Waiting only until the motel room door had closed behind Kyle, Molly shed her brace and hurried for the shower, clinging to furniture on her way to support her ankle. She closed the bathroom door and climbed beneath the spray before the water had even warmed, only then allowing the trembling to overtake her. She had a sneaking suspicion that there were tears mixed with the shower water streaming down her face.
She had desperately needed this brief time away from Kyle. After assuring him that she could handle their lovemaking, it wouldn’t have been at all good for her to burst into tears in his arms. Or to tell him that she had fallen hopelessly in love with him. Or to beg him to give them a chance at a long-term commitment.
Kyle hadn’t wanted to hear any of those things. He would have made a hasty and complete emotional retreat if she had said them—so she had given herself time to regain control in private.
She wasn’t sure how more experienced, more sophisticated people behaved after dazzling lovemaking. Probably they didn’t immediately request chocolate and leap into the shower—but maybe she had reinforced her false assertion that her heart was not at risk with him.
At least the question of birth control had not been an issue. Earlier that year she had been prescribed birth control pills to alleviate cramps and monthly migraines. Though she hadn’t explained the reasons, she had assured Kyle that she was protected—which might have gone even further toward convincing him that making love with him wasn’t a huge, momentous, life-changing event.
Maybe he had simply wanted to believe it was no big deal to her—wanted it enough to ignore the signs that it had been a very big deal, indeed.
He hadn’t told her he loved her. He hadn’t said much at all, actually. He had made love to her with a quiet, intense concentration that had sent a pang through her heart even as it had made her soar to heights she had never imagined possible. He was so lonely, so hungry for love and acceptance—yet so deeply guarded that he would never admit he needed anyone.
So she had been breezy and blasé, careful not to reveal anything that would have scared him off. She’d bought herself a few minutes of privacy to have her little mini-breakdown. Now maybe she would be able to face him without falling to her knees and begging him to love her.
Braiding her wet hair into a long plait, she wrapped herself in her green terry robe, drew a deep breath and opened the bathroom door.
Kyle stood when she entered the room. He studied her face searchingly, but she kept a bright smile firmly in place. “Did you find chocolate?”
“Yeah.” He waved a hand toward the table, where a package of chocolate cupcakes sat next to an assortment of candy bars and a couple of canned drinks. Apparently, he’d bought every type of chocolate treat in the machine, she thought with a lump in her throat. “Take your pick.”
Hoping she would be able to swallow now that he’d gone to this much trouble, she nodded toward the pile. “Looks like we can go on a serious sugar binge here.”
“Actually, we’ll need to have dessert-to-go,” he replied. “The guy from the garage called while you were in the shower. Your car is fixed.”
“So we can get on our way again?”
He nodded. “As soon as you’re ready.”
She found that she wasn’t ready at all for the last leg of her time with Kyle. But she hoped her heartbreak wasn’t visible in her eyes when she looked at him with a bright smile and all but chirped, “I’ll hurry.”
He turned away. “Good.”
Molly kept the CD player going as they got back on the road toward Texas. She selected lively country music turned to a volume that would have made conversation difficult, even had Kyle been inclined to talk. Which he apparently wasn’t, since he drove in silence without taking his eyes off the road.
She made a few random comments about passing scenery—just so he wouldn’t think she was being all broody and moony about the events of the day—but he answered in monosyllables. Eventually she stopped trying and settled back into her seat, letting weariness overtake her.
She was a bit sore in a lot of places, but her ankle was really throbbing now. Maybe she hadn’t been taking care of it quite as diligently as she should have.
Though she didn’t want to call attention to her discomfort, she finally decided she needed to take something for the pain. She dug into her purse for the mild pills she had been given when she’d left the hospital, washing one down with the bottled water she kept in one of the two console drink holders.
“Hurting?” Kyle asked, glancing her way.
“Just a little sore.”
He probably knew it was more than that or she wouldn’t have resorted to medication, but all he said was, “Why don’t you lean your seat back and get some rest? You don’t need to keep me company.”
His tone seemed to imply that he would be happier if she didn’t try to make conversation. She reclined her seat a bit and bunched up the light jacket she usually kept in the back seat, using it for a pillow. The combination of pain, medication and emotional overload made it easy for her to shut down for a while.
She would save her worrying for later, she decided, when she was better rested. She didn’t even try to convince herself it would be any easier then to face separation from Kyle—but she would need all her strength to get through it.
Molly slept for quite a while. Remembering how medications affected her, Kyle wasn’t surprised that the pill had knocked her out. Even in her sleep, she frowned occasionally and shifted her injured leg.
He hoped he hadn’t twisted it or anything when they’d made love. He’d tried to be extra careful, but… well, there had been an interlude when he hadn’t exactly been thinking clearly.
As for himself—he felt great. Better than he’d felt in months. Yeah, he still had his usual aches and pains, but right now they just didn’t seem to matter.
It had been just what he needed. Mind-blowing sex with a lovely, eager woman who wanted nothing more from him than an afternoon of pleasure. There’d been no awkward attempts at heart-to-hearts afterward, no hint that she would get clingy when they went their separate ways. He should be fully satisfied r