Page 232 of Only Be Mine

John’s ring.

The metal caught the light.

Heavy.

Solid.

Proof.

I slipped it into the pocket of my jeans.

Whatever happened, I would not leave it behind.

When I went back downstairs, Trevor glanced up.

His eyes swept over me, assessing.

“You okay?” he asked.

“Yes.”

He watched a moment longer, then nodded. “Good,” he said, and turned back to his screen.

He thought the storm had passed.

He thought I’d chosen him.

He didn’t understand that I had chosen something else entirely.

Time.

And if I was going to survive this, I would need every second of it.

Chapter 78

Cate

Present

Ifolded laundry on the couch because that was something normal wives did. Something non-threatening.

Domestic.

Predictable.

The television played softly in the background, volume low enough that I could still hear the faint click of Trevor’s keyboard down the hall.

Every sound registered.

Every pause.

Every shift of his chair.

My phone rested face up on the coffee table.

Unhidden.

That was the point.