Book 28 Delivery After Dark #8
She takes his hand and rests her head on his shoulder while Violet plays on the floor, oblivious to the drama swirling around her.
“I’m working as hard as I can to get you some resolution,” Kendall says. “But we have to play this out, as hard as it is. He wants to see her, and we have to let him. I’ll be back to you as soon as I hear anything more.”
“Thanks, K.”
“Hang in there. Love you guys.”
“Love you, too.”
By the time Morgan knocks on her door shortly after seven o’clock, Sierra is about to spontaneously combust from excitement.
She can’t recall the last time she’s been so amped up for anything as she is to see him after the long day apart.
And while a tiny voice inside her head is telling her to slow her roll and chill the hell out, she can’t seem to make that happen when he comes through the door, smiling and obviously as happy to see her as she is to see him.
Then he wraps his arms around her and kisses her, and her knees go weak under her. Only his tight hold keeps her standing as he kisses her face right off.
“Mmm,” he says when he finally comes up for air. “I’ve been looking forward to that all day.”
“Me, too. Was it a particularly long day, or did it just seem like it?”
He nuzzles her neck. “It was endless, but it just got a whole lot better.”
She confesses to being terrified by their incendiary connection.
Sierra tells him about the live music at the Wayfarer, and they decide to check it out. When they’re downstairs next to his truck—or Billy’s truck that he’s using—he puts a hand on her arm. “Hey.”
“What’s up?”
“I don’t want you terrified. This… with you… It feels so good that you’ve got me pondering some life changes after one incredible night.”
“Oh.” She licks lips that have suddenly gone dry as the desert. “I do?”
“Yeah. You do. You have me rethinking my whole damned life, so please don’t be afraid of anything other than how quickly this is happening and how epic we might turn out to be.”
Is this really happening, or is she dreaming? “Epic, huh?”
“You never know unless you try, and I intend to go for it. That is… if you’re going for it with me.
” He backs her up against the truck, pressing his aroused body to hers.
“I felt guilty as fuck for feeling so good today when the last few months have been nothing but one shitty day after another. But today… Today it was like the sun had come back out after a long, dark, cold winter. All thanks to you.”
“Thanks for coming out to see us tonight, everyone,” Evan McCarthy says from the stage, where he’s seated on a stool next to his best friend, Owen Lawry, his favorite person to perform with. “It’s always nice to play for the home crowd on Gansett Island.”
That’s met with a huge cheer from their friends and family.
He and Owen strum the opening chords for “Home,” originally performed by Phillip Phillips on American Idol.
As the crowd sings along to the familiar tune, Evan grins at Owen, who’s perfectly in sync with him, as always.
The chowder has warmed them up and now… All Sierra wants is to get the hell out of there so she can be alone with Morgan.
People have stopped by their table to say hello, to ask how Morgan is doing and probably to try to figure out what’s going on between them, not that they’re giving anything away.
Everyone is so friendly and supportive of Morgan, which he appreciates. They ask about his plans for the gym, and he assures them it will remain open one way or the other. What he doesn’t say is whether he’ll be the one to manage it or if he plans to turn that role over to one of the employees.
Sierra wants to know the answer to that question, too, but she isn’t about to press him for big decisions on their second official date.
He’d wanted to take her out, show her a good time, prove he isn’t only after the one thing all guys are after… But as fun as it is to spar with her across the dinner table while being entertained by quality music, Morgan can’t wait to have her all to himself.
While she watches Owen and Evan, he watches her. He notices the glow of her expressive face, the way her eyes light up with pleasure when the guys play a song she loves and how everyone who walks by their table greets her by name.
She loves Gansett Island, is loved by her friends and has established a successful business through years of hard work. It doesn’t take long to understand she won’t be happy anywhere else.
“You want to get out of here?” he asks when he can’t wait any longer.
“Yeah, let’s go.”
As they make their way to the exit, everyone wants a word with Sierra—and a few stop him to thank him for keeping the gym open.
“I love it there,” Grant McCarthy says. “Best gym I’ve ever belonged to.”
“That’s all thanks to Billy.”
“You guys have a nice evening,” Stephanie says.
“You do the same,” Sierra says with a hug for Stephanie.
Stephanie says something to her that makes Sierra laugh.
When they get outside, Morgan asks what Stephanie said.
“I can’t tell you. It was dirty.”
“Then I definitely want to know.”
“She said, and I quote, ‘I hope you’re having your wicked way with that hunk of man.’”
Morgan sputters with laughter. “Well, all righty, then. Let’s get to that. Right now.”
Holding hands, they run through the cold to the truck and are on the way to her place in the span of a few minutes. He drives so fast that the heater doesn’t have time to warm up before he’s parking outside her building.
Like the night before, he’s right behind her as they sprint up the stairs. Then he wraps his arms around her from behind and rests his chin on her shoulder. “This feels so good, Sierra. Better than anything ever has.”
She covers his hands with hers. “For me, too.”
“All I want is more of it. More of you.”
“Same.”
The Adam and Abby McCarthy family of seven, along with two sets of grandparents, make their way to the ferry for a rough ride home. Adam had gotten Abby motion sickness medicine, but unfortunately, she still gets sick.
Grant and Stephanie, along with Grace and Evan, have been hard at work at Adam and Abby’s house for two days, making sure everything is ready for them to bring home the babies.
They decided to turn the downstairs guest room and bathroom into a bedroom for Adam and Abby, so they can base all operations on the main floor of their two-story home.
“I hope they’ll forgive us for this,” Stephanie says as she eyes the four bassinets on wheels that the guys put together, along with the changing tables that have been moved from the nursery upstairs to the living room.
“They’ll be thanking us,” Grace says. “It’ll be so much easier for them to have everything down here.”
Grant checks his watch. “We need to get going to meet the boat.”
Grace has summoned the entire family, asking them to be there when the ferry arrives to welcome their new nephews and cousins as well as Adam, Abby and Liam, who’ve been away from the island for months.
They ride together in Grant’s car to the ferry landing, where they meet up with the rest of the family. Laura brought balloons, and Katie made a big banner for the kids to hold that says: Welcome Home, Liam, Murphy, Rory, Kane and Beckett!
Thomas and Ashleigh take charge of the banner while Hailey and Mac run in circles around them, full of excitement.
“Where are Mac and Maddie?” Shane asks.
“Good question,” Ned mutters. “Haven’t resurfaced from their night away yet.” He holds baby Emma while Francine has Evie. “Ready to turn these hooligans back over to their parents.”
“Stop that, Ned,” Francine says. “They were angels. The babies slept all night.”
Grant texts his older brother. Earth to the lovebirds. Are you coming to meet the ferry?
He hopes the boat gets there soon because it’s fucking freezing, and he wants to get Stephanie—and Grace—out of the cold. “Do you want to wait in the car, hon?”
“Hell, no,” Steph says. “I don’t want to miss a second of this.”
Her dad, Charlie, arrives with his wife, Sarah. “We didn’t want to miss the fun,” Charlie says as he hugs Steph like he hasn’t seen her in weeks.
“Hey, hey, hey,” Dan Torrington says from behind Grant. “We heard there was a party happening today.”
Kara holds baby Dylan, who, like Adrian, is bundled to within an inch of her life in a snowsuit. “I told him it was too cold to take her out, but he said it’s only for a few minutes, and I so want to see those babies.”
“I hear you, Mama,” Tiffany says. “I couldn’t miss this either. Adrian promised me he’d be fine if we came.”
“Funny that Dylan promised me the same thing,” Kara says.
“I love that our babies will grow up together,” Tiffany says.
“All our babies,” Stephanie adds.
“That’s right,” Kara says. “More coming soon.”
“Who else is thankful to be having them one at a time?” Stephanie asks as the others laugh.
“Me,” Tiffany says.
“Me, three,” Grace says.
“Me, four,” Katie says with a smile for her husband, Shane.
“Wait, what?” the others say as one.
“Are you holding out on me, little brother?” Laura asks.
“Yep,” Shane says. “We’re pregnant and almost through the first trimester.” He holds up crossed fingers. “We’re hoping for the best this time.”
The others swarm around them, offering hugs and congratulations.
“Today is not about us,” Katie says. “It’s about the quads.”
“It’s about all of us,” Grant says. “The whole damned family.”
“Yer derned right about that,” Ned says.
Mac and Maddie run up to the group just as the ferry backs up to the pier.
“The new babies are coming home to the chaos they’ll grow up in,” Grant says as Big Mac drives his truck off the ferry, tooting the horn as he goes.
Adam is right behind him in his SUV, also on the horn.
The older kids are out of their minds with excitement as the two vehicles park and are swarmed by family members and friends, straining for a look at the new arrivals.
“Oh, my gosh,” Stephanie says as she hugs Abby. “Look at those little faces.”
“They’re so cute!” Grace says from the other side of Big Mac’s truck. “How’d they do on the boat?”
“Better than I did. Adam made me puke.”