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banner on it advertising free wellness checkups.
    “OK.”
    “The person who runs it is Penelope Winterbourne. She’s a doctor…”
    “Your high school sweetheart.” Morgan bit her lip. Seth’s jaw had tensed, his brows furrowed. A feeling of melancholy suddenly washed over her. She didn’t want to hear what he was about to say.
    “We dated in high school and through college.”
    “So what happened?”
    “When I went pro, Penny and I split up for good. Fame was too high a price for her. She said if she stayed she would always be in my shadow. That nothing she would accomplish as a doctor would mean anything because she would be the quarterback’s wife.”
    “How did you feel about her leaving you?”
    “She made her decision. I went on with my life. It’s all in the past.”
    Morgan’s heart sank. “Why do I get the feeling it’s not that simple? She dumped you and you gave her money to help her dream come true. That doesn’t sound like the past to me. It sounds more like the future deferred.”
    Seth clenched his jaw. “The clinic was a good cause. I knew it meant a lot to the community.”
    “It meant a lot to Penny. You sprang into action to help her because you still have feelings for her.”
    “No. Penny meant a lot to me at one time—”
    “You didn’t want to talk about her when Tate mentioned her the other night.”
    “No, I was more focused on having a pleasant evening with my wife.”
    “Yeah, but—”
    “We both had a past before we found each other. I don’t want to look back. I want to move forward. With you.”
    “Your past is filled with glamorous women and a high school sweetheart that you helped to start a clinic. Maybe if mine were more colorful this wouldn’t be an issue.”
    The ride came to a stop. The attendant asked if they wanted to go again but Morgan blurted out, “No,” and tried to climb over Seth to get out of the seat.
    “Want to get something to eat?” Seth helped her climb down.
    “No. I want to be alone for a little while. I’ll meet you at Tate’s concert.” Morgan started to walk away.
    “I’m not letting you wander around by yourself.” He reached for her arm.
    “I’m a big girl. I think I can manage my way around a fair ground.” She tried to get out of his grasp.
    Seth didn’t let go. “I’m not going to let you out of my sight.”
    “Can you just give me some time to myself?” Morgan reached up and pried his hand off her arm. She didn’t want him to touch her or for her to get roped into hearing him explain his actions to help Penny. Right now she just wanted to work through the waves of anger rolling through her.
    “Morgan.” He reluctantly let her go.
    “I’ll see you later.” Morgan disappeared into the crowd.
     
    * * *
     
     
    Seth called Tate and told him to look out for her, so Tate was able to catch up with her by the tilt-a-whirl. Seth could have made a big deal about it, but he opted to give her the space she said she wanted. Trying to explain about the clinic sounded cut and dry when he said it in his mind, but when the words came out he had no easy defense for giving Penny the money she needed to start the clinic. He was grateful she hadn’t asked how much he’d donated, knowing the amount seemed enormous, but it was just a drop in the bucket to him. Knowing Morgan was in the capable hands of Tate did not ease his mind. He wanted to settle this Penny business once and for all.
    Penny leaving him had nearly killed him. Seeing her every once and a while normally stirred up feelings, both the good and the bad, but he didn’t feel that way today. He felt surprisingly neutral about it all and a little pissed he even had to bring it up to her.
    The last thing he wanted was for the ghost of a dead relationship interfering with his marriage. Seth glanced at his watch, wondering if enough time had passed so Morgan wouldn’t think he was being pushy. He wasn’t good with sitting around stewing about a problem. He was a