Page 86 of The Catch

“I just don’t want to see you get hurt again.”

“He’s hurt too,” Cat said. “I did this.”

“Well, maybe this is your chance to make it right, Cat. To show him that you really were all in. I mean, exposing yourself to a communicable disease is the definition of for better or worse, right?”

Cat laughed through the tears that were forming in her vision. “Yeah, I guess it is. All right, I have to go. I’m almost there, and I have to call my mother for herEstrellita Sopitarecipe.”

“You’re cooking?” Dani said with a gasp. “Now that’s love.”

“Ha. Ha.”

“Good luck, Kit Cat. I’ll talk to you soon.”

Cat’s mom gave her a list of ingredients, but not without a flurry of worried questions about Josh’s condition and a list of home remedies she swore by. None of them would substitute for the drugs he was already taking, so she didn’t bother writing them down.

When she arrived back at Josh’s with an armful of groceries, she set about making the stock. It would take all day for the soup to be ready, but it didn’t look like Josh would be up for lunch anyway. She adjusted the burner to let it simmer, and went upstairs to change back into the pajama pants and t-shirt she’d borrowed from him. She’d just settled onto his couch with a basket of his laundry to fold when there was a knock at the door. It swung open before she could get up, and there was Dylan cleaning snow off of his boots on the mat outside the door.

He stopped mid-scuff when he saw her. “Cat?” His forehead wrinkled in confusion. “Where’s Josh’s Jeep?”

“It’s still in the city,” she replied, hugging her arms against the rush of cold air he carried in. “I thought you were out of town.”

“Came home a day early. I’ve been calling Josh since last night.”

“He’s sick,” she explained, assuming Josh’s phone must be dead in the pocket of his coat. “He has pneumonia.”

“Pneumonia?” Dylan closed the door behind him. “When did this happen?”

“He’s probably had it a while, given how sick he is. He called me from the ground-breaking ceremony. He had a flat and needed a ride. We went to the urgent care center instead.”

“The Abbott Building ground-breaking? You’ve been here since yesterday? He let you stay the night?” Dylan fired off all of his questions at once.

“I’m staying in the guest room.”

His face softened, obviously picking up on the sting of his disbelief. “Sorry. I didn’t mean it like that.”

Dylan glanced down the hallway toward Josh’s bedroom, then back at her. She was silly to think this was anything more than what it was. Dylan was looking at her like she was an apparition that couldn’t possibly be sitting there after what had happened between her and Josh. “He’s really sick,” she said, feeling the need to justify her presence. “He didn’t have a choice.”

He eyed her again, then plopped down in the chair across from her. “There’s always a choice.”

A rush of heat hit her cheeks, and she changed the subject. “We’ll have to go get his car. He can’t go out in this weather. I can drive us there. I came right from work, so I don’t have any of my things. That’s why I have his clothes on.” She was starting to ramble. She’d been dreading this moment. Dylan was here now. Josh wouldn’t need her to stay, and once she left, she knew it would be for the final time.

Dylan seemed less affected. He leaned back casually in his chair, regarding her with equal parts pity and suspicion. “We go get his car, and then what?”

“I can fill you in on what the doctor said. He’ll still need some help. I’ll write down his medication schedule. I made a soup…”

“Cat.” He shook his head. “You don’t want to leave, do you?”

“No. I don’t want any of this. I love him, Dylan.” She wiped at the tears threatening to spill from the corners of her eyes. She wasn’t going to lose it in front of Dylan of all people.

Dylan chewed his lip, looking again toward the closed door at the end of the hall. “The thing with Josh is,” he started, lowering his voice as if he were telling her a secret, “sometimes he’s too quick to cut his losses.”

She sniffed and met his gaze. “How do you mean?”

“See, Josh woke up one morning and everything was gone, you know? Now, once he sees a crack forming, a hint he might be losing something, he just tears the whole thing down. That way, it ends on his terms. I’ve seen him do it before. When things went bad with Sarah, he just gave up.”

“But, she left him.”

“Sure, she did. After he completely closed himself off. Look, I’m not saying it was all his fault. He gave up because he thought he saw the end, then she proved him right.”

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