Unraveling Molly

by Tuesday Embers

  The food smelled wonderful, but it was so rare Molly got to eat with another person. She wanted to wait for him, even if the breakfast went cold. She had seen her toothbrush next to his on the sink in the bathroom that morning. The sight looked too perfect for her to dwell on. He’s probably leaving after breakfast. Has to spend time with the people he actually came here to see. No big deal.

  Liam came out with his teeth brushed, face washed, and emerald eyes that were much more alert. He leaned down to pull her up, kissing her lips by way of a greeting. It felt so natural, as if they did this sort of thing all the time. “Morning, beautiful girl.”

  Molly melted into his embrace, feeling more at home in her childhood house than she ever had before. “Good morning. Are you hungry?”

  “Always.” He kissed her again. “Fooling around makes me ravenous. Something you should know, since I’ll be staying here a few days.”

  “A few days?” Molly tried to keep the glee out of her tone, but her smile gave her away.

  “Or longer, depending. Is that alright? Kyle said it was fine, but I get the feeling we should’ve asked you, since you actually take care of the place.”

  “No, of course. I was psyching myself up to be all adult and not make a big deal of you leaving this morning. You’re staying longer? That’s much better.”

  He glanced over her shoulder at the tray that made his stomach rumble. “So this is my kiss-off meal? At least you sprung for bacon. Makes me feel like less of a prostitute.”

  Molly blinked up at him with feigned innocence. “Actually, it’s my ‘will you marry me’ breakfast.” When his arms around her froze, she let out a short laugh.

  “You’re kidding. That was a good one. Never dated a virgin before. Not sure on all the rules.”

  Molly pulled away and motioned for him to sit on the bed, shifting the tray in the center of the mattress so she could position herself on the other side. She preferred to see his striking face when they talked. She also knew that if she was next to him, there would be nothing but kissing, and she actually was pretty hungry. “Rule number one: don’t call me ‘Little Luco’. It’d make me feel like I was kissing your brother, and I’ve got enough problems without adding that to the list.”

  Liam chuckled as he shoved a piece of bacon in his mouth. “Got it. Whoa!” His eyes rolled back as he chewed. “What kind of bacon is that? It’s incredible!”

  Molly shrugged. “Regular kind. But I fried it in some leftover rum and maple syrup.”

  He took another piece, dramatically crossing his eyes to demonstrate his satisfaction. “I usually just have a cup of coffee and a bagel or something for breakfast. This is epic, baby.”

  “I’m glad you like it. I did forget to make coffee, though. I don’t drink it, and Kyle doesn’t get up before noon. I can make you some, if you’d like.”

  Liam leaned over the tray to kiss her. “You don’t have to wait on me. You also don’t have to be this perfect.” He motioned to the food. “Can’t tell you how great it is to sleep next to a woman. I don’t do a lot of that.”

  Molly snorted as she drank her orange juice. “I find that hard to believe.”

  “Sex isn’t the same as sleeping together. Sex is fun and great and can be really bonding with the right person. Sleeping next to someone? That’s intimate. I usually don’t do intimate.”

  Molly frowned. “Oh, well I can sleep on the couch tonight if it made you uncomfortable.”

  “I liked sleeping next to you.” He kissed her again. “Stop trying to be so perfect. You already are.” He cut a bite of French toast. “And don’t give up your bed to anyone without a fight. I can’t believe you were going to let me kick you out of your own room. No, no. Stand up for yourself. Say, ‘Screw you, Liam. This is my room, and I sleep here with or without you.’”

  She repeated the mantra, murmuring “bitch” under her breath to make the statement her own.

  Liam laughed loudly, making his whole face more endearing. He had beautiful white teeth that worked in perfect conjunction with his dazzling green eyes. His shoulders began to relax as they joked and ate together, as if they did this sort of thing all the time.

  “Oh! I remembered what I was going to ask you,” Liam said with a mouthful of French toast. “Your escape plan. You mentioned something about it last night, but then you decided to be all sexy, so that distracted me. Nicely played.”

  “Oo, you’re smarter than I thought. I guess I’ll just have to throw you off my trail again.” Molly grabbed the hem of her shirt and pulled it up to her ribs. “Just kidding.”

  Liam stared at her navel as if it held all the secrets of the world. “Master plan first, then we get a repeat of last night.”

  She tried to temper her grin as she finished off her juice. “Hard bargain, but okay.” She stood and went to her closet, pulling aside a few long garments to reveal a sturdy safe.

  Liam let out a low whistle. “That’s a serious-looking safe.”

  “It better be. It’s the only place I get that isn’t subject to Kyle rifling through when he’s looking for cash.” She opened it and pulled out a lockbox, twisting the combination until it opened. A second box greeted her that could only be opened by its hinges. When she opened that and pulled out a third box, she remembered the doors. She stood and locked the bathroom entrance and the bedroom door to ensure their privacy.

  “I don’t know if I’m scared or really turned on right now. Please tell me you have Inspector Gadget stuffed in there somehow.”

  “Boy, are you going to be disappointed.” Molly fished a key out of an old pair of shoes in her closet and opened the third box. “Sorry. I know this looks crazy, but Kyle goes through nosey stages when he’s looking to get high. Thinks I hide fat stacks of cash around the house. He’s a sophisticated sort of lug nut.”

  Liam ran his hands over his face. “You know, the more I hear your brother’s name, the more I want to kill him. I don’t know if I’m proud of Nate for cutting him loose when he left town, or if I should be ashamed he was friends with him in the first place.”

  “I’d go with proud. Kyle wasn’t as bad back then. Your brother’s always been decent to me. Or indecent, depending on how you take his ‘humor’.” Molly used air quotes to show her low opinion of Nate’s dumb jokes. She opened the last box and pulled out a newspaper clip.

  Liam skimmed the page. “You laminated this. That’s serious, Moll. What’s this about?”

  Defiant light bubbled in Molly, and even though Kyle was at Gina’s, she spoke quietly in case somehow her plan might be prematurely found out. A steady gleam lit her from the inside as she let the only person aside from the bank and her realtor in on her plan. “I’m buying an orange grove.”

  “You’re what?”

  “In one month, this piece of land goes up for public auction. It’s been owned by a family for like, a century, but the son who inherited it doesn’t want it. I have just enough to bid five grand under the asking price, which is dirt cheap. My plan is to offer cash, so if someone tries to outbid me, I’ll still have a competitive edge. See this?” She pulled out another laminated picture taken by a surveyor. “This is twenty acres that they’ve been doing nothing with. Twenty! They make their profit off the ten that have orange trees on them. But this back area has nothing.” She pulled out a series of blueprints and technical drawings that made Liam’s brows knit together as he tried to decipher them. Molly was too excited to wait. “Those are plans for a solar farm. Like, a whole solar grid.” Goosebumps erupted on her flesh as her plan poured out of her like water from a faucet. “It’s big enough to power the entire city.”

  Liam was awake enough for banter and breakfast, but solar grids? He shook his head to try to catch up with her fast-working brain. “You want to build enough solar panels to power the city?”

  “Yes.” Molly nodded, a maniacal gleam in her eyes. “Anyone providing their own energy gets a stipend from the energy company for the excess power they provide that can be gleaned and use
d to supplement their supply. I talked to a friend of a friend who works for the company. If this works, I’d pull in more than enough to run the farm and retire comfortably at thirty-five, give or take a year.” She took the schematics back from Liam, whose jaw was on the ground. “And that’s assuming the orange grove is a flop, which it won’t be. It’ll be a rough three years until I can get the soil up to snuff, but after that they’ll boom like you’ve never seen. They family is sweet and all, but they don’t understand pH balance as well as they should. That, combined with the supercharged fertilizer I’ve been working on and the tweaked diatomaceous earth to get rid of their slug problem? Three years is a modest estimate. I might see complete turnaround in two summers.”

  Liam was flabbergasted. He was utterly floored at the expanse of her intellect and quiet tenacity when she was properly motivated. “You… Okay, let me see that again.” He looked over the solar contraption. “You have enough to buy a farm and the parts for this? How much do interpreters make? Solar panels aren’t exactly cheap.”

  “My real parents had life insurance that got put in a trust fund for me. I get that when I turn twenty-six, which is in a couple weeks. Between that and saving every penny I can, I have enough for the farm now, but I’m still shy on the panels. I’ve got a few extra jobs coming up that’ll help. Though truthfully, I can buy all that later. I’d rather have it all right when I buy the place, but that might not be realistic.” She shook her head. “But it’s not realistic to wait for the perfect conditions, either. Bruises don’t bother me all that much, but they don’t make me happy, either. I decided after graduation that I was done being unhappy. So I made a plan, saved every penny and waited. Why do you think I’m really here?”

  “I thought it was because your parents asked you to look after Kyle.”

  “Sure, that’s one reason. But I live here rent-free. I can bide my time and endure whatever Kyle dishes out if it means one day I’ll finally be free of him for good.” She smiled lovingly at the picture of the orange grove. “My own little paradise. I won’t even tell him where I’m going. I’ll just be gone, and he won’t be allowed on the property. My property.” She traced the farmhouse with her finger wistfully. “I’ll be free, Liam.”

  Liam took in her vivacious determination. He examined her fierce grip on independence. He lusted after the spark in her eyes that caught onto him with its zeal. “You’ll be free.” He handed her the papers to put back in her series of boxes. “Molly, this is incredible. You… you’re something special. I hope you know that.”

  “I bet you say that to all the girls you seduce with those green eyes.”

  “How can I help?”

  Molly scrunched her nose. “Seriously? Um, I’m not sure. Moral support for the auction? Busting the kneecaps of anyone who tries to outbid me?” She shook her head at the silly thought. “You won’t be here. You live out of state, right? Just having someone to finally talk to about this is help enough. That’s all I need. Thank you.”

  After she tucked the numerous boxes back in her safe and re-hid the key, Liam pulled her onto his lap. Lavishing her neck with kisses, he grinned into her flesh at how easily her body lent itself to his. “Oh, I’d make the trip out for that. Give me a date and tell me the place. I’ll make it happen.”

  Molly pulled away. “Really? But we don’t even really know each other.”

  He resituated her on his lap, wrapping her legs around his waist. “When someone in your life does something this exciting, you have to drop everything to be a part of it. If you hadn’t already sworn me to secrecy, I’d ask you if we could tell Nate. Bring him along on the adventure.”

  “No,” Molly said firmly. “No one else. Just you, me, the banker and the realtor. Is that okay?”

  “Hey, it’s your party. I’m just happy to be along for the ride.”

  Chapter Twelve

  Body Language

  He leaned forward to kiss her over and over again. “You have the best lips I’ve ever kissed. That’s a definite bonus.”

  Smiling with bashful delight, Molly said, “Really?”

  “Oh, honey. Yes. You’re a very beautiful woman. And the fact that you don’t flaunt it to every guy who walks in the door like Gina and her friends do? Dead sexy.” He kissed her again, unable to help himself. She tasted like the bacon he couldn’t get enough of, mixed with a hint of florally goodness. Her legs wrapped around him drove his kisses to drag along her skin as they both grew more intoxicated with each other. “And your exit strategy? Brilliant. You’ve never been more attractive than when you talked about that. I just wish you’d let me help somehow.”

  “Um, flying across the country just to watch me bid at an auction is the most support I’ve ever had in my whole life on anything. I wouldn’t worry you’re not helping more. That’s plenty.”

  “I know it’s your thing, but I can’t help it. I want to be a part of it because it’s so incredible. I want to be able to say I know someone who’s capable of all this.” He leaned against the head of the bed when she moved off his lap to sit next to him. He rested his chin atop her hair, his gaze trailing off as he spoke. “My life is so… cold. I mean, don’t get me wrong, it’s great sometimes. I like sitting courtside and working out with the best of the best. But I go home to a hotel most nights. I don’t even have an apartment because I’m always on the road. When I have a decent amount of time off, I just crash at my friend’s.”

  Molly caught his melancholy, her heart attaching itself to his in bits and layers of unveiled intimacy. “That sounds lonely.”

  Liam closed his eyes as he ran his fingers through her hair. “It is. I am.”

  “If you need a place to crash when you’re in town, you can always stay at my orange grove.” She stiffened next to him and shook her head, twisting her body so she could see his face. “I didn’t mean it like that. I know there’s no strings attached to this. I’m really not trying to trap you or anything. I know we’re just friends. I only meant –”

  Liam leaned down and kissed her, chuckling into her lips. “I’d love to stay at your orange grove when I’m in town. Thanks for the offer. That’s what a good friend would do.” He kissed her again. “You don’t have to be so perfect. I won’t freak out on you.”

  Molly relaxed in his arms. “Oh, good. I didn’t mean anything weird by the offer. Just the thought of you living out of a suitcase rubs me the wrong way.”

  “Thanks, Moll.” He kissed her neck as he massaged her hip with the hand that draped around her. “What do you have going today?”

  “Saturday? Errands for the week, and then I have a shift at the hospital at eleven.”

  Liam frowned. “It was ten o’clock before we started making out, sweetheart.”

  Molly stiffened. “What? Are you serious?” Liam nodded, and Molly detached herself from him, standing and climbing out of the bed as gracefully as she could. “I’m so sorry, Liam. I have to go to work. I can’t miss a shift. It’s part of the master plan. I need every shift from now till then, and then some.” She apologized for parting from their cozy bliss so abruptly, but Liam only laughed. “What? I’m not trying to be a jerk. I’m really not.”

  “What hospital are you headed to? St. Martin’s General?”

  “Yeah. They try to schedule all the routine hearing impaired appointments two Saturdays a month so I can get them all in one day.”

  “I’m headed that way today to see my mom.”

  “Oh, Liam!” She slapped her forehead. “Your poor mother, and I’m all like ‘please make out with me’. I’m so sorry! Stupid!”

  Liam only laughed harder as he stood and stretched. “Visiting hours aren’t until noon, so you’re off the hook. And don’t ever think for a second that I didn’t want to be doing exactly that all morning long. Wouldn’t mind a repeat if you’re up for it later tonight.”

  “Oh, I’ll be up for it,” she assured him, and then blushed at her brazen behavior. “But I’ll let it be your call. See how you feel tonight after being w
ith your family all day.”

  He ran his hand over the slope of her hip. “I’ve got big plans for you.”

  She leaned up and kissed him, breaking from her panic over being only five minutes early for work instead of the usual fifteen. “I look forward to it.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  Working Molly

  Nate was already gone in the car he’d borrowed from his dad when they packed themselves in Molly’s green sedan. He had left a note on the counter that made Molly cringe.

  * * *

  Hey Liam,

  Left to pick up Jess and the kids this morning. Didn’t want to bother you. You sounded like you were (getting) busy.

  -Nate

  * * *

  Liam kept his hand on Molly’s knee as she drove. It was a very relationship thing to do, but she did not comment on it and tried to brush it off as him just being a really affectionate guy. The simple touch made her inordinately happy, starting a war inside of her with one side telling her emotions not to get attached, and the other side mentally doodling Liam’s name in hearts.

  “Thanks for this,” he said as she pulled into the staff parking lot. He even rewrapped her ankle before they left so she could walk more easily through her workday.

  “It’s no trouble. I was coming here anyway. Least I could do after taking up all your free time this morning.” She reached behind her and pulled her backpack from the backseat, rifling through the front pocket for her ID tags.

  “I don’t know why,” Liam commented as he stepped out of the car, “but I really like the idea of you working in a hospital. I can’t put my finger on why it’s sexy, but it is.”

  “Oh, you’re incorrigible,” she huffed, feigning exasperation with a bright smile. She could not feel harried at not arriving at the perfect time for her workday. She could not feel upset about anything at the moment. She slung her backpack over her shoulder and started off toward the building. When her backpack was lifted off of her and put on Liam’s shoulder instead, Molly stared up at him, perplexed. “What are you doing?”