Chapter 43

Chapter

Forty-Three

As I makemy way back to our station, still buzzing with the thrill of our plans and the vision of our future bakery, I spot Morgan moving through the crowd toward me. His face is taut, his usual warmth replaced by a strained expression that instantly sends a ripple of worry through me.

"Tomas filled me in," he starts, his voice carrying a weight that immediately sets my heart racing.

I blink, confused. "Filled you in on what?"

He offers a tight smile, one that doesn"t reach his eyes. "His offer. It sounds like an incredible opportunity. Congratulations."

The word hangs in the air between us, heavy and uninvited. "Oh, yeah, it was completely unexpected. I thought that plan was dead in the water," I say, trying to keep my voice steady.

But Morgan cuts me off, his voice firm. "You should take it. It"s clear it"s a good move for you."

His words, meant to be supportive, feel oddly like a dismissal. I stare at him, trying to decipher the underlying currents of this conversation, the reason behind his guarded facade.

The distance suddenly stretches out between us.

"Why are you pushing this? Why are you pushing me away?"

He looks away, his jaw clenched. "Because it"s what"s best for you. And this..." He gestures vaguely between us. "It was never going to work. We were just having fun, weren"t we?"

Morgan"s words strike like a cold splash of water, and I reel from the impact. "Just having fun?" I repeat, my voice rising slightly in disbelief. "Is that really what you think this was?"

He meets my gaze, his eyes hardened, a barricade rising between us. "Claire, let"s be realistic. You have ambitions, and this offer... it"s everything you"ve been working towards."

"But it"s not," I insist, my frustration growing as I try to bridge the gap his words have created. "Morgan, you"re misunderstanding. I don"t want the offer. I—I was actually thinking of something else. With Eliza?—"

Morgan shakes his head, cutting me off again. "Don't. Don't give up anything for me." His voice is resolute, as if he"s already decided what my answer should be.

My heart pounds painfully against my ribs. "You"re not even listening to me," I say, a note of desperation creeping into my voice. "I don"t want to be with Tomas, not in business, not in any way. Why can"t you see that?"

He steps back, a gesture that feels like a widening chasm. "Because I don"t want to stand in the way of your dreams, Claire. Tomas's deal could give you what I can't."

It"s as if he"s speaking from behind a veil of stubborn resolve, determined to protect me from a threat that doesn"t exist. "Morgan, you"re my dream," I admit, the words spilling out raw and honest. "Everything I envision, everything I want... it includes you."

But he just shakes his head, his expression pained. "I can"t be the reason you give up a sure thing for a what-if. You need to think about your future, Claire."

His insistence feels like a dismissal, a severing of the fragile thread that had started to weave our lives together. My attempts to explain, to make him understand, falter against his resolve.

"Fine," I say finally, the word hollow between us. "If you really believe that pushing me away is for the best... then I guess there"s nothing more to say."

Morgan"s face tightens, and for a moment, I think he might argue, might pull me back, and tell me to ignore everything he"s just said. But he doesn"t. Instead, he nods, a curt, final gesture that feels like a door closing.

As he turns and walks away, a part of me wants to call out, to break through the stubborn shield he"s put up. But the words stick in my throat. Instead, I watch him disappear into the crowd.