Craving Molly (The Aces' Sons 2)

“I’m sure calling them shrinks is really fucking helpful.”

“—but he knows that my dad won’t let him lose it. All it took tonight was a couple of words, and Tommy knew what the fuck he’d done. He knocked that shit off, and you obviously didn’t notice him apologizing to my mom two seconds later.”

I stared at him in confusion. How the hell did we even get to that point of the conversation?

“Boys are different than girls, Molly,” Will said, trying to get his temper under control. “Especially teenage boys that have testosterone makin’ them nuts. Tommy is ten times worse because he’s dealin’ with PTSD and fuck knows what else.”

“I was uncomfortable when you left me with people I didn’t know,” I replied stiffly, trying to bring the conversation back to its original intent.

“You have boys with me,” Will said softly, still not letting it go, “I’m not gonna let them talk to you with disrespect. Not ever.”

“That won’t happen,” I mumbled as Will pressed me up against the driver’s door.

“What?” His big hand wrapped around the front of my jaw and tilted my face up until we were eye to eye.

“Why are we fighting?” I asked, searching his face.

“Sugar, you were ignorin’ shit tonight.”

“No, I wasn’t.”

“Yeah, Moll, you were. So set on seein’ shit one way—you didn’t even notice the rest of it.”

“Not true,” I whispered as he leaned down closer to me.

“You see him making sure my ma sat down? Gettin’ up to get the drinks so she’d get off her feet?” He waited until I nodded before continuing. “Made sure Lil had everything she needed where she could reach it. Called your baby a sweetheart. That’s my dad, babe. He’s scary, yeah. But he’s a softy when it comes to family.”

“He freaks me out,” I muttered as Will brushed his lips against my cheek.

“You think I’m any different?” he asked against my jaw.

“I know you are.”

“No, you don’t. You see me when I’m with you,” he replied with a chuckle, sucking at the skin of my throat.

I slid my hand to the back of his neck, swallowing hard as I tangled my fingers in the hair there and pulled his head back.

“What don’t I see?” I asked as he inhaled sharply through his nose.

“That I’m just as scary,” he growled, jerking his head forward and biting playfully at my neck.

My body relaxed in increments as I giggled, and before he was done, I was wrapped around him and pinned against the side of the car.

“We better get sleepin’ beauty inside,” Will finally said, biting my earlobe.

“Okay,” I said as he set me on my feet. “Are you coming in?”

He looked at me like I was nuts.

Rebel had fallen asleep as soon as I’d buckled her into her seat, and she stayed that way through the entire ride home, being carried into the house, and as I changed her diaper before putting her into her crib. I pulled her blanket up to her shoulder and leaned heavily against the side of her crib as I watched her sleep.

Will was waiting for me somewhere in the house, but I needed a few minutes to myself. I needed to breathe.

I really liked Will. He made me feel good, happy. But he also made me feel crazy. When I was with him, I no longer recognized my quiet life. The one I’d been living since Rebel was born and everything had changed.

I liked my job. I liked watching cartoons with Reb, and playing with her little molding clay set, and waking up late on my days off and then spending the entire day in my pajamas because we didn’t have anywhere to be. I liked it quiet, and with Will life was anything but.

It felt like we fought all the time about stupid shit. We didn’t agree on anything, and both of us got angry with the other at the slightest thing.

What was I doing?

“She still sleeping?” the man I’d been thinking about said softly from the door of Rebel’s room.

“Yeah, I just wanted a minute,” I answered, still looking at Rebel and softly rubbing her back.

“Take your time, beautiful,” he said, tapping the doorframe softly. “I’ll wait.”

He walked away and I sighed, only waiting a minute before following him out and shutting Rebel’s door quietly behind me.

“What’re you doing?” I asked when I found him in the kitchen, bent over the counter with his back to me.

He jerked in surprise, then lifted a hand to brush it across his mouth as he turned to face me.

“Thought you’d be a minute,” he said, chuckling in embarrassment.

My stomach clenched as he brushed at his mouth some more. I walked slowly into the kitchen and looked behind him, my heart thundering for a reason I couldn’t pinpoint.

“Cake?” I asked in surprise as I caught sight of the unwrapped tinfoil.