The Wedding of Molly O'Flaherty Read Online Free

precarious Molly’s situation was, I’d visited my solicitors and set into motion a plan to quietly buy as many shares of O’Flaherty Shipping as possible. Of course, it would look suspicious if one person was snatching up any and all shares that shareholders were willing to sell, so Julian had agreed to help me. Together, we’d managed to carve out almost twenty percent of the shares—which, added with Molly’s shares, gave the three of us forty percent of the company. Not enough to dictate decisions, but maybe enough for the company to survive if the other members of the board made good on their threat to leave.
    And then Julian and I had decided not to stop there. Using our old European connections, we discovered a Dutch shipping company that was looking for significant investors to grow its global fleet, and consequently, with a hefty sum and a few signatures, Julian and I were now among the chief shareholders in Van Der Sant Shipping, and we could gift those shares to Molly at any point.
    Now, Molly’s former board members would no longer be able to weight the scales quite so much in their favor; between Molly, Julian and me, we now had millions of pounds secured in the business, a metaphorical safety net for Molly should her company crumble and fall.
    I still hoped it wouldn’t come to that.
    I still hoped she would marry me.
    I set down my glass and then stretched myself along the floor next to George, curling my body around his chubby snoozing one, tracing one of his out-flung arms with my hand.
    Julian watched me with amusement. “Miss Thomas’s children?”
    I nodded, not looking away from George. He was such a perfect little replica of his parents, with Ivy’s darker coloring and black hair and already showing signs of Julian’s distinctive eyes and mouth. Would Molly and I have a child that was so obviously ours? With red hair and blue eyes and my grin and her freckles?
    The thought was too painful to entertain for long.
    “After Charlotte has the baby, they’re thinking of coming home to Coke Manor for a while,” I said, trying to cheer myself up. I loved my nieces and nephews dearly, and I’d always been close to my brother Thomas and his wife. Thomas and I had grown up with parents who loved us and loved each other and who’d made sure to remind us of those things frequently. So now, as an adult, I naturally craved the happy vitality of family life. When I was a younger man, I’d made something akin to a family in Europe with Julian and Molly and the Baron, but nothing could replace the connection I felt with my blood relatives. The longing I felt to be with them again.
    That longing was especially strong, given that I would still be alone and unmarried when I rejoined them.
    “How long until our work here is official?” Julian asked, changing the subject back to our new investments.
    “I believe our signatures were the last ones required. My solicitor told me I should have confirmation of receipt of shares in two days.”
    “We should wait to tell her,” Julian said. “Until things are completely final.”
    I opened my mouth to argue. I’d wanted to tell her tonight. I’d wanted to whisper it into her ear as we made love with Hugh’s blasted contract burning merrily in a fireplace next to us. But I couldn’t dispute Julian’s suggestion, because of the damage that could be done to Molly’s fragile sense of hope if the deal fell through somehow.
    Besides, it was only two days, right?
    “Yes,” I agreed finally. “We will keep it a secret from her until we have confirmation.”
    I didn’t mention that Molly’s engagement party was also in two days. It wasn’t her wedding, so in a practical sense, it was no impediment to my plan. But in an emotional sense, I couldn’t bear the idea of her in front of London, celebrating her upcoming nuptials to another man. Couldn’t bear the idea of Hugh clinging to her, of them dancing, of them standing at the door and accepting the effusive