Chapter Thirty-Nine

After they'd eaten and had caught up over the past week or so, they decided what to do next. Jake wanted to limit the amount of time they spent in the shops, which she didn't mind too much at all. Eventually they settled for the caves, the Alamo and the River Walk to end for dinner. After walking for a few minutes, Jake reached over to take hold of her hand. It was silly, but she couldn't remember the last time she felt so happy. After the last couple of days, that simple gesture meant the world to her. 

"This feels really nice," Molly said as they walked, enjoying the sun on her face. This was turning into the perfect day. 

"Sure 'nuff," Jake agreed, giving her hand a squeeze. "Actually, we need to stop in here before we go anywhere else," he said, pulling her off course and into a shop. 

"Why?" she asked, both confused and surprised given his previous insistence not to spend too much time in any shops. 

"Coz I promised to buy ye a hat," he said with a wink. 

"Oh wow, I didn't realize there'd be so many to choose from," Molly gasped when she saw rows of hats spanning the length of the wall. 

"Oh well, those are the men's. Those over there are for girls," Jake said as he cleared his throat a little uncomfortably. 

She turned to the corner that he'd pointed in and saw significantly less choice, but still more than she'd been expecting. "That's fine," she shrugged and led the way over. "How 'bout this one?" she asked with a grin as she put the most obvious outstanding red hat on and tipped her head back. 

He started laughing before he could help himself and tried to hide it behind his hand. "Maybe that's not the right color on ye," he suggested, trying to be delicate about how he put it. "Try this one," he said, looking along the rows and spotted a light tan one that he thought would suit her. He picked it up and put it on her head. "Now ye look like a proper country girl," he smiled at how good it looked on her. 

She gave him a 'really?' look as she turned to the mirror. "Ye think?" she asked, blushing a little when she saw how he was looking at her. It had been a while since she'd seen that look, and she wished he would act on it soon. 

"Yeah I do," he nodded, turning her back towards him now and put his arms around her waist. "I really did miss ye, ye know," he told her, pulling her in as he leaned in to kiss her. He normally wouldn't have in such a place, but he was, in hindsight of course, so grateful and happy to be spending time with her today after not seeing her for a week… He was finding it hard to care that they were in public. 

"I missed ye too," Molly said, pulling back briefly before she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him again. 

After Jake had paid for the hat, they set off towards the caverns again. It was nice because the atmosphere was so much cooler than it was outside. They were able to blend into the crowd of the tour and just be themselves. 

The caverns were absolutely amazing. There was a long natural bridge (hence the name Natural Bridge Caverns) that the tour followed, showcasing amazing stalactites as well as stalagmites. It made Molly feel very small and humble compared to these natural beauties of the earth. The descent halfway through worried her a little, but they both made it down in one piece. And it only meant that she felt even more grateful for the experience. 

"That was amazing, wish it were that cool out here," Molly said as they made their way over to the Alamo, fanning herself with her hat. 

"Oh come on, it ain't even that warm yet, it's only May," Jake said with a chuckle. "Yer from Phoenix, surely it's warm there too," he added. 

"Yeah but we had air con everywhere," she said, trying not to sound too spoilt. 

"Just when I was thinkin' ye were becomin' a real country girl," he shook his head disapprovingly, giving her a teasing nudge when he saw she was about to object.

"Bully," she simply said, making him laugh as he pulled her in for a hug. She was enjoying how relaxed he was today too much to point out she was still feeling too hot to be holding each other right now. It was something she would happily put up with to enjoy today for as long as it lasted. She tried to forget that tomorrow could change everything after introducing him to Jennifer. "You should laugh more often, it suits ye," Molly said after a few minutes, getting a surprised look now. "I mean, ye always look good, but I like this side of ye," she tried to explain what she meant. 

He smiled, watching her squirm. "Thanks, I think," Jake said now. "I guess I'm just really enjoyin' today," he said with a shrug, not knowing what else it could be. He didn't think he was normally that serious, but maybe he was a bit more cheerful today than he'd been in a while. 

"Me too," she assured him with a smile and a hand squeeze. 

"I can't remember the last time I walked this much in a day," Molly sighed as they took a seat at one of the restaurants' outdoor tables. They'd seen the Alamo and wandered around there. Molly had particularly enjoyed the cavalry square; it was enclosed but open and surrounded by trees. It felt comforting somehow. They'd stopped at the café there for a drink before they'd gone back to the River Walk to check out the sights and some of the shops. Molly had bought a couple of new dresses and a proper pair of Daisy Dukes and had even managed to convince him to buy a couple of new shirts for either a date or the next barn dance. 

"Yeah me neither," Jake agreed, but he was used to hard work and his boots had been worn in for some time now. Hers still pinched a little every now and then, though they were getting there. "I guess we'd better have food 'n think about headin' back," he said when he saw it was already nearing seven. 

"Oh yeah… Probably," she nodded, disappointed their day was starting to come to a close. They both opened the menu to see what they fancied. Once they'd ordered, they sat quietly for a few minutes. "Jake… about tomorrow…" Molly started eventually, feeling quite nervous. "What happens if Jennifer doesn't want to listen and says we can't see each other?" she asked, not sure she wanted to know the answer in case he said they'd be over. 

He looked at her thoughtfully for a minute or two. He wanted to do the right thing and stick to his principles, he really did. And if this situation had presented itself as clear cut as this after the first or second week, it would be easy for him to do so. But now… He was in too deep; he was falling for her hard and fast. He knew he'd been stand off-ish with her the past week or so over this, but not because he didn't want to be with her. And he couldn't bear the thought of having to break up with her, over this of all things. "Well… I think…" he started, trying to find the words, seeing her look dampen already. He took hold of her hand to reassure her. "I like ye too much to stop seein' ye. It'd be nice if she approves but if she doesn't… we'll find a way around it," Jake said, seeing her smile relieved as she blushed. He really wanted to tell her more, about how he felt, but he wasn't sure if now was the time or place. The waiter ended up deciding for him as he came over with their food.