Chapter 44: The Garage

Sam was the first one to go after Naimh, and then Belle popped up and dashed after both of them. I stood there for ten seconds with my jaw on the ground, still stinging from the unexpected vehemence in Naimh’s voice, and glanced around at Eva, Isabela, and Luna with shock running freely across my face. But as soon as I gathered my wits about me, I hurried after my three original BTC girls.

The others remained on the couches surrounding the fire pit, or so I thought. But to my surprise I heard the sound of clacking high heels behind me striking the hard slate of the tiled back patio, and I glanced over my shoulder to find Eva hustling after me.

I merely gave her a tight smile and then continued forward, not running exactly, but still moving briskly to try and catch up. The girls were heading across the backyard lawn away from the house, and away from everyone else at the party.

Sam and Belle had both caught up to Naimh, but the redhead resolutely stalked all the way to the far corner of the backyard where the tall wood-panel fence bordering Lincoln’s property intersected with the steel railings marking the end of the landscaped yard and keeping people safe from falling down the hillside. With nowhere else to go, Naimh spun around and glared at them, saying something I couldn’t hear over the din of the pumping music and party conversations behind me.

But Eva and I joined them shortly, and I was just in time to see Naimh hold her hand palm out and bark hotly, “I said, ‘Go away!’ I don’ wanna talk t’you righ’ now!”

“Neevie, please.” Sam stood back. “I don’t understand why you’re so upset.”

“And tha’ makes me even MORE upset!” Naimh raged. “You don’t deserve him, you know that? You. Don’t. Deserve him!”

“Neevie...” I began in a conciliatory tone, but she abruptly started screaming a primal scream of anguish, but it was only out loud for a split-second before she buried her face in both hands and shuddered, trying desperately to hold it in.

“Neevie, please,” Sam started while at the same time I repeated, “Neevie...”

While Sam stayed where she was, I walked over to hug my Head Girlfriend. But just as soon as I came within range, I found my forward momentum abruptly arrested with a hard shove to my chest keeping me back.

“NO. This is YOUR fault too, you fookin’ idjit!” the Irish redhead barked, adding a little extra oomph into her hand to literally push me away.

I backed off, raising both hands. “What did I do?”

“It’s what you keep doin’! It’s what you always do! Christ Almighty, Matty! How can ya possibly not see?!”

“I’m sorry for not seeing,” I apologized. “I’m sorry for--”

“STOP. FOOKIN’. APOLOGIZIN’!!!” Naimh roared, her infamous Irish temper blazing hot. “It’s not helpin’ tonight! It’s not!”

“Neevie...” Sam interjected. “If this is about me, then let’s--”

“Of COURSE it’s about you! Have ya not been list’nin’?! You know what? Fuckit. Just go’way. I’m spittin’ mad and I don’ wanna be mad at’you but I’m still spittin’ mad, alright? I walked over here ‘cause I don’ WANNA talk t’you righ’ now!”

“Neevie, please,” Sam persisted.

“GO BACK TO YOUR FRIENDS, SAM!” Naimh thundered, gesturing with both arms fully extended back towards the house.

“You ARE my friends,” Sam insisted.

All of the air seemed to deflate out of Naimh’s body. Her arms flopped limply to her sides, her shoulders slumped, and she pursed her lips while sighing wearily and shaking her head.

“No, we’re not,” Naimh muttered. She exhaled slowly, fresh tears rolling down her eyes as she repeated, “No, we’re not.”

And then she turned her back to us and buried her face in her hands.

Sam looked shocked, her mouth opening and closing a few times as she tried to think of what to say.

“Go away, Sam,” Naimh said softly, wearily. “Please. Just go away.”

Sam blinked, her lower lip quivering. Her eyes were moist, and she raised her right hand to cover her mouth.

And then she turned and slowly went away.

Eva was right behind me and immediately reached an arm out to Sam, catching hold of the blonde’s forearm and then immediately sliding down so that their hands were clasped. Sam stopped walking for a moment and turned to look back in surprise. Eva squeezed Sam’s hand and gave her an encouraging smile, which made Sam give her a grateful smile in response.

But then Sam sighed, shook her head, and pulled her hand out of Eva’s grasp to walk away again, this time walking much more quickly with her head bowed and her shoulders hunched. I felt an immediate tug to go after her, but instead turned back to Naimh.

Belle had already molded herself against the redhead’s side. Naimh still had her face buried in her hands and she was clearly sobbing, and I stepped over to Naimh’s other side to hug her as well.

But as soon as she felt my touch, Naimh’s forearm shot out to hold me at bay. “You too, Matty. Just go away. Go after Sam. She’ll need you right now.”

“But you’re clearly hur--”

“Just GO, Matty.” Naimh held her palm out to me. She shook her head, turned her back to me, and in a heartbroken voice, she muttered much more softly, “Just go.”

I glanced at Belle, who reassured me with a firm grip that she’d stay with Naimh. I glanced at Eva, who gave me a helpless shrug. Every instinct in me said that it would be a mistake to walk away from Naimh right now. But at the same time, I was too well-trained to obey a girl’s wishes in a moment like this.

Sam DID need me. She was all alone. Naimh at least had both Belle and Eva.

“Just GO, Matty!” Naimh barked one more time.

I went.

Walking back across the lawn towards the rest of the party, I realized I’d lost sight of Sam. You’d think a busty blonde in a fire-engine red dress would be easy to spot, but as I panned from side-to-side, I had no clue.

I first went to the back patio, returning to the couches surrounding the fire pit, thinking perhaps Isabela or Luna might have seen Sam return. But neither of the Latina girls were there anymore, and the seats had been reoccupied by other guests. I took a deep breath and let out a long sigh before running both hands up my forehead and into my hair while I turned to scan the area, searching for familiar faces.

Dozens of party guests looked semi-familiar. Sam and Charlie had led us around the whole house socializing for close to an hour, so I’d probably met each and every one of them face-to-face tonight. But of the people within view at the moment, there was only one whose name I knew with absolute certainty. And since he’d previously displayed a keen interest in paying attention to my girls’ whereabouts within his house, I headed over to him.

“Hey, Lincoln!” I called as I approached, drawing his attention away from the couple he was chatting with over by the outdoor Christmas tree. Jason and Melanie? Maybe? I wasn’t sure. I’d met WAY too many new people tonight.

The ruggedly handsome Cal Berkeley senior with soap-opera-star hair and a perfectly manicured five o’clock shadow turned to grin a pearly-white smile at me, his brilliant blue eyes twinkling with oodles of charm.

“Matty, my man!” Lincoln greeted pleasantly. “Is it Bounce House time yet?”

“Not yet, unfortunately. Have you seen Sam?”

“How could I NOT?” Lincoln chuckled. “That red dress she’s nearly spilling out of tonight? Bro ... You have NO idea how jealous I am of you.”

I gave him a tight smile. “I meant recently. She walked off just a minute ago, and I was hoping you’d seen her.”

He arched an eyebrow, evaluating my expression. “Trouble in paradise, man? It’s never cool to have a girl that hot mad at you.”

“No, that’s not it,” I assured him. “Everything’s fine between me and Sam. Always has been.”

“She’s a devoted one, that girl.” Lincoln sighed somewhat mournfully. “No matter how many dudes try to hit on her, she’s always made loud and clear, ‘I love my boyfriend and you don’t stand a chance, so don’t even bother.’”

I couldn’t help but smile. “Good to know.”

“Well that and Charlie’s taken to being her bodyguard of sorts. Keeps the wolves at bay.”

“So I’ve heard.”

“Like me.” Lincoln laughed before letting out a wolf howl, “AWOOOO!!!”

The couple standing next to us laughed, and Melanie(?) spoke up, saying, “I saw Sam head inside the house a minute ago. She did look upset. You sure she’s not mad at you?”

“I know she’s upset, but I’m pretty sure she’s not mad at me.”

“Mad at one of your other girlfriends?” Lincoln queried with clear intrigue.

“Something like that.” I shrugged and tried to look nonchalant.

“SIX girls tonight.” Lincoln turned to the couple and held up all the fingers on his left hand, along with his right index finger. “Last time this dude showed up here, he had FIVE girls he was fucking, and now he’s got SIX.”

“I’m not fucking all six of them,” I muttered before clenching my eyes momentarily for deigning to deny.

“Not yet?” Lincoln teased.

I rubbed my forehead and then pointedly turned my attention to Melanie(?). “Did you see which way Sam went?”

She gave me an apologetic look and shook her head. “Just that she went in through the back door by the kitchen. Charlie was at the bar. She probably went straight to him.”

I gave her a tight nod. “Thanks. Catch you guys later.”

And then I hustled off.

Charlie’s face was on my mind as I rushed in through the back door and immediately stopped to look around. The kitchen and a large great room were on my immediate left and filled with people, along with a separate granite bar adorned with rows of 2-liter soda bottles and various hard liquors. The bar itself where I’d met Charlie for the very first time three months ago was presently unmanned, although there were two guys standing on the other side pouring themselves a few drinks.

But then the tall, well-built young man I’d been looking for walked out from a hallway and turned in my direction. Charlie took one look at me, and when his face got tight, I knew with absolute certainty that he’d seen Sam.

“Where is she?” I asked without preamble as I walked straight up to him.

“She said she wants to be alone,” he muttered with a blush, looking rather embarrassed.

“Charlie, please. She’s my girlfriend, and she’s not upset with me.”

“How do I know that?”

“Did she tell you why she’s upset?”

“Well ... no,” he admitted.

“Then can you please take my word for it?” I asked sincerely.

Charlie’s face got tight again, and he pursed his lips. “Please don’t take this the wrong way, bro, but I don’t really know you. I know Sam, and when she tells me she wants to be alone, I’m gonna make sure she’s left alone.”

“Dude,” I muttered with a sigh, pinching the bridge of my nose and closing my eyes. Taking a deep breath, I collected myself for a moment before exhaling and opening my eyes again. And after forcing myself to keep calm, I stated in the same sincere tone, “I saw you come back down that hallway. Is she in a room back there?”

“Matty...” He grimaced, clearly not wanting to say anything.

“Can you at least tell me if she’s still in the house? Please reassure me that she’s safe and sound and didn’t walk out the front door into the cold and who-knows-where in the middle of Berkeley after dark.”

Charlie sighed and nodded. “She’s in the house.”

“Please take me to her,” I requested. Planting my hands together as if in prayer, I gestured with them as I stated seriously, “Without going into details, she had a tiff with one of the other girls and I swear to you that she’s not upset with me. If she’s in pain, I can help. I’m her boyfriend. Lead me to her. We’ll stand outside the door, you can ask her if she wants to let me in, and if she says ‘no’, I promise that I’ll walk away, alright? You’re bigger and stronger than me - I wouldn’t be able to get past you anyway.”

Charlie’s eyes narrowed as he silently chewed over my proposal.

“I know you’re Sam’s friend. She says you’re a great friend,” I continued. “Please, Charlie. For Sam’s sake. Let me help her.”

The big guy sighed and rolled his eyes, and a moment later he gave me a tight nod. “Fine. For Sam’s sake. But if she tells us she wants to be left alone, we’re walking away. I’m not even letting us stick around for you to try and change her mind.”

“She won’t need to change her mind,” I stated confidently. “I’m her Matty.”

That last sentence seemed to pain him a little bit, and I saw a little bit of hope in his eyes fade away. I felt bad for the guy, knowing he had a crush on my girl, but it couldn’t be helped. When dating a girl as gorgeous as Sam, I knew there would always be guys who were attracted to her. But I was rock-solid in my belief of her faithfulness, and nothing would ever change my mind.

Charlie ultimately turned around and headed for the hallway, and I quickly followed after. It was a two-story mansion, and I expected him to lead me up the stairs to one of the bedrooms. But instead Charlie bypassed the stairs and walked to a door just past them. I noticed that the locks were on the hallway side of the door, and at first had to wrack my brain to figure out what kind of room would have a door set up that way, but then Charlie opened the door, and I realized he was leading me into the three-car garage.

The lights were off, and with only a little bit of moonlight illuminating two windows at the far end of the garage, it was difficult to see anything. When we stepped inside and the door closed behind me, I wondered for the briefest of moments whether or not Charlie had brought me into here so he could strangle me quietly and get rid of the competition once and for all.

“Is there a light switch?” I asked, turning around to try and peer through the darkness at the wall, still waiting for my eyes to adjust.

“Don’t. I asked the same thing, but she wanted to leave the lights off,” Charlie cautioned before turning forward and calling out, “Sam?”

My eyes were starting to adjust to the dimness, enough to tell that the first parking bay was empty, perhaps for the vehicle Lincoln’s parents had driven out for the night. The second parking bay had a shiny black Mercedes-Benz G500 SUV. And in the third bay beyond it by the windows I could see the nose of what looked like a Jaguar XKR.

“Sam?” I called out. “Sam?”

The front passenger door of the Mercedes opened, and the interior dome lights came on. I caught a flash of blonde hair and Sam’s red dress, and then she stepped out of the SUV and peered through the gap between the windshield and the open door. “Matty? Oh, Matty! How did you find me?”

I started forward, but Charlie immediately stuck his right arm out in front of me. He stated gruffly, “I brought him here, but I also told him you said you wanted to be alone. If you still want to be alone, I’m taking his ass back outta here.”

“Oh no, that won’t be necessary. I’m glad he’s here,” Sam said with obvious relief. “Thanks for bringing him here, Charlie. You’re the best!”

Charlie grumbled something beneath his breath, and it sounded suspiciously like a complaint about never being more than second-best. But he dropped his right arm from in front of me and gestured forward with his left for me to go ahead and proceed. And then without waiting for another second, he turned and walked out of the garage, firmly shutting the door behind him.

But by then I had already rounded the front of the Mercedes. Sam likewise had come around her door and leapt onto me, wrapping her arms around my neck and planting a juicy kiss right on my lips.

I think Charlie had already left the garage before that and didn’t hear us.

I think...

After kissing me for what felt like hours, Sam eventually dropped back down on her heels and sighed. The dome lights in the Mercedes were still on, providing a bit of illumination on the side of her face, enough for me to see her frown. “Why aren’t you with Neevie? She was clearly upset, and it’s not like you to leave her.”

“You seemed pretty upset yourself. Was I expected to leave you completely alone?”

“I can handle myself,” she muttered dismissively.

“Neevie’s got Belle and Eva both with her, and more to the point: Neevie ordered me to go away as well. She’s upset with both of us.”

“Over the Charlie thing? Really?”

“It’s not a good look.” I gave her a tight smile. “I trust you, Sam. I really do. But the way you’ve been acting with him...”

“Pssht. Charlie’s a friend. He’s a good friend, but still just a friend.”

“I know that.”

“I know he’s got a crush on me, but we’ve talked about it and I’ve made clear to him he’s in my ‘friend zone’.”

“I believe you.” I let my hands around her waist slip down to grab my girlfriend’s ass and give her buns a squeeze. “I know that you would never cheat on me. I know that you’d never hook up with anyone outside of our relationship.”

Sam immediately winced, and for a split-second my heart dropped the way your stomach does when the bottom falls out of a roller coaster.

She must’ve noticed the way my eyes had suddenly gone wide, because she instantly stood up straight and stammered in a panic, “It’s not what you think!”

I blinked twice and gave her an expectant look, my rock-solid belief in her faithfulness momentarily floating unsupported on open air.

“It was just last night and I was gonna tell you, I swear! Addie and I just got soooo stressed out studying and then we got to talking and then one thing led to another and--”

“Wait-wait-wait,” I cut her off, my knotted muscles relaxing. “‘Addie’? Adeline?” I knew that last night, Sam had crashed at her female friend’s apartment for the umpteenth time this month before coming home midday to change and get ready for tonight’s party.

“You’re not upset, are you?” she asked with a hint of worry.

“No, of course not,” I reassured her. “You know I’ve given you my carte blanche permission to hook up with any other girls you want.”

“It’s still a relief to hear you confirm that.”

“Still, I’m a little shocked.” I let out a long whistle before muttering in disbelief, “Adeline...”

“Surely you know how tight we’ve been getting lately. I talk about her a lot.”

“Well ... you talk about her on occasion the few times we’re together long enough for you to talk about anything. But I didn’t realize you were ... THAT close...” I mimed fucking motions with my left thumb and index finger forming a circle and my right index finger poking through the hole. “But I’ve teased you about getting stress relief with Adeline for months already. Didn’t you tell me she was straight?”

“She is. Well, was. Well...” Sam’s voice trailed off. “She’s always known I was bi and that I hook up with the other BTC girls. That made her a little uncomfortable at first, actually, at least until she got to know me better and I was able to reassure her that I’d never hit on her.”

“Never hit on her ... until last night, apparently.”

Sam blushed and shook her head. “No, seriously. I never hit on her. She was the one who started asking me questions. Like, how differently did it feel to have another girl licking me instead of you? What was it like to have someone licking my clit while I was getting fucked? Did I really enjoy making out with other girls or was it just to entertain you? Stuff like that.”

“Okay. And she was asking you all this stuff last night?”

“Nah. She’s been asking me that stuff for months. Last night? Uhhh...” Sam trailed off for a moment and blushed. “Last night Addie got to asking me about what you, me, and the girls were doing on Thursday night.”

I grinned immediately at the memory. It had been late at night and both Belle and Isabela had come to my room to have an evening threesome before bed while Naimh spent the night with Luna. I’d been in a wicked-hot sixty-nine with Izzy while Belle tongued Izzy’s ass when Sam had burst into the room, panting with obvious need and tearing at her clothes while complaining that she was super-stressed-out and in desperate need of relief.

“See, I’d been here studying with Addie on Thursday night right up until I hit my breaking point and declared that I couldn’t read another word,” Sam continued. “I apologized to her and said I had to go home and get some no-questions-asked stress relief from my friends. Not the first time I’ve done that over the past few weeks.”

I nodded and smiled. On the one hand, Sam had crashed overnight at Adeline’s apartment more and more lately, but she’d also come home to get fucked midweek more and more lately. And any night spent being able to hold her in my arms again was a net positive in my book, even if we did little more than fuck and go to sleep before she woke up early and took off before breakfast.

“But last night WAS the first time Addie stopped and asked me exactly what we’d done,” Sam continued with a lascivious grin. “And she wanted details.”