How Sweet It Is (26 page)

She couldn’t believe this was really happening.

Things were looking up, indeed.

And she knew instantly who she wanted to share the news with, but then she sighed as she remembered the reality of why that wasn’t so easy. The fight she’d had with Jordan had come out of nowhere. And its effects left her shaken, as did Jordan’s assertions that Molly didn’t seem capable of living a life without Cassie in the forefront.

But the thing that got to her most of all was the underlying fear that Jordan might be right. As she’d pulled milk from the refrigerator that morning, she’d come face-to-face with the photos in question, the ones that had inserted themselves into the most wonderful evening she could remember having in a long time. And as strong as the feelings she had for Jordan were becoming, she still couldn’t bring herself to take the photos down. It was too final. Too concrete an action.

Instead, she’d stared at them as doubt circled.

But somehow, in the wake of her fantastic mood, the issues they needed to sort through could wait. She missed Jordan. Besides that, she knew Jordan would be thrilled for her news despite their fight, because that’s the kind of person she was. She grabbed her keys and headed out with purpose in her stride.

As Molly approached the clinic, she saw the lights. Two cop cars and an ambulance. She cringed at the sickening red and blue swirl that forever haunted her memory, a reminder of her darkest day. But why were they here? It didn’t make sense to her less than rational mindset. And then the fear crept up on her. Her heart pounded out of her chest and she had trouble inhaling, almost as if she’d forgotten how.

It was the beginning of a panic attack.

She gripped the steering wheel and began to talk herself down. The clinic had minor emergencies all the time. Patients that needed to be transported quickly to a hospital or the occasional case that was too big to be handled locally. It wasn’t that unheard of. Probably it was something along those lines.

At least that’s what she kept telling herself.

She parked her car across the street as a police cruiser blocked the entrance to the clinic’s parking lot. She was moving quickly because, well, she had to. There was a small grouping of curious onlookers standing along the perimeter the police had set up.

“Does anyone know what happened?” she asked the group in general.

Jack Asher, the mechanic from the body shop across the street, looked her way. “Jordan Tuscana is hurt and unconscious inside. Not sure how yet. At least, that’s what the rookie cop said.”

Her feet were moving before her mind could fully process what she just heard. Oh God, no. Her body went numb with dread. A million crazy and terrifying thoughts streaked across her mind in rapid succession and she found herself scarcely able to feel her legs but she forced them forward anyway.

Crazy Luke Treyhorn was in handcuffs in the waiting room when she entered the clinic. She’d never liked the guy. He was the type who would blatantly leer at a woman on the sidewalk, make inappropriate comments, and then high five his buddies about it in plain sight of everyone. And that was when he was sober. “Where is she?” she managed to ask the young cop standing next to Luke. Travis something was his name. He came into the bakeshop once in awhile.

“Ms. O’Brien, you can’t be in here right now. I’ll need you to wait outside.”

But it wasn’t like she could exactly listen to him.

She was already halfway down the hallway, glancing into exam rooms with Travis-something calling after her when she found them. Two police officers were taking a statement from a young woman Molly didn’t recognize. Her father-in-law seemed to be straightening up the disheveled room, and Mikey was leaning over someone on the exam room table.

“Where is she? Is she okay? Mikey!”

He turned at the sound of her voice, revealing Jordan lying on the exam room table peering at her from around Mikey’s body. “Hey, it’s Molly,” she murmured.

Relief. It was a wonderful thing. She took a moment to breathe because she’d forgotten to on the way in. She’d been terrified, more so than she could wrap her mind around in the moment. And as she’d made that alarming trek from the parking lot into the hospital, something had come loose within her. But she would deal with that later. The important thing was that Jordan was conscious and sitting right here in front of her.

She inhaled again and held the doorjamb to steady herself as life floated back into the reasonable column.

“Jordan, I told you to hold still,” Mikey instructed her.

Molly moved into the room. “Is she okay?”

He concentrated on Jordan’s forehead and applied a stitch. “She will be. Because I happen to be good at my job.”

Jordan waved him away, her attention on Molly. “How did you know I wanted to see you?” She smiled lazily as Mikey applied a series of Steri-Strip bandages to an angry looking gash on her forehead that was already swollen and purple.

“What happened?” she asked, moving to Jordan’s side.

Jordan raised a delicate hand to her head. “Asshole throws a mean elbow. Just as I was ready to clock his ass too.”

Mikey threw a glance to Molly. “Treyhorn got a little out of hand. Don’t worry. Besides the gutsy kid sister here, no one else was hurt. She was out for a few minutes and came to with a nasty little wound that is going to smart for a couple of days. Needed a few stitches too.”

Jordan closed her eyes. “I saved Mikey’s life.”

Molly raised an inquisitive eyebrow and turned to her brother-in-law for explanation. Jordan wasn’t herself.

“She was a superhero. That’s true. Now she’s a
drugged
superhero,” he supplied. “In case you couldn’t tell.”

Aha. That explained the extra exuberance. She surveyed Jordan who lay back on the exam room table and stared upward. “Room is kind of spinning and it’s sleepy in here.”

Joseph set down the tray of instruments he’d gathered from the floor and surveyed his daughter. “We had to loosen her up with a few Valium before we could numb the area and stitch the wound. She’s always had an aversion to needles.”

“I like the stuff you gave me though,” Jordan murmured. “More of that please. Put it on my tab.”

“I think you’ve had enough, Jordana,” Joseph said, smoothing her hair. “We should get you home. We’ll need someone to watch her though, after such a powerful blow to the head.”

“Uh, I can knock off early and take her over to your place until Mom’s home,” Mikey said to his father. “Alyssa can reschedule the rest of my afternoon.”

“Molly can take me,” Jordan said quietly.

Joseph turned to her in question. “I don’t want to inconvenience you. But if you don’t mind,”

“She doesn’t,” Jordan answered, sitting up. “We get along really well.”

Molly took a step back as the panic flared once again. “Actually, I can’t. I have to run some errands. I’m glad you’re okay.” She nodded once and turned for the door, but not before she saw the look of hurt flash in Jordan’s eyes. It sliced through her, but it was nothing compared to what she’d have felt if the afternoon had turned out differently. Those moments, on her way into the hospital, when she didn’t know…

It was too much. All of this was just too much.

And she couldn’t do it.

There was an annoying throbbing at her temple Jordan couldn’t quite explain. She squinted in an attempt to shake it off as she pushed herself into a sitting position, awake but a little confused. It was morning; that much she could tell. She raised her hand to the side of her forehead and discovered the bandage.

Right, drunk guy in the clinic. Fun times.

There was a bottle of aspirin and glass of water next to her bed with a Post-it from her mother instructing her to take the pills upon waking. She did, and shortly after her shower, felt immensely better. She applied her customary lip gloss and checked her phone for any communication from Molly. A text. A voice mail. Anything. She wasn’t surprised, but she was sadly disappointed.

The look on Molly’s face as she’d fled the scene yesterday resonated with her. Terrified. That was the best way to categorize it. She thought of the scenario from Molly’s perspective, having already lost so much in her life, and understood her freak out. But that didn’t mean she wasn’t hurt by it, by the way she walked out of the clinic.

On her.

There was really only one thing left to do. She pulled the suitcase from beneath her bed and started to pack.

*

She’d overreacted with Jordan.

Molly knew that now. It had taken her a good twenty-four hours to come down from the emotional rollercoaster the day had her on, but in that time, she’d gained perspective on a few things.

And while it took her a couple of days to figure that out, she knew that now. She’d been so caught off guard by the possibility of something happening to Jordan that it took her right back to that horrific time in her life, and she’d fled the scene in response. It was a defense mechanism and one she wasn’t exactly proud of.

In the wake of their fight, she’d pulled herself back emotionally. She’d spent the last couple of days going through the motions of her day-to-day life and feeling incredibly hollow in the process. It was time to fix what had gone wrong and navigate the very dicey waters that may still be ahead.

While she didn’t exactly know how, she had to find a way to make it right with Jordan.

She rang the bell and waited nervously on the front porch of the Tuscana house. Her heart sank at the realization that Jordan’s Beetle wasn’t in the driveway. It was possible she’d already left for Chicago and she was too late. She hoped that wasn’t the case.

Amalia beamed upon opening the door. “Well, this is a nice surprise!” She kissed Molly’s cheek. “You look tired, sweetheart. Is everything okay? How’s your father? Is he doing all right on the Atacand I prescribed?”

The succession of concerned questions was really nothing new. Amalia and Joseph made a habit out of worrying about their family, and she was grateful to be included. “We’re both fine. He seems to be adjusting to the new medication well. Thank you for taking such good care of him. Is, um, Jordan home by chance?”

Amalia sighed. “She said good-bye twenty minutes ago and headed out. She said something about taking some time to clear her head before getting on the road to Chicago. She seemed to have some things on her mind, but didn’t bother to tell me about them. I feel like I have to be a mind reader with my own daughter.”

“I’m sure she wants to. It’s hard for her sometimes. She doesn’t want to upset you.”

“I’d rather she upset me than shut me out.”

She decided to go out on a limb. “Does she know that?”

“Of course she knows that. She’s my child.” But Molly knew it was something Jordan needed to hear.

“Maybe she could use reminding?”

Amalia nodded in a rare moment of concession. “Maybe so. Do you want to come in? I have a roast that should be ready in a half hour. Stay for dinner.” Molly’s stomach raised its hand in wholehearted acceptance, but her heart was elsewhere.

“I wish I could, but I’m afraid I have some things I need to get done.” Molly offered a wave as she descended the porch steps.

“Molly, wait,” Amalia called after her. She descended the steps and placed her hand on Molly’s forearm. “There’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you. A couple of weeks ago, when you told me you were ready to date again, I…” she paused to gather her thoughts. “I reacted badly. I guess I just wasn’t prepared for those words, which is silly because it’s been over four years.” Her expression clouded with what Molly could only guess was residual pain. The kind that never did go away no matter what the grief counselors promised. “I want you to find happiness again, Molly. That’s what both Joseph and I hope for. I guess I just need you to know that we support you. You will always be a member of this family.”

It was everything. Molly covered Amalia’s hand and met her eyes in gratitude. “Thank you for telling me that.” She headed to her car. “Did Jordan say where she was headed before Chicago, by chance?”

Amalia shrugged her shoulders. “Only that she needed to be alone.”

That’s when it clicked. “Thanks, Amalia. I’ll see you soon to finalize the menu for Joseph’s birthday party.” She didn’t so much as wait for an answer.

Five minutes later, she parked her car and made her way to the soccer field. Dusk was hanging on, and the temperature was dropping. She fleetingly wished she’d brought a light jacket with her, but the thought faded to the background when she saw Jordan’s silhouette. Her stomach clenched and her chest warmed, and for a moment, Molly just had to stare at her.

She was midfield and her hair, which was pulled away from her face in a clip, blew lightly in the breeze as the yellow turned to pink in the sky above. There was a bandage across the corner of her forehead and she felt guilty at just the sight. When Molly finally sat in the grass next to her, Jordan turned and studied her, before looking back out over the green grass and waning sky.

Okay, so Jordan didn’t look overly excited to see her, but she didn’t exactly glare at her either. If anything, Jordan’s eyes seemed pensive, almost sad. Understanding the need for solitude and enjoying the quiet herself, Molly chose not to say anything just yet. Instead, she reached for Jordan’s hand and pulled it into her lap. It felt really good, the warmth of Jordan’s hand in hers as they watched the sky. Actually, just being near her made the stress of the last two days start to slide away. There was something to that, she noted to herself. Being close to Jordan seemed to be an antidote to just about everything these days.

And then finally, when the very last of the light began to make its dip, she squeezed Jordan’s hand. “I’m sorry.” Jordan turned her face, and it was all Molly could do not to touch her cheek. But somehow she didn’t feel like she had permission for that. There was something guarded about the way Jordan looked at her, like she could do real damage. And she knew it was true. They were dangerous together, the pair of them.

Somehow, it didn’t deter her from what she was beginning to understand.