I hope you know that unless you put your foot down and give him a reason not to, Blade will be back, and he won’t give up until he gets what he wants.” She shook her head. “Neither of you are acting rational. I’ve known Blade for more than seven years, and I’ve never known him to pursue a woman the way he’s chasing you for any reason, conquest or otherwise. I’ve known you even longer, and I’ve never known you to let a bona fide player get under your skin.”
Sam didn’t say anything for a moment and then said, “He claims I’m sending mixed signals.”
“Are you?”
She paused, then admitted, “Possibly. You and Peyton of all people know how I handle players.”
“Yes. Which has me wondering why you’re handling him differently?”
“He’s Luke cousin. Besides, my parents are beginning to act crazy again by playing matchmaker. There’s this new guy who’s working at the law firm. My folks are all but shoving him down my throat. My mother sent me pictures of him over the Internet, but I’ve refused to open the file.”
Mac shook her head. “Will your parents ever learn?”
“Apparently not. I see now that I made a mistake after law school when I let them talk me into coming home and working in the family firm. Those years I spent at Di Meglios were the worst. My parents were determined that I not have a life, at least not one they couldn’t control.”
Sam couldn’t help but remember those years. Her parents were highly respected attorneys who’d earned a name for themselves in New York circles. The firm included her mother and father, her father’s two brothers, Federico and Leandro, and their sons, Maddox and Damon, as well as her brother. They were all Di Meglios and they made their name representing the rich and famous.
Besides her mother, Sam had been the only Di Meglio woman in the family practice. All her female cousins had been smart enough to choose some other profession, since they’d known they would have been expected to work at the family-run law firm.
She cringed each time she remembered her parents’ angry words when she’d told them of her decision to move to Oklahoma and form a law practice with Mac and Peyton. She knew they were still holding out, hoping that eventually she would come to her senses and return home to Manhattan to the plush, prestigious office overlooking the Hudson River, which was still empty and waiting for her. Angelo was the only one who knew for certain that she wouldn’t be coming back, and she had left with his blessings.
“You’re a big girl and I know you can take care of yourself,” Mac said, interrupting her thoughts. “And as far as Luke is concerned, he knows that Blade is capable of handling himself, as well. Just so you know, Luke and I talked about it last night, when Blade walked you to your car. We’ve made a decision to stay out of it. Whatever happens is between you and Blade. Like I said, you’re a big girl.”
Sam didn’t say anything for a moment and then, smiling, she stated, “Well, the first thing this big girl needs to do is clear her calendar for a week and fly to New York to pay her parents a visit. I need to settle a few things and get them to understand my life is my life, and I won’t have them interfering. And as for Blade, if he continues to be a nuisance, I will settle a few things with him, as well.”
Later that evening Blade entered his condo. In a way he was glad to be back home in Houston. His meeting with J. W. Mosley had gone well and the man was looking forward to working with Madaris Construction Company. The building would be a magnificent addition to downtown Oklahoma City’s skyline.
Blade had slept through most of the flight. But right now, he was wide-awake and Sam Di Meglio was on his mind. He was convinced that the only reason he was still thinking about her was because he hadn’t met anyone quite like her. Besides her beauty, he knew there was a passion in her just waiting to be unleashed. He saw it in her walk, was moved by it whenever their eyes met, and had felt it in their kiss that morning. He was definitely looking forward to returning to Oklahoma City, and would make it his business to see her again.
He had talked to Luke on his cell phone on the way to the airport. His cousin had given him fair warning and tried to convince him Sam wasn’t a woman a man wanted to toy with. Blade didn’t want to toy with her. He wanted to spend an entire night in bed with her. He wanted to get her out of his system. He was convinced the kiss they’d shared that morning had definitely been the reason she was still on his mind.
He had put his overnight tote and garment bag on the bed when his cell phone rang. He quickly pulled it out of his pants pocket. “This is Blade.”
“I know who you are.”
He couldn’t help but chuckle upon hearing his great-grandmother’s matter-of-fact voice. “Yes, ma’am, Mama Laverne, I’m sure you do. And how are you doing today?”
“As well as can be expected. And how was your trip to Oklahoma?”
Blade lifted a brow. “How did you know I went to Oklahoma?”
“Slade told me when I called to check on Skye. She’s been a little under the weather.”
“Oh,” Blade said, leaving his bedroom and heading for the kitchen to get a beer out of the refrigerator. He hadn’t known his sister-in-law was sick. “How is she doing?”
“She’s doing fine for someone who’s having a baby.”
Blade blinked. “Excuse me? Skye’s pregnant?”
“I dreamed about fish last night, so you know what that means.”
He nodded as put his great-grandmother on speakerphone, placing his cell phone on the table while he unscrewed the beer cap. Yes, he most certainly knew what that meant. Everybody in the entire Madaris family did. If Skye wasn’t pregnant, someone else was. It seemed whenever his grandmother dreamed of fish someone ended up pregnant.
“Yes, I know,” he said, before tipping the beer bottle to his mouth to take a huge swallow.
“I’m guessing it’s Skye, which would be my first great-great-grand. So I’m tickled pink at the thought of that. But who knows. It might not be Skye. It just as well could be one of your girlfriends.”
Blade nearly choked on the beer he’d been drinking.
“Blade? You okay?”
He coughed to keep from choking. “Yes, I’m fine. You don’t have to worry about it being one of my girlfriends. I don’t do babies.”
“But you do women and all it takes to make a baby is a man and a woman who—”
“Excuse me, Mama Laverne, but I think I hear someone at the door,” he said, quickly deciding the last thing he needed was to hear his great-grandmother’s version of how babies were made. “I need to go answer it.”
“Oh, okay. Will you be at church Sunday?”
He rolled his eyes. He hadn’t planned to go. “Why? Is there something happening there this Sunday?”
“Something happens at church every Sunday, Blade.”
He rolled his eyes again. “Yes, ma’am. I’ll see if I can make it.”
“Elsie Fowler’s
