Page 127 of Sweet Heart

“Do you remember Alex?”

“Your ex from med school?”

She flinches slightly but nods.

“Yes. She… she transferred to Inova. She showed up last week, during rotations. I swear to God, Maria, I didn’t know she was coming. I went to Daniel about it, and apparently, I missed a memo during the—well, I missed it, and suddenly, there she was.”

“O…kay,” I stammer, uncertain of how this makes me feel. “And you didn’t… know how to tell me?”

She nods, and her face instantly flushes. She curls her fingers tighter around mine, but she doesn’t look away.

“Yes, I’m sorry about that, amor. I felt ambushed and overwhelmed.”

“Because you still have feelings for her?”

“No. No! Not like that.”

“Then like what, Cat?”

I squeeze her back softly and tilt my head. I am not asking her to reassure me, but asking her to understand. She visibly relaxes, and she allows herself a brief moment to close her eyes and take a deep breath.

“When I saw her, I instantly felt small again. It was how she used to make me feel when we were dating.”

It feels like a hand wraps around my throat, constricting my breathing. The edges of my sight fray as Cat’s face comes into razor-sharp focus.

“Small?”

Cat nods, and I feel the heat in my chest, my blood boiling under the surface. I know most people see an ice queen when they look at her, but Katherina is one of the most sensitive people I know. She feels everything with an intensity that would freak out nearly anyone. It is easy to abuse that when you know where to poke.

“Small how?”

“The way she says things, criticizes me, it’s… it wasn’t healthy. And for a second, I felt like I was thrown back into those moments.”

I nod slowly. It’s a totally human response, one that I understand very well.

“Thank you for telling me, baby.” I bring her hands to my lips and kiss them. “How do you feel now? Is there anything—”

She shakes her head once, so sharply that I instantly grow quiet.

“I put a stop to it,” she replies as her jaw ticks once again.

“A stop to it?”

My stomach feels like it’s falling again, for entirely different reasons. I move a little closer to her, boring my eyes into her brown ones.

“She tried to… to…”

“Kiss you…” I whisper as I pull back.

Cat’s fingers wrap around my wrist instantly. Her eyes flash, but not with the shame or guilt that I expected to see. No. There is a glint of determination in them, just as there is in the way she is holding me.

“She tried, but I pushed her away before she could. I warned her I will go to HR if she ever tries anything like that again. Maria, all I could think about was you.” Her nostrils flare with the jolt of anger that shoots through her. “She won’t tarnish this, us. I won’t let her.”

The question of whether she wanted to kiss her back dies before it even reaches my lips. She just answered it. She just answered all of it. I lunge forward, holding her face between my hands, and kiss her hard. All my love for her pours into this moment.

She gasps in surprise, but her hands land on my hips, holding me firmly in place. When our tongues brush, her fingers dig deeper into me, and I moan inside her mouth. I feel Cat shudder when she slides her hands under me and lays me down in one smooth motion. My leg instantly curls around her as if I want to keep her in place, keep her close to me. You do. Her lips ghost over mine. They feel soft, warm, and inviting. All of Cat feels like that.

“Siempre.”