The next day, Catherine was on duty at the city police station and the day passed as smoothly as usual. She was waiting for the night shift cop to arrive so she could leave and was looking distractedly at her laptop.

"Good night, I came to press charges," she heard someone say. She didn't have to look at the person to recognize his voice.

"Steve?" She stood up and looked at him as if she couldn't believe he was there, that she was seeing him after so long.

"Hey, Cath."

"What's the complaint?" She asked sweetly.

"Someone stole my heart years ago and never gave it back to me," he replied.

She smiled and came out from behind the counter to hug him. "I'm surprised you're here, it's great to see you."

Steve hugged her too. He felt really good with her arms around him again. "I came because I wanted to know if you're alright. We haven't spoken in a long time and that has taken away my peace."

Catherine pulled back a little to get a better look at him. "I'm fine. What about you?"

"I don't know the answer to your question, Cath. Sometimes I feel like my life has no meaning anymore."

"I hear you, sometimes I feel that way too," she replied.

"I tried to stay at the hotel down the street, but there's no rooms available," Steve told her. He didn't quite know what to say, what to talk about, and he was a little nervous.

"Well, you were lucky. The cop who's replacing me is an hour late so I'm still here. And I wouldn't let you stay in a hotel, you can stay at my place."

"Thanks, Cath." Steve rubbed his hands together to warm them up. He was feeling very cold. "It's too cold in here."

Catherine looked at her watch and sighed.

"Did something happen to your coworker?" Steve asked.

"No, he does that almost always. He doesn't respect my right to go home after my work schedule."

"And you don't complain?" Steve asked.

Martin entered the police station before Catherine could respond. She looked upset at him and grabbed her bag and walked towards the door "Come on Steve."

"Aren't you going to tell me what happened on your shift?" Martin asked her.

"The report is on the table. If you want to know, read it." She left and Steve followed her.

"I didn't like this guy," Steve told Catherine when they got to her car.

"He's an asshole," she said and glanced at the corner restaurant. "Do you want some hot soup before we go home?"

"Of course, it's a good idea," he agreed. He was tired but agreed.

Catherine entered the restaurant with Steve and was greeted by everyone. Steve realized that she was a dear person in town. They chose a table farther away to talk better.

Catherine smiled at him and started the conversation. "Joan grew up so fast and she is a beautiful teenager. I was surprised when I saw her message asking if I knew you."

"She turned fifteen four days ago," Steve said with pride of his niece.

"She invited me to the party, but I couldn't go. If she had invited me in advance maybe I could have gone."

"She would be happy. But you can go to her next birthday parties. She loves parties and Mary always celebrates her birthday with a party," Steve said.

Catherine smiled at him and he placed his hand over hers. "I've missed you all these years..."

"I missed you too, Steve. I'm glad you're here."

Steve stroked her hand with his thumb. "About you and me…" he took a deep breath before continuing. "I wish everything could have been different."

"Let's not talk about the past," she asked, but soon regretted it. She thought that maybe he thought their past didn't matter to her. "We can't change the past, Steve. So let's not look back, let's just look to the future."

"You're right. You're always right. You've always been my balance point," he replied.

"I know," she said and was thoughtful for a few seconds and then looked up to try to hold back some tears. "I know that, in your way, you loved me. I know that you trusted me and that I was the person you could tell everything to. I know."

"I'm not the person who loved you, I'm the person who still loves you," Steve told her.

Steve and Catherine were interrupted by the town sheriff as they talked.

"Catherine! What a surprise to find you here," she said.

"Why? You know I always come here," Catherine replied.

"Aren't you going to introduce me to your friend?" She asked Catherine but didn't even wait for her to answer.

"I'm Alice, I'm the sheriff, Catherine's boss." She also pointed to another table. "Those are my husband and my two children."

Steve sensed Catherine's discomfort with Alice. "I'm Steven."

"I'm glad you found someone from out of town, dear," Alice told Catherine and then addressed Steve. "All the men her age here in town are married."

Steve didn't know what to say to Alice. "The waiter is bringing our soup," he said to Catherine and Alice stood there looking at them both.

"Your husband is calling you, Alice," Catherine told her although it wasn't true.

"I'll join him," she replied to Catherine. "Nice to meet you Steven."

Steve just nodded and looked at Catherine as Alice walked away. "What was this?"

"She wanted to humiliate me," Catherine replied.

"Why?" He asked.

"Can we not talk about her?" Catherine asked.

"Of course, Cath. Sorry." He tasted the soup and Catherine looked at him expectantly. "It's really good," he replied with a smile.

PS: Thank you for your review on the previous chapter.