Hello. I guess we all have heard the news. I've been feeling a bit nostalgic for the whole day, mostly because of McRoll, so I went through my laptop and found another chapter of this story. I guess I should share this with you guys. I hope you guys like it. Let me know what you think.

Chapter 2:

It was the first time Catherine wasn't too thrilled that a difficult mission was finally over. She silently whispered sorry to Joe White for her selfishness.

The mission was successful. They got everything they came for. Hassan was captured, Steve made sure that the Navy could make a deal so Hassan would never get to see the light ever again. Greer was dead too, Catherine pulled the trigger before Greer even got the chance to hurt Steve. No, Catherine wouldn't let anyone hurt him. Not anymore.

Greer was an important target for both the CIA and the Navy, so after hearing about Greer's death, the CIA showed up, took over all the paperwork and secrets Greer left behind and gave Steve and Catherine a ride back home.

Steve has been extremely quiet since they boarded the plane. Catherine couldn't tell if he was upset that she killed Greer in front of his eyes or if he was relieved that they finally gave Joe a closure – a closure that he deserved.

"I'm sorry", Catherine finally broke the ice. She tried not to startle Steve as he seemed to be lost in his own mind. They hadn't talked about what had happened in that house yet.

"What for?", Steve turned towards Catherine, the warm smiles appeared on his eyes. For the first time in a whole month, Catherine saw the relief in his eyes. She couldn't help but smile back.

"You know… for Greer."

"Don't be. Are you seriously saying sorry because you killed her before she got to shoot me? Cath, you did the right thing", Steve squeezed her hands, comforting her.

"It's okay to moan, you know… I know you're probably very confused right now, but…", Catherine stopped. It's her second nature to defend people, to try to understand people from different points of view, but this time, it's really challenging to find any excuse to defend Greer.

"I'm not sad that she's gone. I'm mad at myself for not seeing this. Any of this."

"Not even the CIA suspected her. Nobody did. Steve, you can't blame yourself."

"I know."

Once again, silence prevailed between them. There was a long moment's silence before Steve raised his voice again, "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"How long have you known about me and Greer? Was it after or before you joined the CIA?"

"Way before, when we both were still in the Navy, even before you came back to Hawaii."

"I just don't get it. Why did you never say anything to me? What if she lied to you?"

"As I said, it was before when we were dating. And it's not like we were committed to each other", she was committed from the start, but they never seemed to discuss the nature of their relationship, even after she moved to Hawaii permanently. "I don't want to be that girl who questioned her boyfriend's past. And you guys had a two-night-stand, so what? What should I possibly ask?", Catherine looked up at Steve, her eyes flashed a hint of sadness, thinking about what they once had, "You never brought her name up, so I had no reason to ask. Besides, it's not like we talked a lot back then. We never even discussed the thing… between us".

She never questioned if Steve was seeing someone else when she was away or when they didn't see each other; they just conveniently ignored that and jumped right into their bedroom activities whenever they were in the same city. "You didn't even know how I liked my eggs back then, remember?", Catherine teased him, referring to the awkward confrontation they had with his mom when she showed up and decided to cook both of them breakfast.

Steve stood stunned, unable to deny the truth in what she said. Catherine was right. He had always had some trouble expressing himself, especially when it came to relationships. He confided in Catherine his darkest secrets, his scariest nightmares, but they didn't talk much about anything else – about their daily stuff. He remembered one of the times when he called her at work, Catherine made a joke about how he never called just to say "Hello". For a really long time, both of them refused to use the words "boyfriend and girlfriend". Steve had his own ways to express how he felt about her, or at least he thought so. Probably he was too confident, he should have let her know how he really felt, then he wouldn't lose her like the way he did.

"I just don't like what she said to you", Steve didn't like the idea of Greer telling Catherine about their mini-vacation together, he silently replayed the conversation with Greer inside his head, when the 24-year-old version of him used the word "stress relief" to describe what it was between them. "I really hope you know what happened between me and her was entirely different from…."us"".

Catherine let out a soft sigh, her eyes darting to the floor. She wished Steve could say this to her before any of this happened. What she had said to Steve, about her not believing what Greer had said, wasn't entirely true. She did take it to heart for a really long time. Somehow, she was convinced that Steve was scared of commitment, just like what Greer had warned her about. That's why she never pushed Steve to take the next step, fearing that he would freak out and run away. She was willing to let him take his time.

Catherine closed her eyes, taking a deep breath, thinking back about the time Steve said "I love you" over the phone when she decided to stay in Afghanistan. It felt like a goodbye "I love you" at that moment, but she didn't mind. She was over the moon that finally, Steve had the confidence to say those words when she was awake. That wasn't actually the first time she heard him say those words, he just didn't know she knew. She had stuck around for so long in Steve's life, even without a title, because deep down inside, Catherine knew she was special. She was more than just an "old friend". That first night when they had sex, on their first official date, after their first dance, when they were lying side by side, flesh to flesh, sweating and all, when she was closing her eyes after a couple of wonderful sexual encounters, she heard Steve's voice asking if she was still awake. Catherine pretended she already felt into sleep, trying to control her breathing as if she was sleeping, she could feel Steve silently pull her even closer to his body. It was more about appreciation than sexual needs. Steve placed his lips on hers; there was something so gentle in that kiss that it almost crushed her. He whispered something, even in the middle of the night, in the quietest time of the day, in complete darkness; Catherine had to try to be completely still to be able to make out what Steve was whispering so softly.

"I think I'm falling in love, Catherine. It's so fast, so scary; I don't know what to do. Don't ever walk out of my life!"

Steve sealed his little secret by placing another kiss on Catherine's forehead, his lips lingering around her temple. Catherine was the most gorgeous girl he'd ever met, she was even more beautiful without any make-up on, being naked, sleeping so peacefully in his arms tonight. Just a week ago, he was so scared that he would never see her ever again, would never be able to tell her how he felt about her, and that idea freaked him out more than dying. But right now, with her right next to him, their bodies intertwined, Steve couldn't bring himself to say those three words. He didn't know what held him back, but that night, he knew if he would never get married, his bride must be her. Catherine Rollins.

Steve never knew Catherine heard him.

Catherine never imagined it would take him almost a decade later to finally voice his feelings to her.

She never doubted him, but every now and then, what Greer said all those years ago did revisit her. So the idea of Steve preparing a ring, the idea of him being ready to take the next step – with her, especially after all the heartbreak she had caused for him – had never even crossed her mind. Never ever.

It took her by complete surprise when Lynn accidentally dropped the bomb. That he was gonna propose. She remembered feeling crumble as if the world under her feet were torn apart, yet having to try her best to hold everything together until after their rescue mission. She wanted so hard to believe that everything Lynn said was just a cruel joke, but Steve's reaction when she brought it up confirmed it wasn't. He was really ready to marry her. After all those years.

She wasn't sure which one hurt her more: to see Steve move on with another woman or to learn that she was the one who walked away from him, right before he got the chance to actually ask her.

The pain and heartache tortured her for another year. There wasn't a single day she didn't think about Steve. Catherine tried to let it go, but she got to a point where she couldn't pretend anymore. She needed to know if he was really gonna do it. How could she miss any sign that week? He must have kept it so well from her. They never had a proper conversation after a whole year of separation, for her to explain what had happened, him proposing was honestly the last thing she could expect.

So her mission came in handy when one of her cases led back to the island. Catherine couldn't wait to catch up with him, waiting for the opportunity to ask him the question that had stuck with her for so long. She needed to know.

"Were you really gonna propose, or did you just buy that ring in the event that you decided that you were gonna propose?", she asked him that day when she was trying to pull him out of that hole.

Gut-wrenching reality crashed down once again when he admitted he was really gonna propose. Not without trying to duck the question first.

"What do you think?"

"Just answer the question."

"Yes, Catherine. I was gonna propose."

Catherine was zoning out, memories came flooding right back, she was trying to figure out the timeline with Greer, and everything else. She didn't realize Steve was calling her name three times. She looked at him, nodded, mouthing "I know".

"I never loved her, not as I loved you", Steve said in a barely audible whisper.

Catherine looked tired. He wasn't sure if she heard him, so he leaned against the helicopter's wall just like she did. In fact, tiredness was catching up with both of them. The rest of the trip heading back to Montana went into silence, both of them trying to get some rest, closing their eyes, getting lost in their own thoughts – about the past, and the future.

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