Chapter 42
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her body stiffened instinctively.
The moment Samantha heard Leonardo’s name, her body
Lavda immediately held onto her wrist. “What do you think, Samantha?“
Caught off guard, Samantha blinked. But faced with Layla’s expectant gaze, she nodded without hesitation. “You’re right!”
“Right about what? You weren’t even listening! What’s up with you?”
“N–nothing.”
“You’re stammering. That’s definitely not nothing!”
Samantha struggled to find the right words, so Layla simply sat beside her, waiting patiently. “Come on, tell me. What’s there to hide from me, your best friend?
After a long internal debate, Samantha caved and told Layla everything—about how she’d been trying to get Leonardo’s help and the past few weeks of struggling to figure him out
**Wait, what?” Layla was shocked when she learned that Samantha actually had Leonardo on her contacts list. When she found out Leonard was the one Samantha had been asking for help, the was appalled.
After agonizing internally for q
quite a while, Samantha admitted, “I think he might you know.. want to sleep with me…
Layla practically screamed, “What?”
Layla was beyond shocked. She’d had no idea that Samantha had been dealing with so much lately, it left bar stunned.
The sheer volume of her reaction made Samantha recol, practically curling into the corner of the couch. “D–did I do something wrong?”
“No, no, you didn’t do anything wrong–I’m just surprised, always thought Leonardo was the type to sleep with a woman and disappear the next morning. But he’s still keeping in touch with you? Wow. I guess he got a taste, and now he’s hooked!”
Samantha’s face burned. She grabbed a pillow and threw it at Layla, “That’s not what’s happening!”
“But seriously, if one night in bed could get you what you need why don’t you just do it? He’s hat, he’s rich, and let’s be honest–you haven’t been with anyone else before. It’s not like you’d know the difference. This is an easy way out!”
Samantha’s eyes widened in shock. “Excuse me? What kind of advice is that?”
“I’m just being realistic. We’re adults, Samantha. Does it really matter if it’s once or twice?”
Samantha shot up from the coach and faked a yawn: “Wow, I just realized I’m exhausted. I need to go to bed.” She practically sprinted to her room, slammed the door shut, and buried herself under her blanker.
She wasn’t having that conversation with Layda. It was way too embarrassing
That night, Samantha tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep. When she finally drifted off, she dreamed about that night–of Leonardo’s firm grip around her waist and the way he
Her fangers curled into the sheets in her sleep, her heart pounding. When she woke up in the morning, her cheeks were flushed. Shaken, she stumbled into the bathroom and splashed cold water on her face to clear her head.
It was the weekend, so she didn’t have class. A quick glance at the clock told her it was already 11:00 am. Samantha stepped out of hot room and bound the apartment empty–Layla had already left
There was a note on the tabl
you a sandwich. You can have it for beakfast if you wake up early or lunch it you sleep in.” Samantha smiled, tucking the note away before grabbing the sandwich. Alter beakfast, she headed to the hospital to visit Cynthia.
Cynthia lay in bed, but completion pale, an oxygen mask covering her tave. Her chest rose and tell weakly as she slept. If not for the faint color on her cheeks, Samantha would have feared
the worst.
Zara stood nearby, her expression soft with i
sympathy “Mis. Newton Senior has been sleeping a lot apply. It’s good for her recovery. We can only hope she gets better.” Samantha gave her a strained unde. Hope. That was all they had left. But she knew deep down that withouurgery, Cynthia wouldn’t have much time left.
