'God, you're really beautiful. You know that, right?'
Taylor can see the blush rise on her cheeks, a shy smile spreading across her face.
She was currently curled up in her bed in LA, FaceTiming Travis. It was late, but this had become their thing: with busy careers, they called each other when they could, and the conversations usually lasted into the early morning.
Plus, Taylor had vowed to herself to not let whatever this was between her and Travis - it had only been a couple of weeks, anyway - interfere in any way with Matilda. She deliberately didn't look at her phone when Tilly was awake, not wanting to be distracted from caring for her daughter in favour of a guy - who she wasn't sure was always going to be there, despite what her heart hoped.
Taylor had quickly realised that while Travis was fun, caring, kind; she had to try to be- at least slightly- hesitant to jump fully into this. She had been burned, badly, by her relationship with Joe, and she needed time for them to get to know each other properly before committing 100%. And, in her mind, that equated to keeping the Travis part of her life and the Matilda part of her life separate from each other.
She had told Travis about her, her baby girl - gushed frequently about her even, and he seemed like he liked to hear about her. He told her many times that he loved the way Taylor's eyes light up when talking about her daughter, how cute she was, how he couldn't wait to meet her. But he'd understood, too, that she needed time to trust him fully with her. Past experience had taught her that much.
Tomorrow night was the last of her run of shows in LA, the last in the US for this year. Travis was just finishing up training camp, and had a free couple of days before work properly started again, and so they were planning on him flying down to see her again, catch her concert before he has to go back.
In the three and a half weeks since the first text, they'd seen each other in person twice: once in New York, for their first date at Zero Bond; and once in Kansas City, when Taylor had made a pit stop on her way to her shows in Seattle to visit him at his home.
When she'd suggested it, Travis had been shocked that she would take time out of her busy schedule to visit him in KC, but welcomed her with open arms. It had been far less formal than their first date - a home cooked dinner (he was surprisingly good at the grill), wine and dessert, followed by a movie and popcorn, with some cuddling thrown into the mix.
It had felt comfortable and safe, exhilarating and refreshing at the same time, and Taylor marvelled at how a man who had known her for only a matter of weeks always seemed to know exactly what she needed. She'd stayed over that night, too, in his guest room, and made them both waffles the next morning for breakfast. The easy domesticity of it had made her heart flutter, imaging many more mornings just like that one.
Aside from meeting in person, they'd spent many hours since online: texting, FaceTiming, calling each other. It was another way Taylor was guarding her heart - getting to know Travis with a little distance, because she knew that when she spent time with him in person it would be all too easy to fall head over heels.
Now, she blushes, responding, 'What made you say that?'
'I was just watching you talk, and I wanted you to know. You do know how beautiful you are, right?'
A shy smile on her lips, she says, 'You're a charmer, Kelce'.
He laughs, a loud belly guffaw that makes her laugh too, and she loves how easy it is for him to make her smile, the happiness that radiates from him easily spreading to those around him. He'd told her about an old coach of his, who'd told him he could either be a fountain or a drain in life - and she didn't think there was a better description of Travis than a fountain of pure joy.
