The Morrigan: Damaged Deities (24 page)

“I don’t know who you are, but you’re a shit imposter of my sister.”

Bev laughed.  “I have my moments.  Anyway, it’s a different time now.  It’s a different world.  You don’t have to worry about losing Kade to some crazy ass tribal war.”

“No, I just have to worry about breaking his heart…and mine.” Bev sighed her annoyance at Morrie. “Don’t, Bev.  What you say may be true, but it doesn’t matter.  I came here for one purpose and I’m not going to get sidetracked by silly notions of love.”

“Love?” The question was loaded with insinuations.

“You know what I meant.  Of course not, love.  Just…romance and all that stupid shit.  I can’t let what happened last night happen again.  I’m going to catch this damn horse and come home.” 

Go back to her normal, boring life of greasy diners and dusty corrals.

“Godsdamn it,” Bev sighed. “You’ll do what you want, you always have.  And I’ll be here for you, you know that.  But live a little.  You let yourself die, too, the day Chulainn died.  And for fuck’s sake, next time don’t leave me hanging without a return phone call for weeks and weeks.”

“Less than forty-eight hours, but whatever.” Morrie grinned.

“Love you,” Bev said.

“Love you, back.” Morrie answered, smiling at how her sister always could comfort her.  But it was a short-lived happiness, dashed by Bev’s next words.

“Be sure to call me the minute you fuck that Scot.”

With a tortured sigh, Morrie hung up her phone and tossed it behind her on the bed.  She could only hope Kade would stay away for the next couple of weeks.  But even she couldn’t deny that she would miss him, if he did.

E
veryone was fired. 

From the daft bastard doorman who took Morrie to the landing pad without alerting Kade first to that hamshank who flew her home—that is, as soon as he was done flying Kade home, as well. 

Since he woke up alone, Kade had been on a war path and willing to kick any ass out onto the street for so much as looking at him funny. 

At first he felt overwhelming fear at finding the lass missing. 

He had searched around frantic, expecting to find evidence that something had happened to her in the night, that he had…done something in his sleep…

But there had been no sign of struggle.  Her scent still lingered on his lips, hands and body.  He could still taste her. 

But other than that, all seemed calm.

And then it hit him.

After the best night of his life that had, surprisingly, not even included sex, the infuriating little lass slipped out of his arms like a thief in the night and left Kade feeling like a mistress of it.  His arresting fear turned to rage.

She hadn’t even left a note!

He couldn’t get over how angry he felt, how absurdly cheap even while a small part inside of him respected her gall.  Normally Kade had to find clever ways of evacuating women from his bed, and always before he fell asleep.

But he didn’t understand!

Everything before that had felt…right.  Morrie beside him had given Kade a sleep he’d been searching for and desperately needing his whole life.  There had been no nightmares.  No images to torment him. 

With Morrie by his side, sweet darkness graced his tired mind. 

But besides that, being with her made all the scattered pieces in his life click into place. 

Finally, life made sense.

After a quick interrogation that may have turned slightly crazed and loud, Kade discovered Morrie had ditched him to go back to the Highlands.  Like their night together had meant nothing.

The helicopter returned from dropping her off just as Kade had stormed the roof looking for it, ready to grip the fucking pilot’s throat in his hand and toss him over the side of the building.  He would have, had he not needed the bastard to fly him back.

After giving himself some time to cool down and downing two tumblers of whiskey while the Scottish countryside passed by beneath him, Kade called his brother.

“How was last night?” Kamden answered after the second ring.

Kade had a feeling he already knew the outcome.

“Is she there?” he demanded.

“Aye, slinked in before Lorna and Danny had even gotten tae their chores.” His laughter rumbled softly. “What exactly did ye do tae the lass?”

“That’s none of yer goddamn business,” Kade growled.  More laughter from Kamden.  But Kade did sigh with relief, knowing she was safe, if not a high-tailing tease.  He huffed. “So what do I do?”

“Do?  Do about what?  Why do ye care?”

Why did Kade care? 

Because he couldn’t get the lass out of his mind. 

Because he found her sarcasm and sharp wit challenging and refreshing.  Because no matter how much he had tried to convince himself what he felt for Morrie was purely physical, last night something changed.

“I just do,” he answered.

“Alright then, why’d ye think she left?”

Kade didn’t know, but he could guess. 

Completely contrary to everything else about her, the lass seemed to fear total intimacy with him.  All of her proclamations of professionalism and duty were obvious walls she had erected to protect something else. 

Something deeper.  She seemed to be at war with her mind; her urges and thoughts at odds. 

Her words and actions certainly were.

“Maybe as a paid employee of the family, she felt wrong being there,” Kamden offered.

“Then
I’ll
pay her salary!”

“Aye, that will make her feel better.”

Shoving his hand through his hair, Kade placed the crystal tumbler in the bar, recalling delicious memories of the flight before and just bit down his renewed anger and lust. 

“I’ll figure something out.”

“Look,” Kamden began and Kade knew a lecture would soon follow. “She was only asked tae escort ye tae the opening and keep ye out o’ trouble.  She did that, so rather than tryin’ tae pursue what doona want tae be caught, why doona ye focus yer attentions elsewhere, like—”

“Sorry, ye’re cuttin’ out,” Kade lied, holding the phone away from his ear before crushing it in his grip. 

He let the pieces tumble to the floor. 

Resting his chin in his hand, Kade looked out of the window and determined that he would deal with this Morrie problem, one way or another.

C
HAPTER
T
WENTY-
O
NE

“It is only the dead who have seen the end of war.”

Plato

It was not because she couldn’t stop thinking of Kade that Morrie found herself back at the restaurant where they had shared their first meal together.  It was not because of shame that she fled the manor to eat lunch there alone.  And it was most certainly not regret she swallowed down with each spoonful of potato stew that seemed to taste just a little less wonderful without Kade’s company.

Maddie stood behind the bar facing her with a warm, consoling smile that seemed to show the stout woman knew too much of Morrie’s thoughts. 

“Another soda fer ye, lass?”

“Yes, please.”

Morrie laid down her spoon and tried to make sense of the dream that had pushed her so quickly from Kade’s bed. 

She hadn’t dreamed of Chulainn in eons. 

Yes, the Celt had never really left her mind, not fully as he always seemed to pace just outside the edges of her conscious thought. 

But to completely invade her with such vivid and detailed memories, the feel of him so real, the sense of him so profound, like he was with her again…that hadn’t happened to Morrie since she had walked away from the man thousands of years ago.

She sat exasperated over what could have possibly happened to bring it all back now—feelings and doubts and sorrow she thought she had successfully conquered in her years of solitude since.  What had changed?

Scotland
, Morrie grumbled. 

And thought she had done so internally except Maddie asked, “What was that lass?” as she sat down the glass of Dr. Pepper before Morrie.

“Oh, nothing.” Morrie smiled uneasily and slid the glass in front of her. “Thank you.”

“Somethin’ weighing heavy on yer mind, dear?”

Maddie leaned against the bar. 

Morrie folded her hands in front of her and rested on her elbows. “We are women, Maddie.  There is always something weighing heavily on our minds.”

“Too true, lass,” Maddie laughed brightly. “But if yourn is what I think it is, ye’ve got a sexy six and a half-foot burden o’ trouble on ye only a special kind o’ woman can handle.” 

Morrie tilted her head and leveled a half-hearted glare at the barmaid. 

It would seem over-familiarity was a running trait among all the residents of the village and privacy was something the Scots invaded with dogged success.

Maddie just continued to grin in that confounding, knowing way.

“Aye,” she answered herself, nodding at Morrie. “And I believe ye know it, too.  And that ye may just be that woman.”

“It’s not like that.” Morrie closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead.

“Keep tellin’ yerself that, lass,” Maddie quipped. 

Morrie’s head snapped up in time for her to level a whole-hearted, heated glare at the back of Maddie’s bobbing head as she sashayed away.

What could the barmaid sense, that Morrie couldn’t?

To answer her question, a warm presence stood close behind her, making the back of her neck tingle and her body thrum.

“Did no one tell ye it’s rude tae give a man the best night of his life and then run away?” a voice rumbled low and soft and managed to be as seductive as it was menacing.

“Kade,” Morrie sighed, hoping he couldn’t hear the desire and relief laced in the sound. 

She shouldn’t be this excited over knowing he had raced home after her, but inside she nearly bounced like a giddy school girl. 

And what did he say? 
The best night of his life…
Morrie would have to admit, she felt the same.

She spun around on the stool to face him, leaning back when she found him standing too near. 

He closed the small space, towering over her as he dipped his head to be eye level with her, forcing her back against the bar.

“Ye will no’ leave like that again,” he growled. 

Morrie frowned at his order and opened her mouth to respond, but the words caught in the back of her throat. 

Emotion flickered in his eyes, eyes that had grown black with what could have been either desire or fury, she wasn’t sure.  But also something else…

Morrie tilted her head to the side. “Did I scare you?”

Kade huffed with quick offense and straightened up, leaning back from her.  But his expression changed to one of wonder.

“Like ye would no’ believe,” he admitted on an exhaled breath as though surprised by his own revelation.

“I told you I was here for business.”  And that business was quickly becoming an obsession of hers. 

A challenge that would determine just how far down the mortal hole she had fallen and whether she could find her true nature as a goddess once again. 

This job tested her mettle because it should have been done by now.  She knew she could find the horse if she used her powers, but she needed to know she could find him on her own. 

Though why she needed that, she couldn’t say.

Kade turned his angry eyes on her. “Do ye really expect tae succeed in this daft quest?”