Free A Favor by Fiona Murphy Page B

idiot of myself.
    The morning goes by quickly and I try to keep the disappointment from my face when Taylor leaves, announcing he’s taking Sam out for lunch. I treat myself to a tiny chocolate tart for dessert at lunch and then lecture myself on buying it just as a perk up for missing out on lunch with Sam. I’m back at the size ten I had been before I dated Troy but since I hated exercising, preferring walking or swimming to being stuck in a gym it’s a battle to stay comfortable in my size ten.
    It isn’t like we need to spend all day together, but it is hard knowing he’d be doing overnights. Would he sleep okay?
    Not surprisingly their lunch went long, Taylor has a habit of that and it’s almost two in the afternoon before Taylor is back. Sam isn’t with him, there’s still some paperwork that needed to be completed.
    “Zoe, get the number for the dealership and sales guy Mickey we did that last buy from will you? Sam is going to need something and he likes my truck. I can’t remember what I paid for it.”
    “Are we buying him a truck or he’s buying it?”
    “Sam already busted my balls on his salary, he is not getting a vehicle out of me. Besides, he has more than enough money to buy his own.”
    “Really? Sam had said he didn’t need the money when it came to working here. I thought he meant he just didn’t need it all that badly.”
    “He wasn’t just talking, he really doesn’t need the money. Did you notice the windmills when you went out to his place? They’re on his land, he owns about thirty acres out there. It used to be a chicken farm, one of the largest family owned suppliers in Texas. Things didn’t work out though, Sam had to sell out and he made a deal with a company for the use of his land for the windmills. He’s getting a yearly payment for a lease on the fifteen acres they’re on and then quarterly profits. All of that plus his pay from the Army going into an account and rarely spent, he’s doing just fine.
    Actually, come on into my office. I want to run something by you. Close the door. I’ve been thinking about asking Sam if he wanted to buy in as a partner. We’ve done well since Stanton left but there are times when I’ve met with prospects that aren’t DOD or our usual customers and I can tell that there’s hesitancy there because I don’t have military experience. It feels like it takes longer to land them and if maybe I had Sam at my side I’d close them quicker. Hell, I could just send him out, he’s the whole package. You’ve had some one on one time with him. He told me you talked him around and he’s shared his concerns. I’m sure now he trusts in us or he wouldn’t still be here. What do you think he’d say to the offer?”
    A small part of me wants to scream with happiness at the idea of a way to keep Sam permanently but then I remember Sam’s words. “Right this second, I think the answer would be no but I think if you give him some time it would change. I think right now he’s still feeling out the whole situation, his condition for it to only be six months is apart of that.”
    “You look worried?”
    “I am, what if he decides it’s not for him after all and leaves again? I don’t think he’d go back home but he’s still assessing it all.”
    “Maybe we just have to make it so that he’s so happy here he won’t go?”
    Taylor is saying exactly what I’d been thinking earlier. “That could work.”
    “I trust you’ll help out on that front where you can?”
    My eyes go down, not ready to share my feelings about Sam yet. I nod in agreement. “But could we keep the deal we made out of any conversation with Sam?”
    He’s quiet for a long minute, “I think that’s a good idea.” Taylor stands, “Sam mentioned you were going to take him shopping for clothes, after that you’ll go to the dealership. Give him the information on what I paid and let him haggle with Mickey from there. When he comes back, there won’t be much for the