He quickly picked it up, excitement on his face.

A moment later, Jeremy said, "Sorry. I have to meet up with some friends."

"Who is it?" Sam asked, knowing he was being a bit nosy in his cousin's business. But heck, he couldn't help himself.

Jeremy laughed. "Ethan Taylor. He's in town for business for a couple days. We're meeting up with some other friends for drinks tonight. I might bring them here. The bar is great."

Sam nodded, and Jeremy, after excusing himself from Jayden and Alec, rushed out of the restaurant.

"Speaking of which," Alec said, a smile on his lips. "I wonder how the girls are getting on."

Jay chuckled. "Up to a lot of mischief I would imagine."

Sam couldn't help but notice how content his two friends were. He used to be like that once, when Sarah was still alive. But now, even though he had his darling daughter Lilly, he still felt a little empty and cold inside sometimes, especially during the dark, lonely night. It was as if no matter what he did to make himself happy, it just wasn't enough. There was something vital missing in his life, like he was living but not really living and breathing but not really breathing.

"Speak of the devil." Jayden chuckled, his eyes on the door across the restaurant. "What are they doing here?"