Page 30 of Delivery After Dark (Gansett Island #28)

“She’s more like family than a friend, and she’s got this tough outer shell that might make you think she’s tough on the inside, too. But she isn’t. Not at all.”

“I’ve already figured that out for myself.”

“Then I guess we understand each other. No hard feelings?”

“None at all. I get wanting to protect the people you love from being hurt.”

“That’s all it is.”

“Understood.”

“If you could maybe not tell her we had this conversation, I’d appreciate it. She might be tempted to kill me.”

Morgan laughed. “No worries.” He raised his hand for a fist bump.

“Thanks, man.”

“Any time.”

Morgan wasn’t surprised to discover that Sierra had close friends looking out for her, especially since she’d been such a good friend to him since Billy went missing and in the months since they’d found his body.

She sprinkled friendship and compassion like fairy dust, and he was glad to know she had great friends like Duke looking out for her.

After his workout, he showered and went to Billy’s office to pick up where he’d left off the day before, determined to clean up the mess so he could figure out a plan for the gym—and himself.

Two hours later, he’d made a dent in the filing and paperwork when his phone lit up with a text from his boss, Devin.

Hey, man, hope you’re doing okay. We’re all thinking about you.

Also wondering if you’ve decided whether you’re coming back to work.

We just landed a new contract for an apartment complex in Dorchester, and I need to get my ducks in a row.

Would love to have you on the electric, if you’re available.

Work scheduled to begin in mid-January, so I’ll need to know soon.

Let me know when you can, and again… hope you’re hanging in there.

Well, there it was, Morgan thought. Decision time.

Dev had been super supportive from the minute Morgan found out Billy was missing and had never wavered in telling Morgan to take the time he needed.

Three months had gone by in a flurry of activity as he kept his brother’s business running while cleaning out Billy’s home and working to settle his estate.

And yet, he felt no closer to being capable of making any long-term decisions than he had when it had first happened.

If anything, he was more conflicted than ever after spending so much time on the island and becoming part of the community.

Yes, he had friends at home, people he enjoyed spending time with, but when he wasn’t working, he spent most of his time alone.

That got old after a while. Here, he was rarely alone, and while he would’ve expected to be annoyed by the constant parade of people through his days, he’d begun to find it comforting.

Did he want to go back to being somewhat of a lone wolf?

Or did he want to stay here, where he’d made new friends, not to mention the start of something promising with Sierra?

But then he thought about the fifteen years he’d spent with Devin’s family’s company, working first for his father and now for him as the business grew bigger all the time.

They’d been good to him, paid for him to get his master electrician’s license and had steadily increased his salary over the years, putting him well over six figures.

He’d had a comfortable life that had suited him for years.

But now, everything had changed, and it’d happened without him even realizing it as one day became two and one month became three as he learned to live without his brother while figuring out who and what he was now that his entire immediate family was gone.

The thought of going back to that quiet existence didn’t appeal to him the way it would have before Billy went missing.

When he used to come out to the island to visit Billy a few times a year, he usually couldn’t wait to get back to reality.

He’d eagerly board the ferry and leave the tiny island behind without much of a thought for the place he’d once called home, except for daily text exchanges and weekly calls with Billy.

“Morgan.”

He looked up at Terry, realizing he’d been talking to him.

“Sorry. What’s up?”

“Are you okay? You were really spaced out for a minute there.”

Morgan blinked his surroundings into focus, wondering how much time had gone by while he contemplated the dueling narrative running through his mind. “Yeah, I’m good. What’s up?”

“I was just going to ask if you mind if I take an early lunch.”

“No, go on ahead. I’ll cover the desk.”

“Thanks, man. Can I bring you back a sandwich? It’s my turn to buy.”

“Sure. Surprise me.”

“Will do.”

Morgan went to the desk to cover for Terry while he was gone.

Terry and the other employees had hung a framed photo of Billy on the wall.

He stopped to stare at his brother’s handsome, smiling face, wondering what he’d tell Morgan to do if he were still there.

Although, if Billy were there, Morgan would get on the ferry and go home because he didn’t belong on Gansett anymore.

But that was no longer true, and Devin’s text had been a reminder that the island interlude in his childhood hometown would end eventually.

Or would it?

He’d never been more confused.

In the meantime, he responded to Dev. Hey, man, thanks for your note, and congrats on the big new contract.

That’s awesome. I’d love nothing more than to tell you I’ve worked everything out here and can head home, but that’s not the case.

I need a little more time. I’d understand if you need to move forward without me.

Morgan tried to think of something else he could say beyond the nonanswer to Dev’s question, but what else was there to say? He sent the message.

Like all things, his return to his job was up in the air.

The state of indecision would normally drive him crazy, but after what he’d been through lately, it would take more than that to send him over the edge.

Dr. Kevin McCarthy came into the gym, smiling the way he always did as he said hello to Morgan. “How’s it going?”

“Not bad, all things considered.”

“You were a million miles away when I came in. Everything okay?”

“Yeah, I mean… Some big decisions to make, but nothing I can’t handle.”

“If it gets to be too much, you know where to find me.”

“Thanks, Doc. That’s nice of you to offer.”

“My offer covers everything from formal sessions in the office to a beer with a friend. Whatever you need.”

“Thank you.”

“You got it.”

As Kevin headed for the locker room to change, Morgan was reminded once again of the community that’d surrounded him since he’d come home to look for Billy.

People he’d known all his life and those he’d never met had propped him up in so many different ways that it would take the rest of his life to process the outpouring.

One thing he knew for certain as the dilemma occupied his mind for the rest of the afternoon was that it wouldn’t be as easy to leave this place as it used to be.