Chapter 226: No Longer Hiding
For the next few days, Catherine stayed in Meridon, taking care of the results of her research, organizing them and mapping the next steps.
Maximilian attended the university for his teaching postion. That day, they had dinner with Sebastian and Bernice.
The restaurant occupied the top floor of one of Meridon’s oldest buildings, overlooking the river that wound through the city like a ribbon of liquid gold beneath the evening lights.
Soft music drifted through the dining hall. Crystal glasses caught the glow of chandeliers overhead. Conversations remained low and refined, blending into a pleasant murmur that never disturbed the atmosphere.
It was the sort of place where people dressed well without being asked and where impeccable service was so seamless it became nearly invisible.
Catherine found herself relaxing the moment they were seated. Across from her sat Sebastian and Bernice.
And as she watched them, she realized just how much had changed. Not only Bernice. Both of them.
A waiter approached to pour wine.
Before the man could reach Bernice’s glass, Sebastian had already shifted it slightly forward with an absent-minded gesture.
The movement was effortless. Natural. Not something performed for attention. Merely habit. The waiter thanked him quietly.
Sebastian responded with a polite nod before returning his attention to the conversation.
"...which is why modern universities continue to underestimate the importance of Latin."
Maximilian sighed.
"Sebastian."
"No, hear me out."
"I’ve heard you out for decades."
"And yet you’re still wrong."
Catherine smiled into her glass. Some things never changed. Sebastian continued with complete sincerity.
"If more people studied Latin, half of our linguistic confusion would disappear."
"Half of the population would immediately quit school," Maximilian replied.
"A sacrifice civilization must be willing to make."
Bernice reached for a piece of bread.
Without looking away from his argument, Sebastian broke off the portion she preferred and placed it on her plate. Again, it was effortless and unthinking... The sort of thing one only did after paying attention to someone for a very long time.
Bernice accepted it without comment and took a bite.
Catherine’s smile widened. Weeks ago, Bernice would have looked embarrassed. Almost guilty, as though kindness were something she had to earn. Now she simply accepted it, not because she took it for granted, but because she trusted it would remain.
There was a difference. A profound one.
The appetizers arrived.
The conversation shifted naturally toward Catherine’s research.
Sebastian listened attentively while she explained several developments regarding her Alzheimer’s work.
Unlike many academics, he never interrupted simply to prove how intelligent he was. Instead, he listened, then asked questions precise enough to reveal he had been paying attention the entire time.
Beside him, Bernice listened even more carefully, as she always did. Bernice had spent years assisting Catherine’s research, cataloguing information, cross-referencing data, and finding details others overlooked.
The same mind that could uncover someone’s secrets with alarming efficiency had proven equally effective in scientific research.
When Catherine finished explaining a particular challenge involving one of the studies, Bernice set down her fork.
"The second group still bothers me."
Three heads turned toward her.
Bernice shrugged slightly.
"The results are strong."
She dabbed her lips delicately with her napkin.
"But if somebody wanted to attack the paper, that’s where they’d start."
Catherine blinked.
Because Bernice had immediately identified the exact weakness Catherine had spent most of the afternoon examining.
Maximilian tilted his head. "Is she right?"
"Of course she is," Sebastian said.
The words emerged so automatically that Bernice raised an eyebrow.
"That’s a dangerous level of confidence."
"I have lots of evidence supporting my position."
"You say that now."
"I’ll say it tomorrow too."
His tone remained perfectly serious. Bernice’s lips twitched.
The exchange lasted only seconds. Yet Catherine found herself watching them, not because they were openly affectionate, but because that had never been their way.
She could see now they moved around each other with complete certainty, neither seeking reassurance, neither questioning their place beside the other.
Simply existing together. Comfortably. Securely.
And that security was perhaps most visible in Bernice.
In the past, Bernice had once confessed something that Catherine had never forgotten.
Nobody notices me. That’s my superpower.
At the time, she had laughed while saying it. But Catherine understood now that it had never truly been a joke. Bernice had spent most of her life believing she was easy to overlook. Easy to discard. A girl from a broken family who had learned early not to expect permanence from anyone.
Now?
That uncertainty was gone. Not because she had become louder. Bernice remained exactly as observant and reserved as ever. She still listened more than she spoke, still noticed things nobody else noticed and still possessed the unsettling ability to learn information she should not reasonably have access to.
But she no longer shrank herself, and no longer behaved as though she needed permission to occupy space.
And strangely enough, Catherine saw a similar change in Sebastian.
Not long ago, he had hidden behind eccentricity, his costumes, the theatrics and the deliberate oddness.
The flamboyant professor who arrived on campus dressed like a Roman senator one week and a Victorian poet the next and as a tree the next day.
Everyone remembered the spectacle. Very few looked beneath it.
Tonight, there was none of that. He wore a perfectly tailored dark suit. Nothing outrageous. Nothing designed to attract attention.
Yet somehow Catherine had never seen him appear more comfortable.
He remained eccentric.
Five minutes earlier he had compared university administration to the decline of the Roman Empire.
At length.
With citations.
That part of him had not changed.
But the performance had vanished. The armor had disappeared. He no longer seemed like a man distracting people from himself. He seemed like a man entirely comfortable being known.
And every time his gaze drifted toward Bernice, Catherine thought she understood why.
Love had changed both of them.
Bernice no longer hid because she feared nobody would see her. Sebastian no longer hid because he feared they would.
Somehow, they had met in the middle.
The main course arrived. Conversation continued with stories from the university, research updates... Local politics... At one point Sebastian mentioned a dispute between two doctoral students.
Before he could finish, Bernice calmly said,
"The taller one started it."
Sebastian frowned.
"You’ve never met them."
"I’ve seen their emails."
"Why?"
"They were attached to the report you asked me to read."
Sebastian looked at her for several seconds.
"Do you ever accidentally learn things?"
"No."
Maximilian laughed.
Catherine nearly choked on her wine.
Even Sebastian surrendered with a sigh. "I continue to find your existence mildly terrifying."
Bernice took another sip of wine. "You say that like it’s a bad thing."
"It isn’t."
His answer came immediately.
The simplicity of it softened something inside Catherine. Because he meant it, entirely. The parts of Bernice that others might find strange... The sharp intelligence, the relentless curiosity, the tendency to know far more than she should...
He loved all of it.
Not despite it, but because of it.
As dessert arrived, Catherine found herself watching them one final time. Sebastian was speaking about an upcoming conference. Bernice listened quietly beside him, occasionally correcting a date, occasionally offering an observation.
The interaction itself was unremarkable. Ordinary. And perhaps that was what made it beautiful. There was no uncertainty between them anymore. No invisible wall. No hesitation.
Only two people who had finally stopped pretending to be anything other than themselves.
And for the first time, Catherine found herself thinking that happiness suited them both remarkably well.
"They look lovely together," Catherine said softly as she rested her head against Maximilian’s shoulder during the drive home.
The city lights slipped past the car windows in blurred ribbons of gold and white, painting fleeting reflections across the glass.
Maximilian glanced down at her and smiled.
"They do."
For a few moments, neither spoke.
The comfortable silence settled naturally between them, requiring no effort to maintain. They had long since reached the point where quiet no longer needed to be filled.
Then Maximilian said casually, "He’s planning on proposing to her."
Catherine immediately lifted her head.
"What?"
Her eyes widened as she searched his face.
Maximilian looked entirely serious.
The realization hit her a second later.
"Oh!"
Her entire expression brightened. A smile spread across her face so quickly it was impossible to miss.
"That’s wonderful!"
The delight in her voice was genuine. She settled back against Maximilian’s shoulder, her body relaxing once more.
"That’s wonderful," she repeated more quietly.
This time, the words carried something deeper.
A wish.
A hope.
Perhaps even a prayer.
Life had not been particularly kind to either of them in the past. Yet somehow they had found each other again. And this time, Catherine hoped they would be allowed to keep their happiness.
She hoped they would have the long, fulfilling future they deserved.
The car continued through the illuminated streets. Maximilian intertwined his fingers with hers, his larger hand warm and familiar around her own.
Neither felt any urgency to speak. The silence that followed was peaceful rather than stifling. Comfortable rather than empty.
Catherine’s head gradually grew heavier against his shoulder. The wine from dinner had left a pleasant warmth in her system, making her feel wonderfully relaxed.
Maximilian glanced down at her.
"Sleep if you want."
His lips curved faintly. To this day, he still did not entirely understand her fascination with wine. Catherine rarely drank enough to lose control, but she undeniably enjoyed becoming slightly tipsy.
Something about it delighted her.
Perhaps because it allowed her to lower her guard for a few hours. Perhaps because she simply enjoyed the taste.
Maximilian had never managed to determine the exact reason.
What he did know was that whenever Catherine became even slightly intoxicated, she transformed into something remarkably affectionate.
She would curl against him without hesitation. Steal his warmth. Cling to his arm. And occasionally fall asleep on his shoulder as though it were the most natural place in the world.
Maximilian found the habit embarrassingly adorable. He would never admit that aloud.
A soft vibration interrupted the peaceful atmosphere.
Maximilian pulled his phone from his pocket.
The moment he looked at the screen, Catherine felt his posture change. His jaw tightened slightly. A cold edge appeared in his eyes.
"Rathbourne..." he muttered.
Catherine frowned.
The name alone was enough to sour anyone’s mood.
"What happened?"
Instead of answering immediately, Maximilian let out a short, humorless laugh. Then a smirk slowly appeared on his face. The expression surprised her. Without a word, he handed the phone to her.
Catherine lowered her gaze to the screen. The headline was impossible to miss.
Laurent Noir’s entire Spring Runway Collection Leaked Online.
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