Sure, she and Jake had slept together and shared some good times, but no matter how much she might wish for it to be otherwise, that didn’t mean they were in the throes of a budding relationship. And under the circumstances, perhaps he didn’t need a complication like Molly in his life, especially considering his mother’s unrelenting disapproval.
Shitty love life!
She’d woken in the early hours—sheets tangled at the foot of her bed and her pillowcase damp—and lain awake until after four worrying about not only Alexia, the gossip queen, but also Ava, the mysterious third party.
The blame was entirely hers, of course, and there had never been a time over the past few days when Molly denied that fact. She’d not asked Jake about Ava before he left, and a whole level of guilt surfaced when she considered the consequences of being involved with an already taken man.
Earlier, she’d considered flicking him a text to apologize for her no-show but, after another thought, decided to let things lie for a bit. Whatever happened between them in the future, while they might never be lovers again, she was confident they’d always remain friends. Distant friends perhaps—the kind who think of each other occasionally and reminisce, sometimes with a hint of sadness, sometimes with a smile. But for now, with Alexia also hovering, it was time to pull back a bit.
Molly was just about to crawl out of bed and into the shower when her phone buzzed in her hand. Jake’s name sat at the top of the screen, but instead of answering it, she dropped it on the bed and made her way to the bathroom, where she failed to hear his second and third calls.
Afterward, as she listened to his terse voice message, an unease gnawed at her stomach. Then, the text messages started.Are you home safe? What happened to you last night? When can I see you? Molly, answer your phone!!!
Still wrapped in a towel and with her hair dripping wet, Molly replied:Home safe, big night, needed sleep.
Just like hers, Jake’s reply held no emotion, no terms of endearment or indication of what he wanted to discuss. It simply saidwe need to talk,followed by when and where, and not a single emoji to be seen.
She inhaled sharply for two beats then took a longer breath, but that sense of calm she expected failed to transpire, and as she stood in front of the mirror to dry her hair, Molly’s reflection betrayed her sadness.
Having reluctantly accepted his invitation, Molly parked in Jake’s driveway around five, a strong north-easterly asserting itself loudly through the trees as if calling Mother Nature to task.
It would be dark soon, so she grabbed her pink denim jacket from the back seat but didn’t put it on. And as she stood on his welcome mat with Alexia’s and Hazel’s words still loud and perfectly clear in her mind, just like yesterday and every day for the past few weeks, Molly wondered if she had the strength to deal with the two other women in Jake’s life right now.
Or at any stage.
And what about Ava? In the few times they’d spoken on FaceTime, he never once mentioned her. Never said she was still living in his apartment or defined their relationship status, and for Molly, that lack of detail wasn’t good enough.
She pushed the bell twice before Jake opened the door. With feet bare and wearing black sweatpants and a smoke-blue Henley pulled tightly across his chest, he smiled softly in greeting, but there was no contact between them. “You’re still alive then?”
“Yes, but not quite kicking after last night.”
Nodding as if he understood, Jake took her jacket and hung it on the stand inside the doorway, but as she followed him into the living room, the dull gloom of the evening intensified her sense of foreboding.
“Anyway, welcome home.” Molly perched on the edge of the sofa and watched as Jake poured two glasses of prosecco from the bottle on the counter. He handed her one before taking a seat in the chair opposite, a platter of cheese, olives, and bread between them.
“Thanks, but are you going to tell me what’s going on? I’ve been gone two weeks, and now, all of a sudden you’re unavailable.”
“To be fair, I didn’t know you’d caught an earlier flight. It was Mum’s birthday. I couldn’t just cancel my plans at the last minute.”
“I wanted to surprise you.”
“Well, you did.” Molly wanted to add,“in more ways than one,”but stopped the cliché by pressing her lips together. “Anyway, you said we needed to talk?”
Jake shifted in his seat, his expression serious—a stark contrast to other times they’d met at Silkwood Crescent, when they sat in front of the fire with wine and conversation flowing.
“You once mentioned that you loathed miscommunication. So, I want to tell you something.”
“Okay.” Molly stilled before sipping her wine. It was a little fruity for her taste but passable. Silence fell between them, but inside her head, the noise was deafening.
“Annabelle phoned me about the will. That must have been a tough call.”
She relaxed a little. “Not really. It’s the right thing to do.”
Jake nodded. “I don’t agree, but it’s not up to me, is it?”
A gust of wind blew across the deck and through an open window, the curtains billowing for attention. Jake rose from the sofa, pulled it shut, then turned to look at her. And as he stepped forward and sat as before, she wondered what was coming next.
“I spent some time with Ava while I was away.”
