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‘’Sam, are you ready, yet?’’ Lara asked as she knocked on the door of Sam’s room.
‘’Five more minutes,’’ came the answer from inside, not at all sounding rushed.
‘’You said that 10 minutes ago,’’ she rolled her eyes with a sigh.
‘’Babe, I wanna look good for you,’’ Sam was far from being done in five minutes. She stood there in her underwear as she applied her make-up.
‘’You always look good to me, Sam.’’
‘’Thank you, sweetie. Five more minutes, I promise!’’
‘’Fine,’’ she rolled her eyes and sighed. ‘’I’ll get the car and wait for you outside.’’
It had been a month since their reunion. Sam had been living in the manor the entire time, they almost spent every waking moment together, which resulted in them talking about their feelings for each other and now they were going out on their very first date.
As she passed a mirror, she took a minute to take a deep breath and fix little hairs that were out of place. Lara wore a white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbow and form fitting black pants, all the buttons were done up to her neck. No, that wouldn’t do. She loosened the top two buttons and exposed her collar bones, free of the jade necklace that she normally wore.
‘’Relax Lara, this is just a date with your best friend. You’ve only waited for this opportunity for five years. And right now I am talking to myself, I am losing it,’’ she gave herself another look at the mirror and walked away.
Lara walked into the vast open space that was the garage, for a man that didn’t hold an interest in cars, Richard Croft had a large one. There was a classic green coloured Jaguar just sitting idle in the garage, in pristine outer condition, after so many years unused the motor wouldn’t start again. She really ought to get that to a garage and get it fixed. There was a Rolls Royce she walked past, once belonging to her mother. She remembers sitting in the backseat of the car with her mother while they were driven around england.
Her relationship with money had gotten better after she took control back of the manor, renovated it and had access to her trust fund. She was at peace with who she was and what family she came from. Both of her parents were more than just wealthy, it was old money, her mother was even engaged to an earl at a point. The inheritance was more than she could even fathom. More than enough to last an entire lifetime and the generations that could come after her. Most of the money would be used for future expeditions but after all she has been through, she deserved one or two nice and expensive things.
Lara stopped in front of one car and two motorcycles. A cruiser style motorcycle for when she just wanted to ride in more relaxed conditions. Then there was the sport bike for when she required speed and needed to feel the adrenaline coursing through her veins as she broke a speed limit here and there. At last there was her most recent purchase, the car she would be taking tonight. She stepped in and drove the car to the front of the manor where she would be waiting for Sam.
Sam was finally done after fifteen more minutes. She gave herself one more look in the mirror, pleased with her outfit choice and how she looked. Yeah, Lara spent more time in the gym, but Sam worked out from time to time. That and she could thank her mother’s model genes for it as well. She wore a red dress, knowing that Lara liked the colour on her. It was almost like a red cape in front of a bull. The plunging neckline revealing and sexy enough to be still considered classy, paired with black heels.
Like Lara, Sam was nervous too. They had just rekindled their friendship, was it really that wise to start a relationship? Sam wouldn’t be Sam if she didn’t dove in head first without thinking of the consequences.
Sam stepped out of the manor and grinned as soon as she saw Lara leaning against a dark green car she hadn’t seen before. Her form was being outlined by the light from the fountain that was behind her. God, did Lara even know how good she looked? As long as they were together, she would always remind her. ‘’Hey gorgeous,’’ Sam approached Lara and whistled once she had reached her. ‘’Nice ride, you look good with it.’’
Lara held her breath as she looked at Sam from head to toe when she walked out of the manor. Red, Lara’s favourite colour on Sam. Her eyes lingered on the plunging neckline of the dress, as did her mind, thus she hardly registered what Sam had said.
Sam followed Lara's eyes and couldn’t help but grin. Not wearing a bra was a good choice. Thank God for double sided tape that kept her girls in place. She placed her finger under Lara’s jaw, closing it slightly and lifting it up so that their eyes were on the same level. ‘’Eyes up, Croft.’’
‘’I...hmmm..’’ Lara cleared her throat, averting her eyes from the breasts to the car instead, in an attempt to hide the blush that was warming her cheeks. ‘’I needed a new car, my father’s car wouldn’t even start anymore. It’s an Ashton Martin.’’ Mentally, she slapped her forehead. Sam wouldn’t care about some infodump about a car. Luckily, she could stop herself before she would give out more trivia.
‘’Wait, does this mean I am going on a date with James Bond?’’ Sam gently touched the hood of the car as they walked together to the passenger side. Of course Lara would nerd out about cars too. The model of the car meant nothing to Sam, but she did like the look of it. ‘’Does this make me your Bond girl?’’
‘’No, you are going out on a date with Croft, Lara Croft,’’ she chuckled as she opened the door for Sam to step inside.
‘’Have there been many Croft girls?’’ Sam questioned with a curious smile.
‘’A few,’’ she shrugged, nonchalantly before she returned the smile.
‘’Oh, really?’’ Sam arched her brow in surprise, she had only known about Lara’s dating life in university and that wasn’t really that exciting or adventerous. Who knows who Lara met during her adventures.
‘’None of them can compare to Samantha Nishimura.’’ They wouldn’t even come close.
‘’Such a charmer you are,’’ Sam caressed Lara’s cheek before she softly kissed it, as a thank you for opening the door and stepped inside of the car. ‘’She sounds much better than Bond.’’
Lara’s cheek turned a soft pink after the kiss on her cheek, again, Sam always had that effect on her. After she made sure that Sam put a seatbelt on, she began driving away from the manor. Not a second later, Sam was tinkering with the sound system of the car, finding a radio station that played some soft tunes.
This car had its gear shift on the steering wheel so Lara’s hand rested between them. Sam gently took hold of it and squeezed it gently. She liked to be touching and holding Lara in little ways. Physical touch was her love language, yes, but now she held Lara’s hand because she knew both of them were nervous for tonight. Neither was sure if this was really a good idea.
Lara smiled at the little gesture and intertwined their fingers together, she brought Sam’s hand to her lips and kissed the back of it. ‘’Watch this,’’ she said before letting go of her hand.
Sam felt her stomach flutter as Lara kissed her hand, before she could even ask what she had to look for, her stomach dropped and her back got pushed into the seat. Zero to sixty in 3.3 seconds. The roar of the engine was ringing in her ears. They weren’t far away from the manor, no other cars were on the road. it would be awhile before they would hit the main street, going this fast wouldn’t endanger others or themselves. Sam trusts that Lara wouldn’t put them in danger.
She looked over to Lara, who was focused on the road and in complete control of the car. She easily manoeuvred the car through the twists and turns of the road with high speeds. Lara took a second to grin to Sam as she saw the surprised look on her companion. This was the Lara she knew, the one who wasn’t always so serious, the carefree girl that she brought out. Sam squealed with joy and laughed now that she had gotten used to the speed of the car.
Lara began driving the required speed limit when they hit the main roads again. She kept a smile on her lips after hearing Sam laugh like that. What a beautiful sound that was. She wanted to hear it for the rest of her life.
Once inside of the restaurant Lara pulled back Sam’s chair and sat down opposite of her. She had made reservations in an Italian fine dining restaurant, soft live music was playing in the background.
‘’You are already doing so well, Croft,’’ Sam swirled the wine in her glass as her own eyes lingered a second too long at fabric that was a bit tight around her biceps. She made a note in her head that she would need to take Lara to a tailor. ‘’Makes me wonder how many times you have done this.’’
‘’All I have done so far is drive you to the restaurant and pull back your chair,’’ she slightly raised her eyebrow and closed the menu. ‘’You must have set the bar for your dating standards low.’’
A bit of teasing. Sam could easily handle that. After sending Sam that letter, Lara had practically stalked all her socials. Samantha Nishimura wasn’t a private person, on her Instagram there were lots of pictures of her filming the various documentaries but there were lots of pictures with different women and men in various luxurious locations that besides those snapshots weren’t seen again on her socials.
‘’Are we getting a bit jealous, Lara? On the contrary, they are rather high,’’ she smirked. ‘’Taking me out to dinner is easy… getting me into your bed will be a challenge.’’ That was a lie. After Yamatai Sam had some unhealthy coping mechanisms. There weren’t many relationships, besides those that didn’t last longer than two months. But there were flings, trysts, hooking up with strangers, whatever you wanted to call it. She wanted to forget and fill a void.
A point for Nishimura. Sam was always one step ahead of her. Was Lara a bit jealous? Perhaps, but she knew she had no right to speak. Sam wasn’t hers. That comment made Lara blush. The evening went well for the two ladies, food was excellent, the conversation between them flowed between flirting and gently teasing each other. A good time was had.
Once they had gotten back to the manor, Sam took off her high heels and looked over at her shoulder at Lara. ‘’Walk me back to my room?’’
Before Lara could even answer, Sam was walking away from her. She could swear that Sam’s hips swayed from side to side intentionally to seduce her. Lara was picking up the hints. Now and during dinner but she didn’t have the guts to act on them yet. After staring at Sam’s ass for a second too long she easily caught up with her date.
‘’I had a really good time, Lara,’’ Sam placed her hand on the door handle, not yet opening it. ‘’Thank you for tonight.’’
‘’Me too, Sam.’’ Lara stood close, but wasn’t touching Sam in any way at all.
Sam had expected a little more from Lara. For this to work, she needed to know that Lara wanted her back into her life more than just a friend. She saw the hints of her old friend at the dinner. The easy banter, the flirting, their friendship picked up from where they left it. She craved more. But it was always Sam that initiated it. After Yamatai she was the one that reached out first, countless times, by that time Sam was too late and Lara was deep into her obsession with Trinity and was relegated to hear if Lara was alive through Jonah.
Lara saw Sam’s pleading eyes, yet she stood frozen. So many years she spent taking down Trinity. She was lost now with them gone, not knowing where her next adventure would be or who she would be taking with her. Would Sam ever be okay with the life she led? Would she grow tired of the constant exploring, dangerous situations and eventually leave her?
Nothing in life is set in stone. She was in control of her own life and destiny. This manor needed a heart. She had been given so many chances, Sam’s patience was pushed to its limit. Lara knew that she had to act now or be okay with the fact that she could be losing the love of her life.
‘’Goodni-,’’ Sam could mumble before she felt an arm wrap around her waist and pull her against Lara, so gentle yet forceful enough that it commanded her attention.
‘’....’’ Words wouldn’t do the situation justice, only actions would. Lara pressed her lips against those of Sam’s. First she had thought that she made a mistake when Sam gasped, a second later she felt the other woman relax in her arms and return the kiss. While they kissed, Lara opened the door to Sam’s bedroom, her hands moved down to her ass and easily lifted her up in her arms. The door was closed with the back of her heel.
Lara somewhat gently dropped Sam on the bed, she stood between her legs with her chest heaving with heavy breath from the kiss. Sam opened her legs to give Lara a bit more space, the split in her dress making this easy. It was the most arousing sight she had ever seen, Lara panting above her, the undone buttons giving her the view of her cleavage. ‘’Don’t make me wait, Lara.’’
That didn’t need to be told twice to the young Croft. She was on top of her lover in a second. Throughout the night and multiple rounds they continued to explore each other's bodies before they fell asleep in each other's arms, with a light sheen of sweat still coating their bodies.
To her own surprise, Sam was the first one that woke up the next morning. She felt Lara’s arm loosely around her waist. With a soft sigh, she gently moved it away and shifted her body from the embrace. A soft kiss was placed on Lara’s shoulder, just like she had done many times before with her one night stands, she put her clothes on and left the room.
Lara woke up when the sun lit up the room, she couldn’t remember the last time she slept so peacefully, there were no nightmares, no waking up in the middle of the night, just calmness and Sam’s warm body against hers. ‘’Goodmorning,’’ she patted the space next to her, expecting to find Sam but only felt the cold bedding. She quickly sat up and scanned the room, calling out for Sam. There was no response but she saw their clothes from the previous night sprawled out across the room.
Had she moved on too fast? Was last night a mistake? With a groan Lara put on last night clothes and explored the manor to find Sam, if she was even still here. The sight in front of her surprised Lara. She watched as Sam stood in the kitchen, standing on her toes while reaching for something in the cabinets. The large shirt was pulling up her body and exposed the black underwear that barely covered her ass cheeks. ‘’Goodmorning.’’
‘’Morning, babe,’’ Sam turned around with a smile when she saw Lara in last night's clothes. ‘’Doing the walk of shame?’’ She gave her a light peck on the lips before she turned her attention back to the stove.
‘’Is it still a walk of shame when I’m in my own home?’’ Lara answered hesitantly, she didn’t really know where they stood after last night. Maybe it was just fun and sex for Sam, something that she needed to get out of her system. But that light peck startled her.
‘’If you are still in last night’s clothes, it counts,’’ Sam filled a plate with some eggs and bacon on them. ‘’Made you some breakfast.’’
Lara sat down at the table and looked around in the kitchen. It was a complete mess. She wasn’t the best cook either but it looked like a tornado had swept the kitchen. Too much mess for just some bacon and eggs. She took her first bite while she thought of something to say, to start the conversation. God, why was she so bad at relationships?
Somehow the eggs were rubbery and overcooked while the bacon looked a bit too pale. She mentioned none of it. ‘’So, girlfriend, what are the plans for today?’’ Sam asked nonchalantly while she took her seat in Lara’s lap.
‘’Uhm.. I don’t really know,’’ her brain was short-circuiting when Sam sat on her lap and crossed her legs. Her hand caressed the exposed soft skin of the other woman’s thigh. Wait. Girlfriend? Did she hear that correctly? ‘’Girlfriend as in more friend, or girlfriend more as in significant other?’’ She asked, shyly.
‘’You had me in all sorts of positions last night and you are still this shy?’’ Sam had to chuckle and how surprised Lara sounded. ‘’As in significant other, your better half, girlfriend, future wife, or whatever you want to call it. I do expect a rather large diamond in a year or two.’’
Lara couldn’t help the large grin that appeared on her lips. But panic quickly settled in. ‘’Are you sure, Sam? Isn’t it too soon? I don’t lead an easy life. I might be away a lot…’’
‘’We have danced around each other long enough,’’ Sam placed her hands on Lara’s face, with her thumbs caressing her cheek as she made Lara look at her, feeling her panic. ‘’I’m sure, Lara, we will figure it out, together.’’
Lara leaned her cheek into one of Sam’s hands and closed her eyes for a moment. She couldn’t quite believe her luck. After everything that happened, Yamatai, Trinity, the years of no contact with Sam. She was at peace for a moment. No idea how long that would last, but she knew she would have Sam in her life. That made life a hell of a lot easier. With a kiss their relationship was sealed and Croft manor had found its heart in Samantha Nishimura.