Kathleen moved in front of her full-body mirror. She loosened her robe and looked down at the evidence of her and Morgan’s passion last night and that morning, and all of his words came rushing back into her mind. Kathleen took a deep breath and released it quickly. “Everything is going be fine. As soon as you get dressed,” she said, pointing to her reflection.
She opened her dresser drawer, selected a black lace bra and underwear set and slipped them on. She pulled out a pair of blue jeans, a green V-neck shirt and a blue jean jacket. Kathleen put on a pair of blue running shoes, lightly made up her face and pulled her hair up into a high ponytail. She was gathering up the towels when her doorbell rang. Kathleen tossed everything into her hamper, picked up her phone and purse and went downstairs to open the door.
“Hi.” Kathleen was taken aback at the sight of Morgan in black jeans, a tan short-sleeve shirt, black leather jacket and black oxfords; she loved his more casual look. He was holding a brown leather bag and her heart raced because she knew what that meant. Kathleen stepped aside to let Morgan inside. As soon as he crossed the threshold, he dropped the bag, pulled Kathleen into his arms and captured her lips in a mind-blowing kiss. “Oh, wow.”
Morgan leaned his forehead against hers. “I missed you,” he admitted. His voice sounded weak.
“I missed you too. I’m guessing those are a few of your things.”
“They are. Should I take the bag upstairs?”
“Later. We have to get to the Ward Community Center. You look great, by the way,” she complimented.
“So do you, like always. I love the jeans, although they’ll make keeping my focus that much more difficult.” Morgan opened the door. “After you, my lady.”
As they made their way to the community center, Kathleen shared its eighty-year history in Houston’s Third Ward with him. She explained how the residents came together and contacted several companies to get support in bringing their community center back to its former glory. She left out the fact that her family’s company had been their largest benefactor.
When they finally arrived at the center, Kathleen quickly scanned the area for any Winston Construction signs that might’ve been posted. Kathleen breathed a sigh of relief when she saw none. They exited the vehicle and headed inside.
“There you are,” the center’s director said as she approached Kathleen.
“Good morning, Mrs. Benson.” Kathleen kissed the slimly built gray-haired older woman wearing a long flowered dress with a white apron wrapped around her waist.
“Good morning.” She brought the glasses that hung around her neck to her eyes and checked the clock on the wall. “I guess it’s still morning...barely. Now, who is this handsome gentleman?”
“Mrs. Benson, this is a friend of mine, Morgan Kingsley.” Kathleen turned and looked up at him. “Morgan, this is Mrs. Benson. She’s an old family friend, and she spearheaded the campaign to get this center updated. As a way to thank her for all her hard work, the community voted to make her the center’s director.”
“That’s what I get for opening my big mouth,” she teased, extending her hand.
Morgan gave her hand a gentle shake. “Pleased to meet you.”
“Morgan came to help us out today. I’m sure you can find something for him to do.” Kathleen looked around the center’s entrance and all the boxes, furniture and sporting equipment that littered the foyer and every hallway leading from it.
“Are you good with your hands?” Mrs. Benson asked.
“I most certainly am,” he replied, briefly cutting his eyes to Kathleen.
Kathleen felt warm all over, and she only hoped she wasn’t as scarlet as Mrs. Benson’s nail polish. “Morgan’s family owns an oil and gas company, so he’s always working with his hands,” she quickly explained.
“Good. Head down that hall,” she pointed to the left of where they stood. “Knock on the last door to your right and ask for Danny. He has a couple of walls that need a coat of paint.”
Morgan reached for Kathleen’s hand. “I guess I’ll see you later.”
Kathleen squeezed his hand and smiled. “I’ll come by and check on you in a little while.” She watched as he walked away and her heart immediately started to ache. Kathleen was starting to feel like she was losing something important. Get it together, girl. Everything’s going to be fine.
“Hello...” Mrs. Benson snapped her fingers in front Kathleen’s face.
“Yes, ma’am,” Kathleen replied, snapping out of her trance.
“Someone’s smitten, I see. I say that young man is more than just a friend.”
Kathleen didn’t want to be disrespectful to Mrs. Benson, but she didn’t want to discuss her personal life with her either. Deflect. “Where do you need me today?”
“The library, of course. We still have to fill all those beautiful bookshelves you refurbished for us. I still can’t get over your father’s generosity. First, he donates all the money we need to restore and upgrade this place, and then he sends us thousands of books to fill our library shelves, so we’re ready the day we open. Or should I say the Irene Winston Memorial Library.”
Kathleen smiled. She loved the idea of the library being named after her mother.
Kathleen’s mother had been an avid reader, especially during the last year of her life. Irene had an eclectic taste when it came to books. She loved everything except romance novels. Kathleen’s mother once told her that the reason she didn’t read about other people’s romances was because she was living one of her very own. Kathleen now knew exactly what her mother meant.
“It was his pleasure. My mom was a big fan of reading.”
“I know she was, sweetie.” Mrs. Benson ran her right hand down Kathleen’s arm as if she was trying to warm her up. “We better get to work.”
“I’m on it. Just one more thing.”
“What’s that?” Mrs. Benson placed her right hand on her hip.
“Morgan doesn’t know anything about my family’s wealth and I’d like to keep it that way.”
“He won’t hear about it from me,” she promised.
Kathleen sighed. “Thank you. I’ll get to work.”
* * *
Morgan stood in the doorway of the room he’d been directed to. He saw an older brown-skinned man with a shaved head wearing a blue shirt and a pair of overalls and work boots painting a wall. “Excuse me, sir, are you Danny?”
“Yes, how can I help you?”
“Hi, I’m Morgan Kingsley.” He offered his hand, walking into the room. “I’m here to volunteer, and Mrs. Benson sent me to you.”
“Did she now? I can’t shake your hand but welcome. Do you know anything about painting?”
“Yes, sir, I sure do.”
“Good. As you can see all four walls have been primed and are ready to be painted.”
“Yes, sir, I can see that. Where would you like for me to start?”
“You can start by losing that fancy jacket of yours and rolling up your sleeves.”
Morgan smirked. “Yes, sir.” He removed his jacket and laid it across the chair near the door. He held out his arms. “Short sleeves, which wall do you want me to do first?”
“You’re a young and virile-looking man, so you get the back wall,” Danny said, laughing. “Everything you need is in the corner.”
Morgan poured paint in a tray, selected a roller and got to work. After toiling in silence for nearly an hour, Danny asked, “So what brings you here? I didn’t see Kingsley Oil and Gas on the list of donors.”
“You know who I am?” Morgan studied the older man.
“Of course, I spent twenty years as a longshoreman. I know all the companies in the gulf,” he declared proudly.
“I didn’t know anything about this project,” he stated as he continued to work.
“I see. I thought maybe you were here anonymously.”
“No, I came with a friend,” Morgan said, silencing his ringing phone.
“Who, if I may ask?” Danny stilled his brush and looked over at Morgan.
“Kathleen Winston,” he said proudly as his heart skipped a beat when he just mentioned her name.
“Kathleen’s a good girl from a great family.” Danny returned to his work.
“Yes, she is. Kathleen’s something special.”
“Did I hear my name?” Kathleen asked, walking into the room.
Danny put his brush down and hugged Kathleen. “Yes, you did, beautiful one. How are you?”
“I’m good. How have you been?” She gave Danny a quick kiss on the cheek.
“Fit as a fiddle.”
Kathleen laughed. “I see you put this one to work.” She gestured with her head toward Morgan.
“I sure did. Excuse me a minute.” Danny left the room to answer his buzzing phone.
“Speaking of work, shouldn’t you be doing some?” Morgan teased.
“As a matter of fact, I should. I just wanted to make sure you were handling your assignment okay.”
Morgan laid down his roller, closed the distance between them in less than three strides and wrapped his arms around Kathleen’s waist. “You sure that’s all you wanted?” He gave her a wicked grin before leaning forward, kissing Kathleen passionately on the lips.
Sooner than either one of them wanted, Morgan ended their kiss, a move Kathleen clearly rejected by tightening her grip on his waist and back. Morgan took her hands and gently removed them from around him. His body was coming alive in a way he knew was inappropriate.
“Baby, we’re in public,” he whispered in her ear.
“It doesn’t seem to matter where we are. I can’t think when you kiss me like that,” Kathleen admitted.
“Is that a bad thing?”
“I’m not sure. Bad things can happen when you don’t think.”
Morgan brushed a loose strand of hair from Kathleen’s face. “Not if you’re following your heart,” he countered.
“Is that what we’re doing...following our hearts?”
Morgan knew he was entering foreign territory and it unnerved him. He was determined not to let fear or his past ruin something that could be amazing between him and Kathleen. He stared into Kathleen’s eyes, ran the tips of his fingers across her lips and said, “I am, and I hope you are too.”
Kathleen rose up on her toes and snaked her arms around his neck. “I am too,” she whispered gently, kissing him on the corner of his mouth and running her tongue across his lips before kissing him again.
Morgan was so lost in the gentleness of her touch, her kiss, that he hadn’t heard Danny return. “You two keep that up, we’ll never get this room finished, and I’d like to get home before the storm hits,” he said, returning to his wall and paintbrush.
Kathleen turned in Morgan’s arms and faced Danny. “There’s a storm coming?” Morgan heard her tone rise an octave.
“Yep, and it is supposed to hit sometime tonight,” Danny stated nonchalantly.
“You can’t be afraid of a little rain. You certainly weren’t afraid last night,” he whispered in her ear.
Kathleen nudged him with her elbow and looked over her shoulder. “No, I’m not afraid of a little rain. It’s the rapidly rising water that scares the hell out of me.”
“It will be fine. My brother’s house sits off the road, anyway.”
“About that.” She turned to face him, pulling out of his hold. “Can we step in the hall for a second?”
“Sure. I’ll be right back, Danny.” Morgan followed Kathleen out the door.
“What’s going on?”
“Don’t be disappointed, but I don’t want to go with you to your brother’s house tomorrow.”
“Why, because of the rain?” His forehead creased.
“No. I just think things are moving a little fast. Maybe we should slow things down a little.”
Morgan’s frown deepened as he folded his arms and cocked his head to the side “Do you? You just said—”
Kathleen bit her bottom lip and dropped her shoulders. “What I meant...mean, is that we need to figure out what this thing is between us before we share it with others. It should be our secret. At least for a little while.”
“You mean you need to figure out what this thing is, because I’m crystal clear.” His annoyance was on full display. He couldn’t believe this was happening...again.
Morgan ignored the goo-goo eyes two young volunteers sent his way as they passed them in the hall. His eyes bored into Kathleen.
“I just think it’s a little soon to go public and start sharing it with more people.”
“People...”
“Yes. Our whole family, friends...people we work with,” she explained.
“Don’t you think it’s a little late? The secret is out.”
“No, it’s not. Just because some people know or maybe suspect we went out doesn’t mean we’re in a relationship. It’s no one’s business,” Kathleen declared emphatically.
“It seems you don’t know what this is, do you?” Morgan felt like he’d just been hit in the gut. He wanted a committed relationship with Kathleen and all that entailed, but it seemed she wasn’t quite there yet. Morgan might not have been in a relationship for a while, certainly not one like he wanted with Kathleen, but he knew doubt in or about relationships never worked.
“I just think—”
“Don’t worry about it. Take all the time you need.” They stood silently staring at each other for several moments. “I should get back in there.”
“Okay. I’ll get a ride home from Hannah so you don’t have to change your original plan and can go over to your brother’s house tonight from here. I’d hate for you to get caught in the storm.”
“If that’s what you want.” He dropped his arms. Morgan was choking on his hurt and anger. Hurt because he thought they were falling for each other and now he realized it was only just him, and anger because he’d sworn he’d never let this happen to him again. But he let his guard down, had given his heart to Kathleen, and she’d shoved it back in his face after stomping on it.
“I’ll see you later?” She reached for his hand.
“Later.” He gave her hand a small shake and walked away.
* * *
Kathleen stood and watched Morgan walk back into the room to join Danny. She’d felt sick throughout that conversation. Kathleen knew exactly how she felt about Morgan and she’d love nothing more than to shout it to the world. Unfortunately, she couldn’t do that until she told him the truth about everything. The idea of expanding her lie to more of his family was something she couldn’t handle and wasn’t willing to do. The hurt she saw in his eyes pained her heart. The only thing she held on to was the idea that this would be over soon and everyone would know they were together and in love. She just had to stay strong and hope Morgan would too.