“And what happens when I leave? Will you start getting in your head again?”
“Sometimes the answer is yes, and sometimes the answer is no,” she admitted truthfully.
“Then I’m not gambling on the answer being yes.”
“Suit yourself,” she said, sitting up straighter. “Don’t be surprised when I ramble on all night.”
“I’m sure you’ve got a slew of things you want to talk about just waiting in that little head of yours,” I said.
“As a matter of fact, I do. My first question is what made you want to go into the military?” she asked, not holding back in the slightest. Very Molly McKinley of her.
I thought for a second, debating whether I wanted to give her an honest answer or not.
“I wanted to get the hell away from Great Falls. At the time, my life was hell and I needed to find myself. The military seemed like the right move. On my fourth and final deployment overseas, we took on enemy fire, and I got shot in the hip. Shattered everything onimpact. I’m fine now, but when I was stuck in a hospital bed healing, I decided my time in the military was over. I wanted to come back to Montana. It might sound crazy, but I missed this small-ass town. Missed hanging out with Jace, missed the food at Maggie’s.”
I could tell Molly was shocked by my confession. Not a lot of people knew that I got injured. I didn’t talk about it much, because I didn’t want anyone’s pity. It happened, I conquered it, and it was over with now.
“Next question,” I said.
“What made you want to become sheriff?”
“I like structure and routine. That’s why I loved being in the military so much. But I like helping people more. Silver Creek isn’t exactly high on the list of towns with crime, but it has plenty of old ladies who need help getting their cats out of trees and neighbors who need help settling random disputes. Not to brag or anything, but Silver Creek Elementary asks me to come to their career day every year. I’m kind of a celebrity there. So there are lots of perks to the job.” I chuckled.
“I’m sorry you got shot and were alone through all of that,” Molly said, her voice sounding truly sincere.
“It’s fine. Probably for the best. I didn’t really want anyone to see me that way anyway.”
A knock at the door caught both our attention. I hopped up, pulling my wallet out of my pocket as I made my way to the door.
“Pizza delivery,” the curly redheaded kid said as I pulled the door open. He was probably barely sixteen.
He handed me the pizza boxes as I handed over the cash I owed for the order. “Keep the change, kid,” I said, nodding at him. He looked down at the bills, realizing I gave him way more than he was owed.
“Thanks, man,” he said, beaming.
I remembered what it was like to be young, working whatever job you could just to save a little money. Maybe he was saving for college. I’d been saving to get the hell out of my house—to live on my own and get away from my dad.
“One meat lovers and one pepperoni with pineapple—for the crazy lady who lives here,” I said as I set the pizza boxes on the kitchen counter.
“Don’t knock it till you try it,” she said, flipping the lid open and inhaling the smell of freshly melted mozzarella.
Molly grabbed a couple plates from the cabinet and handed me one.
“We can sit on the couch and eat if you want. That’s usually my makeshift dinner table,” she explained.
I grabbed a slice from my box, and we settled back onto the couch, pizza in hand, hunger finally winning out. “So what other weird shit are you into besides disgusting pizza toppings and books with sex in them?” I asked.
She laughed. “You know sex is a completely normal thing, right Liam?” Then she suddenly sat up straighter, her eyes going wide. “Wait—don’t tell me. You’re a virgin?” she asked, looking at me like she almost felt bad for me.
I choked on my pizza, pounding my chest a few times until the coughing stopped.
“No, Molly. I am not a virgin,” I muttered, shooting her a sideways glance. This girl said literally whatever popped into her head, and it was going to make me lose mine.
“Then how come every time I make a sex joke in front of you, you shrivel up like a raisin and get that look on your face?” she asked.
“What look?”
She scrunched up her face, giving her best impression of me.
