Free Places in My Heart by Sheryl Lister Page A

help you recover what he took. I assume you have a financial advisor.”
    â€œYeah. I don’t spend recklessly or waste my money on women and parties. I did offer to buy my parents a house early in my career, though.” He chuckled.
    â€œI take it by that laugh it didn’t go too well.”
    â€œYou take it right. My mother walked me through every inch of the twenty-five-hundred-square-foot, four-bedroom house that I grew up in, then planted her hands on her hips and asked me, ‘Does it look like we need a new house?’”
    Morgan burst out laughing. “Sounds like something my mother would say.”
    â€œOh, she didn’t stop there. What I didn’t realize is that I’d opened up the floodgates to a lecture on financial and personal responsibility that lasted almost two hours.” Omar shook his head. “I haven’t asked her another question since, and that was five years ago.”
    Morgan laughed so hard she thought she was going to hurt herself.
    He smiled. “I’m glad you think it’s so funny.”
    â€œI’m sorry,” she said, wiping tears of mirth from her eyes. “Well, did you listen?”
    â€œHell, yeah. And if you ever meet my mama, you’ll see why. Once she actually had my dad drive her over to my house to make sure I hadn’t lied about how many cars I own. For the record, I have only two—this one and my truck. Although I do have a motorcycle, too.”
    â€œYou do?” she asked with excitement.
    â€œLet me guess. You ride?”
    â€œJust Malcolm’s sometimes.”
    â€œI could take you riding if you want.”
    She shouldn’t even have been contemplating going riding with this man, but she loved the way the wind felt on her face, the way the bike hugged the curves on the road. “We’ll see.” Silence crept between them and before she knew it, they were pulling into her complex. Morgan used the remote on her key ring to open the gate, and Omar parked in one of the visitors’ spots. He walked her to the door and waited while she unlocked it.
    Standing just inside, Morgan faced him. “So, I think things went pretty well tonight, aside from the one hiccup.”
    â€œI’m sorry about that.”
    She waved him off. “Don’t worry about it. I told him what he needed to know. Will you be available next weekend to talk about the contract?”
    â€œI had planned to go up to my cabin in Big Bear. I do it yearly to clear my mind before the new season.”
    â€œOh,” She understood. Malcolm usually did the same thing and had just returned from Belize a few weeks ago. “I guess it can wait. You need to have a clear head. We’ll figure something out.”
    Omar nodded. “Okay. I guess I’d better get going.”
    She saw in his eyes that he didn’t want to leave, and she could admit to herself that she didn’t want him to go. He’d removed his jacket and tie and unbuttoned the first two buttons on his shirt. The man was sexy without even trying. He moved closer, then seemingly remembered the rules she’d set in place and stepped back.
    â€œGood night, Morgan.”
    â€œGood night.” She closed the door, leaned her head against it and released a deep sigh. She was glad one of them had thought about their agreement. Pushing away from the door, Morgan went to shower.
    Afterward she scrubbed her face clean, made a cup of mint tea and curled up on the lounger in her bedroom with her notes from the lawsuit. She couldn’t rid herself of the nagging feeling that she had missed something. She scanned the invoice to see if maybe one of the parts didn’t get shipped, but everything was there. Morgan brought the mug to her lips, took a sip and groaned when she heard the doorbell. Setting the folder aside, she took her tea and went to open the door. “I’m fine,” she said before she’d opened it all the way.