Amsterdam Ch. 02

He had barely said ten words to her for the rest of the trip. He hadn't heard her the first time she had asked him to forgive her for reaching under him when she was searching for her ear buds, and his eyes didn't leave the page when the flight attendant asked if he wanted a drink. She was impressed with the way he seemed drawn into the story. She had been joking with him when she offered the book, but she was a little glad to have a minute to take in the hotness that was this man. She still hadn't caught his name, but then, she hadn't exactly offered hers either. The voice in the back of her head kept telling her it might not be the best idea to give up so much information, but then the voice sounded conveniently like her mother's. It was the same voice that had convinced her not to go to college out of state, and that had made her give up her dreams of being an opera singer because it wasn't practical. When something seemed outlandish to Vivian Simmons, it was usually squelched by the words "That's impractical."

She understood that it was concern that drove her mother, but that same concern had made her become a home inspector instead of the opera singer/ ice skater/writer she had always wanted to be. The irony that her mother was an entrepeneur, a small business owner of a fairly successful bridal shop in her home town never escaped Samantha. Vivianne had stepped out to do something risky in a time when it had been risky to do so, and when she was a single mother taking care of Sam and her sister Shannon. She had started the shop with very little money, but a ton of contacts and a keen eye for elegance. Vivianne had built her dream with hard work and focus, and she had added a wedding planning service to the retail store. She had met Lawrence, the man she later married when Sam had been a senior in college, at a chamber of commerce function. He owned the pizza shop in town and he was a really nice guy who adored her mother, and treated her and Shannon with respect.

After a few hours of dozing, watching a movie on the little screen in front of her, and picking through the breakfast that the airline provided, She was ready to land and stretch her legs. And shower. It had been hours since she'd hopped on the plane and had begun her trip to Amsterdam though her mother had been horrified to learn that she was going all alone.

"What do you mean you're going all alone?" Vivian's eyes had been wide with horror. "You don't know anyone there!" She had put a bony hand to her ample chest, and Sam felt the urge to roll her eyes at her mother, but she stopped. She knew that she could still get slapped. He mama always let her know she would never be old enough to disrespect her mother, and she wasn't brave enough to test her theory. Her mother might only be five foot five, but somehow she still seemed to loom over all Samantha did. Sometimes it felt like she had never grown up. And it some ways it really was like she hadn't.

"I know, Mom, but I found this amazing deal and I didn't want to pass up the chance to go. You know I've been on a cruise, but I want to go out and see more of the world. I want to go to Europe," She had meant it to sound like she was forceful and confident, but instead, it came out just above a whisper. How was it that her mother still scared the pants off her? They were the same height, and Sam outweighed her mother by a good 30 pounds. Still, there was that healthy fear of her mother that had been present since she was old enough to know that while her mother was a loving and kind woman, she was also stern and no nonsense. Not exactly someone Sam could open up to about most things.

The night before she took off to Amsterdam, her mother had looked at her and in all seriousness said "Don't fall in love while you are there."

A giggle had burst from her lips and she smiled indulgently at her mother, as she tried to remember the last time she had gotten laid much less felt love. Her mother knew better than anyone how few dates Sam had had in... It took so long to think about it that her mother had called her name several times before she heard her. Her mother had a lot more faith in her dating situation than she did.

"I'm serious. You are going to go over there and find some man," Vivianne Collins had sniffed and then taken a sip of her hot tea.

"I'm going over there and I'm going to look at some art and eat and rest up."

"I don't see why you can't do that here, there are perfectly good museums in the United States. You could go see your cousin, Zelda in D.C. The museums are all free there." The usual humph wasn't on the end of the sentence, but Sam could feel it hanging in the air. Most of her conversations with her mother ended with her mother saying "Humph!" and setting her mouth in a line of annoyance. Most of the time, Sam gave in to what ever it was that her mother was displeased with. She hated giving into her mother, but it was easier not to hear the nagging, or worse, the "I told you so," that followed when things didn't quite turn out the way she had intended. This time she had felt like she needed to get on that plane, and so she didn't mention the trip unless it was absolutely necessary to talk about it. That was difficult to do considering she saw her parents at least once a week with a standing date for dinner on Friday nights.

That last Friday, her mother had looked at her for a long time before she bustled out of the room. She came back several minutes later with a small bag in her hand which she handed over to Sam in an almost shy way. When Sam slipped her hand in the bag, she smiled as she pulled out a guidebook for Amsterdam. She grinned at her mother and her mother gave her a smile and then approached her with her arms wide, and gathered her in her arms. It was Vivian's quiet way of saying that she was sorry. The words would probably never come out of her mouth, but she never let the opportunity to show her family how much she loved them, or to show how sorry she might be for something she had said or done. The words "I'm sorry" were just never uttered.

Sam was a little surprised to find that the last two hours of the flight flew by, and when the wheels touched down, she found that she couldn't wait to stand up and stretch her legs a little. He still hadn't moved though.

"Um," she said softly. "We're at Schiphol..."

His head snapped up and he gave her a sheepish grin. "You were right, this is really engrossing. Time flew by!"

"I told you so!" he smiled at her, but didn't make a move to give the book back. In fact, he went back to the page his finger was paused over and quickly scanned the page. He only had a few pages to read, and he looked a little desperate to finish the book. She touched him on the arm and he looked up again.

"If you want to borrow the book, you can."

"I don't know--" his grey eyes reflected his conflict.

"It's alright. I finished it in Detroit. You can take it." She nodded her encouragement. All around them, people were reaching up to get their carry on luggage, but she felt no rush. She knew she would just have to wait at the customs counter, so she took the opportunity to stand up from her seat and she stretched showing a bit of her tummy. It was when a good portion of the plane had left, that she and the man had stepped out to get their belongings and then they walked together from customs to the train, and sat together for the ride into Amsterdam, "So where are you meeting your ride?" He asked. She hiked her shoulder bag up higher and shook her head.

"I was told it wasn't a far walk to the hotel."

"You're going to walk in a strange city at 6 in the morning all by yourself?" He felt his eyebrows raise in disbelief.

"Not a good idea?" She asked. He shook his head no. "Then I'll grab a cab." She held out her hand and waited for him to take it, but he shook his head.

"That's and even worse idea. The cab drivers will rob you blind. How about if I walk you to your hotel. It isn't really isn't far. No place in Amsterdam is. Come on."

"You really don't have to do that," She said. "I'm sure you have someplace you want to be after a seven hour flight."

"No place that can't wait. Which hotel is it?"

"The Sofitel The Grand," The pretty woman had said.

"That's a really nice hotel," he said. "Very posh."

"Really? How do you know? Have you stayed there?" he crossed in front of her and began walking across the taxi stand. He could hear the quickening, rubbery squish of her sneakers on the pavement as she followed him.

"I have. And I'm staying there now."

"Is this a coincidence, or is it you trying to get into my pants?" She joked.

"It is a total coincidence. But a happy one, I assure you." He looked over to his right and she was there, on her adorable little legs keeping pace with him, her eyes luminous in the light the street lights shone down.

They had chatted steadily the few blocks it took to get to the hotel about how nice it would be to go to bed. They stepped through the front gate of the hotel and he heard her gasp. "It's beautiful!" She whispered.

"It is." He had nodded. A pair of doormen came through the heavy wooden doors that had a revolving door just inside them. they reached for their baggage and wished them a good morning. They each said good morning and let themselves be led a short distance into the trendy lobby that was sleek and modern in shades of purple and black to the front desk. They were greeted by a pretty, efficient looking woman behind the counter.

"Good morning," she said to them in accented English.

"Good morning," they said together. He let her step forward and the woman gave her name.

"Samantha Smith," her voice was a little husky and it made him wonder when that had happened. Then his interest was peaked. He finally knew her name. After almost 8 hours together, it was nice to finally know who she was. Or at least what her name was. He felt like he had a pretty good idea of the person she might be. He watched her place her little hands on the black marble counter and she pushed herself up a little on the balls of her feet. She was so cute. He admired her bottom in the designer jeans that hugged her like they were made just for her. Then snapped his eyes back up when he realized he was staring.

"Ms. Smith," The desk attendant gave her a smile. "Welcome." Her fingers clicked upon the keyboard that was hidden under the counter. "Ah yes, you are with us for 6 nights...a single room... and... oh, we have no rooms open right now. It is very early in the morning, and no one has checked out yet. I am very sorry, Ms. Smith, perhaps you can walk around the city and come back in a few hours. We may have a room open by then." The brunette smiled apologetically, and Samantha nodded in understanding.

"Sure. Is there anything around here that might be open?" Sam had asked.

"Not too much," The woman said in that uniquely Dutch way of being blunt. "But there is much to see."

Samantha giggled. "Is it alright if I leave my luggage then?"

"Yes, Ms. Smith. Of course."

Simon stepped forward and gave the woman a smile. She gave a flirty smile back and said good morning. "I just heard what you said."

"Allow me to take your name and I will try to get you a room as soon as possible."

They stepped into the early sunrise and she took a deep breath. "So you know, you don't have to hang out with me. I can't promise I'd be good company. I'm feeling slap happy. It has been hours since I have been to bed." Their shoes sounded on the pavement as they walked in the direction of the Red Light District. They chatted lightly of the things there were to do. He admitted that he hadn't seen much of the city when he had been before, work had kept him busy the first time but it was easy to get around and he remembered where the few things he liked were. Just the quick walks from the office to the hotel had been about all he had done. The next few times were setting up his office and trying to find a place to live. And he couldn't imagine that he would see very much more this time around. Between finding a place to live, and getting started in the office, Fischer was fairly certain that any exploring in the city would have to wait. He frowned when he thought about the fact that he still had to find a place to live. She touched his arm gently, and he started.

"You were lost in thought there, huh?"

"Yeah. I was thinking that I still have to find an apartment." He leaned over the thin pipe railing and peered into the murky water.

"It's kind of a shame that you can't just live in the Sofitel, huh?" Sam bumped her shoulder to his in a friendly way. He felt like he had always known her, and he liked that. His eyes traced the random assortment of coils that stood up on her little head. He longed to touch her face, but he wasn't completely sure that she would go for that. He had a feeling she would be open to it, but he didn't want to mess things up. He wanted everything to be perfect for her. He had never believed in love at first sight, but he did after seeing her.

Seeing her come down the aisle of the airplane, his breath had caught in his dry throat. He had silently prayed that she was going to sit next to him, his eyes following her as she watched the numbers above the seat when she walked by. Stepping in front of him, she had looked at him and had pointed her little finger into the seat beside him.

"That's mine," She had said in a voice that was a little husky, her eyes sparkled with the excitement of the flight. Her overloaded black computer bag was hitched on her shoulder and she was slightly stooped over trying to balance it. Behind her, she pulled a lavendar carry on suitcase that groaned under the weight of the clothes and shoes he figured were in it. He stepped out of her way when she put her first bag on the seat, but when she started to lift the suitcase in the air, he took it smoothly from her hands and nestled it in the overhead compartment between the wall and the beat up, mostly red back pack he had brought with him. "Thanks!" That warm, familiar, sparkling grin is what had had him on edge of his seat for the first hour of the flight trying to figure out how to open up a conversation with her. Who knew it would be a romance novel that got him to his goal?

They stood looking out over the canal, watching the glow of the sun as it rose in the sky. This was his first sunrise in Amsterdam, and he couldn't remember a more perfect person to share it with. This woman was under his skin already, and they had only known each other a few hours. "So, Sam, what do you say to getting some breakfast?"

"I think that sounds as good as sleep right now." Her pillowy lips bent into a grin.

"Have you ever had Poffertjes?"