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Need You Now

Chapter 38

Sunday after midnight, July 4th, 1999


“Thankfully this dress was long enough to tuck under my legs, otherwise I’d have given quite a show to the few cars we actually passed on the way here.” Sam laughed and smoothed down her dress after getting off the motorcycle when they were at Daryl’s house. Feeling very shy, Sam handed Daryl her helmet and, once he’d hung both of them on the handle bars, took the hand he held out to her.

Once inside, she stepped in to the room and waited for Daryl to shut the door behind them and turn on the kitchen light. With the room brightly lit, she glanced around, taking in the newly added furniture, and smiled. “Look at you, with actual furniture!”

“Still don’t got much, but it’s more than just a couch.” Daryl tossed his keys on to the kitchen counter and watched with an amused smile as Sam walked around the area, clutching the straps of her duffle bag that was still strapped across her body, checking out the furniture that had gotten delivered midweek. He wasn’t being humble when he’d said it wasn’t much, just a kitchen table and chairs, some end tables and coffee table, bar stools at the counter, a couple of lamps and even curtains, but it was more than he’d had in there last time she’d visited. He also had new furniture in the bedroom, but didn’t want to point that out just yet. “Um, that’s for you.” Daryl pointed towards the kitchen table where a brightly colored present was perched in the middle of the dark wood, thankfully wrapped by the store clerk so it looked respectable.

“Present? For me?” Sam clapped her hands and moved towards the table, finally removing her duffle bag and letting it drop on to the floor. “You didn’t have to get me something.”

“Sure I did. It’s your birthday.” Daryl shrugged and motioned for her to go ahead and open it, crossing the room to stand behind her while she ripped the paper off the rectangular box with all the excitement of a child on Christmas morning. When she finally tore open the box, the top of it landing on the floor with the colorful wrapping paper fluttering down behind it, and pulled out the gift he had painstakingly sought out he was glad to see her face light up with happiness.

“Daryl, it’s beautiful. I love it. It’ll be perfect for writing songs.” Sam ran her hand over the buttery soft brown leather of the notebook cover and noticed her initials etched in to the bottom corner of it. SJC for Samantha James Collins. “Cassie told you my middle name, didn’t she?”

“Yeah, and it’s a little weird your dad stuck you with his name.” Daryl reached out and put his hands on her waist, pulling Sam closer to him as she continue to ooh and ahh over the present. “It’s removable … you can use it with other notebooks. You really like it?”

“I absolutely love it.” Sam sat the present on the table and turned around to face Daryl. Easing up on to her tip toes, she wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned in to him; happy to finally be alone with him and in his arms. “It’s the best gift I’ve gotten.”

“Good.” Daryl leaned down and kissed Sam; a gentle brush of the lips that sparked a fire deep inside that he’d only ever felt with her. Tightening his hold on her, Daryl pulled Sam against him, pressing their bodies closer together as their kiss deepened.

Sam’s skin tingled, her mind swam and her body ached for Daryl. She moaned softly at the feel of his tongue brushing against hers as their embrace grew more intense. Fisting her hands in the thick hair at the nape of his neck, she pressed against him and felt his desire pressing back against her. Pulling away from his lips, Sam smiled up at Daryl and murmured, “I’ll be right back…I’m, uh, going to go freshen up.”

Daryl watched as Sam grabbed her bag and, with a shy smile, turned and headed towards the bathroom. It took him a moment to realize why she was blushing so profusely, but it eventually hit him about the same time as the bathroom door clicked shut. Quickly, he darted across to the living room and turned on one of the table lamps before turning off the bright fluorescent light blaring away in the kitchen. He stood in the center of the rooms and wondered if he should go ahead in to the bedroom, or if that would be too forward, or if he should stay in the living room. He’d just opted for sitting on the couch when the shrill sound of the phone ringing split through the air. Glancing at the clock on the stove, he noticed it was nearly one in the morning and wondered who would be calling. He grabbed the phone off the charger on the television stand, he answered the phone. “Yeah?”

“Baby brother,” Merle sighed inwardly with relief when Daryl’s voice came across the line. Glancing nervously over his shoulder at the man behind him, he said, “I need you, man.”

Daryl listened somewhat patiently as his brother filled him in on what had been going on in his life since he’d moved out the weekend before. Unfortunately, none of it was good and when Merle got to the real reason he was calling, Daryl groaned and asked, “Seriously? It has to be now?” He closed his eyes and sighed. “Fine. Yeah, I’ll be there soon. You fucking owe me for this, Merle.”

Sam came out of the bathroom about the time Daryl flung the cordless phone across the living room, where it landed on the couch and bounced off the cushion to fall in to the floor. Sure, she’d been in the bathroom a bit longer than anticipated reapplying deodorant, spritzing on body splash, brushing her teeth and yes, dabbing on some of the absurd nipple cream Cassie had bought her just in case, but she didn’t think she’d been in there long enough to completely destroy Daryl’s mood. Dropping her bag just inside the living room, she stood in the doorway and hesitantly asked, “Everything ok?”

“Shit, no.” Daryl growled as he stomped towards Sam, slipping past her to go in to the bedroom. Yanking open a drawer, he reached inside and shoved the clothes inside around until he located the wad of cash in the bottom. He peeled off fifteen one hundred dollar bills and shoved them into his pocket before slamming the drawer shut and stomping angrily back to where he’d left Sam standing. One look at her face had his anger slipping away slightly because he realized she thought there was something wrong with her…or with them. “I’m sorry. Merle’s done fucked up…again, I gotta run to Macon.”

“Oh, well…I could go with you.” Sam offered as she leaned down to pick up her bag once more. “I’d just need to change real quick.”

“No. You ain’t got no business going where I gotta go.” Daryl hated to see the happiness fade out of her lovely green eyes and be replaced with disappointment and sadness. “Where I’m going…they ain’t nice people, don’t want to risk putting you in danger. I’ll drop you at Cassie’s.” He reached out and took the bag from her hands and slipped it on over her shoulders. Brushing an apology across her lips in the form of a kiss, Daryl looked down in to her eyes and regretted putting the shimmer of tears that sparkled there. “I’m sorry.”

Trying not to let just how disappointed she was show, Sam nodded and glanced down at the floor as Daryl’s arms slipped from around her body. Quietly, she allowed him to take her hand and lead her back out the door they’d only just come in through. Once again on the back of his bike, far sooner than she’d expected to be, she once more put knotted her hair at the nape of her neck and donned the helmet. Leaning in to him, she wrapped her arms tightly around his waist and closed her eyes to keep her sadness from spilling over her lashes. Holding on to Daryl as though he might disappear otherwise, Sam willed the time to move slowly as he drove towards Cassie’s house and hated that Collins was such a small town that the drive took only a handful of minutes. Sliding off the bike, Sam unbuckled the helmet and said, “I can hold on to this so you don’t have to keep up with it tonight, if you want?”

“It’s yours anyway, right?” Daryl said over the roar of the engine. He wanted to tell her to get back on the bike and take them both straight back to his house, but couldn’t leave his brother in the situation he was currently in since the men he’d shafted would likely kill him by sunrise if they didn’t have their money, plus interest, in hand. Reaching out, he grabbed hold of the strap on her bag and pulled her close, “I’ll make it up to you.”

“Be careful?” Sam leaned down and kissed Daryl deeply, an ominous feeling in her stomach had her desperate to beg him to stay, but knew he wouldn’t since his brother needed him. “Call me tomorrow night, ok?”

She stood on the sidewalk in the pitch of night and watched as his taillights faded from sight before heading in to Cassie’s house, thankful that her friend had not only left the back door unlocked, but also kept a light burning outside. Once she was inside the darkened house and completely alone, she realized she had no desire to be there and grabbed her keys that Cassie had tossed on to the dresser when she’d came home to trade cars. Scribbling a note on the pad of paper on the night stand, Sam briefly explained what had happened and told Cassie she would see her at lunch.

A short while later, she was quietly sneaking in to her house via the kitchen entrance when the room was suddenly flooded with light. “Mom! Holy crap, you scared me!”

“I scared you?” Donna Collins laughed and grabbed at her chest as though Sam had given her a heart attack. She’d been unable to sleep and had come down to the kitchen for some hot tea when the sound on someone at the back door had startled her momentarily until she’d realized it was just her daughter. “What on earth are you doing home? I thought you were spending the night with Cassie?”

“I was, but I changed my mind.” Putting her car keys on the hook by the door, Sam slipped the bag strap over her head and sat it on the kitchen counter. “Daryl and Cassie…I dunno, I just decided to come home.” She mumbled as she took a seat on one of the bar stools at the counter, inadvertently making her mother reconsider her thoughts about Daryl actually being involved with Sam instead of Cassie.

“Oh, honey, I’m sorry.” Donna smiled happily once her back was turned from Sam as she got down another mug and poured hot water in to it over a tea bag. She had obviously been wrong in her assumptions in regards to Sam being involved with Daryl and was pleased to find out that she’d been wrong. “It’s tough when your friend gets a boyfriend. I’m sure Cassie doesn’t mean to exclude you.”

“Hmm? Oh, uh…yeah. I know she didn’t mean it.” Sam accepted the mug from her mother and added in a heaping amount of honey to it. “I’m kind of tired. I’m gonna take this upstairs with me and go to bed soon. Thanks again for the party, Mom.” Grabbing her bag once more, not wanting to leave it in any location that might cause her mother to look inside and see the sexual items that were inside, Sam heaved it over her shoulder and carried it upstairs with her mug in hand.

Once in her bedroom, Sam turned on the light on her night stand, sat the mug down and stripped off her clothes. Taking a quick shower, she toweled off and slipped on a pair of underwear and an oversized shirt and slid between the cool sheets alone…which was so not how she had intended on spending the evening. Staring up at the faintly glowing stars on her ceiling, her mind raced and played back every single second of the night. After a few minutes, Sam realized her brain wasn’t going to shut down any time soon and rolled over to turn on the lamp once more. Leaning over the edge of the bed, she rooted around in the bag she’d dropped there until her hand closed around the rim of the notebook Daryl had given her, which she had managed to grab off his kitchen table as he was all but dragging her out of the house.

Rolling back on to the bed, Sam bent her knees under the covers and propped the notebook up on her thighs. The blank piece of paper, the first one in the notebook, was momentarily daunting until words started to form in her mind. Smiling, merely a gentle lift to the corner of her mouth, Sam murmured the words aloud as she scribbled down the possible lyrics that were running through her mind.

Don’t you wanna stay here a little while...Don’t you wanna hold each other tight…Don’t you wanna fall asleep with me tonight…

*Song: Don't You Wanna Stay: Jason Aldean and Kelly Clarkson**

Notes

Thanks for the reviews!!!

Comments

@aphishinthec


Wow! Thank you so much. Glad you enjoyed it again. :)

Serenity Serenity
12/1/16

I binge read this too over thanksgiving weekend and literally could not put it down. I was a constant reader when the updates were regular, but sadly am the worst at remembering to review. Excellent story to binge read!!

aphishinthec aphishinthec
12/1/16

@Tripper


Squee! Glad you liked it just as much the second time around. :)

Serenity Serenity
11/28/16

So, I may have just gorged myself on this story and read it all over again in a few days. This is one of my very favourite stories of all time. So freakin' good. Thanks again for this wicked story!

Tripper Tripper
11/25/16

@Lunabelle4


Thank you so much!

Serenity Serenity
11/14/16