“Fuck you, Logan.”

“Aww, come on,” Bash said, slinging his arm around Carter’s shoulders. “My man here has obviously got issues.”

“Yeah,” Luke said. “Serious ones. A woman’s got him by the tail.”

“More like by the balls,” Logan said.

“You’re one to talk.” Carter pinned Logan with a glare. “And you, too, Luke.”

“I can at least keep track of a conversation,” Luke said. “Whatever’s going on with you and Molly has your brain scrambled.”

Maybe it did. And the only way he could address it was with Molly. In the meantime, he shrugged it off and concentrated—really concentrated this time—on his friends.

After a while, the women headed inside and the guys stayed out, conversation turning to sports. They started debating the football game, so they went inside and joined Emmett in watching it, while the remaining women gathered around the dining room table, drinking coffee and talking, though Megan and Chelsea came over to watch football with them.

Once he got into the game, that’s where his concentration stayed, especially when they all argued over which team was going to win. It was halftime before he got up from his spot on the sofa to venture into the kitchen, deciding to switch from beer to coffee.

“Having fun?”

He turned from the counter to see Molly. “Yeah. How about you?”

“I am. Thanks for coming over today. My mom was really happy to see you.”

“I was happy for the invite, though I guess you and I aren’t going to have any time to talk tonight.”

She shrugged. “Too many people hovering around today. Sorry.”

“No big deal.”

She lingered, so he figured there was something on her mind. Then again, like she said, today wasn’t the day to have that talk. So instead, he looked out the doorway. Everyone was busy talking or watching the game.

“Molly.” He moved in closer.

“Yeah?”

He slipped his arm around her and pulled her in for a kiss, intending on taking just a brief taste of her.

Then she moaned, and clutched his shirt, dragging him in. He groaned and swept his hand across her back, down, letting his fingers skim over the top of her butt, lost in her, wishing they were alone.

But they weren’t, so with great goddamned reluctance, he broke the kiss.

She licked her lips.

“Careful,” he whispered.

“I’m not careful when I’m with you. I’m trying for distance.”

“Why?”

She lifted her eyes to his, deep pools of blue, filled with the same desire and need that was tearing through him right now, making it hard for him to resist pulling her out of the house, driving her over to his, and throwing her down on his bed so he could sink inside her, satisfying both their needs.

She laid her forehead against his. “I don’t know.” She put her palms on his chest. “I don’t know. I just need . . . a minute. A day. I don’t know.”

He grasped her hands in his. “Take what you need, Molly. I’m not going anywhere.”

She drew in a deep breath. “Thank you for that.”

She took a step back, and walked away.

At least she looked reluctant when she left the room.

Chapter 27

MOLLY HADN’T BEEN lying when she’d told Carter she was hesitant to start working for him because she was worried about her mother being alone. But she and her father discussed it, and her mother had been getting around just fine on her own. They made her solemnly promise she wouldn’t climb any ladders or do anything foolish.

Her mom promised she would only do normal things and said she’d learned her lesson the hard way. And if she felt uncomfortable about being alone, she’d call either Molly or Molly’s dad right away.

That suited her just fine, so following a weekend of holiday decorating at the house and a little holiday shopping, Molly reported for work Monday morning at Carter’s shop in Hope.

Admittedly, she was nervous, though she couldn’t pinpoint why. She’d started plenty of new jobs, always with anticipation and excitement. This should be no different, right?

Then again, there’d been Thanksgiving, and that kiss. She’d wanted so much more. More of that kiss, more alone time with Carter.

But she was confused about her feelings right now, so some space had been necessary.

Not that she had any more clarity today than she’d had last week.

She waited outside Carter’s office while he met with an employee. She fidgeted with the hem of her button-down shirt, then found herself playing with the rings on her fingers, and doing a close examination of her fingernail polish.

Finally, disgusted with herself, she took out her phone to play a word game to pass the time until Carter’s office door opened.

“Sorry for the delay, Molly.”

She stood and grabbed her purse. “Not a problem.”

Time to put on her work face.

She entered his office and took a seat while he closed the door to drown out the sound of engines and power tools.

“You look nice,” he said.

“Thanks.” He’d told her to dress casual, so she had. She looked down at her dark jeans and navy, button-down shirt, along with her brown, knee-length high-heeled boots. She’d also added a scarf. Not too dressy, but she also wasn’t so dressed down that she looked like she could be working in one of the garage bays.

“I have some employment paperwork for you to fill out. I’ve also cleared out the office next to mine so you’ll have a quiet place to work.”

She took a quick glance at her new office. Small, but more than she’d expected. “That’s great. Thank you.”

“There’s a laptop in there, and a printer. The system is linked to all four of the shops. Once you fill out your paperwork, I’ll walk you through everything and get you acclimated as far as the systems we use here to track sales, payroll, human resources, and accounting.”

Other than complimenting her appearance, he was all business, and she was thankful for that. She hadn’t had a chance to tell him she wanted to separate their personal relationship from their professional, and it looked like she wouldn’t have to.

He handed her a stack of papers. “You can take these to your office and fill them out. I’m sure you know the drill. Once you’re done, come see me.”