A REASON FOR MARRIAGE

Sara didn’t have any idea what came over her, but she found her palm connecting with his cheek before she could think twice about what she was doing. She watched him lift a hand to his face and then he grinned, although she could tell from his expression that he didn’t find the fact that she’d hit him funny.

Sara didn’t understand herself anymore. She wasn’t a violent person, and she definitely didn’t hit people no matter what. Just what was it about this man that messed with her self control? Her feelings and desires were messed up whenever she was around him…and for God’s sake, she’d just slapped Simon Hamilton!

“What the hell was that for?”

Sara regretted hitting him, but she wasn’t completely sorry about it, “Don’t you ever speak to me that way again, Mr Hamilton,” she said between clenched teeth and took a step away from him, “Please find some other interior designer for your apartment because I sure as hell will not be working for you. And do me a favor too, lose my number and never contact me again,”

With that she was hurrying out of his office without giving him a chance to say anything. Maybe hitting him wasn’t the right thing to do no matter what he’d said to her, but refusing to work for him was. The earlier she cut Simon Hamilton out of her life, the better. He was bad news… Just like Bruce.

___________

“You’re ten minutes late,” Scott told Sara over the phone, “We’re ready and waiting for you. Are you still coming or not?”

Sara grinned at her brother’s impatience as she drove into the street, “I’m like one minute away, Scott. Relax,”

“Good,” he replied, “Because Vivian already made all this food and she’s already disappointed that mom isn’t coming, so get your ass down here. Besides, there’s someone I’d like to introduce you to personally and trust me, it’s for your own good,”

“I really hope you are not trying to set me up on a date with one of your friends,” said Sara with a scowl on her face,” The last one was terrible and I’m not willing to go down that road again,” She could hear Scott laughing on the other end and rolled her eyes, but there was a smile on her face.

“Nah it’s nothing like that. I think I’ve finally come to terms with the fact that I’m not a matchmaker…See you soon,” Scott said and hung up.

Sara smiled as she compared the man Scott had been six years ago to the man he was since he met Vivian Sanchez… He was completely different now. Scott, who was so opposed to relationships, was now the one who was not only planning his wedding, but he’d also tried to set her up with a friend of his. Love really did change someone when they found the right person.

But unfortunately, relationships were not for everyone…Herself included, but it didn’t mean single people couldn’t be happy. They could find happiness in other things… In other aspects of their lives. And Sara knew that having a baby would make her very happy. The IVF plan with Mark Forbes wasn’t something she was looking forward to anymore, but she would find someone else or opt for an anonymous donor. She didn’t know how Scott and her mother would take the idea of going for IVF, and so she’d not told them yet because she was worried that they wouldn’t approve or worse, try to talk her out of it. This was what she wanted. She was sure of it.

After parking her car, she stepped out, looked around, saw a strange car amongst the ones she knew her brother already had and wondered when he’d bought the new one. Then she went up to front door and knocked. Scott opened it after a few seconds with a huge smile on his face.

“Finally! Here she is.” he said with a huge smile on his face. Vivian appeared beside him, and welcomed her with a warm hug Sara accepted with equal warmth. If there was one thing she was sure of, it was that her brother had picked the right woman.

“I’m glad you could come,” said Vivian, “Dinner is already served. Come on…”Property belongs to Nôvel(D)r/ama.Org.

“What took you so long by the way,” Scott asked, walking besides her and taking away her coat and bag.

“I don’t know… Maybe I was mentally preparing myself to deal with your shenanigans,” Sara responded and exchanged knowing glances with Vivian, after which they both burst into laughter.

One of her favorite things to do with her soon to be sister in law was to tease her brother. Something Scott seemed to have made peace with after he realized that there was nothing he could do about it.

“Oh it smells so good in here. What are we having?” Sara asked as they entered the dining area. Vivian must have answered her question, but she didn’t hear it, because she was completely taken aback by the sight of the man already seated. It was Simon Hamilton of all people, dressed in a white polo shirt and jeans, and he was staring at her with an unreadable expression on his face. She should have known that Scott would somehow be involved with the new Hamilton businessman who had just moved into town. That was Scott’s thing.

The first thought that crossed her mind was to turn around and walk away, but that would not only be rude to Scott and Vivian, but it would also mean that she was accepting defeat, and that was something Sara was not prepared to do, especially when it involved Simon Hamilton, who was as arrogant as he could be already and she wasn’t going to be the one to boost his ego.

Before she could say a word, Scott joined them, “Sara, I’d like you to meet an old friend of mine, Scott Hamilton. Scott, this is my sister, Sara McCall although I’m sure you two must have met already,”

“Good evening, Sara,” Simon said as he stood up and extended his hand for a handshake, “It’s really good to see you again,”

Sara ignored his greeting and his hand, then turned to her brother, “How.. How do you know we’ve met before?” she asked.

“Oh, I gave him your contact at Senator Robert Ashcroft’s party. He needed an interior designer and of course I recommended you. You didn’t know?”