Around the World in 80 Men Series: Boxed Set 21-30 (119 page)

“At least let me take you to your hotel. Morgan?”
She stacked her bags in her normal manner, a trick she'd learned
months ago for easily handling, and started walking toward the large
double doors with her luggage behind her, without saying another
word. “Morgan, please!”

Something in the young woman snapped, and before
reaching the doors, she turned toward the handsome man, and let it
out. “Kole, I swear, I am going to try my damnedest to make the
very best of all of this. But you are not supposed to be here, and
I'm not ready. I thought maybe Kala would come, but not you, Kole. I
can't do this right now!”

“Morgan, I've said I'm sorry!”

“Oh, you said you're sorry. I guess everything is
okay now, huh? You know what?” She dropped her bags and took a
step toward Kole. “No, Kole. Your brother called me and said
you're sorry. And you know what, you are.”

“Wow. Just fucking wow!” Kole threw his
hands in the air, and quickly put them back at his sides when he
realized they were making a scene. He walked toward her until they
were inches apart. His voice was quiet and controlled. “I loved
you.”

Morgan narrowed her eyes at the man, feeling the rage
build inside her. Never had the sight of anyone annoyed her so badly.
“God, I just want to....hit you!”

“You know what, little girl?” Kole's voice
was still quiet and Morgan felt her hands clench tightly at her
sides. “You invited me to that fucking party. YOU invited ME.”

“That was my first mistake,” Morgan spoke.

“Look,
I know what I said was wrong.
So...very....wrong. And for that, I apologize. From the bottom of my
heart, I am sorry, Morgan.” He tried to put his hands on her
shoulders, but Morgan pulled away. “I was jealous.”

Morgan already knew that, and that's what made it
worse. She immediately thought of Michael. What would Kole say if
they had shown up at the airport together? At that second, Morgan was
actually grateful he'd missed his flight. On the other hand, she saw
the pain in Kole's eyes. He was sincere and it pulled at Morgan's
heart. “I know, Kole. I....
shit, I have to get through this
to see 'Ele
accept your apology.”

Her eyes burned. It wasn't how any of it was supposed
to go. She had spent months, thinking about what she would say to
Kole if they had met again, and in reality, she said none of it. She
couldn't be mean to him, even after what he had done. She was trying
to forgive him, but it would take more for him to prove himself to
her. “I...I have to go.”

Morgan started out the doors again, and Kole was beside
her pushing them open. “You're not going to get a taxi right
now.” She walked past him and onto the sidewalk. Hundreds of
people filled the sidewalk and cars lined the street as far as she
could see. Families holding signs and balloons for their loved ones,
and chauffeurs waiting for their guests. “It's Saturday, a
quarter 'til seven and there is a huge festival going on downtown.
I'm telling you, you're not going to find a taxi any time soon.”

Morgan looked down at her hands. She had actually
called a taxi before she'd walked off of the airplane, and Kole was
right, it was nowhere to be found. If a taxi were to pull up, she
knew someone else would take it. She looked up at Kole, and saw the
faint glimmer of a smile and he nodded. “Be right back.”

Chapter Eleven

Tanner had just secured Lady Godiva when he heard his
phone drop against the weathered wood of the old dock. As usual, his
long fingers gripped the phone and turned it on as he picked it up.
He stood, holding his phone and staring at the screen. The last call
he'd made was to Morgan, in which he quickly ended the call after
only one ring, and he instantly noticed the missed call notification
at the top.

“I know we're alright, Morgan. I just don't know
what to say right now.” He put the phone back in his pocket,
hoping to find the right words to put their friendship back exactly
where it had been. “I miss you, god I miss you.” He took
a deep breath as he slid the phone back in his pocket, and began the
long walk down the docks to his truck.

*****

Morgan sat cross-legged on the floor of her hotel room,
pushing tank tops to the side of her bag as she looked for something
to sleep in. It was still early, but she was exhausted from the day
and could only think about the inviting king sized bed right behind
her.

She and Kole didn't speak much, not even about his
mother, as he drove through the city to her hotel. They were both
uncomfortable, and the silence between them was more soothing than
awkward conversation would have been. He did, however, wrap her in
his large arms before opening the large glass lobby door to her
building.

Morgan was surprised at how nice it felt to be held by
Kole again, but her mind wasn't so quick to agree. She thought of
the hug, and rubbed her face as she spoke to the empty room. “Sorry,
Kole...but it'll take more than a hug and a smile to make up for what
you did.” She yawned loudly, happy to be free to do all the
things that one could only do when they're alone. “Nine
o'clock...really? It feels like it's two in the morning!” She
grabbed a black tank and quickly exchanged tops while still on the
floor. A shower would have been nice, but she smiled as she thought
that it would also be nice in the morning.

She stood and pulled her jeans to her knees, then
flopped hard on the bed, removing them the rest of the way by means
of kicking them free. Morgan was still smiling, remembering her
grandmother laughing at the way Morgan would usually kick her clothes
off when she was little. “Some things will never change, Gran.”
Her eyes closed as she pulled the blanket over her body, and Morgan
was asleep within seconds.

At that moment, Michael was waiting to board his flight
and was beginning to wonder if he'd done the right thing by forcing
himself into Morgan's life. “Too late now.” He spoke
quietly to himself as he leaned back and stretched his long legs out
in front of him. His eyes closed slowly, and his mind drifted to
memories of his time with Morgan several months prior.

*****

“Okay! Shit!” Morgan was still in a
sleep-induced haze as she fumbled with her jeans that were still on
the floor. “Get...out...,” she tugged on her phone,
finally getting it free from the back pocket, then dropped the jeans.
“Yeah.” Morgan rolled to her back and pushed the hair
from face as she yawned loudly.

“Nice. Do you need a minute?” Michael's
cheerful voice brought a smile to her lips.

“Hello, morning person. Yes... I do need a
minute. Or two.” Morgan sat up and wrapped her free hand around
her knees, smiling as she waited for him to speak.

“You know, I could just walk through this door
right here,” she heard a soft knock from the adjoining room,
“and we could take a minute..or two...together.” She
could hear the humor in his voice, and could envision his beautiful
smile as he spoke.

“Or, you could take yourself to the lobby and
order me a large coffee.” Michael laughed and agreed, and the
two planned to meet downstairs in fifteen minutes.

Morgan tossed her phone aside and jumped from the bed,
already regretting the fact that she'd have to take a turbo shower
and throw herself together. “I need a vacation!” She
giggled all the way to the bathroom, and Michael laughed as he
listened to it all from his side of the door.

Twenty minutes later, Morgan joined Michael. “I
know, I'm sorry.” He smiled as she watched her almost run to
meet him, and was happy that she was only five minutes late. He
expected her to take at least another fifteen minutes.

His eyes scanned her completely, almost drinking in
every detail in front of him. Her long hair that was still damp, yet
hung in thick waves around her face. The white spaghetti strap tank
top that flowed at the bottom with each step she took. Her denim
shorts, distressed perfectly, and the long tan legs that carried her
across the room. She was more beautiful than he'd remembered, and it
made his heart ache at the sight of her smile that was just for him
when she approached the table.

Morgan sat down, and her face lit up as a thought
occurred to her. “Actually, why am I apologizing?” She
took the larger of the two cups of coffee in her hand and slid it
across the table, then to her lips. After taking a long, slow sip, a
smile spread across her lips.
He remembered.
The coffee was
perfect, exactly how she liked it. “You're the one who is
late.”

“Yeah, yeah. I'm here though.” Michael took
a sip of his own drink and smiled back at the beautiful woman across
from him.

“Finally,” she teased back. “Did you
get any sleep?”

He shook his head back and forth. “Nope.”
They both laughed, and he drank the remainder of his coffee in a few
quick gulps. “I'll need a couple more of these.”

Morgan wrapped both hands around her warm cup. “You're
not getting mine, so stop eyeballing it.”

“
That
is not coffee,” he said,
pointing at her cup. “That's sugar water with some milk in it.”
Morgan shrugged, knowing it was mostly true, but still protested that
he wasn't getting any of her delicious beverage. “I'll get my
own.” Michael grabbed his cup, and gave Morgan a smile before
getting up from the table.

Morgan watched his backside as he walked toward the
coffee stand in the front of the lobby. His presence was comforting,
like no time had ever passed between them and Morgan was happy to
have his company. Angel always
helped
with the best
intentions, and although it usually ended with him doing more bad
than good, this was one time she applauded his efforts. Michael was
the best person she could think of to have by her side and one of
those incredible men that she knew she could be her most absolute
self around.

“So, what are ya going to do about Kole?”
Michael sat back down across from her a minute later, and began
stirring a new cup of coffee as he spoke.

“Well,” Morgan began. She didn't know if it
was a good idea to tell him she'd already met Kole, but being honest
was the best. “He was at the airport.”

“Fuck...” Michael put his head down, and
Morgan watched the guilt wash over his face.

“No, no, it's okay.” She reached across the
table, and lightly put her fingers on his hand. “It actually
went...well, I won't say
good
but...better than I thought.”
Morgan quickly explained the argument in the airport, then how he had
driven her to the hotel.

“I should have been there. You never would have
had to get in a car with him.” Michael shook his head,
regretting not being there for Morgan. “And Kala shouldn't have
let that happen either.” Morgan shrugged her shoulders again,
making it appear as if it wasn't a big deal. She didn't know Kala had
left for Angela, but Kole still shouldn't have been there.

“It's no big deal.” She leaned her back
against the chair, and ran a hand through her still-damp hair. “When
I first heard about 'Ele, I knew I couldn't come here without seeing
him. It was a choice I had to make. I wasn't planning on having a
friend here, and for that, I'm thankful.” Morgan smiled
quickly, then looked down at her hands. She knew she would have gone
to Hawaii eventually, and it would have been alone if Angel hadn't
expedited things. Morgan was still lost in thought when her phone
rang out from her pocket. She pulled it out, and saw Kala's name at
the top. “Figures.” Morgan giggled and showed Michael the
name before tapping the answer button and bringing the phone to her
ear. “Hello?”

“Morgan, hey.” His tone told her he was
testing the water, wondering how mad she was that he'd left her to
deal with Kole.

“Hey. You know,” Morgan jumped right into
it, “you could have warned a bitch.” Michael held back a
laugh and Morgan leaned forward again, putting her elbows on the
table.

“I know, I'm so sorry!” He apologized, and
Morgan could tell it was sincere. He quickly explained how he'd been
waiting for her to arrive when he got the phone call about Angela's
accident. “I didn't mean for that to happen.” He made it
sound more like something someone would say when their dog got off
its leash and bit someone's leg. The thought made Morgan giggle.

“Well, first of all, I hope Angela is okay.”
She wasn't going to go as far as to ask, but that was the best
condolence she could offer. “Secondly, it's fine, no need to
apologize. How's 'Ele?”

Kala caught the cues and knew Morgan didn't want to
talk anymore about the situation. “Actually, that's why I
called you. I am leaving in a bit, and she's going to be here alone
for a few hours. I thought it would be a nice time for you two to
visit. Privately.”

Morgan smiled and nodded silently, then answered. “I
would love that! Please tell her I'll be there shortly.”

“Will do. Call me if you need anything, Morgan.”
They said their goodbyes and hung up.

Morgan set her phone down on the table and met
Michael's eyes. “'Ele is going to be alone for the afternoon. I
can grab a taxi and be there in ten minutes.” She brought her
cup to her lips and took a drink. “Would you mind if I...”

“No, not at all.” Michael shook his head,
his brows coming together, as he answered. “You need that time
with her.” He didn't really want to visit 'Ele with Morgan in
the first place. Not that he didn't want to meet 'Ele, but Morgan
needed some private time with her friend. “I have some work to
do anyway,” he lied, “just call me when you're done and
I'll come and get you.” She nodded, loving how easy it was to
be around him, and stood quickly. Two steps around the table, and she
was nearly in his lap with her arms around his neck.