Alice threw her hands in the air, but her eyes still held shock and disbelief. "Be right back. I'm getting my bag."
Alice stormed off. Her mother stayed right on her heels into her bedroom. "I'll help you." She shut the door.
John realized that his heart wasn't racing. If he married Alice, then he'd have what he always wanted, a place where he belonged with someone who made him feel warm as he started his own business.
Alice would make a perfect wife.
Chapter 16
Alice's mother slammed the bedroom door. "You cannot marry him."
She found her suitcase in the closet and kept her gaze on the bag. "Mom, you're being overdramatic, as usual."
Ellie walked in front of the dresser drawers, so Alice returned to her closet to get her dresses for the bag. "I'll die right here, in this very spot. My daughter is marrying the enemy."
Alice wasn't really engaged, but that wasn't the point. She threw her clothes in the bag. "John is not my enemy, and you're healthy."
Alice turned around and glared at the dresser with her stuff. She crossed her arms until her mother stepped aside. "Alice, the Collins’ and the Morgans should not mix. You're my only daughter. I can't lose you too."
Alice stormed past her and opened the drawer with her bras and underwear. Luckily most of her stuff was already in storage for her move next week. Colt officially took possession of the house as soon as the rest of them moved out. She scooped up the last of her clothes and huffed by. "Mom, I'm an adult. You haven't lost any of us, and you have to trust me at some point in my life."
Her mother shook her head, not hearing a word Alice had said. "If you marry him, then you will destroy us all."
"Why, Mom? How will my marriage destroy you?"
"Mitch Morgan almost ruined us."
Her mother's flair for the dramatic made her impossible. The past was over, and the man was dead. "You didn't answer the question, Mom."
Her mother's voice became soft and it sounded like she would cry. "I can't answer that, sweetie. I need you to trust me that the House of Morgan is too big for us and that you can't get involved."
Ellie Collins would always be irrational when it came to the Morgans. Alice closed her eyes and tried to sound reasonable. She probably should tell her that it was a lie, but her mother should respect and accept her choices, whoever he might be. "John makes me feel special."
Her mother reached out to stroke Alice's hair. "You are special, but your head is being turned from the size of his bank account. John is not good for you."
"At least you remembered that his name is John, not Mitch Morgan reincarnated." Alice stepped back and refused her mother's touch. Her temper soared. "And I'm not a gold digger. Have some respect. We didn't stay at the mausoleum. John has his own house."
"I don't care if he lives on the farm next to ours." Her mother paced the room and threw her hands in the air. "He's his son, and wrong for you."
Her bedroom used to be full of all her worldly possessions, but now all that was left was an empty room with a bed. Her things were packed and gone, which told her she should pack her necessities and go too. Alice ground her heels in the floor and calmed her tone. "Mom, John's been in the FBI. He had an honest job that doesn't pay millions."
Her mother sighed. "He is young and sought adventure."
Alice rolled her eyes. Reason was not a good option. Then she took a deep breath and tried to keep the steam out of her voice. "I doubt that."
"And now you claim Victoria is alive."
Alice squared her shoulders. "She is alive. I saw her."
"I can't take this. No one comes back from the dead." Her mother shook her head. "And if that's true, then that's more trouble for our family."
Vicki had spent years in this house, with her family, away from the House of Morgan. Her mother cooked dinners for them all, right in this kitchen. Alice shouted, "She was my best friend."
"I thought you outgrew your childhood fantasy to be a part of the House of Morgan."
Alice zipped up her bag and rolled it on the floor, heading toward her door. "Mom, this conversation is over."
Her mother's plea clung in the air like the heavy weight of humidity outside. "Are you leaving with him?"
Alice refused to turn back. "Yes."
"Then you are not welcome back in my house."
Alice stopped and turned. Inside every part of her wanted to shake and she'd probably cry the second she was alone. She lifted her chin to not let her mother see. "You're kicking me out of the family?"
The corner of her mother's lip ticked. "You left me with no other choice. I have to protect the rest of us."
"I'm not the enemy." Alice gripped the suitcase handle like it was a lifeline. "You can respect my choices."
Her mother's eyes misted like she was about to cry. "You don't know what you ask."
Crocodiles used tears to manipulate people, and Alice was tired of the dramatics. It was not nice to strike out like she did when upset. "And you don't explain, so there is nothing else to say."
Her mother's face grew wet and she sniffled. "Alice, your father and I will always love you. When that Morgan breaks your heart and leaves you broken, come home."
Families were supposed to trust. Her mother missed the memo. Alice's jaw began to loosen, and her eyes welled. She'd not cry in front of her mother and let her comfort her. It was all part of the plan to control, but Alice was not buying it. "You could have some faith in me."
Ellie opened her arms to hug her. "Likewise. I need you to trust me."
No. Alice stepped back and turned on her heels. Manipulation wasn't part of this. She was no longer a child. Alice left her bedroom. "Goodbye."
Alice went to the living room, where John straightened and took her bag from her. He had no idea of the drama he'd caused, but she decided she'd deal with him later. Right now, she marched for the front door. She had everything she needed to run the finances virtually. She'd never darken her mother's door again.
She let John help her, but that didn't ease the pain in her chest. Not everything in life needed to be a movie or a horrible telenovela. She turned around and glared at her mother who dried her eyes. The puppy dog look was all an act.
John placed his hand on her back. "Are you okay?"
She turned around, took his hand in hers and a spark of electricity shot through her. "Let's go."
At least, her mother said nothing else. Probably because John was a Morgan, but at the moment, Alice needed the silence.
She kept her back straight as she headed to the door. Her mother had disowned her over John. The marriage comment was inappropriate, but it was time Alice made the choices in her life. Angry, she picked up her phone and blocked her mother's phone number. In a few days, she'd think about talking to her again.
John followed her and once they reached the patio, her mother slammed the door behind them.
John's hand on her back made her skin prickly. She'd get no peace. She didn't budge or move from her spot in the driveway. Then he said, "So your mother didn't like me."
"I told you to keep quiet near her." She swallowed as her eyes misted but she wouldn't let her mother see her reaction. "Let's just get in the car."
"I'm sorry. I don't know why that came out of my mouth." John opened the trunk to place her bag in the back. "Are you upset?"
She hugged her arms and waited at the passenger seat for him to unlock the Mercedes. "Yes."
He rushed to her side, and the wind he created cooled her cheeks. "That wasn't my intention."
He'd lied about marriage to her mother for some reason that she couldn't even fathom. That lie was horrible, but he didn't know her mom. She kept her chin from trembling as she sucked in the inside of her cheeks. "It's not you, but what you said was wrong too. Please hurry, I don't want to cry until we're off the property."
He opened her door and she slid into her seat, her body numb. This wasn't what she'd intended. She shivered despite the heat.
Joh
n's presence set off her heart in a different way, but she was glad when he drove away from her old house.
Lies about marriage only made everything worse. Her mother was ridiculous, but then so was she. Marriage to John in jest was like being offered one piece of chocolate instead of the whole bag. They'd never be together. Kings of the world did not spend eternity with peasants and farmers.
Chapter 17
John closed the door to his house as they parked the car in the garage and left Alice's bag beside him. Outside the walls, the security gate still closed automatically, but her ears mostly burned as she stormed down the hall. In the distance she heard John enter the house and lock the door.
First her heart had to accept her mother's actions, but what he did was wrong, on so many levels. She took a deep breath, ready to finally speak after that silent car ride, so she turned to face him though she only reached his broad shoulder. "Why did you tell my mother we're getting married?"
He covered his face with his hands as he studied her. She swore his blue eyes seemed to glow with regret. Finally he said, "I didn't. Exactly."
What? "I heard you."
This was outside the box of acceptable. She shook her head. "You never asked me, and you told my mother we were. She already has a thing against your family, but this made it so much worse."
He took her hand in his. "I said I intend to marry you."
If it was anyone else, she'd take him seriously. But this was John Morgan, son of one of the wealthiest families alive, and potential heir to a business kingdom. People like him did not marry people like her, so there was no way he'd be serious about marriage. She wasn't a complete idiot. "That's insane. My mother officially wishes you dead now."
She tried to take her hand back, but he asked, "Does your mother's opinion matter so much?"
She stilled and averted her gaze. Maybe John didn't understand because he never had a family that cared. "No. Yes. I want my mother to retire and be happy with my dad while I live my own life."
His fingers traced her knuckles. "So you gave up your freedom when you moved back home?"
John would never get it. "My dad had a heart attack. Colt was serving overseas. They needed me, and when you love your family, you give up a little freedom in exchange for their well-being."
His hand left hers, and traced her face. "That's noble and sweet, and you're right. I wouldn't know how that feels."
His touch sent her body into overdrive. "John, our lives are different."
She hoped he'd rip off her clothes and take her right here, right now. She ached for another kiss, but he dropped his arms to the sides and shrugged. "Our lives shaped us, but they don't define our future."
She caught herself from forgiving him carte blanche. Her lusty thoughts for John clouded her judgment, again. She rubbed her neck and tried to cool down. Her mother fit into the Morgan family. "True. I don't want to talk about my mother and her dramatics anymore. We go to your family tomorrow."
He reached backwards and picked up her bag. She followed him down the long hall as he said, "Yeah we do. The reading will not be fun."
She must have misread him earlier. He hadn't even thought about a kiss. "Are you sure you want me there?"
He turned around at her bedroom door and she gazed right into his clear blue eyes. "Victoria asked for you."
John opened her door and dropped the bag on the inside. She stepped closer to him and caught his hand in hers. "What about you?"
He swallowed and the smell of cedar and pine mixed in her nose. Her lips tingled in hopes of a kiss. "I don't know if I can handle being in the room with Peter," he said. "I don't know if I can trust him."
Perhaps there was a book she could read on how to get over a crush with pointers that might clear her head. Right now she was acting like some dog in heat and not herself. She stepped back and wondered if she spoke to Peter one-on-one, would that change anything with the contract? "You have to listen to your heart on that one. Is he like your father?"
John shrugged and closed her bedroom door. "He might be. I hardly know him."
She talked to Colt all the time. She watched his daughter for him without complaint. She blinked as she tried to understand. "He's your brother."
John's face turned red. "He stood right next to my father all my life. He's two years older than me, but I have no memory of Peter on his own without my father."
Strange. Colt led his own life, but she'd do whatever she could for him, too. Despite how Peter canceled their contract, family was family. "Maybe he's not that bad."
"Maybe he's worse. I don't trust him."
"Then you've made a decision."
"No, I'm just talking it through. I'm not sure how to take Peter or if I want a position in my father's company."
She reached out and touched his arm. Fireworks exploded inside her, but she stayed sharp. "You have to try. What happened to the determined guy I met at the hotel?"
He nodded. "You're right. I'd still like you with me tomorrow."
With luck his family might bond, now that Mitch was gone. "Of course. I'll be there for you. We're friends."
He turned and her back went against the wall. Her entire body ached with need as he leaned closer to her. "We're more than friends."
Her toes curled as his hands surrounded her. Her eyelashes fluttered. "I don't know, John."
He lowered his head, as if he'd like to kiss her. She closed her eyes and waited for his lips to brush against hers, again. Then he said, "I don't know what I'm doing near you."
His mouth brushed hers and she saw stars all around them. His body pressed against her and nothing else existed except the two of them.
He stepped back and looked like he was selected in a military draft, unable to escape. She tried to stand taller, but swayed on her feet from the too-brief kiss. His face was red. "Alice, you're someone who believes in happy ever after."
She shook her head, not wanting him to take on responsibility for her feelings. If she let her wild side dictate her emotions, she'd happily accept whatever small amount of time he offered her. Then she'd stop whatever fantasies she had of what might happen between them that sparked from her old crush. "I don't believe in love."
His eyebrows quirked like she said the silliest thing he ever heard. She'd straightened out her dress. She'd have to be more convincing.
"You have two stable parents."
She nodded. Parents didn't mean she was needy. "Yeah, and they love each other despite how they drive each other crazy."
His blue eyes clouded. "I never knew my mother. I have sketchy memories of a woman who might have been her, but I was two when she disappeared."
Disappearing wasn't the story that she remembered being told. She tilted her head. "Didn't she die?"
John shrugged. "So my father says. He said Vicki died too, so I don't believe anything he ever told me. Tomorrow's reading might be where he finally kicks me out of the Morgan family and does what he promised to do years ago."
His mind had to be on the reading of the will tomorrow. His father wouldn't cut him out. It would make it look like he'd been unable to keep his family, and Mitch Morgan was all about family appearances. In how many magazine pictures did Mitch Morgan present himself with his son or sons? She ran her fingers down his bare forearm and caressed the blond hairs near his wrist. "John, I don't envy you."
His dimples returned and the fire inside her flamed. "It's why I think you're the sexiest woman I ever met."
She shook her head. He was being ridiculous. "What?"
He inched forward, his hip pressing hers against the beige wall. "You are."
His hands traced her arms and her body tingled, hoping he'd kiss her again. She asked, "How?"
His head lowered and she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Your blue eyes haunt my dreams. Your kiss is embedded on my lips."
John Morgan kissed her like she was the most important person in his life. Her toes curled as her entire body craved him. He tasted better than honey or c
hocolate or anything she'd ever had that was sweet. Then she pulled her head back and whispered, "Stop."
He froze though his blue eyes had flecks of lightning inside them. "Why?"
She tightened her hold and she tugged him close. Regrets were for tomorrow. Right now, she lived. "Because I want you to do it again."
He pressed her back against the wall, kissing her so deeply that she lost sight of everything else. All that mattered was how they'd become one.
Chapter 18
In the kitchen, John set the table for breakfast in his designer jeans and short sleeve button up white shirt. She stood and watched him as he added coffee to a tray. Why would he take such good care of her but then interfere with her mother all at the same time? She lifted her chin. He added fruit to the tray as she walked in. With her hand on her hip, and no smile on her face, she gazed at him. "Why didn't we sleep together last night, John?"
He fixed the silverware. "You deserve better."
She came closer and placed her hand on his. His eyes met hers "How?" she asked. "Who would be better?"
Alice had to know how he felt. She deserved someone strong and capable of falling in love with her and wanting to spend the rest of his life next to her. Then he said, "I just quit my day job and I am about to start from zero."
Her gaze narrowed. "Would that bother you?"
He shrugged.
She knew Mitch Morgan had never once said a kind word to John, training Peter to be his replacement, but he hadn't cut out John either. Why would John expect him to change after death?
"I wouldn't expect anything less from dear old Dad."
She fiddled with the gold pendant Vicki gave her. Then she picked up some toast and sat. "What does that have to do with me and you and last night?"
"Everything." He stood as tall and still as one of the orange trees on the farm. "If there is to be a future, then we should know our finances."
Her mind whirled. Money was not a reason to say no to sex. "I don't care about that."
[House of Morgan 01.0 - 03.0] Boxed Set Page 11