A Few Little Scars

by Casey McMillin

  She was almost certain he was right about that—a fact that pained her to think about. Something Nick didn't know was that Molly was actually a fan of sex and although not nearly as experienced as him, she knew it was something she enjoyed, and was interested in learning more. His promise of being able to please her hit Molly harder than it would most girls her age. She wanted so badly to be pleased, and cursed inwardly at the terrible timing of meeting Nick and Zeke at the same time.

  She thought she might actually have a chance with something long-term with Zeke, which was more than she could say for Nick. That was the one and only factor that made her know Zeke was a better option. She pushed him away by the chest, and his hand retreated slightly. He didn't take it away completely, though. He let it linger on her upper thigh.

  "Nick, we can't keep doing this. I want to, but the timing really sucks," she said, honestly.

  He pulled back to look at her, but she just stared to the side.

  "I'm seriously tempted by you, I really am, and it's hard for me to say this, but I can't do this at the same time that I'm trying to get to know someone else. I mean, he's down there waiting for me. He thinks I just came up here to get my purse so we can leave."

  Nick stared at her. He looked like he was about to say something but didn't—then he stared at her some more. "Please let me kiss you Molly. I won't ruin your little chances with the rocker down there. Just kiss me one last time before you go."

  "Why?" she asked. It was obvious by the way she said it that she wasn't opposed to the idea. Her voice was vulnerable, and it made Nick want to do more than just kiss her. The lighting in the room made it easy to see her scar, and her hair was tied up behind her head in such a way that had hair shooting off here and there like fireworks. The combination of her features appealed to Nick in a way he couldn't describe or even understand.

  "Why are you staring at my mouth?"

  "Because I'm going to kiss it."

  "What if I say no?"

  "You won't."

  "Oh yeah?"

  "Yeah."

  "How are you so confident?"

  "Because you want to kiss me as bad as I want to kiss you."

  He put a soft kiss on her mouth.

  "I do?"

  Another kiss.

  "Yes."

  Another kiss.

  "Promise you won't tell?"

  Another kiss—this one accompanied by a warm hand sliding back up her thigh.

  "I won't tell anyone, baby girl, but you're not going to be able to forget me, and that's gonna complicate things."

  Another kiss—a deeper one.

  "I am-too gonna forget about you."

  He pulled back and smiled, leaving his hand in place. The thin fabric of her tights was the only thing separating her crotch from his warm hand, and she felt crazy with desire for him.

  "I think it's you who can't forget about me," she said.

  He blinked. "Already forgotten."

  She looked at him stubbornly. "Good. Because you're already forgotten too."

  "Good luck trying to get it on with Guitar Hero while you're thinking about me tonight."

  "Good luck trying to get it on with the redhead or Daisy or whoever while you're thinking about me."

  Nick smiled again. He took his hand from under her skirt and brought it up to gently tuck a little piece of hair behind her ear.

  "I don't think we can do this anymore," she said. She was still a little breathless, and felt a little drained by the disappointment of knowing the little rendezvous with Nick wasn't going to amount to anything.

  "I don't see why," Nick said. "As long as nobody's getting hurt."

  She smiled thinking about the extent of her emotions toward Nick, and how easily he could hurt her if she let it go there. "I guess the rocker and the redhead would," she said, trying to ignore the fact that she was the one in danger.

  An expression kin to disappointment crossed Nick's face before one of resolve. "I guess I should let you go," he said. Then he stood there, making no move to let her get away. They stayed motionless for a few long seconds, staring at each other.

  "I'm gonna need to move eventually," she said.

  "You sure you wanna go?" he asked.

  "I've been talking to him for the last month," she said. "I can't just leave him hanging like that. He's waiting for me. He thinks I'm on my way down there right now so we can take off together."

  Nick gave her a little disappointed grin then he turned to walk out. "Offer's always open if you change your mind," he said, looking back at her one last time.

  What the heck did he mean by offer? What offer? Was there a standing offer to sleep with Nick if she felt the urge? Is that what she was supposed to take from that?

  She was left feeling a bit like she had buyer's remorse for making the choice to hang out with Zeke instead of Nick. Her body wanted so badly to let Nick please her in whatever way he was talking about, but her brain knew better. She was a convenient choice for Nick. The best friend of his best friend's girlfriend was an obvious choice for an affair, and Molly knew she could easily have a tryst with Nick since she stayed at Jason's house when she came to Nashville.

  Convenience was not enough for her, though. She was smart enough to know that feelings for Nick would follow an affair, so she would avoid it for the sole purpose of avoiding the feelings that would come with it.

  She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Her stomach clinched as she remembered everything that had just happened. It was unbelievable that Nick had followed her not once but twice since she'd been at this party. She could easily conjure up the memory of his mouth on hers, and she relived their encounters for a minute before making herself move to get ready to leave.

  Molly checked her reflection in the bathroom mirror, taking a few seconds to adjust her hair and apply a fresh coat of powder and lip-gloss. She wondered as she looked at her own reflection if she'd ever be able to forget about Nick. Part of her hated him for that. She smiled, thinking he'd gotten his way. He wanted her to find it impossible to forget him—he said that was his whole goal in kissing her in the first place. Molly mumbled something about never kissing him again as she made her way back downstairs to find Zeke.

  Chapter 10

  Not even a week after the party at Jason's, Molly was invited back to Nashville to do something really fun. Molly found a back-door way to go to the CMA awards, and was extremely excited about it. She was actually getting paid to be there, believe it or not.

  Taylor had some connections through her event-planning job and knew the person who did the hiring for seat-fillers at the CMA's. During the filming of the awards show, different people in the audience would have to get out of their seat to make an appearance on stage. To avoid the chairs being empty when the camera panned the audience, seat-fillers were used.

  Taylor was asked by her boss at the event-planning place if she could come up with two other girls who all have a formal, black dress to wear. They had to be willing to have their hair and makeup done and be able to get around quickly in heels. Taylor originally hired her roommate Gina and a friend from the coffee shop named Anne, but Anne had to leave town for a family emergency. Taylor messaged Molly a few days before the show asking if she was interested, and Molly jumped on the opportunity.

  It would mean leaving the hardware store early since the show was on Wednesday night, but she didn't really care what her dad had to say about it. She was invited to go to the CMA's, and she wasn't about to pass. Molly had a black dress she thought would do, but she stopped by Hannah's that afternoon, and ended up wearing one of hers.

  She already had her own hair and makeup done when she got to the arena in downtown Nashville where the awards were being held. She parked her car and walked toward the arena with a garment bag in one hand and a bag full of hair and makeup stuff in the other. Taylor was a seat-filler the year before, and knew exactly where to go, so she was waiting in the front of the arena when Molly arrived.

  Molly was gla
d she hadn't shown up wearing her dress. They had to be there two hours before show time, and she figured they'd have somewhere to change since they'd have access to hair and makeup for last minute tweaks.

  "You look amazing," Taylor said as they hugged and turned to walk into the arena. "Cynthia's in there getting on to the girls for not being more prepared."

  "Am I late?" Molly asked.

  "No, most of us just showed up early knowing we needed help with hair."

  "I can do some hair. I brought my stuff just in case," Molly said.

  "Are you serious?" Taylor asked. She looked at Molly, who nodded. "Oh yeah, Cynthia will totally put you to work if you're willing. She's gonna loooove me for bringing you."

  Taylor led Molly through a maze of hallways before she stopped walking and opened an unmarked door. There was a group of what looked to be ten or fifteen people. Some were sitting, some were standing, but most of them were in some phase of the process of getting ready. The smell of perfume and hairspray was thick in the air, and Molly felt right at home. She followed Taylor to a lady with a clipboard who she assumed was Cynthia.

  "This is Molly," Taylor said.

  "Hey Molly," Cynthia said. She'd been distracted at first and hadn't looked toward Molly, but once she did she said, "Oh good you've had hair and makeup." She reached out and turned Molly by the shoulders to inspect her hair. "This is good," she said. Her eyes roamed over Molly's body. "You brought a nice dress, I hope."

  "Yes ma'am. Standard black." Molly held up the garment bag as if to say Cynthia could inspect it if she wanted.

  "Go ahead and get into it," she said with a wave of the hand.

  "I was going to tell you that I'd be willing to help with hair if some of the other girls needed it, and if that's the case, it might be better for me to wait until I'm done."

  Cynthia looked her up and down again. "Are you a hairstylist?"

  "No, I mean not yet, but I'm pretty confident with up-do's."

  Cynthia made an expression that let Molly know she didn't have time to mess around with someone who didn't know what she was doing.

  "I can promise that it'll be as good or better than my hair," Molly said.

  "Did you do this?" Cynthia asked, pointing at Molly's hair.

  "Yes ma'am."

  Cynthia sighed, considering. "We have four or five that still need help, so you're hired. Just don’t screw it up."

  Molly smiled. "I won't."

  Cynthia pointed to an empty chair. "You can share the tools on that center station that Melanie's working from. There should be a cape in the drawer."

  Molly hung her dress on a nearby rolling clothing rack and walked over to the stylist chair, doing her best to appear confident.

  "Who still needs hair?" She asked to the room at large.

  "I'm first," Taylor said. "Just give me a minute to get my dress on."

  Molly styled Taylor's hair before moving on to two other girls. She was quick and efficient like a seasoned professional, and Taylor was actually sort of proud that she had been the one to bring her. Cynthia tipped her fifty bucks and thanked her about a thousand times for helping out. She made her promise to come work with them again next year.

  There were a total of fourteen of them working as seat-fillers (ten young ladies and four gentlemen—all dressed in black) and they had to get the whole rundown about what to expect and how to behave before the show began. Cynthia was a good leader, and at no point did Molly feel overwhelmed or out of her element. She had been having a great time with all the other seat-fillers since her arrival, and was really excited about the show.

  All of the seats they'd be concerned with filling were near the front. That was the whole point since those were the ones that would be obvious when empty. Cynthia had a person stationed at the end of every aisle who would explain to the fillers exactly where to go and when to do it.

  Her first job was at the beginning of the show, and she'd heard of the guy whose seat she filled, but was too preoccupied with making sure she didn't screw anything up to remember any of his songs. Sitting in that famous person's chair put her a few seats down from the likes of Taylor Swift and Carrie Underwood, and she spotted Hannah and Jason a little ways off looking natural in the midst of all the freaking VIP's. It was all a bit surreal.

  The seat-filler who sat next to her on that first job had done it before and was really sweet about helping Molly feel more at home. He joked under his breath when he knew the cameras were nowhere near them, and Molly caught herself having fun even though she was really nervous. She had a friend back home recording it on DVR, and couldn't wait to watch and try to see herself.

  The show was more than half over when Molly got her second job. It was a spot in the fourth row that had previously been occupied by Brad Paisley. There would be two vacant seats when Brad and whoever he was with got up. Molly, along with one other girl stood in the isle, preparing for the break in filming. When instructed, she walked down the isle and discretely ducked into the chair she was supposed to fill. It was all very standard compared to the first time.

  But that was before she realized she'd just sat next to Nick Logan. Even from the side, she could see that he was as gorgeous as ever, with a fresh haircut and extremely expensive, sleek-looking suit. He was apparently accustomed to the idea of a seat-filler, because he didn't even glance over at Molly at first. She sort of hoped he wouldn't at all—especially since the person directly on the other side of him happened to be Daisy Lee. The same Daisy Lee he made out with in the back hall at The Pit.

  Molly sat back in her chair, hoping to avoid either of them looking at her. A few long seconds went by before Nick spoke. He turned his head toward Molly slightly to angle his words, but spoke to her without taking his eyes off the stage. "What are you doing sitting down next to me at the CMAs?" he asked.

  Molly took a few seconds to catch her breath, and then she leaned toward him stiffly, trying to speak where Daisy wouldn't see or hear.

  "How'd you know it was me?" she whispered.

  "I could smell you. You're the only person I've ever met who smells like that."

  "I hope that's not a bad thing," she said. "And to answer your question, I'm a seat-filler."

  "Obviously," Nick said. "But what are the chances you'd end up next to me, you know?" at the very second he said that, he risked a glance in Molly's direction. He looked away quickly, only to change his mind and glance back at her again. His eyes locked on hers for a few seconds, then they started roaming over her face. Nick looked back at the stage, then over at Daisy. He was acting so very unaffected at a time when Molly felt like her heart might grow legs and run right out of her chest.

  "Be with me tonight," he said, looking over at Molly.

  She choked—she literally choked on her own spit when he said it. Her eyes filled with tears as she resisted the urge to have a coughing fit. She held her hand over her mouth and let out a few tiny, controlled coughs.

  After giving her a few seconds to recover, Nick looked over at her again. "You okay?" he asked.

  Molly nodded. Her eyes were still watering, and it was all she could do to keep a tear from escaping. She blinked a few times and dabbed the corner of her eyes.

  "Whatcha say?" he asked.

  "About what?" she whispered.

  "Be with me tonight," he said. "I made over a million dollars on one deal today, and I'm feeling good. I want to celebrate, and I want you to celebrate with me."

  Molly couldn't believe the nerve. So he just felt like being with her, and thought he could say the word and she'd agree? And sitting right next to his date no less. She was contemplating being angry with him for being so arrogant when she realized that his proposition made her feel more excited than angry. She wasn't even sure what he meant by be with me, but she figured he was planning on doing more than kissing her. She chastised herself for even entertaining the idea.

  "I think you're here with a date," she said diplomatically.

  "Daisy and I are friends," he
said.

  "And I'm talking about later tonight once all this is over."

  They stopped talking long enough to pay attention to what was happening on stage. Molly, Nick, and everyone else on their row smiled and clapped with the crowd as Brad Paisley presented an award.

  "I have a boyfriend," Molly said, as the crowd continued to clap.

  "So? He doesn't have to know," Nick said. "Come on. I've had a really good day today and I feel like getting my way."

  The clapping died down, and Molly was really quiet as she continued. "I'm just not getting why you want me when you're sitting next to her."

  Nick turned and looked Molly over with appraising eyes. "I want you. Make no mistake about that."

  Her heart felt like it was beating irregularly, and she glanced at the seat-filler sitting on the other side of her to make sure none of the conversation with Nick was being overheard. The girl was oblivious to the fact that Molly was even talking to Nick, and just smiled and looked normal like they were instructed to do.

  Brad Paisley was off stage by that point, and Nick knew Molly would be forced to get up and give Brad his seat back any minute.

  "Listen, I think you should really consider it," he said. "Get my number from Jason and call me tonight either way."

  She smiled slightly and shook her head. "You are incredibly hard to refuse."

  "Then don't."

  Molly was tapped on the shoulder by her fellow seat-filler and just like that, she was gone. Nick was left there, wondering whether or not she would call.

  Her head was reeling. She was so overwhelmed by how incredibly gorgeous he was that she was actually justifying cheating on her boyfriend. She wanted Nick's body so badly she felt an almost painful ache at the thought of him. She wouldn't consider herself the cheating type, but the idea of no strings attached sex with the tall, dark, and lovely Nick Logan was extremely tempting—boyfriend or no boyfriend.

  A million dollars in one day! She smiled thinking of the nerve it took to say he was on a roll and wanted to have sex with her just to celebrate. She caught herself feeling flattered that she was his choice for the end of a good day, and she laughed, thinking about how she was falling into line with everything else in his life. Everything Nick Logan wanted, he got—and now she had to decide whether or not she was okay with being added to that list.