Page 105 of Please Don't Leave Me

SAM

"Mr. Carlyle, you better hurry, or you'll be late for your own party."

"Denise..."

"Sorry…Sam."

"When you call me Mr. Carlyle, it makes me think of Joel. And you know how we both feel about that man."

Denise's eyes widen, and she nods her head. She, more than anyone, had to put up with my dad's shit, and for far too long.

A few months ago, I got a call from Denise asking if I was still willing to offer her a job at my landscaping company. I, of course, said yes and hired her immediately. It took her a few weeks to get up the courage to tell my dad she quit, but we eventually got her out of there.

She's been working as my secretary, and I don't know how I managed without her. Not taking so many calls or answering so many emails has allowed me to spend more time with Lou doing the things that I enjoy. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy my job, but I enjoy days at the beach withthe love of my life better than getting sweaty and playing in dirt.

I start to walk out the door when Denise calls me back.

"Sam, you forgot something!"

I turn around and walk back into the office to where Denise is sitting, holding a little red box.

"Fuck, thank you! That is not a good thing to forget."

I asked Denise to hold onto it for the past few weeks because I didn't trust Lou not to find it. I could just picture her deciding to deep clean the house one day and stumbling across it, completely ruining the surprise.

She hands me the box and holds my hand a second longer, looking up at me. "Good luck. I know she'll say yes."

I'm not nervous about her saying no; I'm nervous about everything going to plan. I recruited B and Quinn to help me plan out the perfect engagement, followed up by a party with our close friends and family. Per usual, they crushed it. And B only almost spilled the beans twice.

I get in my truck and start driving to the restaurant.

LOUISA

It's my birthday, and Sam told me to meet him at Orion's for dinner since he would be running late. I told him a while ago that I didn't want to do anything big for my birthday, so we made these reservations at the last minute. Luckily, Matt was able to get us a table.

After running into Sam on my birthday a year ago, I texted Matt, telling him I’d found someone and that our little arrangement had come to an end. At that point, I didn’t even know if Sam wanted to be with me, but I didn’tcare. I knew, for better or worse, nothing could be the same after we reunited.

Months later, Sam and Matt met at one of David Perez’s parties. They actually get along really well, and I'm not sure how I feel about that just yet. Sam knows about my previous relationship with Matt, and he doesn't seem to be jealous. It could have something to do with the fact that Matt has doubled Sam's business by hooking him up with several wealthy clients. Daniel Perez also hired Sam for a job, which led to several doors opening for him. I'm so happy he hired more help; otherwise, I would never see him.

I walk into the restaurant and wait for Sam in the entryway. I have his location, so I know he's only a couple of blocks away, likely parking.

When I see him walk through the doors, I smile and give him a hug. He's wearing a perfectly tailored navy suit that makes me want to drag him back to the car and lay the seats all the way back.

"I was wondering if you would be clean." I kiss him and feel him laugh on my lips.

"You think I would show up to a place like this in my work clothes?"

"I wasn't up when you left this morning, so I didn't know if you had brought a change of clothes with you. You said you had to work late, so I brought you some in case you didn't have anything."

"That was nice of you, but I had it covered. I wouldn't show up to your birthday dinner all sweaty."

He kisses me on the cheek and tells me how beautiful I look. We hold hands as we're escorted back to our table. Even after a year of being together, he still gives me all theaffection I need.

After dinner, he says he has a surprise for me. As we walk toward the kitchen, I genuinely have no clue what to expect. I know he asked me for Matt's number to make the reservation, so maybe they conspired to surprise me.

We get to an elevator, and I give him a skeptical look as we step in. He pushes a button, and my mind starts racing with ideas. Why do I have to be so nosey?

"The roof?"

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