“What are you going to do now?” Bryan asked. “Can I help in any way?”

Kate shook her head. “I’m just going to hole up somewhere. My dad invited me to stay with him awhile, so I might do that. I need time for this to blow over, time to pray and rethink my career, if need be.”

Two notches formed between Bryan’s brows, and he shook his head as if to clear the cobwebs. “But what about—”

Kate realized her mistake too late. The public—and Bryan—didn’t know the particulars of her and Lucas’s arrangement. She’d never told Bryan the marriage wasn’t a real one.

“Your marriage,” he said. “It was just temporary? You’re leaving him?” The hope in his voice was a warning siren.

A sick feeling worked its way into her middle, churning her stomach the way the wind churned the waves outside. “I’m going to visit my dad for a while, that’s all.”

His eyes narrowed. “It was temporary from the beginning, wasn’t it? You never had feelings for him, never planned to stay married. It was just . . . a way out of the mess I put you in.”

There was a certainty in his tone, and Kate knew she wasn’t going to erase that. He won’t alert the media, so what harm is there if he knows?

“Yes, it was temporary, all right?” she said. “But that’s between you and me, and if you say one word to the press—”

Bryan extended his hands palm out. “I swear, I won’t.” He stood and crossed the rug, closing the space between them, dropping to his knees at her feet.

“Kate, do you know what this means to me?” He took her hands, pressing them between his own. The coolness of his palms, the shape of his fingers felt foreign against hers.

She pulled away. “It doesn’t mean anything. It doesn’t change anything.”

“You need to get away. Come with me. We can stay at my place in Aspen. I’ll take a leave of absence. You can figure out where to go from there.”

Kate pressed her back into the cushion. “No, Bryan. It’s over between us.” She knew as the words left her mouth that she meant them now as she never had. There was nothing left, no feelings for him.

Because they’ve been replaced by feelings for Lucas. Kate shrugged the thought away.

“You don’t mean that. Just think. We could move anywhere you want. You could open a counseling service like you did here. We could have a fresh start.”

The thought of starting over was tempting compared to the months of uncertainty she faced, but she knew it was implausible. She was about to say so when the front door opened.