Letters to Molly (Maysen Jar, #2)(86)

My eyes flicked to Molly. Her chin dropped as she tried to hide a smile. Nailed it.

“Okay.” The waitress collected the menus. “I’ll get this going.”

“Cheers.” Molly raised her beer glass.

I nodded, clinking the rim of mine to hers before taking a drink. “What are you doing next Saturday night?”

“Uh, nothing. Hanging out with the kids. Why?”

“I was wondering if I could take you to a movie.”

“Trying to lock in another date already?” she teased. “That’s risky. What if this one turns into a disaster?”

“As long as I get to spend time with you, it’ll never be a disaster.”

She blushed again and added an eye roll. “Laying it on awfully thick tonight.”

“Isn’t courting all about the man doling out these gushing compliments to woo his woman?”

Her eyebrows came together as she studied me for a moment. “You’re courting me?”

“I’m trying.”

“I, um . . .” She swallowed hard. “Oh.”

We sat in silence for a few moments, sipping our beers, until she said, “Yes. I’d love to go to a movie.”

“Darling, the pleasure will be all mine.”

“I’ll ask Poppy if they can take the kids.”

“Already did. She’s in.”

Molly fought a smile then glanced over at the corner booth on the opposite side of the room. “I haven’t been here in years. Not since . . .”

Not since Jamie had been killed.

“Me neither.” There were quite a few places in Bozeman that I’d stopped going to simply because the memories with Jamie were imprinted into the walls. Burger Bob’s was one of them. It had been a favorite hangout for all of us in college. We often found ourselves here for a late-night burger and some laughs.

But it was time to put those ghosts to rest too. It was another reason I’d chosen this place for our date. I wanted Molly to see that his death wasn’t going to plague me. Not anymore.

“It’s not as hard as I thought it would be,” she said. “It’s bittersweet. I’ll always miss Jamie. But I can’t imagine a life without Cole.”

“I feel the same. I think it took a long time for me to realize it wasn’t this or that. It’s and. We had Jamie. And we have Cole.”

“Cole.” Molly frowned. “I got a parking ticket the other day when my meter ran out, and he wouldn’t fix it for me. Asshole.”

We both laughed and conversation turned easy. For hours. We didn’t talk about the kids or work. We just talked about life. What TV shows I’d been watching. Molly told me about a book she’d recently read. When our dinners came, we ate, chewing fast so we could talk some more.

“I’m so full.” Molly sighed. Her plate had the last few remains of her burger and a few uneaten fries. “That was delicious.”

“Would you like dessert?”

She shook her head. “No, thanks. I have no room.”

“Okay.” I glanced over my shoulder, getting the waitress’s attention for the check. The restaurant was busy, even for a Sunday.

“I’m going to use the restroom before we go,” Molly said then ventured to the back of the room as the waitress came over to take my credit card and to clear away the dishes.

I studied the table, its dents and dings, smiling at how the evening had gone. It was the best date we’d had, with the exception of the first. And I wanted more. A lot more. A lifetime of more.

“Finn?” I looked up from the table, surprised to hear Bridget’s voice. “Hey.”

“Hey.” I smiled. “What are you up to?”

“Raylene and I were just grabbing some dinner.” She held up a finger to her friend, who went in search for a table while Bridget came over to mine. “Are you just getting here? You can join us.”

“About to head out, actually.”

“I didn’t know you were going to eat alone. You should have called me. I would have met you for dinner.”

“Oh, no.” I shook my head. “I’m not alone.”

Bridget’s smile fell and the slightest wince pulled at her cheeks. Her eyes darted away too.

A reaction that made my cheeseburger churn.

When we’d had our big blowup, Molly had said Bridget was in love with me. I hadn’t thought much about it since because emotions had been running high that day. There had been many more important things in that fight to focus on than my employee.

But had Molly been right? Was Bridget in love with me?

My mind raced as I thought back to all the times the two women had been together. Even in the beginning, Bridget had never really warmed to Molly. Not that they’d worked together much. I’d taken Bridget under my wing, and in those early days, we’d been together from clock-in to clock-out.

There’d been times in more recent years when a girlfriend of mine would stop by Alcott. Brenna used to come down and bring lunch on occasion. I couldn’t recall if Bridget had even said hello.

Oh, fuck.

Molly was right. I’d been blind.

“Finn?” Bridget touched my arm. “Are you okay?”

“Excuse me.” Molly cleared her throat.