Howie took a fortifying breath and opened the door cautiously. Dani was sitting on the sofa hugging a pillow. She glared angrily at him. "What in the hell is AJ doing here? You've known for weeks that Sam was coming today!" she said accusingly. Howie had the decency to look uncomfortable as he attempted to explain. "I didn't keep it from you on purpose," he began, "But you had me so stressed out with your computer secrets, it slipped my mind!"
"This isn't about the CD, Howie," she said stonily.
"The hell it isn't," he shouted. At the end of her rope, Dani slammed the pillow down against the couch. "Now you listen to me Howard Dorough," she said angrily, pointing her finger at him. "You know their history. Sam won't stay if he's here! I've been looking forward to her visit for months, and by God, if you or AJ screw this up. . . ."
"There wouldn't be a problem if your friend wasn't so damn pigheaded," he pointed out. "She's the one who walked out on him."
"He's not the innocent victim here," Dani snorted. "You know why she left. But they still might have worked it out if he hadn't been so quick to go running back to Amanda." At that moment, the doorbell rang, interrupting their argument. "Oh, shit! That's bound to be Sam," Dani said. "How in the hell am I suppose to explain this to her?" she worried as she headed for the foyer. Howie followed her, sighing. "As if we don't have enough tension in this house already," he said to himself.
Sam looked up as she heard the door open. Her smile faded as she saw who was standing there. Without a word she turned and walked away. She was halfway down the sidewalk before she realized the cab was long gone. "Damnit," she swore. The only car on the street nearby was a black sedan. Just as she was considering the possibility of asking the blonde man sitting in the car for a ride back to the airport, she heard AJ's voice behind her. "Coward." Sam stiffened, but before she could deliver a stinging reply, Dani rushed out the front door. "Sam! Wait! Please don't leave. I can explain," she cried. She took Sam 's bags from her and shoved them at Howie.
"Forget it, Dani," AJ interrupted. "Sam's good at running away without giving you a chance to explain," he said spitefully. Sam glared at him and raised her chin in the air before marching into the house. Giving AJ an irritated look, Dani followed her. AJ laughed smugly as he watched the women enter the house. "This should be interesting," he commented. Howie looked at his friend warningly. "Dani's already pissed at me over you being here. Don't make it any worse by picking a fight with Sam."
AJ grinned. "Who, me?" he said innocently.
Dani followed Sam up to her room. "I'm sorry," she told her friend, "I didn't know he was going to be here until he showed up a little while ago."
"God, I wish you had," Sam said, sitting down on the bed and dropping her face into her hands, as she relived the shock she had felt at seeing AJ. Dani apologized again. "I'm sorry. Howie forgot to tell me. Things have been a little tense between us for the last couple of days," she said quietly. Sam lifted her head, concern in her eyes for the worry she heard in Dani's voice. "Why? What's wrong?" Sam asked. "You two never fight."
Dani sighed. "There's something seriously wrong with the new CD. I don't want to tell Howie until I have all the details, but he's really been pushing me," she told Sam.
"Men can be such pricks," Sam commiserated. "Can I do anything to help?"
"Just let me run some things by you later and tell me if you think I'm overreacting," Dani told her. "You ready for Disney?" she asked, changing the subject as AJ brought Sam's bags into the room. He didn't say anything as he dropped the bags on the bed, but the look he gave Sam spoke volumes. She ignored him and he didn't linger where he knew he wasn't wanted. "You know, you can't stay up here in your room all the time," Dani said sympathetically, after AJ had left. "You're going to have to face him sooner or later." Sam sighed, "Are you sure I can't just stay up here?" she said smiling reluctantly.
"Howie'll be dragging you down those stairs himself," Dani laughed, "if you refuse to come down and cook for him. He's been looking forward to your visit just for that reason alone." Sam laughed with her friend. Dani made no secret of the fact that she couldn't cook and had no desire to learn. Howie either did all the cooking himself or they ate out. "Okay," Sam conceded. "You're right as usual, but please don't leave me alone with AJ," she begged.
As the girls made their way back downstairs, laughing and planning their activities for the next two weeks, the phone began to ring. "Dani," Howie called, "It's for you!" He held the receiver out to her as she entered the living room. "It's Jeff," he said staring reproachfully at her. Dani turned to Sam, pleading for understanding. "I'm sorry, I really have to take this call."
"Go," Sam said, waving her away. "I'll be all right." Dani brushed past Howie. "I'll take it in my office. That way you can listen in on this end," she said snidely. Howie waited a minute to give Dani time to pick up the phone in her office. When he was certain that she had it, he slammed the receiver down forcefully. Sam winced, glancing over at AJ. He seemed as startled as she was at Howie's display. She looked away quickly when AJ's eyes met hers. "I'm going to start some dinner," she said to no one in particular as she headed to the kitchen.
AJ plopped down on the sofa next to Howie. "Trouble in paradise?" he asked curiously. Howie sighed. "Up until two days ago, it was paradise," he said as he began to confide in his friend. A little while later, Dani returned to the living room rubbing her temples. She had a worried expression on her face. "Was it really necessary for you to slam the phone down like that?" she confronted him.
"Oh, excuse me!" Howie retorted. "I was just trying to make sure you knew I wasn't listening in on your conversation!"
"Why can't you just give it a rest?" she said wearily. Taking this as his cue, AJ slipped off to the kitchen.
Samantha tensed as she heard someone enter the kitchen. She knew it was AJ because she could smell his unmistakable scent. And she could hear Dani and Howie in the other room arguing. She bit her lip as he brushed up against her while reaching for a glass from the cabinet. "Looks good," he said so close to her ear she could feel his breath. She trembled and closed her eyes for a moment before moving away from him.
AJ smiled slightly as he watched her step over to the stove and begin stirring a pot. It was nice to know he still affected her the same way she did him. When he had opened the door earlier to find her standing there, all of his feelings for her had come flooding back, including the anger he had felt when she had walked out on him. "What are you fixing?" he asked as he filled his glass from the faucet. She glanced at him sideways. "Lasagna," she said.
"Mmmmmm. Good home cooking," he said. "Haven't had that in a while." She picked up a towel and wiped her hands, turning away from him. She pretended to busy herself with the meal preparations, hoping he would go away if she ignored him. It wasn't to be, though, as he came up behind her and trapped her between the counter and his body. "How long are you going to stay mad at me?" he asked before nibbling at her ear lobe. She turned her head away from him. "I'm not mad at you," she told him curtly.
"That's good," he said, slipping his arms around her waist and nuzzling her neck. "I've missed you." Sam pushed his arms away and walked away from him. "Don't do this, AJ," she said.
"Damnit, Samantha, " he swore. "How long are you gonna make us both pay for one stupid mistake?" She looked at him incredulously. "Oh, is that all it was?" she said bitterly.
"If you had let me explain instead of just running away. . . . ." he began.
"We both know you weren't lonely after I left!" she accused him. They glared at each other in stony silence. "How long are you staying anyway?" AJ asked her suddenly.
"Two weeks. Why?" she said suspiciously. He gave her a slow smile. "What a coincidence," he said. "Me too."
"Oh no you're not!" she said, shaking a spoon at him. "Dani won't let you!" He grinned even
wider. "But Howie will," he informed her before he left the room.
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