Page 67 of Awakened Light

“Ready,” Catrain said, and I turned around to see her approaching in the little black bikini I wanted to tear off her.

The full weight of the pain rushed back with a vengeance.

Instead of dropping to my knees and begging her to stay once again, I forced a smile. “Let’s go.”

We paddled out side by side, sitting on our boards as we waited to catch a wave. When she worked her magic to ensure the perfect one approached, I saw the light reignite in her eyes.

“That’s a good one!” She started paddling with it.

“Don’t fall off!” I teased as I paddled beside her.

When the wave reached us, we hopped up onto our boards. Her wet blonde hair trailed behind her as she maneuvered her board on top of the wave. She looked over, and her smile lit up her whole face.

That.

That was why the pain awaiting me when we parted would be worth it.

Having been the one person in her life to bring that smile to her face reminded me why I’d set myself up for a heartbreak greater than any other man had endured.

Catrain would spend the rest of her life trapped on an island married to a man she’d never love, but it would be the memories I gave her that would make her smile in the night. Memories of me. Our kisses. Our laughter. Of the one week she got to be herself.

A week with the man she’d always love.

The wave broke and sent us both toppling forward with it. We emerged together, and her laughter echoed across the water.

“Again?” she said with her eyes lit with excitement.

“Anything to make you smile.”

With my words, her smile grew. We climbed back onto our boards and paddled back out, catching wave after wave until it was time to pack up and go.

Mika arrived and helped us carry our bags to the car. The joy that had been on Catrain’s face all morning while we surfed slipped away as we climbed into the backseat. She stared out the window in silence as we made our way to the airport, the beautiful scenery no longer making her smile.

“You okay?” I asked as we pulled into the airport.

“No.” She shook her head and looked at me. “I’m not. I’m never going to be okay, but it doesn’t change what I have to do.”

I had no words to offer her comfort because I couldn’t find them for myself either. Instead, I just kissed her.

We boarded the jet and settled into our seats, silence the only sound besides the roar of the plane as we took off and left our little paradise behind.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Catrain

THORNE PARKED THE BUGATTI in the garage and pressed his head back into the leather seat. “We’re back.”

My body ached from all the travel, but not as much as my heart did knowing what would happen tonight.

The color in his ring had worn off an hour ago, meaning we had to part before the sun came up in only five hours. Tonight, he would drive me back to the island.

“You want to come in and say goodbye to everyone?” he asked, looking over at me with blue eyes weighted with so much sadness it physically pained me inside.

“I do. Is that okay? Do we have time?”

“As long as we leave in the next hour or so, we’ll have time to take the dirt bike back and...” He drifted off. “Say goodbye.”

Swallowing over the lump in my throat, I nodded.