"Yeah, he gained and lost forty pounds," Sam said, nodding.
Ty looked at him when he spoke, and he wanted to claim her in some way—put a scarf around her neck that said she belonged to him. That feeling was only intensified by the fact that she had seen the ad with Tom Hardy in the woods. It was an extended ad that the studio had released but had not yet sponsored. It wasn't appearing on television or social media yet, and therefore it had far fewer views than the other ads for the movie. But Ty had seen that longer one, and it happened to be the only one that Sam was in. The fact that Ty had seen that one gave him way too much satisfaction.
Alex made a statement about the promotional materials for Paths Crossing, and Cameron and Judd said something to him about which clips they were going to use.
Ty's mom made an announcement saying that she had heard from Amelia and that she'd be arriving at the ranch in a couple of hours. Jen Sutter used the opportunity to announce that dinner would be ready in fifteen minutes.
Ty's aunt came over and started asking Ty a ton of questions about her work. She had a friend who had attended the John Mayer concert, and she was bragging on the experience. Ty's mom chimed in, saying that she was doing all that in addition to being a full-time student.
Sam could have sworn he saw Ty flinching when her mom bragged, and he wondered what she was thinking. He wanted to be alone with her so badly. His feelings had not subsided in the time they had been apart. He was so hyperaware of Ty and driven to have her that he felt hot and agitated. It took skill and patience to pretend to be nonchalant when all he wanted to do was tell her how wonderful she was and that she should be his from now on.
Sam listened to her family bragging about her, and it only served to stoke the flames.
The families and friends ate together. It was a large tray of pasta with salad and bread. Sam ate and went through the motions of being a good dinner guest. He asked questions, and he answered those asked of him. But he could not ignore Ty, try as he might.
They were seated at the table with Judd between them. They were close enough that he could hear parts of her conversation. It was torturous. He had to get closer to her. He had no reason to believe things had changed with her since the last time I saw her. She likely still wanted to be friends with him. But they had a few stolen glances at the table, and Sam had hope that she felt something more now.
It was an hour or so later, and they had finished eating when Ty excused herself to go freshen up. She talked to Jen Sutterabout where she was staying. Some of her family was staying in apartments on the other side of the ranch, but Ty would stay in one of the bedrooms in the house. Sam heard Jen explain to her which one it was, and Ty took off, heading to retrieve her luggage and go upstairs.
Everyone was distracted and doing their own thing, so Sam easily snuck out of the room and followed her.
"Hey," he said quietly at her back as she headed down the hall with her bag. She breathed a sharp breath and turned. He had startled her.
"I'm sorry," he said, putting his hands out.
"Oh, no, I just didn't hear you," she said sweetly. "I was just going to freshen up for the vows. We're not in a hurry, though. Even once she gets here, she'll still have to talk to Henry and get changed and everything. I'm thinking we won't be saying the vows for another hour, probably more, actually. Jen said something about heading there at eight."
Sam had heard all of that at dinner.
He smiled at Ty.
"I want to go over there early, but I definitely need to freshen up. I only need like ten or fifteen minutes, though. I think I might head over to the building before everyone else. Jen said I could use the Gator if I wanted to go early and make sure it's set up how Amelia would like it. She sent photos, and I know it's great, but I was just going to go there and see it." She was nervous and talking quickly, and Sam was absolutely entranced. "I'm all about driving that little ATV. It's cold out, but not too cold for driving the Gator. I love those things. It'll be fun."
She paused and took a deep breath, and Sam stared at her, wondering what all this meant for him.
"Did you want me to go over there with you?"
"Oh yeah, that's why I told you my plans," she said, looking surprised. "Did I not say that? I'm sorry. I was trying to ask you… and whoever wanted to go early."
"Yeah, no, that sounds fun. I will head over there early with you." He grinned. "Me and whoever."
"Great. Okay. Did you need anything else when you came up here?"
"No, I-I guess I was just wanting to. I don't know what I wanted. Just to… talk to you, I guess." Sam rarely found himself in a state of being tongue-tied, but he was in one now. "I'll see you in a few minutes, though," he said. He bowed a little as he backed away and turned to walk away.
"Hey Sam?" she said at his back.
He turned.
"I'm glad you came here."
"Up here right now? Or on this trip?" he asked.
She shrugged a little and smiled. "Both, I guess."
He nodded. "Me too," he said. He was smiling as he turned and headed back downstairs.
Sam was so smitten he could hardly think straight. He went back into the kitchen and seamlessly joined the conversation again. No one even noticed he was missing. He came to stand in a large group of guys that were all standing around while Henry's dad told a story.
