Page 80 of A Whole New Trick

My agent lowers himself back into his seat. “Not at all.”

I lift a curious brow but don’t ask what the two have to discuss. If it involves me, Henry will fill me in later.

I leave the two men to their secret conversation and close the office door behind me.

There’s one thing I need to do before joining my team, and that’s find Morgan. We need to talk about what happened. I need to make sure she’s okay and make sure she didn’t believe any of the foul words her ex spewed about me. I need her to know I’m all in this relationship.

I should’ve told her sooner, but we haven’t been together long. I didn’t want to scare her off. But if the alternative is her doubting that I’m invested, then I’ve got to tell her.

Luckily, Morgan is waiting outside the coach’s wing in the facility.

She pushes off the wall and straightens when I walk through the door. Remorse floods her beautiful features. “I am so sorry, Dane.”

“You have nothing to be sorry for.” I close the distance between us and wrap her in a hug. “You didn’t do anything.”

Her hands land on my hips, and she buries her face in my chest. “Yes, I did. I shouldn’t have stopped to talk to him.” Her voice is muffled, and she shakes her head. “He’s such an asshole. I knew he was up to something. I shouldn’t have given him the time of day.”

I run a hand over the hair hanging down her back. “You didn’t do anything,” I repeat.

“What happened in there?” She leans back. I’m gutted to see tears in her eyes. “You’re suspended, aren’t you?”

“Only for one game,” my voice is soft. I cup her face and stroke her cheek with my thumb. The need to console her is so visceral it makes it hard to breathe. “It’s going to be fine, Morgan. Don’t worry.”

“How can I not worry?” A tear rolls down her cheek. I wish I could punch Aaron again for making my girl cry. “This could ruin your chances of winning the Stanley Cup. I’ll never forgive myself if I’m the reason you don’t achieve your dream.”

Understanding dawns, and my heart squeezes in my chest. Morgan isn’t upset because of her ex but because she’s worried about me. This strong, brilliant woman is so concerned about what will happen to me that it’s brought her to tears.

Words cannot begin to describe how much that affects me. Other than family, I’ve never had someone care about me forme,not what I could do for them.

My relationships have always come with strings, whether it’s notoriety, money, or clout. That’s why I avoided them after Chelsea. But Morgan’s reaction speaks to her goodness. To her selflessness. And it makes me fall for her even harder.

“Morgan,” my voice drops an octave, and I dip my chin to force her to meet my eye. “Please listen to me. I’m a grown man. I’m responsible for my actions, and I’m not sorry for what I did. Not even a little.”

Her bottom lip quivers. “Not even if it means the Ranchers won’t advance to the Conference Finals?”

“That’s not going to happen.”

“But—”

“I said.” I slide my other hand up to cradle her face with both hands. “That’s not going to happen. The team doesn’t need me to win. Even if they don’t win tonight, there are still five more games this round. We’re going to advance. We’re too good not to.”

I see the desire to argue with me in her eyes. It’s motivated by guilt. And affection.

Warmth seeps into my veins.

She huffs a disbelieving laugh. “Why are you smiling?”

Because I’m pretty sure I’m falling in love with you, and I think you might feel the same.

“Because I’m happy,” I say honestly. I dip down and press a gentle kiss to her lips.

I want to do more, but it will have to wait until there’s not a chance Coach Miller will stumble upon us and lose his shit.

I pull back.

She sniffs. “How could you be happy at a time like this?”

“Because I have you.” I kiss her again.

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