Chapter 76: The Thing That Can Swallow You Up

“This is it. After today, I will no longer be employed by Curie or Icarus,” Octavia said mournfully.

She had just walked into Raemon’s office with the very last of the reports she would ever be giving him.

Raemon took one of Octavia’s hands from where he sat in his chair.

“Considering how much work you will be doing with Curie, I doubt things will change much,” he said.

Octavia frowned. “I guess so. Still, I’m going to miss all those employee privileges.”

“Such as?”

“Oh, you know. The fun things that come from having a job. Filling out my time sheets. Getting into work on time. Taking orders from my boss.”

Raemon smirked. “Good thing your old boss isn’t here to comment on any of that.”

Standing over him, she let her fingers trail down his face.

“Right?” Octavia said. “He was such a downer. Totally wouldn’t approve of all the kissing we do.”

Raemon suddenly pulled her into his lap. He grasped Octavia’s face in both hands and kissed her.

“You mean that?” he asked.

“Yup. He definitely wouldn’t approve of that.”

“You’d be surprised.”

While they made out behind his desk, Octavia wondered how long she could keep it going. This wasn’t entirely because she was hypnotized by the taste of his lips.

While they were kissing, they didn’t have to talk. And if they weren’t talking, there was less of a chance that she’d let it slip about the visit she’d received from his mother days ago.

After Marjorie had left, Octavia had fumed over her words for hours. She told Gracie everything, and Gracie listened to her with a grave frown on her normally blank face.

The question Octavia was left struggling with was whether to tell Raemon or not.

She didn’t know how he’d react to his mother going behind his back like that. Raemon was very sensitive toward his mother—she knew that.

But at the same time, he might be hurt if he ever found out Marjorie was scheming to end his relationship, and that Octavia had known this and said nothing.

Octavia couldn’t vouch for how he felt toward herself. Sure, he’d bought her things and provided for her every need, but that could all come to nothing if Raemon got angry.

She knew this: When Raemon was furious, any friend could quickly become an enemy.

Raemon finally pulled his lips away from hers.

“What do you want us to do tonight?” he asked her.

“Each other,” Octavia said promptly.

“I mean, before that.”

“I don’t know,” Octavia said. “What do you want to do?”

“Well… I was invited to this dinner. But you don’t have to attend if you don’t want to. And I can cancel my RSVP if you’d rather we just stayed in—”

“Let’s go.”

“Really?”

Octavia nodded.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been bored with stories of Pomeranians. I think I can handle it for a night, even if Lila isn’t there to save me. Oh, that reminds me. I need to text her back.”

Raemon frowned. “Lila? Why are you texting her?”

“It’s kinda a long story. But we had a girls’ night at Elle’s house the other day, and Lila insisted on coming, even though we told her explicitly that we were going to be watching MMA fights.

“She hates that, but she forced herself on us anyway.”

“That in no way answers my question.”

“I was getting to it. So at Elle’s, we start watching the fights, and then Lila gets all weirded out and keeps complaining that she’s going to be sick.

“So we tell her she should maybe go into the other room and wait while we finish up the match. Then she does, but she gets sick anyway… and it’s just all over the floor.

“Elle says she can’t stand vomit, and Muffy says puke makes her faint, and Gracie says no way in hell was she mopping up anyone’s vomit.”

“This is way more information than I need.”

“Shh. Just listen. So I end up having to help Lila clean herself up, only as I’m trying to, she gets sick again and yeah, let’s just say there’s a particular sweater of mine that had to be burned.

“So Lila texted asking me for the brand and color of the sweater so she could replace it, and I need to text her back to tell her not to worry about it.”

“Generous of you. But why were you with Lila in the first place?”

“We went to the MMA match together. Remember? That’s who the extra tickets were for.”

“You invited Lila?”

“Nah, she kinda just showed up and was all like: ‘Let’s hang out,’ and we were like, ‘Okay, but we’re going to a mixed martial arts tournament.’

“And they were all like, ‘Yay! Let’s do it!’ but by the end of the night, we were all kind of friends. Except Lila, of course. No one could really be friends with her.”

“So who were you friends with then?”

“Elle and Muffy.”

“Who are they?”

“Lila’s friends.”

“And one of them is called Muffy?”

“Don’t look at me. I wasn’t there when her parents named her.”

Raemon sighed. “Just be careful, all right?”

“We only watched the fights, Raemon. We weren’t in them.”

“I mean with Lila,” Raemon said.

“You think she’s still going to try and strangle me?”

“I don’t know whether or not she and Lucas are still in touch. Being around her could put you at risk of meeting him.”

“Don’t worry. Hopefully, she was traumatized enough that she won’t try to butt in on gatherings to which she is not welcome.”

Octavia’s eyes brightened. “By the way, thanks for those tickets. The fight was amazing!”

“Did you enjoy it?”

“More than a Super Smash Brothers Melee game release. I even got to meet the fighters afterward. Cam the Crusher gave me the shirt she wore in the fight!”

“That sounds unhygienic.”

“You bet it is. It’s got her blood stains on it and everything!”

“Vile.”

“Isn’t it?! It’s the best! I’m going to keep that shirt forever.”

Raemon smiled at this, then kissed her again.

Octavia melted under the movement of his warm lips against her own and settled her body into his embrace. She liked the feeling of his strong arms around her.

She liked how he both carried her but also squeezed her closer to him with his touch.

One hand was running down her leg, finding its way under her skirt and grazing over her skin with a tantalizing touch.

She loved how he reveled in the feeling of her flesh against his, how he knew when to give her the lightest of touches or dig his fingers into her thigh with need.

His intercom buzzed.

“Sir, Mr. Nakamura is here to sign those contracts,” Adelaide said.

Raemon groaned against Octavia’s lips and reluctantly pulled himself away from her to answer:

“I’ll be right out, Weston.”

He then went right back to kissing Octavia.

“You should probably go now,” Octavia said, suddenly jerking her head back.

“Five more minutes can’t hurt,” Raemon said huskily, dragging Octavia’s face back to his.

Seven minutes later, she stopped him again.

“Raemon, seriously. You should go.”

“Fine,” Raemon said, pressing his lips to her neck.

Before he walked out the door, he said, “Don’t move.”

Octavia fell into his chair and leaned back.

She smiled. “I’ll be right here when you’re done.”

He gave her one last roguish grin, then left.

Octavia spun the chair around to face the window. She looked out on the view of the city through glazed eyes. Minutes went by while her thoughts rambled about.

Her time at Icarus was truly over. Even though she would be working with Curie, and consequently would have to be at Icarus at some point, she knew things were going to change.

Her office would be gone, for one. Also, she couldn’t just stroll into Raemon’s office whenever she felt like it.

She wouldn’t be able to spend her days in the same building as him, having him only a short walk away. Something about that realization dragged her heavy heart down farther.

With Athena kicking off, Octavia had to dedicate all her time to her project. It was the right time anyway; the Curie-Icarus launch was over.

Several new products had been put on the market, and of course, they had sold like hot cakes.

Icarus and Curie profits had doubled. It all seemed like the perfect start to a bright future.

A future that Octavia would have a unique part in as she supplied Curie with her own technology and then went on to create who knew what else for just about anybody.

But there was something dark hanging in the air. Something ominous.

She didn’t know if it was just Marjorie’s recent visit or the aching feeling in the pit of her stomach that certain parts of Marjorie’s speech had been true.

Certain parts that Octavia had spent a good long while pretending weren’t true. That maybe Raemon had other plans for the two of them—plans that she did not know if she could go along with.

She sighed. Right at that moment, her phone buzzed with an incoming call.

Octavia frowned. She didn’t recognize the number. It looked international.

~Probably Mom,~ Octavia thought. She immediately tapped the answer and then speaker button.

“Hello?” Octavia said.

Silence.

“Hello? Anyone there?”

After seconds of eerie silence, a voice finally answered.

“Hello, Octavia.”

Octavia truly couldn’t believe her ears.

“Lucas? Are you kidding me?”

“Have you forgotten the sound of my voice?” his languid tone drawled.

“How could I? I keep hearing it every goddamn five seconds.”

“Octavia, you’re obsessing over me. I’m touched.”

“How did you get my number?”

For a second, Lucas was silent.

“I sense hostility in your tone. He told you, didn’t he?”

“He confirmed what I suspected,” Octavia said.

“You know it’s all lies.”

“And no doubt what you say is the ultimate truth.”

“Octavia, you’re smarter than this. You know how full of himself he can be. He wouldn’t want to admit his own faults. He’s told himself that story for so long now he actually believes it. But you shouldn’t.”

“I should believe you instead?” Octavia scowled.

“What’s the difference between the two of us?” Lucas countered. “Aside from the fact that you’re sleeping with him, of course…but other than that…you don’t know him anymore than you know me.”

“What I know of him and you put the both of you on two opposite ends of the morality spectrum.”

“Hmm, really? So now that he’s become nicer and buys you things…suddenly he’s a saint? Let me ask you something, was he this much of a saint months ago, back when you were his assistant?”

There was no immediate response Octavia could give to that.

“Is there something about him that changed in between now and then?” Lucas continued. “When he would threaten you? Control you? Claim that he owned you?”

“What are you getting at?”

“Maybe you don’t trust me—that’s fair enough; we haven’t had the chance to get to know each other. But do you really think you know Raemon? Do you think he knows himself?”

Again, Octavia was silent.

Lucas sighed. “Octavia…I’m not trying to hurt you. But he is. He will. Isn’t it bad enough how everyone around you wants you to change for his sake?”

Octavia was still silent.

“Does his mother approve? Or did she find you just to tell you how beneath him you are?”

“How did you—?” Octavia started, but then stopped herself.

“I know these things, Octavia. I’ve seen it happen before. Do you think him buying you things, paying for your housing, paying for everything you need is just him trying to be nice?

“Did the man you worked for as an assistant seem capable of niceties? Or was it all just his plan falling into place? How did your name get out to the media?”

“I don’t know,” Octavia said bluntly.

“Shame,” Lucas said. “For all his billions, he couldn’t stop a simple thing like that happening. And he didn’t exactly seem sad to walk around with you on his arm, did he?

“No…he seemed to enjoy parading you around like his adorable, little puppet.”

The more Lucas talked, the more doubt crept into Octavia’s mind. Raemon did control everything about her life—her home, her bills, her wardrobe, and her groceries.

The only thing he hadn’t been able to own was her job. But he had at some point, and she couldn’t forget how he’d fought against her leaving.

Suddenly there it was. The dark cloud gnawing at her took form and stood in the light. To be fair, it wasn’t Lucas’s doing that she realized this. She had had her doubts about this for a while.

Raemon was just too powerful to simply be with someone. He had to own them. His wealth, his power, his whole being…it had to consume whoever stood beside him.

What they were living in now was an illusion, a simulation built by ignorant, hormonal fools. Whether he knew it or not, Raemon was destroying everything Octavia was.

She had seen it happening…the minute she became “Raemon’s Girlfriend,” instantly losing her name.

She remembered the ominous words Marjorie had told her, “He cannot stoop down to where you are, and you cannot climb up. If you try to do so, you will destroy yourself.”

She’d never meant for this to last as long as it had. She’d always intended for it to end.

But what if Raemon did have other plans? His own mother had said he always got what he wanted. What if Octavia denied him?

How sure could she be that he wouldn’t revert back to the old Raemon she knew? The one who would mow down anything…or anyone…that stood in his way?

The old saying was wrong. It should have been: Hell hath no fury like a rich man scorned. She could believe that.

What if the only way out was what Marjorie had suggested? What if she had no choice but to be disgusting? It was either that or end up drowning in a sea of disgusting people.

“Octavia,” Lucas said, slicing through her thoughts, “I still care for you.”

“Lucas, I don’t—”

“Come away with me! I can save you from him. Be mine, Octavia.”

A shuffling of feet near her made her jump. Her phone clattered to the ground, and she shot upward to find herself staring into a pair of eyes that looked down at her beneath a grim, lowered brow.

“Raemon!” Octavia exclaimed. “Shit, don’t sneak up on me like that!”

“Who was that on the phone?” Raemon asked. His voice bore a tone she had not heard from him in a while.

His static face betrayed nothing, but the flames behind his eyes were enough to make the bravest cower at the sight of them.

Octavia said nothing but bent to pick up her phone. Turning the screen over, she saw the call had been disconnected.

She cursed herself for putting it on speaker. How much had Raemon heard of the conversation?

“It’s…it was…”

Something was keeping her from just blurting it out.

“Was that Lucas?”

“Yes.”

“How does he have your number?”

“I have no idea. This is the first time he’s called me.”

Raemon’s eyes didn’t leave her face.

“What?” Octavia asked. When Raemon said nothing, she said, “Do you think I’m lying to you?”

He shook his head. “You say you want nothing to do with Lila, and yet you’ve been texting her. And now Lucas has your number.”

“What are you saying?”

“I’m not saying anything, Octavia. I’m just stating facts.”

“So am I!” Octavia fumed. “You don’t believe me?”

He returned her look with a wooden, detached face. The only sign of emotion in his expression was his radioactive pupils.

“I should go,” Octavia said, stuffing her phone into her pocket. “I’ll see you tonight.”

Just as Octavia reached the door, she heard Raemon’s voice.

“Unfortunate change of plans…I’ll be having dinner with Mr. Nakamura and his associates tonight.”

For some reason, Octavia couldn’t bring herself to turn around and face those eyes again.

“Too bad,” she said, while also feeling relieved. “Maybe tomorrow night we can—”

“That won’t be possible. I have to leave for an emergency trip to Tokyo tomorrow morning. I don’t know when I’ll be back.”

Octavia could only nod, mumble out a stiff goodbye, and then hurry out of the room.

It was only when she was a good distance away from his office that she let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding in.

As she packed up her office that day, she was glad she didn’t have to come back to it the next morning.