Around the World in 80 Men Series: Boxed Set 21-30 (79 page)

*****

“Poland.
Okay....that'll work.” Morgan looked at the dots on the map
and even tried to call Angel to get his input, but he wasn't
answering his phone. She was sure that Gio had him ironing a sock or
scrubbing a random brick in the back yard. She smiled at the
thought, but got back to searching for her next client. It was
always hard to think of another man when her heart was still warm
from the one that she was with, but she had learned how to detach
just enough to do what she had to do.

“Alright,
Angel...I guess I'll just pick one.” She spoke to the blank
phone in her hand as her other hand scrolled over the available men.
“Hmmm,...not smiling, smiling too much, show off, oh!”
She stopped at one that seemed to be staring, and smiling, right at
her. “You're interesting.” Eryk Baran was a looker,
with shoulder length blonde hair and long legs that held a very nice
physique. “Eryk, looks like I'll see you in about a week.”
She winked at the photo and was tempted to copy it and send it to
Angel, but she refrained from doing so because at that moment, all
she wanted to do was get back to Robbie.

*****

“Two
more hours, that's all I get with you.” Robbie held Morgan
around the waist, her back against his chest, and he took in the
scent of her hair as they watched Tobasco wander the vast pasture.
Morgan closed her eyes and nodded.

“Want
to take another trip to the empty stable?” She smiled, her
eyes still closed, and was surprised to hear him respond that he
didn't.

“No.
I just want to be with you like this. Is that alright?” She
nodded again, understanding that sex wasn't always the connection
that a person needed. “How about we....what the hell?”
In the middle of his suggestion, that she never got to hear, they
were interrupted by the sound of trucks pulling onto the property.
“Who's that? Loraine?!” He yelled for the housekeeper
to see if she might be expecting anyone, but she was in the house and
couldn't hear his call. Morgan, on the other hand, knew exactly who
it was.

“Well,
let's go see.” She smiled and moved out of his embrace, taking
his hand as she did so. He kept his gaze on the two vehicles that
were parking and picked up his pace as they grew closer. It was John
that he saw first.

“Is
it? No way!” Morgan couldn't have been happier to see that
Robbie was pleased to see his old friend. “And Brett? How the
hell are you guys?” The three men briefly embraced, and Morgan
closed her eyes at the sound of the loud smacks that the men gave one
another on their backs.

She
grabbed Robbie's arm and stopped him for just a moment. “Excuse
us.” Morgan smiled at the other two men who nodded in her
direction, and Robbie walked a few feet away from his guests.
“Robbie...,” she put her arms around his neck and looked
him in the eyes, “remember what you told me? Always have
control until you
choose
to lose it. Okay?” She hoped
the words would help him when his friends tried to convince him to
ride Tobasco again, but she wasn't sure if they were taken the way
she'd intended. He was in control of his destiny, and she needed him
to see that. Giving it up was what he had been doing, and was the
worst thing for him.

Morgan
backed away slowly, smiling at John as she put distance between
herself and the small group of testosterone. Stories of jousting,
injuries, horses, and arguments of points that should have been began
to fade as Morgan reached the house. She had done something
wonderful for Robbie, she had brought a piece of his old self to the
secluded world that he'd created. She didn't know if the men would
get him to ride Tobasco again or not, but it no longer mattered,
because seeing him with his friends appeared to be more than enough
for the sweet man.

Epilogue

One
hour later, and several shots of whiskey for the men, Morgan ran to
the pasture to see if her eyes were playing tricks on her. Robbie,
in full armor, was on Tobasco and whispering in his ear. She ran
towards the field but was stopped when John came out from behind the
barn, riding Tarzan. It was a disaster, they were both in gear and
the horses were dressed for battle as well.

“No!
Robbie, don't do this!” Morgan waved her hands wildly in the
air as she ran to the makeshift lists. He couldn't. He wouldn't.
“Robbie!” She was still fifty yards from the battle
scene, but was running with all she had. It was too late, Brett was
preparing to give the call to begin, and Morgan stopped where she
was. “Oh my god...Robbie.” She put her hands to her
mouth and forced her eyes to remain open.

Robbie's
heart beat loudly, he could hear the thrumming of his own excitement
in his ears. The helmet muffled his breathing and brought waves of
heat to his face. Tobasco knew what to do, and was more than ready
to battle with his best friend once again. The horse took off, with
power that Robbie had almost forgotten, and the adrenaline that
coursed through their bodies was like nothing else.

He
held the lance tightly. “I need your help, buddy.” He
nearly growled the muffled words to Tobasco as they were quickly
approaching John. It was only seconds from start to impact, but the
moment that Robbie's lance made contact with John's shoulder, it was
as if time had stopped. The sound of splintering wood, and the crash
of armor hitting the ground when John flew from Tarzan was played out
within those frozen moments. Robbie reached the other side, out of
breath, and turned Tobasco around to see the aftermath.

John
finished rolling across the grass and quickly sat up, removing his
helmet. When he saw Robbie's smile, he held his helmet in the air and
all three men cheered loudly for the unhorsing. “You're still
an asshole, Robbie!”

Morgan
finally let out the air she'd been holding in her chest and cheered
too. He'd done it. He'd faced his challenges and he not only got back
on his horse, he did it with everything he had. She couldn't have
been more proud of him, and the look on his face told her that he was
proud of himself as well.

She
walked the remaining distance to meet him at the starting point and
Robbie reached down to grab her hand. “You did this, didn't
you?” His free hand stroked Tobasco's mane, as he spoke.
“Morgan...”

“Shh.”
She giggled, then gripped his hand more tightly. “Pull me up.”
Her foot went into the stirrup and Robbie helped her climb to
Tobasco's back. He handed his helmet to Brett as they passed him in
the yard and his hand found Morgan's, that were tightly wrapped
around his waist. As they rode back to the yard, Robbie couldn't
remember a time in his life, not even after his biggest tournaments,
that he felt so content. He knew at that moment, everything was going
to be alright. Morgan was right, he had given up control of his
entire life, and he knew that it would never happen again.

*****

“Julianne,”
Morgan looked behind her shoulder, making sure Robbie could not hear
her conversation. “Thanks for getting back with me.”

“What
is it dear? I don't have much time to talk.” Julianne and
Morgan had been playing phone tag all week, leaving one voice mail
after another. Finally, her boss had sent her a text, giving her a
thirty minute window that would be good to call.

“I...uh...”
Morgan looked behind her once again and lowered her voice. Robbie was
only a few feet behind her, along with Loraine and both were helping
with her bags. It was rather amusing to see the tall man pulling
along her pink zebra print luggage, but she'd keep that to herself.
“I don't want you to charge Robbie for this week. If I need to,
I'll pay for it myself. Just...don't make him pay. I'll explain
later.” Morgan knew that Julianne would process payments after
the week was finished. Considering she was boarding her train in ten
minutes, it was perfect timing. “Also, I'm going to France for
my week off, and I'll call when I get there. Oh, I got your
confirmation on Eryk, so we're all set.” Morgan followed up by
stating again that she didn't want to charge Robbie for the week.

“Are
you sure, child?” Julianne questioned and Morgan told her she
was positive. “I've already started processing the payment, so
you'll have to cover it if that's what you want.” Morgan
agreed that she would pay for the week. They said their brief
goodbyes and after Julianne told her to have a safe trip, the two
hung up. Morgan turned around and tried to regain control over her
luggage, but the two insisted all the way through the parking lot.
When the three of them arrived at the sliding doors of her
compartment, they knew that was it.

Morgan
approached Loraine first. “Thank you, for everything. It was a
pleasure meeting you.” She held her hand out for a shake, but
Loraine pulled her in for a hug.

“It
was a pleasure meeting you too.” She gave Morgan a final pat to
the shoulder, then took a few paces back, leaving Robbie and Morgan
to say their own goodbyes.

Robbie
took over and pulled Morgan in to his chest tightly and held her
there for a few moments. Goodbyes were becoming easier for Morgan,
but she knew Robbie wasn't going to take it as well. “This week
is on me,” she finally spoke when their embrace broke.

“What
do you mean?” He'd heard her, but the words didn't register.

“I
told Julianne not to charge you. I wanted to...”

“Jesus
Christ, Morgan! Why? Am I still just a fucking pity case to you? That
you have to just...” Morgan cut him off, she wasn't going to
allow him to get mad at her.

“No,
listen to me, Robbie!” Her tone was more stern, and they'd
gathered the attention of a few passerbys, including an eavesdropping
Loraine. “You told me to leave. And I could have.”
Suddenly, Robbie's expression changed. “I stayed because I
wanted to. Not because I had to.”

He
understood. He had told her to leave, that their week was over. She
could have gotten on a plane that night and never spoke to him again.
She found him in the rain, made sure he got home, checked on him when
he was sick and went above and beyond to be sure he got one more ride
on Tobasco. She didn't have to do any of that. He'd hired her for
sex, yet she'd given him so much more. More than he could have ever
expected or asked for. “Thank you.”

Morgan
pressed her lips to his. “I'll see you again, Robbie.” He
nodded, water filling his eyes. She could tell he was fighting it,
and it was best for her to be on her way. “Bye.”

He
watched her step onto the train, then followed her with his eyes
until she was out of sight. A long sigh was shared between he and
Loraine, then he felt her arm around his and the two walked back to
the car to head home. “I'll never forget you or your kindness,
Morgan Holland.”

Twenty
minutes later, when the train was moving and she was far from Robbie,
Morgan pulled out her pink scrapbook. There was a lot of catching up
to do, but she wanted to at least make his page. She reached in her
purse and pulled out the one picture she'd printed of the man. There
were more on her laptop, but that one was her favorite. It was
different than most pictures she'd added to her scrapbook of her men.
Usually they were standing in front of something or posing in a silly
way, or even half naked. Robbie's picture, it was a close up of just
his face and shoulders. He was only wearing that smirk she loved and
his eyes glowed like blue fire. She taped it to the page and pulled
out her pen.

Robbie
Edwards,

You
may not see clearly, but you saw me. You made me feel beautiful,
like a woman should feel. You touched me, listened to me, even loved
the way my hair smells. You made me realize more than ever, to stop
and appreciate everything a person has to offer. It's all of the
little details that make people who they are.

We
all need help sometimes. Whether it's to get a glass of water, or
find your way home in a storm or finding out a piece of who you are.
Never be afraid to ask for help and never be afraid to ride.

The
rest of the train ride was uneventful, and Morgan spent it thinking
about Robbie and making a promise to herself to keep in touch with
him. She also sent a few texts, one to Tanner and one to Finlay.
She couldn't avoid the big Scot forever, and her favorite Aussie had
written to her last.

Finlay,
we'll talk soon. I promise. Going to Paris for the week to relax.
I'll call when I'm settled.