C353 I Am Married

Sarah immediately realized she had said something she shouldn't have. She froze. For a brief moment, she looked toward Samantha. Understanding the situation instantly, Samantha hurriedly stepped in. "No, Sister just meant out friends from work," Samantha said with a smile. "They were discussing whether we should continue with that dinner plan." Ben suddenly laughed. Tracy, who had been worried, relaxed slightly after hearing Samantha's explanation.

Kelvin, however, simply shook his head. Tracy noticed both Kelvin's and Ben's reactions. She frowned. "Son, what's so funny?" Ben leaned back in his chair. "They think we're fools." Kelvin nodded in agreement. "Exactly." His eyes moved between his daughters. "Will you tell us the truth instead of making up stories?" Sarah immediately panicked. "Father, it's exactly as she said." She quickly searched for an explanation. "I was talking about the employees participating in the foreign language training program. They wanted us to go out for dinner."

Kelvin raised an eyebrow. "First it was friends." He looked directly at her. "Now it's employees?" Sarah almost choked. Samantha quickly laughed. "Dad, don't worry." She smiled reassuringly. "If there's any real danger, we'll tell you." Ben folded his arms. "Father, forget about their lies." The two sisters glared at him. Ben pretended not to notice. "My warehouse renovations start tomorrow." He looked at Sarah and Samantha. "And my two investors still haven't sent me any money."

Sarah smiled. "Brother, how can we send money before signing documents?" Ben froze. "What?" He looked offended. "You need proof that you're investing?" Samantha nodded seriously. "Of course." "What if you rob us?" Everyone laughed. Ben shook his head helplessly. "Fine." He pointed at them. "Tomorrow I'll prepare the documents." Sarah nodded approvingly. "That's much better." After a while, the two sisters stood up. Sarah stretched lazily. "Well, it's getting late." She smiled. "My husband will call me any moment now, and he'll complain if I don't answer."

She began walking upstairs. Almost immediately, Samantha stood up as well. Ben noticed and raised an eyebrow. "If you're leaving because of your husband," he said, looking at Sarah, "then what about Samantha?" Samantha froze halfway through taking a step. Before she could answer, Tracy looked at her daughter suspiciously. "That's right." She crossed her arms. "Why are you leaving too?" Kelvin nodded in agreement. "You've been acting strangely these past few days." He looked from Sarah to Samantha. "First you're keeping secrets from us. Then you're always rushing somewhere after dinner."

His eyes narrowed. "Now you're leaving at the same time as Sarah." Samantha immediately felt several pairs of eyes land on her. For a moment she didn't know what to say. Sarah nearly choked. Ben folded his arms and waited for an answer. "Well?" Samantha laughed immediately. "I need to take a shower." "And then I'll join the call too." She grinned. "We're all friends, remember?" Sarah immediately caught on and nodded. "That's true." Tracy still looked suspicious. "Just a video call?" "Just a video call," Samantha answered without hesitation. "Yes mother."

Kelvin sighed. "I don't know why I bother asking anymore." Everyone laughed. Samantha seized the opportunity. "Good night, everyone." Sarah smiled. "Good night." The two sisters quickly headed upstairs before any more questions could be asked. As soon as they disappeared around the corner, Ben shook his head. "They're definitely hiding something." Kelvin leaned back in his chair and sighed. "At least this time they didn't completely ignore us." Tracy laughed softly. "Give them time." She glanced toward the stairs. "They'll tell us eventually."

Inside her room... Samantha locked the door behind her. Monica was already asleep in her small bed. The little girl looked peaceful. She went to take a shower. Few minutes later Samantha sat down on her own bed. The room became quiet. Too quiet. The moment she was alone, the memories returned. Faith's kiss. Again. And again. And again. Samantha buried her face in her hands. "What happened today?" She looked down at the silver ring on her finger. The symbol of her marriage. Slowly, she shook her head. "I'm married."

Her thoughts became even more chaotic. "What was Faith thinking?" She stood up and walked toward the mirror. For several seconds, she simply stared at her reflection. Then she spoke softly. "Am I still beautiful?" She immediately froze after hearing herself. "What kind of question is that?" Yet another thought surfaced. "Otherwise, why would she kiss me?" She touched her cheek. "Is she attracted to me?" Before she could think any further, her phone suddenly rang. A group video call. Chris. Samantha froze. The screen continued flashing.

Her heart suddenly became nervous. "Faith is part of the Lions now." "Alicia added her to our group." She sighed. "How am I supposed to face her after this?" "Luckily Chris had refused letting her be part of the video calls." The phone continued ringing. Finally, she answered. To her surprise, everyone was already there. Chris. Sarah. Alicia. Mike. Laura. She smiled and greeted them. "The Lions are together." Chris immediately grinned. "You're late." He pointed accusingly at the screen. "What happened?"

Samantha forced a smile. "The gym." She shrugged casually. "I just got back." Alicia nodded. "That makes sense." Mike laughed. "Well, guys." He turned his camera toward his desk. "My wife just helped me set up my new computer." He smiled proudly. "I think I can start tracking them again." Everyone laughed. Sarah looked confused. "Alicia helped you with computers?" She looked at her friend. "What does she know about that stuff?" Chris burst out laughing. "My sister used to be a Special Analyst." He shook his head dramatically. "Have you forgotten the France business trip?"

Chris laughed again, "Well you can't possibly forget that day can you?" Sarah immediately realized where the conversation was heading. "Chris." She pointed at him. "Enough." Chris grinned. "I wasn't even going to say anything." Everyone laughed. I looked toward Alicia. "Wife." I leaned back in my chair. "Can you tell us about the sniper training plan?" "The coaches said that's where we'll begin." The others immediately became interested. Even Samantha forgot about her earlier thoughts for a moment as everyone waited for Alicia's answer.