Taking the Fall (31 page)

A general response of, “Sorry, Mom,” came from her sons, who all pushed each other to get to the banquet offering first.

Hunter turned to wait for Molly when she said, “I’m going to go get Sammy and Jess so please start without us.”

Hunter leaned in leaving a small kiss on her cheek. Molly noticed the other adults were all gleefully smiling as they watched the private moment between them.

Bianca and Grady embraced each other. Bianca winked at Molly and Grady’s beaming smile showed obvious evidence that he was thrilled with Hunter and Molly being together.

I guess it doesn’t matter how old you are, you still want parental approval.

Molly walked with more pride than she could remember down the two levels to where Jess was. She sat down at the end of the chair.

“Hey sweetie, what are you doing?

Jess didn’t say anything just showed her phone as if the answer was obvious.

“Mrs. Dennison has plenty of food so why don’t you go make yourself a plate.”

“Don’t want to,” Jess mumbled before sighing loudly, clearly showing Molly was disturbing her.

Count to ten.

“Jess, please, not here. Can we just try to get along? That is fine if you don’t want to eat but please don’t wear a puss the entire time.”

“Whatever,” Jess answered under her breath.

“Whatcha doing, Jess?” Bree asked as she joined mother and daughter. She sat down on the step next to the lounge chair with a plate piled high full of salad and grilled chicken.

“Uh, just fooling around on my phone,” she answered giving the newest guest some of her attention with less sass.

Just be glad she isn’t being rude. Nope, she saves that all for you, Molly.

“Well, after I gorge myself on this,” Bree indicated her plate, as she chewed a ring of a bell pepper, “what do you say to a volleyball match? I haven’t seen my brothers cry in a while. Best way to accomplish that is to demolish them in some sport.”

Bree’s aggressive sarcasm seemed to appeal to Jess. Molly watched as her daughter put down her phone, which she always had attached to her, and turned completely to give Bree all of her attention.

“That would be cool. Do they really cry?” Jess asked, completely intrigued and with more animation than Molly had seen in her daughter in a very long time.

Bree winked at Molly and communicated silently that Jess would be fine.

Molly didn’t know how Bree knew, but as usual, the Dennison charm was timed perfectly.

Molly headed toward the swing set and the two girls who seemed to be getting along great. She hoped Sammy hadn’t made a pest of herself, but from what she could tell, Leah seemed happy to engage as well.

Neither of them was aware of her approach as one stood inside in the built-in store style alcove while the other sat on the bench. She listened as Sammy pretended to be a customer and Leah pretended to serve colossal ice cream cones.

“Okay, so you have strawberry, bubblegum, pistachio, and rocky road. You can get one more scoop for only a dollar,” Leah said as she pretended to hold a cone in one hand and the ice cream scoop in the other.

Sammy sat there and leaned over the counter with her index finger to her chin as if she truly was contemplating while she looked into the imaginary ice cream freezer.

“Give me a scoop of that blueberry, I guess,” she said sitting back down.

“Here ya go,” Leah said as she handed over the pretend cone and happily charged Sammy ninety-seven dollars for her treat.

Both girls were getting ready to switch roles when Sammy saw Molly. “Hi, Mommy! Leah and I are playing ice cream shop.”

Molly smiled at her daughter but also noticed a content happy Leah suddenly began to shake her hands as if they were wet and she was air-drying them.

“Hi, I didn’t mean to interrupt. I just wanted to tell you that lunch was ready,” she said returning Sammy’s hug, entwining their fingers together as they always do. “Your grandmother, Leah, has more food up there than I think I’ve ever seen.”

Leah looked off into the distance continuing to flap her hands.

“Wow! That must be a lot because my mom works in a restaurant.”

When Molly didn’t think Leah would say anything, she did.

“Nana asked me what I wanted; she said I could have my three favorites so I picked chicken nuggets, fruit salad, and strawberry Pop-Tarts.”

The eclectic array couldn’t help but make Molly smile.

In the bright sun of the day, Leah’s hair looked like pure black silk. The frames of her glasses suited her face perfectly, clearly showing her brilliant blue eyes. It was clear that she was Allison’s daughter; they shared the same beautiful hair and striking figure, evident even in Leah’s not fully developed form, but whether Molly was biased or not, she saw Hunter in Leah. Something about the kindness in her face was definitely a paternal trait.

It killed Molly to know that she was potentially putting any strain on her.

“Red Pop-Tarts are my favorite, too,” Sammy said excitedly.

“Aren’t they the best ever?” Leah said, slowly stopping her hands from moving and walking over and taking hold of Sammy’s free hand.

Definitely the making of kindred spirits.

Just as Molly was digesting the value of her daughter finding a new friend, Leah held out her other hand waiting for Molly to take hold.

Molly’s maternal side melted.

She took hold of the offered hand and smiled as Leah’s fingers intertwined with her own, and the three made a lovely circle.

Molly’s eyes filled with water.

“I saw that you hold hands with Sammy, and I wanted to know what it was like. My mom insists on space.”

Leah wasn’t complaining, she was just stating a fact, and Molly’s heart broke for the little girl.

“Why?” Sammy asked with youthful curiosity.

“Samantha, don’t be such a Nosy Rosie,” Molly said, not wanting Leah to feel badgered even though she secretly also wanted to know the answer for herself.

“My mom is busy. She’s been spending more time with me lately, but when I was little, I didn’t see much of her. Her and my stepdad went out a lot. My nanny, Lucy, liked to give snuggles a lot but then my stepdad sent her away and I got a new nanny and I didn’t like to snuggle with her. She smelled funny.”

Sammy laughed and Molly felt the need to pull Leah right down on the ground and bring her into her arms and just hug her until she didn’t want to any longer. Molly’s fury toward Allison grew more at that moment than the realization she was the reason for Hunter’s twenty-year neglect.

“What about your dad, Dr. Dennison? Does he like to hold your hand and give hugs?” Sammy asked and Molly again found herself waiting with bated breath for the answer.

Leah’s face lit up with talk of her dad, just like Molly remembered looking up to her dad, like every little girl should be able to. “No, my dad insists on daily hugs, even before you brush your teeth.”

That had Molly laughing aloud because she too was quite familiar with Hunter’s insistence on any form of intimacy before such self-care habits.

Soon, the trio found themselves exploring the amazing stone path garden at a leisurely stroll looking at the beautiful planted and potted flowers.

“Three beautiful girls. This must mean trouble,” Hunter said as he approached them. Molly who now stood in the middle holding each of the girl’s hands looked at the exceedingly handsome man. She watched as his smiling eyes looked down to where she and Leah’s hand connected, before bringing them back up to meet her green eyes with so much longing.

“Hi, Dad! Sammy wanted to see Nana’s petunias and pansies.”

“Sorry, Leah is just such a wonderful tour guide. I couldn’t help but tag along, too,” Molly offered, unable and not wanting to keep the smile from her face and voice.

Hunter stood there in a soft gray shirt and soft, well-worn jeans, his dark hair tucked under his gray tweed cap, and his scuffed sneakers. Molly knew at that moment that no one had ever looked so sexy to her in her life.

“Well, Moonbeam, if you want any of your favorites left, you better hurry along before your uncles eat it all.”

Sammy and Leah answered in unison, “No! Not the Pop-Tarts!” Without another word, they both raced off toward the house still holding hands.

Reveling in his intense gaze, her body began to buzz with awareness, and even as he slowly approached her, she found herself offering up honesty. “She is such an amazing kid, Hunter. Truly beautiful.”

She continued to walk backward as he slowly and methodically stalked toward her, guiding her to where he wanted; the shelter of a tall weeping willow tree.

“Thank you. I couldn’t agree more,” he said pinning her between the tree trunk at her back and him at her front.

Molly immediately felt the hardness of his lower half press into her, and she couldn’t help but close her eyes to the sensation. He immediately buried his head in her neck, inhaling her scent and licking her skin, making her want to moan.

His hands ran over her hips to her thighs and then back around to her ass, in such an erotic tempo she found herself moving her hips to the rhythm.

“This day seems like the longest,” he mumbled, as if in pain, against her neck.

She brought her hands up wrapping them around his neck, massaging the spot where the skin met hairline, and it was now his turn to moan.

“It hasn’t even been an hour.” She giggled.

“Don’t laugh at me. I told you that I wanted to scream it from the rooftops. I want to be able to touch you and kiss you, regardless of who is around.”

“I know, love.”

Now with their foreheads against one another, Hunter begged, “Say it again.”

“What?” she breathed, knowing exactly what she had accidentally let slip out.

“Say it,” he demanded quietly.

“Love,” she spoke barely above a whisper, and his hands cupped both sides of her face.

“I know this is crazy. I know it is absolutely insane, but it doesn’t change the truth of it. I am one hundred percent positive that I am head over heels in love with you, Molly. I think I’ve always been, but I learned what I felt decades ago and even a few weeks ago is nothing compared to the depth and devotion that I feel right now.”

Blue to green, intense and solid, nothing wavered, nothing else existed, just the two of them and his words.

“You are the most amazing, beautiful, sexy, and wonderful woman I have ever known. You carry light, love, and such a refreshing take on everything with you the way others carry a chip on their shoulder. Your heart knows no bounds, and your mind is equally infinite. You captured my heart years ago, but you sealed the permanency of it just recently. When I’m not with you, all I can think of is hearing you laugh and seeing you smile, smelling your amazing made for me scent, and hearing about your day. I want to know everything and anything that has the privilege to cross through that beautiful head of yours. But then when I’m near you, all I can think about is touching you, hearing those incredible sexy sounds you make that you aren’t even aware you do. Your taste should come with a warning label, completely addicting and completely worth whatever fee I would have to pay to have just one more taste. I want you in my bed. I want to be in you, I want to make you scream out in passion, and I want my name on your luscious lips each time.”

His voice never hesitated, nor did his gaze, each word striking her with more and more weight. All Molly could do was hold onto his wrists as his thumb caressed her cheeks and the tears began to roll down her cheeks.

“But my love for you just cemented itself into history when I saw you hold my daughter’s hand. She is the most precious thing in my life. My greatest treasure and my greatest achievement, she will never be negotiable and she will never be second choice. You gave her the one thing she has so desperately wanted for so long, attention—no expectations, no judgment, just your time and thoughtfulness.”

“Hunter . . .”

“The only way I know to put into words all that I’m feeling right now is to tell you that I love you. I love you, Molly. I’ve never known anything close to what I feel for you, and I never want to. You are it for me. This is forever.”

Hunter leaned in and kissed her. The pure sweetness of such a kiss catapulted with the mixture of tears from both of them that they tasted. Molly wrapped her arms around Hunter, holding him to her so she could show him how much the feeling was mutual.

She was in love with Hunter Dennison; completely and never changing absolutely in love with him.

“I love you, too.”

Her confirmation caused the widest of smiles thus far.

“I want you so badly right now.” He spoke against her lips and the effect of such words was evident in her panties.

Somehow, they found the strength to break apart and just leaned into the other unable to let go, needing the physical closeness to saturate the moment in what words couldn’t touch.

They walked back to find an aggressive game of volleyball ensuing. Molly watched as Jess’ face showed her true happiness, just as her mother’s did.

They ate, they drank, they laughed, and they made what was sure to be the first of a lifetime of memories.

“Come on, Jess, we have to get going,” Molly said watching her daughter’s concentrating and laughing face.

“In a sec, Mom,” Jess laughed as she executed an incredible dance move making her the winner of a dance off her and Bree were doing in front of the flat screen.

The entire family was crowded around the dueling pair as each of their legs moved with amazing grace and speed mimicking the moves done on the image on the screen.

When the screen flashed, confirming Jess’ victory, Bree dramatically collapsed on the floor, breathing hard.

Jess extended a hand bringing her new friend up to her feet when Bree hugged her and said, “Finally, I meet an appropriate opponent, and she threatens to kill me. God, I’m outta shape.”

Jess brought her hand back, pushing the hair that fell across her face as she continued to radiate pure happiness.

“She’s good,” Hunter whispered as he and Molly stood just outside the crowd in somewhat privacy.