Unraveling Molly

by Tuesday Embers

  He tried not to smirk at her moxie, but failed. “Man, you’re bossy. But you were supposed to stand up to Kyle, not me.”

  “I don’t differentiate. I needed to breathe when I first met you. You needed to last night. We’re square. You can’t be in relationships where you’re the Superman putting everyone back together. That’s not real. Last night you were an actual person with me. You might not have like it, but I did. I was starting to feel like a basket case.” He scoffed, but she paid him no mind. “Now, I told you to take off your shirt. You told me you’d do anything to make up for your bad behavior. Prove it. Stay when it’s hard. Don’t bail and take the easy way out.”

  Liam debated, and then stood straight, taking a deep breath before turning to look at her. “Okay, Molly. If that’s what you want, I’ll stay.” He removed the t-shirt, and then moved to stand before her, presenting himself for her scrutiny.

  She inspected him like a prize horse. “Put your hands above your head.”

  He indulged her as he stretched, smiling at her examination of his body. “Like what you see?”

  “Of course.” She pointed to a small ripple on his side. “How do you get this muscle to look like that?”

  “It’s just a different way of holding the dumbbells. I can show you.”

  She touched the hard ridge, tsking him when he dropped his hands at the slight tickle. Her voice turned sharp. “I said keep your arms up.” Liam obeyed, and Molly noticed him swallowing thickly. “Do you like being told what to do? Mr. In-Control.”

  Liam nodded with an air of shame at his secret dysfunction. Getting turned on by being bossed around in the bedroom was not something many people knew about him.

  Molly traced each ridge on his abdomen, taking her time with the slow tease he was not allowed to participate in. “Then this must be torture for you. That’ll teach you to sneak out at first sign of daylight. You planned on missing the morning with me.” She kissed his chest, dragging her lips in a wide circle.

  “Please, Molly!”

  Molly refused, but kept up her tease with a small glint of vindictive pleasure. “Do you like what happens to you when you try to sneak out on me? Was it a good idea to run away?”

  “No! I won’t do it again. I swear!” His wild eyes begged her to let him ravish her, but he was denied again.

  Molly lay down on her stomach facing him and kicked her legs up behind her as if they were having the most normal after-school conversation in the world. “You know what I’ve never tried before?”

  “Tell me, and we’ll do it,” he insisted, biting his lip to keep from further begging. His arms were shaking as the invisible ropes of her words held him in place.

  “I’ve never done all sorts of things. I’ve been thinking a lot about that since you came around.”

  “Ugh! You’re killing me, Luco!”

  Her voice turned sharp, and she reached out and grabbed his hips, pulling him flush to her. She felt powerful, and the fire in her eyes was finally uncovered. “Are you going to hide from me anymore?”

  “Never! I’ll tell you anything, anytime. Please, Molly!”

  Molly was enjoying the thrill of her newfound prowess. Her natural desires were matching his, and the perfect fit was a heady thing. She flicked her tongue over his lip, indulging in little sucks, like he was a tasty cigar. “Your middle name.”

  “Ryan!” he shouted.

  Having a perfect specimen like Liam to play out her fantasies with erased a lot of her insecurities and fears. She felt bold, daring, in control and sensual. In this moment, he belonged to her. “Tell me how many times you’ve been in love.”

  “Not once,” he answered. “But I really want to change that.”

  “You can put your hands behind your back now.” She released him from her spell as she knelt on the bed before him. “You tried to tell me what to do, Liam.”

  “I’m sorry. It’ll never happen again.”

  “Do you like what happens when you talk down to me? Tell me I’m not strong? I don’t have grand delusions that Kyle can change. I’m playing my part while I bide my time so I can be free for good.” She pressed her lips to his sternum, burying her nose in his chest. “Do I seem weak to you right now?”

  “No! I’m so sorry. I was stupid to say any of that. Please, Molly!”

  “Please, what?” She brushed her nose against his.

  “Put me out of my misery!” he shouted, unaware of his volume. The tension in him was so high, he thought he might snap and tackle her at any moment.

  She hooked her fingers under his jaw and pulled him forward so she could stare him in the eye. “Never run out on me like that, and never talk down to me again.” She watched his morose nod, and then released her hold on his face.

  No sooner had the words escaped her did Liam’s mouth attach itself to hers, causing Molly to cry out in surprise at his zeal. He sucked hard on her lower lip, making up for lost time.

  Her arms wrapped around him and he toppled her backward onto the mattress, their need for each other covering over a multitude of things they wanted to say. They made up without any more words, wrapped up in the sheets and each other, rolling around on the bed for the next hour.

  When their exhaustion could no longer be denied, they untangled and slipped under the covers together.

  Just before Liam’s heavy eyelids shut, he looked down at the woman in his arms. With both dread and peace, he realized there would be no leaving Molly Luco.

  Chapter Seven

  Meeting the Family

  Liam was thirty minutes late meeting his family at the hospital, but no one took notice. It was the last step before they all admitted the defeat to cancer that the matriarch of the family had come to terms with long ago. His mother looked so small, swallowed up in the white bed with tubes connected to her that he double-checked the medicinal doses of. Whenever his family had questions, they directed them at Liam, not the nurses. The bliss of the morning became inundated with technical jargon that separated him from the grief he wished he could be alone to feel. His mother was dying. There would be no stopping that.

  Molly. He felt awful for thinking about her at a time like this. It was not the awe-inspiring kisses they partook of just a few hours prior, but her quiet presence he missed. He swallowed hard, but his throat had gone dry. He did not just miss her; he needed her to get through the questions and the tubes and the medication he would not have prescribed himself. The hospital room was so small, shared with one other person who passed away the day prior. The walls felt too close together, and they were white… too white. The sterile smell burned the inside of his nose, and the hard plastic chairs made sure no one would relax, not that they could’ve anyway. Liam sat in his chair and focused on his knee so he did not have to feel the claustrophobia or see the flowers he sent his mother too many years too late. He didn’t even know what kind of flowers she liked. Not that it mattered; she wasn’t lucid enough to see them.

  “Call her,” Nate said, breaking Liam out of his downward spiral. “You know you want to.”

  “You don’t know what you’re talking about,” Liam grumbled, not able to tear his eyes away from his mother.

  “It’s written all over your face. Call her.”

  “Call who?” Mr. DiNatali asked, looking from Nate to Liam.

  “I can’t. She just dropped us off. There’s no real reason. I don’t want to make her drive back for me.”

  Nate scoffed and pulled out his phone, dialing Molly before Liam could miss yet more time in his life that he could be truly happy. “Hey, Little Luco. Could you come back? Liam wants you to meet our mom. Yeah. Room 207.” He turned to Liam upon ending the call. “You’re welcome, chicken shit.”

  “I don’t remember thanking you.” Liam wanted to dig in his heels and be stubborn, but he knew it would be a bad acting job at this point. He was pretty well at the end of his nerves. “But thanks.”

  Despite the gravity of the situation, Mr. DiNatali fired off question after question
about Molly, astonished that his son was expressing any kind of need or want for a woman who might ever stick around beyond one night.

  Liam ran his hands through his short brown hair. “Alright, alright. It’s nothing. It’s casual. She’s… You know who Molly Luco is, Dad. I’ll be back in a minute. I need some coffee or something.” He turned back to glare at the mixture of shock and glee on the faces of his family. “Don’t say anything to scare her. It’s casual. Do you understand?” When they did not respond with anything other than the same levels of shock and glee, he rolled his eyes and exited the room.

  Liam did need a little coffee, but he could not bring himself to buy a cup from the pitiful looking machine. Instead he found one of the doctors on the floor, introduced himself and asked if he could take a look at his mother’s file.

  “I’m sorry. I can’t. Hospital policy,” the doctor said with an apologetic smile. “Did you need me to look in on her?”

  “No. I just wanted to get a better view of the meds she’s on for the pain. It’s fine. Thanks anyway.” Liam abandoned hope of figuring out a better cocktail for his mother and went back to the coffee machine, willing it to smell fresher than it did. He didn’t realize he had his eyes closed and his forehead pressed against it when he heard the voice that made his out-of-sync heart feel immediately at peace.

  “Liam? Are you alright?”

  Not only was she the perfect blend of alluring and adorable, but she was holding a carryout tray of coffee from a specialty shop in town he’d frequented in his teen years. The fist of tension in his chest unclenched, releasing his body from the rigid state of worry it was in. “You came.” His sigh of relief was audible and visible as his shoulders deflated at the sight of her.

  “Of course I came. It’s your mother.” She handed him a tall cup and gave him a warm smile. “Though, I’ve met your mother, just for the record. A couple years ago, Kyle hit her mailbox and drove over some of her flowers. I came over the next day to help her replant new ones and pay for the mailbox damages.”

  He wrapped an arm around her back and drew her closer, pressing a kiss into her forehead. “Oh, I hate your brother.”

  “So long as you like me, I think that’s okay.” She pulled out of his embrace and donned a serious expression. “But you can’t kiss me in there. I don’t want them thinking we’re doing… things.”

  Liam snorted. “Well, Nate’s in there, so I’m pretty sure they already have a fair guess at what we’ve been up to.” When he saw her concern, he smiled. “Don’t worry about it. They’re happy as anything that I’m acting like a human about a woman.”

  “Instead of a cyborg?”

  “Exactly.” When Liam took a step toward the room, Molly did not follow. “You coming?”

  “I don’t know,” she admitted. “Do you really want me in there? It’s your family, Liam. I’ve never met parents before in this kind of context. I don’t want to do anything stupid to embarrass you.”

  He leaned down and kissed her lightly on the mouth. “Just be with me. This is hard, and I want you next to me.”

  Molly nodded, gulping as she followed him into the room that was suddenly on its best behavior. Wide, excited eyes took in her shy demeanor. “Hey, Molly,” Nate greeted her, a giant grin widening his face.

  She raised an eyebrow at him. He rarely used her first name. “Hello, Nathanial.”

  “Did you bring us coffee? What a nice thing to do.”

  Nate was laying it on thick, but she did not smell a trap, so she nodded. “Here. Take one.” She handed one to each member, who stared at her like she was an alien or Santa Claus come to give Christmas spirit to Liam and the rest of the cyborgs of the world. “Um, the coffee machine is disgusting on this floor, so I thought you might need some decent fuel for the day.”

  Mr. DiNatali straightened his shirt as he thanked Molly for the coffee. “That was thoughtful of you. Molly Luco, right? You’re Joe and Donna’s girl?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Well, thank you for taking in the boys. Our house is a little full right now, what with all these out of towners. I appreciate it.”

  “It’s not a problem, sir. Happy to help.”

  Molly thought that Jess and Nate looked like twin dolls with perma-grins painted on their faces. They examined her with such anticipation and excitement, it made Molly want to hide behind Liam.

  Small talk finally broke out, and attention was diverted, thanks to Nate. Liam fingered one of the IV bags attached to the many tubes and frowned. His mother’s skin was paper-thin and devoid of color, sounding a gong announcing she was too near the end. He sat down next to where Molly stood against the window, his mind deep in thought.

  “What’s wrong?” she asked quietly, placing her hand on his shoulder.

  Jess saw the small gesture and muffled her squeal of delight into her hand. Molly instinctually retracted from Liam, her cheeks darkening.

  Liam reached over and laced his fingers through hers, as if it was the most natural thing in the world. He kissed the back of her hand, claiming her in front of his entire family. He didn’t look up at them, but kept his eyes on his mother. “I’m not sure. I want to look at Mom’s charts, but it’s against hospital policy to show them to the family. I get it, but I’m just not thrilled with the meds they have her on. I’m wondering if there isn’t a better combination that would make her more lucid. I’m probably wrong. I just wish I could see that for myself.”

  “Hold on. I’ll see what I can do.” Molly smiled privately when Liam hesitated to let go of her hand. She went to the nurse’s station and put in a page for Dr. Hamilton, who called back immediately, stating he would be down at first opportunity.

  “Hey, Lorraine,” Molly greeted the head nurse who was sorting through patient files at the nurse’s station. There were two other nurses who glanced up and gave Molly an obligatory grunt of a welcome. Molly knew those grunts. They were shorthanded.

  “Hey, Molly,” Lorraine replied. “You working on my floor today? I didn’t think I had you scheduled.”

  “Nope. Just wondering if I can hop in on the computer and print out my schedule. Is that alright?”

  Her curly, frizzy hair had three pencils stuck in it to keep her bun from giving up hope of holding her thick hair up altogether. “I can print that out, sweetie. Give me a minute.”

  Molly waved off the help. “No, no. You’re swamped. Plus, I need to print out my schedule going back two months. Paycheck discrepancy.” Molly gave Lorraine an exasperated eye roll. “Ugh.”

  “Sure, hun. If you can get the computer on the end to print that out, you’ll be my angel of mercy. It’s been giving me sass all day long.”

  “I’ll see what I can do.” Molly walked around the long crescent-shaped desk, ducking down at the end of the station to sit at the computer that had been abandoned as hopeless. She was no computer whiz, but she was patient, clearing out a few programs she knew were too big for such an old computer to handle. The other nurses paid her no mind, but Molly’s hands were still quick across the keyboard as she tried to pull up Liam’s mother’s file without being seen. She didn’t know what she was supposed to be looking for, so she printed out the top three pages, hoping that would be enough. She bit her lower lip guiltily at breaking hospital policy and quickly switched to the main portal, signing in and printing out the current week of her schedule, which she didn’t actually need. Molly hopped to the computer and swept the pages off the printer, folding them once and signing out. “I fixed it for now. You can’t put anymore new programs on this computer, though. It’s too old to take the beating.”

  Lorraine clapped her hands three times in gratitude. “Are you kidding me? I about took that machine out to the garbage this morning. I was so mad! It shut down on me four times! Four! You’re my angel, Molly.”

  Molly gave Lorraine a weak smile, trying not to let her guilt shine through. “No problem. And room 207’s a friend of mine. Could I put in an order for some sandwiches for the family?”
r />   “Anything, girl. Sorry about your friend.”

  “Thanks. And when Doctor Hamilton comes down, could you send him into 207? The family’s got a few questions.”

  “Of course you call the hot doctor down when my hair’s a mess,” Lorraine complained.

  Once the nurses knew Mrs. DiNatali belonged to Molly, she knew new pillows would be sent in, sandwiches would be sent up from the cafeteria, the nurses would make a point to check on her more frequently, and ice chips would magically appear when needed.

  Molly slipped into Mrs. DiNatali’s room, waving Liam over after shutting the door behind her. She pulled out the pages and handed them over sheepishly. “I don’t know if these are what you need, but it’s the best I could do without getting caught.”

  Liam opened the folded papers and frowned. “Your schedule? Did you mean to give this to me?”

  She took back the top sheet. “No, no. It’s the first three pages of your mother’s file. It’s all I could do.”

  Liam’s eyes bulged. “You seriously ganked my mom’s file for me?” His eyes glossed over the pages, catching onto a few key details that made his mind race. “This is great, Moll. You have no idea. Thank you!” He kept his eyes on the pages, but wrapped his free arm around Molly, pulling her to his side while his family gathered around to see the espionage in action.

  “It’s really not that big a deal. But I paged one of the doctors I work with most, and he’ll be coming down to talk with you in a minute, so if you have a plan, now’s the time for it.”

  When Doctor Hamilton arrived, he wore his friendly smile that matched his white doctor’s coat. “Molly, I didn’t realize you had friends here. Lorraine said you needed me?”

  Liam stood and shook the doctor’s hand. “Can I speak with you in private, doctor?”

  “Of course. My office is on the other side, but there’s an empty room we can duck into.”