Chapter Thirty-One
Molly
Corey leaned back in her chair, rubbing her belly. “Molly, you have every right to be mad. Keller was being a controlling dickhead. He handled things badly. But you had to know that you meeting with Brooks again was going to elicit that kind of reaction. Right?”
Molly sat down and pushed her hands through her hair. “I did. That’s why I didn’t tell him earlier today.” She lifted her eyes to look at her friend. “I can’t get used to being bossed around like that. It sets my teeth on edge.”
Corey threw her head back, chuckling humorlessly. “Don’t I know it? Look, you don’t have to get used to it. You don’t have to approve of it or condone it. All you have to do is know it’s coming and learn the best way to deal with it. Keller isn’t going to change. That part of him is engraved in his DNA—it’s instinctual. His first thought is always going to be your safety, and his second is always going to be territorial.”
“Where do love and compromise come in?”
“After he’s calmed down. After you’ve let him huff and puff and get out all his big bad wolf behavior.” Corey took a deep breath then let it out. “Believe me, I have had my fair share of epic fights with Dom over this exact same thing. After the yelling and the battle of wills is over, he always calms down and we always come to an agreement.” Corey reached over and poured Molly another glass of wine. “Let them go run it out. It’ll clear his head. When comes home, he’ll be sorry and apologetic. Don’t rub it in his face. Just talk to him.”
Molly nodded, sipping from her wine glass. “I’ll do my best.” She sent Corey a warm smile. “How are you feeling? You want me to walk you home so you can get some sleep?”
“I want you to grab your wine and that tub of ice cream I saw in Keller’s freezer, and watch a movie with me.”
“That sounds perfect. I can’t remember the last time we just hung out.”
“I know. I was thinking that earlier tonight at dinner. With the investigation and everything, we haven’t had any fun for weeks. No wonder everyone is so keyed up and on edge.”
They climbed in Keller’s bed and Molly put on a movie. Corey fell asleep not even ten minutes into it. Molly removed the tub of ice cream from her hands and pulled the covers up over her little belly.
Molly was glad that Corey had been here, had been able to give her some insight into this bonded relationship crap. Her relationship with Keller was so different from every other relationship she had ever been in. Granted, he was somewhat supernatural, so that was probably to be expected. Still, she’d never let anyone talk to her the way Keller did. Molly had been a really independent person her whole life. And now, suddenly her every move was scrutinized by the man she loved. It was disconcerting and annoying.
The movie they were watching was some romantic comedy. It didn’t hold her attention and she could feel herself drifting off to sleep even as her mind raced.
She opened her eyes when she heard the back door open. She looked over at her phone to check the time—wow, she had been asleep for over an hour. Molly climbed out of bed slowly so she didn’t wake Corey and went in search of the guys. When she walked into the kitchen, though, it was empty. She could hear voices coming from the back patio. What she saw when she stepped outside warmed her heart. All four guys were gathered around Dom watching what appeared to be a sonogram recording on his phone.
Big bad wolves her ass. “Hey, Dom, Corey is passed out in Keller’s bed. She fell asleep eating a tub of ice cream.”
Dom wrinkled his nose. “Gross. Now she’s going to smell like Keller. She’s going to be pissed when I wake her up to get that scent off.” Dom rose to his feet and headed inside.
Baze punched Linc on the shoulder. “Come on, I’ll give you a ride home. Riley, you want us to drop you at the dorm?”
Riley stood and stretched. “Nah, I’m staying at Dom and Corey’s. She gets onto us for being protective, but she’s just as bad. Won’t let me stay at the dorms until she’s sure Franklin isn’t going to come after us.” Riley bumped fists with Keller. “Thanks for the run. See you tomorrow.” He walked over to Molly and gave her a quick hug, earning a snarl from her mate. “Miss Molly, thank you for dinner. And for staying with Corey so I could run with the guys.” With a final wave he headed out, meeting up with Dom and a sleepy Corey on the sidewalk.
When everyone was gone, Molly went and sat next to Keller. “How was your run? Is that what you call it?”
“Yes, and it was good. I needed it.” Keller stared at her for a few seconds and then hung his head. “Molly, darlin’, I may not have gone about expressing my feelings the right way and I’m sorry for that. But I am uncomfortable with the thought of you meeting with Brooks a second time. I don’t want him to think that you are into him or that these little coffee dates are an invitation to something more. We don’t know what he’s capable of. We don’t know what he wants or why he’s mad.”
“I will meet with him tomorrow, and then that’s it. I won’t do it again. Fair?” Molly smiled to herself—Corey had been right. The run had taken the fight out of him; he had been able to exercise his anger. Good to know she could always send him outside to play when he was pissing her off.
Keller pulled her over into his lap. “Fair. Ish.”