by Marla Monroe
“They’ll wait on you. Go ahead and take a shower. I’ll let them know it will be another twenty or thirty minutes,” he said.
Amanda could hear the relief in his voice. It tugged on her heart. She loved him, but he couldn’t love her, not with Guy’s baby inside of her. Tears formed in her eyes, so she kept her back to him until she heard the door open, then close.
Fool, you knew better than to let your heart get involved.
Without turning around, she gathered her things, then walked to the bathroom and dropped everything on the floor. She slid down the closed door, crying silent tears. Right then, she couldn’t hate Guy because without the mess she’d gotten into, she would never have met Morgan. Despite his breaking her heart, she wouldn’t give anything to have missed her time with him.
When the tears finally slowed down enough she could think without sobbing, Amanda stood up using the tub to regain her stance. She turned on the shower and stepped in even before the water warmed up. Slowly, she began to wash away the evidence of Morgan’s lovemaking, hoping it wouldn’t be for the last time, not yet.
* * * *
Morgan was talking with the twins about how to set up a meeting with Guy and keep Amanda safe at the same time when she walked through the door. She appeared freshly showered and, for all the world to see, happy. But Morgan saw the sadness reflected in her eyes when she smiled at him. She knew that their time was running out. He hadn’t been letting himself dwell on it, but now, with things about to heat up, he did.
“Hey Morgan. You with us?” Jethro asked.
“Yeah, just thinking,” he said.
“Well, stop thinking with your dick and get your mind back on this,” Jethro teased.
“Fuck off, man,” Morgan said.
Jethro held up both hands and took a step back. “It’s cool. Everything’s cool.”
“Shit, sorry, I’m just preoccupied, and you’re right. I need to get my mind back on track.”
He forced his concentration back on their plans and closed thoughts of Amanda out of his mind for the time being. Subconsciously, he tracked her every movement and knew that she and Dodge were getting along just fine, which irked him.
“So do we just send him a copy of the disc and let him see for himself, or do we invite him to a hotel room, show it to him, and then give him our demands?” Tyler asked.
“She needs to be in on it regardless of how we do it,” Justin said.
“He has to see her as a strong force to be reckoned with and know that she means business,” Jethro continued.
“I don’t want her in any danger.” Morgan ran a hand through his hair.
“We’ll all be around, so he’ll know he can’t try anything,” Jethro promised.
“So, are we going to tell her about the plan after dinner tonight or tomorrow?” Tyler asked.
“I vote for after dinner.” Jethro looked over at his brother.
“Ditto,” Justin added.
“Tyler? What do you think?” Morgan asked.
“The sooner the better. She’s going to need some time to let it settle in so she can act forceful in front of Guy.”
“Then we’ll talk to her after dinner and lay it all out for her.” Morgan ran his hands over his face.
He was bone-deep tired. He didn’t want her to have to have anything to do with the scumbag. But they were all right, of course. In order to make it stick, she had to be as much a part of it all as they were, maybe even more so.
Dinner was a rowdy affair. Dodge had cooked and turned out to be a fairly good one at that. Morgan hadn’t realized that about him. He guessed there were a lot of things about all of the others he didn’t know about.
After dinner was over and the kitchen cleaned up, they all retired to the living room. Tyler, Morgan, and Amanda took the couch, Jethro and Justin grabbed the love seat, and Dodge got in the recliner without pushing it back.
“Morgan says you have something figured out to get Guy to leave me alone,” Amanda began, leaning forward, obviously eager to know what it was.
“I was able to obtain a copy of a disc of Guy in a compromising situation,” Dodge began. “We send it to him with a note that unless he follows our directions to the letter, we will put it out on the Internet and leak it to the press.”
“What kind of situation is it?” Amanda asked, her brow furrowed.
“Um…” Dodge looked over at Morgan for help.
“It’s not pretty, Amanda. He’s being punished by a dominatrix.”
“He’s what? Why would he have wanted anything to do with me if he was into that?” she demanded.
“Probably to throw anyone off concerning his real kink. Men have affairs all the time, and they’re forgiven. Once he decided to run for mayor, he realized if it got out about his style of kink, he’d be sunk. So, he chose you as a distraction. If anyone found out about you, they probably wouldn’t look any further. He didn’t necessarily keep you a total secret either,” Jethro told her.
“So I never really meant anything at all. Not even as a mistress,” she whispered.
“Baby, he’s a sick fuck. Don’t take anything he’s done or said or will say personal,” Morgan said, squeezing her shoulder.
“So, what do I need to do?” she asked in a quiet voice.
“First of all,” Dodge began, “you need to choose where you want to live, then select a lawyer close by to handle your affairs.”
“I don’t have a clue where to settle down.” She looked over to Morgan for support.
“Um, I think I know the perfect place for now. You can live there until the baby is born and you get your feet under you,” he said.
“Where is that?” she asked.
“My house. I don’t live there anymore, so it’s standing empty. I’ve had someone keeping it clean and the grass mowed, but other than that, it’s pretty much move-in ready. Um, there’s even a nursery.” He swallowed, but didn’t look at her.
“Man, that’s a great idea. Mrs. Pullum lives right across the street. She’d be great for babysitting, I bet,” Tyler said.
“Yeah, well, I was planning on selling it in another few months, but this will work out well. Gives Amanda somewhere safe to live and keeps the house in good shape and gives it that lived-in feeling for when I do put it on the market.”
“I can’t live in your house, Morgan.” Amanda’s lips thinned.
“Why not?” everyone in the room asked at once.
“Because I can’t pay rent or anything. I’ve got to find a job, and there’s no way I can afford a house as big as it sounds.”
“You don’t have to pay rent or utilities. Everything is paid for. All you have to do is save your money for when the baby comes and afterwards, when you decide where you want to live permanently,” Morgan assured her.
“I’m not a fucking charity case.” She stood up, jamming her hands onto her hips.
“Then tell me what you’re going to do until your baby is born and then how in the hell you expect to take care of it? Guy can waltz in and snap him right out of your arms if you don’t have any way to care for him.” Morgan hated himself for using Guy, but she needed to accept his offer.
Tears formed in her eyes, but they didn’t fall. Instead, her jaw worked as she tried to regain control of her emotions.
“Fine. I will accept your more than generous offer, but I will only stay as long as it takes for me to save up enough money for moving somewhere else,” she said in a cold voice.
Then she turned back to Dodge. “Okay, what next?”
“You choose your lawyer and meet with him. Explain everything to him, and put him on retainer. Give him a copy of the disc to hold for you with the instructions that if anything happens to you, it goes public, and name someone to be the baby’s guardian.” Dodge nodded toward Morgan. “He has the list of good lawyers for just this type of problem.”
She turned toward Morgan and held out her hand expectantly. He huffed out a breath and pulled out the list he’d folded and slipp
ed into his pocket. He unfolded it and handed it to her. She read through the names and information about each of them. She folded it and kept it in her hand.
“Okay, once I’ve done that, what next?”
“We set up a meeting with Guy so you can tell him that he will stop harassing you or you will air that disc all over the Internet and leak it to the press. You want him to sign a letter relinquishing all rights to your child to you. He will have nothing to say about it, and his name won’t be on the birth certificate.” Dodge leaned back in the chair.
“Amanda, if you will let me choose the lawyer, I know which one will do this for you free of charge,” Morgan said, wincing when she narrowed her eyes at him.
“I have money I can use for that,” she ground out.
“I know you do, baby, but you should save that for later. You still have clothes to buy for you and the baby, as well as a hospital bill.”
“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 soo
the 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.