Page 57 of Catalyst

Sure, last week, his thoughts mentioned loving me and wanting me to love him. But, part of me believed that was a fleeting dream of his. Like that had all been erased the second my suppressors had made me useless. Not that I would blame him for feeling like that–It was just… I wished he’d tell me how he felt. Especially because while I could read his mind if Ireallytried, my body didn’t react well to me using any of my abilities right now, and I didn’t want to chance it if I didn’t have to.

Kane’s grip on my knee tightened just enough to pull me out of my thoughts. His thumb moved in slow, reassuring circles against my skin, and I worked up the courage to look at him. His dark eyes stayed fixed on the road, but his jaw twitched like he was debating whether it was best to answer me and feed into my delusions or if my question was best left unanswered.

Realistically, it was probably the latter. Answering questions like that was a slippery slope. First, he’d tell me I’d be beautiful regardless, and then the next thing you know, I’d be asking him ridiculous things likewould you love me if I was a worm?

… Hey, maybe that was something Ishouldask him. That way, I’d have something to go on about how he felt toward me.

“You could be three hundred pounds or even five hundred. Neither would change absolutely anything about how I feel about you,” he said, no hint of amusement in his voice.

“.... Which is?”

His eyes slid to meet mine, his features tensing as he swallowed. With how he was looking at me, I wouldn’t havebeen surprised if he told me he was a cannibal who wanted to eat my skin. His fingers tightened on the steering wheel before he removed them one by one before tapping them against the leather.

“You’re worse than Jace,” he said.

I blinked twice as I tried to run through the very short list of things that Jace and I had in common. Luckily, that didn’t take long, seeing as the only similarity we had was our long hair. How could I be worse than someone I had nothing in common with?

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

Kane let out a half laugh as he scratched at the dark stubble on his mostly shaved head. “That you both try to get me to talk about things I’m not ready to talk about.”

I cocked my head to the side as I stared at him.

“That sounds like ayouproblem,” I said, doing my best to keep my tone light, even if that hurt my feelings a little.

If he loved me, why wouldn’t he be ready to talk about it? Jace was.

“Callie…” Slowly, he pulled into the long brick driveway that led to his mom’s mansion. My heart beat a little faster, making me feel slightly dizzy, but I did my best to ignore it.

I let out a long, low breath as if emptying my lungs would make room for the anxiety in my chest. My mind raced with everything that could happen within the next few hours, and none of them were good. Shin could reduce anything he touched with all five fingers to ash. What if he touched me? What if this was all some crazy villain scheme to lock me in a basement and steal Sawyer? If I forced myself to throw upright now, would Kane take me home?

The way he looked at me said no.

“Take a breath, Sweetheart.” He coached, pressing the button beside the steering wheel.

My SUV came to an instant stop, the dome light turning on as the car beeped at us, almost like an alarm clock. But, instead of waking me up, it told me it was time to walk into a nightmare.

Kane shifted in his seat before cupping my chin, giving me no choice but to look at him. His calloused fingers were rough on my skin, and I tried to focus on that rather than the fact that I was about to actually die.

“Do you think I’d let anyone hurt you?” He asked.

“Yes.”

The word slipped before I could really mull over the question. Kane tipped his head lower as his eyes darkened. It felt like he was mad at me, not that I really had a way to tell.

“Repeat after me.No, Kane would not let anyone hurt me.” He ordered as he tightened his grip on me just enough to let me know he was serious.

… It was kind of hot, but I didn’t think now was the time.

“No, you won’t let anyone hurt me.”

“Close enough.”

He leaned over me to unfasten my seatbelt before getting out of the car. I’d made no progress in getting out on my own in the exactly thirty seconds it took him to open my door, so he extended a hand to help me up.

I hesitated for a moment, staring at his outstretched hand like it was a snake poised to strike. But Kane’s expression was firm, like if I didn’t take his hand, he’d yank me out of the car and carry me. So, with a sigh, I placed my hand on his.

He was surprisingly gentle as he pulled me to my feet. I wobbled for just a second before he slipped an arm around my waist. Even with his help, my gait was stumbling and unsteady. But–I blamed Sawyer. He was the one that threw off my entire center of balance.

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