To Win a Rebel

Chapter Four

Molly groaned as she rolled over, frowning as to what had woken her up. Glancing at the bedside clock, she saw it was only a little after seven, and it was a Sunday morning. Who could possibly be knocking at her door so early?

It wasn’t like she normally enjoyed such a long sleep-in, but today she intended to enjoy the time she had to bask in sleeping. Last night had been a lot to deal with and just the thought of the previous night had her sitting up.

She didn’t know if she could categorize her date with Nate as one of the worst or if it could even be called a date. They didn’t get to eat. After the kiss, Molly recalled blurting out, rather loudly, that if Randy was still around, he might have heard she was still a virgin.

Yes, she’d told Nate Sinclair, a guy she had a crush on for a very long time, that she’d never been intimate with another man. She had no experience, while she knew he had a ton of it. She’d never been so mortified in her life, so before she even gave him a chance to respond, she ran. She didn’t look back and this time, he didn’t chase her. She still wasn’t sure if she was happy with not being chased.

The banging at her front door came again, and she groaned. All she wanted to do was ignore it and pretend last night didn’t happen. She was more than capable of doing something like that, but only if the person banging at her door, disturbing her, would go away. There was no chance of that.

She threw her blanket off, not that she needed it, but she always loved to snuggle under a thick blanket, especially in the fall and winter. She stomped downstairs, very much aware of her small short set. A pair of tiny shorts that hit mid-thigh, as well as a vest top. It was the only way she was able to sleep under a thick blanket. She threw the door open without looking through the peephole, hoping to startle whoever was at her front door, only to scream and attempt to slam the door.

“What the fuck?” Nate asked.

She didn’t get the door closed in time, before he’d wedged his foot in and stopped her.

“What are you doing?” she asked, trying to get the words out through gritted teeth. She was so angry with him. “Damn it, Nate, let go.”

“Look, you want to be a child, I don’t care, but I let you run away last night and I shouldn’t have. We’re going to talk, and I’m not going anywhere until we do that.”

She wanted to scream at him, shout, but instead, she had no choice but to take a deep breath and step away from the door, even though it was the last thing she wanted to do. But she did, and gave him space to enter.

“I do think this is close to breaking and entering,” she said, hoping he would take the hint and leave.

Nate stopped. “I’ve been knocking at your front door for nearly ten minutes.”

She was going to argue with him, but then she saw the coffee cup in his hand, as well as a dangling bag of what looked like pastries.

“You brought breakfast?” she asked.

Molly didn’t want to panic because she’d come to answer the door, intent on giving whoever it was a piece of her mind. Not to face the guy who’d made her feel so embarrassed last night.

There was so much wrong about last night, she didn’t know which part was more mortifyin g— where he told her he knew she was an erotic author, or the virgin thing. Either one was bad.

“Yeah, I brought you breakfast. Coffee, with a small dash of cream, no sugar. By the way, Mandy told me to tell you the pumpkin special will be coming at the end of September.”

Molly groaned. She loved the pumpkin specials at the local coffee shop. She loved a good coffee, and they also did amazing baked goods. It was why she had refused to diet. Every time she promised herself she would diet and stick to it, it never happened. She always found a reason or excuse not to. That was a good coffee with cream, or a beautiful cinnamon swirled pastry, or anything with cinnamon on it. She wasn’t picky about what she liked, and right now she needed the distraction.

Nate held out the coffee to her. She tried to keep her distance because she’d not brushed her teeth. Opening the lid, she took a quick inhale and breathed a sigh of relief. It smelled so good. Better than good. It was amazing. Putting the lid back on, she took a sip, and yeah, it was a good coffee, and reminded her that dieting was a terrible idea.

“I also got you your favorite, or at least this is what Mandy said you loved while waiting for all her pumpkin treats.”

Molly knew it was rude not to invite him.

After enjoying a second sip and hoping it would hide her morning breath, she pointed toward her sitting room.

“Do you, uh, want to come and sit down?” She was very much aware of her lack of clothes as well. Today was not going well for her, not even a little bit.

“Yeah, I do. I think you and I need to talk.”

She didn’t see how talking could make any of this better, but she also wasn’t going to complain about the delicious coffee he’d gotten her. It was really good. Better than good.

So, she sat down in her living room and waited for more of the mortification to begin.

****

Nate knew he didn’t handle last night quite as well as he hoped.

Randy hadn’t been anywhere to hear them, and in fact, his best friend had texted him this morning and asked him how the night went. He’d always been a morning person, and one glance over at Molly, he wasn’t sure if she was.

In fact, Mandy at the coffee shop had been surprised she hadn’t seen Molly in quite some time.

He glanced over at her bed hair, and the cute pajamas she wore. She still looked sexy, and he couldn’t believe the truth she’d fired at him last night. It had been so unexpected, he’d not reacted in the right way. She was a grown woman, working for herself, and he knew she’d been on many disastrous dates.

“Just say what you’ve got to say and then leave,” Molly said. “I think you and I have said enough to each other to last a year.”

“What are you more pissed at?” he asked.

“What do you mean?”

“Me knowing you’re an author who writes erotic fiction, or the fact you’re a virgin?”

He glanced over to see her cringe.

“I don’t think any of it is a good thing.” She pressed her lips together, and he reached out, putting a hand on her knee. She tensed up, but didn’t attempt to push him away.

“You’ve got to stop,” he said.

She looked up at him. “I … do you have any idea how embarrassing this is?”

He knew she was about to try and make some escape and he couldn’t allow her to do that, so he quickly presented her with a cinnamon swirl. “Why don’t you take yours first?”

“Nate, I don’t think this is a good idea.”

“How about this, I’m not leaving without us talking this shit through first. You can hate me all you want, or whatever it is you’re feeling. I’m not going.”

“I don’t hate you. I … this is … do you have any idea what this is like?” she asked. He didn’t get chance to answer. “I know you’ve been with lots of women. They are always fawning all over you, and after you offered what you did last night, I panicked.”

“Why did you tell me you’re a virgin?” he asked.

She’d broken their kiss, and as he’d been trailing his lips down her neck, intent on getting to her pulse so he could learn every single inch of her body, she’d blurted it out, and he’d not expected it. Not even a little bit.

“Because … you’d offered what you did, and I don’t think it was right me … you know, not telling you.” She pressed her lips together. “I didn’t mean for it to be so … painful for either of us.”

He blew out a breath.

Nate hadn’t slept a whole lot. All of his thoughts had been dominated by Molly. Her virginity had taken him back a little. He’d never been with a virgin, but the truth was, he still wanted her, and he didn’t want any other man to have her.

Time was running out, and he knew if he didn’t act soon enough, she would be gone to him and that was not something he wanted to live with. It was hard enough seeing her on dates with other men. He knew he wasn’t going to be able to stand the thought of her with anyone else.

It wasn’t going to happen. Molly belonged to him, and yes, even that terrified him a little. He’d never wanted to possess any other woman, but Molly was different.

“This is not painful. This is not even a problem, Molly.” He stroked her thigh and watched as she swiped off a crumb of her cinnamon swirl, and all he wanted to do was kiss her lips.

“I’m not going to tell anyone what you’ve told me. This is between you and me, but I want you, Molly. I know this is going to take time, and I’m willing to work on it, the question is, what about you?”

Molly handed him back the package and he opened it, taking out his cinnamon swirl, and having a large bite. It really was a good pastry. “I don’t know what you want me to say,” she said.

“I want you to be honest with me.”

Molly sighed. “You know this is like something out of a book, right?” She laughed. “Is that what you’re doing?”

Nate smiled. “The men in your books get what they want, and they’re blunt about it. They don’t back away and they’re not cowards.”

He reached up and cupped her face. She didn’t pull away and Molly stared at him. “I cannot believe you’re using my own books against me.” She wrinkled her nose. “Do you even enjoy them?”

“Yeah, I do,” he said. “I’ve come to find, Molly Embers, that if you’re attached to it, or have anything to do with it, then I can’t not want it.”

She smiled. “Is that so?”

“Yeah, it is.”

She took a deep breath.

“So, what are you … offering?” She frowned. “I know I’m supposed to be an author, but words can be so hard at times.”

He smiled. This morning had been much more successful than he thought was possible.

First, she hadn’t run away screaming, nor had she called the cops, and he was still here, talking with her. Progress.

“Simple, you and me, we figure this out together. But to be clear, I want you, Molly. I want to fuck you and play with you, and now I want to show you what a real hero can do to his woman. Not something you’ve potentially watched on a porn channel, or made up.” He grabbed her hand and placed it against his chest. “You’ll get me, and I am all man.”