“Like you wouldn’t believe, Emmett.”

“I want that for you, too, Mom,” Molly said. “My fingers are crossed.”

“I’m going to work hard on therapy the rest of the week. I want that walking cast.”

“We’ll be dancing together in no time,” her dad said.

Molly smiled. She’d like to see that.

“Oh, by the way, I have a committee meeting tonight,” Molly said.

“And will you be going out with Carter afterward?” her mother asked.

“I . . . don’t know. I’m not exactly going out with him.”

Her mother waved her hand. “Whatever it is you young kids call it these days. Anyway, you two should go out. There’s no reason you should be stuck in the house with me all the time. Your dad and I will be fine here. Go out and enjoy yourself. I always liked you and Carter together, Molly. I don’t know why the two of you broke up in high school, but I sure am glad you’re seeing him again.”

“Me, too,” her dad said.

Molly blinked. She had no idea her parents were even aware she was seeing Carter. So much for thinking she was doing this under the radar. Pretty soon everyone would know, because while her mother was housebound, she definitely had a phone—and a computer—and she used it a lot to talk to her friends. Who talked to their friends. And so on.

After dinner, she did the dishes and dashed off to take a shower. As she left the house for the committee meeting, she waved goodbye to her parents, who were settled in the living room with a movie.

Her heart skipped a beat when she saw Rhonda parked in the lot of the community center.

Ridiculous. It was just a meeting, not a date.

But when Carter came outside to greet her, she couldn’t help but notice his smile, or the way he walked, or the way he’d unbuttoned the sleeves of his shirt and shoved them up his arms. He’d worn jeans today, and damn, he always looked so good in jeans.

“Hi,” he said, taking the folders from her hands as she got out of her car.

“Hi. You’re here early.”

“So are you.”

“Yeah, I had a busy day today,” he said as they walked side by side toward the community center. “I wanted to get a head start scanning through the agenda.”

“I went over it today.”

He held the door for her, and she stepped inside. No one else was there yet.

“Yeah? Any ideas?”

“A couple. I also drove by the town square today. The new fountain is in. It looks amazing.”

“I saw that, too. Mavis called to complain about the dolphin.”

Molly rolled her eyes. “What’s wrong with the dolphin?”

“Nothing. It’s a replica of what was there before, everyone signed off and agreed to it. But if it was up to Mavis, we’d have a bust of the mayor in the middle of the damn fountain. So she’ll find something to complain about.”

“Whatever. It looks awesome.”

“Oh, and before everyone gets here . . .”

He pulled her into his arms and laid a hot, hard kiss on her. Suddenly, agendas and dolphins and fountains were forgotten as she fell into the kiss, wishing they didn’t have this damn meeting tonight and could go somewhere and explore this kiss a lot further.

Even though the kiss was laced with passion, and he ran his hands over her back, it was over all too quickly, and Carter took a step back. But the fire lingered in his eyes. “We’ll take that up later.”

“I’m making a note at the bottom of my agenda.”

His lips quirked. “You do that.”

“I just will. In the meantime, I’m going to start making coffee.”

“I’m actually surprised Mavis isn’t already here doing that. She wouldn’t want to miss out on any gossip.”

“We beat her to the punch. And we got a kiss in as well.”

He moved over to the sink and helped her, filling the large coffeepot while she put the ground coffee in.

“In fact,” he said, “since no one’s here yet . . .”

He cupped the back of her neck and slid his lips over hers. She put the coffee down and moved into him, grabbing on to his shirt to deepen the kiss.

Until someone cleared their throat and she heard the click of heels on the hardwood floor.

“You two should get a room.”

When they broke apart, she smiled at Chelsea. “Why, when it’s so spacious here?”

Without breaking stride, Chelsea made it over to the coffee station. “Good point, since you have the table. And the floor. And don’t forget the stage.”

“I like the way you think, Chelsea,” Carter said.

Molly laughed. “I just started the coffee.”

“It could have been done already if the two of you weren’t engaged in a hot and heavy makeout session.”

“Oh, we had just gotten started,” Molly said.

“Don’t make me smack you upside the head with the coffee creamer box. Those who are getting some shouldn’t lord it over those who aren’t.”

Since Carter was busy talking to a couple of the others who’d just come in, she walked away with Chelsea. “I find it hard to believe that someone as beautiful and funny and smart as you isn’t seeing someone on a regular basis.”

Chelsea shrugged, then snatched one of the cookies Mavis had just brought in. “I’m picky. Besides, I know all the men in Hope. I went to high school with most of the guys my age.”

“There’s always Tulsa. Or online dating.”

She snorted. “Tried that last one. Major fail. Men lie on those dating sites. They say they have burgeoning careers when really they’re still living with their parents, or they’re flat broke and can only afford a night out at the nearest McDonald’s. Or they tell you they’ve been focusing on their careers and that’s why they’re still single in their thirties, when in reality they’ve been divorced twice and are paying child support for four children.”

Molly sighed. “What’s so difficult about being honest?”

“I have no idea. I’m brutally honest.” She offered Molly a flat gaze. “Maybe that’s why I don’t go on a lot of dates.”

Molly looped her arm in Chelsea’s. “I think you have a lot to offer, and if men can’t see that, it’s their loss.”