Page 82 of Merciless Sinner

I’m falling for the guy who stole me from my life and declared me his.

The thought sinks into my mind, and suddenly, I drift, and the image of Virgo’s face flashes through my mind. I see him smiling in bright sunshine. He’s kissing me while we’re in bed. The sound of our laughter fills my ears, and I feel myself placing kisses on his shoulders. He says something, but I can’t hear.

The image of us fades to blackness, and then I’m staring at him.

Himhere with me now.

Him looking at me with worried eyes.

“Olivia, are you okay?” he asks.

I freeze as my mind tries to process what I just saw. As it’s pitch black outside and what I saw happened during the day, I know what I saw wasn’t us now.

And his shoulder…

I stare at it, at the stars inked on his shoulder, and realize there weren’t there in my head.

So, what I saw could only mean one thing.

“Olivia.” He touches my face. “What happened?”

“I think… I just had a memory.” My words come out in a hushed stutter. “A memory of you. Of us.”

ChapterTwenty-Two

Virgo

Iobserve Olivia as I place several slices of steak on the skillet.

She’s sitting on one of the high stools around the counter, watching me.

I’m watching her, too, wondering if maybe she’ll remember everything about me.

Nothing has happened since last night, but there’s no way in hell that I can complain.

She remembered something.

Something about me.

This is the first time in my life where I've had to hold on to a belief that I couldn't see my way around. It was raw faith that had me wishing and hoping against hope. Now that I'm starting to see the fruits of that belief coming into being, it feels like a balm to my wounded soul. I just have to keep believing.

We spoke to Dr. Belmont earlier, and he suggested an appointment on our return, but he seemed hopeful that we’re on the right track.

I flip the steak in the skillet, and Olivia laughs heartily. It’s a good sound. She seems less anxious since the memory.

"Are you sure you know what you're doing?" She narrows her eyes at me and tries to calm her laughter.

"Yes," I say with insistence. "I cook all the time."

She still looks at me as if she doesn't believe me.

Earlier, when I told her I was cooking, she laughed as if I was joking and quickly schooled herself when she realized I wasn't.

"I won't think any less of you if you call Janice back to make us dinner." She continues to giggle.

"No, we won't be calling her back. I already told her I wanted to make dinner." I might've hired Janice for her gourmet skills, but I specifically wanted to make dinner tonight in the hope to stir more of Olivia’s memories. The idea came from one of the tips Dr. Belmont listed. He suggested doing things she loved because the smallest thing could spark a memory. Olivia always loved my cooking.

"This is Japanese-style steak." I flip the steak again in the teriyaki sauce.

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