Chapter 19

Molly

“Where the fuck have you been?”

Freezing at the sound of Lynch’s voice, I’m tempted to turn right back around and leave.

“Jesus,” I hiss, taking my time to close the door before facing him. “Do you ever sleep?”

“Do you always dodge my questions?”

“I was out.”

“Clearly.” He points a finger at my neck.

I didn’t have time to look in the mirror before leaving Briar asleep in his bed, but it’s irritated from his mouth and the roughness of his beard. I ignore the implication and make my way to the fridge. I pull out an apple and take a big bite before turning back in his direction. I skipped dinner last night, and I’m paying for it this morning.

“If he can’t at least cook you breakfast in the morning, he doesn’t fucking deserve you,” he grumbles as he empties the water from the full coffee carafe into the machine.

I snort. The thought of Briar cooking anything is comical. Lynch’s eyes narrow, but I raise a challenging eyebrow in return. I wouldn’t put it past him to ask me the details, but internally I’m praying he just leaves it alone.

“I hope you made him use the condoms I gave you.”

Glaring at him, I wonder how he got over the idea of Briar and me so quickly, but then I realize he’s not talking about his VP. He thinks I spent the night with Owen.

“We didn’t—” My attempt to swallow the chunk of apple without fully chewing it nearly chokes me. “I didn’t have sex with him.”

“The condition of your neck and swollen lips tell a different story.”

Thank god his back is to me or he’d see my eyes widen in surprise.

“I’m not discussing this with you,” I mutter, throwing my half-eaten apple in the trash before making my way toward the staircase.

“Thank fuck,” he grumbles. “Stop.”

Frozen in place, I’m terrified that he’s realized something, and he’s about to lose his shit over where I actually spent my night.

“We’re heading out for a ride.” Relief washes over me. “I’d prefer you take the week off from the vet’s office and stay here with Zoe. There will only be two—”

“Sure,” I agree a little too quickly. It’s the best excuse I have and staying here with her under his advice won’t force me to explain right away why I won’t be returning to work.

“Did he hurt you?”

“Excuse me?” I turn in his direction, taken back by the scowl on his face.

“I assumed I’d get an argument from you.” He waves his arms in front of him. “All of the ‘I’m an independent woman, you can’t keep me here’ bullshit you spewed last week.”

“If there are only two of the guys here, it’s best that I stick close by.” I fake a smile and hope he thinks it’s genuine. “Besides, without you here, I can actually spend time with my best friend.”

I disappear up the stairs before he can take his interrogation any further.

“Jesus,” I hiss as I open and quickly close my door. My breaths are ragged as I lean against it with my eyes closed.

“That bad?”

I squeal when Zoe speaks. With a hand over my racing heart, I glare at her. She’s unaffected by my outburst, sitting Indian-style on my unused bed and smiling at me like the Cheshire cat.

“What are you doing in here this early in the morning?”

“What are you doing trying to sneak in the house this early in the morning?” When I don’t answer her, she pats the bed by her thigh. “Come sit. I want all the filthy details.”

“There aren’t any details.”

“So, you gave yourself all those hickeys?”

Guiltily, my hand rushes up to the offending flesh.

“I’m not talking to you about anything.” I cross the room and grab a scarf from my closet. “You’re sleeping with the enemy.”

“Lynch isn’t the enemy.”

My eyes narrow on hers as I cross the room again, kick my shoes off, and climb under the covers. The fabric is cold, and I immediately miss the warmth of Briar’s huge body. Zoe doesn’t say anything when I position my feet under her ass to warm my toes faster.

“I don’t think your brother noticed, but I saw your car in the lot when we got back from dinner last night.” My traitorous friend is looking down at her perfect nails like she didn’t just drop a bomb in my lap.

“Did—”

She holds her hand up, and I silence immediately. “Lynch didn’t notice a thing. He had other issues on his mind.”

The laughter in her voice makes me cringe. She’s not talking about club business, and I’m too grossed out to ask. The implication is clear.

“So, before you lie to me, know that I know you came back, at least to the clubhouse last night.”

My jaw snaps shut. If she doesn’t want me to lie, I just won’t talk to her at all. Words will only cheapen what I shared with Briar last night, even though I know he was still drunk when he rubbed against me. He may not even remember it this morning, and if he does, he’s got a week or so to question what we did and come up with another million reasons why it can’t happen again.

“Silence is telling,” Zoe says, looking over her shoulder at me.

“I’m tired,” I tell her instead of confessing what happened last night.

“Are you sore too?” The humor in her voice makes me smile.

“No.” I wish.

“What about the vet?”

“We kissed,” I answer before I can stop myself. “And I felt…”

My voice trails off.

“Nothing?” she answers for me.

“Yeah.” Groaning, I cover my face with my hands. Just the thought of Briar makes my skin heat. Owen, as nice as he is, does nothing for me.

“Lynch was downstairs. Did he see your neck?”

“Yes, and he thinks Owen was the one who left the marks. It’ll stay that way.”

“I knew it!” She spins, collapsing on me with a giggle. “I can see Briar being a biter.”

“He was in the living room with some new whore on his lap.” My blood heats with renewed anger.

He wasn’t passed out when they got started.

TJ’s words echo in my head.

“Really?” Zoe sounds as confused as I was when I walked in on it last night. “That doesn’t sound like him.”

“He said he saw me kiss Owen. He was spying on me again.”

“Kissing your boss is messy, Molly.” She’s not chastising me, and she’s not telling me anything I don’t already know, but hearing her say it out loud agitates me.

“I know that. I probably won’t go back.”

In fact, I know I won’t. He offered friendship last night, but there was still hope in his eyes when I pulled away from the clinic.

“What are you going to do about Briar?”

“What can I do?” I look over at her. The same uncertainty I feel is reflected in her eyes. She knows how difficult this situation is.

“My offer still stands. I can talk to Ly—”

“You can’t,” I insist. “Swear it, Zoe. You can’t mention a damn thing to my brother. I’ll never forgive you if you betray me.”

Hurt flashes across her face. “I wouldn’t do that to you.”

“I tried,” I whisper. “I tried to move on. I tried to not think of him. Not loving him is impossible. It was easier at work before I tried to seduce my boss.”

“You kissed him?” A sad smile tugs her lip up.

“I figured if I kissed him, I’d feel something. Like it would give me the strength I needed to move on.”

“Lynch says he’s too perfect for you.”

I huff. “He’s always got a damn opinion.”

“He loves you. He wants you to be happy.” I grumble again. “But first and foremost, he wants you safe.”

I almost speak up to argue that I couldn’t be safer than I would be with Briar, but I’m reminded of the darkness he’s mentioned more than once.

I murder every woman I fuck.

If his own words aren’t a big enough deterrent, I don’t know what is, but it didn’t stop me from wrapping myself around him last night. I didn’t bother to tap the brakes even once when he lowered his body over mine and pulled my sweats out of the way. The vicious bites to my sensitive flesh didn’t make me want to run for the hills. They made me want to press against him harder.

“Briar wouldn’t hurt me.” He had the chance last night. He was angry, livid even with the scent of Owen’s body wash on my skin. I still don’t know if he understood my explanation or believed me when I told him it was only the kiss he witnessed, but not once was I fearful.

“I honestly don’t think Lynch would get mad.” She holds her hand up when I open my mouth to argue with her. “Think about it. The man has never touched one of the whores as far as we know. He doesn’t drink to excess.”

“He was drunk with that girl in his lap last night,” I mumble.

She frowns before she continues, “he doesn’t usually drink to excess. I’ve never seen him do anything more than take a hit or two off of a joint. He’s not violent. He’s the perfect catch. The age difference is the only thing that may be an issue.”

“Owen is older than Briar,” I remind her.

“It’s settled then. Briar is perfect.”

“Perfect for what?”

We both freeze at the sound of Lynch’s voice in my doorway. We were so wrapped up in our conversation, we didn’t even notice the door being opened. I swallow thickly when I look over at my brother, wondering what all he overheard.

Zoe remains silent, refusing to lie to him, but at the same time holding my confidences.

“Self-defense,” I lie. “I was telling Zoe that I had a creepy feeling someone was watching me last night.”

It’s part lie and part truth, yet I feel one hundred percent guilty lying to my brother, but he’s the one who has put me in this situation.

“You need a refresher course?” His eyes narrow. He knows full well, I’m well versed in self-defense.

“Never a bad idea. Zoe suggested Briar when I told her TJ never takes me seriously.”

“Briar would be a good coach.” Lynch nods. “I’ll set something up for when we get back. Stick to the clubhouse until then. Zoe, come with me. I need to show you something.”

She bites her lip and springs off of the bed. Relief washes over me when my door closes behind them. Her squeal of excitement ensures my secrets are still safe. For now.