Page 83 of Last Round

“She really got you that pussy whipped?” He tries to lure me back into doing something stupid, but this time I won’t fall for it. “It’s a sweet one. I’ll give you that.”

“You aren’t worth it.” I keep walking away. Molly is upstairs waiting. She needs me.

“Whatever you need to tell yourself, old man.”

“I might be old,” I call out behind me. “But at least I can make her come.” I let that sink in. “Something I guess her douchebag of an ex could never do.”

Tony snarls some profanities but by this point I’m halfway up the staircase and over the whole situation. A blow to his ego will hurt him more than me breaking his jaw—at least I can take pleasure in that.

Now to go see my girl, and get to the bottom of whatever the fuck that was I walked in onandfigure out what sort of shit went down in New York.

Practice Makes Perfect

Molly

Why?Whyme?

Is the repeated question I ask myself while hiding in the bedroom. My elbows hug my knees as my fingers thread through my hair. Sitting on the bed, I rock back and forth, trying to figure out what the hell just happened.

I squeeze my eyes shut.

Hungry, I was hungry. I decided to grab a coffee and a sandwich. Normally I’d use the back entrance, but figured I should ask Killian if he wanted anything. He likes the salads at the shop down the street. With him eating healthier, he wouldn’t have asked for a coffee or sandwich. Tea, maybe—surprisingly he loves peppermint tea. Even in summer. I could have just surprised him, but instead, I decided to go see him.

Honestly, I was bored and hoping he could sneak away for a break. I didn’t want to run into Sean, and definitely not Tony, but I’m tired of avoiding where Killian is because of them. It’s not fair to Kill, or me. I was tired of hiding like some damsel in her knight’s tower. I’m a grown-ass woman, and if I want to see my boyfriend and ask him to lunch, well, I’m going to fucking do it. So I pulled up my big-girl panties and went downstairs. Except, when I got to the hall, there he was, and it all went downhill from there…

“Molly.” The bed dips as Killian sits in front of me. He takes my hand in his. “What happened?”

“I didn’t lead him on.” My gut twists, imagining things the way he must have seen them. Me, pinned in some dark hall with my ex. While I don’t believe Killian would ever cheat on me, if I found him in the same situation, my mind would definitely jump to the conclusion.

“Never said you did.” His brows pull together.

“I told him to go. That I was with you. He wouldn’t listen.”

“Molly, look at me.” I do. “This isn’t your fault. I’m not accusing you of anything. I just want to know what happened.”

“One moment I was going to see you, and the next he had me trapped against the wall.”

Killian fists the sheet and flexes his jaw.

“I wanted to ask you to lunch. Then he—” I jump from the bed and rush to the bathroom. Turning the faucet to boiling hot, I grab a nearby towel. I dampen it in the scalding water and proceed to rub it against my face and skin, sanitizing everywhere he touched me.

“Molly, what are you doing?” Killian shuts off the sink.

“He touched me.” I scrub harder. Killian becomes blurry through my tears. “Hekissedme.” His teeth bared, he looks downright feral as he clutches the doorframe. “I want him off me.”

Killian takes a deep breath, enters the bathroom, turns on the shower, and takes the terry cloth from me. After testing the temperature, he walks both of us into the stall. Still clothed, Killian helps me wash away any remnant that Tony might have left. Except for the running water, the room is silent as he wipes me down. We’ve been in here so long that the hot water has run cold.

Turning off the shower, he opens the stall door and steps out first. He wraps me in a large towel before grabbing one for himself. Our hair is dripping as we sit on the bed. We’re going to need to change the sheets. They’re all wet now.

Killian clears his throat. “Molly.” I look up at him. He’s trying so hard to remain calm, but I can tell that it’s wearing on him. “I need you to tell me what happened.”

“I did.”

He shakes his head. “Not just now, before. When you were in New York.”

“It doesn’t matter.” I focus on the corner of the room.

He lifts my chin to force me to meet his eyes. “It matters to me.”

---