Free More Than Words: More Than, Book 3 by Jess Dee Page B

too.”
    “Molly—”
    Ruth cut him off. “You don’t surf, do you?”
    “God, no.” Molly returned her gaze to Ruth. “I’d drown if I ever tried.”
    Damn, Molly was upset. And livid. All the talk about Sarah—a woman Sam had no interest in—had understandably thrown her, but she was trying her best to hide it.
    “Me too,” Ruth agreed. “You know what I think?”
    “What?”
    “I think I’m going to buy the blue shoes now. If Sarah doesn’t choose blue for the retinue, I’ll wear them to the engagement party.”
    Whatever color had returned to Molly’s cheeks leached out again. “There’s an engagement party?”
    No, for fuck’s sake. There isn’t an engagement party.
    “There will be, if I have anything to say about it. And Sam knows, I always have to have my say.”
    Okay, enough. “Ruth.” Sam’s tone demanded his sister pay attention. “I’m not marrying Sarah.”
    This time his sister heard him. Kind of. “ Yet . I know. But soon. I heard the way you spoke about her, saw that look in your eye.”
    Yeah, he may have had a special tone to his voice and a sparkle in his eye, but it had nothing to do with Sarah. Nothing whatsoever. “Ruth—”
    “Sarah wants to marry your brother,” Molly spoke over him. “She told me as much when I met her on Monday.”
    Fuck, the whole marriage idea had been a joke, something he and Sarah had laughed about when he’d offered her his board. It hadn’t been real. But from the look on Molly’s face, from her pale skin and the way she refused to meet his gaze, Sam knew she thought it was very, very genuine.
    Shit, shit, shit.
    He needed to set the record straight, now. Needed to shut Ruth up and tell her flat-out he was not marrying Sarah. Not now, not ever.
    Before he could say another word, the door opened, and his first patient of the afternoon walked in. The second young Ava Mendel spotted Sam, she had her arms wrapped around his legs and was hugging him for all her worth, leaving the words stuck on his tongue. He plucked the child up and propped her on his arm, against his side.
    Molly’s entire demeanor changed. She dropped all pretense of holding a personal conversation and switched gears to being the ultimate professional receptionist. She greeted the dad, Syd, by name, said a cheery hello to Ava, and just like that the conversation with his sister was over.
    Ruth kissed his cheek, waved to Molly and left, and Sam had no chance to set the record straight.
    He didn’t find a chance for the rest of the afternoon. Patients kept him busy constantly until an urgent call from CCU had him racing downstairs.
    Greg Avery had regained consciousness.
    While this should have been good news, the child’s ability to speak coherently seemed to have not received the memo that the rest of his body was awake. Sam hoped to God the aphasia was transient and Greg would regain his ability to comprehend language and pronounce his words quickly.
    Sam spent a long time with the overwhelmed child and his devastated father, and by the time he returned to his office, Molly had left for the day.
    Other than the necessary conversations about the patients, which had all taken place right beside the full waiting room, she hadn’t said a word to him since Ruth had left. Hadn’t acknowledged him in any way. Even though he’d tried a couple of times to tell her the truth, she’d cut him short, distracting him with details of some other vital issue.
    The only thing that gave Sam hope was the email he’d found in his inbox when he’d returned to his office. Molly must have written it during lunch, before Ruth dropped by. Or maybe while Ruth was in his office.
    There was less than no chance Sam would wait until he got home tonight to read her letter.
    Hell, no.
    Soon as his ass was in his chair he was opening it.
    He was, however, determined to speak to Molly first. No way could he let her go another minute believing he was involved with Sarah—or worse, getting married.