Page 8 of Heal You
“No, I couldn’t ever ask that of you.”
“I offered.I’d sleep much better tonight knowing that you’re safe in my bed.”
Jan’s cheeks reddened as she dipped her head and looked down at her hands in her lap.Then her gaze shifted to Morgan’s hand on her knee.“Is that why you invited me up here?”
“Oh, fuck.No.I swear it wasn’t.”Morgan swiftly pulled her hand away and inched back on the couch a little.She may be into Jan, but she absolutely hadn’t invited her up here with any intentions of sleeping with her.She hadn’t even known that Jan was technically available untilafterthey’d reached her flat.“I meant that you could take my bed, and I’d sleep here.On the couch.”
“I’ll take the couch.If you’re sure you don’t mind.”
Morgan wanted to argue that Jan should sleep in her bed and not on the couch, but she didn’t want to scare Jan off.So long as she was warm and safe tonight, Morgan didn’t care what happened next.The likelihood was that Jan would wake up in the morning and see things differently, and Morgan would never be alone with her like this again.
Don’t let this become another Amanda situation all over again.
“If you want the couch, the couch it is.”
Chapter4
Stretching her back,Morgan groaned and rolled over, almost falling off the couch.She’d woken up as the sun streamed through the windows about an hour ago, wondering what the hell was going on, and then she remembered that Jan was here…and had ultimately agreed to the bed last night rather than the couch.
As she sat up on her elbows, her neck stiff, the bathroom door opened, and Jan strolled out in one of Morgan’s fluffy butveryshort towels.Jan froze, gripping the towel against her.“O-oh.I took a shower.I hope you don’t mind.”She dipped her head.“I’m sorry.I didn’t mean to wake you.”
Fuck.Jan could wake Morgan up looking like that onanymorning she wished to.It would be an honour to have this woman walking around her flat naked.It truly would.
“And thank you again for last night.”
A lazy smile spread on Morgan’s lips as she said, “Any time.”
With red cheeks, Jan stared back at Morgan.“I’ll just get dressed and head off.I need to go to the house and get some belongings, then find a place to stay.I didn’t have the energy yesterday once I got there.I just sat on the edge of the bed for hours, wondering what was going on.”
“You’re welcome to stay here, you know.I work most evenings, so you’ll have some space and that.”Morgan didn’t often share her space with anyone else, but she couldn’t get that look of heartbreak in Jan’s eyes out of her mind.If offering her a place to stay could ease the load for Jan, then Morgan would do that for her.“It’s really no problem.I can be invisible.”
“That’s a very kind offer, but I shouldn’t.I’ll need to find a place eventually, so I should start that process now.Though, I think it’ll just be a hotel for the time being.”
Morgan sat up and ran a hand through her messy hair.She toyed with her lip ring, wanting to stand up and move closer to Jan.Could she do that?Probably, but Jan would likely run a mile given what she’d said last night when Morgan offered her bed to her.Maybe she should just stay sitting on the couch, and hopefully, Jan would join her for some breakfast.She would need the fuel for the day ahead anyway.They both would.“Okay.”
“And if you should happen to see Gillian and Finn in the coming days, could you keep this to yourself please?”
“Of course.It’s not my business.I just wanted to offer a shoulder last night and be there for you.I’m sure you’ll tell them when you’re ready to.”Morgan wanted Jan to know that this could be a safe space when she needed it.There was no ulterior motive here, even if Morgandidwant to show Jan a thing or two that her husband likely couldn’t.“Take your time.No rush to get out of here, okay?”
Jan rested against the doorframe of Morgan’s bedroom.“I can’t believe I’m about to go home in the clothes I was wearing last night.I’m forty-eight, for the love of God.”
Morgan lifted a shoulder.“I wouldn’t worry.You lookedgorgeousin that dress last night.”
As she watched Morgan from across the room, still holding her towel in place, Jan narrowed her eyes.“I have a feeling you’re quite the womaniser, Morgan.”
“Me?Nah.Used to be back in my early twenties, but I can’t be arsed with it anymore.It gets too messy.I think the whole Amanda situation has just reminded me that I’m better off single.That fucking around isn’t for me anymore.”
“You won’t be going back for another helping if she shows up here?”Jan quirked a brow.
Fuck, that was sexy.
Morgan shook her head.“Absolutely not.I’m not getting tangled up in her marriage.No way.If I’d known in the beginning, I never would have slept with her.”She did rise to her feet this time, opting for the coffee machine while Jan was getting dressed.Once she’d powered it on, she turned back to Jan.“I’m going to write my number down for you, okay?If you need anything at all, just send me a text, and I’ll help in any way I can.”
“Thank you, but I don’t plan to be reliant on anyone if I can help it.People have their own lives to deal with.God knows Gillian and Finn have had enough going on to last them a lifetime.I’m not sure I even want to tell them.”
Morgan understood that Jan probably felt embarrassed by all of this, but she had no reason to be.Her husband was the one in the wrong, and if Morgan knew Finn and Gillian the way she thought she did, they’d be upset knowing Jan was dealing with this alone.“You’ll have to tell them at some point.Gillian is your best friend, and if Finn finds out I knew about it down the line, she’ll kill me.”
“And when that day comes, I’ll take the blame.Since I’m taking the blame for everything else right now, what difference will it make?”Jan’s shoulders slumped as she said that, the defeated look in her eyes painful to witness.
