Page 56 of Chasing the Dream

Heaven, she thought as she tipped her head back. I’ve died and gone to heaven.

Before she knew it, an orgasm racked her body, and she might have shouted his name if his sister hadn’t been in the next room. He gripped her hips and held her in place until her muscles went slack. Then he gently picked her up and carried her to his bed.

“Can you imagine living in a place like this?” Maria asked, jolting Morgan back to the present.

They were standing in front of one of the cliff dwellings, having descended even further into the canyon while she’d been busy revisiting last night’s fantasy.

“Nowhere to plug in your curling iron,” Gabe quipped as he stepped into one of the dwellings. He was so tall and the ceiling so short that he had to duck his head in spots.

Morgan pushed away her naughty thoughts and tried to refocus on her surroundings. In the meantime, the temperature had risen, and the sun was out in force. Gabe had been right. By the time they started to retrace their steps to the rim of the canyon, she no longer needed his sweatshirt, though she was loath to part with it.

When they stopped to rest, she removed it and held it out to him.

“It looked better on you,” he said with a smile.

They climbed some more, and the next time they stopped, she removed her own sweatshirt. She hadn’t realized he was watching, until she’d tied it around her waist and glanced up to see him staring at her. Then he shook his head and turned away to look out at the vista.

“Picture time,” Maria sang. Of the three of them, she had the most energy. It stood to reason though, since Morgan and Gabe hadn’t slept well.

“You’ve taken a zillion pictures already,” he complained.

“I have to. We’re making memories, and who knows when Morgan will be back to visit us?”

Morgan’s face fell at the reminder. She’d been having so much fun that she’d forgotten this wasn’t permanent. It was just an escape. A temporary respite from her real life back in Michigan. An escape into the fantasy world she’d created where she and Gabe were together and Maria didn’t mind. A fantasy that had no possibility of becoming a reality.

“Stand closer together, you two,” Maria demanded. “Act like you like each other.”

“So bossy,” Gabe said, but he moved closer to Morgan and slung his arm around her shoulder.

Morgan plastered on a smile, but Maria wasn’t buying it.

“What’s wrong with you two? You look like you’re in pain.”

“You’re the pain,” Gabe snapped.

“Look at each other and smile. At least pretend to like each other.”

They turned toward each other, and when their eyes met, there was no pretending. Morgan got lost in his eyes, ignoring Maria as she snapped the pictures. Instead, she studied him closely, noting every nuance of his handsome face and his expression, and what she saw there took her breath away.

In that moment, she saw everything in stark relief, and she knew. The question was: did he?

Chapter 18

After they’d returned from hiking, Gabe stayed with his parents while Maria and Morgan went out for lunch and shopping. He’d made an excuse that he didn’t want to be the guy carrying their bags and listening in on their girl talk. In truth, he’d been enjoying hanging out with Morgan and his sister, but he needed a break.

It was becoming increasingly difficult to spend time with Morgan and not want to touch her, be with her. He feared he was giving himself away every time she looked into his eyes, and it was especially challenging with Maria and his parents as witnesses.

He thought he’d made the right choice until he sat down to lunch with Brenda and Cal.

“I just love having the three of you here,” his mom gushed. “It reminds me of the old days.”

“It wasn’t that long ago, Mom.”

“It feels like it sometimes.”

He nodded because, in some ways, it did.

“I wonder if Morgan is dating anybody right now?”