And that’s where his reputation failed him. Because they were most assuredly wrong. He had a heart. He just didn’t ever intend to get involved with someone based on what his heart told him to do.
Never again.
Thanks for reading Molly’s Man.
Read on for an excerpt from the other books in my Haven, Texas series
Lila’s Loves
Haven, Texas, Book One
A loud banging woke Lila instantly. With a gasp, she sat up, scooting against the wall behind her. Heart in her throat, she reached one trembling hand out for the bat she kept close by.
You could never be too careful in this neighborhood.
“Lila, open the door.”
She froze. Oh fuck. Oh hell. It couldn’t be. Her heart raced faster, but not out of fear now. What was he doing here?
“Lila,” another voice added. “Open up or we’re breaking this door down.”
Lila groaned. Crap. They’d do it, too. She climbed off her bed, if you could call it that since it was just a worn mattress on the floor. She left the bat there. It wouldn’t do her any good. Not against them. Never against family. And that’s what they were despite the lack of blood tying them together.
Clay had made it very clear years ago that they were her family now. Forever. She’d wanted to believe him. Desperately. But there had always part of her that expected it to end. That Clay would eventually change his mind and kick her out.
Clay had saved her when he could have just left her in that alley and gone on happily with his life. Many people would have.
She’d tried to be perfect. Tried not to let Clay down. She’d been a model student, had done all that was asked of her, and had always worried it wasn’t enough, that she’d do something to ruin it.
Turning on the light, she walked over to the door in the one-room apartment and peered out the peephole. Only two of them had come, Colin and Trace. Disappointment filled her.
She was surprised Gavin wasn’t with them; it wasn’t like him to stay behind. The oldest of the three, Gavin was a take-charge sort of guy, plain-speaking and confident. He could be both terrifying and magnificent, making her feel safe one moment and then angry enough to kick him the next.
Damn, she missed him, missed all of them.
It had been six months since she’d seen them and she’d thought about them every day.
“Lila, stand on the opposite side of the room,” Trace ordered. “We’re coming in.”
Okay, so their patience had come to an end.
“Wait, I’m opening it. I’m opening it.” She wrenched open the door, staring up at Trace and Colin, standing shoulder to shoulder in the hallway.
“What do you think you’re doing?” she asked in a frantic whisper. “You’ll wake my neighbors.”
“If they haven’t come running by now, shorty, then they ain’t coming. Now, be a good girl and invite us in,” Trace told her. A slight frown wrinkled his forehead, but his eyes were filled with concern.
“What do you want? Why are you here?” She attempted to sound uninviting, even as she watched them hungrily. God, she loved them.
More than she should. She didn’t love them like a sister should. She was in love with them. And the kicker was they didn’t love her back. They were kind to her, tolerated her for Clay’s sake, but they didn’t love her. It was why she’d left. Staying would have brought her more heartbreak than she could have managed.
So she’d moved here to Phoenix. To be miserable and alone.
Colin ran his gaze over her, his eyes eating her up. At twenty-nine, he was two years younger than Trace and a few inches taller. Colin’s deeply tanned skin went perfectly with his sun-kissed hair and deep brown eyes. The heat in those eyes sent a shiver down her spine. She was obviously imagining things. No way would Colin ever be interested in her.
Trace’s bright green eyes watched her carefully, but with no less heat than his brother. They were looking at her like they wanted to eat her alive. Her insides clenched at the thought of both of them touching her, tasting her. Flushes of heat assailed her, weakening her knees. If she just reached out she’d be touching them. Just one small touch…
No! She had to stop this. It was why she had left. Because her attraction to them, to all of them, would never be reciprocated. Oh, they were nice to her, but they certainly didn’t feel anything more towards her than brotherly affection.