He shifted, turning them slightly so her back brushed the edge of the sofa.The fire flared, throwing light across their faces.His thumb skimmed her jaw; her pulse beat wild beneath it.
“Cat…” His voice was rough, torn between desire and restraint.
She answered with another kiss—slower, deeper—giving him everything in that moment, surrendering to the need that had become bigger than her.She needed him with her, in her, everywhere.She needed Rhys not just now, but forever.
Suddenly a phone rang, sharp, loud, jarring.They both froze.It rang again, the ringtone unfamiliar to Cat which meant it was Rhys’s phone.
“Livy,” he said, drawing back, breathing hard.He reached across the coffee table for his phone balanced on the corner.“Do you mind if I answer?”
“Of course not,” she said, climbing off his lap, and tugging her cardigan down.
He answered, his tone gentling instantly.“Hello, Livy love.How are you?”
Her chest tightened.She could hear the small, bright voice on the other end.Olivia was clearly happy and her sister’s voice could be heard in the background.
“Just wanted to say goodnight, Daddy,” Olivia said.
“Did you have a good day?”Rhys asked.
“So fun.We did so many things.I even have a little sunburn, but Mum says to tell you not to worry because it’s not very bad.”
As he spoke, Cat watched the change in him—the way his voice warmed, how he straightened, that quiet devotion that made him who he was.And with it came the reminder; he had a life in England that she didn’t have.He had a big career.A family.Responsibilities.Roots.
She rose quietly, giving him privacy, and crossed into the kitchen to look out the window.It must have rained a little earlier as the ground was wet, shining beneath the moonlight.
Rhys joined her in the kitchen when the call ended.
“She sounded happy,” Cat said, still facing the glass.
“She is,” he said.“They both are.”
A long pause.
Then, softly, she asked, “What are we doing, Rhys?”
He didn’t answer right away.He came to stand beside her, close enough that she could feel the warmth of him.
“I don’t know,” he said finally.“But I know it’s not a mistake.”
She turned toward him.“It’s not, and last night wasn’t.But—”
“I know,” he interrupted tersely.“You’re still going back to Michigan.”
“I have things I have to take care of there.My grandmother’s property and her homes.”
“You can’t lease her houses?”
“They are filled with her things still.Her clothes and furniture.”Cat swallowed hard.“And the attics are packed with my parents’ things.She couldn’t bear to part with their personal possessions, and now I have done the same thing.”
“It sounds overwhelming.”
She hesitated, nodded.“And depressing.”Cat looked at him, emotion filling her eyes.“I dread it, to be honest.I’ve spent the past two and a half years avoiding what waits for me, but I can’t avoid it forever.”
“Have you thought about how you will… handle… it all?”
Her shoulders rose and fell.“I just have to do it.That’s all there is to it.”Outside, the rain began again, not a storm this time, just a steady downpour.She looked up at him, her voice quiet but sure.“But that’s not now.That’s not for days.We have a week.”
He met her gaze, something fierce and unspoken there.“Then we don’t waste it.”
