Page 54

“I kept it together for years,” he says quietly. “But then… then this Baby Bear came along.”

He tilts his head at me, and I can’t help the smile that tugs at my lips.

“And a whole new layer was added to the mix. Everything shifted,” he whispers. “All the old things—the cracks, the weight, the fear… it started creeping back. Because you made me want more. Made me believe I could have more. And the thought of losing it… of losing you… it terrified me.”

My heart clenches so hard it’s a wonder I’m still breathing.

I shift closer without thinking, brushing my fingertips along the side of his hand. His eyes finally meet mine, and I see the truth in them. The ache. The hope.

“Rhett,” I whisper.

He swallows. “Come here,” he says softly.

I scoot closer, but he shakes his head. He tugs on my hand until I stand up, and then he pulls me down into his lap. I hover above him. “I don’t want to hurt you,” I whisper.

“You couldn’t,” he says, guiding me down the rest of the way.

“But I already did.” My voice cracks .

“Cub…”

“About the Titans job,” I say, swallowing. “I interviewed for it when we were in New York. Before you and I were ever really…”

Rhett’s thumb brushes across my knuckles, exhaling.

“I had no idea I would ever get it. Obviously, I hoped, but I knew there were a lot more men out there with a lot more experience than me?—”

“That only know half of what you do.”

“Regardless,” I say, “that same night, everything happened with your parents, and then with you and me… Weeks went by. Months. I only got the offer last week, the day we left for Chicago. The morning I saw…”

“The text from Lauren,” Rhett sighs.

I nod. “I completely freaked out.”

“Which completely made sense,” he says.

My lips twist to the side. “Anyway… I would’ve talked to you about it. I wouldn’t have just left.”

The fire’s almost burned down to embers when he finally speaks again.

“There’s nothing to talk about,” Rhett says quietly, voice rough.

I turn my head, brows pulling together. “What?”

His eyes stay on the flames. “You have to take it. The job. You have to go.”

I shift, my heart thudding. “But…what about you?”

He lets out a soft breath, finally glancing my way. His lips twitch into something between a smile and a wince. “What about me?”

I press my lips together, my throat tight. “What about us?”

That’s when he looks at me fully—reaches out and gently tucks a piece of hair behind my ear, his fingertips trailing against my skin.

“Is there still an us?” he asks softly.

I hold his gaze, the air thick between us, and I shake my head the slightest bit. “I don’t know. Is there?”

His thumb brushes the corner of my jaw. “Do you want there to be?”

I swallow, my stomach flipping. “Are you sure you want there to be?”

His mouth quirks, almost incredulous. “Cub… do you really need to ask me that?”

I look down, blinking. “I don’t know. Just—” I gesture vaguely. “All things considered.”

He tilts his head. “What things?”

I huff out a breath, giving him the barest smirk. “I’m a little high maintenance.”

His brows lift. “Is that so?”

“I can be overbearing.”

He chuckles under his breath. “Debatable.”

“And…” I glance up at him through my lashes. “I’m also kind of a bitch.”

He laughs fully this time, the sound soft and warm. Then he shifts closer, cupping my face in both hands, his thumbs brushing my cheeks.

“You’re not a bitch,” he murmurs, voice low and steady. “You’re just sure of yourself. Which is more than most people can say. You’re not overbearing. You’re passionate. And, baby—anyone who ever called you high maintenance was just lazy.”

I stare at him, the words sinking deep. My throat tightens. My eyes sting.

“Rhett?” I whisper.

“Yeah?” His eyes soften, locked on mine.

“Remember that line?”

His brows crease for a second before it clicks. His voice goes gentle. “The one between love and hate?”

I nod. “Yeah. ”

“What about it?” he asks quietly.

I swallow, my voice catching. “I think I forgot about it. I’m so far past it I can’t even see it anymore.”

Something shifts in his expression. His hands frame my face more firmly. “What does that mean?”

I exhale, my lips parting on the words I’ve never said before. “I love you.”

His breath hitches. And then he’s kissing me, deep and unhurried, like the world’s stopped spinning.

“I love you too,” he whispers against my mouth. “You know that, don’t you?”

I nod, my forehead resting against his. “Yeah. I know. I think I’ve known for a long time.”

We sit like that for a moment, caught in the warmth, the nearness.

“I don’t want to let you go,” he says softly. “But I have to. You have to take that job, Cub. I’ll kill you if you don’t.”

I let out a shaky laugh, wiping under my eyes. “What a melodramatic love story that would be.”

“Is it really our love story if there isn’t drama?”

I shake my head. Rhett grins faintly.

“I wish I could come with you,” he exhales.

I smile, even as my heart aches. “I wish you could too” I whisper.

He raises an eyebrow. “I could quit. Tear my contract in two.”

I laugh through my nose. “No, you can’t.”

“Why not?” he presses, still teasing.

“Because then I would have to kill you ,” I say, my voice soft. “If my dad doesn’t beat me to it first.”

Rhett smirks. “He’d get over it.”

“But I wouldn’t,” I tell him gently. “And neither would you. And neither would Bennett. ”

The smirk fades. He exhales through his nose, nodding, something heavy in his eyes.

“Wiz can be captain,” he murmurs. “Honestly, he should be?—”

“But he isn’t,” I say quietly. “You are.”

For a long moment, neither of us speaks. The only sound is the crackle of the fire.

Finally, he lets out a slow breath. “Fine.”

He pushes to his feet carefully, wincing a little as he shifts his brace. “Get up.”

“Why?” I ask, standing, confused.

He mutters under his breath, “Aw, shit, forgot I can’t kneel.”

I laugh despite myself. “Why would you need to?—?”

Before I can finish, he sits back down on the couch, pulling me gently toward him. He takes my left hand, my breath catching as he slides my ring free, cradling it between his fingers.

“Caroline Barrett,” he murmurs, his eyes steady on mine.

“Yes?” I breathe, my heart in my throat.

“Will you stay married to me?” he asks. “This time because you want to.”

I blink, my lips parting. “Rhett?—”

“Marry me,” he says again, firmer. “Because I want to long-distance date you while you follow your dreams. I want to cheer you on every step of the way. I know you don’t need me there. I know you can do it on your own. But I want you to want me. Because, God, Cub—do I want you.”

He swallows, voice thick. “Through every storm. Every stretch of time and distance. A few years of chaos is nothing in the grand scheme of forever. And I want forever with you. All of it. Let people think what they want. Let them talk. All I care about is you.”

Tears fill my eyes, my throat closing tight.

“Yes,” I whisper, my voice breaking. “ Rhett, yes.”

The smile that spreads across his face is everything.

He pulls me to him and kisses me, long and deep, the kind that feels like it could stitch broken pieces back together.

And when we move into the bedroom, slow and careful and gentle, every last doubt I’ve ever had dissolves.

Because this is the truth.

This is the real thing.

And when we fall asleep tangled in each other, I can’t help but think:

We’ve crossed that line now.

And there’s no going back.