Page 30 of Shelter for Morgan

She turned toward him, leaning her head against his arm.

He continued to hold still as she lifted her other hand from her stomach and settled it on his thigh.

She had no idea what she was doing. She was sound asleep, but that didn't stop him from enjoying her unknowing touch. From the way she cuddled up against his side and relaxed even deeper into sleep.

It felt... good.

It felt better than good.

Knowing that she felt comfortable enough with him, trusted him in her sleep, made his heart beat harder in his chest and against his ribs.

He didn't want to think back to Kylie's question, but he couldn't seem to escape the thought.

With every day that she was with him. Every hour. Every minute. He found himself hoping that... That her time at his apartment wasn't going to come to an end.

It was confusing to him, but it also felt good.

Then again, he smiled to himself, he hadn't walked into the bathroom to find her lingerie hanging in the shower.

He'd heard about things like that from some of the other guys as they were getting used to sharing their space. He wasn't sure how comfortable Morgan would be hanging her private things up in his shower, but he wouldn't mind.

Although he didn't need to know what she wore under her clothes. Since that first night that she'd stayed with him, he'd been dreaming of her when he fell asleep. Rhett knew that if he saw what she was wearing under her clothes, those dreams might change, and he was trying to keep everything in his head as close to a friendly PG rating.

He smiled when he realized that he was thinking about it in a way that Morgan would appreciate with her almost encyclopedic knowledge of 'classic' TV.

She was working her way into all aspects of his life, and he wasn't fighting it all that hard.

The speakers flared to life with a new call and Rhett started to get up from the couch, but Morgan was leaning against him so he had to try and shift her to the side.

Just when he thought he had almost managed it, moving in a slow but steady pace, he saw Morgan's eyes open up.

"Hey, Palmer..."

"Morgan. I have to go out on a call."

Kylie spoke up, stepping closer so he could see her in his peripheral vision. "We'll make sure she's wide awake before she gets behind the wheel."

He gave Kylie a grateful nod. "Thank you."

Rhett felt a soft touch against his cheek.

Morgan was smiling at him, still half-asleep. "You be careful, okay?"

He saw the men rushing out the glass doors to the apparatus floor and he'd always been one of the first to get to the truck before.

Having Morgan there, he was hesitating.

"Palmer?"

"Yes?"

"Come home safe, okay?"

Leaning in, he placed a kiss on her forehead. When he stood up, she was already fast asleep. Rhett wasn't sure she would even remember the kiss and that might be a good thing.

He certainly hadn't intended to do it.

He wasn't a man given to impulse normally, but this was Morgan. It was different with her.