Jordan Summers - [Dead World 01] (24 page)

Kane reached out and touched her
hand. "She'll be
fine. She's stable
and tougher than half the people in this town."

Gina laughed, but she didn't look assured.

Morgan tipped her chin, until he could see into her
eyes. "Kane won't let anything happen to her. Trust me. He's the
best."

Morgan led Gina outside to his transport. After he
settled her, he went back inside to review the crime scene. There'd been one
hell of a fight, mainly between Jesse and the assailant. She hadn't been much
help when Morgan arrived, her body already in shock from the brutal attack.

The farmer who had discovered Jesse and Gina found
Kane first, then called the sheriff's station. If he hadn't, they might very
well be dead.

Unfortunately, he hadn't seen a thing. No one witnessed
the attacker fleeing—only heard it. The hair on the back of Morgan's neck
bristled. Was it possible he was still here? He took a deep breath, then
slowly exhaled.

Too many people frequented the
water exchange. It
was impossible to
distinguish their scents. The only
strong
odors belonged to Jesse, Kane, the farmer, and
Gina, which was no help
at all.

Morgan climbed the stairs and entered Gina's room. He
quickly gathered her clothes and belongings because she wouldn't be coming
back here, if he had anything to say about it.

His fingers closed over her shirts. For a second, he
brought the material to his face and breathed in. Her scent filled his nostrils
and his eyes closed. He'd come close to losing her tonight. The thought nearly
unmanned him. His jaw clenched and he shoved the shirt into her bag, then
sealed it along with the other items.

He took the stairs two at a time. Gina's eyes were
closed and she rested her head against the door
frame.
They sprang open upon his approach. For some reason, it
comforted him to know that even injured she was alert and prepared for battle.
She wouldn't be taken down easily again. He smiled as a sudden bout of pride
swelled inside him.

She truly was perfect.

Morgan drove back to his place, taking care not to hit
too many bumps along the way
. Dust
plumed behind them obscuring the view of Nuria as they drove out of town. Gina
dozed fitfully, her head bobbing
with the
uneven terrain. A bandage covered the lump
on her forehead, but he could
still see the shadow from the newly forming bruise on her cheek.

His grip tightened on the wheel
until his knuckles
cracked. Impotent rage
stormed his senses, leaving him feeling battered and weary. How dare a rogue
wolf come into his town, his territory, and
threaten all
those under his protection?

Morgan's body spasmed, throwing
him back against
the seat with a smack. Pain sliced through his skull as the beast tried
to claw its way out. The rogue was not
only
trying to bring danger to the town, but he was also
challenging Morgan's pack status. No one would
take
over leadership of Nuria without
a fight. Morgan took a
deep breath
and released it slowly. He repeated the ac
tion twice more until his
precarious control slipped back into place.

Gina had been through enough already. She didn't need
him frightening her. She wasn't prepared to face the truth—he wasn't sure she'd
ever be.

He reached out and touched a
wisp of her hair. The
silken strands slid
through his fingertips. It was silly, but Morgan needed to feel her to prove to
himself that she was really okay. He inhaled her delicious scent into his
lungs. Her fragrance calmed the beast's bloodlust, but did little to slake his
anger.

Morgan pulled into the drive
leading to
his
home.
Gravel crunched under his tires. He glanced at Gina, but
she was still asleep. He hated to wake her, but she'd be far more comfortable
in his rest pad.

The thought of Gina twisting in his sheets naked
brought his erotic dream crashing to the forefront. He'd never get the scent of
her off his rest pad. Morgan nearly groaned as he parked the vehicle and shut
down the motor. He reached over to touch her, but
at
the last second hesitated.

What would she think of his home? Would the modest
size bother her? Would she hate the sparsely decorated space? Suddenly the
nerves in his stomach erupted. He shook his head at his own foolishness. It
wasn't as if she'd be staying in Nuria, so he had no need for concern. Yet the
fluttering in his abdomen continued as he brushed the side of Gina's neck with
a fingertip.

She jerked awake. Her eyes were wild and unfocused as
she took in the interior of the cab. "Get off me," she cried, her
fists flailing.

Morgan faced her so he could control her movements.
He didn't want her to hurt herself. "Gina, it's okay. It's me,
Morgan." he said softly. "I woke you to
let you know that we're here." He nodded in the direc
tion
of his house.

It took Red's mind a second to register Morgan's
words.
Hell, for a moment she'd
glimpsed his dark wavy hair and thought her attacker had returned.

"I'm sorry," she said, brushing the hair out
of her face. Her ponytail had come loose during the struggle and she hadn't
bothered to retie it. She looked out
the
windshield and spotted a tidy
little
sand-colored
home that appeared well cared for. "It's lovely. Let's
go inside."

Morgan's home was sparsely decorated, the furnishing
kept to a bare minimum based on need of
use.
Yet it held a warmth within its light brown walls
and tan ceilings that
her unit had never achieved.

"Can I get you something to eat?" he asked,
moving into the kitchen. He pressed a button on his food and beverage
dispenser and a synth-beer popped out. He twisted the lid and tipped it back,
taking a big swallow.

"I could use one of those." Red eyed the
beer with longing. "My throat's too sore to do justice to anything
solid."

His lips thinned and he nodded. Another beer dropped
down. He opened the container and handed it to her. "Have you remembered
anything else?" he asked, taking another swig of the frothy brew.

Red shook her head. "I've told you everything I
know. It happened so fast. I barely heard him coming and by the time I had, it
was too late. He had to have been waiting for me. That's the only explanation
that makes any sense. And if that's the case, then he has to know his way
around town." She sipped her beer, the cold feeling good against her raw
throat. "But why me? Why now? How did he know I'd be there?"

Morgan ran his hand through his hair, leaving it
standing on end. "I don't know. He must have been
watching you for a while. Waiting for the perfect op
portunity
to strike."

She shivered at the thought. "Do you think I was
getting too close to something?"

His jaw tightened and he drained the contents of his
beer in one gulp. "You can take the rest pad."

Red glanced through the open archway at the unmade
rest pad beyond. It wasn't hard to picture Morgan's naked body sprawled
beneath the bedding. His
flat muscled chest,
trailing down into lean hips and a
big—

Her gaze dropped to the front of his pants and heat
flooded her face. She cleared her throat. "Where are you going to
sleep?" she asked, not sure what answer she wanted to hear.

Morgan followed her gaze, then looked into her eyes.
Desire flashed between them, crackling the air
like static electricity. His lips quirked. "I think you've
had
enough excitement for one night. I'll take the chair. It's comfortable enough.
I don't plan to sleep anyway."

"You can't do that," she protested. "I
don't need someone to stand guard over me. He may have gotten the jump on me
once, but it won't happen again."

He stared at her hard, his expression stony, daring
her to continue. Red nodded and picked up her bag. Morgan showed her where the
cleansing room was and then left her to go call Kane.

Red cleaned herself up the best she could, cringing
at her reflection in the mirror. She knew it could be worse, but she'd probably
have a shiner in the morning. She finished up quickly and exited in time to
hear Morgan ask Kane about Jesse.

"How is she doing? Has she settled down enough to
give you a description?" He paused. "I see."

She took a step forward, not wanting to eavesdrop, but
desperate for news on Jesse's condition.

"Right." Morgan let out a frustrated breath.
"Can I question her tomorrow?"

Red edged closer.

Morgan spotted her and waved her forward.
"Okay, I understand.
I'll
catch up with you tomorrow.
What was
that?" He glanced at her. "She seems to be
doing fine. Standing in front of me right now, waiting
for me to
disconnect. Yeah, got to go. Bye." He severed the connection.

"How is Jesse doing?" Red asked, bracing for
his answer.

Morgan looked at her, his amber eyes glistening with
unexpressed emotion. "She's stable for now. Got out of surgery thirty
minutes ago. Kane's done
everything he can
for her. All we can do now is wait."

"I feel so useless standing around here. I
couldn't help her back at the share space. I couldn't even save myself."
She growled in frustration.

Morgan reached for her hands and
gently uncurled
her
fingers. His rough pads brushed the fleshy part of
her palm and heat radiated up
her arms and through her
chest.

"Right now, the best thing
you can do for Jesse is to
get some rest
and heal. She wouldn't want you pushing yourself after what you've both been
through."

Red reluctantly pulled her hands out of Morgan's
grasp. His touch was distracting enough without the dollop of caring lavished
on top. She'd never seen this side of him. It was disconcerting—and wonderful.
It would be so easy to let go and fall into his embrace. He offered strength
and safety with no strings attached.

That shocked her more than anything. He really
wanted to take care of her. When had anyone
outside
of her family ever offered to care for her? Never, whispered
over her skin, leaving gooseflesh in its wake.

It was going to be a very, very long night.

Morgan sat vigil, watching Gina sleep.
Her chest rose and fell in gentle intervals. She'd
sworn she had
been too wound up to rest,
but had passed out within
seconds. He grinned at the memory. Her raven
hair was spread across his pale pillows and she'd tossed her arm over her
forehead.

The last time he'd seen her like this desire had  been
coursing through his body, riding him hard. It still
simmered like a stew under the surface, but the
urgency had been
replaced by the need to protect.

He smiled as she made murmuring
noises, her nose
snuffling
as she turned onto her side. She truly was the
most beautiful woman he'd ever laid eyes on. He couldn't believe how
unaware she was of the power she held. Instead of wielding that potent feminine
weapon, she hid it, like she was ashamed. Something
in her hazel gaze seemed lost and alone. He longed to
wipe that
trace of uncertainty away.

Morgan scratched his stubbly chin. He'd re
searched her background, but had found little
beyond
the official records. Her parents had been killed, one in a car
accident, the other by the hands of a murderer. Her sister had died with her
mother, leaving Gina
an
orphan.

Shortly thereafter, she had moved in with her
grandfather, Robert Santiago. He'd changed her last name, probably to protect
her from the tragedy surrounding her.

He'd tried to research her parents, but found nothing
beyond the fact that her mother was a pureblood and Robert Santiago's only
daughter. Her father's
records had been
purged of all pertinent information,
leaving only his name. There'd been
no listing of his birth parents.

Morgan had found no record of
him being raised in a labor farm. Officially, he didn't exist. Only someone
with the highest security
clearance could expunge that
kind of
information.

Someone like
Robert Santiago.

He stilled. No wonder Gina knew so little about
herself. She was an anomaly that shouldn't exist. His mind reeled as the
ramifications of what this meant for him and his people sunk in. Her history
had been
erased to protect her and to hide
her. Morgan knew it
was for the best given where she grew up and what
she did for a living, but it still angered him.
What was
so bad about being different? He sighed, his gaze landing once
more upon Gina.