Morgan helped Ellie get down from the table in the locker room. “That was amazingly hot, babe.” It certainly was. She got hotter every day. He didn’t even need to instruct her or be the Dom he’d always been. The girl was perfect for him in every way. It still stunned him that the yearning he felt for her hadn’t yet worn off. He usually got bored rather quickly and moved on. But not with Ellie, she kept him to the flame.
“You’re amazingly hot,” she explained. “It’s awesome motivation.”
“I’m glad. I love being with you.” He grabbed her clothes from the floor and handed them to her.
He grabbed her up and kissed her deeply. When he pulled back, he whispered, “I never felt for anyone what I feel for you.”
Ellie halted and stared at him her eyes wide and luminous.
Morgan realized he might have said too much. Or…was it not enough? He kept second guessing himself. Maybe it was all the fuck ups he done with this girl. After all, he was unused to a woman such as her. No guile, no game, no ulterior motive. She didn’t play games, twist things, plot and plan, like some of the females he’d been around. “Come, on, babe. Let’s get out of here. We’ve got a lot of catching up to do.”
Shakily, Ellie got to her feet. “What’d you have in mind?”
Morgan grinned. “Let’s go check out my new house.”
They righted their clothing and he waited as she closed up the diner. He even helped put dishes away and did side work. He would scrub floors if it helped her, he suddenly realized. He shook himself. Damn, whipped anyone? He smiled. It was a great thing to be whipped sometimes.
After a half hour or so, she locked the front door.
He led her to his car and helped her in before getting behind the wheel. “Close your eyes,” Morgan instructed.
“Why?” Ellie asked.
“Because…This isn’t just going to be my house.” He turned to look at Ellie. “I want this to one day, be our house.”
A lump settled in Ellie’s throat, preventing her from saying anything, so she gave Morgan the biggest, warmest, smile she could muster. Things were moving fast, but they felt right. Everything felt right about tonight. Ellie couldn’t be happier.
She obliged him and closed her eyes tight.
“No peeking,” Morgan urged. “I’ll tell you when.”
Ellie felt the car go around a corner and continue slowly for quite some time. “Can I open my eyes now?”
“Not yet. We’re almost there.”
She felt his warm, reassuring hand on her thigh and was reminded of the first time they met. It sent a nostalgic tingle up her spine. After being in the burning, smoke filled diner, he had pulled her out. She’d adjusted her eyes on the deep, warm voice that spoke to her and took in the dark stranger as the sunlight subsided behind him. Thick, dark, hair framed a slightly tanned, masculine face with a prominent nose and deep set, bright grey eyes. She remembered thinking how he gorgeous he was. Greek God gorgeous. And lay still in his strong steel like arms. Yes, the angel. Now, it all came back to her.
Just when she thought she would overflow with emotion from the memory, Morgan announced that they had arrived.
“You can look, now,” he said.
Ellie squinted her eyes and looked. It was dark but she saw a beautifully lit, tree-lined drive where they were parked now. No wonder it felt like it took so long to get here, the driveway was like a mile long. Then she looked towards the house, which was actually as big as a castle. “Wow,” was all she could say at first, but after a while, she spoke, “This isn’t a house. It’s a mansion.”
Morgan reluctantly agreed, “Yeah, but it’s actually a small one—in comparison, I mean. My place back at Lake Placid is twice this size.”
Ellie was temporarily awestruck. She’d never been inside of a mansion before. “Morgan, is this really the house that you bought?”
“What’s the matter? Don’t you like it?”
“It’s very impressive—and huge.” The sheer size intimidated her. She was used to apartments or small poorly built homes. Like the one she’d shared with her dad before he died. Ellie was again aware of the differences between her and Morgan. For a moment, she was frozen. Can I do this? Be what he wants, act casual about mansions, fancy cars and clothes? Money to burn?
Morgan beamed. “Come on. Let’s go inside.” He stepped out of the car and went around to open the car door for Ellie and held a hand out for her.
Ellie stepped out and felt the chill in the air. She felt glad she’d changed out of her barista uniform and into a warm, chunky sweater and a pair of tight fitting jeans, but the cold wind seemed to sneak in through the seams. “Burr…” Ellie wrapped her arms around her torso.
“Come on.” Morgan led her up the steps to the grand entrance. “It’s warmer inside.”
Ellie took a quick look around outside and noticed that they seemed to be up high atop a hill because the lights from the city shone brightly below.
Morgan unlocked the door and held it open for Ellie.
She stepped inside but it was dark.
“Let me just find the lights,” Morgan announced after he closed the front door.
When the lights came on, Ellie saw a marvelous grand staircase, kind of like the one from Gone with the Wind. It seemed to be made of marble, as did the floor. She looked up and saw a wonderful and intricate glass chandelier hanging directly above them. To either side were open French doors that led to more modern-looking great rooms. It was too grand to take in all at once.
“What do you think?” he asked.
Ellie was still trying to take in the staircase and chandelier. “It’s grand,” was the best reply she could put together.
The happiness and security she felt for a brief moment at the diner and in the car on the way over here, was diminished because of the growing insecurity she felt inside. Her frozen feeling of fear came back to her, as it seemed to do every time she was reminded that Morgan was a wealthy billionaire and she was just a poor girl from Pennsylvania. But it had to be more than that, she just couldn’t pinpoint the exact reason right at the time and she didn’t want to let it break the good mood she knew they both felt.
So she immediately added, “I like it,” with as much fake confidence as she could muster.
It was enough to fool Morgan, at least for now, who smiled even bigger than before as he pulled Ellie by the hand to lead her up the stairs. “Look,” he said as they came upon the first door. “This is one of six bedrooms. This is the smallest, I believe.”
Ellie peeked inside as Morgan held the door open to a modern and masculine looking bedroom that appeared to have its own study and full bath. It was like a mini-apartment, by her standards. “Well, as bedrooms go, this one is adequate,” she said.
“I was thinking about turning it into my office,” he said. “There’s a nice balcony attached with plenty of southern exposure, and I don’t need six bedrooms, right?”
Ellie had to agree with that, so she nodded. “An office makes more sense for such a small space.” She almost rolled her eyes. It was bigger than her entire old apartment.
He led her to the next bedroom, which was identical to the first except that it was in more feminine tones and included a huge walk-in closet. Also, the bathroom had a separate room with a makeup station. Ellie was definitely impressed with this one and forgot to stay in character. “Wow,” she said. “I’d only seen bedrooms like this on TV.”
“You like this one, huh?”
Ellie nodded.
“There’s one that you might like more down the hall,” he suggested and pointed to the door at the far end.
“What’s in there?” she asked and arched a brow.
Morgan grinned mischievously and tilted his head. “My bedroom,” he admitted.
Ellie smiled. She knew she’d feel safe in there, no matter what her fears were out here. “Can I see?”
“Oh, yes.” Morgan nodded. “I anticipate that you’ll be spending a lot of time in there.”
Ellie giggled, starting to regain her confidence. “Are you sure about that?” she teased. “I do have my own apartment, you know.”
“Well…” Morgan pulled her close. “I was thinking that you could start staying here more often, at least when I’m in town, which will be often now that I’m spending so much time at Helix.”
“But what about the apartment? I just moved in there not too long ago. It hasn’t even been two months.”
“Well,” he began and made the same face he made the last time he told her he had to leave on business. “We should probably keep the apartment, at least for a while.”
Ellie looked up at him. “Morgan, you’re confusing me.”
He chuckled. “Something’s come up back in New York and I have to drive back there early tomorrow morning, but I promise I’ll be back soon.”
Ellie furrowed her brows. “How soon?”
“Monday morning. I promise. But, tonight…” He led Ellie by the hand towards his bedroom.
Ellie giggled. “Tonight we’ve had enough fun,” she teased, as she didn’t want to seem clingy about him leaving.
Morgan’s smile dug into his right cheek, giving him that irresistible, smoldering look that easily overpowered her. “I was just going to suggest that we climb into my king sized bed and cuddle. It’s pretty late now, anyway.”
Ellie grinned. “Cuddling sounds great.”
Morgan had planned on showing her what he was installing in another room, but decided that since he was leaving unexpectedly, it was best to wait. He had to plan how he would reveal to Ellie his secret, dark desires carefully or he might scare her off. He’d tested her that one time in her apartment and she’d willing allowed herself to be tied up. Still, he needed to go slow with her. Lord knows, he’d fucked up enough already.
He opened the door to his bedroom and showed her in. “What do you think?”
He was seeing this room for the first time too, and took it in along with Ellie. He saw a sleek, floating style bed with a thick mattress and plush, dark gray comforter that hovered over a huge faux fur carpet that was centered in front of a huge fireplace. A big, flat screen TV hung over the fireplace and there was a sleek, black leather sofa at an angle facing both the fireplace and the TV. The wall directly behind the bed was floor to ceiling glass and allowed for a most spectacular view of Philadelphia.
He imagined spending chilly nights like this one snuggling with her by the fire just as much as he imagined spending hours with Ellie in the adjoining room he was installing.
“This room is amazing, Morgan,” she exclaimed in awe and walked over to the simple but plush bed. Ellie ran her hands over the silky fabric of the comforter. “This is nice.” She gazed out over the lit-up city. “So nice,” she emphasized.
“Glad you approve,” Morgan replied as Ellie peeked into the bathroom.
“Morgan, there’s a TV in here!”
Morgan chuckled and joined her in the bathroom. “We can relax in the hot tub and watch a movie.” Remembering he had to leave in the morning, he pulled her into his embrace. “As long as I’m with you, it’s all good.”
Ellie leaned into him. “Please hurry back,” she said, as if reading his mind. “I hate it when you’re away.”
“I’ll just go do what I have to do and come right back,” he promised. There were so many things on his mind that some time away to sort them out was probably a blessing in disguise. He wasn’t sure whether he was moving too fast or not. The house was a big deal even though he’d made the excuse of Helix being the reason. It wasn’t so. He could have stayed at his hotel. But he hadn’t wanted that. That was where they’d started this…Relationship.
Now, he wanted it to move forward. Needed it to. Yes, he hoped to lure her over here and move her in permanently. Take this next step toward the future. He’d have several uninterrupted hours on the road to dwell on his growing protectiveness of Ellie. His feelings of losing her in the distance between their worlds. Oh yes, he was aware of her insecure feelings about him being rich and her coming from lessor means.
Morgan intended to breach this chasm. Put her fears to rest. Slowly, ease her into his world and have her by his side.