Under New Management (11 page)

As Kieran leaves, Mollie’s disappointment is trumped by his offer of, from what she can tell, an awesome job. Well she wanted to travel didn’t she? Get away from Sedgwick, from David and Kevin. What better way, not to mention being able to spend time with Kieran? Although it sounded as if he wasn’t keen on getting up close and personal with his staff, she could tell he was attracted to her. It shouldn’t be that hard to find the chink in his armour. Perhaps on a Caribbean beach . . . As she snuggles down under the duvet, she hears the sound of music drifting from the barn. The external lights bathe the room in a delicate peach colour. She drifts off to sleep on a beach at sunset with Kieran in a pair of tight fitting boxer style swimming shorts.

Chapter 11

Waking up the following morning, Mollie takes a while to figure out where she is. As she remembers she cringes at the memory of the evening: David and Kevin, Jack’s appearance and Kieran having to carry her to bed. This swiftly leads to the memory of the kiss and of him pulling away from her. Her cheeks flame.
God how mortifying.
The thought of her throwing herself at him makes her toes curl with embarrassment. Then the PA job slowly penetrates and she sits up a little too quickly than is good for her delicate head and stomach. She breathes slowly and fully as sickness overwhelms her. It’s not going away. Her head is throbbing and her mouth starts to water ominously. Moving slowly she pushes back the duvet and sits on the side of the bed preparing to run if necessary. Thank God she knows these rooms and for the fact that this one has an en suite.
Yep here it comes
. She flies to the bathroom and collapses onto the floor in front of the toilet. Holding her hair out of the way she throws up until there is nothing left.

After staggering up from the floor and flushing the toilet she rinses out her mouth under the tap. Then, holding onto the basin for support, she stares at herself in the mirror.
God what a mess and what the hell is that?
One of her false eyelashes is hanging from the far corner of her eye. It flaps up and down as she blinks at it. Carefully she pulls it off and throws it into the waste paper bin. The other is gone. She must have looked ridiculous last night with one off and one on.  

She sighs and rubs at her eyes.
Don’t know about bags; bloody suitcases more like.

Speaking of bags, she needs her handbag to repair the damage, but now she comes to think of it she had left it on the table while she was dancing and her phone is inside.
Bugger.

Wandering back into the bedroom she straightens the bed and looks at the large ornate clock on the wall, seven o’clock.
Now what?

She can’t stay here; she can’t see him looking like this, not after the embarrassment of the night before. However, the thought of a two mile walk in her high heels is not tempting. Who can she phone to pick her up? Anyone reasonable is still going to be sleeping, not to mention over the limit, and taxis are like gold dust in Sedgwick. Walking to the window she opens the curtains and looks out at the dark morning.

As she stares hopelessly out of her prison window she sees the lights of a car heading down the drive. She watches as the post van comes into view and pulls up in front of the Hall. A rush of hope shoots through her as she waits for the occupant to emerge from the vehicle, it is difficult to see clearly from this distance. Opening the window just in case, she says out loud to herself, “Come on. Please, please.”

The van door opens and someone climbs out. The shadowy figure messes about with his bag and then starts to limp towards the door giving away his identity.

“Yes, oh yes, brilliant!” Shoving her head under the open window she waits for him to get close enough and then hisses loudly at him, “Jeff, Jeff. Up here.”

Jeff jumps,
could have sworn he heard his name.
He hates this bloody place, spooky he reckons.
He hobbles faster to the door.

“Jeff, Jeff. Up here!” Mollie shouts in as low a decibel as possible; she doesn’t want anyone else to hear her.

Jeff’s head shoots up and his momentary shock at seeing a ghost with long blonde hair is replaced as he realises it’s Mollie. Putting a hand up to his heart to demonstrate the shock, he calls up, “Mollie girl. Blimey, you gave me a fright. What are you doing? Were you in early?”

“No Jeff, haven’t been home yet. The party, you know. Any chance you could give me a lift back to mine?”

“No problem Molls. I’ll wait. You coming down to this door?”

“Can you meet me in the courtyard, Jeff? Don’t want to be seen, I look a mess,” she asks him with a winning smile.

“No probs. I’ll drive round there. See you in a minute.” Jeff heads on up the steps to deposit the post through the huge letter box.

Mollie pulls down the window, grabs her shoes and coat and rushes out of the room barefoot. Thank God she knows the place like the back of her hand and thank God for the back stairs which lead down to the kitchen and side door.

She manages to get out of the house without seeing anyone and into Jeff’s post van.

She sighs with relief and turns to look at him. She went to school with Jeff. He had a motorbike accident years ago, hence the pronounced limp. “Looks like you had a good night then Molls. Hope you didn’t do anything I wouldn’t have done,” he grins as they head up the drive and to safety.

“Well that doesn’t leave much Jeff. Unfortunately no, I was actually well behaved, considering.” She ponders her statement for a moment before continuing, “Well that’s if you discount the part where I had to be put to bed because I was too drunk by half past nine.” Jeff throws her a questioning glance and Mollie laughs before going on to explain.

By the time they reach her mum and dad’s Mollie has filled Jeff in on the gory details, leaving out the bedroom bit and the identity of the person that took her there; nobody likes to admit they were turned down.

Finding the spare key imaginatively hidden under a plant pot by the back door, Mollie lets herself in. She puts the kettle on in the kitchen and heads through the lounge to go upstairs, shower and put her trackies on. A movement on the sofa makes her jump as the room is still dark. Flying to the light switch she turns it on and there on the sofa splayed out in all his glory is Jack, naked apart from his boxers, and partially covered with a duvet.
Bloody, sodding hell, not in a million years.

Before she can make a run for it, Jack jolts awake and sees her. “Molls? Hey there you are, been waiting for you.” He moves jerkily up to lean on one elbow and rubs his other hand over his eyes and through his hair. The movement causes the small amount of duvet still covering him to slip off of the sofa completely. Mollie swallows as she tries hard not to stare.
He has definitely grown up and clearly works out,
she couldn’t help but notice his body. Jack had always been slim and well toned. That tone has been taken to a whole new level, he’s filled out. Sporting a six pack, he is now muscular, sturdy and tanned all over.

Shaking her head to remove the rogue thoughts she demands brusquely “What the hell are you doing here?”

Jack frowns slightly at her tone “Came back with your parents and Dan and his Mrs, had a few drinks and they said I could crash here.” He gazes at her sleepily as it dawns on him that she is still wearing last night’s clothes. “Where have you been, what time is it?” He asks in a slow drawl.

“I slept at the Hall. Remember? The postman just gave me a lift back.”

“Cool.... Awesome.” He says as if that statement is entirely normal. He frowns again, Jack is trying to recall the previous evening and isn’t doing very well. It’s nice to see Mollie though; it’s been a long time since he saw her first thing in the morning. It reminds him of old times. “Come and sit with me, let’s chill, like we used to. We can have a drink; have you got any drink?” He sits up slowly, moving his head from side to side as he tries to focus on her.

Mollie sighs, “The only drink you and I are having is a hot one. I’m going for a quick shower; I’ll be back in a bit. Tea no sugar, if you’re offering. Kettle’s on, and get dressed.” She tells him as she leaves the room and heads upstairs.

Twenty minutes later Jack and Mollie are sitting in the lounge. Mollie is curled up in the armchair her hair still damp from her shower. Jack is sprawled on the sofa, he’s lying on his side, dressed in his shirt and trousers facing her, looking just as hot as he had the evening before. Stubble has grown on his face overnight making him look more rugged. His crumpled shirt and trousers add an extra air of sexy to him. Mollie shivers slightly. She must stay alert, she knows only too well how he operates and she knows deep down inside that he still makes her slightly horny. Feelings as strong as she once had for Jack don’t just disappear. Now that he’s here, right in front of her, she is not that confident that she will be able to resist his charms. Thank goodness for Kieran. Maybe he would be able to divert her. Although it has to be said, now that she is sober, she thinks that he will have to try a damn sight harder than he did last night.

To distract her from her disturbing thoughts, she questions Jack about what she missed the night before and, more importantly, Lou.

“So what happened with Lou then? I expected you two to be waking up together this morning,” Mollie asks.

“Yea well, actually so did I at first. Pretty woman your mate. Nearly as pretty as you Molls.” Jack tells her with a sexy smile.

Mollie gives him a sarcastic look. Jack snorts with laughter.

He continues, “I don’t know. After you got carried upstairs we went back in. I was chatting with your dad and Dan for quite a while and then that Florrie bird started coming on to me. To be honest I couldn’t get rid of her. At one point Lou staggered over, she was really pissed you know. She came over and Florrie told her to “do one.” So she sort of smiled, said, “Fair play,” and buggered off. Last seen hanging on the bar talking to one of the blokes serving. She didn’t even try to save me,” Jack says with an injured air.

Mollie laughs loudly, “Brilliant, sounds like Lou! No she wouldn’t have cared and she certainly wouldn’t have fought for you. Lou gets bored very quickly when she’s pissed.”

Jack looks insulted, “Charming that is. Well anyway, after she left me I spent the rest of the evening running away from that Florrie. Bloody awful woman, she has a voice that could shatter glass.” Jack grimaces as he recalls.

Mollie laughs harder, and snorts as she tries to catch her breath. “That’s priceless.” She says breathlessly, “So how did you escape?”

“I didn’t. For the rest of the sodding night. Pissed me right off she did. After the fireworks, your lot were getting ready to go home in the taxi, she was wittering on about her room and what she was going to do to me in it.” Jack holds his hand up to Mollie to stop her, as she leans forward ready to ask the inevitable question of ‘What did she want to do to you?’

“No don’t. You really, really don’t want to know, trust me. It was that bad that I didn’t want to know and I’m not normally that fussy. Anyway I asked Dan if I could leave with them and he rescued me. I managed to escape without her seeing me. I watched her from the minibus as we were pulling away. She was running around outside, in and out of groups of people looking for me I’ve no doubt.” Jack laughs at his duplicity.

“You’re tight you are. Poor Florrie,” Mollie says insincerely.

“Flippin ‘eck, poor Florrie? She’s like a sodding piranha she is. That’s what I call a close escape.” Jack sighs with evident relief.

“So what about Lou, did she stay with the bar-man?”

“Nah, she came home with us on the mini bus, got dropped off first. Dan pretty much carried her to her door and dumped her inside. She didn’t so much as say bye to me.” Jack shakes his head slightly in confusion.

Mollie laughs again.

They move the conversation on and begin reminiscing over old friends and whether either of them have stayed in touch with anyone. Interesting though that is, what Mollie is really interested in is Kieran, and why she had never been told about him. So she asks, “Jack, explain the Kieran thing. Did he give you a job, or something? How come you never mentioned him and the hotel chain, etc?”

“Wow, you like him don’t ya Molls?” Jack asks as he waggles his eyebrows at her.

“Come to think of it, you’re questioning me on my possible conquests, what about you? Last seen being carried to bed by Kieran. What happened then, did you get it on, or what?”

Mollie blushes, “No we did not,” she tells him a little too adamantly, “I was hardly in a fit state.” Jack acknowledges the comment as he frowns and then nods at her. Mollie takes a shifty breath of relief and starts talking again to divert him further. “He’s a nice enough bloke, but that’s not why I’m asking. Just seems a strange thing to keep from me for three years. It doesn’t sound like you, hiding a mega rich family member.”

“OK, OK. I didn’t deliberately keep it from you. I didn’t see much of Kieran while I was at uni. He’s a couple of years older than me and he wasn’t rich back then. We didn’t really start hanging out again until we inherited.” Jack tells her matter of factly.

Mollie boggles at him, “Inherited? Inherited what?”

“The hotels. Well, seven of ‘em anyway. Oh, and about 100 million quid,” He informs her in a bored tone.

Mollie just manages to save her mug of tea as she nearly drops it in shock. Lukewarm tea sloshes out of the mug and over the carpet, but she ignores it, because she is too busy staring at him.

“Are you taking the piss, Jack?”

“Nope, not,” he tells her and she knows, or had known him well enough to tell when he is lying.

Her mouth falls open and her breath comes out in a whoosh, “Jesus....” she drawls out the word.

“Yep, mental, ain’t it?” Jack smiles at her.

“That’s one word for it. So come on, you have to tell me everything,” Mollie demands as she makes herself more comfortable and waits for him to begin.