“I had a friend who was on drugs. He almost died and ended up in rehab. He’s been clean for years.”
“There you go.” She snapped her fingers. “You could bring the subject up in a roundabout way. Tell her about your friend and what happened.”
“Maybe she’ll confide in me.” Greg straightened his back, a look of relief on his face. “If she was a druggie and is clean, I can help her.”
“Absolutely,” Morgan said. “You never know…she could be afraid to tell you about her past, afraid you might not want anything to do with her.”
“I never thought about it like that. If she tells me what happened, maybe she’ll be happier and not so moody, like she knows someone is on her side.” Greg peered out the window. “I’ll invite her over for dinner and see if I can get her to talk.”
“Sounds like a plan.” Morgan returned to the restaurant where Greg had parked the work van.
He hopped out as soon as she pulled into an empty spot. “Thanks for inviting me to lunch. At first, I was upset, but now I feel much better. Hailey needs me.”
“It sounds like she does.”
Greg started to close the door. “What you said earlier about being family.”
“I meant every word of it,” she said sincerely.
“You’re like the sister I never had. I love you, Morgan. I mean, not like romantic but like family.”
Sudden tears burned the back of her eyes. “And I love you, Greg.”
“I’ll let you know how it goes.” He slammed the door and hurriedly climbed into the work van. With a quick wave goodbye, he was off.
Morgan watched until his taillights disappeared around the corner. “I hope it turns out for you, Greg, that Hailey’s drug record isn’t a big red warning sign.”
Chapter 26
“Pizza party!” Morgan waved the grocery bag filled with goodies in the air. “Correction…pizza-makingparty.”
Quinn, Brett, Wyatt, Jeff and Tristan gathered in Easton Estate’s kitchen.
“Where’s Mrs. Arnsby?” Tristan asked.
“She has the night off,” Brett said. “We get to make dinner all by ourselves.”
“I love pizza.” He clapped his hands. “Pepperoni, sausage, and ham.”
“What? No veggies?” Morgan mustered up a serious tone.
“Gross.” Tristan made a gagging sound. “I’m a man who needs meat.”
Jeff playfully nudged his nephew’s arm. “You’re aboywho loves meat.”
Morgan emptied the bags filled with pre-made pizza dough, sauce, all the toppings Tristan mentioned, along with onions, green olives, chopped green peppers and thinly sliced tomatoes. “I have three cheeses—mozzarella, parmesan and an Italian blend.”
“I swung by and picked up garlic knots from our favorite pizza joint in town.” Quinn placed the brown boxes off to the side. “Along with garlic and marinara dipping sauces.”
“Where are the pizza pans?” Brett began digging around in the cupboards searching for the pans. “I have no idea where anything is.”
“The pans are in here.” Tristan squeezed past his father and opened the cabinet door next to the six-burner stove. He pulled a stack of cookie sheets out and set them on the counter. “Mrs. Arnsby lets me help her in the kitchen sometimes.”
“I bet you’ve helped her make cookies,” Jeff said.
“Yep. Cookies and cupcakes. She’s the best-est cook in the whole world.”
“Hands down.” Quinn rubbed her palms together. “How many cookie sheets do we need?”
