This was easier. The best way to prevent a Sami Jo sighting was to prevent the sighting. Easy as that.
“No, I’m good here.” She leaned into the shiny mahogany paneling of Tanner’s private bus.
“You should reconsider,” he said.
She understood that he wanted her there. That he worried because she didn’t leave the bus, not since they left Vancouver when they gotonthe bus.
The bus was kickass, but they were at concerts. She sort of wished she could take a peek backstage, feel the energy of a crowd that adored the band. Sink into the experience.
That wasn’t for her though.
She had taken little steps one at a time and wasn’t ready to dive right into the fray. Not that fray, anyway. There had been one thing from her Catiana meet-up that still rubbed funny.
“Can I ask you something?” Sam chewed at her lip, then stopped. They’d gotten a little rowdy last night and her lips were more tender than usual. In a good way, tender. Fuller from everything they’d, ahem, done for each other, to each other. In his case, on each other…
“Anything,” he agreed. “Ask me anything.”
“There’s this thing that Catiana said to me, and it’s totally been in my head the last little bit.”
That got his attention. He didn’t move to her, which was good because she didn’t need that. And she appreciated that he let her have the space so she could spread her wings all on her own. He didn’t always succeed, but she’d noted his effort. Appreciated it.
“I only need to know so I can put the entire experience withherbehind me.” She brought her notebook with her and held it against her chest.
“What is it?” he asked.
Sam forced herself to loosen her grip on the notebook. “She got in my head with some of the things she spewed.”
“Tell me,” he said, keeping his expression impassive. She knew him well enough to know that he, once again, found himself so furious at his ex. That happened a lot since Denver.
Sam took a deep breath, worried that what she’d say would be a wrecking ball to her confidence and everything they’d started building. “She said you told her about me. The night at Brek’s. That you and Ashley both knew that she knew—”
“You know Ashley and I better than that,” he said. Was that too quick? He seemed to say that really quickly. Almost like he’d been waiting for her to ask.
Gah, no. This was Tanner.
“You know us,” he assured.
She did know them. They were both on her team, neither of them would jeopardize that. Sam nodded. “I just needed to be certain.” She swallowed hard, because she had another question. This one was the one that really bugged. “She also said that you both used to laugh at me. Said you loved to use the song I wrote and… laugh. At me.” She crumbled a little inside as she said the words. “Not about the song. I know the song’s funny. But, she said you laughed about me.”
He didn’t say anything right away. Probably felt like she was putting him on the spot over things that weren’t true. Straight from the mouth of a known liar.
“I know better,” she said, holding up her hands. “In my heart and in my head. But I can’t shake it. I can’t shake what she told me.”
“Hey.” He moved to her.
She dropped her head to his shoulder, and he held her. Just held her there as she relaxed into him. Let everything Tanner soothe all the past hurt.
“The past is in the past,” he said, holding her hand up to his heart. “You know who I am now and what matters to me. I’m with you, Samantha Johnson. It may have started with Twister, but I love all the parts of you that make you, you. Even, and most especially, the Sami Jo part.”
She didn’t need to ask to know this was honest. Because Tanner was honesty in person form.
“I have this thing.” She held up the notebook with her songs. She’d been gripping it so hard that the indentations from the edges left marks on her palm.
“Whatcha got?” Tanner asked.
“Dan said I should show you these,” she said.
He held out his hand, and she stared at it for a long second, then she made the leap and handed it over.
