Ok readers, here's the fourth installment. It's hopefully a lot longer than the others so it should give you a descent amount to read. I know some of you have asked for longer chapters, but I'm afraid that with story writing, you can't really plan the length of a chapter, the story happens how it happens, so if you think they're too short, then tough cookies. Just a little reminder to PLEASE VOTE AND COMMENT. I can't improve on my stories if I don't know what you think about them. Us writers really DO appreciate them. As always, all characters are 18 years or over. Happy reading.
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Over the next couple of weeks Sam and Chase go to know each other better. They went horse riding every day together, even if it was only for an hour or so. They went out for walks, went shopping in the town and a couple of times they had taken Sam's car and gone to the city to have a look around and go to the movies (with Chase in disguise of course). Some days they would just lounge around the lake. Chase had to admit that this was his favourite activity with Sam, as Sam's bathing suit was probably the one revealing outfit she had. Although not as skimpy as some bikinis you can buy, it still showed a good proportion of her stomach and breasts as well as showing off her long curvy legs.
Sam was tall for a woman, almost six foot, a good height for Chase's six foot four, he had thought secretly, and a good proportion of that was leg. Although he didn't make it obvious, Chase loved to look at her when she didn't know it. Chase was a great guy that went for a females brain rather than her body, but at the same time, he was still a guy.
Although Sam and Chase spent most of every day together, Sam disappeared for a couple of hours every afternoon. When questioned, Sam merely stated that she had some things to take care of. Even though Chase knew Sam hadn't left the house, he could never find her, so had to make himself content with the knowledge that Sam would be back soon. Chase was finding it harder and harder to be without her company though and this disturbed him.
To be honest, without Sam's company, Chase would have packed up and left after the third day. Emily and Parker were absolute pains in the ass, always talking to Chase about absolute crap that he didn't need or want to know about. Emily was an empty headed bitch who looked down on anyone who wasn't at her social status and Parker was a moron who had less sense than a speck of dust. Chase couldn't stand either one of them and now knew why Jack had gotten him to stay here. He had hoped that Chase would soon leave. Well, thanks to Sam, Chase was able to bear the evening meals and occasional tea parties with Emily's friends. They made sure they were out most of the time to escape both of Sam's parents, and so were able to both maintain a happy medium.
After all the time they had spent together though, Chase was starting to get impatient. Although Chase talked about his life freely enough, Sam was still resigned, not giving away anything personal. Although Chase tried to get Sam to talk about her relationship with her parents, she kept those feelings bottled up, refusing to talk about it. Chase didn't push her, remembering Mac's words about her problem with trust, but he liked Sam, really liked her, and Chase wanted her to trust him. The way she responded to him made Chase think that she liked him too, even if she didn't want to admit to herself. Nothing had happened between them, just the way they acted towards each other, the small smiles Sam gave to Chase that he noticed weren't given to anyone else, the way she would genuinely laugh at his jokes, as lame as they were or the way they would accidentally brush against each other and pull back quickly.
They were good for each other, although neither Chase or Sam realised this. Chase saw Sam beyond the hard shell she had erected to the vulnerable girl inside, and Sam saw Chase as the man he was, not the Hollywood star he had become. They both helped each other to get some normalcy into their lives, something that deep down, they both craved.
* * * *
Chase headed down to the stables to look for Sam. She had gone off by herself again, but had been gone for a lot longer than usual and Chase was getting worried. He hadn't found her in the house, so he assumed she was with Warrior. When he got to the stables he could see no sign of Sam, and instead ran into Mac cleaning out stalls. "Hey Mac, have you seen Sam anywhere."
"Can't say I ave Master Chase. 'Ave ye looked for 'er in the tower?"
"The tower?"
"Sam has 'er art room up there. Only way to hide it from 'er parents. They don't agree with 'er artwork."
"Okay, thanks. I'll look for her there. I'll see you later yeah."
"I'm always ere Master Chase."
* * * *
Chase knocked on the door to the attic. When he got no answer he walked in. Sam wasn't in the room, but Chase could see that she had been walking on something so he assumed she would be back soon. Walking around the room (which was quite large as it used to be the servants quarters), Chase studied her artwork. There were paintings and drawings of Warrior and the other horses, landscapes of the surrounding area and sketches of the house. It was obvious that Sam went down to the town quite often during past visits as there were also sketches of people going along on their business. An old man sunning himself outside his shop, a child pulling on his mother's hand and two girls window shopping. Chase was impressed. It was obvious that Sam had a lot of talent. Not only could she draw what she could see, she could also draw what she couldn't. Sam put emotion into her drawings and that is what made a great artist.
As Chase continued to walk around the room, he came upon a pile of paintings that had been stacked carelessly along the wall, like they didn't matter. These paintings were different from the others. They were swirls of colour, showing fire and anger as well as hurt and depression. They screamed of great independence, but at the same time screamed for love and understanding. Chase felt a sharp pang in his heart as he realised what these painting represented. These paintings weren't just pieces of art. They were Sam. Looking at the dates, Chase could see that these paintings went back for years, and for the first time, Chase was able to see what a truly lonely and sad life Sam had lead. Hearing footsteps coming up the stairs, Chase quickly moved back into the middle of the room to the work bench. Although he didn't think Sam would care that he saw her sketches, he knew the other paintings were personal, and she'd be pissed if she knew he had seen them.
Sam walked into the room and was startled to see Chase standing there. "Hey, what are you doing here?"
"Hi. I was looking for you and Mac said you'd probably be up here. How come you never told me about this room before?" After the great last couple of weeks they'd had, Chase was a bit hurt that Sam hadn't told him about her art room. He'd thought that she'd been starting to trust him.
"I don't know. I guess it never seemed that significant really. Normally I come up here to get away from things, but lately, all I've been doing up here is working."
"So I've seen. I had a look at some of your other work as well. It's fantastic."
"How much did you look at?" Although Sam didn't mind Chase looking at her artwork, she didn't want him to see the paintings of her. She wasn't ready to go into that with Chase yet.
"Just the ones on the easels. They're really good." "Thanks. They're just doodles really. It helps me to relax."
"Sam. I've seen doodles. They're way more than just doodles." Sam walked over to the table. She wasn't accustomed to praise with anything that she did. Chase could see she was embarrassed, so he changed the subject. "So, this is where you go when you disappear on me then."
"Sometimes. I've been busy organising a gallery opening at my school. The parents wanted it done. You know what they're like. They need something to show off their children's brilliance to the other parents."
"So you're the organiser. Really? How'd you get stuck doing that?"
