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4. Retire from the military.
This would make everyone happy. Avery would see him. He’d move up in his career just like his father had. And Holden? He wasn’t sure how that might feel. He wasn’t sure he wanted to know, either.
Shaking his head, Holden pulled up Avery’s social media profile page as he considered his list again. He hadn’t technically told Avery about his plan, least of all her involvement in it. Their arrangement had been established so neither of them had to commit, after all. But after so many years, the terms of their agreement had to change—God knew everything else had.
He wasn’t in college, studying to be an officer anymore. She wasn’t traveling the world, taking photos of far-off countries and selling them to low-rate travel journals anymore, either. They were both professional adults, and their arrangement ought to reflect that, too.
But growing up and facing commitment? That had never been Avery’s strong suit.
He scrolled down the page to see the posts she’d made this month. Just like Avery herself, they were erratic and memorable. In a photo posted the week before, she was posing beside a police officer with his hat on her head and her tongue sticking out for the camera. In another, she and her friend Myla were laying on the beach at sunset, both with cocktails in their hands. Then, in a third photo, she was side-by-side with a tall, muscular man, and she was on her tiptoes, giving him a kiss on the cheek.
Holden swallowed. This, too, wasn’t so unusual for Avery’s feed. Her Instagram and Snapchat were regularly filled with the flavor-of-the-week guys she kept around. After the latest post—complete with her wearing a fireman’s hat—he’d chosen to unfollow her altogether.
Tightening his jaw, he clicked to the next post. Her last update was from two days ago—a photo of the cat he’d gotten for her on his last visit. He smiled at the little gray ball of fluff, remembering how much its green eyes had reminded him of Avery’s when he’d first seen it. And then his smile broadened as he remembered Avery’s reaction when he’d brought the cat back to her apartment.
“A cat?” She blinked, then moved toward the carrier. It hissed at her, and she took a step back.
Holden nodded. “I rescued him. At the shelter, they said he was found in an alley outside a shoe store. Seemed like the perfect pet for you.”
“Because he’s a stray?” She smiled, her full lips tilting thoughtfully.
“No, because he’s a tough nut to crack. But if you give him some space…” Holden opened the carrier, and the cat stalked out, walking a little figure eight around Avery’s ankles before finally rubbing his cheek against her foot and then rolling over to show her his belly.
“He’s just a little softy,” Holden finished, and he watched as she leaned down to rub the cat’s stomach.
There was a long silence as she petted the cat, considering him. “What should I call him?”
“Up to you,” Holden answered.
“Hmm…” She scratched behind the animal’s ears. “He looks like a Rodrigo.”
“Rodrigo it is.”
Ever since then, she and Rodrigo had been inseparable. When she sent letters to him while he was away on tour, she even occasionally enclosed photos of the cat. It was the only thing he’d ever seen her look at that way—with full, warm softness behind her eyes. With love. With vulnerability.
He didn’t know how many times he’d thought of that moment. Maybe a thousand. Even with all the times he’d had her naked in his arms, even with all the times he’d felt her lips—and more—against his skin, there was something about that moment that always stuck with him. That made him wish he’d taken her in his arms and forced her to promise she’d stay with him. Then at least he wouldn’t have spent his nights wondering what he’d do when he saw her again, and when exactly that might be.
His computer pinged and the message screen blinked red until Holden finally clicked on it.
Tom Morris: Does Avery know about these plans?
Holden Morris: Not yet, but I’m not worried. I’ve thought everything out carefully.
Tom Morris: Well, whatever you’ve got planned, be prepared to make some alterations. I just got off the phone with Mom and she’s on the warpath.
Holden Morris: What about?
Tom Morris: She thinks you should have stayed in Maryland and had “that woman” come back home to see you. She’s threatening to go there and see you herself.
Holden Morris: She’s bluffing. You know how she gets.
Tom Morris: That I do.
Holden closed his computer and stared at the seat in front of him.
Right now, he didn’t have time to worry about his mother’s empty threats. The only thing on his mind was wooing Avery Forrester. Once he’d finished knocking down all the carefully constructed walls around her heart, he’d prove that he was the man for her. No more friends with benefits. No more relationship of convenience.
She was part of his plan, and he was going to make sure she knew it—commitment and all.
