Page 124 of Only Be Mine

I wasn’t ready for that.

I curled onto my side and stared at the opposite wall, listening to the quiet settle around me. The warmth of St. Lucia felt impossibly far away. The ocean, the laughter, the easy way the days had unfolded - all of it already slipping.

I closed my eyes and tried to hold onto it.

But the house stayed quiet.

And for the first time since we’d landed, I felt the honeymoon ending.

Chapter 44

Cate

Present

Ididn’t leave right away.

I lay there longer than I meant to, curled on my side, staring at the wall while the quiet pressed in. Eventually, the stillness grew uncomfortable - too much space to think, too much room for the past to stretch out and touch me.

I forced myself up and went straight to the kitchen, grabbing a drink from the refrigerator.

The hiss of the Diet Coke opening sounded too loud in the quiet. I took a long drink, leaning back against the counter, letting the cold bite ground me.

That was when I noticed my phone.

It sat on the counter where I’d dropped it earlier, dark and silent.

I frowned, realizing I hadn’t turned it back on yet.

I’d powered it down before the wedding, promising myself I’d deal with everything else later. Somewhere between flights, unpacking, and collapsing into bed, I’d forgotten. Or maybe I hadn’t forgotten at all.

I picked it up and turned it over in my hands, hesitating.

Then I pressed the button.

The screen lit up.

And almost immediately, it began to buzz.

Once.

Again.

Then again.

My chest tightened as notifications stacked faster than I could process them. Missed calls, voicemails, text previews blinking insistently across the screen.

Something was wrong.

I tapped the voicemail icon without sitting down.

“Ms. Larkin,” a man’s voice said, calm and professional. “This is Detective Marshal. I’m calling because we’ve located John Rosewood, and we’re confident it’s him this time.”

The can slipped from my hand.

It hit the floor and rolled, soda spilling across the tile, dark and sticky. I barely noticed.

“…there are some unusual circumstances,” the detective continued. “I’ve spoken with Seth Peterson, who helped us confirm the identification. I understand you’ve been out of town. When you get this message, please call me as soon as possible.”