Page 47 of Chasing the Dream

“You said that before.”

“It’s true, but maybe you’re the one who’s scared.”

Then she turned and walked away, leaving him to show himself to the door.

Chapter 15

The two-hour drive from Scottsdale to Flagstaff was breathtaking. Gabe was driving, and Maria had insisted that Morgan ride up front. She’d argued at first, but it was difficult to win an argument against Maria, so she’d given in. The three of them chatted amicably while Morgan gazed out the window at the gorgeous scenery.

“I can’t believe how much the terrain has changed since we left,” she said. Scottsdale was flat, dry, and teeming with cacti. Now they were in the mountains, and the highway was lined with dense green forests that reminded her of home. They’d spotted elk, a bald eagle, and a herd of antelope, and she was in awe.

“Roll down your window and notice what else has changed,” Gabe said.

She did, and a blast of cool, pine-scented air whipped through the car. She quickly rolled the window back up and hugged herself. The weekend forecast called for temperatures in the fifties compared to the seventies in Scottsdale.

“Brrr.”

Maria laughed from the back seat. “I told you we needed sweatshirts.”

“You two are wimps,” Gabe teased.

Morgan glanced over at him. He’d worn shorts, a T-shirt, and flip-flops while she and Maria were fully covered from head to toe.

“At least Mom and Dad have a hot tub,” Maria said.

Morgan had a flashback to the last time she’d been in her bathing suit with Gabe, and her face flushed at the memory. She’d told Maria that they’d gone swimming, but she hadn’t told her the rest. How they’d played “keep away” and ended up in each other’s arms. Nothing else had happened, but she’d thought about it, and she suspected he had too.

She averted her attention back out the window, but she sensed Gabe’s gaze upon her.

“So, tonight we’ll hang out with Mom and Dad, but tomorrow we should get up early and go hiking. Then—”

Gabe interrupted his sister. “You don’t have to map out every second of every day. This isn’t Girl Scout camp.”

Morgan laughed. “Remember when we all went camping that one time?”

Years ago, the Matthews family had been invited to go camping with some friends of theirs. Their friends had owned a camper, but the Matthews hadn’t, so they’d had to “rough it.” They’d bought two tents: one for the parents and one for the “kids.” Morgan had slept sandwiched between Maria and Gabe for three nights, and she’d loved every minute of it. Well, except for the hard ground, mosquitos, and lack of proper facilities. Of course, she’d been able to overlook those inconveniences in favor of being in such close quarters with Gabe.

“Yeah. That was pretty miserable, as I recall,” Gabe said.

“Poor baby. No television, no football games, and no pretty girls. Plus, you had to share a tent with us,” Maria teased.

Morgan ventured a glance at Gabe, but he kept his eyes on the road. She noticed the corner of his lips twitch, though.

“You think you had it bad? We had to deal with your snoring and farting!” Maria continued.

“I don’t snore!”

“Notice he didn’t deny the other part?”

Morgan laughed even though she couldn’t recall him doing either, and she would have noticed because she was awake a lot of the time. It had been hard to get to sleep with him lying next to her. He’d slept with his back to her, which had allowed her to admire his thick, dark hair that curled up at his neck, his broad shoulders, and the outline of his fit body beneath the blanket. He’d been so close she could have easily reached out and touched him, and a couple of times, when he’d been breathing deeply, she almost had. If he’d caught her, she would have pretended it was an accident, but she’d contented herself with the thought that he was as close to her as he’d ever been. It was bittersweet too, knowing that was as close as they’d probably ever be.

“I’m a quiet sleeper, unlike you, who moans and talks in your sleep,” Gabe said.

Morgan enjoyed their playful banter, knowing it was born of being siblings, something she’d never experienced. Her mother had had complications during childbirth and hadn’t been able to have more children. When Morgan was older, her parents had talked about how painful that had been, and she understood. She would have loved to have a brother, sister, or both. After becoming close to Maria and her family, she’d started to think of Gabe and Maria as the siblings she’d never had. However, it hadn’t taken long before she’d stopped thinking of Gabe as a brother.

“Oh, Channing. You’re so dreamy. I love the way you dance. Shake it for me, Channing!”

Morgan laughed and glanced at Maria in the back seat. “You did go through that Channing Tatum phase.”