Falling for Rex by Shayne Ford

8

LUNA RAE

Shock.Surprise. Numbness.

Denial?

A dark storm.

Guilt. Doubt. Shame.

Spinning quickly, I turn my back to the house in case someone walks my way and run feverish fingers up, closing the few buttons that have survived his grabby touch.

My hand and lips–– my whole body–– quiver.

Chills shoot down my back, my insides trembling, my knees shaking, and useless thoughts cramming my mind.

How could I let this happen?

My neck hurts.

I touch my collar. It’s soaked in blood. I taste it on my mouth from his lips.

The man is insane. No wonder people stay away from him, and people fear him.

Isn’t it obvious why?

The minutes tick by before my phone starts ringing.

It’s Frankie and then Olivia–– it’s early morning in Rome. Rex calls me too.

Now he does?

I ignore him.

“How do you like the party?”

A soft feminine voice wafts through the air.

I grip my neckline together and turn around, my hair hiding part of my face.

“It’s lovely,” I lie, my voice mirroring the woman’s tone.

I strike a conversation with the guest and act casually for a few moments before excusing myself and scurrying away, leaving the terrace.

I need to get home. And the sooner, the better. Preferably without anyone seeing me or talking to me.

I need to get out of this house.

With this thought in mind, I take the stairs down, slide across the lower level, sneak behind a group of chatty people, and slip out the door without talking to anyone.

A moment later, I step outside and dash to my ride when the thick beams of a car sweep my legs. The sports ride jolts left, blocking my path.

Quickly, I round it and sprint away.

“Luna?”

Rex’s voice resonates behind me, his footsteps nearing me fast.

“Luna?” he barks, not giving a damn that people could hear us.

“Leave me alone,” I shout, yanking the car door open and slamming it closed.

His fist hits the window.

“Open the door,” he barks.

“Leave me alone,” I shout again, turning the engine on, and revving it up.

I put it in reverse and back away before turning around and pulling away. He runs after me yet gives up a moment later, sprinting to his ride.

I almost hit a tree while keeping my eyes on the rearview mirror, watching his car trailing me fast instead of focusing on the road.

I get lost for a moment, things looking a little different as I make the trip back. His relentless pursue messes with me to the point that I can’t think straight.

What is wrong with these two brothers?

I make a turn and then another one, and soon I drive in circles. Somehow, I find the highway ramp and step on the gas as soon as I enter the main road, going over the speed limit within seconds.

His headlights blink in the rearview mirror when my phone begins to ring.

No fucking way.

I don’t even glance at it.

He calls me again and again. I snatch my phone and answer.

“Leave me alone,” I snarl.

He doesn’t say a thing.

“Please leave me alone,” I say in a different voice, panting and driving with one hand while talking on the phone, my vision getting foggy for a moment.

He hangs up but doesn’t give up on following me, trailing me from a safe distance. I miss the exit and keep driving, not knowing where I’m headed.

Moments later, his ride vanishes from my rearview mirror.

I begin to slow down, looking for a spot to turn around and head home, when I notice a lookout area.

Slowly, I roll in and make a left turn before stopping the car next to a cliff edge.

I put the car in park–– the lights are still on; the engine is running.

Sighing, I tilt my head back and run my hand through my hair, my eyes rooted on the ocean in the distance.

What a crazy night.

A sharp pain rips through my neck. Straightening, I check it in the mirror.

What a mess.

I open the glove compartment and look for something to clean my neck and cover my skin when a police car zooms by, heading north.

Pulse racing and heart thudding, I watch it in the rearview.

It doesn’t take long before the piercing siren goes off, the lights starting to pulse.

Oh, fuck.

It quickly makes a U-turn, dashing my way.

Shit. Shit.

I turn off the engine and wait.

Up until the last moment, I hope it’s headed to an emergency down the road, the car speeding in that direction when it suddenly veers right and stops behind me.

My heart becomes a spastic muscle as I riffle through the contents of my bag, looking for my driving license. From the glove compartment, I retrieve the car registration.

A flashlight points to me through the side window, an imposing man signaling to me to roll it down.

I do as I’m told.

“License and registration, ma’am,” he barks, the beam of light hovering over my face and body.

Squinting against the light, I give him the documentation.

He checks them in silence before moving the beam of light and curious eyes to me.

“Have you been drinking, ma’am?”

Not enough.

“No, Sir.”

He straightens.

“I didn’t drink alcohol.”

That pesky light comes to my eyes again. I lift my hand to shield them.

“What happened to your neck, ma’am.”

“I, um...”

A car steers off the road and comes to a halt behind the cop’s ride.

He moves his eyes in that direction.

“Stay where you are,” he barks, heading over there, touching his gun briefly, making sure it’s in the holster.

The light shifts with him as my eyes go to the rearview mirror.

He tosses an order to that driver while nearing the car, and soon, he slips out of sight.

Swept away by the breeze, his words get lost in the whirring of the ocean.

A few long moments pass by before the police officer retreats to his car, giving up on me.

I wait for him to come back. It never happens.

He turns off his throbbing lights and drives away when a man steps out of the dark vehicle parked behind me, beelining to me.

I roll my window up as soon as I recognize him.

“Go away,” I shout.

He yanks the door open and unfastens my safety belt.

“Go away, Rex. I don’t want to talk to you.”

He tosses the safety belt to the side and scoops me out as if I bear no weight. And then he lets me down.

I straighten and hit his chest.

“Why are you so stubborn?” I bark.

“I’m stubborn??” he retorts, his eyes blazing.

“Yes. You. I told you to leave me alone.”

He latches his hands on his hips, his eyes glimmering in the pale moonlight.

“You acted weird,” I say, blasting at him with every decibel I have in my voice. “You told me you’d meet me at the party.”

“Yes... You said you’d come, anyway.”

I wag my index finger at him.

“No, no. We’re not playing that game. Don’t go there unless you want me to bite your head off. I spent the entire day debating with my friend why men act so weirdly after getting their hands on a woman. Why they’re suddenly aloof and hard to understand... You could’ve picked me up. Or we could’ve met somewhere else. I wasn’t keen on going to the party anyway. And yes, Frankie wanted me to go. She would’ve been okay without me. Trust me. But that’s not all. I showed up. And you were late.”

My voice explodes like a firecracker in the middle of the night.

“And then what happens? Your friend, Sammy, is your date or whatever...”

He opens his mouth.

I’m faster than him.

“Listen, I don’t care. All right? I don’t give a damn who you spend your time with, but don’t lie to me. I can’t stand liars. You could’ve said you were about to hook up with her.”

“I didn’t hook up with her.”

“No?”

My hand jerks up, my phone screen in his face.

“What time is it, Rex?”

“It’s past eleven.”

“Uh-huh? And where were you all this time?”

“I took her home.”

“Uh-huh...What??”

His words register with me a little late.

“What?” I blurt again. “You took her home, and you’re telling me you didn’t hook up with her?”

Our eyes stay locked for a few long moments before a deep inhale tilts his chest.

“Listen... Things are complicated.”

“Nah-uh. I don’t want to hear it. I don’t have time for complicated stories. I didn’t ask anything of you, but I asked about her. And you said what you said. That she is a friend and you’re interested in me. I still have the marks of your teeth on my neck, and now, you’re telling me it’s complicated? And you thought that telling me all that while you knew you’d spend time with her at the party was the way to go? What is wrong with you?”

“She doesn’t mean anything to me,” he says, his voice loaded with frustration.

I flash a clipped gesture of annoyance.

“Just stop it. Don’t try to diminish her to make me feel good about myself and you. I don’t believe a word you say, anyway. Now, you can go home and leave me alone.”

I pivot to my car when he takes a few steps toward me.

Swiftly, I spin back to him.

“Stay where you are. I no longer want to talk to you.”

“I left because of you,” he barks.

I freeze.

“Excuse me??”

I toss an incredulous look at him.

“You think I am that naive?”

“I didn’t say that.”

“You’re acting like that.”

“It’s not my intention. I’m trying to tell you the truth. I didn’t sleep with her. Not tonight or ever, and I left because of you.”

Shocked, I lift my hand and stop him again.

“Don’t talk to me,” I say in a growling voice before turning around and pacing to my car.

His footsteps ring out behind me. I rush away.

He picks up the pace.

“Luna??”

I don’t want to talk to him or see him. I don’t want anything from him.

“Go away.”