by P. J. Fiala
He got up, walked to his dresser and laid a notebook on the top. He turned and walked to the side of the bed. He pointed to the bottle of water and an aspirin.
“I brought you these in case you needed them. Can I get you anything else?”
Molly looked at the table and saw the water and aspirin. Aww, now that was sweet of him. She looked back up at him and smiled.
“No. Thank you for thinking of me. Thank you for taking care of me.” Her voice was soft. Even softer yet, she said, “I’m sorry if I ruined your date.” Molly looked down at her hands as they clutched the sheets.
Ryder sat next to her on the bed. He rubbed his hand over the back of his neck, it was a little stiff from sleeping in the chair. When she felt the bed dip and saw him sitting there she looked at him in surprise.
“You didn’t ruin anything. She wasn’t my date. I wasn’t with her. She walked up to me just before you walked into The Barn.”
He was watching her. Molly reached over and grabbed the bottle of water. Her hands were shaking and she had a hard time breaking open the seal. Ryder gently took the bottle of water from her. Their fingers brushed and they stared at each other for a brief moment. Ryder cracked open the seal while she grabbed the aspirin off the table. He handed her the water and she swallowed the aspirin down, taking a long pull of water. After she had swallowed, she closed her eyes as the water hit her empty stomach.
“You should come in the kitchen and eat something quick before that aspirin hits your empty stomach. It might make you sick. Gunnar’s cooking this morning. I think it’s pancake day.” He smiled at her.
Molly’s eyes got huge. “Gunnar? You live with Gunnar?”
Ryder laughed. “And JT. I heard them both up a while ago. Actually, it’s pretty early for both of them to be up on a Sunday, but neither of them had dates, so they were both home pretty early last night. Right after we got home.”
Molly covered her face with both hands. Oh. My. God. They were all going to think she and Ryder…well. Anyway. Now she was mortified. They would tell Joci and she would think Molly was a slut. Crap. How the hell was she going to get out of this?
Taking a deep breath, Molly asked, “What time is it?”
Ryder looked at his phone and back up at Molly. “Nine fifteen.”
Molly closed her eyes again. Shit.
“Hey, come on.” Ryder got up and walked to the dresser. He grabbed a t-shirt and some sweat pants and tossed them on the bed next to Molly. “Throw these on and come on out and eat some breakfast. I’ll take you home afterwards.”
“I’m really embarrassed now!”
“What are you embarrassed about? They saw you last night. You were dancing and having a great time. They saw that bastard grab you and they were right behind me in case it got nasty. Lucky for that son-of-a-bitch, he walked away after they pulled him back and had words with him.”
“But, I spent the night here. They’ll think…”
Ryder grinned at her. “They’ll think I got lucky?”
Molly nodded.
“And the bastards will be jealous.” Ryder laughed at the look on her face. “Don’t worry, they like you Molly. It’ll be fine. Come on now, before your stomach gets upset.”
Ryder stepped out into the hall and closed the door. Molly got up and pulled her dress off quickly and threw on the t-shirt and sweat pants. They had a tie string, so she could tighten them up. She breathed a sigh of relief. She certainly wouldn’t win any fashion awards, but at least she was covered up and she was warm. She left her shoes on the floor and walked out to the hallway. Ryder was standing just outside the door. He grabbed her hand and she looked up at him. He smiled and pointed to the door across the hall.
“Do you need to use the bathroom?”
Molly nodded and walked to the door Ryder had pointed at. She closed the door behind her and closed her eyes. She was so mortified. Now she was going to have to walk into the kitchen and face JT and Gunnar, too. She used the toilet and moved to the sink to wash up. She looked into the mirror and groaned. She looked around and saw wash cloths folded in a basket on a shelf. A basket? In a home shared by three men? Sheesh. Molly grabbed one and wet it in the sink. She wiped under her eyes at the dark makeup, trying to make herself look as presentable as she could. She rinsed her mouth and finger brushed her teeth. It wasn’t perfect, but it was all she had. Molly finished and opened the door. Ryder was standing just a few feet away from the door in the hallway. She looked surprised to see him. He smiled at her.
“I thought you would be uncomfortable walking into the kitchen by yourself. I hope you don’t mind. Besides…I just got lucky, so we should be walking in together.” Ryder winked at her again, grabbed her hand, and started pulling her towards the kitchen.
Molly whispered, “If you really had gotten lucky with me last night, we’d still be in bed.” Ryder’s steps faltered and he looked at her like he was debating whether or not to pull her right back into the bedroom and actually get lucky.
His cock jumped into hyper-alert at the innuendo. His eyes bored into hers and his nostrils flared. Shit, she already had his body going crazy for her. He liked the way he felt when she was around. When she smiled, his groin would sometimes tighten up to the point of pain. This woman was different.
They continued walking and rounded a corner that brought them into the kitchen. JT was sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee and the newspaper. When he saw them, he smiled.
“Morning.”
“Morning. Hope you’re both hungry.” Gunnar turned to look at them and then back at the bacon cooking on the stove.
“Morning,” they said in unison.
“Do you want coffee, Molly?” She nodded at Ryder and he pointed her to a seat at the table, then walked to get them each a cup of coffee. He filled their cups and brought them to the table, returning to the counter to grab the sugar and creamer and set them on the table as well. Once again, grabbing the coffee pot, he brought it over to refill his brothers’ cups. He returned to the table and sat next to Molly.
***
Molly watched with fascination as these guys took care of each other. Gunnar started bringing food to the table and JT got up to help. As they were filling their plates, Molly could no longer contain herself.
“So, how does this work? You take turns cooking?”
Ryder smirked. “Yeah. We take turns doing everything. This week it’s Gunnar’s turn to cook. It’s my turn to do yard work. It’s JT’s turn to clean the house. We switch each week. That way, no one gets stuck doing all of something. We each do our own laundry. It works for us.”
“Except, I’m better at cooking,” Gunnar said with a big smile on his face.
“Bullshit, Gunnar.” JT looked at Molly with a devilish smile on his face.
“I make a mean omelet and I am a master on the grill.” He worked his eyebrows up and down and put a huge forkful of pancake in his mouth.
Ryder smirked. He took a drink of his coffee and looked back toward Molly as he set his cup down on the table.
“They’re both full of shit. I’m the one who knows his way around the kitchen. I spent a ton of time with my grandma growing up, and she taught me all sorts of cooking tips. I can cook the pants off these guys.”
“So which one of you guys put the washcloths in the basket in the bathroom?”
They all started laughing helping Molly relax.
“That was Mom. She just couldn’t help coming over and decorating and making things homey.” JT smirked.
No one was making a comment about her being there. No one said anything about her being drunk last night. She ate a few pancakes and her tummy did feel better. Her head was feeling better too. They made small talk during breakfast and Molly found she was relaxed and comfortable with them. Ryder seemed very open and relaxed as well. He brought her into the conversation often, never leaving her out of any of it.
Gunnar said, “We’re going to ride today. You guys coming?”
Ryder said
, “You going to call Mom and Dad?”
JT shook his head. “We talked about it last night. They haven’t ridden in a while. Actually, since Mom’s accident, so they want to ride a little while. If it gets cold, they’ll leave early. Dad’s a little overprotective yet.”
They all laughed. “That’s an understatement,” Gunnar said. “Do you ride Molly?” Gunnar smiled at her.
“No, I never have. It looks fun though. I was envious of the riders at the Veteran’s Ride.”
***
Ryder smiled at the memory of the Veteran’s Ride. “Yeah. It’s a great feeling to ride. The wind hits your face and you’re floating along the road alone with your thoughts.”
“If you have any.” JT was smirking.
“Fuck you, JT.” Ryder smirked. Gunnar laughed.
“You said your mom and dad are going? Isn’t she afraid after her accident?”
Gunnar said, “Nah. Mom’s not scared. But, she probably won’t ever be able to drive her own bike again. Her shoulder’s pretty banged up. There are pins in it and the doctors told her she would probably have trouble being able to hold her arm out fully in front of her. If she holds it out in front for any length of time, it’s painful. She’s not happy about having to give it up, but Dad loves her riding on the back with him, so she’ll still be able to ride a lot.”
Ryder looked at his brothers. “What happened to Mom wasn’t her fault. But, if you ride, chances are one day, you may have an accident. No different than driving a car. There are so many elements out there: weather, other drivers, road conditions, animals running into the road, all of it. But, the days that are good are great.”
“Wow. She’s fortunate she wasn’t hurt worse. I saw the pictures of her bike after the accident. It was awful.”
The boys all nodded. They felt the same way.
“What’s going to happen to LuAnn?”
Gunnar took a deep breath; LuAnn was not a good subject. “Probably be a trial. We’re just hoping when they offer her a plea deal that she’ll take it so Mom doesn’t have to go through a trial. But, LuAnn is pretty selfish, and thinking of someone else isn’t likely to happen. She’s asked twice if Dad would come and talk to her, but he’s refused. He’ll go if she agrees to take the deal. He doesn’t want Mom to go through a trial after all she’s been through. We’ll see what happens. Should know in a month or so.”
Molly nodded. She had been hearing a lot of people at the wedding speaking of it and that was the general consensus, but she didn’t want to ask questions and seem nosy.
“You should go on a ride with us today,” Gunnar said.
Ryder was looking at her, his green eyes boring into hers, willing her to say yes.
“Umm, I don’t know. “ Molly flicked her eyes to Gunnar’s and then back to Ryder.
“I’m a good driver. I won’t let anything happen to you. Come on and try something new,” Ryder said.
Molly looked at Ryder and swallowed hard, unable to take her eyes off the green eyes staring at her. Gawd, he was gorgeous. When he looked at her and was this close to her, she couldn’t seem to think clearly.
“Okay.” Molly’s voice was soft. She couldn’t look away from this man in front of her.
Ryder let out the breath he didn’t realize he’d been holding. Whew, that wasn’t so bad. She was so beautiful. Her eyes were shining, and he could tell she was feeling better as the color came back to her cheeks. She was smiling more, too. He wanted to see her smile all the time. Seeing her in his clothes made him feel all sorts of funny things. He kept imagining pulling them off of her. That dress she was wearing last night revealed what a nice ass she had.
“Excellent. Then it’s settled. I’ll call Mom and let her know; she’ll be thrilled. Dress warm, it’s a little cool out today.” Gunnar continued talking, with no one else able to get a word in.
When they finished breakfast, Ryder took Molly’s hand and pulled her back to the bedroom to grab her dress and shoes. She hesitated and turned to look at Ryder.
“I should change back into my dress and give you your clothes back.” Her voice was soft.
“Why don’t you leave them on Molly? It’s a little cold outside, and you may be happy to have something a little warmer on. In fact, if you need a jacket, I have an extra one you can wear.”
“Thank you.” Molly was once again cognizant of the fact that when she needed him to, Ryder was taking care of her.
Ryder walked to his closet and pulled out a black leather jacket loaded with zippers and studs. He held it open for Molly to slide her arms in. As he lifted the jacket to her shoulders, his knuckles brushed the back of her neck. Molly shivered at the contact.
“See, you were cold. Good thing I have an old jacket for you.”
Molly nodded. No need in telling him it wasn’t the temperature of the room that made her shiver. The jacket felt heavy and warm, and as she bent her head to zip it up, a puff of air lifted to her nostrils and she smelled…Ryder—the scent she remembered from the wedding, the scent that was permanently imprinted on her brain. Another shiver ran down her body and landed in her core, creating an ache between her legs.
“There. Now my house is programmed into your GPS. See?” Molly smirked.
“Thanks. Now I’ll be able to come back to your place again.” Ryder looked into Molly’s eyes waiting for her reaction.
Molly stared for a beat, but the lump in her throat at the look on his face and the innuendo in his comment made impressive words impossible. All she could manage was, “Awesome.”
On the ride to Molly’s place, she was staring out the window. She was trying to sort through her thoughts and emotions. Last night she had been jealous, even though she had no right to be. This morning, just seeing him at home in his element, made her want to spend more time with him. She really liked Joci, and she assumed Joci’s family would be like her, but her boys were great, this one in particular. As soon as he realized what kind of person she was, he would run for the hills, and that might really hurt. She was really starting to like him. A lot.
“What are you thinking about?”
Molly turned to see Ryder looking at her. He looked back at the road and then shot her another quick look. When she didn’t say anything, he raised an eyebrow in question.
Molly smirked. “You know, I don’t have to go along today. I know you said you wanted me to join you, but, it’s a family day for you, and I don’t have to go along.”
Oh, that’s what she was thinking. Ryder looked at the road again and then back at Molly.
“You need to stop worrying about that. You already know my family and you‘ll love riding. It gets in your blood. And,” Ryder swallowed, “I want you to come with us.” Ryder let out a deep breath. That wasn’t so bad.
Molly took a deep breath. “Okay. I’m excited to go. I’ll be like a real biker bitch or something.” Molly laughed as she watched her words roll around his brain.
Ryder burst out laughing. Oh. My. God. When he laughed, he was beautiful, simply beautiful. And, damn, it made her insides clench and moisten. His features were perfect. A strong jaw, full lips, beautiful skin. God, she thought he was something special.
Molly smiled. She let out a deep breath. “Did you think about asking me out at the wedding?”
Ryder looked at her again. He smirked at her and then nodded.
“Thank God.” It came out before she could keep it from tumbling out of her mouth. She blushed and threw her hands up over her mouth as Ryder looked at her with surprise in his eyes.
He raised his brows. Molly laughed a little. “I thought you weren’t interested.”
“Well, that was before I knew you couldn’t hold your liquor.” Ryder laughed.
Molly groaned. “Sorry we had to get together after I puked. How mortifying. I still can’t believe I let myself get so bad.”
“Why did you?” Ryder was smirking.
Molly smirked back at him. “You need your ego stroked, Ryder?”
“No. Why did
you, Molly?”
Molly took a deep breath. She let it out slowly. “I was jealous.”
Ryder raised an eyebrow. “That so? What were you jealous of?”
Ryder pulled into Molly’s driveway and put the truck in park.
“Forget it, Ryder. I’m not stroking your ego anymore. Do you want to come in and wait for me to change or come back?”
Ryder grinned. She was jealous. Hmm. “I’ll come back and get you with the bike. We’ll need to be at Mom and Dad’s in an hour. I’ll be back in about fifty minutes or so.”
Molly opened the door of Ryder’s truck and jumped out. She was wearing his t-shirt, sweatpants, jacket, and her heels from last night. She turned to tell him she would get his clothes back to him but when she turned to look at him, he had gotten out of the truck and was walking around the side to her. His eyebrows were pinched together. Molly cocked her head to the side when she saw his face pinched up.
“You make it hard for me to mind my manners when you don’t let me open your door. My grandma would kick my ass if she thought I wasn’t a gentleman. Mom too.”
Molly laughed. “Sorry. I’m not used to anyone being gentlemanly towards me.”
Ryder furrowed his brow again and gently bowed in front of her. He stood and held his arm out to her. She placed her arm through his as they started walking to her front door. Both of them laughing at his feigned gallantry.
Ryder picked Molly up for their ride a few minutes before noon. She quickly showered and blew her hair dry. Good thing it was short and dried quickly. She put a black bandana over her hair, like she’d seen the women do at the Veteran’s Ride, to keep her hair from blowing all over. She applied a small amount of makeup and some lip gloss, and threw on a pair of jeans and an army green wrap sweater with a white camisole underneath. She would be wearing army green suede shoe-boots as well. She still had Ryder’s leather jacket, and would ask him if she could wear it for the day.
She heard the deep rumble of Ryder’s motorcycle pull into her driveway. She left the bathroom and headed to the front door as she heard him knock. She took a deep breath and opened the door. Could he look any friggin better? Molly flushed as she looked at him. He was wearing jeans that hugged his legs and his, um…front, perfectly. He was wearing an unzipped black leather jacket similar to the one she wore. His light green shirt highlighted his green eyes, and the shirt cuffs peeked out from under the sleeves of his leather. His spiky hair looked great, even after making the short ride over from his place—he looked perfect. A shiver ran the length of her body as her nipples puckered tight.