Trusting Thorn (Miami Saints MC #5)

Chapter One

CHAPTER ONE

Oakland

“ G od I’m so tired,” I whine out loud.

Tonight was my last night working graveyard shift in the Emergency Room and to say I’m so damn happy about it would be the understatement of the year.

I’m on vacation for the next two weeks and then Harley and I are rotating permanently to the day shift.

Halle-freaking-lujah

With that happy thought, I make the turn off the boulevard and onto the gravel lane that leads into Sunny Hills Trailer Park and sigh.

Sunny Hills.

As if.

The name should be an oxymoron considering how much of a dump this place is.

Living here is just temporary I remind myself as I slowly coast down the lane and pull into my driveway.

This isn’t the life I envisioned for my baby girl, and it kills me that I can’t give her more.

One day, I’ll get us out of here and into some place nicer.

On this thought, the alarm on my phone starts blaring and for the first time since I left home, I smile.

6:30 a.m.

Time to wake up the dragon.

With a tired grin on my face, I haul my butt out of my car and climb the rickety steps onto my porch. My feet feel like lead weight, but I keep moving, knowing it’ll all be worth it when I get to see Morgan’s sleepy face.

Trying to be quiet, I unlock the flimsy metal door and push it open, wincing when the hinges groan loudly.

As I’m making a mental note to add WD-40 to the shopping list, my eyes catch on Ms. Keneski sound asleep in the recliner.

Tiptoeing over to the blue corduroy chair, I place my hand on her shoulder and give it a gentle squeeze.

"How was your shift?" she asks as her eyes slowly open.

"Brutal," I admit, sinking onto the loveseat beside her. I’d been expecting tonight to be crazy; it always was when there was a full moon. "I swear, every full moon brings out the worst in people. We had everything from bar fight victims to a guy who thought he was going to fly off the roof on the third floor of his apartment building.”

Ms. K chuckles softly. "Sounds like quite a night."

I nod, rubbing my eyes. "It’s a wonder Harley and I were able to keep up. Needless to say, I'm running on fumes and counting down the minutes until I can close my eyes."

"Your two-week vacation starts today?" she asks as she pushes the lever to tuck away the footrest.

"Yes, ma'am." I smile, a wave of relief washing over me at the thought.

Two whole weeks to relax and hang out with Morgan.

Heaven.

I hadn’t planned on taking any time off.

This ‘vacation’ was a last-minute decision. Not that I’m complaining. When Human Resources called me up to their office two days ago to inform me, I had a surplus of vacation time and had two choices: use it or lose it. The choice was easy, use it.

"You won't know what to do once you're properly rested," Ms. K teased.

I sigh dramatically, wiping the back of my hand across my forehead. "Whatever will I do?" I say, laying my Georgia accent on thick.

Ms. K rolls her eyes, but I can see the smile pulling at her lips. "Well, I'm sure that little firecracker of yours will keep you plenty busy."

“That’s for darn sure.” I laugh.

"I hate to put a damper on the mood, but are you still having trouble with the doctor?”

I blow out a breath, my good mood evaporating instantly. Dr. Reynold is a thorn in my side. For months he’s been asking me out, and I’ve done everything in my power to politely decline. Apparently, he doesn’t understand the concept of a woman not being interested and has decided it makes me some sort of challenge he now has to conquer.

"He's still being a creep," I admit. "It's like he goes out of his way to get me alone so he can pressure me for a date." Don't get me wrong, he’s a decent looking man for his age, but there will never come a time where I’ll date a co-worker and risk my career. Not to mention there’s just something off about the guy. Something in his eyes that makes me want to run in the opposite direction.

Ms. K's eyes narrow. "I don't like the sound of that. Have you reported him to HR?"

I shake my head. "I've thought about it, but..." I trail off, not wanting to admit that I’m afraid he’ll do something to get me fired if I make waves. "It's complicated. He's well-liked by the hospital administration, and I don’t want to risk my job."

Ms. K reaches out and pats my knee. "I understand, dear. But promise me you'll be careful. And if it gets worse, you'll tell someone?"

I place my hand on top of hers, grateful for her concern. "I promise. But enough about him, how'd she do last night?" I nod in the direction of Morgan's room, eager to change the subject.

Ms. K shakes her head, a big smile taking over her face. “That girl of yours is an angel."

I grin, glad I’m not the only one who thinks so. "She did her homework without a fuss, ate all her dinner, and was in bed by eight-thirty."

"Wow, maybe I should leave you in charge more often," I joke, part of me feeling guilty that I miss those things while I’m at work.

Ms. K chuckles.

"Before I forget," I reach into my scrub pocket, pull out the small wad of cash, and tuck it in her hand.

"You know you don't have to do this. I enjoy spending time with Morgy," she says.

I appreciate the fact she would watch my girl for free, but there is no way I'd ever take advantage of her kindness. Plus, I know how tight of a budget she is on. "I couldn't do any of this without you, Ms. K." It’s the truth. With my schedule, finding childcare I can trust is worth its weight in gold.

She grins, her eyes crinkling at the corners. "I'm going to miss you both while I'm gone."

Admittedly, it takes me a second to remember she’s going up to Jacksonville to visit her daughter and grandchildren. "Oh, that's right," I shake my head, smiling. "Have a great time with your family. Tell Sarah I said hi."

Ms. K opens her arms. "Give me a hug before I go."

Without hesitating, I climb off the loveseat and step into the circle of her arms, wrapping my own around her.

I don’t know what I'd do without her.

She’s more than just Morgan’s babysitter; she’s family.

Squeezing once more, she pulls away, grabs her pocketbook, and smiles over her shoulder as she takes off out the door.

Like I always do, I keep my eyes on her as she makes her way down the steps and rounds the corner out of sight.

After closing the door, I take a deep breath and head down the hallway towards Morgan's room.

Time to wake the dragon.

Turning the knob quietly, I push open her door and the sight of her curled up in bed, her blonde curls splayed across the pillow, makes my heart swell.

This is what makes all the long nights and hard days worth it.

This little person who depends on me and loves me unconditionally.

"Morgan," I call softly, sitting on the edge of her bed. "Time to wake up, sweetheart."

She stirs, her little nose scrunching up adorably. "Mommy," she mumbles, burrowing deeper into her blankets.

I can’t help but chuckle as I run my hand through her tangled curls. "Come on, sleepyhead. You’ve got to get ready for school."

One eye cracks open. "Is it really morning?"

“I’m afraid so, baby. But guess what? Mommy is off for two whole weeks, starting today!” That gets her attention.

Both eyes shoot open wide. "Really? You promise?"

"Cross my heart," I say, making the motion over the left side of my chest. "Now, let's get you up and ready."

With Morgan out of bed, I head to the kitchen to start her breakfast.

Just one more hour, I remind myself. One more hour and then I can crash.

But first, I have a little girl to feed and take to school.

"Did you grab your lunch bag off the counter?" I ask over my shoulder as Morgan, with way more force than is necessary, launches her book bag across the backseat and climbs up into her booster seat.

I bite my lip, trying not to laugh.

If there is one thing I can say about my girl, it’s that she has a flair for the dramatics. Everything she does is animated beyond belief.

"Uh…" Morgan lifts her head, aggressively shoving her wild blonde curls out of her face.

Frustrated, she reaches across the seat, yanks her bag into her lap, unzips the zip, looks inside, and groans.

"Aw, drab," she complains, making me giggle.

“I’m going to take that as a no.” Before I can tell her to stay put, I’ll go back inside and grab it, she spins to the side — with all the dramatics she can muster before eight o'clock on a Monday morning — and hops out of her seat to run back inside.

“Good gracious.” I can’t help but laugh.

I swear, the child would forget her head if it wasn't attached. Morgan Michelle Hardy is not a fan of the morning hustle.

A few minutes later, the storm door slams and out comes Morgan, barreling down the front steps with her lunch bag and a different pair of shoes in her hands.

This girl.

"What's with the shoe change?" I ask, watching through the rearview as she climbs back inside the car, making quick work of her seatbelt.

"We're playing kickball at recess today.”

Slinging my arm across the passenger seat, I twist in my seat and watch out the back window as I back out of the driveway, my lips twitching at Morgan roughly shoving her foot into her athletic shoes.

“Ah… Gotcha,” I reply, guessing that makes enough sense as I put the car in drive.

“Do you think Daddy will show up this time?” I flick my eyes to the rearview mirror and see the hope in Morgan’s eyes.

My heart clenches painfully in my chest. “I don't know, sweetie.” It kills me that I can’t promise that her father will show up this weekend. Technically, it’s not his scheduled weekend with her, but when he bailed on her last weekend, he begged to swap. I reluctantly agreed.

“Yeah,” she whispered.

“Morgan—” I hate that I don’t know what to say to make things better.

“It's okay, mommy.” I flick my eyes to the rearview mirror. Morgan’s got her head turned, staring out the window.

Reaching around the seat blindly, I grab her hand and squeeze. “I love you, kiddo. And, whether Daddy shows up or not, we’re still going to have fun. Right?”

“We could go to the zoo?” she asks.

“We could totally go to the zoo.”

And just like that, thoughts of Derek are forgotten. “Can we see the penguins?”

“Uh, you can’t go to the zoo and NOT see the penguins! That’s just not right.” Morgan laughs, a smile taking over her face.

As we pull up to the school, I put the car in park and turn to face Morgan fully. “I love you, baby girl. More than anything in this world. You know that, right?”

Her head bounces up and down, her smile growing. “I love you too, Mommy.”

“Alright, crackerjack. Go knock 'em dead at kickball today. I'll be here to pick you up this afternoon.”

With a kiss goodbye, she hops out of the car, her backpack bouncing as she runs towards the door.

And now.

It’s time to go home and get some sleep.