Molli laughed. They undressed and ate their breakfast quickly, then had breathless sex. They showered together and then engaged in foreplay and love for several more hours. Ricky was yawning by then and Molli was beginning to feel a little tired again so they lay down and went to sleep.
Molli only slept for a few hours. Ricky was still sleeping, so she watched TV until he woke up. She hadn’t seen any reports of her being missing, but she wasn’t sure of how the whole missing person reporting system worked.
They got dressed and Ricky let her drive them back to the tattoo parlor. She had already picked out a new tongue stud and the stud for her nose, but Ricky couldn’t decide on what he wanted to get in his tongue and he wasn’t sold on any of the tattoos either. Finally, he decided on a tongue stud and a tattoo. They were both soon in chairs in the back of the parlor.
Molli got a stud that was shaped like a heart in her nose because she had once seen a little boy with heart shaped nostrils and had thought it was completely adorable. She put the stud in her tongue and watched them pierce Ricky’s tongue and his ear. She thought they were both really hot and was starting to get turned on by the time they had finished.
They decided that she would go get her hair cut while Ricky got his tattoo. They shared a kiss before she left. The tattoo artist laughed and said “Ah, young love.”
Molli rolled her eyes as she walked out of the shop because she thought that the woman barely looked older than she and Ricky did.
The hair parlor was empty. She was sat down in a chair by a chunky woman with bleached blonde hair who she thought would look a lot better if she wasn’t trying so hard. Molli told her that she wanted her hair straightened and cut to just below her shoulders. The hairdresser said that she’d always wanted naturally curly hair. Molli laughed and told her that she could have it, because her thick curly locks had always been a pain in the butt. The woman laughed and asked if she wanted her hair colored too, but Molli told her no, because she was pregnant. The stylist told her that it was perfectly safe but Molli shook her head, thinking that maybe she’d go darker or lighter with her hair after she had the baby.
The hairdresser got to work. When she had finished, Molli hardly recognized herself. She touched her now straight, much shorter hair and felt a little in awe. The hairdresser laughed. “Do you like it? I think you look even prettier than you did when you walked in here.”
“Thank you. I love it. You did such a good job. I hope my fiancé likes it.”
“Oh, he will. Unless he’s one of those guys that likes to grab onto your hair during sex. You have a lot less to grab onto now.”
Molli laughed. “No.”
“Good. I can give you a discount on a couple bottles of hair straightening stuff if you want it. It won’t hurt your baby. Or they have those things that are like a curling iron that you can probably get at a discount store.”
“Yeah, I think I’ll go with that instead.”
“Okay. Let me get you rang up and then you can go back to your man. Do you think they finished his tat yet? Guys with tattoos are so hot.”
“Some of them maybe. Ricky was so hot before he got a tattoo, I don’t think he could get any hotter.”
“Damn. I might have to come outside and take a peek at him when I get a chance to take a break.”
Molli laughed and handed the woman enough cash to cover the cost of the work she’d done on her hair and a nice tip.
“Thanks girl. If you ever want you hair done again, give stop on in and I’ll take care of you.”
“Thank you, but we’re just passing through.” She glanced outside and saw a tall, pretty redhead getting out an expensive looking car.
The hairdresser sighed and said “Why does she have to come in when I’m here by myself? I hate that woman.”
“Who is she?”
“Leslie Atkins. Her old man owns this bar called Gabe’s Place. He chases tail like it’s nothing. I swear she doesn’t care because she swings a little bit more toward the other side if you know what I mean. Check out her plates.”
Molli stepped closer to the door and had to laugh when she saw that the woman’s license plates said ‘Les4you’.
“Damn. Well, you have a nice day Helen.”
“It will be so much better after I erase every last trace of brunette from Leslie’s hair and she gets her rich snotty ass out of here.”
Molli laughed. “Bye Helen and thank you. I’ll try to make sure that you can get a good look at Ricky. He is so fine that I swear sometimes I’ve died and gone to heaven and met an angel.”
Helen sighed. “Wish my old man looked that good.” She shut up as the redhead came in the door.
Leslie Atkins looked Molli up and down and gave her an appreciative smile. It reminded her of the way that Belmont used to look at her. She almost shivered as she left the salon. She was sure that Leslie had just undressed her with her eyes.
Ricky was just getting up from the chair. Molli felt a need to tell him about Leslie. “This gorgeous lesbian undressed me with her eyes when I was walking out of the hairdresser’s. Well, I guess she’s bisexual since she’s married but I could feel myself getting naked under her stare.”
Ricky laughed. “I love your hair.”
“Thank you. Let me see your tattoo.”
Ricky turned and showed her the tattoo on his back. He had chosen a bright red heart with a light blue ribbon across it that said Savannah. There was a smaller ribbon that awaited the name of their child. It was strange to see the name on his back and think that it meant her when she was so used to being Molli, but she was really excited about starting their new life together.
“It’s beautiful. My smart, cultured man getting tough and sexy for me.”
Ricky kissed her. She couldn’t resist slipping her tongue into his mouth. The tattoo artist returned and said “Hey, none of that in here. Don’t give his tongue too much of a workout yet. It might still be sore for a bit.”
Molli laughed. “I’ll try not to. But it’s gonna be really hard.”
“Yeah, yeah. Horny teenagers.” She handed Ricky a printed sheet of tattoo and piercing care instructions.
“You act like you’re old. How old are you anyway?”
“Twenty-two.”
“You are such an old lady. Like you didn’t want to do it all the time when you were a teenager.”
“Yep. That’s probably why I have a four year old and a three year old at home-because I wasn’t a horny teenager myself.” She laughed. “Your man told me that you’re pregnant by the way. Congratulations.”
“Thank you. You did a really good job on the tattoo.”
“Thanks. I tried to convince Marco to come back and let me add your baby’s name after the little one is born but he said ya’ll are on the road. Setting out to make a life all your own and take on the big bad world. Are your parents looking for you? I know you’re not eighteen Savannah.”
Molli was surprised that Ricky was already using both of their ‘new’ names but figured she’d probably better get used to it. “I turn eighteen in just over two weeks. And I certainly hope they’re not looking for me.”
The woman winked at her. “Don’t worry. What happens in my shop stays in my shop. I didn’t see nothin’. Besides, I think that sometimes kids need to just do it and go out on their own. They might end up living with mom and dad in a few years but what the hell. You’re not living if you’re not trying.”
Molli smiled, feeling relieved. “Thank you.”
“No problem. Oh, Marco said that you wanted colored contacts. We have some out front. A lot of them are the weird kind, but we have some normal ones too.”
“Great.”
They both followed the pretty dark haired woman back out to the front of the shop. Molli couldn’t decide whether she wanted to go with emerald green for her contacts or a lighter green, so Ricky paid for both sets and the rest of their bill and they walked out of the shop.
Helen was outside smoking a cigarette. She raised
her eyebrows at Molli and mouthed ‘Damn girl, he is fine.’
Molli smiled and gave Helen a little wave. They walked back to the van and Molli got behind the wheel again. “Where to now? Are we going back to the hotel or going out to eat or what?”
“I thought we’d stop at a discount store or grocery store and pick up a few things. Well, maybe more than a few things. I didn’t pack many clothes. I think I even managed to forget my toothbrush. We can look for cell phones and anything else you think you might need too.”
“Cool. I don’t know how I’m gonna stop myself from texting Seneca.”
Ricky smiled as she pulled out of the parking lot. “I told Matthew we were leaving and why. Of course, I still had to pay him several hundred dollars to pack up my apartment, take what he wanted and donate the rest though. He thought he deserved it, even if he does owe my family many favors.”
“He does deserve it. Moving and packing sucks. Do you think he’ll want to come to our wedding?”
“He already made me promise I’d let him be there. Of course, his girlfriend is trying to talk him into getting married at the same time.”
“That would be kinda cool. Seneca will probably be way jealous though. I think she already wants to marry Grant.”
“I’m sure she will someday. High school sweethearts have some of the longest lasting marriages.”
“Oh yeah? What are we since I’m not gonna be in high school anymore and you’re in college?”
“We were meant to be together, that’s what we are.”
“Oh, you are so sweet sometimes that I think you’re faking it. Talk dirty to me more often and I might believe that you’re really perfect.”
Ricky laughed. “I’m far from perfect.”
“You’ll always be perfect to me and that’s all that counts. Now I’m starting to sound all sentimental and girly like you. We have to hurry up and get our shopping done and then go back to the motel and have sex so that I can restore my manly persona.”
Ricky shook his head. “I would never call your persona manly. You are every bit a woman even if you happen to think about sex as often as a teenage boy.”
Molli laughed. “Guilty as charged. Do you know where we’re going?”
“I think we need to go back the other way actually. I was too busy admiring your hair to remind you before.”
“See, you’ve got sex on the brain too. So we both think about sex like teenage boys. That makes it even more fun.” She grinned at Ricky as she pulled off into a parking lot so that she could turn around and change directions.
“I do believe it does yes.”
“But sometimes I’m glad you’re more mature. Jude would have taken what I said about us both thinking about sex like teenage boys and turned it into something totally disgusting.”
“I could see that. I believe that I owe my maturity to my parents and my older brother. They were strict sometimes, but I always understood what I was being punished for. And I’ve always thought that it sounded better when people spoke properly.”
Molli laughed. “You must love the way I talk.”
“I do. You use slang like most teenagers and shorten words and such, but you’re upfront and you say what you think. I find it very attractive. I think that our differences are very complimentary.”
“Yeah. We look really hot together too, don’t we?”
Ricky laughed. “Yes, we do make an attractive couple.”
“Mellenda looked like she could have been your sister, your coloring and everything was so similar. She’s beautiful, but I think you look much better with me. At least nobody will ever mistake us for brother and sister.”
“It is unlikely yes. The store is up ahead a block or so on the right.”
“Okay.”
She pulled into the parking lot a few minutes later. They got out of the van and locked it and walked together hand in hand to the store. They spent over an hour shopping, buying clothes and toiletries and other needed and not needed goods. Molli found the type of cologne she had bought for Ricky for Christmas and slipped it into the cart when he wasn’t looking.
They found prepaid cell phones they both liked. Ricky insisted on buying Molli a new laptop. Molli was afraid that they were spending too much money, but he assured her that they would be fine.
They ate dinner at a diner and then headed back to the motel. Molli couldn’t take it anymore. She had to text Seneca when they were inside the room.
She looked at Ricky, who had taken his shirt and shoes off and was lying on his side on the bed. She gave him her best puppy dog eyes. “Ricky. Can I text Seneca? Pretty please.”
“Go ahead darling. I knew you wouldn’t be able to wait long.”
She kissed him. “Thank you. I love you and I’ll repay you by being very nice to you in bed later.”
“Don’t worry about repaying me for anything. I’ve done everything I’ve done in the past day because it was the right thing to do and I love you. But everything you do to me in bed is always greatly appreciated.” Ricky winked at her.
She took her shoes off and slipped out of her jeans since they were beginning to feel tight. She removed her bra and tossed it onto the floor and climbed up onto the bed beside Ricky. He used the remote to turn the TV on, and absentmindedly stroked her thigh with his other hand as he flipped through the channels.
She sent a text to Seneca. ‘Sen it’s Molli. This is my new number. If the Archers call you looking for me, do not tell them anything. I ran away with Ricky. They’re not even my real parents.’
Seneca’s reply was almost immediate. ‘Whoa girl, slow down. Can we start with you running away? And with Ricky? Did he finally dump Mellenda?’
‘Yes. We’re getting married after my birthday. I’m so excited.’
‘I’m happy for you Mol. I really am, but why did you have to run away? I’m gonna miss you.’
‘I already miss you. That’s why I made Ricky let me text you now instead of waiting. Hold on a sec Sen. I gotta ask Ricky a question.’
‘Okay.’
Molli leaned over and kissed Ricky’s chest. “Ricky, I love you and I’m so happy to be here with you, but can I have my engagement ring? I want to take a picture and send it to Seneca.”
Ricky chuckled. “I’m sorry Molli. I’ll go get it now and bring in the rest of the stuff from the van.”
“Thank you.”
She blew him a kiss as he walked out the door and then turned her attention back to her phone.
‘I had to run away because those crazy old Archers locked me in my bedroom and were going to start shoving antidepressants down my throat again. They didn’t care if those stupid pills hurt my baby. I am so glad that they’re not my real parents.’
‘Oh, Mol, I’m so sorry. I don’t blame you for running away. I’ll let my dad know so that if anyone comes to Brentwood asking questions, they won’t get any answers. So who are your real parents?’
‘Do you remember that picture I showed you of Bethany? She’s supposed to be my sister that the Archers adopted out of foster care. Well, that’s a bunch of bullshit too. She’s my real mom. It doesn’t sound like the Archers did her any kind of a favor by helping take her away from her real family. I’m gonna meet my grandparents some day and they’ll tell me the real story. And I have four uncles, isn’t that so cool?’
‘I always thought that you kinda looked like Bethany. I don’t know how cool having four uncles is. I only have two and they’re both completely obnoxious.’
‘Hang on again for me please will ya? Ricky’s back with my ring and I want to take some pictures for you.’
‘Okay.’
Molli took pictures of her ring and her hair and her nose stud and Ricky’s tattoo and sent them all to Seneca. Seneca said she loved Molli’s hair and her ring. She agreed that Ricky’s tattoo made him look even hotter and said she was jealous that Molli had pierced her nose and mad that she was getting married without her. Molli told her that she and Grant were coming even if they ha
d to pay for gas and a tune up for Grant’s car since Seneca said she wasn’t sure it would make it very far into a road trip. Then Seneca told Molli that she loved her and that she missed her and she was going to cry and she had better go update everyone so that she didn’t start dropping tears all over her phone.
Molli laughed and plugged her phone back into the charger. They made love and then went to sleep. They checked out of the motel with no real destination in mind and kept driving south. They stopped in several small towns and settled down in a town that was about eighteen hours away from Cheston. They found a nice three bedroom house that they could rent to own and set about buying furniture and things for the baby.
Molli was reported missing by the Archers. She was described as unstable and in need of medication. Her pregnancy wasn’t reported so she took Ricky’s advice and pretended to look more pregnant for a while. He found work at a book store owned by a beautiful woman named Kimber. Her husband was a songwriter named Luke and they had a beautiful daughter and son. Luke convinced Ricky to follow his dreams of writing poetry. He was soon penning poems on an almost daily basis.
Molli started drawing again. She drew a beautiful picture of Seneca and Grant when they came for the wedding. The wedding was small but Molli thought it was beautiful. Matthew’s girlfriend convinced him to get married and they were married at the same chapel the next day. Both Molli and Ricky put in the paperwork to have their names changed, because Molli was still mentioned every once and a while on the news after she turned eighteen. Seneca didn’t think she’d ever get used to calling her best friend Savannah but Molli was truly happy to begin a new life.
Seneca told her that Eduardo had been arrested for burning the house down that he had shared with Crisha and their children. Molli was relieved to find out that it had been vacant since Crisha and the boys had left shortly after New Year’s. While Eduardo was sitting in jail, at least five women came forward with DNA tests that named him as the father of their children that he had never supported, some as far back as fourteen years. While he and Peggy were awaiting trial for arson, she was formally diagnosed with AIDS. Eduardo remained healthy, but Molli still had herself tested on a regular basis. When Peggy’s release date neared the body of a young woman was found in the woods surrounding Crestview Academy and she and Eduardo were soon tied to the murder. Molli was extremely grateful that it hadn’t been her. Peggy died eight years into her sentence. The tapes of Eduardo and Molli having sex never surfaced. Molli wondered what the Archers had done with them.
Misty Reigenborn Romance Boxed Set Page 168
