Her words were simple, but they resonated. Hearing what Jordan thought of her, that what she did mattered, moved something powerful in Molly. She took a sip of champagne to allow the weight to settle. “Thank you,” she said, lifting her eyes to Jordan. “And I don’t quite know what to say after that.”

The small candle that sat between them flickered gently, and Jordan tilted her head to the side, biting her bottom lip in a move Molly found incredibly attractive. “Don’t say anything. Just know it’s true.”

They moved on to lighter topics then. The changing weather and the longer days. How much they looked forward to summer and the fireflies that would dance through the trees at night. And they laughed a lot. That was Molly’s favorite part about spending time with Jordan. They always had such fun together. Time seemed to fly by.

And it was easy. Just easy in the most wonderful way.

Later, they walked back to Jordan’s car leisurely, hand in hand. As they neared the car, Molly tugged Jordan’s hand bringing them to a stop. “Tonight was wonderful. Dinner. The conversation. And then there’s the fact that you look amazing.” She did too. When Jordan had knocked on her door earlier that evening, Molly had needed a moment to take her in. Dark jeans and an off red V-neck top that dipped just low enough, capped off with the standard boots, this time with a small heel. Not overly fancy, but killer when it was Jordan wearing it. Her mouth had gone dry at the sight.

Jordan stepped into her. “Then I hope you won’t mind if I do this.” She dipped her head and kissed Molly, a slow gentle kiss that left her skin tingling and alive.

“You kiss pretty good, Hotty McHotpants.”

“What did you just call me?” Jordan whispered against her mouth, the corners of her lips curving in amusement.

“You heard me,” Molly said, leaning in for more and sliding her arms around Jordan’s neck in the process. Yeah, this was a pretty good date, she thought lazily, as they kissed some more. Finally, she pulled back and looked into Jordan’s eyes. “Now take me home. There’s homemade Oreo ice cream.”

Jordan’s mouth fell open a little. “Sometimes when I think you can’t get any better, you somehow do. How did you know I like Oreo?”

“Everyone likes Oreo. It’s a law of nature.”

“I love nature.”

*

Back at Molly’s house, Jordan fed Rover while Molly scooped the ice cream. “He’s a happy little guy,” Jordan remarked as Rover sprang into action, doing laps around the tank as if he knew he had an audience.

“He’s a little obsessed with dinner time. A fish after my own heart, I’m afraid.”

“I like his fish spirit.”

Molly handed Jordan a bowl and made her way to the couch. She’d taken off her shoes and wore just the green print sundress that preoccupied Jordan all through dinner.

Molly slid her a look. “Stop all that grinning and come sit with me.”

“On my way and doing my best stern face.”

Molly laughed. “Oh, that’s much better. Well done on stern. Really.”

“Thanks. It’s one of my better looks. I added in a little sultry. I don’t know if you picked up the sultry.”

“Trust me. I did.”

But Jordan had to then switch gears because the ice cream she’d just tasted demanded her full attention. “Oh, my. Hello,” she said to the bowl as she sat.

“Yeah?” Molly asked. She was clearly intrigued by Jordan’s mystification and sat a little taller.

Jordan held up a hand and pointed at her bowl. “Can’t talk to you right now. Busy.” She went back to the ice cream because really she just wanted to experience it fully. It was heavier than store-bought and the vanilla tasted more full-bodied. The large chunks of Oreo seemed luxurious in comparison to the tiny pieces most brand names mixed in. Quite simply, it was heaven on a spoon. Five bites later, she turned to Molly.

“Sorry. We were bonding.”

“You and the ice cream?”

“Right. Ice cream bonding. It’s a thing.”

Molly scooted closer to Jordan, enjoying this. “So you like this ice cream?”

“I would lay down my life for this ice cream.”

“Wow. That’s an endorsement. If I ever decide to mass produce, I’ll have to put that quote on the carton.”

“With my picture please.”

“As long as you work for free. Funds are tight.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Well, I accept other forms of payment.”

“Yeah? Lucky me.”

Jordan looked at Molly, and there was that prickle of awareness that started low and crept up her spine whenever she was in close proximity to her. Her eyes dropped to Molly’s mouth just in time for Molly to take her bowl into the kitchen.

“No way,” she said as she passed. “I know that look, and there can be no getting naked tonight.”

Jordan stared after her. “What do you mean? You’ve already decided this? Not even a tiny getting naked chance? I don’t think we should take the chance off the table.”

“Uh-uh. This is a first date . What kind of girl do you think I am?”

“The kind who enjoys a really good first date?” Jordan’s laughter faded and she covered her mouth when she realized Molly wasn’t joining in. “Oh. You’re serious?”

“As a heart attack, movie person.”

And Jordan got that she truly was. “Okay. So we’ll just hang out. And not think about getting naked at all.”

Molly glared at her as she took her empty bowl back to the kitchen. “Stop saying naked . That adds a whole new level of difficulty.”

“You said naked first. I don’t want to point fingers, but—”

“Neither of us is allowed to say it anymore,” Molly practically yelled.

“Got it. Geez. No saying the forbidden word.”

Molly took her spot back on the couch across from Jordan and stared at her as if struggling. She lifted one shoulder weakly. “But you are pretty far away. Maybe there’s no rule against, you know, proximity.”

“Well, you seem to be way more into rules, so I trust your judgment. I vote you come here.” Jordan swung her legs onto the couch between them and lifted an arm for Molly, who slid beneath it perfectly. With Molly-of-the-amazing-sundress up against her fully, Jordan felt every erogenous zone she had come to life and some she didn’t realize existed.

But she could do this. She was an adult.

“So tell me about your last relationship?”

An interesting turn in conversation. “You want to hear about me and other women?”

“It’s not so much that I want to. But I think it’s important I fill in the gaps. Plus, it will keep me from thinking about…other things.”

“Forbidden words?” Molly tickled her ribs in punishment, forcing her to laugh and squirm. “Sorry. Right. Other relationships.” Jordan sighed and settled back in. “Not a lot to tell. Last real anything was with a woman who lived in my building. We went out a couple of times, and it became a little more about the hook-up. We didn’t have a lot in common, though I think she wanted to pretend we did. Made her feel less guilty about the whole thing.”

“That’s rough when there’s no real common ground. Is that the main thing you would change?”

“I guess. She also didn’t get my sense of humor. Could never pick up on when I was joking and when I wasn’t. It was a problem for me. What about you? What would you change?”

Jordan felt Molly tense in her arms, clearly uncomfortable at how the tables had been turned. “Oh, about me and Cassie?”

“Yeah.” Jordan knew she was treading on dangerous ground, but she also knew it was somewhere she had to go. Before answering, Molly pushed herself into a seated position, breaking all contact, her gaze on the wall. “Um. That’s a hard one. Maybe her deep-rooted obsession with the cap on the toothpaste?”

“Wow. That’s pretty generous of you. There’s really nothing ?”

“You know, I guess maybe there isn’t. I’m going to get some water.”

Jordan wanted to drop it there, badly she did. But she was up and following Molly before she could help herself, her frustration growing by the moment. Through it all, she understood Molly’s thought process. She understood why Molly needed to remember Cassie in the most favorable light possible.

Yet it simply wasn’t fair. It was stacking the deck against her.

“Why do you act like everything was perfect with Cassie? That she was?”

“Of course she wasn’t perfect. No one is. But what we had, it was more than what most people have. It was—”

“Incomparable apparently.” Okay, that sounded overly sarcastic.

Molly went still, the glass in her hand suspended as she scrutinized Jordan. “Whoa. What’s with the attitude?”

“Because you set up this wonderful ideal of a relationship which is, A. bullshit, and, B. impossible to compete with.” Okay, now they were off the tracks entirely and Jordan didn’t seem capable of reining herself in.

Molly stared at her hard, defensive. Angry. “Who the hell are you to judge? And why is it that you feel you have to compete?”

Jordan was too far in to stop. “Just look over your shoulder, Molly. There are three pictures of you guys looking young and in love on the refrigerator.”

“You want me to take the photos down?” It wasn’t the question itself that got to Jordan, but the way Molly said it, as if it was an illogical idea. It was infuriating.

“I don’t think you could handle it if I did.”

“Well, it’s not your call anyway.”

“I guess my question is will it ever be yours? Because I’m starting to wonder, Mol.”

Molly shook her head in mystification, taken aback. She looked incredibly uncomfortable. “I don’t think you understand what it is that you’re talking about at all and maybe we should just—”

“If I had asked you if you were free after work on Wednesday, what would you have said?”

“That I’m not. You know that Wednesday is—”

“Set aside for Cassie. As is a large part of your life, and probably part of your heart, and that’s not a pattern I see ending anytime soon. That’s the only point I’m trying to make here. She’ll always be a part of our past, Molly. She was important to both of us. We both loved her. And we both miss her. But does she have to be such a big part of our present?”

Molly’s eyes flashed. “The photos, the Wednesdays, they’re important to me. After everything, they’re all I have.”

“All you have. Ah, well, that certainly puts things in perspective. Thank you.”

“That’s not fair. You know that’s not what I meant.”

“Do I?”

“We’re talking about a relationship that took up half of my life. And this”—she gestured between them apathetically—“whatever the hell this is, should have at least earned me your patience in trying to sort it all out.”

The words Molly had just used to describe their relationship were telling, and she felt the effects of the blow all over. “Whatever the hell this is. Nicely put.”

Molly glared. “You know what? I don’t want to do this with you. You should go.”

It was a runaway train at this point, and Jordan couldn’t stop it. The fight had taken over and it felt like they were no longer in charge of it. She was angry. More than angry, because this is exactly what she knew would happen. “That would be your solution. Take the easy way out and avoid dealing with any kind of conflict. It’s what you do best, after all.”

“Says the girl who fled town for four years,” Molly bit out. “Take a harsh look in the mirror, Jordan. I don’t think you have a lot of ground when it comes to standing tall and dealing, do you?”

“Low blow.”

The look on Molly’s face was glacial at best. “Leave, Jordan. I don’t want you here. I don’t know how I can make that more clear to you.” Her voice was terrifyingly final. Jordan felt the blast of those words and something else too. Hurt. And it was far more devastating. She turned and headed for the door.

As she drove home, her mind replayed the argument over and over again. And while she was still worked up, she was also leveled by the way Molly had so easily dismissed their relationship. Who they’d become to each other. And now, it felt like it had all crumbled around her.

God, she hated that feeling.

But it was hard to stay pissed off when your heart was hurting the way Jordan’s was. What had started out as one of the best nights ever had spiraled into something she would give anything to undo.

She shouldn’t have pushed. Molly was right.

As she drove, it occurred to her that it was time to face some hard facts. If she and Molly couldn’t so much as have a conversation to work through some of the obstacles between them, well then, maybe it was better if they were done.

She sighed.

She could lie to herself quite well when she wanted to. It was one of her best talents.