The Naughty List Bundle - Kylie Adams [107]
“But you haven’t even told me about the baby yet, or how far along you are, or anything!”
Misty thought about moaning again, but with Morgan watching her so closely, she held it in. To her surprise, he took Honey’s arm and said, “One thing at a time, hon, okay? If she takes the job and sticks around, you’ll have all the time in the world to chat.”
It was obvious Honey didn’t want to, but she finally agreed to leave. She gave Morgan a warning look on her way out that had Morgan chuckling in a deep rumble.
Misty saw nothing funny in the situation, but he didn’t give her a chance to light into him. No sooner was Honey gone from the room than he walked to her and said, “I told you I won’t say a word about the job or the conviction. You have my word on that.”
It was as if he’d deliberately taken away her steam. But Misty had more than one grievance and she was nowhere near ready to give up her anger. “Why should I believe you?”
His hesitation was plain before he lifted a hand and smoothed her cheek. He was so gentle, so warm, she couldn’t get her feet to step out of his reach. “I didn’t want to hurt you, Malone. You must know that.”
She managed a rude laugh. “You couldn’t hurt me.”
Her disdainful tone never fazed him. His mouth tilted in a wry, regretful smile. “I think you’re wrong about that. I think you’ve been through a hell of a lot and you’re vulnerable right now.”
Because he was right, she felt twice as determined to deny it. “Don’t get all mushy on me, Morgan. My stomach can’t take it.”
He lifted his other hand so that he framed her face. “You’re so tough, aren’t you, Malone? Ready to take on the world all alone. I admire that kind of courage, you know.”
“So my insults aren’t having the desired effect, huh? You must have a thicker skull than I figured.”
Morgan whistled. “You really are ticked, aren’t you?”
“Ticked? I’m a whole lot more than ticked. What you did was reprehensible.”
“What I did,” he said, his thumbs gently smoothing her cheeks, “was try to keep you here since I was the one who had run you off.”
Misty blinked at him. He felt guilty? Is that what this was all about? Caught between disbelief and annoyance, she struggled with her fading anger. She really hadn’t wanted to go, but neither had she wanted her personal business sallied about for the entire family to hear. Facing them again was going to be incredibly tough. She already knew there’d be dozens of questions, most importantly about the absent father.
As if he’d read her mind, Morgan made a tsking sound. “Come on, Malone, stop beating yourself up. There’s no reason to be embarrassed, you know. My brothers won’t judge you. If anything, they’ll rightfully blame the guy who got you pregnant and then walked away. Like Honey said, we’re old-fashioned about things like that. A guy should take responsibility for his actions.”
She appreciated the sentiment, if not the interference. “Yeah, well, this guy didn’t. And believe me, things are better with him out of the picture.”
Morgan laughed. “I’m not disputing that. If he was around, I’d be tempted to beat him into the ground.”
“Really?” That wasn’t an altogether unpleasant thought. She’d felt the same many times after the way Kent had reacted to her news.
Morgan nodded, then said gruffly, “He hurt you. The least he deserves is a good beating.”
Misty was speechless. Morgan had sounded almost like he cared, like he didn’t despise her, after all. She said facetiously, “How…sweet of you.”
Morgan’s look was stern. “Look, Malone. The last thing you’d want is to be married to a loser.”
“The last thing I want is to be married, period.” Misty stared at his chest and muttered, “I’ve had my fill of dealing with men, thank you very much.”
“I think you’ve just been dealing with the wrong men.”
“Such an obvious truth.” She looked at him pointedly.
He let her implication pass without comment, then leaned down until his forehead touched hers. She could feel his warm breath on her lips, his