Defending Morgan (Mountain Mercenaries #3)(46)
“I haven’t had alcohol in months,” she said softly. “Probably not the best idea.”
“That sounds wonderful,” her mom said from next to her. “I could definitely use a mimosa.”
Morgan swallowed hard and turned to stare at her mom once more. She eyed her up and down and realized that she looked good. She’d always taken care of herself, but it seemed in the year Morgan had been gone, and since the move away from Atlanta, Ellie Jernigan had gotten more comfortable in her own skin.
She’d always been taller than Morgan, but the two-inch heels she was currently wearing put her half a foot taller. She had on a fitted blouse that hugged her ample chest, and her knee-length skirt was tight. “Have you lost weight, Mom?” Morgan blurted. “You look amazing.”
Ellie blushed and ran a hand down her thigh self-consciously. “When you went missing, I didn’t eat that much. I was too worried about you. I knew I needed to get out of Atlanta. Everywhere I turned there were reminders that you were gone. One of the women in the office told me she had a friend who lived in Albuquerque and said there were lots of openings for hygienists. So one day, when I was particularly depressed, I made the decision. I quit and moved. I’ve met so many wonderful friends there, Morgan. I also joined a workout club and have been on the keto diet. I think it’s been paying off.”
Morgan felt Arrow’s hand on the small of her back. They hadn’t yet sat in the chairs Dave had indicated.
On one hand, Morgan wanted to be mad at her mom for moving on with her life. She’d gotten new friends and had been busy making herself look better . . . all while Morgan was being abused. But it would be petty to be upset. There was literally nothing she could’ve done, and it was better that she’d moved on rather than sinking into a pit of despair. “You look great, Mom.”
“Thanks, baby.” She lifted a hand to Morgan’s blonde locks, fingering them. “Look at your poor hair. I wish your father would’ve given you time to do something with it before putting you on national TV.”
“You should’ve seen it before Arrow got his hands on it,” Morgan quipped, trying to ease the tension. She hated when her mom disparaged her dad. She’d gotten used to it, but it had been over a year since she’d heard the snark. She smiled up at Arrow, who stood at her back, and said, “I’m lucky he didn’t need to cut it all off.”
Ellie looked horrified. “Cut it off? Oh, that would’ve been downright awful. You’ve always loved your hair.”
Short hair wouldn’t have been awful. Not compared to what she’d been through. It would’ve been the least of her worries. She’d lived through hell, and her mom was worried about her hair?
“I think your daughter is beautiful no matter what she’s wearing or what her hair looks like,” Arrow said, leaning into her a bit.
Morgan was thankful for his support at that moment. His speaking up kept her from saying something she’d probably regret later.
Ellie’s gaze focused on Arrow. “So you were the one who found my daughter? Did you kill the people who had her?”
“I was one of the three men, yes. And no. Our only objective was to get Nina home safely. We alerted the authorities about where we’d found both your daughter and the little girl, and they were going to go after Nina’s biological father. We’re still waiting to hear if they were able to catch any of the other men who were involved.”
“Hmmm.”
Morgan was embarrassed that her mom was being so rude. She should be kneeling at his feet and thanking him for finding Morgan and bringing her home. Come to think of it, even her dad hadn’t said much in the way of thanks to Arrow and the rest of his team. He’d been too worried about what news stations would be at the conference and whether the story would go national or stay regional.
She turned and saw Meat, Ro, and Ball enter the bar. She knew they’d stayed behind at the press conference, giving her and Arrow time to make their escape. She smiled shyly at them and saw Arrow give them a chin lift in greeting.
“Who are they?” Ellie asked.
“Those are the other men on the team that rescued me,” Morgan told her. “Ball was actually in Santo Domingo, but the others were back here, helping out with information.”
Instead of asking to meet them, her mom turned away, as if they weren’t important, and faced her daughter. “Morgan, you’re coming back to Albuquerque with me, right? You’re not going to go back to Atlanta, are you? I’m not sure that’s the best idea. Whoever took you the first time could be waiting for you to go home. He could do it again. Not to mention the fact that your father is there, and I know he’ll want to parade you in front of all the cameras for his own benefit.”
It was a backhanded way of asking her to live with her, but Morgan couldn’t exactly argue. She was leery of going back to Atlanta as it was, and the last thing she wanted was to have to give interviews to all the people her dad had met and worked with over the last year.
Though she was quickly remembering why she’d been so happy to move out of her mother’s house in Atlanta too. Morgan loved her mom, but she could be extremely petty at times.
Looking from her mom to Arrow and back, Morgan said, “I . . . if that’s all right with you, Mom. Yes.”
“Of course it is!” Ellie exclaimed and reached for her, enfolding Morgan in her embrace once more. “You’re my daughter, and I’m so happy to have you back from the dead. I wouldn’t dream of you going anywhere else!”