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“No. She is not violent or criminal, just extremely selfish and self-consumed.”
“And I suppose any kind of criminal act would make her lose her custody case.”
“Absolutely.” He stood, clearly indicating the end of their meeting. Standing next to him, Blake could see how his powerful frame would intimidate some people. But she found herself wanting to curl against his broad chest and brush her lips over his sexy mouth and had to struggle to ignore her body’s reaction to him.
As Morgan walked her to the office door, he said, “If you are now uncomfortable about taking this position and want to change your mind, I understand. Ciara would be crushed, but, as I’ve told you, she has weathered many a storm already. Maybe we should wait before we finalize anything. I don’t want you to jump into this if you don’t feel good about it. Take a day to think it over and let me know tomorrow. I won’t say anything either way to Ciara until you get back to me.”
Blake nodded, thanked him, and left, her head spinning as she drove back to Harper’s house.
5
Morgan had learned not to show his nerves, not to show any thoughts or feelings to the outside world. Sure, part of it was his bodyguard training, part of it his training for martial arts competitions, but most of it stemmed from his childhood.
When he got Ciara off to school this morning, his daughter showed less concern over being a new kid on her first day in a new school than about when Blake was moving into their house. He’d played it cool, saying he would be meeting with Blake later today to organize things, but underneath he wondered if his intuitive daughter sensed the possibility that Blake had changed her mind.
Blake had tried to hide it yesterday, but Morgan could tell how upset she had gotten when he told her about the trouble with Fawn. More than he’d expected, frankly, making him wonder if something else was going on.
Well, yeah, something else was going on, like the fact that the two of them were bouncing “I want you” vibes back and forth. But, no, he could tell it was something other than that. He was not worried about their sexual attraction to each other.
On second thought, maybe he should be. The sight of her stepping into The Coffee Cove and walking toward the booth he had nabbed in a quiet corner had a bigger effect on him than he wanted to admit.
Blake Sheehan was one of those women who did not need a five-thousand-dollar dress to look like a million bucks. Here she was in a black zippered sweatshirt hoodie that cinched at the waist of her snug-fitting jeans and he could not take his eyes off her. She wore her hair in a ponytail today, making her face look even more exquisite.
And while Morgan had become immune to gorgeous women after working so many years among the Hollywood crowd, there was something different about Blake’s beauty. That self-effacing vulnerability she had that made her a rare find among women born with perfect looks.
“Hi, Morgan,” she said, as she slid into the red leather booth across the table from him. “Did Ciara get off to school all right?”
“She did,” he said, reminding himself he was not looking for a wife or a lover and that the most important issue here was Ciara. Holding himself back from blurting out his question as to what her decision was, he asked, “Want something to eat?”
“No. Just coffee,” she said. Not a good sign. Was she going to deliver bad news and leave? “Although I’ve heard they have great brownies here.”
“I wouldn’t know. I’ve never been here before.” The fact that Blake had asked him to meet her here and not at the Albatross meant she wanted privacy—which she could have had at his house, but she did not want to meet there either. Another bad sign.
Blake flagged down a waitress and ordered a coffee and a chocolate fudge brownie. Morgan had been thinking of getting pancakes, but now he was not sure they would be here that long, judging by Blake’s serious demeanor. So he ordered an oatmeal cookie and another coffee. “If there is a minimum, I’ll cover it,” he added when he saw the disgruntled look on the waitress’s face.
When they both had their orders, Blake said, “Harper told me you interviewed him thoroughly about me. So, I interviewed him about you.”
“And?” He trusted Harper, but as he eyed the sweet smile on her way-too-kissable mouth, he wondered what kinds of questions she might have asked, not that she would tell him that part.
The server brought their orders and Blake took a hit of her coffee before she said, “Harper told me you were a champion kickboxer and that you had years of training and experience as a bodyguard in the LA circles before opening your own business in the field. It’s called Laken Raines? And Laken is a partner?”
“Right. Cory Laken is my partner. We both started as bodyguards, worked a lot of gigs together, and decided to start our own training and placement service. He lives on the West Coast where we first opened the business.” He tried not to look at the way her tongue snatched a brownie crumb from her full top lip as he waited patiently for her to go on.
“Harper said you already had a Laken Raines company satellite out here on the North Fork in Riverhead before you moved east because you and your partner have four branches around the country now.”
“We do.”
“And he said you’ve guarded CEOs of some major businesses and also named some pretty famous film stars. And some that you’ve even trained in martial arts.”
“All true.” Morgan sipped his coffee and asked, “Did you talk to him about my situation with Ciara’s mother?”
“No.” She frowned. “You said not to tell anyone, so I would never do that.”
“Thank you. Your brother knows a little bit, but not as much as I told you, and not her name or that she is a famous actress, and I would prefer to keep it that way.”
Blake nodded, glanced up at him, and quickly glanced away. “You know I’ve been working as an instructor at a university and was also a research fellow.”
“Your brother is really proud of you. He said you got a scholarship to Harvard and are super smart.”
