Chance Encounter

Over the next few months, Samantha and Brian became very close. He would come to her office at least twice a week for lunch, and they had giggly phone calls at all hours of the night. Of course, Leighanne had no idea, nor would she have cared. Brian's relationship with her was becoming more and more strained and distant by the day. It depressed him that someone he had once loved with all his heart was now, for all practical purposes, a stranger to him. He and Samantha had many heart to heart discussions about Brian's unhappiness. Each time, Samantha's advice was always the same... Follow your heart.

If I followed my heart, I'd be with you... Brian thought. There were no repeat performances of the night at her house, though. Samantha told him it would be best for all parties involved if they kept their relationship strictly platonic. Brian reluctantly agreed. He was so attracted to her. Every time he saw her, he just wanted to pull her into a kiss and never let go. Fortunately, Samantha's willpower was strong enough for both of them, and they were able to keep their distance from each other. **********************************************

One afternoon, Samantha sat at her desk, pouring over her latest murder case. It was a particularly gruesome one, with tons of medical testimony and autopsy photos. After an hour of looking at blood and gore, she pulled off her glasses and rubbed her eyes. She couldn't look at it anymore. She turned and propped her feet up on the window sill, staring out at the city.

"Samantha, Brian's on line 3," Lila's said over the intercom.

"Thanks, Lila." Sam picked up the phone. "Hey Bri. What's up?"

"I need to see you," Brian said. She could tell from the tone of his voice that something was wrong.

"What is it?" she asked softly. In her heart, she knew the answer... It was Leighanne. She had done something else to upset him. Damn her... she just couldn't see what a wonderful man she had. Why couldn't she appreciate him??

"I can't talk about it right now. Can I see you tonight?"

"Sure, honey. I'll be home after 6. Adam's with his dad tonight."

"I'll be there when you get home," he sighed. "I can't stay here right now."

"Ok," she said. She was glad she had given him a key to her house. "Just go on over whenever you want."

"Can I bring the dogs?" he asked.

Samantha smiled. "Of course you can."

After she hung up, she thought about the situation. If Leighanne had done something to upset Brian this badly, there was a good chance that he would... NO... she couldn't think that way. That was cruel. She was being selfish. But she had to admit, it would be wonderful if she could have him all to herself... **********************************************

That evening, Samantha pulled into the driveway to find Brian's car blocking her out of the garage.

"UUUGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!" she groaned. She parked behind him and got out. When she got up to the front porch, she could hear the music blaring from inside the house. She entered the house and went straight into the living room. Brian was lying on the couch with his arm draped over his eyes. She turned down the stereo to a more reasonable volume and walked to the couch. She sat down beside him and ruffled his hair a little. He slowly removed his arm from his face and looked up at her. His eyes were rimmed red from crying.

"What's wrong, baby?" she asked, her heart breaking for him. She hated seeing him so upset.

"She's gone," he said quietly.

"What happened?"

"I got a call this morning. Some woman. She said that I didn't know her, but she was very familiar with my wife. She said I needed to keep Leighanne on a short leash, because she was screwing around with some guy named Eric. Well, I get weird calls all the time, but this one seemed so real. When she came home, I asked her about this Eric guy. Sam, she didn't even try to deny it." His voice was breaking a little, and Samantha could see the hurt in his eyes. As much as they fought, he still loved her in some strange way, and his heart was broken.

"I'm so sorry," Samantha whispered. And she meant it. She hated to see him like this. She could feel her own tears welling up. It had been a rough day for both of them.

Brian sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Why did she do this to me?" he asked bitterly. "Why? I mean she didn't even TRY to deny it! And to make matters worse, I got my American Express bill today, and she spent $32,000 at Neiman Marcus in one day. How do you spend that much money in one day, Sam? I mean, a lot of people don't even make that much money in a YEAR, and she spent it in a day!"

Samantha nodded, understanding his frustration. Jeff had a bad spending habit, too, and it always frustrated her to no end when he would spend so much money without regard to anything other bills they might have.

Brian paced the floor, yelling out his frustrations, stomping around, cussing, and generally getting angrier by the minute. He stopped every few minutes to drop to his knees in front of her and let her hug him. She rubbed his back, but didn't try to stop him...

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