Carole Mortimer - Mistletoe Magic

The real reason for her abrupt departure.

‘I know that, but—Sam, talk some sense into Molly.’ She turned to plead with her husband as he strolled in from walking Merlin. ‘She says she’s leaving today,’ Crys told him frustratedly.

Molly could feel the blush in her cheeks as Sam paused in discarding his jacket to look at her with obvious surprise. But surely he more than anyone should realise that she simply couldn’t stay on here another moment longer?

‘Really?’ her stepbrother murmured slowly.

‘Really,’ Crys echoed impatiently. ‘Talk to her, Sam,’ she encouraged forcefully.

Molly wasn’t happy at breaking up everyone’s Christmas like this, and was aware of how hard Crys had worked towards it, but at the same time she knew that the increasing tension between herself and Gideon was going to ruin it all anyway if something wasn’t done to stop it. The only option appeared to be to remove one of the protagonists. And, as she doubted Gideon intended going anywhere, that only left her to be the one to make the move…

‘Molly?’ Sam prompted quietly.

‘Sam, you know why I want to leave,’ she told him exasperatedly.

‘No,’ he said slowly. ‘I don’t think I do. Crys, darling—’ he turned to her smilingly ‘—would you mind if I just took Molly into my study with me for a while?’

‘If you can persuade her into staying on you can keep her in there all day,’ Crys assured him. ‘In fact, if you can’t persuade her, lock her in there until she agrees to stay.’

Sam chuckled ruefully, and even Molly had to smile at her friend’s obvious frustration with her decision to leave today.

But there was nothing Sam could say to her that was going to make her change her mind…

‘Is someone leaving?’ Gideon questioned sharply as he walked into the kitchen.

Molly stiffened at the first sound of his voice, her expression guarded as she turned to look at him. ‘I am,’ she told him with determination.

Blue eyes looked at her calmly for several long seconds. ‘Rather ungrateful of you, isn’t it?’ he finally murmured coolly. ‘After all Sam and Crys have tried to do for us.’

She could feel the heat in her cheeks at this unmistakable reprimand. But he must know why she couldn’t stay on here any longer.

‘Don’t give that another thought, Gideon,’ Crys assured him. ‘It’s been a pleasure having you all here. It’s just…’ She grimaced. ‘Sam is going to try to talk her into changing her mind,’ she added confidently.

Molly wished they would all just let her leave and stop making such a fuss about it. After all, Sam at least knew exactly why she wanted to leave.

‘Let me talk to her,’ Gideon soothed.

That really was going too far.

‘I don’t think so, thanks,’ she bit out disgustedly. He was the last person she wanted to talk to—the last person who could possibly persuade her into staying on here another day.

‘Sam—’ Gideon completely ignored her protest as he turned to the other man. ‘—I heard Peter stirring as I came down just now. And as Crys is busy preparing lunch… Come on, Molly.’ He took a firm hold of her arm and practically marched her out of the room.

Molly tried to free herself. ‘What do you think you’re doing?’

‘What do you think you’re doing?’ Gideon came back grimly, maintaining that grip of her arm. ‘Stop fighting me, Molly; you’ll only end up hurting yourself,’ he advised coldly.

‘As opposed to you hurting me?’ she accused heatedly, not giving up on trying to pry his fingers from her arm. Not succeeding, either. But that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to keep trying.

Gideon came to an abrupt halt, turning her to face him in the hallway. ‘Me?’ he repeated harshly. ‘What the hell have I done to hurt you?’ he demanded impatiently.

Kissed her until her head spun. Made love to her. Made her fall in love with him.

She was breathing hard in her agitation. ‘I have absolutely nothing to say to you—’

‘Too bad—because I have a few things I want to say to you!’ he ground out, pulling her into the sitting-room and finally releasing her as he closed the door firmly behind them.

The room where they had almost made love. The sofa where they had been so close. Too close.

Molly turned her back on the sofa, on those disturbing memories, glaring up at Gideon. ‘Say away!’ she challenged, her chin held defensively high.

Gideon looked down at her exasperatedly for several seconds, and then he gave an impatient shake of his head. ‘You are, without doubt, the most stubborn person—’

‘It takes one to know one.’ Molly scorned.

‘Doesn’t it just?’ he accepted ruefully, moving away to thrust his hands into his pockets. ‘Molly, I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to leave here just now—’

‘Surprise, surprise—I don’t care what you think!’ she told him incredulously.

His mouth twisted humourlessly. ‘Do you think I don’t already know that?’

Her eyes widened. ‘Then why—?’

‘Molly, there’s something…’ He paused, sighing exasperatedly at the situation. ‘I really would rather not explain at this juncture.’ He shook his head.

‘Because there’s nothing to explain,’ Molly assured him scornfully. ‘I already know you made a mistake kissing me the other night.’

‘Is that what you think this is all about?’ His eyes were narrowed to glittering blue slits, a nerve pulsing in his tightly clenched jaw.

‘What else?’ she said derisively. ‘But you really don’t have to worry about the other night, Gideon. I can assure you that I, for one, would much rather forget that it had ever happened at all!’ She was breathing hard in her agitation.

‘Do you think I don’t know that?’ Gideon drew in a sharp breath. ‘You’ve made that all too damned obvious by the way you’ve been avoiding my company ever since,’ he ground out accusingly.

‘What did you want me to do?’ Molly scorned. ‘Fall all over you like some lovesick idiot?’

Again he gave that humourless smile. ‘That would be asking too much.’

‘Too right it would!’ Her vehemence was all the deeper because that was exactly what she would rather have done.

It was what she wanted to do now…

Looking at him, being with him, brought home to her how much she loved this man, how much she wanted to throw herself into his arms and have him tell her that it was all right, that he was in love with her, too.

But she had stopped believing in fairy tales a long time ago, and was well aware that Gideon didn’t love her. Oh, he might find her desirable—after the other night he really couldn’t deny that—but it was against his own wishes to feel that way, was something he fought against all the time. And most of the time he succeeded…

‘Okay.’ He gave a heavy sigh. ‘I accept that you want as little to do with me as possible. But do you have to leave to achieve that? I thought we had been managing to avoid each other quite well the last twenty-four hours?’

Oh, they had. She had. And so, from his comment just now, had Gideon. She just wasn’t sure how much longer she could keep up this bravado, pretend not to give a damn.

But would she love Gideon any less for being alone in London? The answer to that was a definite no.

‘I don’t want to stay on here.’ But even as she said it she knew her voice lacked the conviction it had had a few minutes ago.

‘That isn’t true, and you know it.’ Gideon sighed. ‘You don’t want to stay here with me as a guest, too. So the question is, do you want me to be the one to leave?’

Her eyes widened. ‘Are you seriously offering?’

His mouth thinned. ‘Yes, I’m seriously offering.’