Monroe, Marla - The Edge of Night [The Protectors 3](Siren Publishing Classic) (36 page)

Her hands were shaking as she clasped them over and over again. He hated seeing her so nervous and on edge. Well, it was almost over. Until Jethro and Justin said Guy had left and not met up with anyone before he got on his plane to leave, he wasn’t relaxing.

“Just about, baby. All that’s left is to put a copy in your safety deposit box, file a copy with your lawyer, and then keep the other two copies in safe places at the house in case anything comes up and you need it right away.”

“Thank you so much for helping me. I’ve screwed up your life for three weeks now, and you’ve done nothing but help me.”

“Don’t. I did it because I wanted to. I care about you, Amanda. You know that, right?” he asked.

“I know, Morgan. Just like I know you’re leaving now that it’s all over. I understand. But I’m going to miss you,” she said with tears in her eyes.

Before he could say anything, the door opened, and the notary returned with the second original and the two copies. She handed them over to Amanda and then led them to retrieve the safety deposit box. He watched her place the paperwork in the box and lock it.

“I guess next on the agenda is the lawyer’s office again. He’s going to be glad to see the last of me,” Amanda said, her smile watery.

“Naw, he likes you,” Morgan assured her.

They rode over to Buchannan’s office and left the other original with the secretary, who promised to file it immediately. That done, Morgan rode them home.
Shit, I said it again. It’s not your home anymore. It’s Amanda’s.
Tyler pulled in behind them, as did Dodge.

“Any trouble?” Tyler asked.

“Nope, went without a hitch. What about with you two?” Morgan asked.

“Nope, he took a taxi there and another one back to the airport. No one in either one of them with him. Jethro and Justin are on airport detail. They should be calling in soon.” Dodge eased out of his truck.

“Let’s all go inside. I don’t like standing outside like this.” Morgan urged them toward the carport door.

“Where should I put my copies?” Amanda held them up.

“I’d put one in your bedside table, the other one somewhere hidden, but easy to get to.”

“I’ll keep them both in the bedside table until I think of another place,” she said.

“How long before you can expect to hear from Jethro and Justin?” Dodge asked.

“We should hear from them within the next hour,” Morgan said.

“I’m going to sit down,” Amanda said.

“Shit, Morgan. She’s going to faint.” Tyler was there before Morgan realized what was happening.

Amanda would have hit the floor if Tyler hadn’t caught her. He hadn’t even noticed she was so pale. He started to take her from Tyler, but the other man shook his head.

“Go pull the sheets back on the bed, and let’s get her comfortable. I guess all the stress over the last few days finally caught up with her.”

“Fuck, I should have paid closer attention to her,” Morgan fumed.

“You’re too busy pulling back from her to notice much right now,” Tyler accused and gently laid her on the bed.

“What in the hell is that supposed to mean?” Morgan demanded.

“Not in here.” Tyler covered her with the sheet, then disappeared into the bathroom before reappearing with a wet cloth.

He applied it to her forehead and cheeks. She moaned, then roused. Her eyelids fluttered before finally opening. Morgan watched and knew he’d royally fucked up—again. He watched as she came to herself and realized she was lying in bed.

“What happened?”

“You passed out. You’ve had too much pressure on you lately. Things should even out some for you now,” Tyler said, patting her hand where it lay protectively over her abdomen. “You need to rest. We’ll let you sleep now.”

Tyler jerked his head toward the door for Morgan to follow. He couldn’t help but run his hand over her hair and smile down into her pale face before he left behind Tyler. He was so fucked up.

“Man, you’re so busy pulling back that you’re losing touch with how she’s feeling. It’s hurting her that you’re beginning to ignore her now. What the hell are you doing? Fucking her at night and keeping your distance during the day?” Tyler asked in a snarl.

“Fuck you. It’s none of your business what I do or what our relationship is.”

“Guys, I think you either need to tone it down or take it outside. She’s bound to hear you,” Dodge said.

“This conversation is over with.” Morgan kicked the bar and walked out the back door.

He climbed onto his bike and took off. He needed to get away from everyone for a little while. The entire situation was taking its toll on him as well. He’d only ridden about fifteen miles when his phone buzzed on his hip. He pulled over to see who it was. He’d missed Jethro. He hit redial and waited for the other man to answer.

“Where are you?” Jethro demanded.

“Out for a ride. What’s going on?”

“He got on the plane without talking to anyone, but he got a call just before he boarded. He talked for about five minutes, then hung up. Think he’s walking away for sure?”

“Yeah, he was too scared when he left to try anything. Still, we’ll be around for the rest of the week. I figure we’ll all leave Saturday. Sound good to you?” Morgan asked.

There was silence on the other end of the phone. Then Jethro answered, “Um, yeah, that is as good a day as any.”

“I’ll talk to you when you get back to the house.” Morgan made sure he didn’t say “home” this time.

“Later,” Jethro said and hung up.

Morgan replaced his phone on his belt and pulled back out onto the highway. He needed to unwind before he went back and got into an argument with his friends. He knew they were right. He just didn’t know what the right thing to do was. Maybe there was no right thing. Maybe there was only the best thing. Either way, he knew it was killing him just as surely as it was hurting Amanda.

* * * *

Amanda heard them arguing in the other room, but she couldn’t make out what it was all about. Her eyelids threatened to close on her. She needed to think, though. Why did they have to fight over her? She knew it was about her.

Her stomach cramped, and she moaned holding it. Was she coming down with a stomach virus? She’d just gotten past the morning sickness. Maybe something was wrong. Nothing more happened. She lay there for a few more minutes, then got up and went to the bathroom to be sure she wasn’t spotting. Everything seemed fine.

She needed to make an appointment with a doctor and start her prenatal care. Resolved to begin taking matters into her own hands, Amanda got up and walked out into the suddenly quiet kitchen and retrieved the phone book, and took it back to the bedroom. She rifled through the
Yellow Pages
and found the only two ob-gyn specialists in town and dialed a number.

Fifteen minutes later, she had an appointment for Friday at 2:00 p.m. They were eager to see her since she hadn’t been under a doctor’s care during her first trimester. If she had any further cramping or spotting, she was supposed to call them immediately or go to the emergency room. She felt better for having made a decision on her own and going through with it. After all, she would be doing that from now on.

She felt better already. Amanda began making a list of things she needed to do over the next few weeks to get ready for both her new job and the baby. Since she started work Monday, she needed to get on the computer and learn everything she could about accounting and CPAs. She needed the job security doing a good job would provide.

The next thing on her list was to meet the lady across the street who Morgan said might keep her baby for her while she worked. She would ask him for an introduction when he got back. She knew he’d ridden off earlier. There was no mistaking the sound of his bike.

The fact that he could hardly wait to get back on the road wasn’t lost on her. She knew he cared for her, about her, but it wasn’t enough to stick around. She wasn’t sure what exactly the problem was. She figured it was because she was pregnant, but was it because of the loss of his wife and child, or because she was carrying another man’s baby? Amanda couldn’t decide, and wasn’t it a moot point anyway? He was leaving no matter what.

She heard the door open in the other room and voices in the kitchen area. She couldn’t hear what they were saying, but could make out Tyler’s and Dodge’s voices along with one of the twins’. She wasn’t hearing Morgan’s, though. She listened for a few more minutes, then stood up and straightened her blouse before opening the bedroom door and walking out into the kitchen.

“Hey, Amanda. How do you feel?” Tyler asked, pulling out a chair for her at the table.

“I feel much better, thanks. I’m sorry I did that. I guess I was a little tired and didn’t realize it.”

“You’ve been under a big strain,” Dodge reminded her.

“You also need to see about setting up an appointment to see a doctor.” Tyler wouldn’t look at her when he said it.

“I’ve already done that. I have an appointment Friday,” she said.

“Oh, well good.” Tyler nodded a little too quickly.

It was sweet how Tyler was trying to smooth things over and make sure she was okay. He was having a difficult time dealing with it, though. She needed to let him off the hook.

“Dodge, Jethro, can I talk to Tyler alone for a minute?” she asked.

The other two men nodded and left the room.

“Tyler, I’m okay. I know Morgan isn’t going to stay. He’s trying to give me room to get back into self-relying mode. I was taking care of myself before Morgan, and I can take care of myself once he’s gone. Don’t worry about me, Tyler. I’m a big girl. I made a mistake, and I’m living with it. I’m not going to make the same mistake twice.”

“I think he’s an ass.” Tyler jammed his hands into his pockets. “He loves you, damn it.”

“No, he doesn’t, Tyler. He cares for me very deeply, but he doesn’t love me. I know that, and he knows that. Leave it alone, Tyler. Don’t let this screw up your relationship with him. He needs you.”

“I think the others are all planning to leave Saturday. I’ll stick around and help you get settled for a few more days,” Tyler began.

Amanda shook her head. “No, you leave with them. I appreciate your wanting to help me—really, I do—but I can handle it better on my own.”

“You’re sure?” Tyler asked.

“I’m sure.”

Tyler nodded and pressed his lips together. “Guess I’ll go see what’s on TV. Morgan should be back soon. How about we order in pizza?”

“Sounds good to me.”

“I know, no olives,” Tyler teased.

“You’ve got it.”

Tyler stared at her for a few more seconds, then turned and walked into the living room, where Amanda could hear the sound of the TV. They would fuss over there being nothing worth watching, then fight over the remote. She was going to miss having them all there. It would take a little while to get used to the quiet.

About that time she heard Morgan’s bike pull back into the drive. She remained where she was instead of retreating to the bedroom to hide. She needed to prove to herself that she could handle it.

He walked into the kitchen with his helmet under his arm. He stopped when he saw her sitting at the table.

“You feeling okay now?” he asked, setting his helmet on the bar.

“Yeah, I just needed to lie down for a little while. Too much excitement for one day.”