Page 150 of The Catalyst

“I promise.”

Then, he gives me another kiss and I really hope he’ll give me more, an added boost that erases all the negativity of this afternoon.

I want to just live in this moment with him in my memory.

Nothing else.

Just us.

* * *

When I step outsideinto the fresh air, my knees buckle, but luckily, Oliver catches me, and I huddle into his strong embrace, needing whatever strength he can give me.

“Beth, what happened?”

“Let’s get out of here, and I’ll tell you.”

Oliver doesn’t fight me to tell him, and I’m so glad because my body needs time to catch up with what happened inside that mansion. I need to get as far away from this place as possible and maybe some real food. The bunny chow they put in front of me was egregious.

He helps me down the steps and into the front seat of his car before he runs around the hood. While Oliver is getting in the car, I chance a look up at the mansion and swear a figure stands in the shadows within the structure, watching us leave. Grabbing my sweater from the dash, I wrap it around my body, trying to shield myself, as Oliver turns the car around and leaves Nolan Gray’s property.

In ten minutes, he pulls into the Sonic near our neighborhood and parks in a stall before turning to me.

“Why do you look freaked out?” he asks, his tone cautious.

“Because…” I trail off, taking a deep breath to keep from breaking down. “I just signed my life away in exchange for Nigel being released.”

“What do you mean you signed your life away? What the fuck did he want for that deal?” Ollie demands, and tears fill my eyes.

“He wants me to marry Michael and be in their family for twelve years, basically taking on Nigel’s sentence as my own.”

The car is silent as my words thicken in the air and make this small space stifling. He’s not saying anything. Why isn’t he speaking? He should be yelling at me for making such a stupid deal and begging me to back out. He isn’t, though.

He finally speaks barely above a whisper. “Twelve years.”

I nod and barely hold in a sob. “From the point of me marrying Michael, yeah.”

“This is so beyond fucked,” he growls before punching the steering wheel.

A small sob leaves my lips. “I couldn’t just let him die. I had to do something.”

Next thing I know, Oliver pulls me across the center console and cradles me in his lap as I press my face against his chest, loud sobs breaking through. My ribs vibrate, and the pain spreads from my bones through the muscle and soft tissue until it consumes me.

We both know what this means. It’s the end of me and Nigel forever, but it’s not a start for me and Ollie either. It’s an end to everything that brings me joy and fills my heart with warmth. It’s the end of my life as Bethany Mercer, and Oliver is holding me like I’m still the most precious thing in the world to him.

“I know you couldn’t, crazy girl, and eventually, he’ll understand that, too.” He kisses the top of my head as his fingers trail up and down my back, reminding me of the night I went to his room, and he wouldn’t let me speak about the way I feel. His gentle yet demanding touches. The way he made me scream for mercy and beg for salvation. It’s a comfort. “You’re not getting rid of me that easily, Beth. I’m here, and I’ll always be here. Are you with me?”

A small smile tugs at my lips as I look up into his icy blue depths and take in the lock of blonde curls out of place, amiss his black spirals.

“I’m with you, Oliver. Always.”

Then, he leans forward and presses his forehead to mine, breathing me in like the redemption he denies himself but allows himself to taste. See but never touch. Touch but never hold. Hold but never claim.

“We’re in this together, baby. You and me. I’ll stand by you to the end, and when your twelve years are up, I’ll be the one to punch my uncle in the fucking face.”

CHAPTER 60

BETH

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