“That it is,” Molly said with a smile. “We put it on the table on the other side of the room.”
“Thank you so much. I can’t tell you how much it means to me. It’s even better than Christmas when you rented It’s a Wonderful Life and brought a DVD player so we could all watch.”
As he listened to Lucinda, Hunter’s throat filled. Molly truly cared about this woman and her friends, and they weren’t even related to her by blood. And the older woman obviously reciprocated Molly’s feelings. Showing up here today, such a simple gesture by Molly in the midst of her family chaos, had made Lucinda’s day. It touched even Hunter’s hardened heart.
He shifted on his feet, uncomfortable in ways he hadn’t counted on when he’d fought coming here today. He’d discovered he and Molly had a common bond. The people closest to Hunter weren’t blood relatives, either. Lacey and Ty were people he’d been lucky enough to meet and now called family. Molly had spent a lifetime searching for a place to belong and she’d found it with her biological father, but it hadn’t stopped her from making a space for others in her heart. In fact, maybe finding her father, the reason she’d left Hunter behind, had helped her learn how to reach out to others.
“I should mingle, but you two go on and enjoy yourselves.” Lucinda’s voice interrupted his thoughts. “You can start by having some punch,” she said.
“What’s with the punch anyway?” Molly asked. “Why is everyone lined up for it?”
“Irwin Yaeger made it especially for me.” The older woman patted her freshly done hair as if she was primping for the unknown Irwin.
Hunter tried not to smile at the thought of Lucinda lusting for the man.
“Did you know that he was a bartender for years before his family urged him to give up his job and move in here? He’s got the touch. ” Lucinda nodded knowingly.
“In other words, he’s heavy-handed with the liquor?” Hunter asked.
“You catch on quick.”
Molly rolled her eyes at the other woman. “Well, any man who makes a punch just for you has very good taste.”
“As do you, by the way.” Lucinda eyed Hunter approvingly.
He actually felt himself flush under her gaze.
Suddenly Lucinda’s eyes opened wide and a flash of pure joy crossed her face. “There’s my family!” she said, her voice rising as she waved at the group entering the room.
“Go on.” Molly shoved her away.
“Okay then, I’ll catch up with you two later.” Lucinda took off in a flurry of excitement, leaving them standing near the crowded punch bowl. At some point they’d lost their place in the line.
Hunter turned to Molly, happy to have her to himself for a while.
Her blond hair framed her flushed face and it seemed she’d put her father’s troubles behind her, at least for now.
“Can I get you something to drink?” he asked.
“Soda would be great.” She treated him to a warm smile.
“What, no punch?” he asked, teasing her.
“I’m afraid to even try it, but something tells me this will be the most fun they’ll have until Christmas when Irwin spikes the eggnog.”
“So who is this Irwin guy anyway?”
Molly pinched the bridge of her nose. “He’s a resident here, too. He’s also a discipline problem.”
“A what?” Hunter asked, deciding he’d heard wrong.
Molly gestured to two open chairs and he followed her so they could sit and talk with no one overhearing. “Irwin is a nice man but he’s a discipline problem. He flashes the women as they walk down the hall and when they report him he claims not to remember doing it.”
Hunter burst out laughing. “I know it isn’t funny, but…it’s funny.”
She grinned. “I know. Just not when you’re on the receiving end. Unfortunately he’s been a juvenile since he was one. They’d throw him out but his family donated a whole wing just to guarantee they’d keep him here.” She crinkled her nose and shook her head. “Personally, I think he’s just lonely.”
“From the way Lucinda talked, she seems to like him.”
“I think he likes her, too.”
Hunter nodded. “Hold that thought. Let me get your drink and I’ll be back in a sec.”
He walked behind the table serving as a makeshift bar. He didn’t want to cause an uprising by cutting the line, so he leaned over the table. “Anyone want a soft drink?” he asked those waiting. “I’m pouring.”
The attendant shot him a grateful look, but unfortunately for him, they all seemed to want the punch.
“Can I help you?” Hunter asked.
The other man shook his head. “I’ve got it under control but thanks.”
Hunter poured Molly a Diet Coke and walked back to where she waited.
“That was nice of you, offering to help him.”
“It’s all about strategy. I knew they wanted punch.” He winked and held a plastic cup out for her to take.
She wrapped her hand around the cup and took a sip, then licked the cola mustache away with the tip of her tongue. He followed the movement, a rush of lust surging through his veins. It wasn’t the time or the place, but he didn’t care.
He scanned the room for a place to be alone and he found a nearby escape route. He noticed Lucinda dragging her relatives toward them from across the crowded room. “Come on,” he said to Molly, who’d yet to realize they had imminent company.
“Where?” Her eyes narrowed in confusion.
He stepped nearer, then eased the soda cup out of her hand. “Someplace where we can have a few minutes alone,” he said in rough voice.
One caused by the direct view of Molly’s cleavage-visible despite her efforts to dress in an understated way. Her breasts were full and rose enticingly over the lace-edged bra beneath her shirt.
Before she could argue, Hunter tugged on her hand and led her to the nearest door, placing the cup on the table as he passed. A moment later, he’d led them down a short, dark hallway into what appeared to be a storage closet, turning the lock shut behind him. He felt the wall closest to the door for a switch and hit the jackpot. A dim bulb flickered on, giving them enough light to see one another.
“Hunter?” Molly asked, her voice dropped to a husky note. She couldn’t possibly mistake his intent.
He edged closer, feeling the heat of her body envelop him. He inhaled her womanly scent and his muscles tightened with definite awareness. “I couldn’t stand around watching you lick the soda off your lips for a second longer. Not without wanting to help.”
He tilted his head and sealed his lips over hers. Hunter expected to have to coax her into submission; after all, he’d dragged her out of a party filled with people.
Before he could do more than begin his pleasurable mission by sweeping his tongue over the seam of her lips, tasting a combination of Diet Coke and Molly, she became the aggressor. The vixen. She thrust her tongue inside his mouth, dueling and tangling with his like she couldn’t get enough. Need coursed through him. He sank his fingers into her hair and tilted her head so he could get deeper, more thorough access to her luscious mouth, but it wasn’t enough.
She seemed to understand and want more, too. She edged her body closer, aligning her slender form against him. Her breasts, tight and pointy, pressed against his chest, and her hips molded to him with accurate precision. His penis hardened and grew, making its presence known.
Molly groaned in acknowledgment and pleasure, curling her fingers so her nails dug through his shirt into the skin beneath.
Hunter couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so hot so fast. And as her hips rolled in a sensual movement against his, he remembered his fantasy from when he’d laid eyes on her that morning.
Never breaking the kiss, he dropped his hands to his sides. Then he began to pull at the flowing material of her skirt, raising it higher and higher still, his fingers deliberately trailing a path up her silken legs as he finally pushed the material out of the way, his hands cupping her inner thighs.
He broke the kiss and glanced at her. Her lids were heavy, her lips parted and her breathing was ragged. His was none too steady either, need forcibly pummeling his body.
