Page 25 of Breakaway Goals
When Bram finally lost, chucking his controller onto the bed in frustration, Morgan was laughing, as relaxed as Hayes had seen him since the tournament had started.
“How did you get so damned good at this?” Bram whined.
“You guys forget I’ve got a sixteen-year-old son?”
“HowisFinn?” someone asked.
“Good. Good. I’ve been trying to get him into the juniors draft, but he keeps saying he wants to do the program and then a few years of college.” Morgan made a frustrated noise and ran a hand through his hair. “You know how they are, always wanting to pave their own path.”
“If he wants to be smart, let him be smart,” Danny teased. “He’s gonna be smarter than you, at any rate.”
“Not that hard for him to get there,” Morgan said, smiling even as he ducked his head.
A few minutes later the party broke up, and Hayes found himself on the way back to his room with Morgan.
Hayes pointed out, trying not to stammer with nerves, wondering what was happening—ifanythingwould happen, that the elevator to Morgan’s floor was the opposite direction.
“Shush, now you’re gonna make me feel even worse,” Morgan joked, knocking their shoulders together. “I wanted to tell you something.”
Hayes’ breath caught in his throat. Tried not to gaze up at Morgan with that same hero-struck expression he knew he wore around him so much of the fucking time. Wasn’t quite sure he pulled it off.
“What is it?”
Morgan chuckled. “Just something I talked about with Danny today. You know he . . .” He paused awkwardly. “I thought you should know that he’s uh . . .guessed about you.”
“Oh.Oh.” This was not even in the realm of what Hayes had expected him to say.
They stopped in front of Hayes’ door. Hayes shoved his hands into the pockets of his sweatpants, feeling for his key. Dug the edges of the plastic card into his palm and tried to calm his breathing.
This wasn’t Morgan saying anything specifically. This was only Morgan trying to be a good teammate. A goodcaptain.Keeping him informed and all that jazz.
“I didn’t confirm anything,” Morgan said seriously. “I just thought you should be aware.”
“Okay. Um. I don’t mind. I kind of assumed he’d guessed. With the whole secret crush thing. And there was a lot of talk in the program.” He’d been kind of an open secret there. A lot of guys were, including Zach, even though he’d ended up going to college instead of staying in.
“Right. Well.” Morgan lingered, even though it was clear he didn’t really have a reason to.
Hayes wanted to invite him in, but he didn’t know what they’d even do—besides the obvious, and he wasn’t even sure if Morgan wanted that. He looked more awkward than turned on right now, if he was being honest.
“I really don’t mind, but I appreciate you telling me,” Hayes said, reaching out and squeezing Morgan’s forearm, and didn’t let go even though he knew he should. “Danny’s more circumspect than he seems, at the outset.”
“I hope so,” Morgan said under his breath.
“He’s probably suspected about me for years, and it’s not like he’s outed me in that time,” Hayes reassured.
“I just . . .I worried.” Morganlookedworried. Conflicted, even, a crease between his brows that Hayes wanted to lean in and smooth out with his fingertips.
“You don’t need to worry about me. I’m a big boy. I can take care of myself.”
Morgan’s gaze flicked up and down, and Hayes went cold and then very hot. He hadn’t reallymeantto flirt this time. Not late at night, because even in the fluorescent light of the quiet hotel hallway, the air between them felt intimate. Private.
“Believe me, I know,” Morgan said softly.
If Hayes wasn’t knee-deep in some kind of fantasy-fulfillment right now, he might think Morgan swayed an inch or two closer. At the very least, he should stop touching Morgan. It had gone on way longer than it already should’ve, but instead, he curled his fingers around his forearm.
There was a thick layer of sweatshirt between his skin and Morgan’s, but just like in that empty hallway during the second intermission against Sweden, it felt like nothing.
Like Hayes could already feel him.
