One Night with her Bachelor(21)

And escape with his manhood intact.

She finally turned and noticed him. Excusing herself from Buck, she walked over and one of his questions was answered—deep V-neck and one of those necklaces that had several strands of small beads, drawing his gaze to her otherwise bare upper chest. The spit dried from his mouth. He wanted her so badly he was ready to swipe his arm across the nearest table and toss her onto it.

You’re such a romantic.

Molly deserved a hell of a lot better than a broken guy like him.

“Gabriel.”

“Hey, Molly.”

She gave him a soft smile. It looked like it hurt her, like it didn’t come naturally anymore. What would he do to make it her lips’ default position again?

Anything.

Lily let out a long breath, her brows shooting up her forehead. “Hooo, look at the time. I better go see if the rest of the meat has arrived yet.”

And then she slipped away into the crowd.

Molly scrunched up her face apologetically. “Thank you for doing this. It wasn’t my idea at all—”

“I know. Lily explained.”

She took a deep breath. “I’ve gone over this moment a million times in my head—what I would say to you, all the things I want to tell you. They flew away as soon as I saw you.”

He so badly wanted to grab her hands and give them a gentle squeeze. He shoved his fists into his jeans pockets instead. “It’s okay. I got your letter.”

He’d kept it, tacked it up next to his bed so it was the first and last thing he saw every day.

She looked embarrassed. “I wish I could’ve put it into words better. And then all the gas, the ramp… Gabriel, I can’t thank you enough.”

“It’s okay,” he repeated. “I wanted to do those things.” They’d given him purpose, something to do. If he’d been brave enough to face her, he could’ve found out about her money problems earlier and tried to help with those, too.

She swallowed hard, her gaze never leaving his. “I haven’t been allowed to see the menu. What are you offering?”

“Menu?”

Her lips twitched again. “Josh put together a menu of the dates you guys are selling. What’s yours?”

“Before I tell you, do you know what the other guys are offering?”

“I’ve heard rumors floating around the room. A day of skiing, a helicopter ride, a house cleaner for a day…”

“Helicopter?” Damn. His date sucked.

She laughed, and his heart stuttered. “The house cleaner was the one I would’ve gone for, if I could bid. I’m sure there aren’t any rules against you bidding, though, if you really want that helicopter ride.”

“Baby, my helicopter days are behind me.”

Her face fell as she probably remembered why. “Yeah. Makes sense.”

He could’ve punched himself for reminding her of Scott’s death. Tonight was a night for partying, for celebrating the fact Josh was alive and maybe not kicking but still being himself. It was a night to make sure Molly got what she needed to help her raise him right.

Lily swept back over to them, her hand briefly drifting across his arm as she passed. “I need all bachelors upstairs pronto. Sorry, Mol.”

Upstairs. Shit. He hated stairs. He jerked his head to show he’d heard, but his dread ratcheted up.

Molly plastered another uncomfortable-looking smile on her face. “Good luck, Gabriel. I’ve also heard rumors that there’s a lot of interest in you.”

He drew back in surprise. “In me? Why?”

“Might have something to do with me telling everyone what a hero you are.”

Jesus, she shouldn’t say things like that. It made him feel like such a fraud. How could he be a hero when it took a monumental effort just to wash himself? What was heroic about avoiding human contact, especially during daylight hours because everyone was rushing around, going to their jobs, taking care of their families and serving a purpose?

He averted his gaze. “I’d better go. Good luck to you, too. If—”

If you need something, let me know. But he knew she wouldn’t, even if he made it easier for people to contact him. He would have to rely on snippets of conversation he heard on his weekly trips to town and on his own intuition of what she might need. He didn’t try to come up with a different ending to his sentence. He just let it dangle as he walked to the stairs, laid his hand on the banister and tried to make his ascent look casual rather than careful.

Grey’s had been an institution in Marietta since the nineteenth century. Generations of Mariettans—including Gabriel—had had their first legal drink here. Their first bar fight. Their last bar fight. Tonight, a second bar had been set up in the overflow area upstairs. Rumor had it the rooms up here had been used by Old West prostitutes to entertain miners, cowboys, and gunslingers. Tonight, Gabriel joined Lily’s other suckers on a balcony overlooking the stage below. He introduced himself, noting the men’s varying reactions to being offered up as slabs of man meat. Some watched the crowd with quiet confidence. Others with annoyance, as if they still couldn’t believe they’d agreed to this. At least one was an out-of-towner, and Gabriel gave him extra points for putting his body on the line for a stranger and her son.

These men were his competition, and the familiar mantra echoed in his head: Never quit. There could only be so much money in the room tonight, and he was near the end of the auction order. He would do whatever it took to avoid bringing in the least amount.