by Amy Gregory
Molly’s eyes wandered over his face as if she was searching for the truth. He hoped desperately that she would believe him. He could say the words all day long, but he’d learned enough in the short time he’d known her to know he had to prove it to her. The only way he could do that though was if she gave him the chance. And he’d walk through fire for that chance.
She leaned in slowly and kissed him softly on the cheek, just barely grazing the skin on the side of his mouth. “We’d better get back,” she whispered, “before Brody sends out a search crew for me.”
“You’re probably right.” He stood first and then helped her up, pulling her into a hug. He felt her suck in a deep breath. Kissing the top of her head, he tucked her in close, feeling her breath on his neck. “I don’t want to let you go,” he said.
He ran his palm up and down her back, stroking her gently for a long minute before reluctantly releasing her. He reached down to lace his fingers through hers. “Is this okay?”
She squeezed his hand and nodded.
“So?” he said as they started walking back, hoping to lighten the mood.
“Yeah?” She grinned nervously up at him.
“You gonna give me a chance before you go get married?”
She looked at him, puzzled.
“You know, before you go and marry Eli?”
“Oh. Yeah. Oops.” She smiled this sweet little smile, swinging their hands between them. “You think he’ll be disappointed?”
“I bet so. He’s a pretty good judge of character. You fit right in with our group.”
“Well, you all are pretty cool.”
“Especially me, right?” He winked at her. He liked this carefree part of her, even if he only got to see glimpses of it here and there.
She squeezed his hand. “Especially you.”
Chapter Three
They continued to walk back toward the pits, but he stopped when they were in the darkened hallway, just before they would have rounded the corner and been seen.
Molly’s heart sped.
He was still holding her hand, but turned to face her as he placed his other hand on her waist. She sucked in a breath when he stepped forward. Her first instinct was to be anxious, to cower back, but something in those ice blue eyes told her she didn’t have to be afraid.
When he had leaned in to kiss her when they were sitting on the track, she’d panicked. And then when he had started to move away, she’d panicked again—for a different reason entirely.
Those flip-flopping emotions were about to drive her crazy.
Now, in the dimmed corridor, Molly closed her eyes to catch her breath and to search for a decision. He’d been rubbing his thumb on her waist, but his movements stopped when her eyes dropped closed. The soothing strokes didn’t continue until she finally reopened her eyes and dragged her attention up his chest and past his Adam’s apple. She continued up until she locked her gaze with his. When she offered him a hesitant smile, he began stroking her again with a warm smile on his lips.
Staring down at her, he let go of her hand and skimmed the back of his over her cheek. She felt her heart thundering, her pulse racing when she ran her hands up his chest, feeling each and every rippled muscle. She’d never purposely touched a man like this before. Sure, she’d felt Brody’s muscles when she’d smacked him for one reason or another. Or when trying to push him off of her after he’d wrestled her to the ground being an ornery brother and all. But this? This was foreign.
Her eyes were back on her own fingers, taking everything in. She stopped at his heart and could feel it pounding hard beneath the soft cotton t-shirt.
“Just so you know…” he started in his slow, sexy voice.
She could tell he was waiting for eye contact again before continuing. “Yeah?” she whispered.
“I’m going to fall in love with you.”
What? The world stopped and her eyes went wide for a brief second before they narrowed. Her head tilted, her face questioning him. “But you hardly know me.” Her words came out on a barely caught breath. “We just met a few hours ago.”
She was just beginning to work out in her head the fact she was touching him and that her instinct to run away was non-existent, trying to decide if she should allow him to kiss her, and he was talking about falling in—love?
She knew she was out of her element. But this was like trying to win a SuperCross Championship race when you’ve never even had your ass in the seat before.
Up to this point in her life, her heart had always been well guarded, only letting in a few special people. And that circle of people had kept her shielded, vowing to never let her be hurt again. But there was something about Carter that was she was drawn to, something different. A connection she’d never felt before with anyone.
Her pulse quickened again and she swallowed, unable to look away from his overpowering gaze. It was commanding, yet she felt cherished at the same time.
“I know you well enough to know you feel it too.” He inclined his head, increasing his hold on her waist. “I know you feel it, this thing between us. This is it, Gorgeous.”
He pulled her to him and held her. She closed her eyes and listened to his pounding heart. Finally, she attempted a deep breath. “I’ve been hurt a lot in my life, Carter, but I’ve never had a broken heart. I won’t be able to take that.”
He squeezed her tightly, then let go to cup her face in both of his hands. “I promise you, with all my heart, I’ll never hurt you.” He leaned down and softly kissed her lips. “I promise.”
She reached up and placed her fingertips to her lips, still feeling the jolt from the feather soft kiss. The light touch had been just a hint of what was sure to come, something that sent her stomach to the ground in both fear and anticipation.
Somewhere deep in her own heart, she could feel his truth, but it didn’t mean she wasn’t terrified. She looked up at him, biting at her lip, and finally nodded.
“Come on,” he said as he stepped away with a smile, reaching for her hand as he began to walk. He brought it to his mouth to kiss her knuckles, his demeanor shifting from heavy to light, as if he understood she needed time to process it all.
Carefree, he swung her hand, teased, “You’re quiet now. I have a feeling that once you get to know people, that doesn’t happen often.”
“Hey.”
“I’m joking.” He wrapped his arm around her, pulling her close. His smile was so untroubled, his touch so warm. It wasn’t difficult for her to melt into his side.
She glanced up at him. “I’m just trying to figure this all out. We just met, Carter, and…and I don’t do this…I don’t flirt with guys. And I sure as hell don’t go around kissing random men. Normally, I do what I’ve come to do, get paid, and that’s it. I don’t sit around talking. I don’t try to meet people. I do my job and get out. And I guess it’s because, for the most part, I’ve only been around guys that are trying to be…ugh…I don’t know…men.”
“What do you mean?” He pulled away and took her hand again, regarding her as if he really had no idea what she was talking about.
“You know braggy, perverted, show off. Like your buddy, Dylan.”
He chuckled. “We all are, Gorgeous.”
“You included?” She looked at him, unable to hide the disappointment.
“Well, it takes the right girl to make a man want to act better than a twelve-year-old boy.” He squeezed her hand.
“So…I’m the right girl?” she asked softly as they walked up to the group. Like she’d told Carter, she didn’t flirt, didn’t play games. She wasn’t going to skirt around questions or assume answers. And though it was dangerous, she wore her heart on her sleeve.
He leaned down to whisper in her ear, “Yeah…you’re the one, Gorgeous.”
~
“How come she’s sweaty and flushed, and well, you’re not?” Jesse laughed as Molly and Carter approached the group.
“Screw that. That’s my fiancé.” Eli hopped up and put his ar
m around Molly’s shoulders. “Damn it, Sterling, how come you’re holding hands with my girl? You’re not going to fall for this guy, are you? I proposed already, you and me, we got something going girl.”
“Sorry, E.” She looked up, smiling between the two men who were standing close on either side of her. “I kind of already did.” She grinned when Carter squeezed her hand.
Eli let out an exaggerated breath of disappointment as he squeezed her shoulders, then kissed the top of her head. “Well at least it was Sterling and not Martins. That’d have been a real blow to my ego.” Laughing, Carter fist-bumped Eli as he pulled Molly close to his chest.
“Hey, jackass, I’m sitting right here,” Dylan piped up.
“So?” Eli asked, not hiding the look of extreme annoyance written all over his face.
Carter sat down in a chair without letting go of Molly’s hand. “Sit by me?” There was no way he wanted to lose the connection they’d made. He could tell Erin was her safety net, and even more so, Brody. Call him paranoid, but he was more than a little scared that they’d talk her out of pursuing this thing. Even though he knew with every bit of his soul that she was special and the woman of his dreams, he could feel the way Brody’s eyes narrowed in concern as his eyes roamed over her, the way those same eyes filled in suspicion and doubt when he looked at Carter.
Molly settled into the chair beside him and he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. He met Brody’s stare but didn’t back down. The guy was intense and he probably scared off other men on a regular basis, but Carter thought Molly was worth putting up with the big brother bully treatment. And he didn’t scare easily.
“So, did he keep up?” Jesse asked, grinning.
Carter could tell Molly was trying not to laugh, which was obviously a wasted effort. She snickered under her breath. He reached across and tickled her with his free hand. “Hey, that was our secret.” His voice was low, but teasing.
Laughing, Molly answered, “I didn’t say a word.”
“You didn’t have to.” Even in separate chairs, they were close enough that he could pull her tighter. Carter looked at her friends. “Well you all could have told me she intended on running on the track and not just around it.”
Brody threw Carter a cocky glance. “I knew you couldn’t keep up, so why bother with a warning?”
Carter felt Molly stiffen under his arm. He glanced down to see her chin come up in a defensive stance. Even without knowing her subtleties yet, it was clear that it was a silent warning to her brother, telling him to back off. He kept the smile to himself. He could tell she was a spitfire. Carter could only assume when they got into it over something, it got ugly.
Cody winked at her. “So how far did he get?”
Molly giggled and pretended to zip her lips. Eli slapped Carter’s arm. “Well that answers that, doesn’t it, Sterling?”
Carter tickled her again. “Thanks a lot. You’re a brat.”
Carter noticed even Brody chuckled under his breath, before he said, “Go get your dinner and bring me back a burger.”
“Bossy, bossy.”
“Just go, kid. And bring me back a beer, too.”
She rolled her eyes. “Geez, I’m going, I’m going.”
She climbed to her feet, stretching her arms above her head. Carter couldn’t help the grin that danced across his face when her tank top rose up, revealing a section of flat, toned abs. When she put her arms back down, he looked up at her face and caught the blush that had reddened her face. When he winked, she bit her lip. He couldn’t help but love the way she was so easily embarrassed. Not that he wanted to purposely cause her discomfort, but he found it so endearing. Just another nod to how innocent she seemed to be. Another reason he felt like he needed to be the one to protect her.
Carter stood up and put his hands on her shoulders. “Come on, Gorgeous, I’ll go with you.”
“By the way, smartass, they don’t have a salad bar. I already checked,” Brody hollered after her.
She didn’t even bother to turn around. Instead, she simply held up her arm and flipped him off, making the rest of the group start laughing all over again.
Brody watched Molly walking off with Carter toward the grills. He didn’t trust Carter at all. He knew his type, the nice guy who plays it sweet, makes a good girl like Molly fall in love with him, and then takes off the second he gets what he wants. Over the years, he’d seen guys do it again and again, and he wasn’t about to stand by and watch it happen to Molly. She was so naïve to what he saw plain as day.
Jesse nodded toward Brody. “So, what’s the story on your girl? I bet she’s a real heartbreaker, huh?” Jesse grinned. “I mean, look how fast she had Carter and Eli falling at her feet. You’ve got to have men crawling all over your house.”
Brody snorted.
“Oh, hell no.” Brody shrugged. Not those that valued their life and their family jewels.
“She’s just kinda what you see is what you get. She’s pretty easy going most of the time, and she works harder than anyone I know. But she really isn’t one of those flirty girls. She doesn’t date really at all, actually. She works too much now to have a social life. We’ll be on the road with you all for the next several months. For us, it was a last minute contract. I found out Sunday night, had her out on our track Monday and Tuesday, and then hit the road to be here by today. No guy is going to put up with that shit.” Which is the way dad and I prefer it.
“Then you add guys like him.” He motioned toward Dylan and shook his head. “She has absolutely no tolerance for guys like him. Besides, Dad keeps anyone that hangs out at our house in line. They know not to mess with her or he’ll kill ‘em.”
He rubbed his palm over his face. “The problem is we’ve kept her so damn sheltered that unfortunately she can be kinda naïve sometimes.”
Really naïve. He rolled his shoulders. They were just going to go get dinner. Innocently. But running through his mind were pictures of his sister with Sterling’s hands all over her. Brody shook his head. Oh God, I’m losing it. He definitely preferred when she was younger. She was easier to protect then.
Erin was right, though. At some point, they had to let her find someone. It wasn’t fair that his mom and dad had each other and he had Erin. Sometime, they were all going to have to let her trust her instincts. She’d been taught how to defend herself, but God, when he thought of what could happen to her, it made him physically ill. What she’d been through before, it skewed any man’s chances with her, at least in his mind.
“But you aren’t actually related, though, right?” Jesse asked.
Brody shook his head. “No. She moved in with us when she was fourteen, almost fifteen, and Dad took over her training. She’s a hell of a rider.” Brody tried to shake himself from the worry that was eating at him.
“You okay?” Jesse asked, obviously sensing how serious he’d become.
“Yeah.” Brody lowered his head. “Just a lot of history.”
As they walked back with their dinners, Carter’s question finally bubbled to the surface. Maybe it was stupid, but he couldn’t help the little nagging in the back of his head. “So, are you and Brody always at each other like that?”
“Oh, yeah sorry.” Molly snorted quietly. “We forget we’re out in public. It can get kind of uncomfortable for other people who aren’t used to being around us.”
“No, no, it’s just funny. You guys act like an old married couple.”
Molly laughed out loud. “You know, he’s been with Erin for years.”
He did a little happy dance in his head. “Really?”
“Yep. She started hanging out around us about twelve years ago. A friend of a friend type of thing, and now they’ve been together for almost five years. I think. It could be more like six…hell, I don’t remember.”
“I would never have guessed they’re together at all. They don’t act like it.”
Molly just shrugged. “I guess maybe they’ve just been together so long? I don’t know.�
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She glanced up at him. “Why?”
He’d never considered himself a jealous person before. As a matter of fact, he’d prided himself on being a pretty easygoing guy, never minding when a woman he was dating danced with another guy or had guy friends she hung out with, even if he wasn’t around at the time.
But now, with Molly? Here he was…jealous…and it was of her own damned brother. Even if he knew it was insane, absolutely certifiable, he was just having a hell of a time keeping that part of him that was apparently more caveman than acceptable in check. Talk about a way to scare the absolute shit out of the girl.
“No reason.”
She bumped him with her shoulder. “Wondering if Brody and I were ever anything?” She grinned up at him, shaking her head as if he was completely crazy.
Cringing, he couldn’t help the slight redness from coloring his cheeks. He was embarrassed she’d figured him out so easily. He couldn’t help it, though. He really liked her. Really liked her, and he wasn’t blind. He saw the way Brody kept glaring at him. Brody definitely didn’t want him anywhere around Molly. He didn’t take it too personally. He got the feeling Brody took the initiative to scare away all men, growling if they even looked at her. He was definitely going to have to check for knife wounds from the daggers Noland had been shooting his direction since they’d met.
She sighed, thankfully cutting him a break. “No. Never. We were practically raised together, pretty much like twins since our birthdays are so close. Half of the year we’re even the same age. It’s very much a brother-sister thing. It’s a long story…I’ll get into it sometime. I just…I owe him a lot.”
They were nearing the group again so he let her comment drop. Carter snuck a look at her and smiled. “I’ve never met anyone like you before.”
