Page 39 of Breakaway

Morgan’s fingers traced the muscles on his arms. He looked deeply into her blue eyes. It was as if she was staring into his soul, and he liked it. This girl made him feel things he never thought existed. When he thought of the girls he’d been with before Morgan, they now seemed like cardboard cutouts, with no substance. Morgan was the total woman. She understood where he came from and where he was headed, and her head wasn’t turned by the possibilities of his career. She knew that with every success in hockey, there was also a price: the travel away, the pressure to perform, the risk of injury that was always present. And despite the drama happening in her life right now, he found it so easy to be with her. Every moment with her felt right.

This was what he wanted out of life. He felt like he had known her forever. They just worked in every way.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Morgan

Morgan rolled over, wincing as the sunlight hit her eyes. She buried her face under the covers. Slowly waking up, she realized Travis was not lying beside her. She reached over and found that his side of the bed was cold, but then she heard his voice. He was on the other side of the room, talking on the phone.

“Are you kidding me?” he said, arguing with someone on the other end of the phone. “I know it happens, but the timing... I’m telling you, it’s suspect.”

Morgan pushed up onto her elbows, trying to figure out what was going on.

Travis nodded to her with a half-smile. It was forced, not his usual cocky, flirty grin. He turned away from her and went back to his call.

“I’m telling you Bert, this has nothing to do with the game... Fine. I’ll pack. What choice do I really have? That was rhetorical, Bert.” Travis ended his call and offered her that same fake smile. “I made you a cup of coffee. There isn’t a coffee maker with a pot, just one of those per cup coffee makers.”

He grabbed the mug off the table and offered it to her.

Sitting up in bed, she made herself comfortable, and took the mug of hot coffee. The warmth felt good, since the air conditioning was making her bare arms chilled. “Thanks, and good morning. Is everything okay?”

Travis took a deep breath and sat down on the bed beside her. “Not really.” He must’ve been up a while, because he was dressed in pajama pants and a t-shirt.

“Is there anything I can do?”

“Nope.” He fiddled with the remote control, flipping through random channels.

“Travis, are you okay?” She was concerned at his short answers and lackluster attitude. One thing that had drawn her to him was that he was so full of life. And considering she was lying in bed beside him in only panties, something definitely had his attention skewed.

“No, not really. That was my agent. Calling to let me know that I am to report at the Falcon’s rink tomorrow morning.”

“Wait, what?”

“I’m being sent down.” He didn’t even look at her when he said the words.

“Oh.” She knew what that meant. She also knew it happened often. Guys on two-way contracts went back and forth whenever the team needed them to. But she could read the look on his face. And his comment about the timing. “You know it wasn’t him, right?”

She took a sip of the hot coffee and pulled the covers up to try to keep her bare arms warm.

“Sorry.” He acknowledged her shivering. “It’s cold in here this morning. I adjusted the temperature, but it hasn’t kicked in yet. Hang on.” Travis hopped off the bed and pulled a hoodie from his suitcase. Handing it to her, he flashed a genuine smile.

“You know it wasn’t my uncle,” she repeated, as she slid on the hoodie. It was soft and smelled like Travis.

“It’s very convenient though, don’t you think?”

The timing of it all did make it look suspect. “I’m telling you, my uncle can’t make those kinds of decisions.”

“Maybe not, but he’s married to Tyler Kidd’s sister. He could’ve asked Ty—and he actually does have that kind of push.” He jumped off the bed.

She didn’t want to believe that her uncle would do that, but she also didn’t know for sure. Travis anxiously paced the room, and she knew he was hurting. Arguing when she didn’t know all the facts seemed useless at the moment.

Setting her coffee on the nightstand, she patted the bed beside her. “Come lie with me. Keep me warm.”

“I want to, but I need to pack. I’m expected to report tomorrow morning.”

“How long is the drive home?” She sat up straighter, noting that he was not in a flirty mood.

“Roughly four hours.”