Finding Megan (The Kiser Series Book 2) Read online

  “Fine, but I’ll be there by the weekend. Mom is improving and she should be out of ICU in a day or so.”

  “Won’t she still need you?” He smiled when he heard the concern in her voice.

  “I’ll have Colin to check in on her. Don’t worry; I’ll make sure she’s okay.”

  “Okay, I guess I’ll see you this weekend.”

  ****

  Megan sat on the couch with Eric and while he watched TV, she tried to set up her new cellphone. She couldn’t remember a lot of the numbers she had stored in her old one, so she programmed the ones she could remember. Because of the stalker, she opted for a new number, just in case.

  She heard Eric’s phone ring but didn’t pay much attention. “Megan, it’s for you.” He held it out toward her.

  “Who is it?”

  “It’s Matt, here; you need to talk to him.” He shoved it in her hand.

  Her heart was singing with happiness, but her hands shook with nervousness. “Hello?” When she heard his voice she wanted to cry. She missed him, missed everything about him. She tried to remind herself about the woman she found in his apartment. However, the wall she had built around her heart cracked a little when she heard his worried voice.

  He explained everything and she wanted to believe him, she really did. Her heart begged her to give in. He wanted her to come to New York and stay with him but she couldn’t take off work. She told him that she would be fine with Eric. After a long pause, she asked, “Matt, are you still there?”

  “I am. You’ve never mentioned anyone named Eric and I’m having a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that you’re living with him. I can almost imagine how you felt when you showed up and Carly answered.”

  Oh, God! She felt so stupid! She’d never told Matt about Eric! She didn’t like finding his ex-girlfriend in his apartment and here she was sleeping in the same bed with Eric. She hadn’t told him that Eric was gay, but she would have to when he came down. All the betrayal drained away as she realized the situation for what it was. He wanted to come here, be with her.

  “Okay, I guess I’ll see you this weekend.” For the first time since flying to New York, she felt happy. “Oh, I got a new phone today.”

  “You did? Do you have the same number?” Matt asked, sounding more like his old self.

  “No, I decided to get another one since I don’t know what happened to my phone.”

  “You left it in New York. Can I get your new number?”

  “Sure, it’s 276-607-4353. I hope it works I haven’t called anyone yet.”

  “Thanks, Megan. You don’t know how relieved I am to be able to call you again. I tried a couple of times this past weekend but it kept going to voicemail.”

  “I’m sorry that I didn’t talk to you Friday. Carlana tried to get me too. She kept telling me that you weren’t like that but it reminded me of walking in on James and Kim.” She wiped the relieved tears from her eyes as she poured her heart out.

  “I understand. So we’re going to have a baby.” He said with awe in his voice.

  “Yeah. I wanted to tell you in person and I guess Colin told you instead.”

  “Maybe it was Carlana.”

  Megan laughed before she said, “There’s no way that Carlana told you.”

  He chuckled, “Okay, it was Colin. So tell me what the doctor said. When do you go back?”

  “She said everything looked great. I got to see the heart beat!” She said excitedly.

  “What do you mean?”

  Megan told him about the ultrasound, how they did it and the flickering light on the screen. She gave him the date and time of her next appointment. They talked for about an hour and she felt like everything in her world had righted itself. Matt sounded excited about the baby and apparently, his mom would be ecstatic.

  “I’m so glad I got to talk to you sweetheart, but I have to go here in a minute. It’s almost time for visiting hours.”

  “I’m glad too. Tell your mom I said ‘Hi’ for me.”

  “I will. I’ll call you tomorrow and I’ll be there Friday at the latest. If mom improves faster than expected, then I’ll be there before then.”

  “I look forward to it. Maybe we can stay at my house. It should be fine if you’re with me.”

  “Sounds good to me. No offense, but I don’t want to share you with anyone.” Megan knew what he was saying…he didn’t want to stay at Eric’s. They wouldn’t be able to anyway, it was too small.

  “I better let you go so you can visit your mom.”

  “Okay, sweetheart, I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”

  They hung up and she couldn’t help the grin that stayed plastered on her face. It was still in place when she found Eric sitting on the couch watching TV. He looked at her when she walked in and the smile told him everything.

  “I guess that went well.”

  “It did. I guess I should have stayed and talked with him in New York. It was all a misunderstanding.”

  “I hope so. Did you tell him about him baby?” Eric asked as he watched her from the corner of his eye.

  “I did, and what do you mean by ‘you hope so?’”

  “Just that, Megs, I hope it was just a misunderstanding.” He pulled her into his arms as they sat on the couch together. “I really hope it all works out for you.”

  “Thanks, Eric. Thinking about our relationship helped me to forgive him. To everyone else, it looks like we’re an item even though we know better. It’s possible that his ex-girlfriend showed up late and spent the night on the couch.”

  Eric looked wearily before he said, “Yeah, it’s possible.” This only put the doubt back in her mind because her heart already belonged to Matt.

  Three days had past and she talked to Matt every evening. The doctor had moved his mom out of ICU and she continued to improve every day so he bought a plane ticket for Friday afternoon. He called every day and things were back to normal. It was Thursday and this week had gone by without incident, at least until she had a parent/teacher conference. Emily’s dad wasn’t happy when she suggested that something was wrong at home. When Megan asked if anything could be affecting Emily, Mr. Saunders simply stated that she should, “Stay the fuck out of his business!” As she sat there after school thinking about the meeting, she didn’t hear Sam come in. “I need to mop and take out the trash but I can come back later if you’d like Ms. Megan.”

  “That’s okay, Sam, you need to get your work finished too.” She smiled and he returned one just as bright. Eric stopped by and she informed him that she needed to run to the store that evening.

  “Do you want to go now before heading home?” Eric asked as he waited for her to finish.

  “No, I’ll go later this evening. I want to change clothes and no offense, but I just need to get out by myself for a while.”

  “Are you sure that’s a wise decision, Megs?” he said with concern even though he completely understood.

  “It’ll be fine. Nothing has happened so far.” She could tell that he wasn’t buying it and still appeared worried. She loved Eric, but she needed a small break.

  Chapter 10

  ****

  Matt couldn’t wait until Friday. He would get to see Megan again. He had already spoken with Derick and they had everything arranged. He would take his laptop and work from Megan’s place for a while until she was safe or he could convince her to move to New York. During work hours, he would have all of his business calls forwarded to his cell. After getting a Bagel and a cup of coffee, he hailed a cab and headed toward the hospital.

  Taking the elevator up to the third floor, he was all smiles when he saw his mother sitting up in a chair working a crosswords puzzle.

  “Hi Mom, how are you feeling today?” He asked as he took a seat on the side of her hospital bed.

  “Much better. The doctor said he might let me go home this evening.” The nurses had informed him that they had taken her off oxygen and if she maintained her oxygen level then she could be discharged with
Home Health.

  “That’s great, Mom! It’s nice to see you doing so well, you gave me a scare. Promise me that if you get sick again, that you’ll call me.” He gave her a stern look.

  “I’m sorry, Matty. I promise I’ll call you next time.”

  “You’d better.” He took a sip of coffee as he tried to decide how to tell her he was leaving for a while. “Mom, I need to talk to you about something.”

  At his worried look she asked, “What is it?”

  He told her about Megan and then reluctantly told her about sleeping with Megan as she silently listened to his story…”And one thing led to another and now she’s pregnant.”

  “Oh, my God! I’m going to have a grandbaby!” Her eyes filled with tears as her smiling face beamed at him.

  He smiled and replied, “Yes, you are. I need to be with her right now, I have a plane ticket for tomorrow. I’ll work from her house. But, I can’t go if you won’t promise me that you’ll call either me or Colin if you need anything…and I mean anything.”

  “You’re not moving there are you?”

  “No, I just need to make sure she’s okay and I need time to convince her to move here with me. I can’t expect her to quit her job and move when I only spent one night with her. I need to show her how good we can be together.” He knew what he said was true but if she would move to New York it would solve both of their problems. He decided against telling his mother about the stalker, she had enough to worry about.

  “I promise that I’ll call you or Colin if I need anything.”

  “Thanks, Mom. I love you.”

  “I love you, too, Matty.”

  He visited a little while longer and even though he felt hesitant to leave his mother, he felt excited and a little anxious to see Megan again. Once he arrived home, he called Megan and then mentally went over his the list of things he needed to pack and made sure he hadn’t forgotten anything.

  The next morning he couldn’t contain the excitement he felt as he headed to the airport.

  ****

  Matt called as Megan drove to the grocery store. She couldn’t wait to see him and it felt like tomorrow would never come. She took half a day off work so she could pick him up at the airport.

  “Hey Megan, what are you up to this evening?” Matt asked.

  “Just heading to the grocery store. You?” She tried to contain the giddiness she felt. She missed him.

  “I just left the hospital.”

  “How’s your Mother doing?” She had never met his mother but she knew how important she was to Matt.

  “She’s doing great. I thought the doctor might discharge her today but they decided to keep her one more night to make sure her oxygen level doesn’t drop while she’s sleeping. He’s letting her go in the morning if she does well. I plan to be at the hospital early and after I get her settled at home, I’ll head to the airport. I should have plenty of time as long as the hospital doesn’t drag its feet.”

  “That sounds great. I’m glad she’s getting better.”

  “Me, too. She really worried me this time.”

  “I can’t wait to see you Matt. I’ve missed you so much.”

  “I’ve missed you too, sweetheart.”

  “Do you think it’s weird to feel this way when we’ve only been together one day?” She worried that she might be rushing into this.

  “No, I know more about you than any other woman I’ve dated. I guess that’s the advantages of talking on the phone, all we can do is talk.”

  “Yeah, but I haven’t had a chance to see all of your habits. We might annoy the shit out of each other.” She chuckled.

  “We won’t. It’ll be fine sweetheart, you’ll see.” She silently hoped so.

  They talked until she arrived at the store, saying goodbye she grabbed her purse and shoved her keys inside before getting out. Just as she walked inside, her cell rang again.

  “Hey, Eric. What’s up?”

  “You sound happy. I thought you were going to the store.” Megan laughed.

  “I’m here now. Of course I’m happy. I just talked to Matt and he’ll be here at 4 o’clock tomorrow. Actually, I’m beyond happy.”

  “I’m happy for you, Megs,” and he sounded it. She felt sure he needed some alone time as well and probably welcomed the break.

  “Did you need something?”

  “Oh yeah, could you bring some milk? Someone drank all of it.”

  She blushed, and then said, “Sorry. Yeah, I’ll pick up some more.”

  “Thanks, Megan.”

  “You’re welcome. See ya in a bit.”

  She grabbed a buggy and took her time as she gazed at all the fresh fruits and vegetables. She only needed a few items for breakfast and lunch, and then she would go shopping with Matt after she picked him up. When she had everything she needed, she grabbed some milk before heading to the checkout line, which was empty.

  “Hi, Mr. Lawson,” Megan said as she took her items out of the buggy. “Slow day today?” She gave him a warm, friendly smile. She’d known the elderly Mr. Lawson most of her life.

  “Good evening, Megan.” He returned her smile. “I think we had the rush earlier this evening, everyone wanting to get home before dark or maybe they had something else to do. I never know anymore.”

  He rang up her items and after she paid, she said, “Thanks Mr. Lawson. You have a good night.”

  He waved as he said, “You, too, dear.”

  She carried her bags to the car. She only had two of them and a gallon of milk. She vaguely wondered why the parking lot was empty but figured there must be a high school ballgame going on tonight.

  With her keys in hand, she unlocked the doors and decided to place the items in the back seat instead of the trunk. As she shut the back door, she reached for the front door handle but her hand never made it. She felt something hit the side of her head before everything went black.

  My head hurts, Megan thought as she let out a little moan. What the hell happened? When she tried to move her arm so she could rub her head, she couldn’t move it. She tried the other and found it the same. Alarm crashed into her as she struggled to open her eyes. As she got her first peak, she slammed her eyes closed again, the sun streamed in, hurting them. Trying again, she finally managed to open her eyes to a squint. That’s when the panic settled in.

  Megan found her wrist bound to the headboard of a full sized bed. She tugged, trying to slip her wrist out of the tightly bound, thick rope. No such luck. As she looked around the room, she noticed it held a metal chair and nothing else. A cold shiver ran down her body as goose bumps covered her arms. She looked down, already knowing what her eyes confirmed; she laid there in only her bra and panties. Someone had undressed her. Oh God!

  Chapter 11

  ****

  Matt felt nothing but excitement as he boarded the jet headed for the Tri-Cities Airport and to Megan. He had everything squared away at home. His mother had been discharged that morning so he had picked her up and taken her home. He hired someone to clean up the apartment and stock the refrigerator so she only had to heal. He brought his laptop and all the paperwork he needed to finish, but he knew Derick would handle things just fine. Colin agreed to call his Mother and even visit her in a day or two just to make sure she was doing well and not hiding anything again. Everything was finally falling into place.

  As the jet circled the airport, Matt’s heart started to race. He had dreamed of this moment since he left her last time. They had to make it work, somehow, someway. Grabbing his bag from the overhead compartment, he made his way down the steps.

  Walking into the airport, he wanted to sprint. All the people stood waiting for someone but he didn’t see Megan. He looked everywhere, and then checked his watch, which now read 4:30. He pulled out his cell to call her but it went straight to voicemail. He took a seat on a nearby bench, deciding that she must be running late.

  Forty-five minutes later, he decided that she wasn’t coming. He found a rent-a-car booth as he
saw red. Had she changed her mind? He didn’t know where he was headed but he knew the general direction.

  Matt had an hour of driving to convince himself that something must have happened to her car. She wouldn’t do this; she wasn’t that type of person. He drove to her house and found it empty. Then he remembered that she temporarily lived with Eric. He clinched his jaw when the thought of that arrangement.

  He stopped at the neighbor’s house to inquire about Megan. He walked up to the concrete porch and knocked on the old wooden door. A middle-aged woman answered.

  “May I help you?” She eyed him up and down and he could tell she liked what she saw.

  “Hi, I was wondering if you could tell me where I can find Megan,” he asked in a very friendly voice giving the woman a faint smile.

  “Oh, Megan.” She stepped forward as if she would share a secret. “Megan is living with some man. I think his name is Eric.” She shook her head. “She should be ashamed of herself, living with a man she’s not married to. And do you know she’s pregnant?” She talked in a hushed voice, the way most gossips do. “Nobody knows if the baby belongs James or Eric’s.” She tsked, as she shook her head.

  “Do you know where Eric lives?” Matt tried to sound sweet. He didn’t want the woman to know how angry she made him.

  “Oh, yes. He lives in one of the apartments on the edge of town.”

  “Thanks, ma’am.” Matt turned to leave while he seethed on the inside. His anger had started as a slow burn, but the idea of James or Eric as the father of her baby, the thought of her sleeping with either of them, turned his slow burn to a raging inferno.

  He easily found the apartments and after asking one of the tenants where Eric lived, he now stood in front of his front door. Raging mad!

  He knocked, and when the front door opened, Matt didn’t hesitate. He punched the man, Eric, in the face. As he stumbled backwards, Matt followed him inside. He threw another punch, but Eric blocked it and threw one of his own. Blood poured from Matt’s nose. Matt’s fist caught Eric in the cheek this time, effectively cutting his eye. Eric got another good jab in before Matt tackled and took him to the ground. He punched Eric repeatedly even though he protected himself well. With the buck of his hips, Eric threw Matt off and pinned him on the floor with his arm at his throat. “Who are you?” Eric yelled.