Chapter 22
“There she is,” Morgan muttered under her breath.
“There who is?” Quinn asked.
“Amber. Wyatt’s ex. She just walked in.”
Amber casually strolled to the front desk. She motioned toward the door, pulled her phone from her purse and began waving it in the air.
“What is she saying?”
“I don’t know.” Morgan shook her head. “It’s hard telling. Maybe she’s throwing a temper tantrum, threatening to call the hospital police.”
It appeared Amber might be succeeding in getting her way when the clerk stepped into the back. While she waited, Wyatt’s ex casually checked out the waiting room’s occupants.
Finally, she noticed Morgan. Their eyes met. Amber lifted her chin, a defiant smirky smile on her face.
“She sees you,” Quinn said.
“Yep.”
The clerk returned. She said something to Amber, who was now clearly gloating as she stood near the door leading to the ER’s restricted area.
Glen and Kelly Dawson appeared. They walked over to Amber and began talking in low voices.
Amber’s lower lip puckered. She swiped at her face, although Morgan didn’t see any visible tears.
“She’s laying it on thick,” Quinn muttered.
“She’s trying to manipulate Wyatt’s parents into letting her see him.” Morgan turned her cell phone on, pretending not to pay attention. “What’s happening?”
“Amber is begging them.”
Morgan couldn’t resist. She lifted her gaze. Sure enough, Amber’s hands were clasped. Crocodile tears rolled down her cheeks.
Wyatt’s mother touched her arm and shook her head.
All three looked in Morgan’s direction. Clearly, she was being brought into the conversation.
Finally, reluctantly, Amber turned around. With her head down and shoulders hunched, she trudged out of the hospital.
The couple waited until she was gone and walked over to where the friends stood watching.
Morgan introduced Wyatt’s parents to Quinn.
“I’ve heard a great deal about you.” Kelly shook her hand. “You flew all the way up here to be with Morgan?”
“And Wyatt,” Quinn said. “He’s my friend too.”
“I have some good news,” Glen said. “The doctor ran another series of tests. Wyatt appears to be turning a corner. Dr. Houghton is hopeful within the next day or so he’ll be out of his induced coma.”
Morgan pressed her hand to her chest. “This is good…wonderful news.”
“In the meantime, Kelly and I think you should go home and get some rest,” Glen suggested. “We’ll take the first shift to be with Wyatt. Maybe you could come back later today to keep an eye on him while we take a break.”
“Absolutely.” Morgan hugged both of them. “How does noon sound?”
“Noon would be perfect. If something comes up, we’ll call you. What’s your cell phone number, Morgan?”
The trio exchanged numbers.
“I’m sure you noticed Amber Marais, Wyatt’s ex-girlfriend, who just left,” Kelly said.
“I did. I’m guessing she was hoping to see him.”
Glen told her Wyatt had mentioned Amber showing up, about the flowers, about her stay at Locke Pointe. “Our son had nothing to do with her coming back to Easton Island. Amber did it all on her own.”
“She is causing some problems.” Without going into detail, Morgan explained what Amber had done, how she’d rented a small cottage within walking distance to Wyatt’s place and purchased a vehicle identical to Morgan’s SUV. “Because of the issues I’ve had with my ex-husband, Jason, I’m very careful about making sure all my doors are locked and the screen doors shut. When I had to run home during my open house to pick something up, I noticed my screen doors were ajar.”
“Amber?”
Morgan nodded. “I caught her on my surveillance cameras trying to get inside.”
“When did this happen?”
“Yesterday, before Wyatt’s accident.” Morgan told them she’d already shown the videos to Grady. “He asked me what I wanted to do.”
“Amber has no business being at your home,” Glen said.
“She has always been…” Kelly sucked in a breath. “Difficult.”
“You’re telling me.” Morgan rolled her eyes. “And becoming more difficult by the day.”
“Amber wanted us to add her name to the list for when Wyatt is allowed visitors,” Glen said. “We told her no.”
“I’m not sure Wyatt would want her here.”
“He doesn’t and won’t.” Kelly touched Morgan’s arm. “I’m sorry for Amber’s behavior.”
“It’s not your fault. Maybe she’ll finally get the message, pack up and head back to wherever she came from.”
“It would be best.” His mother gave Morgan a gentle hug. “Go get some rest and we’ll see you a little later.”
“I’ll have my phone with me at all times. If anything changes, please call.”
The couple promised they would, and Quinn and Morgan left the hospital. Optimistic that Wyatt was turning a corner, she could feel herself start to relax.
Back at the cottage, Morgan helped her friend carry her bags upstairs.
“Everything looks the same.” Quinn ran a light hand over her dresser.
“Waiting for you to come home,” Morgan said. “I’ve been starting your car every couple of days, so the battery doesn’t die.”
“Thanks.” Quinn settled on the edge of the bed. “I didn’t realize how much I missed Easton Island until I saw Captain Davey waiting for me at the dock. When I stepped onto the island and found Ben waiting to give me a ride to the hospital, I got all choked up. Denver worked his magic getting me here.”
“Because Grandmother knew I needed you. Thank you for coming.”
“I wouldn’t have it any other way.” Quinn stifled a yawn. “I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to get some sleep.”
“You and me both. I promised Wyatt’s parents I would be back around noon. That’ll give us a few hours of shut-eye and some time to catch up.” Heading downstairs, Morgan peeled off her clothes and crawled into bed.
She set the alarm on her cell phone and closed her eyes. Within minutes, she was fast asleep, only waking when her alarm sounded.
Morgan hopped out of bed, showered, and dressed. She stepped into the living room and found Quinn was already awake and lounging on the couch. “Did you get some rest?”
“You know it.” Her friend patted the cushion. “Let’s hang out for a minute.”
Morgan curled up next to her. “I wonder if I should run by Easton Estate to pick up Chester.”
“I miss that silly pup. Why don’t I go get him when you head back to the hospital?”
“He’ll be so excited to see you.” Morgan folded her arms. “So, tell me all about this wonderful job.”
Quinn shared the details of the job offer, which included a sizeable raise from what she was making at Easton Harbor Art Gallery. “I’ll be putting in some long hours, being the low woman on the totem pole.”
“But it will be worth it. I guess the saying, ‘It isn’t what you know, but who you know’ is true.” Morgan scooched off the couch. “On that note, I’m going to fix us a celebratory cup of tea.”
“I’ll help.” Quinn followed her friend into the kitchen.
Morgan grabbed the milk from the fridge and noticed the leftover slices of figgy duff. “You need to sample Mrs. Arnsby’s figgy duff.”
“Figgy duff?”
“It’s like bread pudding, sort of.” While the water heated, Morgan warmed the slices in the microwave. She set them on the table, fixed the tea and settled in.
It was like old times, two besties hanging out and catching up. Their past argument and angry words were long forgotten.
After finishing the tea and treats, Morgan gathered up the dishes and carried them to the sink.
“Hey, Morgan.” Quinn stood at the side window overlooking the driveway. “You have company.”
“Let me guess…Brett found out you were back.”
“Not quite.”
Morgan, detecting a note of concern in her friend’s voice, trekked over to the window.
She watched as her twin vehicle pulled into the driveway. Amber Marais exited the driver’s side and marched toward Looking Glass Cottage’s front door.