Around the World in 80 Men Series: Boxed Set 21-30 (44 page)

Morgan
had spent her whole life alone, not just figuratively, but
realistically. She knew, unfortunately better than most, what it was
like to be by on her own, and what it was like to go through hard
times, and even the good times, with nobody by her side. Gran became
ill before Morgan was finished with middle school, and she had mostly
gone through life, alone, since then. That aspect of her life was one
thing that made her strong, but it was a painful lesson to learn and
she'd do her best to never make any of her friends go through the
same thing.

“Well,
now you have an excuse to visit.”

“I
never needed one to begin with.” Morgan gave him a brief kiss,
then got up from the floor and slowly walked over to Abby, who was
still sleeping. “And I
will
be back.” She ran a
finger from Abby's wet nose to the small gap between her eyes. “Bye
baby, I love you.” She'd already given her a million goodbyes,
but one more whispered farewell and a kiss to her soft head were
needed before she left.

“Are
you ready?” Morgan nodded and followed Clay out to the car that
was still packed from earlier that afternoon. Her tears flowed
freely as she looked back at the hospital, and wished a speedy final
recovery for her hero.

*****

Angel
was in full blown manic mode. He had to speak to Morgan to find out
what the story was with Finlay's baby, and why she hadn't told him
already. He was her best friend, and something as big as Fin having
a child should have been discussed long before then. His panic was
exasperated by the fact that he still couldn't get in touch with her,
and the added fear of the possibility of her being in trouble was
also a factor.

“Answer
your phone, bitch! Answer your damn... Stick! Mothafuckin' Sticky
Buns! I have tried calling your ass for months! Where the fuck have
you been?” Morgan had just turned her phone on since arriving
in London on her first and only layover, and Angel's call came
through within minutes. She laughed and followed that with a yawn as
she found a secluded seat.

“Sorry...
I was in Vegas.” She quickly told him the story of Abby, and
Angel gasped at the tragic news, then was relieved to find that the
brave girl was on the mend, and safely back at home. “Anyway,
I spent most of the time with her, and I couldn't have my phone on.”
Angel understood, and part of his issue had been resolved. The
other part, however, still needed to be sorted.

“I
was worried as hell, Stick. I even called Finny.” He didn't
tell her that he knew about the baby, as he hoped that he would be
willing to get her to tell him without appearing to pry it out of
her.

“Fin?
Why would you call him?” Morgan leaned back and pulled a long
piece of red licorice from her bag, and bit a small piece off as she
waited. Angel let out a short puff of irritation, and he too took a
seat to work on getting the truth out of her.

“You
know, you're always running to that big bastard... I just thought you
might have gone there and forgot to tell my ass.” Morgan
giggled and shook her head.

“I
do not run to him!”

“Whatever.
So, what's going on with Braveheart these days? Anything... new?”
He was getting angry, since he was starting to get the idea that
his best friend wasn't going to tell him about Finlay's son.

“Nope.
Not that I know of. Shit! They just called for us to board.”
She thought she would have enough to time to sit for a few moments
and then get a quick meal, but she already had to leave. “I'll
call you the minute I get there... love you.”

“Stick!
What about the baby? Stick?!” It was too late, she was gone.
“Mothafuckin' secrets are gonna make a bitch crazy!” He
shouted into the silent phone, and grabbed PoPo's beak when the bird
repeated Angel's words. He dropped his phone on the bed and ran his
hands through his hair. He just couldn't believe that she would lie
to him, or leave him out of something that important. “It's
not like you, Stick. You tell me every fuckin' thing... why would
you...?” He held his breath deep in his chest and didn't move.
His eyes moved to PoPo, then his phone, and his words fell from his
lips as he finally released a breath. “You wouldn't lie to
me.” The reality of catching Finlay in a desperate moment,
with the noise and chaos that Angel had heard on the other end, was
all coming together for him. “Finny has a child... and Stick
doesn't fuckin' know.” His hand raised slowly to his mouth,
and his heart raced at the possibility that he could be right. Again,
he called Cedric to seek advice.

“Shit!”
Morgan whispered as she sat in her seat. The curse word in question
was because she realized she didn't have a window seat and also
because she realized she hadn't told Julianne what her new arrival
time was. Her original flight had been scheduled to arrive early
Saturday morning, but her new arrival time was 6:45, Friday evening.
Worst case scenario, she'd get a room and wait until her client was
available. She sent a quick text to her boss, then stuffed her phone
in her purse, just as the announcement to put cell phones away came
over the speakers.

If
she hadn't been so tired, Morgan would have spent the flight working
on her scrapbook, as it had been neglected from her short stay in
Tahiti. She knew she needed the rest though, especially if she
planned to act like a functional human being, rather than a zombie.
Aside from being tired, everything else was great and she was looking
forward to meeting Luis. The situation with Abby was one of life's
misfortunes, but she was doing well and that was fantastic. There was
nothing else to worry about and the smile on her face could still be
seen as she fell into a deep sleep. She had dreams of her Gran during
the flight, and it felt as if her only true family had been proud of
her for seeing to Abby in her time of need. Morgan's mind welcomed
the imaginary visit from the sweet woman, and all had been well in
Morgan's world.

*****

“Angel,
just mind your own business.” Cedric set his phone down on the
dresser and slid his legs into a pair of tight jeans. It was his
night off and he planned to go out to his favorite restaurant and
grab a bite to eat with his sister. Jordy was out of town anyway, so
night off or not, he would have taken his chances.

“Listen,
bitch ass, she
is
my mothafuckin' business.” Angel
hadn't stopped pacing for hours. “Why does everyfuckinone want
me to mind my shit? G-Poodle told me the same story. Angel, don't do
it,” he mocked his boss in a voice higher than his own.

“Angel,
your name should be the devil. You're always stirring up shit. Listen
to Gio, he's right. This isn't your place.”

“CiCi,
your ass is telling me, if you had just found out the same
mothafuckin' shit, you wouldn't tell her?”

“No.”

“You
ass is lyin'.”
“Angel, no, I'm not. Baby, it's her
life and obviously that Fin boy hasn't told her for a reason, so stay
out of it.” Cedric buttoned his pants up and began threading
his belt through the loops around his waist.

Angel
huffed loudly. “A mothafuckin' reason? Boo, he ain't told her
cuz he knows sh...”

“Angel,
you have no idea why he hasn't told her. I'm warning you. Stay. Out.
Of. It. Your nosy ass is always getting in where it shouldn't be.”
Cedric gave his last words about the topic, then blew a few kisses
into the phone to Angel and let him know he had to go, then hung up.
I hope you listen to me.

“My
nosy ass,” Angel mumbled before throwing his phone down on the
bed. He knew it was true, he'd done his fair share of interfering and
most of the time, it had come back to bite him in his nether regions.
That couldn't be denied. “But we're talking about a baby!”
He paced over to PoPo and held his arm out and the big blue and
yellow bird quickly ran up his arm and to his shoulder. At the top,
the bird nuzzled its head against Angel's cheek and Angel tucked his
hand under PoPo's wing, giving him some gentle scratches. “A
baby, PoPo. Muthafucka's got a baby.”

“Baby,
baby, baby, baby.”

“Yeah.
Shut the hell up, I know.” He grabbed Po's beak and made the
echo stop, at least for a moment.

“Muthafucka's
got a baby, baby, baby.”

“You
know what? Your ass is right. I need to call her.” Angel
nodded, as if the bird had said something brilliant and ran back over
to his phone, with PoPo still on his shoulder, bobbing his head
enthusiastically. He'd already wasted enough time seeking the advice
of Gio and Cedric, even though he knew he'd end up calling Morgan
anyway. “Don't look at me like that. It's not my fault they
didn't give me the answer I wanted.” He rolled his eyes at the
bird. “Look, I ain't interfering, I'm just being a good friend.
I won't freak out, I'll just ask....calmly.” At the moment,
PoPo was the only one not telling him what to do. Everyone else
wanted him to keep quiet, which was one thing Angel was never very
good at. After another kiss to PoPo's beak, he clicked Morgan's
number, then plopped down on the bed.

“Sticky
Ass, don't hang up! I got some shit to tell you!”

“Angel!
Oh, hi! Uh, I just got off the plane, can I call you back?” She
didn't wait for an answer. Just like Cedric, she blew a few kisses
and hung up.

“Like
fuckin' wet underoos. Stick, you've got to stop that shit.”
Angel sighed and stared at the blank screen on his phone.

Five
thousand miles away in Madrid, Morgan was finding an empty chair to
sit in and check her laptop. Julianne had sent her a text stating
Luis wouldn't be in until the following afternoon, so she was to get
a room. “There, that was easy.” Morgan booked a room
in the closest hotel, which turned out to be only a short walk from
the airport. Halfway there, that short walk began to feel like a
triathlon, and she cursed herself for thinking that she could haul
all of her bags, in heels, to a building that was six city blocks
away from where she started.

She
was completely out of breath by the time she got to the hotel,
checked in, and found her room. “I'm never... ever.. walking
again!” Morgan's bags were carried to her room, but it didn't
help the blister on her left hand from holding the handle with a
death grip the entire way, or the ache in both feet from her poor
choice of foot wear.

“I.
Hate. You.” Morgan pulled her boots off and let them fall to
the carpet beside her bed, then stood to remove the rest of her
clothes. She was sweaty, sore, tired, and in need of an immediate
shower. Her phone fell to the carpet, next to her boots, when she
removed her jeans, and Morgan picked it up and turned it on.
“Shower.. then Angel.” Her best friend would have to
wait just a few more minutes, because after being filthy for nearly
three days in Vegas, the need to stay clean was far too strong at the
moment.

Fifteen
minutes later, Morgan was in the process of crawling across the bed
to assume the phone call position, and her phone sounded loudly in
her hand. She took a quick look before answering, knowing it was
Angel, and was surprised to see Tanner's smiling face on the lit
screen.

“Hey!
How's my favorite Aussie?” She leaned back on the pillow, and
pulled the blanket over her legs.

“I'm
good, Love. How are ya? Where are ya?” She laughed and told
him that she had just arrived in Madrid.

“I've
only been in my room for like twenty minutes.. I was just about
to...”

“I
know.. don't tell me.. you'll get a bubble bath, then you'll eat
pizza or burgers. Oh, and have a glass of that wine that ya like.
Right?” He was obviously quite proud of his knowledge as she
could hear the slight condescending tone in his voice. Although, she
knew that he was just being silly, if anything.

“No,
I did not get a bubble bath. And no, I was not going to eat....”

“Well,
I suppose you'll get around to it once you're settled in.”
Morgan opened her mouth to defend herself again, but he did have a
point, it was typically what she would have done, so she kept her
argument at bay.

The
two spoke for several moments, catching up on what they'd both been
doing for the last few weeks. Tanner had been out to sea until the
night before, and he told her about the trip, the crew, and all that
happened while they were out. Morgan envied his stories, and loved
his freedom to come and go as he pleased. Even if it was work, it
was something that he loved and could do when he chose to do it.