Chapter 46
CHAPTER FORTY-SIX
How was it that I had everything a man in my world could ask for, yet none of it felt more important than the moment I was experiencing right now?
Catalina slept with her head resting against my bicep, her dark curls strewn across my chest, while I lay wide awake beside her. I had no idea what time it was, but with daybreak painting the views beyond her room a shade of pink, I knew it had to be around seven in the morning.
I gently twisted Cat’s hair between my fingers, never wanting to leave this spot. I had the most beautiful homes, but they were just empty shells. They were meaningless if I couldn’t see this woman smile or feel her closeness while I was there.
Before Cat, they were all created to be the perfect refuge for me, a place to escape the noise or to think about my next vision or plan. Now? All I could think about was sharing moments with this woman in my arms.
People would be shocked to know that, despite being what appeared to be the most envied man in Southern California because of a stupid yacht anchored off the coast, I felt like a lost puppy who didn’t want to be alone last night.
Instead, all I wanted was this.
Cat turned toward me, kissed my side, then rolled over and sought comfort from a pillow instead of my arm, which brought me to the next thing I desperately wanted to do after waking up with her in my arms. Attempt breakfast without my chef’s help.
I moved over to kiss the back of her hair, run my hands along the frame of her body, and eased myself out of bed without waking her.
I slid my trousers on, pulled on my white undershirt, and walked out of her bedroom and into the kitchen.
Her balcony windows offered a view of the ocean gently rolling under the pink sky as the sun continued to rise.
Okay. Now, to see what she has in the fridge, or I’ll be shopping for the first time in my adult life for eggs.
The lights flicked on in her fridge as I ducked to see that it was fully stocked. I grinned when I noticed every label faced perfectly forward. Baskets of strawberries sat neatly beside glass containers filled with freshly cut cantaloupe and watermelon.
The damn thing looked organized enough to plan its own event. Then again, this was Cat. Would I really expect anything in her world to be anything less than neat, orderly, and meticulously arranged?
“Good morning,” I heard one of the young women say.
I turned. “Good morning, Amelia,” I smiled. “I was trying to surprise your sister with breakfast.”
She pulled her hair up into a topknot as she walked into the kitchen. “Aren’t you the dream man of the year? First the yacht, and now this?” she said, reaching past me for the orange juice.
“Well, the yacht was easy,” I chuckled, opening cabinets and finding all the labeled glass containers for flour, rice, beans, you fucking name it. “Cooking is something I’m still working on.”
“She mentioned you cooked her breakfast the first morning on the yacht,” Amelia said, putting the orange juice back in the fridge and pulling out the glass container of brown eggs, a jar of whole milk, and cottage cheese, somehow managing to grab the butter as well.
“Jesus Christ,” I said. “How the hell do you manage that?”
“Easy, I’m going to be a mom in five months,” she said, setting everything on the counter next to the stove. “What I’m worried about is managing all of this while holding a kid in one arm.”
I chuckled. “Cat said you’re going to have a baby girl,” I said. “You must be delighted.”
“I am,” she smiled at me. “I’ll have a little best friend soon enough.
” She held up a finger. “Now, if you really want to make my sister happy, her favorite breakfast is French toast.” She walked toward the cabinet and pulled out the maple syrup.
“Grab the strawberries and blueberries from the fridge,” she ordered me. “And I’ll give you a hand.”
By the time I gathered the ingredients, Amelia already had a saucepan, a griddle, and syrup on the counter.
“We’re going to make her favorite French toast topping,” she said, instantly conjuring a cutting board and a knife.
“Where the hell…” I paused, resting a hand on the counter. “How did you manage all of that so quickly?”
“Get over here and slice the strawberries, chief,” she teased. “I’m not doing all the work,” she winked, turning on the stove.
“If I cut myself,” I played back.
“We have Band-Aids,” she chuckled. “So, you and my sister.”
I nodded as I began to cut into the strawberries. “She has most certainly found her way into my heart without even trying,” I answered. “I understand she’s been hurt in the past.”
I looked over and saw Amelia’s expression sadden as she began cracking eggs into a bowl. “She has. It was pretty bad.”
“I don’t press,” I answered, continuing to slice the strawberries. “It seems like a subject that only traumatizes her further.”
“The guy was a dick,” Amelia said. She looked over at my pile of strawberry slices.
“Okay. That’s enough strawberries. Dump those into the saucepan with a handful of blueberries.
” She nodded toward the cabinet drawers.
“Grab that measuring spoon and put two scoops of sugar in there. Set the burner to medium.”
I followed her directions and took the spoon she offered.
“Keep stirring until the juices start to thicken,” she said.
“So you knew the guy who hurt her?”
“Oh God,” she rolled her eyes. “I met him once, back when my sister was unsure about dating him. In an attempt to get with her,” she paused, “I guess,” she rolled her eyes, “he flew me out to a birthday party he’d planned for her.”
I watched her mind sort of drift to the past.
“It was the last time I really saw my sister during the time they dated. It wasn’t her who stayed away. Every time she wanted to visit me in the States, he found an excuse for her not to. Or he guilt-tripped her into being wherever he was.”
“That doesn’t sound like the woman I’ve come to know,” I said, smiling, hoping to lighten Amelia’s mood.
“No,” she grinned, sprinkling cinnamon into the eggs. “That man, in some weird way, learned to get under her skin and control her like that. I know he hurt her in the worst possible way, but I don’t think she saw how he was hurting her before all that, with his control.”
“Reminds me of my mother,” I admitted.
“Your mother was like Cat, or like the ex we rarely speak of?” she teased, heating the griddle and soaking a slice of bread in the egg batter.
“Catalina reminds me a lot of my mother. My father crushed her strong spirit, but unlike Cat, who got a very unpleasant wake-up call before she lost herself completely, my mother never had that moment of clarity… or at least it didn’t come soon enough.
Pieces of her were chipped away so gradually over so many years that I don’t think she realized they were even gone. ”
“I’m very sorry to hear that,” she said, using tongs to place a piece of French toast on the griddle.
“That’s the thing with mental abuse. No one can see the bruises or the damage because it’s actively eroding your spirit.
It takes a strong woman to even walk away from a man like that.
” She exhaled, placing another slice of bread, drenched in egg, on the pan.
“My mother never left him,” I said, sort of lost in stirring this homemade fruit topping.
“Do you believe she stayed for her kids?”
“I do,” I said, “but I also believe it just became a normal part of marriage for her.”
“That very well could be the case,” Amelia said. “It’s a sad thing when parents can’t figure out how to raise their children and their children fuck up other people in the process.”
I unexpectedly laughed at that. “That’s one way of putting it.”
“My ex is just as fucked up, and now I’m bringing his child into the world without a father,” she said. “I have no one to thank but his mother for his entitled expectation of life.”
“I’m truly sorry, but perhaps it is meant for another man to raise your precious baby. Maybe he wasn’t the right man; he just provided the genetics,” I chuckled.
“That’s an excellent way of putting it,” she replied. “He gave me a baby, and I hope one day a man worthy enough will enter our lives and want to be a good father.”
“Don’t count that possibility out, Amelia,” I told her. “There are many, many men who would gladly help you raise that baby just to be in the presence of such a fantastic and beautiful woman.”
“Aren’t you full of charming words, sir?” she said, moving across the kitchen after leaving to get more slices of bread.
“I’m full of action as well,” I said, enjoying the positive energy of Cat’s sister.
“I know, a six-hundred-million-dollar yacht is off the coast because of your action.”
I laughed. “So, what are your plans this weekend?” I asked.
“Meh,” she answered. “Jess and I haven’t really thought of anything to do.”
“I planned on stealing your sister away,” I started, “and well, my yacht and staff are yours if you and your friend would like to visit a spa, lounge by a pool, or whatever else you’d like. It’s all there on the boat, trust me.”
Silence.
My mouth twisted as I wondered if she’d left and gone to the bathroom while I offered her and her friend a fun weekend.
I turned to see if I was left alone with the burners on in the kitchen and found Amelia’s mouth dropped open in shock, her hand cradling the bump in her stomach.
“Dear God, is everything okay?” I said, walking toward her, believing she was in pain, as she had been the first time I’d met her.
“I’m fine. I’m fine.” She half-laughed, stepping back. “You’re inviting us to play on your floating resort?”
“Why not?” I smiled. “The people who usually play on it aren’t even my friends. I’d much rather share it with the people who matter most to the woman I love.”
“Titus,” she said, “you realize you can’t break up with my sister after this. Ever, right?” I grinned. “I don’t plan to. Now, she, on the other hand…” I said as Amelia pulled the slices of French toast off the griddle. “I just hope she doesn’t dump my ass for one reason or another.”
“You’re proving to be a good man to her, big guy,” she said. “Your showing up randomly last night helped smooth over a wound I don’t think you even knew was trying to reopen.”
“I just missed her.” I looked around the kitchen. “This. Everything about this simple way of living. It’s refreshing.”
“Well,” she laughed, “I fully intend to take you up on your yacht invitation and discover just how refreshing a very not-so-simple way of living can be.”
“Helicopter service as well, correct?” I grinned.
“Oh, of course,” she closed her eyes and nodded. “I want the driver, the pilots, and everyone else on standby.”
“That will be arranged,” I said, feeling thrilled to know someone was stepping onto that boat and viewing it as an exciting adventure rather than just a business transaction or something to compare to their own.
In other words… treating it as if it were something to enjoy.
“Then I wish you and Jessica a very enjoyable time. The staff will be on hand, cooking and offering anything you need while you’re aboard.”
“You’re a great guy, Titus Hawk. I don’t care what they say about you.”
I laughed while she turned to grab plates, and together we worked to create the perfect breakfast presentation so I could surprise Cat before whisking her away on a getaway up the coast.
The day was off to a good start, and after this morning, I was beginning to think it would be me begging to move in with Cat one day—not the other way around.