“Fine. But I mean other stuff too. If you’re unhappy in London—”
“Why would I be unhappy?”
“Maybe you’re lonely.” Dory gave her a half smile. “I know I was, when I first got to New York. But it got better.”
“Of course it did! You met Lucas. And his crazy but crazy-rich family.”
“Anyway,” Dory said, dragging them back on track. “You can talk to me. If you need to. That’s all I wanted to say.”
“Okay.” Molly knew she wouldn’t take her sister up on the offer – admitting all her failings to her perfect sister? Not a fun way to spend the holidays – but it was still nice to know she was there. “Now, come on. We have a snowman to build!”
The veg was all peeled, the wrapping paper tidied away, and the house still littered with presents. The turkey was in the oven, Dad was having a nap and Mum was reading her new book in between dealing with dinner, so the rest of them had been kicked out into the snow like troublesome children.
Well, actually the going outside part had been Tim’s idea.
“I got it!” Tim announced proudly, brandishing a large carrot overhead. “She never even noticed.”
Molly had a suspicion that her ever-organised mother had bought the carrot with this very eventuality in mind. It looked far too much like the perfect snowman nose to be eaten with dinner.
Outside, Lucas and Jake were deep in conversation. Molly flashed a suspicious look at Dory. Had her sister asked Lucas to talk with him? And if so, what about? But if anything, Dory looked even more suspicious.
Since when had Christmas Day involved so much secrecy?
“When was the last time we built a snowman?” Tim packed snow tightly between his hands until he had the perfect ball.
“Last time it snowed at Christmas, I guess.” Bending down, Dory began sifting through the snow on the patio to find perfect stones for the eyes.
Tim began rolling his snowball through the fresh white powder, building it up to snowman body size. “Molly, you do the head?”
Nodding, she grabbed a handful of snow herself, carefully shaping it. But before she could roll it, temptation overtook her.
“Ow!” Tim looked up and glared as she scored a perfect hit on his arse. As he scooped up snow to retaliate, Molly ran for cover behind the first suitable object she saw. Which just happened to be Jake.
As snowballs pelted them, Jake turned to wrap his arms around her waist and lifted her off the ground, striding towards the end of the garden and the shelter of the rhododendron bushes.
“Us against them?” Molly asked, breathless, as Jake began lobbing snowballs back over the bushes. A shriek suggested he’d hit Dory rather than Tim.
“Looks like it.” Jake’s gaze locked with hers and Molly forgot all about the snowballs landing harmlessly around them. “That okay with you?”
Molly bit her lip. “I think I can handle it,” she said, but the way her breath caught at the words betrayed her doubt. Hell, she didn’t even know what she was trying to handle. A one-night stand had seemed like the limits of her options, but all of a sudden she had a snowflake bracelet and Jake looking at her like he might kiss her again, right here behind Dad’s prize rhododendrons, and not give a damn who caught them.
“So do I.” Jake’s voice was warm, and Molly knew instinctively that he wasn’t talking about himself. He believed that she could handle it, even though he had to know she hadn’t got a clue what it was.
It didn’t matter because he had faith in her.
And that meant the world.
-
Another snowball flew over the bushes and landed smack between them on the ground. Molly scrambled to grab it, add a little snow and toss it back. This time there was a manly yelp from Lucas. Jake had to admit, the girl had great aim.
“Hey, what were you and Lucas talking about before?” Molly asked as she gathered more snow. “Dory looked very suspicious.”
Jake chuckled. “She should. That guy has plans.”
“What sort of plans?” Molly pestered, sounding more like her twelve-year-old little sister self than she had for a while. He’d almost forgotten how much she hated not knowing everything.
“You’ll have to wait until after dinner to find out.” Jake tossed another snowball out, and responded to Tim’s latest jibe with the sort of language he wouldn’t want Philippa hearing.
“Dinner’s hours away,” Molly whined. “Just tell me.”
“Patience is a virtue.” He couldn’t help himself. She was just so much fun to tease.
“I’ve been patient for almost a year now,” Molly muttered, probably to herself. But Jake heard, and the thought froze him halfway through preparing his next snowball.
“Yeah?”
She rolled her eyes. “What do you think? I haven’t seen you since last New Year.”
“Yes, but…” Did she mean she’d been thinking about him all year, the way he’d been thinking about her? Or did she mean she hadn’t been with anyone else since? Or even both?
She fixed him with a level gaze. “You’re not that easy to get out of the system, it turns out.”
“Neither are you,” he admitted. It wasn’t quite a full confession – she didn’t need to know how many work hours had been lost to daydreaming about what might have happened if Tim hadn’t walked in when he had. Especially since most of them had been followed up by mental chastisement, knowing that it was for the best that they’d been interrupted, or they might have done something they’d both regret.
But things were different now. One way or another, if he got Molly alone again, Jake was certain he’d never regret it.
And he’d make sure she didn’t either.
Chapter 14
By the time they’d called a ceasefire, finished Tim’s snowman, and all retreated back inside, it was almost time for Christmas lunch – and Molly was still thinking about Jake. In fact, it seemed like that might be a permanent situation – at least until she found a way to get him out of her system.
She had a list of great ideas for that, just as soon as the opportunity presented itself.
Molly changed out of her soggy jeans and sweater and, in a fit of festive optimism, slipped into some of the lacy lingerie she’d packed. Just in case.
Of course, she couldn’t be too obvious. So she pulled out the deep red knitted dress her parents had bought her for Christmas and tugged it over her head, pairing it with some thick black tights. Perfectly Christmassy and respectable. No one would guess a thing.
Except, hopefully, Jake.
And with that thought, she skipped down for lunch.
Three courses later, Molly was stuffed. As her dad loaded the dishwasher, she made a mental promise to clear up every day between Boxing Day and New Year, just as long as she didn’t have to move from the table for at least an hour.
“Well. I think this has been a highly successful Christmas.” Philippa leant back in her chair, surveying the remains of the Christmas pudding. “Fifteen sorts of mince pie, some lovely presents, and a lovely lunch.”
“And it’s not over yet,” Dory pointed out. “We’ve still got the Doctor Who Christmas Special to watch.”
“Actually, before that, I’ve got one more present to give you.” Lucas got to his feet and held out a hand to Dory. Molly looked for Jake, but he’d disappeared.
This must be what he’d meant when he said she’d find out after dinner.
They all followed Lucas and Dory back through to the lounge, curiosity outweighing the need to digest. Molly stopped at the doorway and smiled. Jake stood by the tree, holding Tim’s iPod speakers. As he pressed play, the sound of Wham!’s Last Christmas started playing.
Dory raised her eyebrows at Lucas. “Is this supposed to be a musical clue?”
Smiling, Lucas dropped down to one knee, and Molly gasped. “This might be a better clue.”
Eyes wide and one hand at her mouth, Dory nodded.
“I have no idea why you like this song,” Lucas sta
rted, and Dory laughed. “It’s not romantic, and George Michael has really weird hair in the video. But you love it, and the thing is… last Christmas, you changed my life. You took all the things that were screwing me up and you, I don’t know. Made them not matter any more, I guess. You showed me what I really wanted – needed, even. And it turns out, what I need most in my life, is you.”
Molly caught Jake’s eye, and knew he was thinking the same thing she was – that their own last Christmas story didn’t have quite so romantic an ending.
Maybe she could change that tonight.
“I wanted to ask you this question here, with your family, on your favourite day of the year,” Lucas went on. “Partly because I figured you might have had enough wine at lunch to actually say yes, but mostly because… this is who you are. This family made you the woman I love more than anything.”
Behind her, Molly heard her mum sniff. Mum loved Lucas. She loved Jake too, of course, but in a different way. Molly looked down at the bracelet on her wrist. What would Mum say if she and Jake suddenly stopped sneaking around and kissed in front of everyone?
Actually, never mind Mum. What the hell would Dad do?
“Dorothea Mackenzie. Will you do me the incredible honour of being my wife?”