Chapter 56

Sam jerkedawake to the sound of knocking, heart lurching. She had fallen asleep on the couch while reviewing student papers, exhausted from another long week.

Padding to the front door, Sam peeked through the eyehole. Shock jolted through her at the sight of Natalia on her doorstep. She looked breathless, almost wild.

For a moment, Sam thought she must be dreaming. But as she opened the door, the charged energy rolling off Natalia was unmistakable. This was real.

“Natalia?” Sam blinked uncertainly, voice groggy. “What are you doing here?”

“I needed to see you. To explain…” Natalia’s words came out in a rush as she stepped inside.

Sam ushered her to the couch, pulse racing. She could scarcely believe Natalia was here after two weeks of distance. Part of her had feared she might never see those piercing dark eyes again.

But Natalia thundered on like she feared slowing. With every word she said, Sam’s hopes deflated. The situation with the studio she already knew about, but she had no idea Natalia’s agency was hanging in the balance, too.

When Natalia finally paused for breath, Sam found her voice. “Why didn’t you talk to me about this earlier? We could have figured it out together.” Sam moved from the ottoman to the space next to Natalia on the couch, pushing aside her laptop. “Have you been dealing with this alone since you got weird?”

Natalia glared at her, but she didn’t object to the characterization. “I couldn’t,” she replied, a universe of unspoken words trapped behind her tight lips.

Empathy swelled at the pained look on Natalia’s face. She reached out, resting her hand on hers. She understood that Natalia couldn’t talk about the deal — it was the effect on Natalia of carrying it alone that Sam hated.

“A relationship means tackling hard things together, not sheltering each other from the ugly parts. I don’t need a manager or agent making choices for me. I want a partner, someone to take things on together with.”

“I don’t know how to do that,” Natalia admitted quietly.

Sam allowed her lips to form into a soft smile. “I don’t believe that. There’s nothing on this planet you couldn’t do if you tried. If anyone can wrestle something into submission, it’s you.”

Natalia stared at their joined hands, seeming to teeter on the edge of something. Sam held her breath, and trusted the strength of what was growing between them.

“Maybe this is a mistake,” she said slowly, pulling her hand back. “I’ve done things my way for too long. It’s crazy to think I could change at nearly fifty. Life doesn’t work that way.”

“Do you really mean that?” Sam knew pushing her would only drive her further into self-protection mode. So she approached slowly, summoning every ounce of patience and compassion. “Or are you just scared of what you’re feeling?” Sam reached out, resting her hand on Natalia’s hip, encouraged when she didn’t slip away. “It’s normal to be unsure heading into uncharted territory,” she offered gently. “But we’ll navigate it together, one step at a time.”

Natalia turned, vulnerability cracking through her stoic facade. In that moment, Sam glimpsed the exhilaration glinting beneath the fear of losing control. She stood steady, keeping her heart open, silently willing Natalia to embrace the freefall.

Natalia’s shoulders slumped, the fight draining out of her. “You’re right,” she admitted softly. “Until I met you, I was so certain about every move I made. But now…”

She trailed off, and Sam gave her hand an encouraging squeeze, pulse quickening. They were so close to what felt like a final impasse.

“Now everything feels unknown,” Natalia continued, voice laced with wonder and fear. “It’s like I’m out of my depth with no compass or map. I don’t know how to cope with that.”

Sam’s heart ached at the vulnerability in her tone. She longed to wrap Natalia in her arms, to soothe away the uncertainty.

“There’s opportunity in the unknown,” Sam said gently. “We may not see the path, but I trust we can find it together. I just need you to trust me, too.”

Natalia swallowed hard, eyes glistening as she stared up at her. “I do trust you. And I want this. I’m just...” She paused, emotions clogging her throat. “I’m so afraid of losing you that it… I don’t like feeling afraid. I can’t see what the right next step is.”

“But maybe you can feel it?” Sam pulled Natalia fully into her arms. “I can promise you that whatever happens, you’ll never lose me. Not ever.”

Sam’s heart pounded as she held Natalia close. She could feel the fear and longing warring within her. Slowly, gently, Sam drew back just enough to look into Natalia’s unsure eyes.

She cradled Natalia’s face in her hands, caressing her cheek with a feather-light touch. Natalia’s eyes fluttered closed, and she leaned into the contact, some of the tension leaving her body.

Unable to resist any longer, Sam closed the remaining distance between them. The first touch of their lips was electric, sending a jolt through Sam’s entire being. Natalia made a small, hungry sound low in her throat that inflamed Sam’s desire.

The kiss deepened, their passion swelling like a wave about to crest and break. Sam poured all her love, trust, and longing into the kiss. Natalia responded with equal fervor, clutching Sam tightly, as if she was her anchor in a storm.

Sam was turning Natalia toward the couch but hadn’t gotten as far as pushing her against it when her phone rang. If she hadn’t assigned Lola and Adriana their own ringtones, she wouldn’t have bothered stopping for a call.

Sam broke the kiss reluctantly as the sound of Lola’s ringtone cut through the haze of passion. Keeping one arm around Natalia, she fished her phone out of her pocket.

“It’s Lola,” Sam said when Natalia looked at her, silent question hidden in her face.

Natalia nodded and slipped out of Sam’s grasp. From the hardening of her expression, Sam understood that whatever Lola was going to say was going to put an end to their doubts about Lilith’s future.

Lola’s voice came through the speaker, unusually somber. “Sam, I’m so sorry, but Black Forge refused to budge on changing directions.”

Sam’s stomach plummeted even as Natalia gave her a reassuring squeeze.

“But the good news is, we got your rights back with minimal penalty,” Adriana chimed in.

“What?” Natalia blurted, color rushing over skin. “What do you mean? What about the liquidation clause?”

“I’m sorry, Natalia, I know you didn’t want me to, but I called Carmen.” Lola’s smile was broadcasted from an interstellar satellite. “She led the charge with her mother and Louise Silver. It took six hours, but we broke ‘em.”

Sam let out a shaky breath, flooded with relief. “Thank you both so much. I know how hard you worked on this. I’m sorry that it didn’t work out the way any of us hoped.” She put her arm around Natalia and pulled her to her side.

“We’ll start looking for another production company who actually gets your vision and wants to tell Lilith’s story authentically,” Adriana vowed.

The moment they hung up, Natalia was on her phone, thumbs flying. “Fuck that. We’re not giving anyone else a chance to destroy this. Crowdfunding is huge right now. I have so much fucking talent in my stable. Roxy alone will bring in massive crowds. Yes, that’s the way… a benefit concert. Very retro.”

Sam dropped onto the couch, her body exhausted from the roller coaster. Questioning whether she was still asleep, she watched Natalia talk exclusively to herself while frantically doing something on her phone.

“If Brandon Sanderson can make forty million dollars on Kickstarter, I can fund a damn movie.” Natalia was only picking up momentum while Sam waited for her to address her.

“Natalia—”

“A few influencer endorsements, launch some exclusive backer perks, add in a star-studded live stream QA...”

“Babe,” Sam tried again, a little louder.

“I’ll call in every favor owed to me in this town if I have to,” Natalia muttered, more to herself than Sam at this point. “We’re making this movie happen, with or without the establishment. The establishment,” she mocked herself. “Who the hell needs them anyway? Indie is it. Look at Kate Bush, almost three million in a month after?—”

“Natalia,” Sam said in her loudest teacher’s voice.

Gaze shooting up from her phone, Natalia furrowed her brow like she had no idea what Sam’s problem was. “What?”

Sam stood. “I love that you’re so driven and feel so passionately about this project?—”

“But?” Natalia raised both brows, her mouth tight and intimidating. Impatience swirled around her like a tornado, but Sam was undeterred.

“Remember when we just talked about doing things together instead of you taking on?—”

“Don’t patronize me,” Natalia snapped. “If you want to break up?—”

“What?” Sam leaned away from her. “Why the hell would I want to break up? We’re just talking.”

“But you’re unhappy with me,” she countered.

Sam tipped her head to the side and softened her tone. “I’m not unhappy with you, but we did just agree to be partners about things. I want to make decisions together, that’s it.” She cupped Natalia’s face. “I know you want what’s best for me, and I can’t tell you how beautiful that is?—”

“You don’t have to blow smoke up my?—”

“I’m not,” Sam insisted, willing Natalia to really hear her. “I’m communicating.”

Natalia furrowed her brow again like she was trying to decipher a puzzle. Like she didn’t believe that Sam would just tell her what she wanted, but if Sam couldn’t model healthy communication for her, they had no chance.

“I don’t want you to change,” Sam said, taking a step back and giving Natalia room to breathe. “I don’t want you be anyone other than full-on Natalia Flores, the force of nature. All I’m asking is that we keep talking and you don’t leave me behind.”

Natalia softened. “Well, what happens when you wake up and decide you want to move on to greener pastures because I’m not communicating enough, or not the way you expect?”

Sam grinned. “Babe, nobody’s got pasture like you,” she reassured her.

Natalia rolled her eyes, but her clenched energy loosened. “Did you argue with Sofia?”

“Constantly,” Sam admitted with a chuckle. “But it wasn’t in a bad way. She was strong, and opinionated, and nothing makes me sharper than challenge. You’re not in competition with anyone, Nat. Not even with yourself. This isn’t a sprint, okay? I get that it’s going to be a huge adjustment to be in a duo when you’ve been a single player for so long. And I’m more than willing to be patient. I promise. Just don’t forget to bring me along for the ride.”

Natalia narrowed her gaze. “That’s a lot of mixed metaphors for someone with a PhD.”

Sam’s laughter rang out, unfettered and full-bodied. Her heart was so light, she was sure it would float her body off the ground.

She hadn’t realized until this moment how heavy the uncertainty between them had felt. How desperate she was for Natalia to trust in what they were building.

Now, with their hearts laid bare, that bone-deep doubt had melted away. Its absence left Sam almost giddy with possibility. She wanted to dance, to shout from the rooftops.

Most of all, she wanted to kiss Natalia - this brave, stubborn, brilliant force of nature who made her feel truly seen. Unable to resist that magnetic pull, Sam drew Natalia into her arms.

“I meant what I said,” she murmured, tucking back a strand of Natalia’s dark hair. “I’m not going anywhere. You’re stuck with me.”

“That stubborn mold again,” Natalia joked, not that anyone but Sam would hear the humor in her flat tone.

“The stubbornest,” she agreed before kissing her again.

Sam sighed happily as Natalia surrendered into the kiss. She could feel the last of Natalia’s walls coming down as their bodies melded together.

Of course, the moment was interrupted by Natalia’s phone buzzing. Natalia huffed in annoyance as she checked it, squinting to read without her glasses. To Sam’s surprise, she let out a laugh.

“It’s Zoe, firing me. Apparently I’m old and out of touch and she’s not going to let me drag her down anymore,” she explained, eyes dancing with unexpected glee as she tossed the phone across the living room and onto the couch. “Good riddance. Should have dumped her years ago. Do you know that she never tipped her servers?”

Sam cringed. “Gross, who does that?”

“I know,” she agreed. “What a douche.”

Sam chuckled, delighting in seeing this reaction from Natalia. “Let’s regroup tomorrow when we’re fresh. I want to talk about this crowdfunding thing. My friends aren’t superstars, but I know a lot of very successful grant-writers that are sorcerers when it comes to finding money and stretching a penny into a dollar.”

“Yeah?” Natalia brightened. “You’re into the self-funding?”

She gestured, panning over a marquee with her hands. “Dominion Pictures presents Bloodstream Valentine.”

Natalia wrinkled her nose. “That’s your working title?”

The judgment pouring from her words was an avalanche. “What’s wrong with it?”

“If I have to tell you, I fear for our future in the movie business.”

At the sound of our, Sam grinned. “Stay over tonight?”

Natalia seemed to consider it for a moment before replying, “I didn’t bring my night guard. Do you know how much I invested in these Turkish teeth?”

Sam pulled her close, brushing her lips against Natalia’s ear. “Well then, I guess I won’t let you fall asleep,” she murmured suggestively.

No matter what tomorrow held, Sam had never been more sure of anything. With Natalia in her arms, she was home. The future was uncertain, but together they would take it head on.