“I suppose we should.” A slight smile pulled at the agent’s mouth. “We’ll start with if you know this man. We found him running down the street.”
The agent turned Morgan toward a police car that was slowly driving through the crashed gate. It stopped at her side. Morgan leaned over to peer through the window. There, in the back seat, she saw Gregg sitting with his head hung low, his hands still clutching Barinov’s briefcase.
“I do,” Morgan said as she straightened up. “As much as I hate to admit it, I do.”
Chapter Sixteen
Morgan lifted her head up from behind the bar as the bell over the front door chimed. She smiled widely as Ty stepped into the cafe.
She turned to her bartender. “Do you think you can handle things on your own for a while?”
“Of course,” Donna said. “I know you’ve been waiting for him.”
Morgan untied her half apron and tossed it behind her. She pushed past the swinging door that separated the bar from the floor and wound her way through the packed tables.
The Phoenix Cafe was nearly full to capacity tonight. Some of the groups were busy with role playing cards or board games, others were tightening the last screws on their electrical projects. But the important thing was they were all here...in her new place.
Morgan wrapped her arms around Ty's neck once she reached him. “You're off late tonight,” she said kissing his cheek.
It was already dark outside. She'd watched the lights of the city turn on through the long, wide windows that lined the cafe hours ago.
Obviously not content with a kiss on the cheek, Ty tilted his face to brush his lips against hers.
“Sorry about that. I was busy with a lead. I texted you.”
“Yeah, I was too busy with the evening rush to check my phone.” Morgan smiled at him. “Did you finally break down and ask Michael for help?"
“I might have called him once or twice at Quantico,” he said, sliding his eyes to the side.
“It sounds like he's happy there. I’m glad that he took you up on the job.”
“They’re certainly happy to have him, that much I'm sure of,” Ty said.
“Well, I'm glad you're here now. I was afraid I wouldn’t see you until I got home.”
It had been nearly a month since they’d moved in together. Her place, of course. Hardwood floors or no, she hadn’t been able to step foot into his apartment without flashing back to bullets whizzing past her head.
“I’m glad I made it before closing time,” he said.
“Do you want anything to drink?” Morgan asked.
“A beer would be nice.”
“You got it,” Morgan said. “I’ll grab us a couple if you’ll find us a place to sit.”
“Easier said than done,” he said, looking around at all the taken seats.
“It’ll be worth your while. I have a surprise for you.”
“Well, in that case.” Morgan tried to walk away, but Ty pulled her back for one more kiss. “Hurry back.”
Morgan nodded and walked behind the counter. She grabbed a couple of icy bottles from the fridge as Ty found the last pair of empty stools at the bar. She walked over and put the beers down in front of him along with a large piece of chocolate cake with a single candle in the center.
“What's this for?” he asked, his brow furrowing. “It’s not my birthday.”
“I know it’s not yours,” Morgan said, rolling her eyes. “The Phoenix Cafe is three months old today.”
And that wasn’t the only anniversary. It had been six months since the terrible day that Barinov had shot Ty in the shoulder. Five since the sale of Kincaid's had gone through. Four since Morgan had applied for the permits for The Phoenix Cafe, and three months since the doors had opened.
Not that she was counting.
Just her blessings. She tried not to dwell on the fifteen-year sentence that Gregg was serving.
The cafe had been a success from the moment the doors had opened. But much more gratifying than the monetary success was the satisfaction Morgan got out of running the place.
She loved this community, and she was happier now than she had ever been. She didn't hide in the back. She didn't apologize for what she did, and she didn't have to pretend to be someone she wasn't. She was in her element and it showed.
The Phoenix Cafe was her pride and joy.
Well, it wasn't her only joy in life.
Far from it.
Ty smiled widely. “Congratulations, my love,” he said. “I’m proud of you."
Morgan blushed. “I couldn't have done it without you.”
Ty shook his head. “Don't be ridiculous. Of course you could have.”
Fair enough. Morgan shrugged her shoulders.
“Well, I wouldn't have been alive to do it without you. How about that?”
Ty leaned forward and kissed her again. “Oh, I almost forgot. I've got something for you as well,” he said.
He pulled a blue and white envelope out of his inner jacket pocket and handed it over to her.
“What's this?” Morgan asked.
“An invitation.”
Morgan's brows pulled together as she pulled out a heavy gold embossed card. “A wedding invitation,” she said.
“Looks like my old friend Alex Tanner is finally getting married.”