by Rachel Burns
“Why not?” he dared to ask.
She looked away from him. “He wasn’t good for me,” she replied.
Sawyer wasn’t certain what to think or what to believe. He wanted to ask if he was good for her, but he didn’t want to open a can of worms. If she answered him in that cold way that she sometimes had, his heart might break.
He saw himself as a tough guy, as someone smart people didn’t mess with, but he knew better. She alone had the power to hurt him.
“Lift your ass up higher. You’re slacking off,” he told her. She hadn’t been, but she believed him and struggled to raise it up even higher.
He dropped his belt to the floor and climbed onto the bed behind her. She was open so wide that the moonlight sufficed for him to see her opening. She was wet and ready for him. He loved that her body couldn’t lie to him or pretend to be indifferent.
Sawyer thrust into her hard, making her gasp again.
He grinned to himself, feeling that he was winning this match. Twice she had let him know that she wasn’t a cold-assed bitch.
The fact that he could so easily slide in and out of her proved that she wasn’t.
It felt so good inside of her that he longed to tell her that he loved her, but how could he?
How could you love someone you didn’t know?
Chapter 24
Morgan was making her rounds with the coffeepot. She looked at officer Tom’s face, knowing what his smile meant. He was ready for dessert.
“The apple pie is out,” she told him.
His face fell, and his shoulders slumped.
“Lucky for you, I set a slice aside.” She gave him a friendly smile. She was always especially good to her regulars.
“Really?” He perked up again.
“You know I wouldn’t let you down,” she assured him. “I’ll go get it for you.” She filled his cup with coffee, and then she went into the kitchen to Sawyer, and got the pie.
“That’s a generous slice,” Sawyer commented, raising his eyebrow.
Morgan shrugged her shoulders and went out to bring the officer his pie. He was all smiles when she laid it down in front of him.
Then Morgan went to the next booth. She froze when she saw her father.
“Hello, Morgan,” Martin said to her.
“Hello, sir,” she replied, feeling like the little girl she’d been when he first taught her how to greet him.
“Is there someplace where we can go to talk?” he asked her.
Morgan nodded at him. “Follow me, sir.” She turned away from him and tried to force her heart to settle down.
She brought her father to the backstairs and took him up to the apartment, knowing that the other waitresses would take care of the customers.
Morgan opened the door to their room and offered her father a spot on Sawyer’s desk chair. She sat down on the bed.
He was looking around and taking in where she lived now.
Morgan was deciding how she would handle him. If she let him hurt her, Sawyer would be furious and want to know what was going on. She would have to explain that she hadn’t been truthful with him, and explain that she hadn’t known what a master was when he first asked to be hers. It would put their already rocky relationship in jeopardy.
They’d been together for over a year now, but she knew that he wasn’t satisfied with her. He wanted to know about her past, but Morgan wasn’t ready to share it with him. She didn’t want to tell him that her father hated her, and that she hadn’t been able to find a boyfriend who wouldn’t hurt her. She worried that it would upset Sawyer when he found out what Robert had done to her the last time she saw him. It was as if she were damaged goods. She’d be worth less in his eyes.
“I’m guessing you need me to sign something,” she stated when she couldn’t bear the silence any longer.
“What? No? Why would you think that?” he asked her.
“Because it might have been better for you to have some things in my name. And you’d want them back now,” she explained in a soft voice.
“No, that’s not why I’m here.” There was a long pause after he spoke.
“Is it because of the people that I owe money to, sir?” she asked confused.
“What money?” he asked her, looking truly confused.
“For the hospital, and for school, and my apartment.” She began to list off her debts.
His jaw tightened. She’d made him mad. Was he going to hit her?
“I took care of that. You don’t owe anyone anything.” He looked surprised that she thought otherwise.
“But you said.” Morgan looked away from and fought not to cry. It had all been a game to him, an empty threat. One that she had believed. Because she believed him, she lost her chance at everything. She could have told Sawyer who she really was all along.
A gulp escaped her throat. She thought about that for a long time, and her father remained quiet and let her think.
When she finally collected herself, she nodded at him, letting him know that she understood, and that he could finally get to the point about why he was here today.
“Do you want to come back home?” he asked her. “You can. I’ll pay for school. You could live with me and drive back and forth. Maybe you could only take two classes until you get back into the swing of things.”
Morgan’s jaw tightened as she thought about the nerve he had to call his house her home. He had never offered her a home. Sawyer gave her more home in this one room than her father ever had with his huge mansion.
“I think I’ll stay here.” Tonight she would tell Sawyer who she was and why she had come out here. She finally could. She’d explain and make him happy. He could decide if he still wanted to keep her after he’d heard everything.
Maybe he’d want to keep her and give her a real job here. Things could stay the way they were, but be better. That is if he didn’t mind about what Robert did.
Would he? He liked rough sex too. There was a chance that he wouldn’t see her as being so damaged that he couldn’t keep her. The pink marks on her wrists proved that he liked it rough.
Morgan seemed to like it rough too. She’d fallen asleep with the ropes on last night and had only awakened when Sawyer removed them hours later.
Deep down, she knew that she was too messed up to be with anyone but a master. She blamed her father for that. Looking back, there had been nice guys on campus that she could have gotten to know better, but she stayed away from them. They weren’t her type. Besides, she feared that they would come to understand what kind of person she was.
“Maybe you could come and visit me,” Martin suggested.
“I don’t think so. We aren’t good together. We never were.”
The door opened, and there stood Sawyer looking mad and shocked at the same time.
Martin stood up and reached his hand out to the other man. “You must be Mr. Dalton.”
“Yes, I am. And you’re Martin Swift,” Sawyer stated.
“I can see that you’re surprised. Morgan never told you about me?” Martin had to grin.
“No, she was very tight-lipped.” Sawyer’s jaw was clenched.
“I was just asking her if she would like to come and visit me. Naturally, she said no. I understand that.” Martin sat down visibly tired. “The thing is … I got some news recently. It wasn’t good news. My father was a heavy smoker. He died of lung cancer when he was around my age. Knowing that, I stayed as far away from cigarettes as possible. I’m what people would call a health nut. Morgan can attest to that. I did everything right, lots of sports.” He looked at Morgan as if he wanted her confirmation, so she gave him a nod affirming his words. “I never smoked, but still I’m sick. My father used to blow smoke directly into people’s faces. It was a control thing. I had to stand still and take it. I seriously have less than two months to live.” He looked Morgan dead in the eyes. “If you could come back to the house and spend some time with me, I’d like that. I know I wasn’t good to you and you left because
you felt you had to, and I’d understand if you said no, but I’d like you to be there for me and at my funeral. I’d like you to be there in a black dress, carrying a red rose. I don’t expect you to cry for me, but it would mean a lot to me.”
Morgan jumped to her feet. “No.” She took a deep breath. “You can leave now.” She went to the door and held it open.
He remained sitting for a moment. Then he got up and stood in front of her. “I understand. I expected as much.” He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a box. It was clearly a cellphone. “In case you change your mind, you can reach me with this. My number is in it.” Martin looked over his shoulder at Sawyer and gave him a nod. Her boyfriend had said nothing to him. “Take care of her.”
“I always do,” Sawyer assured him while using a cold undertone.
Martin nodded at him and left, but he turned back and saw that Morgan was watching him go down the stairs. When their eyes met, she closed the door.
He left, thinking it was no more than he deserved. She was stronger than he was.
Martin had visited his father while he laid dying in bed. He did it because he knew that he had to. Martin couldn’t have lived without his father’s wealth.
Not in a million years would he have turned his back on it like Morgan thought she was doing.
Chapter 25
“Morgan just took some guy up to your apartment.” Horace informed Sawyer. He heard the news from one of the waitresses and felt it was his duty to pass it on to their boss.
“What?” Sawyer asked him surprised.
“You heard me. He showed up, and she took him right upstairs. She must know him.”
Sawyer didn’t want to sound as nervous as he felt so he quickly thought of something to say. “I guess if we have company, I better get up there and say hello. Can you take over down here for now?”
“Sure.” Horace gave him a look, telling him to hurry.
Sawyer walked to the door and out to the back hall. He raced up the stairs because no one could see him now.
“Maybe you could come and visit me.” Sawyer heard the man say.
“I don’t think so. We aren’t good together. We never were,” Morgan replied immediately. Their voices echoed in the hallway.
Knowing that this man had to be Morgan’s formal master, he flung open the door to get a look at him and to let him know that Morgan now had a new master.
In a second, he noted that Morgan was sitting on the bed, and the man was across from her, sitting on the chair. But the man wasn’t just anyone. He was Martin Swift. Everyone knew who he was.
Martin Swift had been Morgan’s last master. Sawyer felt his jaw dropping, but he stopped it before it became too obvious.
“You must be Mr. Dalton.” Mr. Swift approached him with his hand held out.
“Yes, I am. And you’re Martin Swift.” Sawyer took his hand and gave him a firm shake to let him know that he wouldn’t be messed with. Martin’s shake was weak, but he grinned at Sawyer as if he had the upper hand.
“I can see that you’re surprised. Morgan never told you about me?” Martin said, almost in a teasing voice.
“No, she was very tight-lipped.” Sawyer agreed with him.
“I was just asking her if she would like to come and visit me. Naturally, she said no. I understand that.” Martin released their grip and sat back down, giving Sawyer the impression that he was tuckered out from their handshake.
“The thing is … I got some news recently,” Mr. Swift continued. “It wasn’t good news. My father was a heavy smoker. He died of lung cancer when he was around my age. Knowing that, I stayed as far away from cigarettes as possible. I’m what people would call a health nut. Morgan can attest to that. I did everything right, lots of sports.”
He looked at Morgan, and Sawyer looked over at her too. She was very uncomfortable with the situation. That was plain to see. Mr. Swift wanted Sawyer to know that he knew Morgan too. He wanted Sawyer to know that they were close.
Sawyer hated him. He had even before he’d met her old master, but now that he had a face and a name to go with that hate, he could enjoy his hate more easily. This guy probably thought that he owed Morgan. He stopped listening to him for a moment as he thought about how much he hated this man.
“I never smoked, but still I’m sick. My father used to blow smoke directly into people’s faces. It was a control thing. I had to stand still and take it. I seriously have less than two months to live.” He stared Morgan down, willing her to say what he wanted to hear, but Morgan remained strong. “If you could come back to the house and spend some time with me, I’d like that. I know I wasn’t good to you, and you left because you felt you had to, and I’d understand if you said no, but I’d like you to be there for me and at my funeral. I’d like you to be there in a black dress and carrying a red rose. I don’t expect you to cry for me, but it would mean a lot to me.”
Morgan jumped to her feet. “No.” Sawyer was glad that she was setting up strong boundaries. He felt sorry for the guy, but she left him for a reason. She hadn’t been in a good place when she showed up here. This guy had almost driven her to kill herself.
“You can leave now.” Morgan told him, walking to the door, which she opened and held open, giving Mr. Swift the message that she wouldn’t be persuaded.
Mr. Swift obviously wasn’t used to being talked to like that, but Sawyer could see in his eyes that he knew he deserved it. After a moment, he got up and went to her. Sawyer was ready to step in if he needed to.
“I understand. I expected as much.” He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a box. “In case you change your mind, you can reach me with this. My number is in it.” Mr. Swift looked over his shoulder at Sawyer and gave him a nod. “Take care of her.”
“I always do,” Sawyer answered him, hoping that the idiot heard what he meant to say. Namely, that he had taken care of her when the other guy had failed to do so. If it wasn’t for Sawyer, Morgan wouldn’t be standing here right now. This guy didn’t love her.
Then something happened that made Sawyer put everything into question. As Mr. Swift was leaving, Morgan’s eyes were on him. She was watching him leave, and he could feel her pain. He remembered when he had dropped her off at the other truck stop. She hadn’t looked back at him, not even a glance. But she was watching Mr. Swift closely as he left.
Suddenly, she closed the door and turned away from it.
“Are you okay?” Sawyer asked her.
“Um … yes. I’m fine. I’ll wait to make sure that he’s gone, and then I’ll come down and go back to work.”
“Do you want me to go and check?” Sawyer offered.
Morgan’s lips were thin and pressed so tightly together, but she nodded.
“I’ll come back and let you know.” Sawyer went down and didn’t see him. So he went out to the parking lot and saw a limousine pulling away.
He was gone. Martin Swift, the richest man in America was gone. He had been Morgan’s master. But it didn’t make sense. Why would she leave him?
Sawyer remembered how excited she was when she received her necklace. He was positive that no one had ever given her anything like it before. Had he kept her prisoner? Had she escaped him?
Sawyer went back inside and found Morgan in the shower. The room was already full of steam. She was sitting on the floor with her arms wrapped around her legs. Sawyer reached in and turned off the water. He grabbed a towel and wrapped it around her shivering body.
“Did he hurt you before I arrived?” Sawyer asked her, walking her to the bed. Sawyer was glad that she was letting him guide her. He knew that Morgan automatically obeyed before she thought. He guessed that was what Mr. Swift had taught her to do.
Sawyer tucked her into bed in spite of her still being wet. “Should I get you some soup and hot chocolate?”
Morgan nodded at him, but she stopped him at the door. “Am I a bad person for kicking him out like that? What if he was telling the truth?”
“Is
there a chance that he’s lying?” Sawyer asked her.
“I guess so. I don’t know him well enough to say.”
“Your one and only job is to make sure that you’re in a good place. It’s my job to help you with that. I’ll do whatever you need me to do.” Sawyer promised her before he left.
Horace was waiting in the kitchen to hear what had happened. Sawyer quickly thought of a lie. “He was a lawyer. He brought bad news. Morgan is going to stay in bed today.”
“I’m so sorry to hear that. Tell her that I’m thinking about her.”
“I will. I know that she’ll appreciate it.”
“What was the bad news?” Horace asked.
“It’s personal, but I can tell you that someone she used to be close to is dying of cancer. It won’t take long from the sound of it.” He dished soup into his largest bowl and placed it on a serving tray and added crackers.
“Are you two leaving then?” Horace asked.
“Whatever she wants. Right now, she has to work through everything in her head.” He got the hot chocolate ready and brought everything up to her.
She was still shivering.
Sawyer spent the day with her. He tried to get her to talk, but she wasn’t in the talking mood. Guilt was eating at her.
~
Two days later when Morgan told Sawyer that she wanted to go home, his heart broke a little. He had hoped that this place was her home, but apparently, it wasn’t.
“I’ll take you,” he insisted.
“You don’t have to. I could figure something out with one of the truckers who come through here, or I could call him, and he’d arrange transportation,” Morgan offered.
“No, I’m not letting you go alone.” That would be the single dumbest thing he could ever do. Leaving her alone with Mr. Swift might leave her in position where he could take advantage of her and do something to make her lose her sense the self-worth.
Sawyer had invested so much time, trying to build her up. He wouldn’t allow her to be put back into a position where anyone could tear her down again.
That was how he found himself driving his truck with her beside him, heading in the direction of her ex-lover. What a terrible position to be in.
