Page 39 of It's Always Been You
“I knew it,” she mutters, but she’s smiling.
Thinking of our tree makes me think of the trip I need to make to San Francisco next month, and suddenly the idea of going without her is untenable. I wonder if it’s fair of me to ask her, but I decide to shoot my shot. “Can I ask my question now?”
“Go for it,” she says, sucking up the last of her milkshake.
Don’t focus on the way her lips look wrapped around the straw.
Don’t think about her lips wrapped around your dick.
Don’t you do it, Gabe.
Get your head out of the gutter.
Be an adult.
It’s no use. I shift in my seat as my cock thickens behind my zipper. I think I’m discreet about it, but Molly and her genius IQ miss nothing. She gives me a wicked grin and wraps her lips around her straw again, sucking hard.
“Oh, my fucking god,” I mutter.
Molly throws her head back and laughs. “Still got it,” she says, miming dusting off her shoulder.
“You sure do, Rory baby. You sure do.”
“I think you had a question for me.”
I clear my throat, shifting in my seat again, willing my dick to behave. “I did. I have a trip planned to San Francisco soon. I donated a building to the Berkeley campus in memory of my parents, and the dedication is in a few weeks.”
“You donated a whole building?”
“I mean, it would have been weird to just donate part of one.”
Molly gives a low whistle. “I sometimes forget you’re a billionaire now. You’re so…you.”
“Is that a good thing?”
“It is. In my field you learn pretty quickly that money changes people, and not usually for the better. But it doesn’t seem to have changed you one single bit. I like that.”
It means more to me than she could possibly understand that she thinks that.
“So, is there any chance you would consider coming with me? The whole world thinks we’re engaged, so I think people would probably expect my fiancée to be there with me.”
Molly studies me. “Is that the only reason you want me to come with you? Because of what you think people expect?”
I blow out a breath. “No. I don’t give one single fuck what people think. I want you to come because I want you there with me. I know I’ve only been back in your life for a couple of weeks, and it’s a big ask, but having you there would be really special. Just as a heads up, my sisters will be there too, so if that’s too much for you when we’re still just figuring each other out, I totally understand. I don’t want to put any pressure on you or on us or make you think I’m trying to?—”
“I’ll come.” Molly’s matter-of-fact response cuts off my rambling.
I feel my grin spread across my face. “Seriously?”
She shrugs. “Why not? It’ll be fun to see your sisters, and I love to travel. I know I said your money didn’t change you, and that’s a good thing, but I wouldn’t mind if it changed you just a tiny bit when it comes to traveling because I bet you can really travel in style.”
I think about the private jet I still have access to as a board member of my company and make a mental note to reserve it for the trip. If it’s style Molly wants, it’s style she’s fucking getting.
“Rory, you really have no idea.”
She points at me. “But I want my own room. I may be coming with you, but don’t make it into a whole thing.”
“I wouldn’t dare.”
