She was being so . . . polite, and so quiet, like she was choosing each of her words carefully.

He shrugged. “Hey, no big deal, you know? Since you already had a toothbrush, shampoo, and underwear here, I figured you might want a key.”

She finally dropped her shoulders and laughed. “I can see your point.” She scooted closer. “And thanks for Las Vegas.”

“I’m looking forward to Vegas,” he said, trying to jolt her out of whatever shock or funk she’d experienced. “I’m ready to play some blackjack.”

“Really. So, you’re a gambler. How did I not know this about you?”

“I’ve taken a few trips to Vegas over the years.”

“Have you. And did you win money?”

“Won some, lost some.”

“How . . . enlightening. You’re like this man of mystery. I can picture you at the blackjack tables.”

“And craps tables, too. Wait ’til you see me in Vegas. You might be surprised.”

She smiled at him now, and he was relieved.

“I look forward to you surprising me.”

He pulled her onto his lap. “Hey, there are still a lot of things you don’t know about me, babe.”

He pressed his lips to hers and hoped things were on the right track now.

Chapter 32

IT WAS THE day before New Year’s Eve, and since Christmas, Molly had dived back into work, keeping her mind occupied, trying not to think about the upcoming trip with Carter.

Her mom was doing great and didn’t need her at all anymore. Next week she’d get her casts off and she was talking about going back to work, since she could fit in physical therapy around her job, plus she was already driving again since her casts didn’t get in the way.

The new server and computer system installation was flowing smoothly at work, and she’d conducted training for all of the managers. She’d worked out the kinks in the system, and so far, so good. The new system was lightning fast, and she’d linked all of the vital information so Carter could access everything he needed on-the-go on his tablet. It allowed him to be more mobile than in the past, freeing him up to visit all his sites as often as he wanted to. Eventually, he’d even have a little spare time to work in the shop if he wanted.

She’d streamlined his operation, and while there were a lot more things she could do—like work on sales and marketing—he was in much better shape operationally than when she’d started.

Now, she sat on the bed, her shiny new luggage opened as she prepared to pack for Las Vegas.

She’d studied the empty suitcases for about an hour, and couldn’t bring herself to put clothes in them, which was kind of a dilemma, because she was due over at Carter’s house in a few hours.

She looked up at the knock on her door. Her mom, probably.

“Come in.”

She was surprised to see her sister.

“Hey, Emma.”

“Can I come in?”

“Sure. What are you doing here?”

“I thought I’d drop by and say goodbye before you left on your trip. I see you’re packing.” Emma took a seat on the side of the bed.

“Yeah. Or, thinking about packing anyway.”

“Do you need some help?”

“No. Not really.” She glanced over at all her open drawers, already having made her decision. Now all she had to do was muster up the courage to tell everyone.

Emma looked over at the open drawers as well, then the suitcases before her gaze drifted back to Molly. “You’re not going to Vegas with Carter, are you?”

When Molly didn’t answer, Emma’s shoulders slumped. “Oh, Molls, you’re leaving.”

She supposed this was a good place to start. “It’s time for me to go, Em. Mom’s fine and doesn’t need me anymore. I’ve already stayed long enough.”

“Why? Did Carter do something?”

“No.” She took a step back. “He gave me the key to his house.”

Emma gave her a confused look. “And that’s a bad thing?”

Molly cocked her head to the side, realizing that sounded a little ridiculous. “You don’t understand, Em.”

“No, I don’t. He loves you. He’s always loved you. The two of you are perfect together.”

“We aren’t perfect. I mean, yeah, it’s good right now, but we hurt each other before. It’s only a matter of time before it happens again.”

“I thought you two talked things through.”

She shrugged. “We put the past behind us. Sort of. But is it ever really gone?”

“So you’re judging a potential future with Carter based on the past between you?”

She looked down at her hands. “Sometimes you just can’t go back.”

Emma leaned over, grabbed Molly’s hands, forcing her to make eye contact. “And sometimes, my sweet sister, you have to let the past go so you can make a future for yourself. No one knows that better than I do.”

“I know what happened to you in your past, and how hard you fought to get through it so you could make a future. But your situation was entirely different from mine. Carter is part of my past. I have to let him go.”

“You did. For all these years you let him go. You let go of your home, and everyone you knew. Did it help? Did you move forward with your life? With relationships?”

She lifted her chin. “I’ve been doing fine.”

“You’ve been running away from your memories all these years, Molly, instead of facing down the past and coming to terms with it. That’s not growth, that’s not putting the past behind you. That’s shoving it into a closet and hoping it doesn’t throw that door open and scare the shit out of you in the middle of the night. That’s not how you deal with it. And this,” she said, sweeping her hands over the open suitcases. “Running again isn’t how you deal with those feelings, either.”

Molly put her hand over her stomach, trying to quell the nausea she felt from her sister’s accusations.

She wasn’t running, she was simply . . . resuming her life.

“I like moving around. I start to feel unsettled if I stay in one place too long.”

“This isn’t ‘one place,’ Moll. This is your home. Where you’re surrounded by everyone who loves you. If you ever have any hope of making a future, then you have to stand your ground, confront the past, and demand the future you want.”