How Sweet It Is (21 page)

“So, hi,” Jordan said, was that shyly? Jordan was never shy. It was adorable.

“Hi.” And for whatever reason, she didn’t quite know what was expected of her. Should she hug Jordan, pull her in and kiss her? Neither felt entirely right, so she stood rooted to the top step and smiled. Okay, so it was possible she was feeling a little nervous herself.

So stupid.

But then again, really it wasn’t.

Because this
wasn’t
Jordan the way she knew her. This was a new Jordan, and there was this unfamiliar dynamic between them that required finessing.

Jordan lifted a hand to shield the sun from her eyes. “I hear there’s a car that needs to be washed?”

“Oh, it most definitely does. And I should confess, it’s been a while. You came at the right time.”

Jordan trotted down the stairs and circled the car once. “Prepare to get your money’s worth. Where can I find supplies?”

Molly pointed to the garage. “Yonder.”

Jordan stared at her for a beat.

“What?”

“That was a cute moment for you. Very Molly.”

“Stop teasing me.”

“I might.” Jordan shot her a killer smile as she lifted the door to the garage and headed in. And we’re back, Molly thought with a sigh of relief. Just like that, they’d picked up their old give and take.

As Jordan got set up, she headed into the house, changed into jeans and a T-shirt, and brought a pitcher of lemonade and two glasses onto the porch. That’s when she took a seat on the steps and took in the view.

And what a view it was.

After giving it a good spray down, Jordan leaned across the front of the car and lathered the hood with generous amounts of soap and water that also covered her arms and parts of her shirt. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail, but as always, it wasn’t holding, and loose strands fell haphazardly around her face. Uncontrollably, her eyes drifted down Jordan’s body, taking in her low-slung Levi’s and the hole that offered a glimpse of the smooth skin beneath. Jesus, how was it that a woman was allowed to look the way Jordan did? It should be forbidden really, because it wasn’t fair to all those she came in contact with.

She watched for a while longer before Jordan turned and seemed to catch her in the act. Molly feigned sudden interest in the cracks in the sidewalk. “Well, what do you know? There are little pieces of grass growing in there. Amazing.”

Jordan tilted her head to the side. “You were so not staring at grass. I think you were checking me out.”

Molly blew out a breath to point out the lunacy of that comment. “Uh, no, I wasn’t.”

“You totally were. You were staring at my ass.”

Molly was quickly aware of the fact that her mouth had gone dry. “Maybe. But there’s no need to point that out.” In an attempt to move on from the topic, she poured a tall glass of lemonade for herself and one for Jordan who quickly headed over for it.

“Thanks,” she said, accepting the glass. She drank it down slowly as a tiny droplet of sweat made its way down her neck. So not helping her cause.

“You were right about the lemonade.”

Not finding her voice readily available, Molly nodded instead. Jordan shot her a questioning glance and headed back to work. Ten more daydream-infused minutes later, and Molly knew she’d be in trouble if she didn’t snap herself out of her lust-filled haze. She scrubbed her face in an attempt to wake herself from the blatant daydream that had overtaken every inch of her. And she did mean every inch. Multiplication tables maybe.
Eight times seven was fifty-six
.

But it wasn’t working because academics just made her imagine Jordan in the sexy glasses from the library, which took her to a whole new fantasy.

Time to take control. “Want some help?” Movement would be good. An aerobic distraction.

“Nope, I don’t have much left. Plus, you paid for this, remember? All you have to do is sit back and watch.”

And watch she did. Jordan looked like a cover spread for
Details
magazine right there in Molly’s very own driveway.

“What?” Jordan asked, in regards to her overt stare.

“Nothing, you just look…” Edible, her brain supplied. “Like the sun might be getting the best of you. Maybe you should take off that outside shirt. Just wear the tank top. Might be…more comfortable.”

Jordan glanced down and grasped the front of her open shirt. “This one?”

“Yeah, it might help you cool off. You know, hot day.” Molly fanned herself for effect.

“Thanks for looking out for me.” Jordan shot her an amused smile before sliding the shirt off her shoulders and going back to work in her tank top, which only made things so much worse.

But Molly couldn’t have turned away if she’d wanted to. Not that she did. In a last attempt to stay sane, she concentrated on Jordan’s car washing technique instead of how great she looked. That was a lie. She was doing both because, in horrible news, she was an excellent multitasker.

At long last, Jordan dropped the sponge back into the bucket. “And I think that’s a wrap. Care to inspect my work?”

Molly walked down to the driveway and did a once around the car. She’d planned to compliment Jordan’s work under any circumstances because she’d put a lot into it, but the end result was actually quite remarkable. The car gleamed.

“You’re good at this.”

“It’s your job to be nice. You’re Molly.”

“No, I mean it. You did, however, manage to get about as much water on yourself as you did on the car, but I guess everyone has their own method.”

Jordan gasped. “That sounds like judgment.” And with lightning fast speed, she pressed the sprayer’s nozzle, and a steady stream of water hit Molly straight in the shoulder. She stood there in utter shock, water now dripping from her shirt.

“I cannot believe you just did that. You got me all wet.”

Jordan raised an interested eyebrow, which caused Molly to play back that sentence in her head. She felt the flush on her face almost immediately. “I meant the hose. The water you just—Ah, hell. You look really hot right now.”

A slow, sexy smile took shape on Jordan’s lips. “Yeah?”

She let out a breath “You have no idea.”

Jordan laid the hose down on the driveway and closed the distance between them. With measured determination, she placed her hands on the car, on either side of Molly, effectively boxing her in. They weren’t touching, but Molly would never have known that from the humming she felt across her skin and the aching that she felt lower. Jordan’s eyes never left her mouth in a move that affected her all the way down to her toes. Damn it all, she was captivating.

“We can’t kiss out here,” Molly whispered. “There are neighbors, you know. It would be all over town by sundown.”

“But I really want to.”

Molly inclined her head to the house. “In there. There can be kissing in there.” She ducked under Jordan’s left arm and headed casually for the front door. She had no way of knowing if Jordan would follow her in, but she had a feeling.

*

Jordan went still and stared after Molly as she walked into the house. Who knew a car wash could be such great foreplay? She’d felt Molly watching her, and it had her completely and utterly turned her on.

She found Molly in the kitchen, putting away the lemonade. She approached her from behind and carefully swept her hair to the side, and exposed the back of her neck. She took it in for a moment, that neck, the simplistic beauty of it. She kissed it delicately, drawn in further by the warmth of her skin. Molly turned around, and the look on her face caused Jordan’s stomach to clench. Her eyes were hungry and it looked good on her.

Molly stepped into her space, her lips parted slightly. She cradled Jordan’s face in her hands and pulled her in slowly. The kiss was equally slow, and God damn it, beyond good. She loved the way Molly kissed. It was thorough, tantalizing, and in this particular moment, it tasted sweet, like lemonade.

The couch was a few feet away, and Jordan angled them in that direction, the kiss unbroken. It wasn’t even an option really, to break that kiss. Molly palmed her breast through her shirt in a move that made her hitch in a breath. Molly’s thumb circled the nipple she could feel straining against her bra. Not satisfied, Molly pushed her tank top up as she settled Jordan onto the couch and slid on top, all soft, determined, and sexy. With each breath Molly took, her breasts rose and fell against Jordan.

Yeah, this.

This
was the moment she’d needed since she’d arrived at Molly’s house. It was quite easily, perfection.

She was perfection.

After one last searing kiss, Molly pushed the cups of Jordan’s bra up, and with her tongue began to trace circles around first one breast then the other. As she pulled a nipple more firmly into her mouth and sucked, Jordan moaned quietly. She reached around and pulled Molly firmly up against her, needing so much more and not wanting to wait for it. But Molly gently grasped her wrists and placed them next to her head in a signal that she was in charge, a move that upped Jordan’s level of need about three notches. The expression on her face was one of such earnest intent that it was all Jordan could do to surrender to her touch.

God, this woman. She was dying.

Molly kissed lazily down her stomach to her abdomen and began to unbutton her jeans slowly, excruciatingly so, and when it just about seemed like her world had stopped on its axis, there was a knock at the door. They both went still. When the sound of a doorbell followed, their eyes met. “Just stay quiet and they’ll go away,” Molly whispered.

Jordan nodded and held her eyes, trying desperately to maintain her breathing with Molly’s hands still on the zipper of her jeans. Several seconds passed.

“MollyDolly, you home?” Another knock. “Your car is in the driveway.”

Molly’s eyes widened and she pushed herself up. “Dad?” she called. “How did he get here?” she murmured and made her way quickly to the door.

Jordan took the cue and put herself back together again, attempting to resemble a normal human being going about life. No crazy almost-sex here. She followed Molly to the entryway where she found her ushering her father into the house.

“Hi there, sweetheart,” he said, kissing Molly’s cheek and squeezing her tight.

Molly looked incredibly concerned. “Is everything all right? What’s going on?”

“No, no, everything is fine. Just thought I’d pay my daughter a visit. Oh, hello,” he said, noticing Jordan for the first time.

“Dad, it’s Jordan Tuscana. You remember Jordan.”

He looked harder and broke into an enormous grin. “Why, it sure is. Well, would you look at this girl? I haven’t seen you in years.” He closed the distance between them and pulled Jordan into a warm embrace. She’d always liked Mr. O’Brien. There was something about him that spoke of kindness, and there was always that contagious twinkle in his eye. Plus, he used to give her a free cookie when she’d stopped by the bakeshop growing up.

“Hi, Mr. O. It’s so good to see you.”

“You too.” He turned to Molly and hooked a thumb at Jordan. “This one’s turned into quite a looker.”

“She has,” Molly agreed conservatively. “All grown up, it seems.”

“Doesn’t it just seem?” Jordan said playfully, sliding Molly a private look. Molly responded with widened eyes, a silent warning for her to behave.

“You don’t look much like Cassie,” Mr. O’Brien said, studying Jordan. “But I suppose you always favored your mother’s side of the family and Cassie your father’s. Wouldn’t you say, Molly?”

Jordan caught the obvious tension that entered Molly’s body at the mention of her sister and deflated a little at the sight. It was still there, that silent barrier between them. Maybe it always would be.

“Yeah, I’d say that’s about right.” But her eyes had lost the vibrancy that had been there just a moment before, and Jordan felt the hit.

She’d spent her whole life being compared to Cassie. Why would this be any different? The only thing was, it was too important to pale in comparison when it came to Molly. She couldn’t live with falling short in this instance. So what did that mean for them?

“What have you girls got going tonight?”

Molly shook her head at him. “Wait. You haven’t explained how you got here.” She threw a curious glance out the entryway window. “Did someone from The Manor drive you? Why didn’t they call?”

“I walked,” he said, and strolled past them into the living room.

“Dad!” Molly said, following him. “That’s like fourteen blocks. Please tell me you didn’t. You know better.”

Mr. O’Brien took a seat and sighed deeply as he settled into the chair. “Relax. I made it here in one piece.”

“And what if you hadn’t?” Molly looked horrified. “Your heart can’t take that kind of exertion anymore. The doctors have been through this with you. Why won’t you listen to them?”

“Molly, I’m a sixty-eight-year-old man who wanted to see his daughter. And I decided to do just that.”

“I would have come to you. Or picked you up.”

Mr. O’Brien looked frustrated and a little sad. “I have to be able to do things for myself. Why won’t anyone let me? I’m more than capable—” But he was coughing now, and it didn’t sound good. Molly moved to sit beside him and Jordan sought a glass of water from the kitchen.

When the rattling cough subsided, he drank a few swallows from the glass. “I’m sorry,” he said to Molly resolutely. “I don’t like upsetting you, but I needed to get out on my own this afternoon. I needed to feel like a person again. Like myself.”

Molly nodded, but tears touched her eyes. She hugged him then, and Jordan felt a sentimental pull at the display. They’d always had such a strong bond, Molly and her father. For years, she’d watched their relationship with envy. She didn’t have very many gentle moments with her own father. He just wasn’t built that way. A ruffling of her hair, or a quick half hug. He meant well, she knew that, but it had never been easy the way it was for the two people in front of her. They were a team and it showed.

“Why don’t we all go to dinner?” Jordan asked. It wasn’t exactly her place to make such a suggestion, but it was out of her mouth before she could stop herself. Mr. O’Brien just seemed so sad and she wanted desperately to cheer him up.