AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Charlie said not to hand off the goods to anyone before I got inside. And I quote, ‘those assholes will make off with them’, and technically, you admitted you would.” Her eyes flash with humor and I hold my hands up in surrender.
“True. But I wanted you to come with me, so that’s got to earn me some points,” I counter, winking at her and enjoying the flush on her cheeks.
“Molly! There you are,” Connal calls from the door. “Charlie sent me to look for you. Here, I can take those boxes.”
“Hmpf. I’ll wait and give them to the hostess, if you don’t mind,” Molly answers back with soft laughter in her voice as she walks toward him, dodging his attempt to relieve her of the boxes of sweets.
“Hey!” I call out and she looks over her shoulder. “I’m Royce.”
“Smooth,” Connal laughs at me when she just continues past him and into the house.
Following him inside, I enjoy the time I spend hanging with my brothers and the Ol’ Ladies, plus some of their friends. Keeping an eye on Molly at all times has me fluctuating from pissed off, to turned on.
Watching her, I go from thinking she’s pretty to beautiful. From the way her eyes get animated when she talks, to how she tilts a bottle of beer into her mouth; I quickly become mesmerized.
She’s on the quiet side and doesn’t wear much makeup—not that she needs it. As the night wears on, I get ticked off as I see my single brothers all try to move in on her.
The more I watch her, I start to realize that she has no idea they’re even hitting on her. Molly’s cheeks flush way too often for her to be comfortable with guys paying her all the attention she’s getting tonight.
When she gets up and heads down the hallway toward the bathroom, I give her a couple minutes before following her.
“Trinity! Please, this is something I have to do.” I can hear Molly’s voice from outside the bathroom door and lean in to hearmore clearly. “I know she’s an ass, but you have to deal with her until you graduate, sweetie.”
Molly sounds like she’s about to cry when she speaks next, “I’ve tried, Trin, your dad isn’t interested in my opinion.”
Next, she swears a time or two, then the door is yanked open and Molly nearly runs into my chest, since I literally had my ear pressed against the door.
“I’m sorry!” she says automatically, before she recognizes me. “Oh, hi. Again.”
“Everything alright?” I ask, curling my finger under her chin and lifting her head so she has to look at me. “What’s got ya crying, baby?”
“I’m fine,” Molly answers, letting out a shuddering breath.
“That wasn’t even a little convincing.” I lift an eyebrow and slowly shake my head back and forth as I maintain eye contact with her.
“Hey, can I get in there?” Smithy’s Ol’ Lady asks, motioning past us to the bathroom.
I nod and grab Molly’s hand, tugging her further down the hallway until the next door. Luckily, it’s a guest room and not baby Gemma’s room.
“Tell me what’s wrong?” I insist, hitting the light and closing the door behind Molly.
“In short? My uncle’s bitch-tastic fiancée is making my cousin’s life miserable. I lived with them after my grandmother died. And I helped raise Trinity since her mother died, so it breaks my heart when she calls me freaking out all the time,” she vents to me and I’m relieved that it doesn’t sound all that bad. “Sorry you asked?”
“Obviously, I can’t help with that situation and it sucks, but I wanted to make sure you were okay,” I answer awkwardly; I mean, what can I actually say about handling a teen I’ve never met. “How about the party? You having fun?”
“I don’t think I would have had the guts to walk in tonight if I hadn’t seen you out in the yard,” Molly whispers shyly, her wide blue eyes holding mine. “You looked, I mean, I don’t know—I felt a bit lost when I was outside and wasn’t sure about coming in. And, well, when I first saw you, I could tell you were thinking about something deep and maybe felt a little lost, also.”
“That’s a good way to put it. Lost. I have been for a while now, but I think I’m finally ready to get my shit together,” I admit, lowering my voice and leaning down closer to her as I saythe mosthonest thing I ever have to a woman.
Molly’s lips pull to the right, in a fraction of a smile as she tilts her head to the side. Jesus Christ, how can one person make me feel so comfortable, so fast? That thought flashes through my mind right before I brush my lips across hers, ready to pull back if I’m reading her wrong, but she leans up and hungrily kisses me back.
Wrapping my arms around her, I take a second to hit the lock on the doorknob behind her. I know there’s a bed at my back, it’s just that I can’t get enough of her mouth, so I decide to play it slow for once and stick to kissing her.
I thread my fingers through her silky curls and cup the back of her head, tilting her to the perfect angle as I deepen our kiss. When her arms wrap around my shoulders, I slide my hands down her sides, outlining her hips.
“Oh, no,” she gasps, pulling back. “Us bakers are really conscious about our hips…”
“Let me be the judge of that,” I say, kneeling before her and tightening my grip on them. The fleeting thought of only kissing her seems ridiculous now.
