Monroe, Marla - The Edge of Night [The Protectors 3](Siren Publishing Classic) (31 page)

“Um, Morgan, I think you need to quit while you’re ahead, man,” Tyler suggested.

“Yeah, Morgan. Tyler’s right.” Amanda crossed her arms and drew in a deep breath.

“So, do you think you can stand up to Guy with this ammunition and the five of us standing with you?” Dodge asked.

Morgan realized that Dodge was planning on being a part of the plan as well. Was it because he wanted to be in on the action, or did he already feel something for Amanda? Dodge was a good man. He’d make her a fine husband. Somehow that left a bitter taste in Morgan’s mouth. Still, wouldn’t that be better than some stranger he didn’t even know? Someone he wouldn’t know well enough to trust that they would take care of her and the baby?

Morgan snorted in disgust at his thoughts. He had no hold on Amanda, and he had no right trying to arrange her life. He had offered the house, and that was all he needed to do.

“So, all I have to do, other than talk to the lawyer and get papers drawn up, is tell Guy to fuck off?” she asked with a determined look on her face.

“Yeah, basically that’s it,” Dodge said.

“When do we start?”

Chapter Twenty-Three

Amanda held on to Morgan as they rode south to Texas. His house sat approximately three hours northeast of Dallas, near Arkansas. It was a little town with a population of about fifteen thousand people. It sounded like a place she would like to live in permanently, but this was Morgan’s home, not hers.

When the little convoy pulled up in front of a two-story house in a nice neighborhood, Amanda nearly cried. It was perfect, exactly like what she would want for her child. Too bad it was Morgan’s and he wasn’t planning on keeping either one of them.

She slid off the bike and waited on Morgan to do the same. Tyler climbed off, and then the twins climbed out of their truck with Dodge easing out of his truck as well. Morgan had assured her there was room for everyone. Now she could see why. It looked to be well over twenty-four hundred square feet.

“Remember, no one’s lived in it for over a year. It should be clean, but is bound to be musty.” Morgan led the way to the carport door. He unlocked the door with a key on his key chain, then stood back for Amanda to walk in ahead of him.

The door opened into a mud room of sorts with a washer and dryer, then opened into an eat-in kitchen with stainless steel appliances. That opened into a den complete with fireplace and furniture. Morgan led her through the house from there.

“There are three bedrooms besides the master bedroom and the nursery,” he said as he showed her the master bedroom downstairs with a closed door next to it.

“That’s, um, the nursery.” He didn’t open the door, so Amanda didn’t either.

She was sure it was hard on him even being there. Part of her thawed a little bit toward him from his outburst the other day. She had kept him at arm’s length ever since then. They slept in the same bed, but didn’t touch. They had stayed at Dodge’s house one more day to give them another day to rest. She felt like it was mostly for her, though.

He led her upstairs with a hand at her elbow. She was sure it was to keep her from falling. If she had fallen, there were three big men behind her to catch her. Dodge stayed behind. He said he could manage the stairs, but once would be enough for the night.

The other bedrooms were all upstairs. Two bedrooms shared a bathroom, and one had its own bath. Although the house was in good shape and had been kept clean, it still smelled musty, like a closed-up house would smell.

“Once you get further along, you shouldn’t climb these stairs at all. There wouldn’t be a reason for you to. The master bedroom and nursery are all downstairs,” Morgan was telling her.

“I’ll be careful when I do go up and down. Like you said, I shouldn’t have to really.” Amanda glanced around the bedrooms, then turned around to go back downstairs.

Almost immediately Morgan and Tyler were by her side making sure she didn’t fall. It both annoyed her and made her feel cared for all at one time. She kept reminding herself that it was just how they were. They would have been that way with any pregnant woman.

“There isn’t any food here, so we’ll need to go grocery shopping tomorrow,” Morgan said. “We can eat out tonight and in the morning.”

“When am I going to meet with the lawyer?” she asked.

“Tomorrow afternoon, I’ll take you to his office. It will be a long ride since he’s in Dallas. I figure the twins will go with us and Tyler and Dodge will stay behind to pick up the groceries. So if there is anything special you want or need, put it on a list for them,” Morgan told her.

“I can do my own grocery shopping,” she grumbled.

“See, that’s another problem. You don’t have a car to get around in. My Mustang is in the garage. We’ll see about getting it out and checking it out so you can drive it around.” Morgan didn’t look at her as he said it.

Amanda wanted to scream. She was dependent on him and the others for everything. She couldn’t have made it without their help even without Guy after her. How did other people manage to have babies by themselves? They survived on the streets and lived in shelters. She wasn’t going to bring her child into the world in a homeless shelter. She would bite her tongue and be gracious about Morgan letting her stay in his house and use his car. She was proud, but she wasn’t too proud for the good of her baby.

“You okay, baby?” Morgan asked in a cautious voice.

“Yeah, thanks. I’m just overwhelmed, is all. I’ll be fine,” she said, adding a weak smile.

“You look worn out. It’s been a long day, and tomorrow is going to be just as long. Why don’t you get ready for bed? There’s a Jacuzzi in the bathroom. It should feel good after all of the bike riding you’ve been doing this last couple of weeks.”

“That sounds like heaven to me right now. Did you put my bag in there in the bedroom?” she asked.

“It’s on the bed. Feel free to use anything in there you need. I don’t know how much of it’s still good, but, um, you’re welcome to it.”

Amanda took a chance and stood on her toes and kissed him. He’d actually leaned over for her to do it. She gave a tentative smile, then turned around and walked into the master bedroom and closed the door.

The bedroom looked immaculate and sort of sterile, but she couldn’t put her finger on why. The colors all matched, but something just didn’t feel right about the room. Shrugging, she stripped and bundled her clothes into a ball and left them by the chest of drawers to wash later. The master bath was to die for. It had a Jacuzzi big enough for two, and the shower was a walk-in glass-and-ceramic-tile wonder with multiple showerheads. That would feel great when her back bothered her.

She turned on the water in the tub and adjusted it to the perfect temp. She debated on using some of the bath salts, but decided she didn’t want to remind Morgan of his dead wife by smelling like she would have. That just seemed downright creepy to her.

Once the water had filled the tub, she turned on the jets and slipped slowly into the warm water, where she felt weightless. The jets helped soothe her aching body. Just being submerged in the liquid warmth eased her sore muscles that, until recently, had not been used much. All she needed now was a bath pillow and a book to read. She could spend many evenings like this. Once she managed to get on her feet, she would be sure to have one in her home.

She scoffed at that idea. She would be lucky to have a one-bedroom apartment with a conventional tub in it. She didn’t need to get used to this while she was here. She also needed to save her money as much as possible to get out of the house as soon as possible.

As soon as the water began cooling, Amanda turned off the jets and pulled the plug to let it drain. Then she stepped out holding on to the wall and dried off. She contemplated wearing one of her T-shirts or, at the very least, panties. In the end, she crawled into the bed naked and promptly fell asleep.

* * * *

Morgan waited until the door shut behind Amanda before drawing the others further into the living room. He switched on the TV and turned it low so they could talk.

“Dodge, you and Tyler make sure she has plenty of food. She’ll need fruits and vegetables, milk and juice,” Morgan said.

“We’ll take care of it,” Tyler said.

“Oh, and while we’re gone, take a look at the Mustang and see what it needs to be safe. The keys are in the drawer in the kitchen, under the bar. I had someone check on it and the house periodically, so it’s been run some.” Morgan drew in a deep breath trying to think what else they could do while they were gone to Dallas.

“You mentioned she needed to see a doctor as soon as possible,” Tyler said. “I’ll put together a list of doctors who specialize in pregnancy so she can take care of that as soon as you get back.”

“Good idea. She’s lost more weight. I know it’s not good for her or the baby,” Morgan pointed out. “Oh, and get a paper while you’re out.”

He figured she could start looking for a job. She’d need it for groceries and such. Plus, she would insist on working. She would never let him pay for everything. Once they sent the disc out, they could access her savings, and she would feel more self-sufficient. Right now, she felt like a charity case no matter how much he tried to convince her she wasn’t.

“I think we need to send out the disc tomorrow, too,” Tyler said.

“I agree. The sooner he gets it, the sooner we can get this show on the road,” Dodge added.

“It needs to be postmarked from Dallas, though,” Jethro told them. “You don’t want him knowing where she’s settling down until we can get all our ducks in a row.”

“It’s all sealed up with the letter and everything ready to go,” Dodge said.

“We’ll take it with us and mail it from there. She needs to get her safety deposit box here in town, though, so she’ll have easy access to it.” Morgan leaned back in the chair and stretched his feet out in front of him.

“I kept a copy myself in my safe at home,” Dodge told them. “If anything at all happens, I can put the fear of God into him with it.”

Morgan realized that after tomorrow, the clock would be ticking on how much longer he would need to stay. He should feel good about finally getting back on the road. He and Tyler could catch up with the others and ride the rest of the way down to Florida. It would feel like old times again. For some reason, it didn’t excite him as much as it had before he’d met Amanda. A lot of things didn’t feel the same after meeting her.

“Dodge, you going to stick around until after we have the meeting with Guy?” Jethro asked.

“Wouldn’t miss it for the world. Someone like him is bound to shit their pants when they see the five of us standing behind her.”

“She needs to meet him in a public venue, like a library or coffee shop, where he won’t risk stirring up trouble,” Justin said.

“Needs to be in Dallas to keep him away from here,” Tyler added.

“I vote for a Starbucks somewhere close to all the law offices. That should dampen his spirits some.” Dodge laughed and rubbed at his left leg.

“I’ll scout out the area when we go down tomorrow,” Jethro told them. “Bound to be something suitable close by.”

“Think I’m going to call it a night.” Dodge pushed off the arm of the chair and stood up.

None of the guys watched him climb the stairs. They wouldn’t disrespect him by staring. Morgan hated that they didn’t have at least a hide-a-bed couch. He should think about getting one in case he visited again, he thought.
Fuck.
There he was acting like he was going to be living here again.

Morgan had no plans to ever live in the house again. He’d check in on Amanda from time to time until she moved out. Then he’d put it on the market and hopefully sell it. If he ever did settle back down, he didn’t need a house. All he really needed was an apartment. Any hole-in-the-wall would do for him. He wasn’t picky. As long as it was clean, he would be fine with it.