A Heart's War (The Broken Men Chronicles Book 5) (15 page)

It took another day before the doctor allowed me to go home.  Add to that a second day Morgan and I waited for results from Shane and his CSU team, not to mention the arson department, as well as Dalton.

That’s two days where no answers came.

Two days surrounded by family and friends, and Morgan waiting on me hand and foot, which only made me laugh because with every effort, I ended up having to help her out since her hands were still bandaged and of not much use.

Due to all of the above, and doctor’s orders, that was also two days without being able to show Morgan any physical attention, which was wearing thin on me.

“I wish we could have gone somewhere else,” I mumbled from the drivers’ seat as Morgan’s van putted down my brother’s driveway, coming to a stop close to the front steps.  I’d have preferred my truck, but as much as it had escaped the fire, it hadn’t the explosion.  Suffice to say, my ride was stuck in the body repair shop for the next couple of weeks.

“I know,” Morgan said as I got out and ran around to the passenger side to help her out.  “I would have liked to have gone home too, but Pax is right.  If something were to happen, with the state we’re in-”

“Hey,” I wrapped my arms around her waist, pulling her against me so our fronts made contact as I leaned back into the side of the car, “I’m not some weak old man, sweetheart.”

Her hand came up to cup my cheek and I rubbed my two days’ worth of scruff over her gauze-covered skin.  “I know, but I feel better knowing that we have backup here, just in case.  And what if something happened to you? I couldn’t handle-”

My lips collided with hers, ceasing Morgan’s words.  Truth was, as annoyed as I was for being surrounded around the clock by family, I was relieved, knowing that we were safer in numbers.  As much as I’d like to claim myself invincible, something about this concussion had me worried.  It seemed like it was taking an eternity for the throbbing in my head and dizziness spells to dissipate.  And let’s not forget the memory issues. Things from the day of the fire were still a bit hazy.  I knew that the man I’d seen hadn’t been a figment of my imagination.  I knew him from somewhere, it’s the only way he could have seemed familiar.  Maybe from now until the time I was back on my feet, my head would clear up enough and we’d be able to get some answers, put a stop to this chaos long enough for Morgan and I to enjoy our relationship and plan for the future – one that was about figuring out vows, living arrangements, a family – and not one about wondering if we would still be in danger of losing one another tomorrow or not.

The door opened for us as we reached it, an excited Jasper jumping on the balls of his feet awaited us.  “Is it true, Uncle Theo?”  I could have used some of the kid’s energy right then.  “Are you and Morgan having a sleepover?”

Morgan ruffled Jasper’s hair.  “That’s right, sweetie.  Uncle Theo and me are going to be sleeping over for a little while.  Is that okay?”

“Awesome!”  The boy moved to the side and let us enter the house.  “We can play in the back yard, build a fort, wrestle, and-”

“Jasper.”  Alissa came to meet us, shaking her head at her stepson.  “Leave Morgan and your uncle alone.  There’ll be time to play later.”

The boy could have won an award for ‘world’s best-behaved child,’ had one existed, what with the complete turnaround he did.  I promised myself that the kid would get a reward for his efforts before my stay was up.

“Are you sure you two will be fine for the next two hours?” Paxton asked.

“Go ahead,” I heard Morgan tell him.  “Having a quiet house for the next few hours will help Theo rest up better.”

“We’re only five minutes out, ten if we’re out for a ride with Dad,” my brother said.

“Go have fun, and tell your folks we say hi,” Morgan said.

I heard what must have been the front door closing and hoped that Morgan had the good sense to lock it behind them.

Silence filled the air until I heard footsteps heading straight for me.  Morgan’s floral scent hit me first, and then I felt the dip in the mattress before her front plastered itself gently against my left side.

“Hey,” I whispered to let her know I was awake.

Her chocolate orbs held a hint of apology.  “Did I wake you?”

“Thank you for assuring them that going for a few hours would be fine.”  I kissed her forehead.  “I’m glad we have some time alone.”

“It’s been pretty scarce, huh?”

I grunted.  “That’s an understatement.”

A padded hand ran circles over my abdomen.  “How are you feeling?”

“Happy,” was the first thing out of my mouth.

She giggled. “That’s not what I meant.”

Maybe it was time I showed her what my answer was, instead of telling her.

Pushing my knee between her legs, I slowly put pressure on Morgan’s shoulder so she rolled to her back, in turn granting me with the capability to cover her body with mine.

“I feel like I’m on top of something wonderful,” I whispered against her ear, feeling her body quiver as my teeth clamped lightly on its lobe.  “I feel like I can do anything when I’m around you.”  I trailed my lips to just below her jaw.  “I feel grateful that we’re alive.”  With a nuzzle to her collarbone, I wrapped my left hand around her thigh, hiking up her leg and hugging it around the side of my hip before letting my fingers slip inside the bottom hem of her t-shirt.  Looking down at Morgan, I finally said, “Baby, I feel like if I don’t make love to you, right here, right now-”

“Please,” was all I needed to hear before I slammed my mouth to hers in a fierce kiss that held all the pent-up passion, lust, and frustration that couldn’t be released over the last few days.

Morgan’s hands reached for the hem of my shirt in an attempt to pull it off of me.  I laughed at her helpless expression, reminding me of a kitten batting at a toy with its paws.

“A little help here,” she grumbled and I helped her with both our shirts, her shorts following immediately and then, with a little difficulty, I managed to lower mine.

Taking my cock in hand, I guided my length to her heat.  “You’re soaked,” I groaned against her cheek and felt her legs tighten against my ass, pulling me inside her after I’d breached her entrance.

The slow forward glide that let me feel the whole of her silken sheath had me grinding my teeth, my eyes clamping shut in an effort not to burst prematurely.

“I love you,” Morgan whispered. “Open your eyes, Theo.”

At her gentle command, I obeyed and realized something… I’d found everything I could have ever wanted in life.  “Oh fuck but I love you too,” came whooshing out as all of me was finally cocooned within her.  Was there any other feeling that bested the one of being this close to Morgan?  No, I was pretty sure there wasn’t.

“Marry me,” I whispered against the skin of Morgan’s neck.

Yes, without a ring, without romance, without a special dinner reservation or place of significance that either of us held dear in our hearts.  It was simply Morgan, cradled in my arms after a long sought-after bout of mind-numbing sex, covered in the thin sheet, the sun setting through the window, being the sole source of lighting in the room in that moment.

Morgan’s head shot up.  “What did you say?”

As she perched herself over my chest on her elbows, my hand pushed a loose strand of hair and tucked it behind her ear as I studied her expression.  “Marry me, Morgan Smyth,” I repeated.  “I know it’s fast, but we’ve been through so much.  I can live without you, but I refuse to, because I don’t want a future without you in it, baby.”

“Theo…” Her voice trailed.

“I know I’m screwing this up.  But I don’t want to wait until I’m well enough to have Paxton come with me to pick out the perfect ring, then set up some elaborate scheme to woo you and then knock your socks off with some over-the-top surprise, that will have me worried would fail to be perfect, just to speak what’s in my heart.”

The tear that escaped her put a halt to my words.

“You would do that?”

I shook my head with incredulity.  “Of course I would.  In a heartbeat.”  I sighed.  Didn’t she have any idea what I was willing to do, to go through, just to have her with me?  “You deserve everything I can give you, and most definitely more.  And if you let me, I’ll spend the rest of my days making sure you’re as happy as you could ever imagine being.”

“Yes.”

“Huh?”  Her answer hadn’t yet sunk in because I had been trying to piece together more words to prove the lengths to which I was willing to go to ensure she would agree to be mine until death parted us.

Her teary giggle had me grinning.  “Yes, Theo, I’ll marry you.”

My eyes widened at the significance of it all.  “You will?”

“You bet your fine chiselled ass I will, baby.”  She lowered her face until her lips brushed mine on her next words.  “I don’t care what you think I deserve, all I need is you, Theodore Lowell.”

With a hand wrapped around the back of her neck, I tilted my head up just enough to lightly peck her lips.  “Then soon, we’ll go out and find you a ring, because right now, I’m showing my unofficial bride-to-be how thankful I am that she’s chosen me over every other shmuck out there.”

An hour later, we were cuddled together on the couch watching a movie when my brother walked in, followed by the clamour of his family.

He lifted a large Tupperware container.  “Mom gave me this for you and Morgan.  She made chicken fried steak, dumplings and her special gravy.”

As if right on cue, my stomach grumbled.

Morgan smirked. “I think we can use a little sustenance, don’t you?”

“M-hmm.”

Paxton met his wife’s gaze and then grinning, looked at us.  “So what did you two get up to while we were out?”  He handed me the food container while Alissa held the baby and sent Jasper to the kitchen to fetch forks.

“Lots of laying down,” I said, but the grin I failed to hide from my face said it all, and my brother humorously shook his head, sporting a grin of his own.

“Uh-huh,” Alissa muttered, “I bet.  Were you even cleared for that kind of laying?”

Morgan buried her face into my neck with an embarrassed groan while I grinned, and my brother guffawed before adding, “Like that would stop him.  Sure as hell wouldn’t stop me.”

With the baby settled for the night, the rest of us settled in for some light-hearted conversation.

Jasper turned from his movie and gave me the stink-eye.  “Morgan’s not a baby, she can feed herself you know.”

Morgan giggled with her mouthful of chicken and held up her bandaged hands while she chewed her food and swallowed.  “Your uncle knows that, and I’m sure I could have done just fine but-”

“I like taking care of her, buddy,” I finished for her.  “I can’t be up and about like I normally am so we trade off.  I feed her and she can go get stuff for me.”

The child seemed to ponder that for a minute.

Paxton harrumphed.  “You’re just being lazy.”

“I think it’s sweet.”  Alissa cuddled into my brother’s side.  Paxton looked down at his wife, eyebrow arched.  “What?  Are you telling me that you wouldn’t be doing the same thing if the situation was reversed and it were us?”

Morgan snorted.  “She’s got you there, Pax.  You know you’d be twice as bad if that were the case.  Allie’s told me about how you were with her after her marrow donation.  And what about the time she went into false labor with Abigail and you-”

Paxton grumbled, but gave it a little thought.  “Okay, okay…you’re right,” he said and kissed his wife’s forehead.  “I’d do it all for you, you wouldn’t have to lift a finger.”  He kissed her cheek.  “Or a toe.”  He kissed her other cheek.

Jasper put a stop to the commotion with over-exaggerated gagging sounds and then with a whiny stretched out, “Dad,” and everyone found themselves laughing.

As Morgan, Alissa, and Paxton settled into a conversation of their own while Jasper watched the end of a movie, I remained silent, enjoying the mood of the day.

I hadn’t realized what I was doing until Morgan snuggled in closer to me, bending her head up to peck my cheek.

Smiling down at her, her eyes shone with so much happiness that I could feel it warm me from the inside.  “Soon,” I whispered as I continued to swipe my thumb back and forth where my ring would be sitting.

She nodded, kissed my mouth lightly and repeated, “Soon,” at a whisper.

Three days after our release from hospital, Shane was knocking on my brother’s door.

“Anything?” I asked the man as I led him to the living room.  Morgan automatically set down her e-reader and got up to shake his hand before offering him something to drink.

“The report on the fire investigation was on my desk this morning.  It’s arson.  Hell, you two are lucky to have made it out from what I read.  The Chief said he had no idea how that fire didn’t light up the entire sky within minutes.”

The hair on the back of my neck prickled.  Grabbing onto Morgan’s hand, she automatically leaned into my side, a shiver wracking her entire body.

“We’ve been keeping an eye out on your place too, Morgan,” he announced.

“Why?”

“I asked him to, baby,” I said.  “Everything happens wherever I’m at.”

“Except for the night you went out,” she pointed out.

“True.”

“We found fresh tracks on both your properties.  Something that could belong to a Ford truck, I suppose.  I’ve got my men on it.”  Shane leaned forward on his knees before reaching into his jacket and pulling out a Ziploc bag with the word
evidence
on its seal.  “This is the part you’re really not going to like.”  He set it down on the coffee table, sliding it over to Morgan and I.

As if the wording wasn’t enough, the writing of the short note couldn’t have been described as anything but furious:

This isn’t over.

On a hissing gasp, I realized that my grip on Morgan’s hand had tightened to the point of pain and I let go, bellowing a, “Sonofabitch!”

Morgan shot to her feet and left the room, heading toward the kitchen.

“I think I’ve made a mistake here, T,” Shane said.  “Whoever this guy is, he knows both of you.  This is personal.”

“Well, the only person that ever did is dead, Shane,” I said.

“Um…”

Shane and I turned to find Morgan standing there, wringing the hell out of her hands.

“Morgan?” Shane said at the same time I said, “Baby, if you’re thinking that-”

“Hell no, Theo!”  She shook her head, a look of disbelief settling on her face.  “I
know
it’s not my brother.  You’ve told me the entire story… I’ve seen his body… I know it’s not him, but…”

“Morgan, if you know something, even if you think it’s a stretch, you need to tell us.”  Shane gave her his best ‘no-bullshit’ look.

The woman began to pace, her fingers running into her hair, pulling at it as she mumbled to herself.  “It can’t be.”  She paused to look at me.  “He would have been back by now, if-” She resumed her pacing only to stop and look at me, her brow furrowed.  “How did you say Rick died?”

I took the two steps that led me to stand in front of Morgan, my hands reaching for her shoulders.  “I’m not liking where this is going, Morgan.  I don’t know how he died, but he was captured with me.  Why?”

“Shane, sit down.”  The man did as Morgan ordered, his eyes meeting mine with a questioning look.  “Theo, I need you to think about it for a second.”  She broke my hold and pushed me so I sat on the couch.

“Morgan, I can’t talk about that mission more than what I’ve already told you.”

“Well, let me just tell you what I’m thinking, and then you can make that judgement call, will you!” she snapped.  I nodded and let her continue.  “Theo, they never had a body to ship back for him, did they?”

I shook my head.  “How’d you know?”

“I can’t believe I never clued in to this until now.”  She sounded disgusted with herself.

“What?”  This came from Shane.

“Donnelly, Theo,” she whispered, her eyes widening as did mine.  “Baby, your Rick is
my
Richard!”

Shane looked lost, but that’s when everything clicked for me.  That was the link that tied us together.  The fact that one of my former men was one and the same as Morgan’s good-for-nothing and abusive ex-fiancé had my blood boiling.

“We never really discussed Rick… Richard in full length past what he did to me.  You mentioned his last name a few times but it never clicked until now.  Being Richard’s next of kin, I only got his dog tags,” Morgan explained.  “Theo, you weren’t there after the capture.  Can you really claim it’s that far-fetched of an idea? Fuck, everyone thought you were dead for three years!  All there ever was of you were your tags, too.”

She had a point.  A too-fucking-valid one at that.

“So, what are we dealing with here?” Shane asked.

Morgan looked at me as I answered for us both.  “A ghost.”