Page 155 of Only Be Mine

A knock at the door broke the thought.

I didn’t rush to answer it. I didn’t check the window first. I just stood and walked to the door like I’d done a thousand times before my life fractured.

Seth stood on the porch, hands in his jacket pockets, eyes soft with concern when he saw me

“Hey,” he said.

“Hey.”

He stepped inside when I waved him in, glancing around the living room in that quiet way of his, like he was taking inventory without making it obvious.

“You okay?” he asked.

“I think so,” I said. Then, more honestly, “I don’t know.”

He nodded like that answer made sense.

We sat at opposite ends of the couch at first, a careful distance between us.

“I was worried,” he said after a moment. “When you didn’t call.”

“I know. I’m sorry.”

“I’m not mad,” he said quickly. “I just needed to see you. Make sure you were… coping.”

The word settled heavier than he probably intended.

“Everything feels unreal,” I admitted

“Yeah,” he said quietly. “That tracks.”

Silence stretched between us.

“Cate,” he said after a moment, “can I ask you something?”

I nodded.

“Did they tell you what happened?”

My stomach tightened. “What do you mean?”

He held my gaze. “How John died.”

There it was. The question I’d been circling without touching.

“No,” I said slowly. “They didn’t.”

His jaw tightened, subtle but visible.

“Okay,” he said. “I wanted to be sure.”

“Trevor said it would just make things harder,” I added, staring at my hands.

“It would,” Seth agreed carefully. “If you weren’t ready.”

I looked up at him. “Do you think I am?”

“That’s not for me to decide.”