Page 9 of Rekindled
“I’m grateful for that,” Spencer stated with earnestness. “You deserve every happiness, Molly.”
“I have to be getting back to my parents’ house. They’re expecting me for dinner,” Molly stated as she picked up her purse and placed the strap over her shoulder.
“Before you go, I was hoping you might want to go get a cup of coffee to catch up; my treat,” Spencer offered.
She tilted her head to the side as she narrowed her eyes. “I don’t know if that’s a good idea.”
“Why? It would just be two old friends catching up.”
“Don’t kid yourself, Spencer. We were never just friends.”
He shrugged, “Then we should try to be now. I want the chance to get to know you again, and maybe you’ll see for yourself how I’ve changed.”
Molly let out a heavy sigh before answering. “Look, I have a boyfriend. I probably should have brought that up a lot sooner. How about this; why don’t we go on a double date.”
Spencer didn’t love the idea of having an audience while he tried to prove Molly could trust him again. Even though he didn’t like her offer, he could tell it was the best he was going to get. It would be better than nothing.
“When were you thinking?”
“How about tomorrow night at Ruby’s Diner? I’m sure you’ll have no problem scrounging up someone to bring along,” she stated sarcastically.
“It’s a date then.”
“Correction,” Molly said as she raised her hand, “it’s a double date. Also, we should probably lay some ground rules. First, don’t be late. As I recall, punctuality was never your strong suit. Second, there will be no discussion of what happened between us in the past. Last, you’re paying.”
Spencer nodded his head, accepting her conditions. He didn’t care what it took to get Molly back in his life, but he was willing to do it. Up until he saw her again, he hadn’t realized how much he missed her. Once he did, he knew he couldn’t let her walk out of his life again without making an effort to fix what he had destroyed.
“We should probably exchange numbers just in case,” Spencer suggested.
Molly quirked an eyebrow at him, then shrugged. “I guess that can’t hurt anything,” she said, before reciting her number to him so he could enter it into his phone. He then texted his number to her.
As he watched her walk out of the library, Spencer’s mind drifted back to the moment he knew he was falling for Molly.
The music was blaring as Spencer drove on the outskirts of Bayfield. He had no destination in mind, but was simply enjoying sitting next to Molly while they meandered through the back-country roads.
Natasha Bedingfield’s ‘Pocketful of Sunshine’ came on the radio and Molly clasped her hands together in excitement. “This is one of my favorite songs. I love her whole album so much.”
“Really? I haven’t ever listened to any of her other songs.”
“Oh, she’s really talented. You totally should. I can let you borrow my copy of her CD if you’d like.”
“Thanks, I might take you up on that.”
Hesitantly, he reached out across the space between them and took her hand. He wanted to feel her skin again. Ever since he did in the library, he was itching for another opportunity.
When she didn’t pull away, Spencer relaxed and let the combination of the music and hum of the motor lull him into a comfortable driving pattern. In what seemed like a blink of an eye, a half-hour had passed. Spencer wanted to stretch his legs. He had the perfect place in mind.
He headed north and then turned down a dirt road.
“Where are you taking us?”
“You’ll see. It’s one of my favorite places. My older brother, Bill, used to take me here all the time before he headed off for college.”
“Do you miss him?” Molly inquired.
Spencer nodded. “We’ve been close all our lives. We try to keep in contact through email and phone calls, but he’s pretty busy since it’s his first year.”
“I know how that is. Both of my older brothers have left for college already. With just me at home, my parents tend to watch me like a hawk. Lucky for them, I don’t have much of a life.”
