Morgan: Robinson Destruction – Paranormal Tiger Shifter Romance

by Kathi S. Barton

  “You think she’s going to be upset with you for doing that without asking. I’m assuming that you didn’t ask.” Morgan just smiled at his dad. “I see. So you’re trying your best to make her upset with you, is that it?”

  “Pretty much. She is so beautiful when she’s mad. I don’t tell her that, of course. I don’t have a death wish. Besides, in order to ask me about it, she’ll have to contact me. And that is going to bring me to her. At least that’s my plan.” Dad laughed, asking him if he thought that was going to work. “I can hope, can’t I? Besides, Dad, she really is going to be in deep trouble if her brother finds out where she is. They think she’ll come to heel, I think, and she won’t.”

  “No, it’s doubtful that she ever did. Do you suppose she’s going to be hurt by them?” Morgan said if they did harm her in any way, they’d never live to tell about it. “No, I don’t think they will. And it’d not be just you doing the killing either. Your mom, she sure does like her. Oh, did you hear about having to meet up at Thatcher and Rogen’s house tonight for some surprise? Everyone is supposed to show up. I tell you, I hate surprises more than anybody does.”

  “I do as well. But think of it this way—they might have an announcement to make or something.” Dad perked right up. “I have no idea if that’s true, Dad. I was making a joke. It probably isn’t that at all.”

  “Well, a man could hope, couldn’t he? They have been sort of hiding away in that house of theirs. I ain’t seen hide nor hair of them very much over the last week. What do you suppose they’re doing?” Morgan said that he didn’t have any idea. “Well, I’ll see you tonight then. And if you want me to, I’ll sweet talk that mate into coming over too. She likes me.”

  “Everyone likes you, Dad. You’re a charmer. And the biggest bullshitter I’ve ever met.” Dad just glared, but didn’t deny it. “I have to get to work here if I’m planning on meeting you at Thatcher’s house. After I grade these papers I have to find someone to come in and repaint this room. I don’t think the sucker has been redone since before I was born.”

  Dad looked around. “Yeah, I think you might be right on that one. It looks to me like it’s been puked on a couple of times too. Is that blood over there in the corner?” Morgan looked and wasn’t surprised to see something that did indeed look like blood. “If you want my opinion, I’d take out all these old windows and put in ones that are tighter, as well as something that will keep the wind out. I’d sure hate to come here some morning and find you a Popsicle or something.”

  “I’ve put in a request to find out if I can do that. This building is pretty old. I’m betting that they tell me that it’ll ruin the way the whole thing looks to have windows put in that are more efficient than the ones that are in the rest of the building.” Dad told him that he needed to put in something. “I agree. Tomorrow, while classes are about over for the summer break, I’m going to have my desk brought in here. That way it’ll free up some room for me from this monster.”

  “That desk is older than you are, I’d say. You might want to ask one of your brothers if they want it if you can get rid of it. It’s a fine desk, but much too big for this room.” Dad looked around. “In fact, son, I’d take out some of these here shelves too. There is no cause for you to have all of them in here when you really don’t need them, do you?”

  “No. I don’t. That’s on my list too. I can redecorate anyway that I wish so long as it doesn’t harm the structure of the building. I think a bomb could explode in here and it’d not hurt anything within a mile of my office.” Morgan jotted down another note on his to do list. “This room is supposed to be an upgrade to the one I had. It is, sort of, but not by much.”

  The door behind his dad opened and Anna walked in. Morgan stood up and Dad practically ran from the room, closing the door behind him. Morgan could tell without asking that she was spitting mad about something. Whatever she was pissed about, he was sure that he was the one that she was going to take it out on.

  Chapter 2

  “What the hell were you thinking when you decided that my bank account, with my name on it, needed you to fiddle with it?” He said that she wasn’t going to be overdrawn now. “I’m forever overdrawn. It’s none of your fucking business.”

  “It is, actually. I don’t want you, no matter how you feel about me, to go without when you need something. The check that you wrote on your books for the summer quarter was going to bounce. The banker, a good friend of mine, understood that we were mates, and knew that I’d want to make sure you were financially secure. He only mentioned it because if that check were to bounce, you’d have four to five more bounce and really put you out of joint.” Anna told him that she wasn’t at all out of joint. Morgan only looked at her. “All right. I’m pissed off. You have no right to do things like that without telling me about it.”

  “You wouldn’t have allowed me to do it had I asked you first, now would you?” Anna sat down in the chair across from his desk when Morgan spoke again. “What else is upsetting you? I want you to know that I can help you if you need it.”

  “I don’t fucking know what I need anymore.” She looked up at him, wondering what sort of money one would have to pay to look as good as he did. “I went to sign up for classes, and was told that all three of them are filled. Then she asked me if I was your mate. Before I could deny it, she moved things around and I got into all of them. That is no way to treat a student who was late filling out the form to take the classes. What did she do, move someone out of it?”

  “She more than likely filled out a secondary chair. They do that to make sure that all the classes are filled up for a single class. Why would you deny something—us being mates—that is true?” She didn’t answer him again. But he did sit down. “Anna, we have to come to some kind of resolution about us. I know that you don’t think you need me in your life, but I have to protect you. Did you hear from Rogen?”

  “Yes. This morning. She called me to tell me about Junior. Did she tell you?” He nodded. “He’s coming in this direction. Of course, Dad and the other two idiots are in a prison in this area too. He could be going to visit them. But I’m as hopeful for that as I am you not really being my mate.”

  “That’s hurtful.”

  Anna got up and went to the window, and looked out over the campus while he looked at her. She knew that he was—she could almost feel him touching her with his eyes. “I don’t know why I said that to you. It’s not true. I’ve already figured out that having you and your family around is going to not just open doors for me, but close them tightly as well. When Junior gets here, and he will, he won’t stop at just trying to tell me what I need to be doing for him. He’ll take the years that he’s been in prison out on me too.”

  “I guess that’s better than no reason for you to want me to hang around.” She turned and looked at him. Really looked. Damn, but he was a really good looking man. And strong too. “I’m sort of uncomfortable about the way you’re staring at me. It feels like you’re looking for a place to stick a knife.”

  “I’m a fool.” Morgan told her that he doubted that. “I am. I’ve been running from my family since I was old enough to get out on my own. I’ve done nothing with my life that could be considered a change. I have no money, no home of my own, and I’m using a car that was supposed to be something that was extra and not being used. Was her telling me that something that the two of you cooked up so that you could keep tabs on me?”

  “I don’t need that to keep tabs on you even if I wanted to. You’re a grown woman that is smart enough to know what needs to be done and how. Rogen, believe it or not, likes you and, like me, wants you safe.” He patted his lap. “If you come and sit on my lap, I’ll tell you all about the things that I don’t know about you. You can ask me whatever you’d like to know about me too. We’ll call it a getting to know each other meeting.”

  “We don’t have time for you to be fucking around.” He wiggled h
is brows at her. “You’re nuts. Besides, aren’t I a little old for you? I mean, I’m pushing thirty.”

  “I’m almost thirty-four. You know as well as I do that we will both age slower than humans. We’ll stay healthier. Also, I don’t know if anyone has ever told you this, but you don’t even look like you’re old enough to drink, much less pushing thirty as you said.” She snorted at him. “Are you going to sit on my lap? Both me and my tiger would be much happier if you did.”

  “You just want to get lucky.” Morgan nodded. “You won’t be happy with me when my family shows up. Even if it’s only Junior, there will be shit that you, as my mate, will have to help me with.”

  “I would die for you, Anna.” She hadn’t expected him to say that. It was the first time in her life that anyone had ever said anything as nice as that. “What do you want to know?”

  “I don’t know, Morgan. I’m so overwhelmed. When I went to sign up for classes, I thought that I’d only take one, which is usually all I can do living the way that I do. But when you said that you had money, it was my plan to piss you off by taking three classes. Then after signing up for them, I realized that was childish. So I paid for them myself. As you well know, I couldn’t afford that either.”

  Finally moving across the small area to where he was sitting, she sat on his lap. Anna was surprised that he didn’t grab her or pull her to him. He just let her perch on his leg like she was ready to bounce. That, for some stupid reason, made her angrier than before. Not at him, but at herself again. While not looking at him, she started telling him a story of when she’d been younger.

  “I guess I was about ten when I asked for a birthday party of my own. All the kids in my class were having them. No one invited me because I was dirty and my clothing smelled, but I knew about them.” He asked her why she would think that was why they didn’t invite her. “I knew that my clothes were worn out and dirty. There was barely running water in the house, much less a washer and a dryer. But this birthday party was going to be all mine. The first one that I had. As it turned out, it was the last one too. My brother helped me with the invites. I was old enough to read, but I didn’t look over his work. I know that I should have, but I was happy. He wrote dirty words on the cards, telling the people I wanted to invite that I was only inviting them for their gift, to send cash if they couldn’t make it. There were curse words on them too. Ones that I’d heard, of course, but didn’t have a clue what they might mean. There were things like that. I was humiliated and belittled by not just my classmates, but my teachers as well. It was a nightmare that I never was able to live down.”

  “What did you do after that?” Anna did lean back on him then. When he only wrapped his arms around her waist, she closed her eyes, thinking about the day after she’d handed out the invitations.

  “The teacher read each and every one of them to the entire class. Of course, she bleeped out the words that he’d put on there. The entire time that she was reading them, I had to stand right next to her. Be shamed just a little more.” Morgan told her that he was sorry. “So was I. After that, I’d walk down to the laundromat and wash my clothing, and hang it over anything that I could to dry it once a week. Sometimes it was difficult for me to find the money to do it, so I’d run errands for the neighbor. I mowed her grass for her. Then when she paid me, instead of hiding it in the house, I’d have her hold it for me until I could get to the laundry. She liked me being around so much that she allowed me to use her washer and dryer after that. After a while I could buy me things that were hand me downs. I’d worn my brother’s underwear that he’d outgrown until then. Then they figured out what I was doing.”

  “They beat you, didn’t they?” She nodded. “Was there more to it than that? I need details so I know just how to deal with him when he shows up. Or, and I like this too, I have to hunt him down like the animal he is.”

  “They took my money and divided it up among them. There wasn’t a great deal by then. Clothing, even second hand, wasn’t cheap. After they bought them each a wine or beer, all that my money would net, they tied me to the chair and drank a little and spit it on me. For two whole days it was like that.”

  “I want you to know that when he does show up here, I’m going to kill him for his treatment of you. Just letting you know that.” She kissed him on the chin and Morgan laughed. “What will I get if I take care of all of them for you?”

  “You’ll just have to wait and see.” She allowed him to hold her. “I’ve never had anything new in my entire life. I don’t know why I just thought of that, but I haven’t. I’ve been wearing other people’s cast offs for so long, I don’t know what I’d do if something had an actual price tag on it.”

  She was suddenly on her feet and he was pulling her around his desk. Asking him where they were headed got her nothing. It wasn’t until they were in his truck, a very nice big truck, that he finally turned to her.

  “Did you know that we’re expected at Thatcher’s house at six?” She nodded at him. “Good. It’s about two now and…have you had any lunch yet? I’m starved.”

  “No, no lunch. Where are we going?” He started the truck and smiled at her as he backed out of his space. “Morgan, what do you think you’re doing?”

  “We’re going to get us a very lovely lunch. After that, we’re going to hit the mall for some fancy duds for you. Don’t tell me no, because you have no idea how excited I am to do this with you. Will you try them on and come out and model them for me?” She laughed when he wiggled his brows again. “Oh, and shoes. Sexy high heels so that I can wonder what sort of things you have up under your dress. You will wear a dress for me, won’t you?”

  “Yes. If you get this excited about shopping, what are you going to do if we have kids and have to take them school shopping?” He pulled the car over, pulled her to him, and kissed her. It was a kiss like nothing she’d ever had before. Claiming. Possessive, and explorative. “Morgan, you keep that up and we’ll never make it to your brother’s.”

  Morgan grinned as he pulled out onto the highway again. “As much as I’d like to take you up on that idea, we have to be there. If not, then I was told that I’d be brained. And while I don’t think that Thatcher would hurt me—not too much, anyway—I’m positive that Rogen would. Or she’d pay someone to hurt me. She’s like that, you know?”

  “Yes, I have figured that out as well. You’re afraid of her too, then?” Glancing at her, he laughed and said that any sane person would be. “I guess you’re right. But I’m sure that she has a soft side. I’m not sure where that might be right now, but I’m betting she has one.”

  They ended up at a nice little restaurant that served soup and coffee. She wasn’t a big fan of either, but they also had nice salads, as well as sandwiches. Anna ordered a salad with chicken and pecans on it. Morgan ordered himself a large sub and chips.

  They were seated when he took her hand into hers. Anna was so afraid this was going to be the big brush off or something.

  “Whatever is going on in your mind right now, it’s not going to happen.” Anna asked him what he thought was going on in her head. “I have no idea. But seeing as how you’re very negative about such things as being around me, I want you to realize that I’m never going to harm you. I will never make you do anything that you don’t want. And here is the biggy. I love you, Anna. With my heart, body, and soul.”

  She looked away before speaking. “I’ve fallen in love with you too, but I still think this is a mistake. They’re going to come here. Each time one of them is released, they’re going to come here to find me.” Morgan said for them to come on. “They’ll harm you. Not just physically, even though you don’t have to worry about that too much. But they will try and hurt you financially, as well as mentally.”

  “I would hope that I’m a little smarter than them when it comes to mental abuse. But I’ve never had to deal with that sort of bully, so I don’t know for sure.” She said that
she could understand that because of his family. “Thank you. By the way, my family loves you too. Very much so, and they will protect you with their lives.”

  “I know that too. It’s why for the most part I’m so overwhelmed. They’re very touchy-feely too.”

  Morgan threw back his head and laughed. She had to smile—there was something so endearing about this man when he laughed. And no matter how much she tried to make him pissy with her, he just walked away. Morgan wasn’t the least bit violent through words or fists. She thought that was something she loved about him as well.

  ~*~

  Rogen didn’t really want anyone to come over tonight. They’d had Jimmy for two weeks now all to their self. Sharing their newborn son seemed like she’d lose some of her ability to hold him when she wanted. Hug him when she needed it more than him. But she knew that they would find out sooner or later, and telling them would cause less problems.

  “They’ll be here in an hour. Morgan called to say that he wanted to make sure that it was fine that he brought a gift. I asked him what he thought he’d need a gift for, and he cursed. I think he was trying to get an idea as to what we’re going to tell them.” She smiled at Thatcher. “I’m surprised that no one has figured it out, the way we’ve been bringing in diapers like we’re trying to increase the stock price or something.”

  “He does use a lot of diapers. But I don’t care if we have to spend our last nickel on him. I love this kid that much.” Thatcher picked Jimmy up. “When you hold him, he looks about ten times smaller than when I hold him to me.”

  “Because, my dear wife, I am bigger than you. Thankfully.” They sat there together on the couch and said nothing for a few minutes. Then when Jimmy was asleep again, laying across his daddy’s chest, she spoke to Thatcher quietly.

  “I’ve found out a great deal of information on our new sister. She’s had a hell of a life, Thatcher. It’s small wonder that she has a hard time trusting.” He asked her what it was that bothered her so much. “The brother that is coming here—and there is no doubt that he is—Anna turned him into the police. He knows it. Also, he wasn’t released. I don’t even think the prison knew he was missing until I told them. They assumed that he’d been a dead body that needed to be shipped out. Junior slipped himself into a body bag, and when the coroner’s office came by to pick up the dead, there were two more that had died that week, he didn’t think anything about picking up the extra one. He’s on my shit list too.”