Page 191 of Only Be Mine

“No.”

That one wasn’t entirely a lie.

I wasn’t upset.

I was… alert.

He relaxed, just slightly. “I may have overreacted,” he admitted smoothly. “The detective blindsiding you like that… I didn’t like it.”

“It wasn’t a blindside,” I said evenly. “I called him.”

Trevor paused, a tiny, nearly imperceptible pause.

“Right,” he said. “You did.”

He returned to the stove, stirring something slowly.

“I don’t want you thinking I’m trying to control you,” he added lightly. “I’m just trying to protect you.”

There it was again.

Protect.

I walked into the kitchen, leaning casually against the counter.

“I don’t need to be protected from conversations,” I said.

Trevor’s shoulders tightened, only for a second, then he smiled over his shoulder. “That’s fair.”

The word felt placed, like a chess piece.

We ate at the table, wine in our glasses, soft music playing from the speaker in the corner.

It would’ve looked normal from the outside.

Just a married couple having dinner.

Trevor talked about work, about a case he was “handling.”

About logistics.

He always liked logistics.

I listened and I nodded.

And underneath the table, my fingers traced the edge of the ring in my pocket.

It felt warmer now.

Or maybe that was just my skin.

Trevor reached for my hand at one point.

“I hate that this is happening now,” he said. “After everything we’ve built.”

Words that once would have felt comforting, felt different tonight.

“What did we build?” I asked softly.