21. George
Chapter twenty-one
George
It isn’t the thunder that wakes me.
It’s the lightning.
I’m a sound sleeper, except when it comes to light. I need it to be pitch black for me to sleep.
So when the first flash of lightning bursts across the sky, I’m wide awake.
I sit up in bed, rolling my shoulders. The rain starts to throw fat drops at my window. I stay where I am, gazing outside with a distinctly moody grimace.
I don’t like being woken up, especially by storms.
That said, I’ve had an eye on the weather forecast. This one shouldn’t be too bad. It will pass quickly.
As I get up to close the curtains and allow myself to get back to sleep, though, I remember.
I had been trimming molding for Lynn’s house last night. I left everything outside, intending to put it away in the morning.
With everything that happened with Catherine, I completely forgot about it.
“Darn it!” I breathe. I race to throw on a shirt and sweats over my boxers.
I grab my keys on my way out the door.
The rain is thundering down full force by the time I reach Lynn’s road. It’s so thick I have to take the familiar drive slowly, because I can’t see enough of my surroundings to know where I am.
When I reach the house, I jump out of the truck and race for everything I left outside.
Only when I get there, the molding and tools are all gone.
Lights glow from inside the house. A figure appears in the doorway and waves at me. I can only see their silhouette.
I bolt up the stairs and enter the house.
Catherine closes the door after me.
Her hair is plastered against her skull, brown eyes wide as she turns to me. She’s shivering.
“I remembered my tools,” I say.
“You c-could have c-called,” Catherine says. Her teeth chatter.
I wince. “I’m used to Lynn’s landline going out in the storms. Let me build a fire in the living room to warm you up.”
Catherine nods. “I’m going to ch-change.”
She heads upstairs and I go to the living room. Soon, I have a small fire crackling in the fireplace. Its heat fills the room.
I hope that Lynn is sleeping. After the last storm, I bought her special noise-canceling sleeping earbuds so she could sleep through the storms.
Lynn is tough and pretends as though the storms don’t bother her. But I’ve seen how nervous she gets when it starts to thunder.
Catherine rejoins me after a bit.
“Thanks for rescuing my tools,” I tell her.
“I remembered you left them outside and couldn’t just leave them.” She holds her hands to the fire but seems to have stopped shivering.
All the same, I eye her worriedly. She had gotten absolutely soaked through! “I hope you don’t get sick on my account.”
Catherine shakes her head. “It doesn’t matter if I do. You see, my new job has amazing health insurance.”
Right.
I stare at the flames, tamping down the disappointment that rises in me.
My construction company doesn’t have what it takes to compete against her other offer.
I am happy for her. She deserves a great job, and with the benefit of working remotely, it’s a great opportunity.
Mostly I’m disappointed in myself. Because I like the idea of us working together.
“When do you start?” I ask.
“I don’t know. I guess I haven’t officially accepted the job… come to think of it,” she frowns, “the boss hasn’t officially made me an offer, either. Huh. That’s my bad. I just assumed.”
“But you had a call,” I say, confused. “They offered it to you.”
Catherine peeks up at me through her lashes. An impish grin appears on her lips.
The effect is intense. It takes my breath away.
“You are so beautiful,” I blurt.
“Thanks. But I assure you I have many other qualities. I’m highly experienced in my field and I’m willing to relocate to Sandburrow permanently.”
I laugh. “You sound like—Oh!”
Catherine bites her lip, a motion that instantly has my pulse racing.
“You mean… you want to work with me? Even though you have that glamorous job offer?” I gape at her, uncertain I’m understanding correctly.
“I do. If the job is still open. If you’ve found someone else—”
“But they can pay you more.”
Catherine shakes her head. “Actually, I looked at your position again. They’re only offering five thousand more a year. Which, yeah, is a lot but when I crunched the numbers on expectations for actual hours, you pay more.”
“I see. But I can’t offer you any sort of progression.” I shake my head at myself. “It’s not that I don’t want you to work for me. I’m thrilled that you do. I just don’t want to take you away from something better.”
Catherine cups my face, her fingers still cool. “George, you are offering me progression. Maybe not in the sense of careers and promotions, but in terms of life. I haven’t had something in my life outside of work for too long.”
Warmth sweeps through me. Outside, the heavy rain has tapered off. The thunder and lightning have grown distant once more.
With the flames crackling lightly and the sense of connection swelling between us, I take her hands in mine.
A long, slow kiss follows. She leans into me, sighing.
I pull her closer. I can’t get enough of her. She’s sweet and warm and heavenly.
With her in my arms, I can’t think of my life without her. The words start to bubble up, but I hold back.
It’s too soon.
“I love you,” Catherine moans into my mouth. “So much.”
“I love you, too.”
We break apart, grinning at each other.
Aw, heck! Who says it’s too early?
“Catherine, will you marry me? For real, and not just pretend?”
Catherine’s eyes widen. “I…”
I let my fingers drift over her cheek. “You are an amazing woman. You’re smart, funny, and full of compassion.”
She lets out a heavy sigh. “I’m not sure about that.”
“I am. Look at you and Katherina. All you were seeing was the years of resentment toward June that leaked over. But you know what I saw? I saw a sister who loved her little sister, who did her best to be there for Katherina, even when she felt like she wasn’t good enough.”
Tears spill over her cheeks. I wipe them carefully. Catherine leans into my hand, laughing and crying all at once.
“I hate to see you cry,” I whisper.
“Don’t worry, these are happy tears.” Catherine laughs. “Does this mean that you’ll give me my ring back?”
“I don’t know. You haven’t given me an official answer.”
She rolls her eyes. “And neither have you. About the job.”
“Huh. So if I say no to the job…?”
“Then I’ll still say yes. But if I say no to your proposal?” she teases.
“I’ll still say yes to the job.”
“That’s settled then. You have a new employee and a fiancé,” Catherine says matter-of-factly. “And I can get my ring back.”
I laugh. “Oh, yes. And you can wear it however you like. But I’m going to buy you a proper engagement ring. With lab-grown gems and a titanium band,” I add, remembering what she said she wanted when I first proposed this fake engagement.
Catherine strokes my cheeks. “Yeah. I’d like that.”
We settle into each other’s embrace, sharing warmth as the last dredges of the storm pass us by.
I can’t believe that we’re here, now. There was so much that came before, such a chasm that it felt like it would be impossible to bridge.
And yet here we are.
“How are we going to explain the new ring to your parents?” Catherine asks.
I shrug. “We’ll think of something.”
A voice comes from the doorway. “I thought I smelled smoke.”
We turn to see Lynn padding toward us. She’s dressed in a nightgown, robe, and fuzzy slippers.
Lynn wags a finger at me. “Now, I don’t mind impromptu sleepovers, but don’t you think this is getting excessive?”
“They’ll be stopping soon, Grandma,” Catherine says.
“Ahhh!” Lynn claps her hands. “I knew it!”
“You knew I’m moving?” Catherine asks innocently.
I give her a dirty look. It’s not fair to tease.
Lynn shrugs. “The new house isn’t far. I’ll still see you all the time.”
“Oh?” I ask.
“Of course. Although I expect you’ll want to get some work done in it before you move.” Lynn takes a seat on the sofa. “Will that be before or after the wedding?”
Catherine and I share a glance.
“You should have known better than to try to trick your grandmother,” I tease.
“You’re right.” Catherine shakes her head. “We’ll have to decide what to do with the house before I move in. It is going to need a lot of work.”
Lynn nods. “You’d best decide what to do sooner rather than later. Otherwise, Edwina will have the whole thing decorated before you can say ‘I do’.”