She eventually moved to follow him and walked in as final goodbyes were exchanged between the solid block of a man and Mack.

The door shut behind Lauren, and Mack turned to face her again.

“The process is done. For now, it’s in their hands.”

Brie didn't talk, her hands stretched out to him, and it was silent as he held her.

She could smell him, feel his heartbeat. Everything that had abandoned her that night was right here in her arms; with that thought, she hugged him even tighter, burying her face in his clothes.

Mack pulled away momentarily, never really letting her go, and stared at her, rubbing at her face with his palm.

“You really are such a beautiful woman,” he said under his breath, but she heard him, and it happened before either of them was really prepared. Her lips crashed into his, and the sparks flew in their heads. A buzzing sensation that had them humming slightly.

She felt his hand go from her shoulder to her midline, grabbing at her waist. She felt him press at her love handles and tried to guide his hand higher. He was having none of that as he pulled her in.

The clothes came off in jerky pulls and careless tosses; they found it hard to pay attention to anything other than the taste of each other.

The feeling of her on her back with their fingers locked together was unmatched. Brie could feel everything as he kissed his way down her body, everything and then some.

The walls were witness to the passion that night, to pulls and thrusts and groans. Their dance carried on through the night and,at last, released. Afterward, a calm was shared carefully with each other, a silent loving.

Brie could feel him, just like before it all started. Her fingers traveled along his chest.

Mack stood up suddenly and turned to face her.

“Brie, I love you.”

For a moment, she looked at him in silence.

“Mack, don’t do this.”

“No, listen to me,” he went on, interrupting her.

“I love you, more than you know, more than you realize. I’m tired of leaving it open to be questioned. I swear to you, Brianna, I love you, and believe me when I say, I’m not leaving you.”

Brie lay down, avoiding his eyes. She pulled the covers up to her chin.

“And what happens when you disappear again?”

“Never, never again,” Mack moved closer and held her. “I’m here, Brie. I will be here, I promise.”

The silence continued, but tears came in the morning.

When Brie woke up, the air had warmed seemingly entirely by the single beam of light hitting her foot. Scenes from the night before hitting her in waves, and she instinctively hugged at the covers.

The air was cool in the hallway; it pushed against her exposed skin, almost giving her goosebumps. She rounded the corner and found herself relieved to see Mack at the table, speaking into a receiver. She let her arm trail across his back as she walked past to get something to eat.

Mack paused his conversation to speak to her.

“There’s a dish in the microwave and something to drink in the fridge. It shouldn’t be too cold; I just had a bit of it.”

“It’ll do nicely,” she replied from the other side of the room.

A message came up on his screen, and Mack turned back to look. Brie watched him take a few seconds to read through the text before he dropped the phone, seemingly done with work for the morning.

Brie stood at the counter, digging at a piece of toast and some eggs. She didn’t feel him walk up behind her until he reached for a piece of toast.

“How is it?” he asked.