Page 40

Morgan

____________

T hanksgiving came and went, and I have been in California for three days. We finally get to go home tomorrow.

I wince as I try to move my arm, but it’s no use. I’m nervous about the scans coming back. I can barely move it at all. I bite down on my lip as I use my left hand to grab my phone and scroll through my messages.

My parents complained about everything under the sun, and shocker, not one message about the hit I took tonight, or asking me if I’m okay. Several messages from old flames, old friends, other crazy people that somehow got my number.

Two from Lillian, asking me to call her as soon as I can and that the girls and her are worried.

I smile as I scroll up to the photos she sent me yesterday from when they all took the girls to the ice rink and to the movies.

She’s a saint for putting up with my entire family in one house.

She hasn’t packed up and ran yet, so I take that as a plus.

I groan as I sit down on my bed and call Lillian, listening to the loud ringing in my ear.

She finally answers and I hear a door close before she says anything. “Hey, I just got the girls down. Are you okay? How bad is it?”

I wince as I stare up at the ceiling and close my eyes. It was fucking brutal.

We were down by one point and thought that I was still as nimble as I was fifteen years ago. Tried a trick shot and was slammed into harder than a damn mack truck. My head snapped to the side after I was thrown into the wall and I fell on my shoulder against the unforgiving ice.

I doubt anything is broken, but something might be torn.

“I should be fine. I’m about to try to take a shower and ice it. How are you doing?”

I can hear her sigh from thousands of miles away.

She knows I’m full of shit. “I’m so glad you’re okay.

That was damn hard to watch. Your parents refused to watch the game and sat outside drinking your stock of whiskey and wine.

The girls were crying until about half an hour ago when Sports Center finally gave us the update that you were doing well and getting some scans done… ”

I chew on my lip and shake my head. “I’m sorry I didn’t call sooner. I’ll be home tomorrow and should be getting a few days off.” Probably longer, to be honest.

She clears her throat. “Good, because I’m about ready to leave with the girls and Mackenzie.

I can’t take their attitudes, Morgan. They’re so fucking rude.

They’re even nitpicking the girls’ clothes, how much they eat, why they aren’t all in sports and music classes.

Apparently Tilly should already be a Prima Ballerina by now. ”

I rub a hand down my face and frown so hard I feel like I’m getting new wrinkles. “I’ll figure it out when I get home. I mostly ignore them… they’ve never said anything like that to the girls before. At least not in front of me.”

She snorts. “Avery told me that this is how they always are. Maybe you just ignore it.”

I wince at the sharpness of her tone. “I…”

She hangs up on me and my heart drops. We’ve been doing so damn well lately. I stand and start slowly pulling off my clothes so I can take another shower before getting into bed. I need to call room service for more ice and I still need to eat.

Hospitals are a pain in my ass. Maybe I should just ask to go home early.

As I’m drying off I hear someone banging against the door and I open it up, stepping back to let Landon and James inside. I frown as I turn and drop my towel, pulling up some sweats. “What’s going on?”

James sighs and collapses down on my bed as Landon starts pacing around. “All of the other assholes are out drinking. Just received word that Drea somehow got out of the shit in California and is… gone.”

I slowly blink in between them and lean up against the wall, careful not to move my right arm. Why do I care about this shit again? “What do you mean ‘gone’?”

Landon curses under his breath and runs his fingers through his hair, shaking his head, muttering to himself. “That psycho bitch is probably going to come back here… I need to hire a better security company…”

I chew on my lip and tilt my head at them. “Would she really try anything? I don’t get what her problem is. If she does show up here then the cops can nab her for the assault charges.”

Landon and James share another look, I’m about ready to just kick them out so I can get into bed. I’m exhausted. I hurt. I need to call Lillian back, fuck, I also need to call my parents and ask them to lay the fuck off of her.

James clears his throat and stands up from my bed before heading to the door.

Finally. “We think she’s off her rocker.

She was controlling and insane after she digs her claws into you.

So much damn drama, and who knows what else she’s capable of.

She attacked Marie while pregnant with the twins, in plain sight at the wedding.

What else will she do next? Try to steal my kids? Destroy another house?”

Landon and James move to leave and I blow out a breath. “Keep me updated. If you need any help or anything…”

They nod and wince when they head back over to me to clap me on the back or something, forgetting at the last minute that I might throw them out the window if anything touches my arm right now. “Fuck, bro… I forgot. How are you feeling?”

I shrug my left shoulder up and move to lay down in bed. “Sore. Happy to be going home tomorrow.”

They nod and leave, leaving me in the quiet suite. I sigh as I move to grab my phone and groan when it pulls on my shoulder.

Fuck, I might be out for a couple of weeks at the least. Hopefully not through the end of the season. I pant and dial my mom’s number and wait for the old bat to answer.

“Morgan, I was just getting into bed.”

I lick my dry lips and sigh under my breath.

“I know that you and dad are set in your ways, but this is my life. That’s my home.

My kids. My money. My everything. You need to knock off your bullshit little comments and putting everyone around you down.

You only see my girls one or two times a year. You don’t raise them or babysit them.

“I don’t give a shit if I’m not married to one of your friends’ elite daughters with a trust fund larger than any amount of money either of us have seen…

I’m happy. I’m successful. I worked my ass off for this life.

I don’t give a fuck if you don’t think Lillian is ‘good enough for me’ but that’s not your decision to make.

“Those girls are finally in a stable environment and they love Lillian more than even me. Brittany was never a parent to them, and her parents make jack shit. She didn’t come from a wealthy family and you never made these comments to her.

Was it because of my money she spent to show up to your home in jewels and expensive clothing?

Her purses and high heels that cost almost as much as my mortgage on the house?

“She never worked a fucking day in her life. Do you have any idea how many degrees Lillian has? How much she’s busted her ass all of her adult years to be successful?

She was a teacher and moved out here for a new life.

Who gives a shit if she accepted a nanny job and we ended up in a relationship… seriously… Who gives a shit?”

Mother scoffs for the thousandth time and clears her throat. “Are you done?”

I hum. “Are you?”

She sighs heavily and I hear her murmuring to someone to my father in the background. “If we are not welcome in your home, and Lillian is crying to you about me getting to know her, then we will leave on the next flight out in the morning.”

She hangs up and when I try to call her back, but it goes straight to voicemail. I roll my eyes and try to call Lillian, but she sends me to voicemail too.

Why am I in trouble tonight, of all nights? Fuck.

______________

I was sent straight to the clinic for more scans so that the coaches and Daniel had a better eye on how long I'll be out for as soon as we touched down.

Turns out I have a shoulder separation and my clavicle is fractured. And because I’ve hurt this shoulder more than a few times, they’re suggesting surgery.

I might actually be out for the rest of the season.

I shut off my phone as I step out into the chilled air and hop back into Nolan’s car. At least he waited for me since my gimp ass can’t drive right now. He winces when he sees my thunderous look and turns down the music. I tell him what the doctors suggested and he groans.

“Fuck, what are you going to do?”

I shrug and stare out the window as he drives towards my house. Lillian barely talked to me this morning and I haven’t heard from my parents. I have no idea if they left or not, or if they’re still there and I’m showing up to a fucking crime scene.

“I need to have a meeting with Williams and Daniel. Not looking forward to that.”

He turns the music back up and I collapse back in the seat. I need a fucking vacation. Now I have to go home to whatever drama has unfolded since my phone call with my mother dearest last night. It would make my life easier if they did leave.

And people wonder why I accepted the offer without even having to think about it when the Mavericks were interested in me all those years ago.

Nolan pulls up to my driveway and I hesitate before maneuvering my left arm to open the damn door.

“Do you need help?”

I shoot him a look and he snickers at me before he jumps out and grabs my bags from the trunk anyway. We head up to the front door and I bite down on my inner cheek. Fuck. I don’t think I’m ready to step into my own home.

Nolan winks at me as he opens up the front door and drops my bags onto the tile floor. I wince with the sound as it echoes through the foyer.

It’s silent.

I frown as I head inside and check in the pristine kitchen, the play room, the bedrooms… finally my brain reconnects to the rest of my body and I check the garage. The SUV is gone and so is Mackenzie’s car. Where would Lillian have taken the girls?

I pull out my phone and ignore Nolan’s murmurs as I dial Lillian’s number over and over until she answers.

I hear laughing and squealing in the background and bite down on my tongue, trying to calm myself down. “Where are you?”

“I took the girls to the park. They needed to run out some of their energy.”

I nod to myself and turn back towards the hall that’s lined with the bedrooms, opening up the door to the guest room to find it stripped of bedding and nothing is in the bathroom or closet.

My parents actually left.

“My parents?”

She chuckles nervously, “They woke up this morning, sent me death glares, and stormed out of the house with their luggage behind them… Well, they had to come back in and grab the rest over the next ten minutes, but it was still fun to watch as I sat at the island sipping my coffee… Either they went back home or are staying at one of the hotels.”

I snort and head straight into my room, tilting my head at Nolan so that he follows me.

“And… Are you okay? I called my mom last night and had a chat with her. Instead of talking to me about it all, she told me that she didn’t want to stay where she was unwelcomed and said she would be on the next flight out. ”

Lillian is silent on the other line, I pull the phone away from my ear to ensure she hasn’t hung up.

“Well… anyway… I’m home. I went to the clinic and had some more scans done. I would like to talk to you about everything.”

She hums quietly and yells out to the girls that they have five more minutes.

“We’ll be home soon,” she hangs up and I drop my phone onto my lap as I slowly lean back so that I can lay on my bed.

My shoulder is throbbing and this stupid sling they wrapped me up in is driving me bat shit crazy already.

Nolan chuckles from the corner of the room and slingshots a pair of lacy panties at my face. “Is Mackenzie around?”

I ignore him as I get comfortable and close my eyes. “You’ve been in the house with me. Her car wasn’t in the garage… she must be at work or something or out with the girls.”

“Ah. Okay. Well, I’m going to head home. Hit me up if you need anything…” He moves to leave and I clear my throat.

“Just… be careful with Mackenzie. She’s been through a lot. She needs support and stability right now, not to be played with.”

He nods and grimaces before staring down at his feet, his longer brown hair falling into his eyes.

“I know. She’s kept me at arm’s length and I’m…

okay with that. Hell, even just being her friend is taking my mind off of everything with James and Marie.

Even if Mackenzie friendzones me, I'll take that over me being a jilted psycho.”

I snort and wave my left arm at him, shooing him out. “Just be careful and don’t get too attached. Who knows how long she’ll be here for.”

He smirks at me and flips me off. “Then you don’t know that she bought herself a sweet little condo near the arena. She should be moving soon.”

I frown as he chuckles and saunters out of my room, leaving my door wide open. I pluck up the panties from beside my head and shove them in my pocket so that the girls don’t see them when they run in here in about ten minutes.

I missed them, but… fuck. I need a damn nap.

The next time I open my eyes, my room is dark and I see the full moon glaring at me through my window. I groan as I slowly sit up, my entire body stiff from falling asleep on my back with my legs still hanging off the edge. I glance around and notice that I’m alone. The house is silent. Again.

I stand up and try to figure out how to pee before I stalk into the kitchen to find something to eat.

As I heat up some leftovers, I chug a few glasses of water before I take the steroids and pain reliever that are sitting on the counter.

Damn it, now I feel like a dick for falling asleep.

Lillian went through my bags and set everything out for me.

My heart clenches when I realize again that she wasn’t in my bed.

I scarf down the pasta before I lightly set everything in the sink and open up Lillian’s door, peeking in to see if there’s room for me in her bed. I don’t want to be away from her.

I find all four of my girls snuggled around her in a pile and I smile softly as I watch them all snore and breathe deeply.

Fine. Alone in my bed again it is.

Lillian and I need to figure this out. I can’t imagine my life without her in it. I’ll cut my family out of my life if it’s what it takes.