Chapter 11 - Scott

Scott watched as she yawned, trying to cover it up by turning away from the person she was talking to.  The only problem was that she turned in his direction, allowing him to clearly see how tired she truly was.  Weaving through the guests, he stopped next to her.  As he leaned in, to whisper in her ear, she turned, her nose touching his.  He froze, not knowing what to do.  This was Sam, the woman who he had plans for, not the woman he could afford to have feelings towards.

Clearing his throat, he pulled away from her as he scratched the back of his neck in discomfort.  "I think it's about time to leave.  I have work in the morning, and I'm sure you do too."

She nodded, leaning closer to him to put her head on his shoulder.  For the second time that night, he froze as she wrapped her arms around him and snugged close.  "I'm tired."

His hands rose, ready hold her closer when she was pulled from his body.  Smiling, Max swooped down and cradled her in his arms.  "She's a cuddler when she's tired.  You should try sleeping in the same bed as her.  If you don't mind waking up with someone wrapped around you, sweaty from the heat, you won't mind sleeping with Sam."

Scott swallowed hard, but when he noticed the gleam in Max's eyes, he reached out and punched the man on the arm.  "Not funny."

"I thought it was hilarious," Graham said, coming up behind Max.  Graham looked down at Sam, a caring smile crossing his face.  Leaning towards her, he brushed the hair from her face before.  "She really is beautiful."

"Enough of accosting my friend when she's not even awake to appreciate it," Max said, pulling Sam away from Graham's reach.  Scott held his breath, waiting for her eyes to open after Max jerked her into a more comfortable position.  A small sigh escaped her lips as she rubbed her cheek against Max chest, but her eyes didn't even twitch. "Now, let's go before I drop her."

"What about all these people?" Graham whispered.

Max sent him an odd expression.  "They live here."

"All of them?" Scott asked, feeling shocked that so many people would live in such a small house.

"The majority of them," he replied with a shrug.  "Some live elsewhere.  Now, really we got to go." 

"Do we," Graham started before waving a hand in the other's general direction.

"Say goodbye," Scott finished, making Max give the two of them an odd look. 

The man shook his head before shifting Sam in his arms better.  "Nah, we just leave.  By the way, why don't the two of you date each other and leave Sam out of it.  You're screwing with her and it's starting to piss me off."

He turned his back on them and left the house, leaving both Scott and Graham standing there in shock.  Looking towards his friend, Scott shrugged.  "We're not screwing with her."

"If anything, she's screwing with us," Graham agreed.  "I mean who has hair like that anyway?"

"Or eyes."

"Or a body."

"Or lips."

"I think you went too far," Graham said while shaking his head.

Scott pursed his lips. "You really think so?"

"Nah," Graham said with a laugh while walking towards the door.  "She does have a nice mouth."

Shaking his head at his friend, Scott followed behind.  Once they reached the outside of the house, they noticed a figure standing in the dark.  Immediately, Scott went on alert, while Graham simply walked up to the man.  As they got closer, he realized it was Max, standing there.

"What are you waiting on?" Graham asked, pure curiosity in his voice.

Max turned his eyes towards him, a small smile on his face.  "You."

"Me?"

"Todd is staying here with his sister for the night; you are the only other one who came here with Sam."

Scott took a step forward, putting himself into the conversation.  "What's wrong with my car?"

"It's probably gone."

"Gone?" Scott asked, panic filling him.  "What do you mean 'gone?'"

Max rolled his eyes.  "Can we walk and talk, because Sam is heavier than she looks."

Graham began walking, bringing them to where Sam had parked her car while Scott stood by Max, waiting for the answers to his questions.  "So," Scott coaxed.

"I gave them a fifty, which means you'll get the car back.  They might take it for a ride, or something, but they will give it back."

"How will they know where to deliver it?"

Max looked at him from the corner of his eyes as Sam's car came into view.  "I'm guessing your wallet is gone?"

He patted his pants, letting out a curse when he found the thing missing.  "Damn."

"Don't worry," Max said, putting Sam in the back seat as Graham opened the door, "they'll return that too.  Everything but the cash will still be there."

"How do you know all this?"

Max smiled over his shoulder before rising to face Scott.  "Because it's happened to me a couple times until they started to respect me.  You're lucky, if you didn't come here for Sam, you wouldn't see either one of them again."

The door slammed shut, and Max ran to the other side of the car to slip in the back near Sam.  Scott stood there, watching as Graham settled himself behind the wheel.  Taking a deep breath, he let it out before sliding into the passenger's seat.  Closing the door, he snapped his seatbelt on before turning to look at Max.  "You knew that was going to happen."

"Yes," Max answered, even though it wasn't a question.

"And you let it happen anyway."

"Yep."

"Asshole," Scott mumbled, feeling a smile spread on his mouth.  "You really are someone we're going to have to watch out for, huh?"

Max nodded, scooting to the middle of the car to snap Sam into a seat-belt before letting her lean onto him.  Surprisingly enough, the woman still didn't wake from her sleep.  "Yep.  I love my girl, more than I love anyone in the world.  If you really think you can handle her, there are a lot of things you need to deal with first."

"I'm beginning to see that," Graham mumbled as he started the car and began his drive to Sam's house.  "How are we doing this?" he asked, interrupting the conversation. 

"Doesn't matter," Max answered.  "You drive us to Sam's, and then take the car with you.  You could drive to yours, and I'll drive back to Sam's.  Or, you could stay at Sam's, your choice."

"What are you doing?" Scott asked, his eyes narrowing on the man.

Max rolled his eyes back. "You're ridiculous.  I'm staying with Sam, in her bed."

"Where will we stay?" Graham asked, already arriving at her house.

Max smiled at the two of them.  "At your own house," he said, jumping out of the car and rounding it to pick up Sam.  As he opened the door, he stuck his head in to look at the two of them.  "If I remember correctly, one of you are allergic to iguanas.  No sleeping at Sam's for you."  He unbuckled Sam, picking her up as he would a child before cradling her to his chest.  As he shut the door, Scott rolled down his window. 

"Do you need help getting in?"

"Nah, I got a key."

Scott searched for something else to say.  "What about the car?"

"I'll come get it tomorrow."

"Um—"

"Give it up," Max interrupted with a laugh.  "The both of you can go bother a different unsuspecting woman for a while.  Sam needs her sleep; I'll have her call you both tomorrow."

Max turned his back on them for the second time before bounding up Sam's steps.  Not even waiting for the man to enter her house, Graham began backing out of the driveway.  "You think she'll be okay with him, right?"

"They've known each other forever, and he hasn't done anything to her so far."

Graham shut up, not saying another word.  Glancing at his friend, Scott took a deep breath.  "What's wrong?"

Graham turned towards him, his eyes filled with hope.  "You know how they give people shots if their allergic to cats?"

"Yeah..."

"You think they have them for iguanas?"

Scott turned his face to the window, trying not to let Graham see the laughter in his eyes.  "Maybe, man, maybe."