Chapter 5
Chapter Five
It was dark by the time Rory let himself in the front door.
The house wasn’t much, but it was in a good neighborhood.
The corner lot was large, it had a big garage and there was room to grow.
Instead of throwing his money away on rent, he bought the house intending to fix it up as he went along.
So far not much of that had happened. If he wasn’t at work, he was at his parents or another family member’s home helping them with their projects.
It didn’t bother him. He didn’t need much; a recliner in front of his big screen TV, a fridge, a microwave and a coffee pot.
Now that he looked around, this wasn’t such a great place to bring Tess, he realized as he hung up his leather jacket in his closet.
The bedroom dresser and nightstand were hand-me-downs from his mother, but the king-sized bed was relatively new.
He had a tiny kitchen table and a stove that he’d never used that he could recall.
He didn’t know where Tess was, but he would definitely have to do some renovating if he planned on her living with him.
Of course, Tess wasn’t your typical woman.
She didn’t seem to need all the frou-frous that other women set such store by, or maybe she did, but had never been able to afford them.
He would have to give it more thought. But first he had to find her.
Picking up the phone, he dialed Patrick.
“Hello?”
“Yeah, Pat, is Molly around?”
“She is, but she’s in the shower. Anything I can help you with?” “Not unless you know where Tess is. Any clue?”
“Not really, bro, I haven’t been able to really talk to her.
Let me see what I can find out after the boys go to bed.
I’ll get back to you,” Patrick promised.
This wasn’t something he wanted to get in the middle of, but if his Molly was missing he would go berserk.
If he could help his brother, he had to do it.
“Okay, I’ll be up late so call me if you find out anything. Thanks, Pat,” he sighed.
“No problem, Rory. Later.”
* * *
Patrick straightened up downstairs, picking up and packing lunches for morning before heading upstairs to tell the boys goodnight.
Going down to the kitchen he made Molly a cup of her favorite tea and carried it into the living room.
He fluffed the pillows on the couch, and waited by the stairs.
The bells around her ankle told him she was out of the shower and moving to the bedroom.
When ten minutes went by and she didn’t come down, he called softly up the stairway.
“Molly, what are you doing?”
Molly appeared at the top of the stairs, stretched and yawned. “I’m tired, honey. I thought we’d go to bed early tonight,” she told him hopefully.
One look at her nightgown and Patrick had to turn his head to hide his grin.
Oh, yeah, virginal white. The one that made her look about sixteen.
Her long white cotton gown swept the floor.
Long sleeved with ruffled lace around the wrist, tiny white flowers decorated the bodice.
Yup, that’s the one he thought, the one that’s supposed to make me feel like an ogre.
Patrick turned, it was almost impossible not to laugh out loud.
“I’ve made you tea, Molly,” he called over his shoulder. He headed to the couch, sat down and crossed one ankle over his knee. Quickly he turned the lamp on the end table down hoping she wouldn’t notice his smile in the dim light.
Molly came slowly down the stairs, her little bare toes peeking from beneath the nightgown. Her bells jingled softly. Her glorious white blonde hair flowed down her back and her big blue eyes took on an innocence he’d seen before. All in all, she was heartbreakingly lovely.
Gliding to the coffee table, Molly picked up her teacup and took a sip.
“Come here, sprite,” Patrick commanded softly, reaching out one hand to her and patting his lap with the other.
Shit, shit, shit, Molly thought as she slowly obeyed. Seating herself on his lap she prepared for the worst, but he only gathered her close and kissed the top of her head.
Patrick inhaled her fragrance and sighed in pleasure. As he cuddled her delicate body, it was hard to believe that inside her beautiful head, she had a mind like a steel trap.
“So,” Patrick began, torn between questioning her and kissing her behind her tiny ear. “Where did you go with Tess? The second time you left the house. The time she was carrying the duffle bag?” he added meaningfully.
“We went back to the store. Tess forgot something,” Molly replied, trying to be as honest as she could.
“What did she forget?” Patrick asked, his hot breath sending shivers through her as he nibbled on her ear.
“Um … a cell phone, she wanted to go back and pick up one of those prepaid phones,” she whispered. “Please, Patrick, aren’t you ready to go to bed?
“Soon, my love, soon,” he replied, his lip sliding down the side of her neck.
You are so not playing fair, Molly thought, as she struggled not to melt into a puddle on his lap.
“Why would she need that, sweetness?” he continued, as his hand began to undo the tiny pearl buttons at the top of her gown.
“For an emergency,” Molly panted.
“Is Tess at Maggie’s?” Patrick asked. “It won’t do her much good, Nick and Maggie will be home in a couple of days.”
No,” moaned Molly as he slid his hand inside the top of the gown and gently cupped her full breast. There was no way she would be able to string two thoughts together if he kept this up.
“You want me to stop?” he asked, his lips barely touching hers, his breath scorching her.
“Yes,” she sighed in relief.
“Stop touching you?” Patrick asked with a grin just before he bent his head and circled her pink nipple with his tongue.
“No,” Molly cried out frantically. “God, no, stop questioning me. Isn’t it time for bed?”
“Okay, baby doll, one more,” he promised before he pulled her taut nipple into his mouth and sucked. Swirling his tongue around it until she trembled so hard her bells were ringing.
Patrick realized he had to stop soon. He was so hard he’d probably have teeth marks from his zipper.
“Did you by any chance tell Tess she could stay in the apartment over the pub for free, darlin’? I know she’s pretty broke and you’re so soft-hearted, baby.”
Molly slid her tapered fingers into his hair and brought him tighter to her breast. Hot and wet, with need so strong she could feel it racing through her veins, it was hard to think. Did she? Is that what she did?
“No. Oh God, honey. Please say it’s time to go upstairs,” she begged as his hand moved down her stomach and began to inch her nightgown higher. Finally, Patrick gently pushed her thighs apart and cupped her heat.
“Oh, yeah it is,” he growled after he released her nipple and slammed his lips over hers until he could barely breathe.
Standing with her in his arms he carried her upstairs and tossed her lightly on the bed.
Emptying his pockets, he tossed his wallet, keys and cell phone on the dresser, and stripped his jeans off like a man possessed.
The phone reminded him of his brother waiting for his call and he snagged it up and headed to the bathroom hitting speed dial.
“Rory, sorry, bud, I couldn’t get a thing out of her,” he whispered. “I’ll try again tomorrow, gotta go.” Grinning like a fool he quickly brushed his teeth and ran back to the bedroom, flinging the cellphone in the general direction of the dresser.
* * *
Rory slammed the phone down with a bang.
Damn. Where the hell was she? He hoped wherever it was, she was safe.
Tess didn’t have the greatest self-preservation skills.
For a moment he thought about checking the park, but even she couldn’t be that foolish.
In the morning, he would have a lot more tools at his disposal, including the eyes of every guy on patrol.
He couldn’t even call in a missing person report because she’d only been gone for a few hours.
Well, he could if he wanted to be laughed right out of the department.
In fact, she wasn’t missing, she was hiding.
Thinking back over the weekend, he realized he’d had better ones, that was for sure.
He grabbed a beer from the fridge and sought out his chair.
Despite what his mother thought, Rory didn’t think it was the spanking that scared her away.
She’d clearly been shocked this morning when he made her climax twice in his arms, and it would have been more if she hadn’t surrendered. Maybe that was the problem.
Tess kept herself in a tight little ball, like a puppy that’d been slapped down too many times.
She always seemed to be afraid of offending someone, or hurting another’s feelings.
Well, maybe not his, but everyone else’s.
Most of the time she had no problem telling him what she thought, so why did she run today?
He’d made it clear to her that they had things to talk about.
Apparently, she didn’t feel like talking.
The spanking had been relatively mild. He didn’t beat her for Christ’s sake, just given her a hot little bottom to remind her who was in charge.
Now he was in charge of exactly no one. Tomorrow he would find her and set her straight.
* * *
Molly lay quietly in Patrick’s arms and listened to his soft snoring.
She’d managed to get through another skirmish without lying, thank goodness.
It wasn’t her intention to deceive her husband; she just wanted to give Tess a little breathing space.
Letting her stay in the apartment over The Rose and Thistle, the pub she and Patrick inherited from her grandparents, wasn’t a hardship.
With her brother, Connor, serving in the Middle East, no one ever went up there.
A Navy Seal, Connor only stayed there when he was in town, which wasn’t often.
It would be months before she saw him again and she thanked her lucky stars that although she couldn’t see him and didn’t know what he was actually doing, she could sense he was safe.
Her gift was both a blessing and a curse.
It seemed that the times she needed it the most, it wasn’t there.
Tonight, when she realized it was going to turn into a Q a big no-no as far as Patrick was concerned.
She had no desire to find herself across his knees and she almost never got a warning.
But let someone else she cared about have a problem and there it was in full color in her mind.
Embarrassing! Ugh! Many times, she’d seen things not meant for public viewing.
Thank heavens she was able to block it if she concentrated hard enough.
Tess had been going to leave today regardless.
Things between her and Rory were getting very intense and she was having a hard time coping.
After being alone for so long it was amazing that Tess had been able to fit in as well as she had at the O’Malley’s.
They were a big family who loved hard, played hard and fought hard.
They could be overwhelming. All the men had dominant natures, believing they were the natural leaders.
As husbands they were benevolent care takers, loving, but firm.
Even the Kord men, Mason and Nick, shared their outlook.
Friends since childhood, it was as though they’d all taken a bite of the same poison apple, Molly thought fancifully.
Not all women were suitable mates. A weak woman would turn into a pitiful mess and it would not be a happy union for either of them.
What most people did not understand was that a strong woman became stronger with a man like that.
He always had your back, right or wrong.
These men never gave up, never! They would woo you, win you and take you.
It wasn’t about the chase, because once they had your heart, they would never give you up.
It meant forever, and as a woman you’d better be prepared for that.
Molly wasn’t sure about Tess. Tess was falling for Rory, hard.
There was a spark between them, but as of yet Rory hadn’t fanned it into a flame.
In the last few months, Tess had changed.
The quiet withdrawn little person she’d been when she first came to the O’Malley's home had become stronger. She could fight now, stand her ground more often, but could she go toe to toe with Rory? Tess wasn’t sure.
Rory was probably the most dominant of all the men.
Molly would not throw her friend under the steamroller until she was sure she could survive.
If it took a little time for her to be sure, Molly would help her get that time.
At least until Patrick found out. Molly would take a spanking or two for her friend if she had too, but she would not hurt Patrick’s heart or damage his faith in her.
If it came to that, Tess was on her own.