Someone To Watch Over Me (21 page)

“How are you doing?” The low familiar voice
made her heart skip a beat. Morgan glanced up. Brad stood there
looking handsome in his dark blue suit. She gulped and forced a
smile. “Brad, I'm fine. How are you?” Morgan leaned over and gave
him a perfunctory peck of the cheek as a greeting.

“I' m doing great. Let me introduce
Ashley.”

Morgan turned and gazed upon her
ex-boyfriend's date. A petite blonde smiled at her and Morgan
instantly hoped no one noticed her shock. Ashley wore a blue
evening gown which showcased cleavage a Playboy model would
envy.

Morgan forced herself to continue to smile.
“Ashley, I’m pleased to meet you. Thanks for coming.”

“My pleasure,” Ashley cooed in reply. “Brad
speaks so highly of you.”

A nervous ripple fluttered through Morgan’s
gut as she considered what Brad might have said.

“Don't worry, it all can't be true.” Vicki's
voice popped up.

Morgan peeked at her sister. Vicki had a
twinkle in her eyes and a smirk on her lips. Ashley flashed a
surprised look at Vicki, then giggled softly before she placed her
fingers to her lips.

Vicki turned to Brad. “We appreciate you
coming.”

Brad's expression darkened as he stared at
Morgan's sister. Irritation flashed in his eyes. “Anything for a
good cause,” he added dryly.

Up until this afternoon Morgan hadn't
realized Vicki wasn't a fan of Brad. Now she saw for the first time
the feeling was mutual.

Brad turned back to her. “Morgan, any update
on your stalker?” His eyes searched around behind her, lighting on
Sabrina briefly. “Where's your bodyguard?”

“He's here,” Morgan replied. “In fact,
Sonoran Security has multiple people at the event tonight.”

Brad glanced back to Morgan. The irritation
from Vicki’s comment had faded, and he looked worried. “I hope for
your sake this ends soon, and no one gets hurt. Please take
care.”

Morgan’s breath caught at his remark. She
studied his expression. He appeared sincere and concerned for her
safety, yet his words sounded like a threat.
I’m being
paranoid.
“Thank you for your concern.” She murmured.

“Well, we must find our seats,” Brad said. He
offered his arm to Ashley. The young blonde slid her arm through
his and smiled at Morgan before he led her away from the line.

“God, I hate being right all the time,”
whispered Vicki as they moved out of earshot.

“Ashley seems nice,” Morgan offered
quietly.

“Yes, but he'll break her heart too.”

“Perhaps.”

“No, there is no perhaps or maybes about it.
Morgan, Brad's a player. He led you along, and he’ll do the same to
her.”

Morgan’s eyes traveled across the room and
found Shawn on the other side. He watched her. From the expression
on his face, he’d figured out that Brad had arrived. He flashed a
small smile and winked at her before he turned to work his way
around the perimeter of the room, surveying the crowd.

***

So, the almighty lawyer ex-boyfriend finally
arrived. The shock and confusion on Morgan’s face had been a
giveaway. Shawn pressed his lips together as he wondered why her ex
had even bothered to show up. He would give his right eye tooth to
have been closer and heard the conversation. He was proud of how
quickly Morgan recovered and played the gracious hostess.

He tracked the lawyer and blonde as they
located their seats. Shawn smirked as he watched the lawyer stroll
from table to table before finding the place cards with their names
on them. He’d seen the curvy blonde before. She was the one in the
store trying on the ring and necklace the other day.

Part of Shawn wanted a quick man-to-man talk
with Brad, to warn him. He had no love lost for opportunistic gold
diggers. But the other part of him reveled in knowing this woman
would play him, and Brad Marshall deserved it.

Shawn glanced back at Morgan who had settled
back into the rhythm of greeting the guests. In the green evening
gown, she stood out like an emerald in a sea of black ball gowns
and dark suits. A flush of heat flickered through him as he
remembered holding her in his arms. God, it had been so long since
he felt this way about any woman and he'd tried to keep things on a
professional level. Yet Morgan had gotten under his skin. A pause
in the reception line gave her a moment's break. She glanced over
at him, locked eyes and crooked a small smile. He grinned back. Oh
Yeah. When this was over, this was going to get personal.

Shawn carefully studied the people at the
tables. Guests settled into their chairs and chatted with each
other. The wait staff came around adding water and bringing wine.
On the far side, a tall young man with dark hair caught his
attention. Dressed in a waiter’s uniform, he moved tentatively to
each table and poured water. The pitcher sloshed and water dribbled
after he finished pouring each glass.
Rookie.
The young
waiter looked up and scanned the room. His eyes settled on Shawn
and their eyes locked for a few seconds before the young man looked
away and returned to his duties.

Sabrina was doing an excellent job. Observant
yet unobtrusive, she quietly shadowed Morgan while she worked the
reception line and later visited the tables around the room. When
the pair had returned from the salon earlier today he noticed
Morgan had played fairy godmother. Sabrina’s hair had been styled.
Instead of the customary ponytail at the nape of her neck, the hair
had been swept up into a riot of ebony curls which cascaded down to
her shoulders.

In contrast, his afternoon hadn't been so
luxurious. He examined the lists of the staff and guests and had
investigated the hallways from the kitchen to the ballroom, noting
possible routes of entry and exit.

His stomach growled in protest as the dinner
service started. The food smelled fantastic, and he realized he
hadn’t eaten since lunch.
I should've grabbed something to eat
earlier
, he thought as a server walked past him with a sizzling
steak. The first thing he would do when this evening ended would be
to order room service.

He located Morgan. She sat at a table filled
with guests; her manner appeared relaxed as she conversed with the
people around her. Her sister and parents were at separate tables.
The seating was strategic. Each member of the family sat among
prominent guests who were most likely to bid on the jewelry
tonight.

Shawn had pulled a little strategic seating
as well. Earlier this afternoon when he found Brad's name on the
placement cards, he quietly moved them to place as much distance
between them and Morgan as possible.

When he approached the last couple of tables
he found Brad watching him with a cool, appraising expression.
Shawn locked eyes with the man as he walked past the table. Neither
man broke eye contact for several seconds. Then Brad looked away,
turned to the guest on his left, and chatted.

Shawn stopped next to Sabrina who stood
against the wall near Morgan's table. She peeked over at him.
“Things are going well, you think?”

“Yes.”

“So much for Morgan's stalker trying
something,” Sabrina said.

“Yeah, I'm beginning to wonder if he's given
up.”

“Do stalkers give up?”

Shawn hesitated before replying. Sabrina had
a point. “No, most of the time they don't,” he replied.

Sabrina shrugged. “Well, maybe this one
doesn't like crowds.”

“Hang in there, the evening will be over
soon.”

Sabrina nodded. Shawn left her, exited
through the side door, and went back to the kitchen.

***

Morgan set her fork down beside her
half-eaten steak. The silent showdown between Brad and Shawn gave
her a bright moment in an otherwise emotionally uneven day. She
glanced over her shoulder and found Sabrina standing alone against
the wall. Shawn had been confident her stalker would make a move,
but things had gone smoothly so far.

Her eyes scanned the room and couldn’t find
Shawn. Where is he? She tamped down the sense of aloneness and
vulnerability that settled on her like a chill. She was being
silly, not to mention clingy. There were up to two hundred people
in the room. There was no way in the world that she was alone.

Morgan glanced across the centerpiece of pink
roses and freesia. Could she and Shawn move forward after this
whole mess was finished? Given a choice, she’d leave this table and
seek him out, but she couldn’t leave the high profile guests at
it.

She glanced at her watch, only fifteen
minutes away from the start of the auction bidding. After the
jewelry had been sold, the night would wind down with music and
dancing. Morgan then planned to slip away and retreat to her room
to crash.

***

Shawn returned back to the ballroom in time
to watch the auction. He hadn’t checked the Internet auction in the
past few hours, but the jewelry alone raised over one hundred fifty
thousand dollars. If he factored the profit per plate on the dinner
and the Internet monies, Shawn estimated the Kennedy family raised
somewhere in the neighborhood of half a million dollars
tonight.

The auction had been a fun playful affair
with William standing at the front of the room, and his wife and
daughters dashing around urging bidders and calling attention to
the guests each time they placed a bid.

At one point, with the sapphire earrings up
for bid, Morgan and Vicki had stood at opposite ends of the room
and successfully promoted a straight up bidding war between two
attendees. With each successive bid, the room got into the spirit
of the contest, whooping and applauding.

Once the auction ended, the band returned and
started their second set. Couples moved to the dance floor and
Shawn scanned the room, searching for Morgan. He found her standing
with her family, chatting with the couple who had purchased the
diamond necklace.

She turned and locked eyes with him, her
expression relaxed. The fundraiser, for all purposes, was over.

The band started a slow ballad, and the
couples on the dance floor moved closer into each other's arms.
Morgan continued to gaze at him, issuing an unspoken
invitation.

He walked up to her and a small smile
appeared on her lips. “Do you want to dance?”

“I'd love to.”

She turned and, as she walked ahead of him to
the dance floor, he reached out and touched the small of her back.
“This event is an unqualified success,” Shawn said.

Morgan looked up and smiled softly. “Yes,
thank God. It’s all downhill from now. All we need to do is lock
the jewelry away, collect the proceeds and pay the bills. We won’t
start planning next year for a few months.”

It’s over.
The phrase pinged through
his mind. But it wasn't over. Morgan’s stalker was still out there
somewhere. Maybe this event had him a little spooked, but he hadn't
given up and unless caught, he’d surface again.

On the dance floor, Morgan turned to him as
he took her hand and gently slid his hand around her waist. She
melted into his body in response. “Morgan, we need to have a talk
tomorrow. We need to evaluate the situation with the stalker.”

She sighed softly “I know. How about tomorrow
morning? Eleven?”

“Fine.”

“Hey Randall, over here,” a man shouted.
Morgan stiffened, and Shawn turned to where the voice came from.
The bright light blinded him for a second followed by a laugh and
another round of rapid flashes.

Morgan lurched back and raised her hand to
shield her eyes. Shawn spun her around behind him and turned to
face the man. The waiter from earlier this evening stood a few
yards away and jeered. “Morgan, do you have a comment for Christy
Thomas about you dating her former lover and the father of her
daughter?”

“Damn.” Shawn rushed the photographer and
slapped the camera out of his hands. It crashed to the tile dance
floor. “Hey, you're going to pay for that,” the photographer
screamed.

Shawn moved in close to grab the waiter, but
the young man tried to escape by wiggling out of his waiter’s
jacket. Shawn released his grip, grabbed him by the collar of his
shirt and slammed him down into the floor.

“Get off me. I'll sue you,” the man yelled as
he kicked and struggled. Shawn heard the collective gasp from the
room and the muted buzz of conversation. He couldn't pick out
specific comments, but he sure as hell knew what they must be
saying.

Shawn bent the waiter's left arm behind his
back which stopped his struggles. Shawn glanced up and saw Morgan's
now pinched expression, a hand up over her mouth, her face
pale.

Sabrina ran up to Shawn. “Get Morgan back to
her room,” Shawn growled. Sabrina nodded and went to Morgan. He
glanced down at the photographer. “Okay, we can do this one of two
ways. If you play nice, I'll let you up and escort you out. If
not...” Shawn leaned down and wrenched the man’s arm tighter until
he heard a grunt of protest. “Well?”

“Nice,” The photographer hissed.

“Good choice.”

Shawn stood up and backed up a step. As the
man slowly stood up, Shawn grabbed the man by the arm, and walked
him to the door. He glanced over at Brad as he passed his table.
Morgan's ex-boyfriend cracked a small smile and nodded.

When they reached the ballroom entrance,
Shawn shoved the door open and pushed the young man through it.

“I'm calling the police,” The man whined.
“You're gonna pay.”

Shawn snorted. “No. I'm calling the police
and before they arrive, you are going to answer some questions for
me. Who are you and how did you find out about my daughter?”

***

“Morgan, let's go back to your room.” Sabrina
reached out and gently took her arm. Morgan surveyed the room. The
remaining guests were murmuring and staring at the scene with rapt
attention. Heat flushed her face.
Great, they think I'm the
scarlet woman.
Morgan's stomach churned at what the fallout
would be for Shawn and the fundraiser.