Chapter 3 – Morgan
MORGAN
I woke feeling good about my plans for the day—I was going to ask Andie out for dinner. Since that first kiss on New Year’s Eve, I hadn’t been able to get her out of my mind.
I showered and dressed, spraying my favourite aftershave.
It had a spicy, woody kind of scent, and I sprayed a few more times.
Although I’d received compliments from multiple women on the scent, I only aimed to impress one.
I made sure my hair was perfect, though I wasn’t happy with my close-cropped beard.
It was getting a little long; I made a note to contact my barbers for an appointment.
I went downstairs, kissed my mother on the cheek and grabbed a slice of toast from the table. My leg bounced under the table; I was so nervous.
“Morgan, I can’t think with you bouncing that leg. Go in the living room or somewhere,” my mother chided. She was going over the final plans for the interior of Andie’s bar area.
“Okay, okay, sorry.” I looked out the window. It was a beautiful day. I text Brooke.
M: Do you have any plans for today? If not, can I have Charlie for an hour or two?
B: No plans. What time?
M: Now?
B: Fine.
“Mum, I’m going out. See you in a bit,” I called out, swiping up my keys off the hook by the front door and jogging to my car.
Brooke was far from pleased to see me. I didn’t make it past the front door. She thrust Charlie and his bag into my hand on the doorstep and closed the door behind her.
“Hey, little man. Let’s go have fun.” I smiled down at his beautiful face.
I took him to a local soft play centre, watching with delight as he toddled around.
I sat with him in the ball pit, rolling balls back and forth, showing him different coloured ones and naming the colours.
Charlie’s smiling face as he clapped his tiny hands made my heart swell with pride.
I grinned back at him, swiping him up into my arms and blowing raspberries onto his stomach, causing him to laugh out loud.
I chuckled along with him. As we had lunch together, I watched as Charlie mashed up a slice of banana before eating it. His face was covered in food.
“We should get you cleaned up.” I wiped gently at his soft skin. “Mummy will not be happy if I take you back like this.”
“Daddy,” his small voice called out.
My heart just about burst from my chest; my eyes pricked with tears. I picked him up from the highchair and hugged him close, inhaling his sweet baby scent.
“That’s right, Charlie. I’m Daddy.” I kissed his head as his little fingers found my hair and pulled it.
We left the play area, but I wasn’t quite ready to take Charlie home. So, I pulled into the park close to Brooke’s and put a wrist band on Charlie.
We strolled around the park for a while, enjoying the sunshine before I took him into the playground area. His giggles of delight as I pushed him on the swings would be forever etched in my memories. My cheeks ached from smiling at him so much.
After a while, he started rubbing at his eyes and crying, a sure sign he was tired.
I dropped him back to Brooke, feeling low that I had to leave him again. I hugged him close on the doorstep, ignoring Brooke as she tapped her foot impatiently, waiting for me to hand him to her.
“Daddy loves you so much, Charlie,” I whispered into his sleeping face. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” I brushed my lips softly on his forehead and reluctantly handed him and his bag over to Brooke.
Stepping back, I watched as she closed the door in my face without a word. Each time I had to take him back, my heart ached for him. Every other day just wasn’t enough. I wanted to be there for every second of every day with him.
I got back to my parent’s house and lounged on the sofa for a while, flicking through the channels on the tv. My thoughts kept moving to Andie, so I texted her.
M: Hey, final plans today. Are you excited?
A: I can’t wait. Just jumping in the shower. Shouldn’t be long x
Fuck me, now my thoughts were of her in the shower. Naked, soapy and wet. I took a deep breath and squeezed hard at my erection to make it go back down before I replied to her text.
M: See you soon.
Heading back to the kitchen, I put the kettle on. “Wanna cuppa?” I asked my parents. “Mum? Coffee?” I asked her; she was so lost in her plans, she hadn’t heard me the first time.
“Oh, yes please, love. That would be great.” She smiled up at me.
I made both of us coffee and joined Mum at the table.
“Thanks love, that’s delicious.” She took another sip before rolling up her plans and placing them on the worktop.
“What’s up with you today?” she asked, eyeing my once again bouncing knee.
“I’m going to do it, Mum. Today is the day.” I grinned widely at her. I was excited and nervous, and felt like a kid at their first amusement park.
“Ah, that explains it.” She smiled. She knew what I was talking about as she was the first person I had gone to, after Baz, about my feelings for Andie.
“Just take your time with her, okay? She’s not had it easy, and her ex really did a number on her.
He hurt her badly. Just…be gentle.” She sat back and patted my arm.
“Do you still think I should ask?” Now I doubted my timing.
“Yes, I do. I’ve seen the way you both look at each other. The way she has a smile just for you, or the way you light up whenever anyone mentions her name.” She beamed and her eyes lit up with warmth.
“She really has a smile just for me?” I couldn’t keep the grin off my face.
I sat back and placed my arms behind my head. A warm ball of energy flowed through my body.
“Yeah, she does. I can’t explain it. It’s like when you walk into the room, or you say something funny, she smiles wider. Being around you makes her happier than she normally is.”
“Thanks, Mum. It’s good but weird to talk to you about it.” I chuckled and rubbed at my neck, my cheeks heating up.
“I want you to be able to come to me about anything and everything. It’s what I’m here for.” She squeezed my hand.
My heart about jumped out of my throat when the doorbell rang.
“Just keep calm, and tell your father Andie is here,” my mother said, chuckling as she got up to answer the door.
I got up and ran to the back door. “Dad, Andie is here.”
I got back to the table and tried to look calm and laid back.
When Andie entered the kitchen, her warm smile lit up her beautiful face.
She was wearing a short, white wool dress and knee-high brown boots.
Her hair was down, but I saw little silver pins holding it up from her face.
She looked good enough to eat and, if I played my cards right later, then maybe I would get a taste.
“So, here are the final plans for your outdoor bar area. Morgan has been working on the library you wanted; we just need those final details from you. The only thing left to plan is the kitchen extension.” My father spread out the plans on our kitchen table in front of Andie.
My mother got up to start preparing food and I stood to help her, keeping an eye on Andie.
I watched as Andie’s face lit up when she saw her dreams coming to life.
We had worked for months on this project, and this was just the designing stage.
There’d been long evenings after work and nights when Andie wasn’t at the club, over takeaway cartons, and the odd bottle of wine.
Therefore, it had taken much longer than normal to get the plans laid out and to a place where she was happy with it.
“This is amazing, I love it. It’s exactly what I wanted.” She looked to all three of us, her smile lighting up her whole face, making her green eyes sparkle.
“Wait, I have something for you, too,” my mother said.
She practically danced over to the table from the kitchen worktop and placed an overlay of her own work on top of the plans from my father.
My mother’s plans included what she wanted for the interior design, down to the soft furnishings.
Mum’s words faded into the background as I watched Andie listening to her.
Her smile grew wider and her gestures more animated.
She clapped her hands excitedly, almost bouncing in her seat.
She was perfect in every sense of the word. If I was honest, I think I fell for her the moment she came back into our lives with this huge project of hers, but that could be the lust talking.
“Morgan?” My father’s voice cut through my thoughts.
“Huh? Sorry, I zoned out there for a moment, I blame all these soft furnishings and pillows.” I rolled my eyes, and they all laughed.
“I said all that’s left now is for you two to work on the library plans, then I’ll begin ordering the materials,” my father repeated himself.
“Sounds good to me.” I smiled at Andie.
“I have the plans in the car, I’ll go get them.” Andie made to get up, but my mother stopped her.
“Let’s eat first.”
Andie nodded, “You lot have been spoiling me. I’ve been piling on the pounds,” Andie said as she took the plate of curry and rice.
“It’s no problem. You’re always welcome here, and, let’s be honest, you could do with adding a few pounds.” My mother chuckled.
Andie just shrugged. I thought she was perfect as she was, curves in all the right places.
My father excused himself to eat his food in the living room and my mother followed soon after, giving me a quick nod and a wink before closing the door behind her.
My heart pounded in my chest and my mouth suddenly felt dry.
“Are you okay?” Andie asked, nodding her head towards my untouched plate of food.
“Yeah, uh, I wanted to talk to you.” I put down my cutlery and rubbed my hands on my thighs.
“Ooh, this sounds serious. Have I been a naughty girl?” She laughed, but the way she said it sent a lightning bolt to my cock, and I had to bend towards the table to hide my growing erection.
“What? Uh, no. I wanted to know if, maybe sometime…” Shit, just spit it out, I chided myself. “Would you like to go out with me, alone, just us, on a date?”
Fuck my life, I’d never been so awkward around a woman before. I wasn’t Mr Smooth or anything, but I could hold my own. This time, I was like a toddler learning to walk for the first time; wobbly, then falling flat on my face.
Then it happened, she started choking on her food, coughing, and spluttering. She hastily reached for the drink I was holding out for her.
“Are you okay?” I placed a hand on her shoulder.
“Yes, sorry. I just wasn’t expecting that.” She took another drink.
“I know it may sound like it’s come out of the blue.
That wasn’t the way I had planned to ask you, but these last few months we’ve spent together have been so good.
I’ve liked you for a while. Even before those kisses we shared, but I didn’t know how to ask and thought I wasn’t good enough for you.
That’s why I just blurted it out.” I was rambling, I knew it, but I couldn’t stop.
Andie blushed. “It’s very flattering, but I don’t think it would be a good idea to go out with you. I’m sorry.” She looked away and started clearing away her food, though she had barely touched it.
“Can I ask why?” I was trying not to show how disappointed I was, but I don’t think my face got the message because when she looked at me her face dropped.
“Morgan, you’re such a great guy and you know I like you, but I feel a lot older than you, I’m going through a divorce, and you are one of my closest friend’s son. I just don’t think it’s a good idea. The kisses were a mistake. We’re better as friends; I don’t want to lose that.”
“I get it, I do. That’s why it’s taken so long to ask you because I’ve given it a lot of thought.
Five years is nothing, I’ve talked to Mum and she’s okay with it.
Over the last few months, I’ve come to care for you, more than just friends, and we get along so well.
” I placed my hand on hers only for her to jump back like I’d burned her.
“I’m sorry, but it’s a no. I have to go.” Andie grabbed her bag from the back of her chair and practically ran from the room before I had a chance to say anything else. I heard her call out goodbye to my parents and then the front door close behind her.
I collapsed back against the chair and covered my face with my hands. My heart was getting smaller by the second. My appetite had disappeared. Letting out a long sigh, I cleared away my food.
I stuck my head into the living room. “Hey, Andie had to go. I’m headed upstairs for a bit.” My parents sat on either end of the sofa, still eating and watching the football.
“All right, love. Is everything okay?” my mother asked, concern furrowing her brow as her eyes searched my face.
“Yeah, all good. See you later.” I forced a tight smile.
I didn’t want to get into it with my mother. Taking the stairs two at a time, I went into the spare bedroom that I used for smaller woodwork projects.
From atop my workbench, I picked up one of the little cars I’d been carving for Charlie. I’d already built the three-story wooden carpark for him, and two out of the four cars I had planned. This one needed the wheels adding but otherwise was complete. Two down, three to go.