Around the World in 80 Men Boxed Set 31-35 (58 page)

His
fingers brushed her cheek as he pushed the blonde hair from her face,
and Morgan felt her lips pull as a smile formed. His touch was warm
as usual, and always welcomed. “Wait...” Morgan sat up
quickly, knocking the blanket from her bare body, and ran her hands
down her waist. No pain, not even a scratch. “The crash!”
Am I dead?
She grabbed Tanner's arm, he felt very real and her
eyes quickly scanned the room. It wasn't until then that she realized
exactly where here really was. “How did...” Tanner's room
unfolded around her, and it was clear she was in Australia. The
handsome Aussie sat down next to her on the bed and coaxed her back
to the pillow, then pulled the blanket back over her body. Tanner ran
his hand through his hair, and took a deep breath.

“After the crash, you needed a place to recover, so I brought
you back here.” Once again, his smile brought her comfort, but
Morgan didn't know how she'd made it there without realizing it. She
asked the question that filled her mind and Tanner explained that
she'd been highly medicated during the flight, and asleep for nearly
two days. “But I'm glad you're awake, and even happier you're
alright.”

“I'm
more than alright.” Morgan placed her hand on the back of his
neck, and pulled his face closer to hers. “In fact,” she
whispered, “I feel … perfect.” Her lips fell on
his in a tender kiss. She had a million questions, but they could
wait.

“Morgan, maybe you should res...” His words were lost in
another kiss. Yes, talking could wait. Tanner's mouth never left
hers, as he slowly moved in position over her body. Morgan's pulse
quickened as his lips moved over her skin, first her neck, then the
soft skin on her chest. It had been too long since she'd felt his
touch, and even longer since she'd felt him move inside her.

“Tanner...”
His name fell from her lips in a breathy plea against his hair, as
her fingers curled around the back of his neck. “I need you.”
His teeth scraped across a swollen bud on her chest, and Morgan's
back arched in response as her body begged for more.

His
hand firmly held her breast in place and his tongue moved in perfect
torturous circles, fueled by each soft moan that escaped Morgan's
lips. His other hand released his cock from his shorts, and Morgan
felt it slide between her legs. Deep inside her, he plunged with one
swift motion.

“Fuck,
Morgan. You feel so goddamn good.” His gaze lifted to hers, as
he entered her again, and Morgan's head fell back against the pillow
as he filled her completely. She reached her arms behind her, and
grabbed the bars at the head of the bed. Her legs wrapped around him,
and the heels of her feet dug into his ass. She felt his muscles
contract with each thrust of his hips, as he filled her again and
again.

“Faster!”
He did as Morgan commanded, and her fingers gripped the bars more
tightly as the whole bed rocked with their dance. “Like
that...yes!”

Morgan's
body tightened and her hands moved to his back as she grew close to
her climax. Her nails dug into the soft flesh of his shoulders as the
pleasure took over her body, and the tremors passed through every
inch. Several more thrusts brought Tanner to the edge, and he too
shook in complete surrender to their passion.

Morgan's
head fell back to the pillow as she tried to regain control over her
breathing, and Tanner fell to her side.

“Let's
never wait that long again.” Morgan waited for a response, but
there was none. She turned her head to the side, and he wasn't there.
“Tanner?” She blinked hard, and the room was suddenly
very bright. “Shit.” The bed had shrunk, and she found
herself on the very edge of it. “This isn't happening.”

Quickly, she moved back to the middle and closed her eyes, and once
again, tried to steady her breathing. Morgan's pain medication had
worn off, and she finally woke enough to see her surroundings. “This
isn't Australia.” Everything, from the storm to the white
haired woman who was dragging her to safety, flooded her mind all at
once.

The
memory of seeing Markus, however, didn't surface. “Are you
alright? Markus?” There was no answer, and that was terrifying.
She looked down at the IV in her arm, and felt her body for injuries.
Her toes moved, her legs, and her arms. So far, so good.

Morgan
sat up and moved her mass of hair from her face. It was then that she
felt the bandage around her forehead. “Shit.” The room
spun, forcing her to close her eyes to make it stop. “Okay...
I'm okay.” Slowly, she opened her eyes and swung her legs off
the bed. The dizziness was held at bay as she stood, and she reached
for her I.V. pole. “Markus?” She heard a soft groan to
the right, and walked slowly in that direction. Her head began to
throb and she felt as if she'd been beaten from head to toe. Mostly,
she realized, her body was just sore and no major damage had been
done.

She
pulled the curtain back just enough to peek through, and saw a dark
haired man on the bed. The room was dim, and she opened the curtain
even more to squeeze through quietly. “Markus?” Her hand
finally met the flesh of his arm, and he turned in her direction.
“Oh... I'm sorry.” She looked down again and saw the
tattoo on his arm.
A face. A man's face. It's the guy that was
beside me in the ambulance.
She stepped back several feet and the
man watched her without saying a word. She felt a cold chill run
through her body at the way he looked at her, and she no longer
wanted to be in his room.

“Morgan?”
Her head snapped to the side, and she shuffled quickly through the
curtain. Trying to walk quietly, and not lift her legs too high to
avoid getting dizzy, had left her doing a ski-walk to the next room.
She peered inside, and her world was set right again.

“Markus!”
She was next to his bed in two seconds, and he opened his arms to
welcome her to his side. “I couldn't find you.. and I
thought...,”

“I'm
okay, Morgan. We're both alright.” He pulled her down to his
chest and they held one another tightly as tears of joy flowed freely
between them.

“Looks
like we won't be separating the two of you.” Maureen walked in
and approached the bed, smiling as she waited for them to part. “But
we're getting you out of here.” Morgan sat on the edge of the
bed with Markus as their nurse explained that the feeding frenzy of
the press was forcing them to send patients that were ready for a
private room, elsewhere. “My sister, Jules.. she's the one that
arrived first at the crash site,” Morgan nodded, remembering
her well, “she's volunteered to sneak a few of you to her house
while you mend. It's not advised that you be released just yet, but
under the circumstances..,”

Morgan
nodded, and smiled at the kind woman. She looked down at Markus and
scanned his body as she did her own. He was bruised badly, and a good
part of his torso was wrapped with a white thick gauze. “Just a
cut, I'm alright.” Morgan took a closer look and could see that
'just a cut' stretched from his hip to the center of his left rib
cage.

“Oh
my god, Markus. It looks bad...real bad.” Morgan attempted to
lift a corner of his bandage when a hand grabbed her fingers. Markus
had already looked at it, and even though it wasn't as bad as it
looked, he knew she would most likely make a bigger deal out of it
than it was.

“I
promise, I'm alright.” He sat up and stifled the reaction to
the pain that shot through his upper body. Morgan watched him, and
raised a brow at how easily he could move. Perhaps, she thought, he
really was alright. Maureen interrupted their moment once again.

“So,
if you're agreeable, we'll have the three of you set up at my
sister's place by tonight.” Morgan looked around, wondering
which other passenger was well enough to mend away from the hospital.
Maureen caught on, and explained the rest of the plan. “The guy
next door, he has a few lacerations and bruises but nothing serious
enough to keep him in here.” Her hands spanned the area, and
both Morgan and Markus knew that the other nine passengers needed the
care much more than they had.

“The
guy next door,” Morgan whispered as she leaned towards,
Maureen, “what's his story?” Maureen looked at her charts
as she spoke.

“Not
much to tell. His name is Ernesto. He hasn't spoken much.” She
went on to explain that the three of them would have their own rooms,
and that Maureen herself would be stopping by daily to tend to their
wounds. All the while, Morgan listened but still wondered about the
stranger that she would soon be lodging with.

*****

“What
do you mean, you can't tell me anything?!” Julianne stood
quickly and paced the small area between her desk and sofa. Maureen
had just returned to the hospital after making sure Morgan, Markus
and Ernesto were settled in with her sister when a very irate woman
called.

“I'm
sorry, but information given over the phone is forbidden. You're
welcome to call the airline and see if they can....”

“I'm
sorry,” Julianne stopped pacing. Her head tilted toward the
ceiling as her eyes closed slowly, “perhaps I wasn't clear. My
name, is Julianne Marks. I'm Morgan's mother. Now, kindly tell me
where my daughter is before I fly to Maine and insert my size eight
heel into your tight ass.” Maureen's mouth opened in shock, but
a small smile threatened the corners of her mouth as she admired the
feisty woman. “My Morgan will be wearing a charm bracelet,
you'll mind to make sure that if it's removed, you take care of it.”
Julianne sniffed softly, and opened her eyes. “Also, she has a
slight scar on her cheek and forehead. You can only see it in the
light, unless she's wearing that cheap make up that I've told her to
stop using...and...” Julianne, at that point, couldn't stand
the pain that had been building since she heard the news. She sobbed
openly, and it broke Maureen's heart.

Obviously,
Maureen thought, Julianne truly was Morgan's mom. “It's okay.
She's alright.” Julianne stopped crying as soon as she heard.
“She's no longer here, though, We moved her and a few patients
to a private residence to avoid the press. She's resting now, but
I'll tell her to call you as soon as she's awake.”

“And
Markus?” Maureen hesitated, but didn't see the harm in telling
Julianne that he was doing alright as well. “Oh, thank god!
Thank you! Thank you!” Julianne ended the call and dropped onto
the plush white sofa. Two seconds of rest later, and she was on her
feet again to make a few more calls. It was at that moment when she
realized that she hadn't received any as of yet. “Why?”
Her eyes widened when she realized that none of them knew. “They
can't know... or I would have heard from them.” She held her
phone tightly, wondering what her next move should be. “No. I
certainly don't need to call any of them. If they want to know what's
going on, they can find out for themselves.” Her protective
instincts shot out from every fiber of her being, and she expected
the men in Morgan's life to make the effort to keep tabs on her if
they chose to. “That's up to you, child. Not me.” She put
the phone in her bag and grabbed her keys. “As for me, I'll see
you in Maine.”

Chapter
Three

“Oh
my god.” The words fell from Morgan's lips in no more than a
whisper. She pulled at her long hair with a thick towel Jules had
provided her, as she sat down on the edge of the bed, wearing only a
robe. Markus had turned the television on while she was in the
shower, and the scene in front of her instantly brought tears to her
eyes. “One-hundred and sixteen...” Morgan's hand covered
her mouth, and hot steams of tears fell down her cheeks as the
headline scrolled across the top of the news channel. “Ten
survivors? But there were twelve of us in that room...”

Nobody
had told Morgan and Markus how bad the crash was. Morgan knew that
the three of them were in stable enough condition out of the twelve
in ICU to go to Jules' house, but a part of her had never entertained
the thought they they were the
only
twelve to survive. Morgan
also didn't know that two of the twelve survivors had passed away in
the past few hours, meaning only ten of them were still alive. More
tears fell down her cheeks as all of the information processed in her
mind.

“
Come
here,” Markus spoke, as he put a hand on her shoulder. He
pulled gently, and Morgan let her body fall to the bed with her head
on his lap. “It's okay.” There were no correct words to
console her, and survivors guilt raged through Morgan's entire being.
Markus pulled the wet clump of hair away from Morgan's face and
rubbed her back as her tears soaked through his pajama pants.