Chapter 33

McCoy pulled the razor over his upper lip in short quick strokes, pausing to rinse the blade after every third or fourth pass. When he was finished he ran his hand over his entire face, checking for any missed spots. Once he was satisfied with the smoothness of his skin, he splashed warm water on his face to remove the last traces of shaving cream. As he patted his skin dry he decided that one of the drawbacks to being in a relationship was having to shave on the weekends. But when he contemplated the advantages, the image in the mirror quickly smiled back at him.

His smile faded slightly as he studied his reflection. The dark eyes were bright and intense, rimmed with tiny lines that crinkled the edges. His thick eyebrows were considerably darker than the uncombed mop of hair that fell across his forehead. And there was no ignoring the deeper lines etched into his skin – “living” lines as Morgan had referred to them when he had called her attention to them once. He smiled again at the memory of her slender fingers trailing gently across his skin.

He had been smiling a lot of late but even more so that morning. Morgan’s revelation the night before had seeped through him like warm brandy, leaving him feeling happy and content. He hadn’t realized how badly he needed to hear the actual words from her. And now that he had, the smile seemed to be lying in wait, ready to light his face at the slightest provocation.

He locked eyes with the image staring back at him, searching intently. Then, shaking his head, he demanded, “What the hell are you waiting for?”

***“Law offices.”

“I thought you were going to be home a while ago,” McCoy noted. “I called your apartment several times.”

“I’m still waiting for the mail,” Morgan informed him. “Wouldn’t you know the one day I’m so ready to get out of this place, it would be late. I tried calling you earlier to let you know but I didn’t get an answer.”

“I had some errands to run this morning that took a little longer than I anticipated. How much longer are you going to wait?”

“I’ll give it another thirty minutes,” she decided. “Are we still going to Blue Water for dinner tonight?”

“Nope,” he answered succinctly.

“Then where are we going?”

“It’s a surprise.”

“A surprise, huh? Well, you’re going to have to give me some idea so I know what to wear,” she pointed out.

“Hmm…” he reflected thoughtfully. “Remember the dress you wore the night the Compton’s were here and we all went out together?”

“The blue one with the tiny pearl buttons?”

“Yeah. Wear that,” he suggested with a smile.

“So it’s that kind of place,” Morgan acknowledged. “What time are you picking me up?”

“Our reservations are for 8:00. I’m planning to come by at around 6:30 to give ourselves plenty of time. And after dinner I was thinking we might go for a walk around Rockefeller Center to watch the ice skaters.”

“I haven’t been there for years. That’s a great idea!” she replied enthusiastically. “I’m looking forward to it.”

“Then I’ll see you at 6:30.”

“I’ll be ready,” she assured him warmly.

***After locking and closing the door of his car, McCoy checked his watch: 7:00. There was still enough time to make their reservation, he assured himself. When he had returned to his apartment earlier after dropping a movie at the store down the block from his place, he had found a message on his answering machine from Morgan informing him that she was going to be a little later than originally planned. He had received no answer when he had called her back so had decided to give her as much time as he could before arriving. As he entered the lobby of her building he hoped it had been enough.

When he finally made his way up to her apartment and the door of the elevator opened, the first thing he saw was Morgan standing across the room in front of the windows, staring out at the city.

“You’re wearing my favorite dress!” he exclaimed teasingly as he walked toward her. “How did that happen?”

She turned to give him a smile. “Just luck, I suppose.”

As he came to a stop in front of her, he bent to give her a quick kiss. “It looks even better on you than I remembered.”

“Thank you,” she responded softly.

He pulled back and studied her carefully when he noticed that her smile didn’t quite reach her eyes.

“Is everything all right?” he asked, reaching for her hand.

She nodded quickly. “Everything is fine.”

Raising her hand up he brushed it with his lips and smiled. “I’m glad to hear that.” Pulling her toward the door he said, “Come on, I don’t want to risk losing our table tonight.”

***“This view is so beautiful,” Morgan noted wistfully as she gazed out at the array of twinkling lights spread below them beyond the window. “I’m glad you thought of coming here again.”

McCoy rested his crossed arms on the table and leaned forward, watching her closely. “It’s been a long time. I wasn’t sure you would remember.”

She turned to look at him quizzically. “How could I forget? This is where you told me that Frank was going to be in prison for at least seven years. It was the best news I had received in quite a while. I’m not likely to forget something that important.”

“I’m glad you have a pleasant memory of coming here,” he acknowledged. “I do, too.”

Looking back out of the window she added, “And who could forget a view like this? It’s incredible.”

Without taking his eyes from her he replied, “I agree.”

When Morgan continued to stare out and the silence between them had gone on for several minutes, he observed, “You know, you’ve been even quieter than normal tonight.”

Giving him an apologetic look she said, “I’m sorry, Jack. I went for a long run this afternoon and I’m just a little tired.”

“I thought today was your day off from running.”

“It normally is,” she agreed after taking a sip of tea. “But today I felt like I needed to go anyway.”

After regarding her quietly for a moment he asked, “So why don’t you tell me what’s on your mind?”

“What makes you think there’s something on my mind?” she queried lightly.

“Because I know you. When something is bothering you, the first thing you do is put on your running shoes.”

With a slight smile she responded, “I’ll have to work on being less predictable in the future.”

He shook his head and insisted with a smile, “Don’t change on my account. It’s one of the very few times I’m able to read you.” Giving her another scrutinizing look he persisted, “So are you going to tell me what’s bothering you?”

With a shrug she answered, “I don’t want to ruin our evening talking about my problems. Let’s talk about something else instead.”

“So you want us to carry on casual conversation, all the while ignoring the elephant sitting at our table,” he suggested teasingly. Turning a bit more serious he reached across the table to cover her hand with his. “Sharing your problems with me isn’t going to ruin our evening, Calea. That’s what I’m here for. At least that’s what I’d like to be here for, if you’ll let me.”

Morgan searched his eyes intently, contemplating his words, then dropped her gaze to the table. After chewing her lip for a moment she finally explained, “I received a letter today from the law firm that handled my grandparents’ estate informing me that someone wants to buy the property I inherited from them.”

“You own property in Texas? You never told me that.”

“I haven’t had to deal with it much. All these years it’s been leased to a man who was a neighbor and good friend of my grandfather. Every ten years I sign a new lease agreement sent to me by the law firm that handled the estate. I was in my last year of law school when my grandfather died. I didn’t have a lot of time when I went back for the funeral and I wasn’t sure what to do with the property. When Mr. Miller came to me and proposed the lease agreement it was the perfect solution. He had three sons to help him with the work and their property adjoined ours. One of his sons, Simon, and my brother had been best friends. Simon and his wife moved into my grandparents’ old house years ago and I know they’ve taken good care of the property. But the senior Mr. Miller passed away a few weeks ago and now Simon wants to buy the property outright instead of continuing with the lease.”

“Do you want to sell it?”

“I don’t know,” she admitted. “It’s been in the family for several generations. It seems wrong to sell it to someone else. Then again, since I have no children to pass it to, it will eventually end up in the hands of someone outside the family anyway.”

“How long do you have to make your decision?”

“Technically the lease became null and void upon Mr. Miller’s death so Simon is anxious to know what I want to do. The sooner I decide the better.”

He grew thoughtful for a moment, then advised, “Well, you should probably see it again before making up your mind.”

“You mean go back to Texas?” Morgan asked hesitantly.

He nodded. “Yes. How long has it been since you were there?”

“Over twenty years.”

With a shrug he pointed out, “Things have undoubtedly changed in that length of time. You may find the decision easier to make than you think once you’ve visited.”

She sighed and began turning her glass around in her hands. “I don’t know if I can do that.”

“Why not?”

“There are so many memories…” She shook her head. “Even after this length of time, it still feels like it’s too soon. I’m not sure I can deal with everything that’s going to come as a result.”

McCoy contemplated a moment, then questioned, “Would it help if someone went with you?” As she looked up at him in surprise he offered, “I have some vacation time I need to use up. I could come along to offer moral support if nothing else.”

After studying him she asked quietly, “You would be willing to do that?”

“Of course I would,” he assured her with a smile. “I’ve never been to Texas. You could show me the sights.”

She regarded him thoughtfully then nodded slowly. “If you’re absolutely sure you want to do it, I think it would help to have you go with me.”

“I’m sure. How long would you need in order to work things out?”

Shrugging she replied, “Three, maybe four days I suppose. If we left on a Friday neither of us would have to miss much work.”

“When do you want to go?”

Morgan sighed deeply. “The sooner the better. I’m not going to be able to think about much else until it’s taken care of.”

“I have the trial with Dr. Schwartz that starts on Monday but I don’t think it’s going to last much more than a week or so. After that my calendar is clear for a couple of weeks as far as trials are concerned. I can have Serena do some leg work for our next major case while I’m gone. How does two weeks from now sound to you?”

“I think I can arrange my schedule to take off then, too. Tomorrow I’ll check the Internet for air fares.” She added with another sigh, “That gives me two weeks to dread what’s to come.”

He reached for her hand again. “You don’t have to dread it now that I’m going along. We’ll get through it, together.”

Turning her hand over beneath his, she entwined her fingers with his and gave him a soft smile. “Thank you, Jack. That really means a lot to me.”

***“I haven’t been here for three or four years,” Morgan stated as McCoy closed her car door. “The last time I came with Peter and Leslie and we watched their kids skate. It was amazing to see how quickly they were able to pick it up.”

“I haven’t put on a pair of ice skates since I was a kid,” he noted as they began to walk. “If I tried it now I’d probably break something.”

Glancing up at him she gave him a smile. “Oh, I’m sure you’d do better than that. You’re probably a pro and just don’t want me to know about it.”

He started to reach for her hand as he smiled back at her, but stopped upon remembering the item tucked into his pocket closest to her. “Yeah, I try hard to keep my life as a pro skater a secret,” he quipped teasingly. Pointing ahead he asked, “Would you like to walk through the gardens first?”

“That would be nice,” she agreed.

While her attention was focused elsewhere, McCoy took the opportunity to transfer the item in his pocket to the one on the opposite side. “If you get cold we can stop for something hot to drink,” he recommended, finally taking her hand in his and stuffing both of them into his coat pocket. “I know a little place that makes hot chocolate with whipped cream four inches high.”

“That does sound good.”

After they had walked in silence for some time, McCoy lightly squeezed Morgan’s hand within his pocket and observed, “You’ve gone quiet on me again.”

“I’m sorry. I don’t mean to be so inattentive.”

“You’re thinking about our trip,” he concluded.

With a shrug she admitted, “I’m having second thoughts about letting you go with me. This isn’t going to be easy for me and I can’t imagine that I’ll be in the best of moods. I’m not sure I want you to see that side of me.”

“Oh, I’ve seen you in a bad mood before,” he quickly pointed out with a smile.

Shaking her head she argued, “Not like the kind of mood stepping back in time is going to put me in. I want you to be sure you understand what you’re getting yourself into.”

Pulling her to a stop he turned and faced her. “We’re together now. Whatever comes up, we face it together. Whenever I need support you give it to me. And whenever you need support I give it to you. That’s the way it works.”

“I don’t feel like I do much giving in that regard,” she noted, her eyes growing serious. “It seems like I’m always the one leaning on you.”

“You’ll never hear me complain about that,” he assured her as he reached to brush her hair from her cheek. “And you’re there for me in more ways than you realize. Just knowing I can pick up the phone and hear your voice is all I need to get me through the day sometimes.”

A slow smile lit her face and she took a step toward him, stretching up to plant a kiss on his lips. “That’s really nice to know. I’ll have to remember that.”

“I hope you do,” he agreed sincerely.

***“I really had a great time tonight, Jack,” Morgan acknowledged as she rested her hands on his shoulders. “I feel like I sort of put a damper on things, though, with what happened today. Especially after you went to so much trouble to plan such a perfect evening.”

Sliding his hands from her waist to lock them behind her back he contended, “You didn’t put a damper on anything. I’m actually looking forward to leaving town with you. And when we get back, and it’s all behind you, we’ll go out somewhere for another perfect evening to celebrate.”

“Okay,” she nodded.

He leaned forward to kiss her slowly and gently, keeping the intensity to a much lower level than he had the night before. He didn’t quite trust himself to remain in complete control as he had promised he would. So after a considerably shorter time, he reluctantly broke off the kiss to hold her carefully in his arms.

“Good-night, Calea,” he said softly, reaching behind her for the elevator button.

“Good-night, Jack.”

He held onto her hand as he stepped through the doors. “I’ll call you tomorrow. Try not to worry too much about the trip. It’ll all work out.”

“I’ll try,” she said as he let go of her hand just before the doors closed on them.

Chapter 34