Everything to Lose by Katie Reus Page B

headache. There was only one question she had to ask herself. Could she live without him? Truly leave now, knowing they weren’t going to be married anymore?
    The answer hit her with such startling force, it was as if someone had punched her in the gut. A vision of life without Sean played in her mind and bile rose in her throat.
    “Do you mind if we take a detour?” She leaned forward and asked the driver. She actually didn’t care if he minded. They weren’t going to the airport anymore.
    “Sure, where to?”
    “The nearest office supply store,” she said as they pulled up to a red light.
    “Is everything okay ma’am?”
    “Yes. I have some documents I need to shred. Then, I won’t be needing you to take me to the airport.” She’d planned to mail the divorce papers to her attorney when she made it to DC. Her heart beat an erratic tattoo against her chest. This could be the biggest mistake of her life but she owed it to herself to try. Hell, she owed it to Sean to try. And she had to get rid of these stupid papers before she faced him. Bringing any sort of reminder into their house wasn’t the way to start things off again.
    Thirty minutes later, sans divorce papers, they sat in Sean’s driveway and her heart still hadn’t stopped racing. She wiped clammy palms against the seat. They had a lot to work on and things wouldn’t change overnight but he’d shown he was willing to try to fight for them. She was the one who’d run away because it had been easier. Well, she wasn’t running anymore. If she could only find the courage to get out of the cab and take that first step, she knew they had a chance.
    “Are you okay lady?”
    She glanced at the driver in the rearview mirror and had a sense of déjà vu from her first day back in Orlando. She swallowed and gave herself a hard mental shake. “I’m fine.”
    The driver nodded, then stepped from the vehicle. Once he retrieved her bags from the trunk and delivered them to the doorstep she paid him. After he left however, she still stood on the front porch, unable to go inside.
    What was she getting herself into?
    Her key slipped into the front door and twisted with the familiarity of coming home. Sean’s SUV was outside but the house was quiet. Her sandals were silent across the wooden floor as she walked through the house.
    She dropped her bags when she heard the sound of running water. As she walked through the living room toward the hallway that led to the two back bedrooms, she started undressing. She knew she was taking a chance and putting herself out there but Sean had done the same for her. She needed to swallow her pride. First went her shoes, then her calf-length skirt, then her top and sweater until all she wore was a pair of plain, pink, cotton panties.
    Their bedroom door was already half open so she slipped through without moving it. Sean’s off-key singing greeted her ears from the direction of the bathroom. As she moved closer toward the bathroom door, she realized he was singing a depressing country song about a man losing his wife. Her heart twisted at the lyrics. If he rejected her now, she’d actually understand.
    The door was open a small crack so she pushed it wide enough to step through. Then she slipped off the last shred of material she wore and pulled back the shower curtain.
    Surprise and a mix of emotions shrouded her husband’s handsome face. His eyes darkened. “What are you doing here?” he rasped out.
    “I live here.”
    His eyes crinkled at the sides and a small smile touched his lips. “Is that right?”
    She nodded because she didn’t trust her voice. There were so many things she needed to say. Wanted to say. Mostly in the form of an apology. But nothing came to mind when she stared into his dark eyes. The only thing she knew for sure was this time there was no turning back.
    “It’s about damn time you got home,” he said as he pulled her into the shower with him.
     
     

 

     
     

    About the