Sam sighed with contentment. He was sitting on the couch, Ali tucked up beside him, sipping a nice glass of wine and contemplating what to do with the weekend that stretched out in front of him. Just him and Ali for three nights.

They had considered staying in town for dinner when Ali returned from her shopping trip that afternoon but had opted to take the early train back to the Hamptons. Sam had had enough of the hustle and bustle of the city, preferring to keep things just the two of them. Instead, for dinner, Sam whipped together a simple pasta dish out of the few ingredients that were on hand in the house.

To say cooking was not one of Ali's skills was a bit of an understatement. Sam smiled, thinking her failed attempts to help in the kitchen. She was a willing student, but the basics of cutting vegetables seemed beyond Ali's talents. Still, it was the effort that counted, and she kept him company, chatting away about her day. Besides Sam actually liked to make Ali food. It made him feel useful.

Sam stroked a lock of Ali's dark hair and wound it listlessly around his finger. He was so happy it was just the two of them again. No responsibilities, no outside world interrupting them.

Ali turned towards Sam and placed a gentle kiss on his cheek. "My love. Can I ask you a question?"

"Mmmm," Sam nodded, focusing on her luscious lips.

"You and Victoria - what happened there?"

Feeling like he had been yanked out of a dream, Sam concentrated on sounding unruffled. "Um...you mean when we..." he still didn't know how to define the relationship,"...we were in high school?"

"Yes."

Shifting to try to find a more comfortable position, Sam avoided Ali's gaze. "Well, we...hung out and ....then we didn't."

"You broke up?"

"Well, not exactly." Sam really did not want to talk about this but it seemed Ali wasn't going to let it go. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to tell her about Vicky. And that night. After everything that happened, Sam never had the chance to discuss it with anyone. How does one start such a conversation? So hey, I was screwing this girl and in the process I got my brother killed - it just didn't roll off the tongue.

Ali seemed to sense his discomfort and made a move to relieve it. But she wasn't giving up on the topic. Instead, she tried an easier tactic. "How'd you meet her?"

Sam huffed. It was a safe enough question to answer. "My best friend, Greyson...you remember him? He lent me the money to leave home." Ali nodded. "Well, he was dating Vicky's best friend, Brinn. Her only friend really."

"D'you mean her only friend?"

"Brinn and Vicky...well they came from a different background than most of us. They didn't come from money - earned scholarships to get in."

"So, Victoria is smart." It was a statement, not a question.

"Yes..." Sam drew out the word. "She was ...or is brilliant with numbers, math was her sweet spot. For Brinn it was English. She was an amazing storyteller." Sam thought back to one of the stories Brinn had written about first loves. It was so sweet, so innocent. So Brinn. "But the two couldn't have been more different. Brinn was light and ...well a little naive. Vicky was dark and ....experimental."

Ali placed her head on Sam's chest. "Tell me," she whispered.

It was a gentle request and suddenly Sam wanted to tell her everything. It would be so good to get it all out. She would listen. Opening up about his past when they met, telling Ali about his actions in high school, acting out to try to gain the attention of his parents, had been good. She didn't judge him. On the contrary, Ali had reflected Sam's feelings of jealousy over his parent's obsession for Thomas, the other son with the burgeoning political career. Ali knew what it was like to feel neglected, second fiddle to determined parents.

"Looking back, I think Vicky had self-esteem issues. She hid it by creating this persona almost. She was over the top in so many ways. Loud and brash at times. And she was up for anything anyone wanted to do. Anything. It made her the perfect partner for pissing off my parents."

Sam could feel Ali's smile against his shoulder.

"I'd get Greyson to invite her to join us just to flaunt her in front of my mother. There was this one time, they were picking me up to go to the beach or something and Vicky walked in with barely any clothing on. My mother tried to forbid me from going anywhere with her. Afraid this girl would get her hooks in me. Instead, I grabbed Vicky and stuck my tongue down her throat in an act of defiance. Vicky didn't even flinch, she just played along." Sam hesitated. "At least I think she was playing."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I thought we were on the same page but after that things spiralled. I don't know why. I never saw her as more than a friend...an acquaintance really. Vicky wasn't my type. She was ... intense, moody and needed constant reassurance, which annoyed me. Besides Greyson and Brinn, we didn't have much in common."

"And Victoria is lacking a lot in the chest region."

Sam chuckled, glad that Ali could make light of the discussion. Vicky's petite structure left her more lean than curvy. Ali was the opposite, voluptuous in all the right places, full of curves that Sam fully enjoyed - every chance he got. Sam stroked Ali's hair. "Yes, you know me so well."

"I do." Those words spilling from Ali thrilled Sam more than they should have. "What changed?"

This was the tricky part. Trying to explain how it all started.

"One night the four of us were at Greyson's house, drinking. Eventually, Greyson and Brinn snuck off to his room and it was just Vicky and I. I wanted to go, but Vicky insisted I stay for one more round of shots. One round turned into many rounds, I guess. I don't remember much after that. Things got fuzzy real quick."

Sam swallowed. "I woke up the next morning with Vicky beside me in my bed." To this day he didn't fully understand why he had slept with her that first time. "It had just happened. I certainly didn't plan it."

"On some level, you must've been attracted to her."

"I don't...." Sam rubbed the back of his neck. This was so uncomfortable. He knew he wasn't attracted to Vicky. Every time they'd had sex, he more often than not, felt bad afterwards, regretted his actions. "Maybe. Not sure a sober me would've gone there, but drunk me was a willing participant."

"A young, horny you," Ali taunted jokingly. This is what Sam always told himself when he looked back on it now. He was a teenager with raging hormones. This was why it had happened. Ali reflecting it made him feel better. He decided to go on.

"Yeah...well. After that, Vicky was always around. The four of us would hang out and more often than not I got drunk and ended up sleeping with her. And when I tried not to drink, she found...other ways to ...interest me." He shuttered to think of it now, Vicky using her hands, her mouth, her body to entice Sam to be intimate.

Sam shifted Ali so he could see her reaction to his words. "I didn't mean to use her. I was just...confused and she was always there, always willing. No pushing me all the time. And I wanted any excuse to drown out what I was feeling and..."

Ali had reached out and placed a finger over his lips to halt him from talking. "Sam, no one knows better than me about using sex to fill the hole in your life." Ali let out a gruff laugh. "At least you stuck with one partner. The closest I got was the race driver and his mechanic."

Sam caressed Ali's cheek. This was a tender topic for her. When Sam first met Ali, she was using meaningless interludes with men as a way to cope with the fact that her husband had cheated on her. It was Ali's way of protecting her heart from any future hurt. She had come such a long way since then.

"I think your way may have been better," sighed Sam. "At least no one's feelings got hurt. I thought Vicky and I were just a casual thing, but maybe I was wrong."

"What makes you say that?" Ali was looking at him in earnest. She truly wanted to know.

This was it. Sam could finally say out loud what he had only ever admitted to himself.

"I got interested in someone else. Like really interested. Julie. We were both in the ski club together and were all set to go on this big ski trip with the school. I was practically giddy about it. I had it all arranged, our rooms would be side by side. I was planning on spending time with her the whole trip." It was so high school now, but Sam remembered being so excited about it. He had really liked Julie.

"The night before we were to go, Greyson was having a party. A kind of going away party. Greyson and Brinn were going on the trip as well. Vicky wasn't. She didn't have the money. I tried to avoid her as much as possible, but she kept following me around."

"I..." Why couldn't he just say it? The words were stuck in his throat. They would not come out. Doubt crept in, like an eclipse crossing over the sun, replacing the light with darkness. Sam found other words.

"We got into a fight." It was a version of the truth. "I never spoke to her again after that."

Ali's eyes widened. "But why?"

Sam avoided Ali's gaze, focusing on the coffee table instead. "I just couldn't face her." Kinda like I can't face you now, Sam thought to himself. "That was the night Thomas had his accident."

"Oh, Sam." There it was, the pity. Her voice was laced with it. He couldn't handle it. Not from Ali. Maybe now wasn't the time to tell Ali. Maybe it was too much to ask of her. Wasn't his confession about Vicky enough?

"I didn't go back to school, avoided all my friends and well, you know, started trying to fill in my big brother's shoes for my parent's sake. There was no room for Vicky in Thomas's old life, my new life."

Big blue eyes studied Sam. "I wish I could have been there for you."

Sam tried to smile. "You're here now." He tucked an errant lock of Ali's hair behind her ear.

"Always." It sounded like a promise. Sam desperately hoped it was. He couldn't imagine his life without Ali. He didn't want to.

Ali looked like she was going to say more, but the moment slipped away as her phone started playing Jonathon's ringtone. Ali grabbed the phone and initiated the video chat with their good friend.

Sam tried to share in the joy that the two were indulging in as Jay caught them up on the new client he just landed and the big event that he would be designing a gown for. Sam was genuinely happy for his friend's success, but the shadow of the conversation with Ali and what was left unsaid hung over him.

When they hung up, Ali proclaimed she was exhausted and was heading to bed. She asked Sam if he would join her. Agreeing they walked hand in hand into their bedroom. When they climbed into bed, Ali pulled Sam to her, letting out a little satisfied sigh before drifting off to sleep.

Lying in Ali's arms, Sam decided to try to forget about the past. He had Ali here and now. Sam was determined to hold on to Ali as long as she would let him.

Hi everyone!  Thanks for reading through this long and dialogue heavy chapter.  As some of you know, dialogue is my weakness so any feedback you might have on this chapter would be so appreciated.  Is the dialogue here "about right" or "too heavy"?

This chapter brings up the question - when is it to early in a relationship to discuss exes? 

For those of you that have read the first book in the Ruby Red series, you will know that Sam and Ali made an honesty pack that paved the way for this open conversation.