by K. B. Webb
The most shocking part of my conversation with Molly was when she admitted to me that she wasn’t in love with Brian. I had already kind of known from the way they acted around each other, but I guess I just assumed she was in love with him. I knew they had been together over a year and they had a child together, so they should be in love, right? Apparently, I was wrong. Part of me was thrilled when she admitted her non-feelings for Brian to me, but the other part of me hurt for her. She should be with someone she was in love with. She deserved that. I could tell from the way she spoke of Brian that there was a lot more to their relationship than met the eye, but like Wynee said, she would tell me things in her own time, so I let the subject go. She would eventually see that she could trust me and open up to me. She just needed time.
I heard a laugh come from my living room that made my heart swell and chills run down my spine. Molly. She was here, in my house, while my hung-over ass was still in bed. I went to grab my phone off my dresser and saw the clock read almost three in the afternoon. Damn, I’d slept a long time.
As fast as I could, I jumped out of bed, threw on a pair of jeans, and clean shirt before throwing my usual baseball cap over my head. I rushed into my bathroom, brushed my teeth, and put on some deodorant before making my way to my living room.
Molly was on my couch sitting across from Lucas who was sitting on the love seat holding Lyric and making baby noises at her. Lucas looked almost identical to me except he kept his hair slightly longer and it was a little lighter than mine. We had the same face shape and dimples, and on more than one occasion, we had been mistaken for twins.
As I walked into the living room, both of their eyes fell on me. Molly smiled ear-to-ear and gave me a small wave.
“Nice of you to join us, baby brother. I was about to come check on you and make sure you weren’t in some drunk induced coma in there.” Logan laughed at his own joke and looked across at Molly.
“Molly’s been here about twenty minutes. She said she found your keys in her front seat so she came by to bring them to you. She told me that you left them in there when she gave you a ride home from Ricky’s last night.” He shot up one eyebrow at me that meant I had a lot of explaining to do. I had told him about Molly after the first night I went to Brian’s, but I hadn’t mentioned anything other than her being Brian’s girl. He could obviously tell there was more to the story.
“I was going to call you, but I realized I didn’t have your number, and when I went to Wynee’s to get it from Justin, she thought it would be a good idea for all of us to go grab something to eat. So, I came to see if you wanted to come with us.” She looked almost embarrassed asking me if I wanted to come with her. God, this girl could not read me at all. If she’d told me she wanted me to go walking with her through the desert barefoot in the middle of June, I would have totally been down with that.
“Yeah, I’d love to come with y’all. Sorry I wasn’t up when you got here. I think I went a little overboard last night. I hope I wasn’t an ass to you.” I walked over to Lucas and scooped up my little buddy from him. Lyric was asleep and didn’t even make a peep when I took her from Lucas’ arms.
Molly eyed Lyric and me, and her lips curved into a small smile. “Of course you weren’t an ass, Logan. You were great company, and highly entertaining. I now know that you have a fantastic voice, so don’t be surprised if I drag you up on stage with me one night.” She winked at me and showed all her teeth when she smiled.
I laughed nervously and eyed Lucas who was still giving me that damn one eyebrow look. “Um, I’m not sure about the singing, Molly. We’ll have to wait and see. You all ready to go eat? All I need to do is grab my wallet and throw on my boots.”
“Oh yeah, I’m ready. I’m starving actually. I’ll go put Lyric in the car while you get everything.” She took a still sleeping Lyric from me and looked at Lucas, “It was really nice to meet you. You should come to Ricky’s sometime with Logan.”
Lucas stood from the couch and put both hands in his pockets while rocking back on his heels, “I’ll be sure to do that, Molly, and it was great meeting you too. I’m sure I’ll be seeing you around more.”
With a wave and a smile, she walked out the front door toward her car. I was headed back to my room to grab my boots and wallet when Lucas’ hand clapped down on my shoulder and gave a pretty hard squeeze.
“Not so fast, little brother. Now, I know Molly is Brian’s girlfriend, but you want to explain to me why she gave you a ride last night, and I know for a fact you weren’t in till after five. And do you also want to explain to me the love struck look both of you have when you look at each other? You know better than to get in the middle of a relationship, man.” Lucas had concern in his eyes. He was always looking out for me and giving me advice, even when I didn’t actually want it, but I knew he meant well.
“It’s not what you think, Lucas. She’s my friend, well, she’s going to try to be my friend, nothing more. At least not while she’s with Brian. I know this looks bad and makes me look like a total dick, but you know I’m not. Brian treats her like shit, and she doesn’t deserve that. I just, I don’t know, man. I feel this need to be around her. And while I know it’s not a good plan, I have to go through with it.” I felt like a kid talking to him about all this because I knew he was about to ream my ass for having any kind of interaction with Molly outside of being around her and Brian together.
“Look, Logan, I know you have your reasons for whatever it is that you’re doing, but just be careful. You don’t know what her and Brian’s relationship is like, and that may not be something that you want to get in the middle of. Brian still has a reputation around here for having a mean streak and a bad fucking temper. And I would hate to have to beat his ass because he beat yours.” He laughed and gave me a weak punch to the chest. “I’m just kidding, man, but in all seriousness, just watch your back. I can tell there’s definitely something between y’all - more than friendship. I just don’t want to see you get hurt anyway.”
I sighed loudly. Damn, Lucas! He was always right. I was walking into the lion’s den by messing with a woman in any fashion that in no way belonged to me. This could be a total fucking disaster but that was a chance I was willing to take. “I’ll be careful, Lucas, I promise. Just trust me.”
With a final nod from him, I turned into the hall to grab my shoes and wallet so I could go outside and meet Molly. I was hoping she wouldn’t question what took so long, because I couldn’t tell her the truth, and I really didn’t want to lie to her.
I knew from the look on Lucas’ face that he was going to have some kind of talk with Logan after I walked outside. Lucas was almost the spitting image of Logan, just a little taller with slightly longer hair. While Logan was sleeping, he had told me stories about a younger, dumber Logan that had me almost in pain from laughter. It was easy to tell that he had a great relationship with his little brother and a love that went far beyond just a sibling bond.
My phone chimed and I looked down to see another message from Brian. I didn’t even read the whole thing before I locked the screen back and threw it in my purse. It was going to be a good day, and I’d be damned if I’d let Brian ruin that for me.
When I’d finally made it back to Sterlington after five in the morning after dropping off Logan, Brian was up. He was sitting on my couch drinking a beer and smoking a blunt when I walked in.
“Where the fuck have you been?” He rose to his feet quickly when he saw me, and had a look of pure rage in his eyes.
“Why the fuck are you smoking weed in my house?” I didn’t have a problem with people smoking. To me marijuana was a plant. It just happened to be the kind of plant that got you high as hell if you set it on fire, but I hated having it in my house.
“Don’t try to change the subject! Where is Lyric? And who the hell have you been with the past few hours? I know Justin and Wynee got back to her house around three.”
“First off, if you ever smoke weed in my fucking house again, I’ll s
hove that shit down your throat. Second, where I was and who I was with is none of your damn business when you spent the whole night fucked up, doing God knows what with any whore who would give you the time of day. And lastly, don’t act like you give a rat’s ass where Lyric is. As long as she’s not around your drunk, high ass, she’s safe.” I went to storm by him and head down the hall to the room I shared with Lyric. It was six in the morning now and I didn’t have the energy or patience to deal with Brian’s dipshit self at the moment.
As I walked past him, he grabbed my arm and gave it a hard squeeze stopping my movement and spinning me around so I was facing him. “Listen here, you little bitch, I’m not real sure where you get off thinking you can talk back to me like that, but if I have to, I will remind you who is in charge around here. What I do is none of your fucking concern, but what you do, and what you do with my kid is my concern. So I will ask you one more time, Molly, who the fuck were you with and where the fuck is Lyric?” The last sentence was a full out yell and he growled a little at the end.
For just a moment, I honestly thought of bowing down to him like I always did. I thought about apologizing even though I had done nothing wrong. I thought about begging for him to leave me alone, like I was some weak child, but then I remembered what Logan had told me only hours before. I was stronger than I thought I was. I was officially done being Brian’s punching bag. I was done with the way he talked to me. I was done with him.
I yanked my arm back from him and started shoving him in the chest until his back was firmly pressed against the hallway wall. I looked him dead in the eyes and shoved my finger as hard as I could in his sternum. “Let’s get a few things straight right fucking now, Brian. I am fucking done with all your bullshit. You want to go out and fuck every bleached blonde, faked tit, slut you come across, fine by me. You want to drink and smoke yourself into fucking oblivion, go right ahead, ‘cause I don’t give a damn. But if you ever, and I fucking mean ever, lay a hand on me again, I will bring so much hell down on you that you won’t know which way is up and which way is down. You forget that it’s you that needs me, and not me that needs you. I own this house. Lyric is my daughter, not yours. And most of all, without me, you have no one to finance all your extracurricular activities. So listen to me, and listen good. Things around here are about to change. You will never touch me again. I am done with all of your bullshit. I’m not scared of you, Brian, but if you were smart, you would be fucking terrified of me.” With one last shove to the chest, I left him standing in the hall with his mouth gaping open and his bloodshot eyes wide while I went to my room and locked the door.
This was a new start for me. No longer would I be the weak, feeble girl I had been for years. Old Molly was about to start making a more frequent appearance, and she didn’t do weak or feeble. I was going to finally stand up for myself and be strong, not just for me, but for Lyric.
The sound of Logan opening my passenger door pulled me from my replay. I smiled at him as he climbed in and clicked his seatbelt into place.
“So where are we going to eat? I guess now that my drunkenness has officially worn off, my hunger has appeared in full force. Plus, I would never miss an opportunity to take the two prettiest girls in town to lunch.” I blushed a little and looked down at my hands folded in my lap, hoping he didn’t see. If I didn’t know better, I would have sworn he was flirting with me. He gave me a quick wink and a half smile before turning around to look at an adorable, chubby cheeked Lyric asleep in the back seat. “She really does look just like you, which means she is absolutely beautiful.”
I had to laugh at that. Lyric really didn’t look like me, and I may have been called many things in my life, but beautiful was not one of them. “Are you still drunk, Logan? While beautiful is definitely the perfect word to describe Lyric, it does not fit me.”
He shook his head and looked directly into my eyes. “God, Molly, if you only knew.”
I decided that it was better for both of us if the conversation ended there, so I put the car in drive and headed to The Creamery for the best burger in town.
The Creamery was designed like an old fifties diner, white and red checked floors with booths along the right wall, and a bar with round, red swivel stools on the left. While their burgers were to die for, it was the ice cream that drew everyone in. I had already planned to have myself a scoop of chocolate chip cookie dough before we left.
The drive over was short from Lucas’ house, and Logan had me laughing the whole time. He was in the middle of telling me a story about getting in trouble as a kid for stealing all his mom’s spoons to dig trenches in his backyard for his army men when I saw him, Brian. He was standing by the front door with his arms crossed over his chest looking at me as if he wanted to jump through my windshield and drag me through the glass. I glanced at Logan when I realized he had quit talking; he was staring at Brian the same way Brian was staring at me.
He looked at me with sincerity in his eyes while unhooking his seatbelt. “Is everything okay, Molly?”
“Yeah, of course it is. Why would you even ask?”
He let out a nervous laugh and squeezed the bill of his hat with both hands. “Well, mainly because your knuckles are white from squeezing the steering wheel, but also because you look like you are about to beat someone’s ass, and so does Brian.”
I quickly let go of the steering wheel and turned my car off and faced Logan. “Look, Logan, Brian and I have a complicated relationship at best, but last night wasn’t that great. We just, we aren’t getting along great right now, but it’s nothing I can’t handle. Just take Lyric in with you and let me handle Brian, please.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me, right?” I could tell Brian was pissed. No way in hell was I going to let her deal with him alone. If he had a problem with me spending time with Molly, then he could tell me to my face, not take it out on her.
“No, Molly. You get Lyric out of the car and I’m going to go ahead and head up there and talk to him.” She looked like she was about to protest, but I threw the door open and started walking away before she could say anything.
As I walked up to him, he stood a little straighter and stuck his chest out as if he was some damn peacock putting on a show at the zoo. I was not, nor had I ever been scared of Brian. We were about equal as far as weight and height, but I’d kicked his ass plenty of times in high school, and I would do it again if I felt like I needed to.
“What’s up, man? You coming in to eat with us?” I decided playing it cool was my best option. Lord knows, I wanted to go ahead and whoop his ass and get it over with, but I knew that would cause Molly stress and drama she really didn’t need.
“I think a better question is what’s up with you, man? Why the fuck are you hanging around my girl? Are you the reason she was out till five in the morning? Is there something I need to know about? And remember before you answer, Logan, that I don’t take kindly to other people trying to stake claim on what is rightfully mine.” Rightfully his? Staking claim? He has got to be fucking kidding me, right?
“I was the reason she was out last night. Wynee had to go home to take care of Lyric, and I didn’t think it was a good idea for Molly to hang around a bar after hours alone, so I stayed. I didn’t want to drink and drive, so Molly gave me a ride home and came to pick me up this morning because I left my truck keys in her car. And I’m hanging out with Molly because Wynee and Justin told her to invite me to lunch. And as far as anyone moving in on what is rightfully yours, Molly is a person, not your property. She can do whatever the hell she wants.”
A deep, sadistic laugh poured out of him and he threw his head back while holding the side of his stomach with his left hand. When he finally calmed himself down a few seconds later, he looked straight into my eyes and took a step towards me so we were almost toe-to-toe.
“Oh, make no mistake, Logan, Molly is my property. She became my property the moment she kept that kid. I fucking own her. I know you don’t want her. I mean, hell, I don’t
even want her! But don’t come in here trying to act like some fucking knight in shining armor and rescue her. Molly doesn’t need to be saved, so you can take your hero complex somewhere else.”
“Hey, boys, what are you two talking about?” Wynee walked in between us quickly and shot us both intense death stares.
“Nothing, Wynee, just catching up with my best friend.” Brian never took his eyes off mine, and there was an obvious sarcastic edge to the words he spoke. Justin put his hand on Brian’s shoulder and pulled him back a few steps. I noticed Molly was, at that moment, walking toward us carrying Lyric in her car seat. She could probably tell from our body language that the conversation between us was not a friendly one. I rushed to her and took the car seat that she looked like she was struggling to carry.
“Thanks. That thing weighs a ton. Is everything okay between y’all?” She looked concerned, and honestly a little scared.
“Yeah, Molls, everything is fine. Don’t worry about us. Alright?”
She bit her lip and nodded while looking at the ground. Damn if the sight of her sinking her perfect straight teeth into that full bottom lip didn’t make my dick twitch in my pants. I began thinking about freezing lakes and angry boyfriends with machetes to make sure there wasn’t a tent situation going on in my pants.
As we made it to the rest of the group, and my twitching dick was firmly under control, Brian started walking away.
“Brian!” Molly yelled at him, and he turned around a few feet away. “Is there any specific reason you came here since you obviously aren’t staying to eat?”
He pulled a cigarette out of his back pocket, lit it, and took a long drag before looking up at her. “Yeah, I came to talk to you about what you said when you got home this morning. I’ve thought about it, and that’s just not going to work for me, Molls. I like the way things are now, so we aren’t changing them.”