Open Heart One Shots (Choices)

Stop The Clock

Summary: After almost six weeks without word from Ethan, Cassie needs her family more than anything.

Part 1: Goodbye My Lover

In the darkest part of the night, Cassie Valentine could pretend there was only now and this moment. She was exactly where she was supposed to be, fallen so deep there was no way back. Not that she wanted out.

Wrapped around her lover, his scent filling her senses, she prayed for time to stop. Anything to slow the approaching dawn of a new day. And the plane that would take Ethan Ramsey away from her for who knew how long.

This should've been the beginning. Not the end. But Cassie consoled herself that it was neither.

It was a temporary pause—an interlude—while Ethan did important work in the Amazon. She had fallen in love with a world-renowned physician, which meant sharing him with those who needed him. She couldn't begrudge that.

She would miss spending stolen moments in his arms. The way he cursed under his breath and pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. And what did it say about her that she found the sneer on his lips sexier than a smile?

Ethan would come back, thought Cassie. His life was here, his work, his legacy. He would come back to her. She had to believe it. Otherwise, the next few months would be unbearable.

And yet a morose voice inside her whispered that she wasn't enough. Not if Ethan decided the mission was more important than the potential of what they could be to each other.

Cassie didn't realize she had drifted off to sleep until a shrill alarm cut through the haze in her head, jolting her awake. She felt Ethan's chest rise and fall beneath her, and the sound abruptly ended. The silence stretched; time would stand still if she kept her eyes shut. Wouldn't it?

She felt his gaze and lifted her head off his chest to meet his laser-blue eyes. Her own softened when she caught the tender way he was watching her.

She nestled against him, tucking her face into the crook of his neck. He folded her into his arms, his lips brushing the side of her head.

"I'm glad you stayed," Ethan whispered.

"I don't want to be anywhere else," she said. "We have so little time left."

She tried to hide the disquiet in her voice, but he heard it anyway.

"I'm coming back, Cassie," he said vehemently. "This isn't my first engagement with the WHO. I always come back."

"I'm holding you to that, Dr. Ramsey," she said, forcing a chuckle. But it was a hollow sound as dread made her throat tighten.

"I should get up; get ready." He let out a yawn and started to move.

"No, not yet," she protested. "When we get up, it's over."

He stilled as she repeated the words he'd uttered a few weeks ago. Another dawn after an unforgettable night. One they thought would be their last.

"Five more minutes," he agreed.

His lips grazed her forehead, and he settled back against the headboard. His hand reached for hers, interlacing their fingers. She tilted her head back to keep her green eyes locked on his.

Five turned to ten, and then it was over.

Six weeks later...

Cassie finished a patient consult and exited the exam room, her cheery demeanor deflating as soon as the door closed. Out of habit, she checked her phone for any messages, but the screen remained stubbornly blank except for her wallpaper.