Page 9 of Ten Kisses

Sara was older than me, so I could understand that she wanted to find someone and get married before me, and I also got it that me meeting Salem at the camp put extra pressure on her. But I didn't like it. Was she saying I wasn't good enough for him? Her disapproval was only going to make me think about Salem more.

"Are you good?" I said to her, pushing my feelings aside.

"Yes, and I'm sorry," she said, sighing. "You can obviously date whoever you want. But it's true that if you and Salem would end up together, you know what that implies. You know that implies that I'm never going to find someone."

"No, it doesn't, Sara. That's what I'm saying. That's where you have to distinguish fiction from reality. I don't like Salem, and I'm not going to end up with him, but you have to be okay with the possibility that I could get married before you."

"I know that," she said. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to come across that I would be unhappy if you find someone. It's just that now that Jenny is married, I'm next. I feel a little bit of pressure with that. I would feel scared if the whole pattern skipped me."

"So what if it skipped you? You're putting too much importance on the fact that our parents and siblings met at the same place. That's not a thing you and I have to live by. We don't have to fit into that box. I could move to New York City and find someone to marry there, and I would be fine with it."

"Not me. I don't know. I don't think I'm like that. I'd like to stick with tradition."

"We don't have control over it, though. I mean what are the chances that we are going to meet our soulmates at Mom and Dad's house?"

She shrugged. "I would say, based on how it's going, our chances are pretty good."

"I know, Sara, but my heart is definitely not set on that. Yours shouldn't be, either. I would be fine meeting someone anywhere."

"Yeah but it would be way cooler to meet them at the camp, don't you think?"

Chapter 4

I was thrown off by my sister's opposition to me dating Salem. It wasn't that I liked him or wanted to pursue him, I just didn't want anyone to tell me who I should or should not date. I didn't know what to make of Sara's take on it.

Thank goodness I hadn't mentioned we kissed.

It threw me off to think that she cared.

I pretended nothing was the matter, but I couldn't help but think about it the rest of the time we were together that day. I had fights with my sisters about petty stuff over the years, but we never, ever had any real drama. Ever. I had never been competitive with them over matters of the heart, and they were the same. I could see where Sara was coming from with me meeting Salem at Camp Eden.

I could see how that could make her a little nervous. But there was just no way I was going to wait for her to find someone and marry him before me. I didn't say as much to her, but I knew in my heart that I would date whom I wanted and when. I was just disappointed with Sara for caring so much. Something about her disapproval made me think about Salem in that way. I knew I wouldn't go for him, but I was stubborn that way, and I told myself I would if I ever wanted to.

I turned off those feelings by the time I went to Salem's house to help him out. It was fun for me to visit the construction site, so I easily shifted gears.

Salem was a skilled carpenter, but he had contracted a lot of the work done on his house. He had done the front entrance and doorway himself, though, and it was gorgeous. There was a sprawling porch out front with grand, wooden columns. The front door was the centerpiece, and it was mounted in a twenty-foot wall of wood and windows. The whole piece was the same color as the door. The door itself was rounded at the top, which I had always loved. It was five feet wide and more than ten feet tall at its highest point. Salem had made all of it. Other people worked on different parts of his house, but this entryway was something he had done himself. I opened the door, marveling at how balanced it was and how easily it swung open.

Salem was expecting me, and he had told me to go inside when I arrived. There was a giant tarp protecting the other side of the entrance and I had to go through it before I could see anything. Once I could see the living room, I could appreciate how much had been done. A drywall crew had been there recently, and I walked into a house that felt much more complete than it did the last time I was there. It smelled like stone, wood, and drywall mud, and I smiled at myself for liking the scent of construction.

The entryway had taken shape since the walls went up, and I marveled at it as I walked inside.

I called for Salem.

"Helloooo?"

"Molly?" I heard Salem's voice echoing as he called to me from the back of the house. I followed it.

"I'm trying to find you!" I called as I walked that way.

I glanced toward my right as I walked. The kitchen had taken shape, and I smiled at how it somehow all seemed larger now that the drywall was up.

"I'm in the master!" he called.

"This is looking amaaazing!" I called as I headed back there. "Your kitchen is gigantic with those walls up, Salem! What are you, a gillion-aire?" I used a silly voice with a hillbilly sound to it. I had been planning on continuing to ramble and joke around, but I rounded the corner and saw Phillip, Salem's brother, standing there with him. There was also another guy. He had been in the back bathroom, and he came into the bedroom right as I did. I smiled, feeling shocked that I was being so silly in front of a stranger. I realized that I had seen multiple trucks in the driveway so none of this should have surprised me.

"Hello, everyone," I said with wide eyes.

"Hello, Molly," Salem said, letting out a little laugh. "Jack, this is Molly."

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