Both of them squealed like middle schoolers.
“Iknewit!” Cassie said. “Liam wasn’t his usual grumpy statue self this morning. I saw him smile—twice—and I knew there had to be a reason he was so unusually chipper.” She grinned like a detective who’d cracked a case.
“Million-dollar question,” Ellie started. “Why did you kiss him goodnight?” She waited, practically vibrating with excitement.
“I have no idea,” I admitted. “Why do I do half the stuff I do? My brain has zero self-control. I just…did it.” I let out a quiet breath. “And the worst part? I don’t regret it. Not even a little.” I looked between them, lowering my voice. “What does that mean?”
“I know what it means,” Cassie said, leaning in. “It means you stilllike-likehim.” She punctuated it with a wink.
“What if he doesn’t like-like me back?” I asked, wincing the moment the words left my mouth.
“Did pregnancy make you go blind too?” Cassie said, shifting her weight onto one hip and crossing her arms. “That manclearlystill cares about you. You two are just too scared to say it out loud.” She shook her head. “It’s honestly painful to watch.”
Ellie stood next to Cassie, happily nodding in agreement.
Just then, all three guys walked in, each carrying a box. “That’s the last of them,” Liam said as they set the boxes down.
“I’m about to pass out from starvation,” Colt announced. “Can we please go get food?” He looked around, clearly searching for backup.
“Let’s go, brats,” Ellie said, herding everyone toward the front door. “Girls in my car. Boys in Liam’s Jeep,” she added.
Liam hesitated, clearly unhappy with the car situation.
I stepped closer to him, tilting my head up so he had no choice but to meet my eyes. “I’ll be fine, Liam. You’ll be right behind us the whole time. Nothing bad is going to happen,” I said, trying to reassure him.
And maybe myself, too. Because lately, the only time I felt truly safe was when Liam was close by.
“I don’t like it.”
He reached out, resting his hand on the small of my back, thumb pressing lightly. His jaw tightened, eyes scanning me once more as if he were internally debating with himself. His unexpected touch sent electricity through my entire body.
“I’ll be within view the entire time,” I said softly. “And I promise to sit right next to you the whole time at lunch to make up for the lost time,” I added, offering a playful smile.
He let out a slow breath, fingers flexing once before dropping his hand. “Fine,” he said finally. “But if one thing happens that I don’t like, you’re pulling over and getting in the car with me. Understand?”
I nodded, still spiraling from his touch.
——————————–
We ended up going to the Twisted Spur for lunch. For obvious reasons, we didn’t sit at the bar—just the general seating tucked away on the other end of the room. For a small-town dive, the place served up surprisingly good food.
We all squeezed into one of the semicircle booths in the corner. Ellie and Colt took the middle with Cassie and Jace on one side and Liam and me on the other.
The waitress appeared almost immediately, thanks to the place being a ghost town at noon on a Saturday. By nightfall, though, the Twisted Spur would be packed from wall to wall.
Country music played softly in the background as we sat there, talking and waiting for our food to arrive. When one song faded out and the next began, I recognized the melody.
“I love this song,” I announced to the table.
Liam tilted his head, listening closely, as if he were trying to place it. “Dance With Me, Molly,” he finally said.
Jace looked at him, confused. “You want her to dance with you?”
I laughed. “No, that’s the name of the song by Keith Whitley. It’s literally called ‘Dance With Me, Molly.’ He’s singing about a girl that left him, so now he’s sad and wishes he could have one last dance with her,” I explained.
Before anyone could respond, Liam slid out of the booth and held his hand out toward me as the chorus started up.
“Dance with me Molly, please?” he asked, a soft smile pulling at his mouth.
