Page 122 of Only Be Mine

Trevor smiled when he saw it.

“Dance with me?”

I laughed. “Here?”

“Especially here.”

He pulled me close before I could overthink it, one hand settling firmly at my back, the other threading through my fingers. We swayed together beneath the lights, the sand cool under my feet, the world narrowing to the space between us.

“You’re beautiful,” he murmured near my ear.

I smiled, resting my head against his shoulder.

“I forget sometimes,” he continued quietly, “how easy this feels. When it’s just us.”

His thumb brushed slow circles against my spine, grounding and intimate.

“You make everything quieter,” he said. “Better.”

Something inside me softened, warm and dangerous all at once.

“I’m really happy we’re here,” I said.

He kissed my temple, holding me closer.

“Me too. This is exactly where we’re supposed to be.”

I let myself believe it as we moved together, the music carrying us, his voice low and steady in my ear.

On our last night, we sat on the balcony again, the sky streaked with orange and pink as the sun dipped low behind the hills.

“I’m glad we did this,” Trevor said. “Got away. Started fresh.”

I rested my head against his shoulder. “Me too.”

He tilted my chin up, kissing me softly. “This is us now,” he said. Not demanding. Not forceful. Certain. “You and me.”

This time, I didn’t hesitate.

“I know.”

He smiled, satisfied, and wrapped his arm around me as the light faded and the island settled into night.

And for the first time since everything had fallen apart, I let myself believe it.

Chapter 43

Cate

Present

Ihadn’t expected to be so tired.

Two weeks in St. Lucia had been filled with sun and warmth and ease, the kind of days that slipped into one another without edges. But the moment we were back in Denver, the weight of everything settled in. The altitude. The cooler air. The quiet that wasn’t the ocean.

I slept nearly two full days after we got home.

Even when I finally dragged myself out of bed, my limbs felt heavy, my thoughts slow and cotton-soft, like I hadn’t quite caught up to my body yet.