Molly could scarcely understand the words on the paper – so floored was she by the whole thing. Kyle did not know how to do half the tasks on the list. She was not sure if she was terrified or thrilled he would have to do them all. She motioned for a pen, and Liam pulled one out of his pocket. She scribbled down feed and let out the neighbor’s dog three times daily.
Liam looked over the addition and nodded. “Good. I’ll see it gets done today.” He pulled Kyle’s credit card from his pocket and handed it to Molly. “And you get to be in charge of this. Buy yourself the pony you always wanted, but never thought you were allowed to ask for. Kyle’s done using this. I’ll stop by the bar tonight and talk to the bartender, making sure Kyle’s tab is closed and the card is taken off file. It won’t keep him sober, but it’ll limit the number of nights you have to go out and pick him up.” He leaned down to speak in her ear, inhaling the soft feminine scent he sorely missed throughout the night. “If you don’t want a pony, maybe you’d be interested in buying a solar panel instead? My dad said you could store it at our house until you want to move it. He’s got plenty of space in the rafters of the garage.”
Molly stared at the worn card in amazement. Thanks, she mouthed.
Liam’s heart sank when he saw she was still not talking. “And don’t let me off the hook, either. I yelled at you last night. I said horrible things and made you think all this was your fault. You’re plenty strong, and I can’t believe how smart and determined you are. I’m a tool, and you shouldn’t forgive me until I make it up to you.” He stepped back to examine Kyle’s shoddy work. “Clean up that puddle over there, and then you’re washing Molly’s car for her. You puked on her tires, so I want to see them shine for her. You got that?”
Kyle opened his mouth to cuss Liam out, but Liam was ready with the hose. Kyle held up his sopping hands in surrender. “Fine, Officer!” Kyle shouted.
“I mean it, Moll,” Liam said, turning back to her. “Really make me work for it. You’re worth a little groveling. I’m sorry for everything I said last night. Those were my issues, not yours. I shouldn’t have put all that on you.”
Molly shook her head, but Nate gripped her shoulder firmly as he spoke for her. “I’ll be the judge of the groveling,” he informed Liam, nose in the air. “Molly likes books. What’s that math guy you love? Archimedes? Dumbledore?”
Molly rolled her eyes and wrote on Nate’s hand.
“Euclid! That’s the guy. She likes the dusty Euclid math books that no one’s touched in a century. Probably hard to find. Start your groveling there. Use your fancy doctor dollars to buy her everything he ever wrote.”
Molly’s phone rang, and Nate scrambled to get it for her, handing it to her on the fourth ring. Molly shook her head and motioned for him to answer it. “Molly’s phone… sure… hold on.” He covered the mouthpiece to speak to Molly. “Some patient just called, and she’s on her way to the hospital to have her baby? They’re wondering if you’re free for some overtime. The other guy can’t make it in.”
Molly nodded emphatically as she gripped the doorjamb to stand up. She hobbled over to the counter and pushed the plate of eggs toward Nate. She jangled the car keys and mouthed, twenty minutes?
“Nah. Don’t worry about me. I’ll hitch a ride with my sister or someone. Visiting hours aren’t for a while.” He scooped the eggs into his mouth, moaning at the goodness. “I love your cooking. Screw Liam. Marry me.”
Molly responded by throwing the dish rag at his head. She took the quickest shower she could manage without slipping in the tub and dressed in record time. Delivery jobs could be stressful, and she hoped she could stay on top of this one without dwelling too much on Liam’s sudden mood shifts.
She hopped down the stairs and wrestled her shoe onto her swollen foot, trying not to make a face at the pain. Without a sarcastic word, Nate offered his arm to her and helped her to her freshly washed car. Liam had a ladder out and was barking at Kyle to clean out the gutters. Kyle had never looked more pathetic. He was dripping wet and sallow-skinned. Finally, he was the submissive sibling. Molly stood a little taller. She motioned to the car, offering Liam a ride.
Liam waved her off. “No, thanks. You’re letting me off too easy. You can’t be doing me favors the day after I was terrible to you. I don’t deserve to ride in your car. My family’s picking me up to take me to the hospital around noon. Plus, Kyle’s got a lot of work to do.” He fiddled with the whistle around his neck. “Could I text you later, though? Would that be okay?”
Molly nodded and answered in sign, but Liam shook his head and called over his shoulder to Kyle, “Hey, dead weight. Come translate for me.”
Kyle slumped down the ladder and dragged his feet over to them. “She’s saying you can text her, but she’ll be in a delivery room most of the day, unless the baby comes early. So if she doesn’t get back to you right away, it’s just because she’s working.” Kyle turned to Molly and signed morosely, I’m sorry I hurt your foot. And for puking on your car. And for Gina.
Molly was about to tell him it was no big deal, but instead she held her chin up. Thank you.
Nate gave Kyle a stiff nod before shutting Molly in her car and waving goodbye to her.
Chapter Four
Birthing Room
Molly never gave much thought as to whether or not she wanted to have children someday. She had only done a few delivery shifts, but each one was burned in her memory as equally beautiful and traumatic. Lisa was a nice enough woman during the checkups, but prolonged intense physical torture tended to transform even the sweetest soul into a snorting, writhing maniac. Lisa growled and grunted while Molly tried to keep a calm and reassuring expression for her to focus on. Lisa’s husband was out of town on business, and was desperately trying to catch a flight back. Short of a time-space continuum, he would not make it for the grand entry of his son.
Translating was easier for Lisa, because she spoke quite clearly on her own, so Molly was able to maintain her silence. As the hours wore on, the situation grew more and more distressing. The baby was breech, so the birthing process became a bit more complicated. Molly was sweating, and sorely wished she had eaten that morning. There were no breaks when no one was there to take your place. If Lisa couldn’t tap out, neither could Molly.
She was glad Lisa could not hear the worry in the doctors’ voices when they found that the umbilical cord was wrapped around the baby’s neck. They spoke behind paper masks, so she couldn’t read their lips, either. As quick as she could, Molly relayed the doctor’s explanation that they were going to have to do an emergency C-section.
She talked Lisa down with rapidly moving fingers, so the patient didn’t completely jump ship on what little bits of determination she had left.
The calm face Molly worked so hard to conjure was quickly hidden beneath a surgical mask. She scrubbed in and stayed near the conscious woman’s head as Lisa was numbed from mid-spine down.
She should not have looked, but the sight of the scalpel caught her eye. She unwittingly watched as the woman was unzipped at the navel, and the contents of her body exposed to the air. Molly had dissected pigs, frogs, and even cadavers when she was studying for her Master’s in Biochemical Engineering. Watching a human covered in grape jelly chunks emerge from his mother’s womb was a new experience entirely. She had only been witness to vaginal births, and for those, she stayed safely by the mother’s head.
Molly was thrilled. She was terrified. She was sweating. She was nauseous.
Since the father was not there, and Lisa knew Molly better than the house doctor or the attending nurses, she asked Molly to cut the cord. Her hands were normally adept, what with all the workout they got, but holding the scissors was a feat she trembled through.
The honor and wonder kept Molly from passing out into the woman’s open uterus, but only just. As soon as the whole ordeal was over, Molly went with Lisa into the recovery room and slumped down in a chair, waiting for the next moment she would need to translate. Her f
ingers were shaking so badly; she was not sure Lisa would be able to understand her very well. When the nurse asked Molly to hold the baby, she politely declined. It would not do well to drop the fragile newborn.
Doctor Hamilton came up for the postnatal visit, asking the usual questions and completing the examination with minimal hiccups. When Lisa was finally allowed visitors, Molly nearly broke down with relief when a relative showed up who spoke sign. The day had been such a whirlwind of tension. She had no concept of the time, only that she was tired and wanted to go home.
“Molly, are you alright?” Dr. Hamilton asked in a gentle voice. He was always considerate of the nurses and spoke respectfully to the patients. He was in his late thirties, but even the older doctors treated him with the respect he deserved.
Molly nodded, using the wall for support as she limped down to the elevators. Just a few more minutes, and she would be in the locker room, changed from her scrubs and ready to go home.
“What happened to your leg?” It was hard not to look good in a white doctor’s coat, but Dr. Hamilton turned the most eyes with his superman hair and perfect smile. He had always been nice to his subordinates, which was all that mattered to Molly.
Molly shook her head to indicate it was nothing. She shut herself in the elevator and gave him a wan smile before he could ask her another question.
She changed into her jeans with shaking hands, fumbling with the zipper of her jacket as she stumbled out the door, amazed that it was evening time. When she got into her car, she saw that she had missed seven texts from Liam and three from Nate. She could scarcely concentrate on the words; they all seemed to jumble together. She only saw the last text from Liam, asking her if she wanted him to come over tonight.
Come on over. Let yourself in. Spare key’s under a rock on the porch. I’ll be home in fifteen.
She did not have the energy to feel nervous at seeing Liam. She was only grateful there would be arms to collapse into.
Chapter Five
Comfort
Molly made it to her room before she passed out, thankfully landing on her bed when she did. She had no concept of time when the knock on her door roused her. “Molly? It’s Liam.”
“Come in,” she beckoned, not even noticing that she spoke aloud. She opened her eyes just enough to see his humble face that was laced with concern at her exhaustion. “Lock both doors and come lay down.”
Liam obeyed, sinking down next to her in the dark room and brushing his hand over her arm. “Long day?”
Molly nodded. “You have no idea. How’s your mom?”
He kissed her forehead, studying her feminine form now that her eyes were closed. The moon was the only illumination he had, but it sufficed to highlight her beauty. “She’s not in pain, so that’s good. Kinda out of it, though. Barely lucid. How was work?”
“Take off your shirt,” she murmured, still not opening her eyes.
“That good, eh? Moll, we can’t fool around. You can’t even open your eyes!” He laughed softly at her frown.
“I thought you were still groveling. Take off your shirt, DiNatali.”
The merriment in his voice was easy to spot. “Yes, ma’am. Man, are you a bossy one. Get your voice back, collect a few IOUs, and you turn into a dominatrix. Good for you.” He kissed her parted lips, and then removed his shirt, slipping into bed beside her.
“I’m too tired to fool around. Could we just sleep together?” Molly struggled to get her scrubs shirt off so she could sleep in her tank top beneath, but her exhaustion and hunger were making her clumsy with the material. “Help!” she whined pathetically.
Liam sniggered and straddled her as he slowly extracted her from her formless shirt, revealing a dainty figure that drew his eyes like a beacon. Then he inched off her shoes and socks, noticing her hiss when he touched her ankle. “How are you feeling?”
“Tired. What time is it?”
“Nine at night. You worked, what? Twelve hours? You look like you could’ve used a few more breaks.”
She shook her head. “Didn’t take a break.”
“They let you eat on the job in a hospital?”
Molly frowned, shaking her head. “It was a birth, Liam. If the mom can’t stop to take a break, neither can I.”
“Molly, when was the last time you ate anything?”
Molly slid under the thin sheet. “When was yesterday?”
Liam inhaled deeply and closed his eyes. “I missed you.” He was surprised at the number of things he had missed about her that day. “I’ll be right back.” He covered her sensual curves with the comforter and kissed her temple. Then he disappeared for five minutes, reappearing with a glass of orange juice and toast with peanut butter. “Sorry,” he said, helping her to sit up in her confused state. “Tomorrow I’ll take you out for a real meal. But for now, just eat this.”
“I’m so tired, Liam,” she whispered, sitting up and slumping against his shoulder.
“I know. Eat this, and then we’ll get good and half-naked under the covers. You can boss me around all you want. Just humor me for now.”
The juice brought her to a more moderate state of tiredness instead of supreme exhaustion. The peanut butter toast helped her to be able to sit up on her own. When she finished, they lay down beside each other, limbs entangled as they shared parts of their day. Molly recapped the horror and the glory of the whole birthing experience. Liam filled Molly in on his mother’s quickly deteriorating state. Hospice was due to come in the next afternoon to take her to a more comfortable facility for her last days.
Liam had a resigned sadness in his eyes that Molly was thankfully aware enough to take notice of. He tried to brush off his pain like it was all just a part of life he had already accepted. Molly said nothing, but instead brought his head to her breast and stroked his dark hair lovingly.
“I don’t know why I stayed away so long. I guess I just expected my parents would always be there, and nothing would change when I came home. But my mom’s dying, Moll. She’s dying too quick for me, but not quick enough for her. How’d you deal when it was your parents?”
Molly’s hand stilled in his hair. She never spoke about that dark period of her life. She was so young; she scarcely remembered it as anything more than a horror-filled blur. “I don’t know. I was three, so my parents didn’t have the time to make the impression your mom did on you. I just remember being scared all the time. I landed here, so there wasn’t much point in talking it out.” She smiled as his hand found her hip, holding her tight in hopes of soothing them both. “One day I woke up and didn’t think about it as much. Then a few months later, it was a little less.” Her eyes closed in shame. “Now I barely remember them.”
“I don’t want to forget my mom. And I really don’t want this week to be how I remember her.” There, in the quietness of Molly’s room, Liam finally broke down. He cried silently into her bosom as he confessed all the things he wished he had done differently, the number one being that he regretted missing out on the last decade of his family’s life. He saw Nate every few years, and his parents came to a few games when they could make the trip out, but he had missed it all. As glamorous as the job he worked so hard to get was, he was miserable. And now his mother was dying, and he had nothing but lame excuses as to why he was not there through her failed chemo and the whole wretched journey.
“I barely recognized her!” he blubbered into her breasts, the soft mounds muffling the sound. “She’s so thin and fragile now. She doesn’t really even know we’re there.” He confessed his regrets from childhood and his teen years, even admitting to a few dastardly deeds he and his friends had gotten up to that upset his mom a great deal at the time. He told Molly about the falling out he had with Jess, and the sister who went from teenager to wife and mother of six in a breath that he missed out on. Like Molly was his priest, Liam gave over his secrets.
Molly stroked his hair until he had cried out a decade’s worth of denied tears into her wet bosom. The hulking man was reduce
d to a shell as he shuddered against her. “I’m sorry, Molly. I’m so sorry. You’ve been perfect. I don’t know what I’m doing anymore.”
“Shh. No one’s perfect, Liam. I make mistakes, just like you do. It’s normal that you’ve made some bad choices. No one expects you to be Superman. Except for you, I guess.”
“I’ve got no one, Moll. I’m on the road during the game season, then traveling between teams during the off-season.”
She slowed her fingers as they dragged over his scalp, hoping the languorous motion would calm him. Molly waited to make sure there was not more before she spoke. “Liam, you’re not alone. If you’re unhappy, let’s make a plan.”
Liam’s breathing slowed as his panic died down in her arms. For the first time in a long time, Liam felt the hope that came with comfort. Instead of running, he clung to the warmth Molly offered.
Chapter Six
Control
Molly awoke with no one next to her. She felt the covers, missing the chiseled body that kept her warm throughout the night. She caught him soundlessly pulling on his shirt. “Liam?”
He closed his eyes, keeping his face from her. “Hey, Moll. I gotta go.”
“What? Where?” She glanced at her phone and saw that it was only eight in the morning. “I thought they weren’t moving your mom until the afternoon.”
“They aren’t. I just… I gotta go.”
Molly’s submissive demeanor was shed as she donned her rarely accessed steely gaze. “Liam, don’t you dare walk out that door!”
Liam froze, but still could not look at her. “I can’t stay here. Not after last night. I don’t want to be a mess. I don’t want you to see me that way.”
“I’ll see you as you are, and you’re no mess. Now take off your shirt and get back in bed. I mean it, Liam.” She glared at him, clutching the sheet around her.
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