It Had To Be You

Chapter 16

Copyright © 2024 Cassey9

Third Person P.O.V

It's like the depth of their connection intensified more in the woman's absence. Indeed, her heart was growing founder the longer her vampire was away. Lea was anxiously awaiting her aunt Jillian's return from the long business trip. It was times like these she wished she was done with her schooling so she could work side by side with her mother and aunt, travel and contribute to the family business.

Lea could barely reign in her emotions the longer the hours passed by. She was buzzing, the energy making her giddy and excited. With her heart fluttering in anticipation, Lea headed out to meet her friends.

The few hours with them would be a welcomed distraction and help curb her yearning. From what she'd gathered from Sam's message, they were meeting at new place in town. Lea had googled the restaurant beforehand and from the reviews that stalked its website, the restaurant was now one she wanted to visit.

~~~~~~~~~~

Lea cursed under her breath as she shoved her key cars in her small handbag. Finding a parking spot had been a pain. She scanned around noting the throngs of cars parked in the vicinity. It was expected Lea murmured to herself with it being midday and the 4 stars the restaurant's page held, then of course it would be packed.

Lea walked up front and pushed the front doors open with her arms. A sea of heads awaited her on the other side along with a burst of mouthwatering aromas. Lea scanned the room and in an instant thought of pulling her phone out to text Maddie. She was supposed to be here already.

"Hey!"

Lea jumped at the sudden voice. Her fingers stopped midway through her text and she gazed up to find Sam standing before her.

"You startled me! Hi!" Lea let out her heart still pumping hard from the shock.

All he could offer was an apologetic smile, "Um, this way Lea," Sam uttered and settled his hand on her lower back to guide her way. "We have a table and there is..."

"Wait," Lea cut him short as her gaze swept around searching for their friends. "Are the rest here already yet?"

"About that," Sam drew the words out. How would he explain the oncoming encounter? What would Lea do? "You need to play along, please Lea."

"What?" Lea stopped, turned and leveled him with a questioning look. "Play along with what?"

"Lea Allegra! Darling, get up she's here!"

The shrill yet posh, elated voice had Lea twirling around to match the voice with the face. Mr and Mrs Cameron stood before her in all their glorious forms. The woman grin so wide it literally felt blinding and her excitement palpable to Lea.

"Sweetie, come here," Mrs Cameron declared pulling a clearly flabbergasted Lea into an embrace. Lea tentatively rested her arms on the woman waist her mind still processing their presence. Where were the rest of their friends.

"Hi. Hello," Lea murmured still in a daze of confusion. The firm handshake from Mr Cameron cemented the couple's presence.

"Come on, sit," Mrs Cameron encouraged moving ahead to pull a seat for Lea. "Sam, hold the chair for your girlfriend..."

"What?!"

"Lea?"

She slapped the hand squeezing her thigh and started pushing her chair backwards to leave. Apparently Sam had other plans up his sleeve and she intended to set the record straight to. Ap

. "Sir, Ma'am I think you got things very mix..."

"Lea," Sam pleaded leaning towards his friend. The hard look on his father's face made his insides twist in trepidation.

"What?" Lea whisper yelled, the scathing look on her face making Sam tongue-tied. Her only constant thought was smacking the ashen look off Sam's face but Lea didn't like the attention their table was already garnering. "How could you?" She demanded through gritted teeth.

"Please," he begged and took her hand under the table.

"No," Lea mouthed breaking the contact.

"What's going on guys," Mrs Cameron's low and slow inquiring voice broke their intense stare off.

"As I was saying," Lea with finality in her tone, turned to acknowledge Sam's parents. "Sam and I, we..."

"Are taking this slow, just like you told me to dad," Sam jumped in finishing the sentence for Lea. He brought their hand together and intertwined their fingers on top of the table for his parents to see. "We are still finding our feet in this relationship, right babe?"

Mrs Cameron cooed the two, reached out and also took her husband's hand. "I'm happy for you two lovebirds. Sam has told us so much of you two together. My son always talks of you Lea and I expected this. You two. Together."

"Son, I'm proud of you," Mr Cameron finally spoke in a deep timbre. "You finally brought home a beautiful, outstanding lady. You're such a joy."

"Thanks Dad."

Lea held her tongue and let Mr Cameron's words sink in. In all the years she had known the man, not once had she ever heard the man utter such uplifting words to his son.

"Let's eat. I'm paying, so order anything you'd like," Mr Cameron bellowed, "Go wild because at last we have something grand to celebrate. Right, Ms. Allegra?"

"Um... It's Lea. Just call me, Lea."

"She's' right sweetie," Mrs Cameron uttered and reached forward to affectionately squeeze Lea's hand. "Let's dispense with the formality. Who knows maybe soon you'll become my daughter in law. No, you will be my daughter."

"What do you want to eat babe" Sam gently asked as he handed Lea a menu. He'd noticed Lea tense up at his mother's bold declaration of their future. A future he now saw as near impossible in becoming true.

In a moment of empathy for Sam's vulnerability, Lea agreed to pretend for just the duration of the lunch. She played the part perfectly, concealing the truth that lay hidden within her heart.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Lea was literally boiling onthe inside by the time lunch came to a wind. She was livid. With a fake smile plastered on her face, Lea robotically waved goodbye at Sam's parents as they pulled out of their parked spot and drove off in their sleek, shimmering, black Audi. She roughly pulled away from Sam once the car disappeared around the bend.

"Lea..."

She moved, the sound of her palm connecting with Sam's cheek resonating all around them.

"Don't!" Lea uttered, the word piercing like an ice dagger to his chest. Her attempts to depart from him were halted by Sam's hand grabbing her wrist. This angered Lea even more as she swiveled around and fast smacking him across the same cheek again.

"Lea. Please," Sam groaned pleadingly despite his throbbing cheek. "I'm sorry. Please."

"I can't... I just can't believe you right now!" Lea spat out. "We talked about this! Yesterday, Sam! Yesterday! And then... and then you go ahead and pull something like this, today!"

"I'm... I'm so... I'm so sorry Lea," he stammered through his apology. "I didn't know what to do. It just happened, Lea. My mom kept hounding me about you and... And I broke, my... my dad was also there and... and it just happened!"

"I don't care, Sam!" Lea declared. It was hard to keep the venom from her voice. He had betrayed her trust and ruined their friendship with his stupid ruse. "I'm leaving and you better let go of me or I'll scream Sam and we both know that wouldn't end good for you!

"Lea... Please, let's just talk ab..."

"1, 2..."

"Fine," Sam answered in resignation. He released Lea and couldn't help but watch her storm away. His heart sank deeper the more the rift widened between them. He was at rock bottom and honestly, the light that everyone kept referring to at every end of a tunnel seemed naught in his.

~~~~~~~~~

"Girlfriend!" Lea scoffed as she slid into the driver's seat. How could he? Especially after they'd drawn a clear line the previous day pertaining to the nature of their relationship. They were friends! Just friends. Actually no! They weren't friends anymore! Friends didn't pull the rag under your feet by tangling you in their lies.

Lea's mind first went to her mother. She'd already come out to her and made it clear that she was dating a woman. How would she react? What would she say to her mother now?

Knowing Mrs Cameron, Sam's mother, would surely call her own mother and conversate about their children's relationship. Honestly, Lea was a little surprised that the woman hadn't already done so since it seemed Sam had been weaving this lie for quite a while!

Aunt Jillian!

Lea could only imagine the vampire's reaction when she finally caught wind of this 'fake' news. Sam had dug a mighty hole and thrust them both in. Whatever friendship existent between them was slowly tethering to an edge of ending. Destroyed by the harmful lies he'd cooked up to save face with his parents.

~~~~~~~~~~

"Don't you like it?"

Lea looked up and met his uncle's eyes. She tried putting on a smile but in the end simply dropped the act. Lea gently pushed away the plate and let out a loud, defeated sigh.

"What's wrong, dear?" Gary now asked growing more worried.

"Um... just having one of those bad days Uncle Gary," Lea answered in a low voice. She'd dropped by her uncle's bakery with aims of eating a sweet treat to get her spirits high but that too didn't seem to be working. "I'm just annoyed and very angry with someone."

Her phone lit up, it's vibration reverberating throughtout the table, "Is he responsible?" he questioned gesturing to the name lighting up the screen.

"Yes."

"Did you guys break up? And so soon?" Gary asked his niece. He had heard from his wife, Gray, that their niece was finally seeing someone and he too had toasted to that great development.

"What?" Lea gasped completely appalled by her uncle's deduction. "Why does everyone keep assuming that Sam and I are dating! We are not!"

Gary let out a little laugh as he raised his arm in mock surrender. "Okay. Okay, I believe you dear! What did he do? I've never seen you like this!"

"Sam lied," Lea started her voice barely above a whisper, "Today, he introduced me as his girlfriend! And to his parents of all people! When we had clearly agreed that we were just going to stay as friends. Just friends and I had to lie along for his sake. His parents are just...a lot to bear."

"Oh?"

"Yes and I'm currently seeing someone and I don't want her thinking that there is something, no, anything romantic going on between Sam and I."

"Wait, you're dating a girl?" he asked in complete surprise. "You're gay?"

Lea smiled at her uncle's excitement at the latter question, "I... I guess, yes. I am. I've just never felt so strongly for anyone but her. Does that make any sense?"

She giggled when her uncle abandoned his seat and engulfed her in a hug, "Oh sweetie. It doesn't have to make sense. When you've found the one nothing has to make sense as long as you feel happy, loved and in love."

Lea nodded feeling the ire she'd lugging around dissipate. "You're right, uncle Gary. She makes me really happy."

Gary pulled away and stared down at her niece, "Wait? Is it Maddie?" he asked. "It's her, right?"

Now that assumption had Lea breaking at the seams in laughter. "No! Never! Now stop with the guessing game uncle," she uttered in between breaks of laughter. "You'll meet her. Soon."

"Give me something," Gary pleaded as he took his earlier seat. "Do I know her at least?"

"You definitely do."

"Oh... Maybe I should keep on naming a few names then. Get through my list," he uttered playfully, "You know me, Lea. You know your dear uncle can't live in suspense. It kills me slowly on the inside. Just tell me her name."

The vibrating of her phone was back on again. Lea glared at the device and an idea she hadn't thought of before came to the forefront of her mind. "I'll block him," Lea muttered to herself as she picked up the phone. That, definitely ought to work and give her some peace and space away from him.

The scowling turned to sheer excitement as the caller ID registered in her eyes. Lea let out an excited squeal and jumped out from her chair before her uncle could see her phone's screen.

"Hello?"

"Lea, my angel," Jillian spoke over the phone.

Lea swallowed nervously, the tone and sensuality in the vampire's voice made her entire body heat up in an instant, "You're home?" Lea asked in a whisper. God, she'd been waiting for this moment to arrive.

"I'm at the apartment," Jillian answered with a pause, "Meet me there, my angel. I can't wait to lay my eyes on you."

The words hit her hard ridding her of any sensible train of thought. Lea turned to look at her uncle who was clearly engrossed in watching her. "Um, now? Yes. I could come to you now."

"Yes. Please do. I want to see you," Jillian uttered, low and slow. "I long to hold you, my angel."

"I'm coming then," Lea quickly answered back. As the days progressed, Lea felt more positive and sure of their budding relationship. They were both becoming a whole lot bolder, open and communicative in their relationship. In fact, she couldn't help but forsee a future with them together. "I can't wait to see you too," Lea added in a meek but elated voice.

Lea, unable to contain her emotions any longer, rushed back to the table, grabbed her belongings, kissed her uncle goodbye and rushed out of the bakery in a breakneck speed. Her uncle's calls and protests were like white noise in the background as she jumped into the car her heart and mind yearning to get to her vampire. Jillian was her final destination.