by S. M. Soto
A few hours later, after my lunch break, I spot someone sitting in my section, and my stomach twists in uncertainty. Since Julia is on her break, I can’t ask her to take this table for me, too, so I suck it up and walk over, pen and pad in hand, summoning the strength.
Thomas glances up, and when he sees me, his eyes flash with anger. The black eye he was sporting not too long ago has healed, though it seems he hasn’t forgotten why it was there in the first place, and who gave it to him. He eyes me with such a blatant disdain that I shift awkwardly on my feet.
“What can I get you?”
“Beer and a burger, little moon.”
I’m surprised that’s all he says, and for one brief second, I think I’m in the clear. I think he might actually listen to End’s orders to keep away from me. But I should’ve known he wouldn’t; nothing is ever that easy.
Once his food is ready, I bring it out to him, along with another beer. It’s his third draft of the night. But judging by the smell wafting off him, I can’t imagine this is his first drink of the day. That is just how Thomas and his friends are. They are partiers.
When I ask if he needs anything else, he leans back in his booth, his lazy eyes half-mast as they drag up and down my body. A tremor wracks my body, but it’s not a pleasant one.
“You think you’re really something special, don’t you?”
My brows jump into my hairline. “Excuse me?”
“You think because you spread your legs for him and had his baby, you’ve suddenly found the perfect guy?” He laughs, and the sound is sharp and ugly. “I can assure you, you haven’t. Do you even know how many women he’s fucked in this town?” he goads.
My heart twinges at his words, but I steel myself, not about to let him see his words are getting under my skin. He’s telling me things I already know—preying on my deepest fears. I’m nothing special to Endymion. I could be replaced at any moment, and that’s such a scary thought. It’s crushing to even think about.
“What is it with you women and Endymion Black, huh? You guys lose your fucking minds when you get near the bastard.” He slams his fist down on the table, rattling the dishes. I glance around, pink rising to my cheeks when I realize the people dining inside are looking at us with frowns on their faces.
“Please calm down, Thomas. Just enjoy your meal.”
“You too good for the likes of me, babe. Is that it? You think you have some golden pussy because Endymion Black is the only man who’s been inside of it?” Thomas reaches out, his hand clasping onto my apron, and he tugs. The movement is so unexpected I go tumbling into his side of the table, my hip connecting with the corner. Pain flares, and I wince at the burn.
“What are you doing? Stop it,” I hiss, trying to smack his hand off me, but he doesn’t let up. His hand slides around the back of my thigh, dragging me closer to him. Panic flares, and I shove against him, but it does nothing. He’s incredibly strong for a man who is tipsy. When he reaches higher, almost exposing my backside to everyone, I’m just about to scream when a meaty hand grips onto Thomas’s shoulder and shoves him away from me.
Bobby is standing behind me, eyes ablaze with anger. “Get out, Tommy, and don’t even think about coming back. I mean it this time.”
“Fuck you and this stupid bitch. Oh, and fuck your wife, too, Bobby.”
Bobby lets out a growl, and his fist sails into Thomas’s face. His head knocks back, blood spilling out of his nose upon impact. A gasp rips from my chest, my hands flying to my mouth in shock. He drags Thomas up from the booth and tosses him out as if the man weighs nothing.
I whirl around when I feel a warm hand on my shoulder. It’s Julia. Her eyes are wide, mouth agape in shock. “You okay, babe? Did he hurt you?”
I lie even though my hip is aching. “No, I’m fine. He just scared me is all. He was drunk and saying stupid things.”
Her face grows stormy. “I can just imagine what the bastard was saying. I heard Holly and Reina talking earlier. She wants to try to win Endymion back, so she broke things off with him. My guess is he isn’t too happy.”
I tense. Holly is going to try to win End back? Is she a goddamn insane person? Over my dead body. That woman will not be allowed anywhere near my child if I have anything to say about it. Hell, at this rate, End won’t even be able to look at her without wanting to strangle her for the things she said about Luna and me.
Heaving a sigh, I rub at my temples, feeling a headache coming on. “Jesus. I’m ready to go home and sleep. This is too much drama for one day.”
Julia scoffs. “Where have you been? Dunsmuir has always been drama. Welcome back.” She pats me on the butt before getting back to work. As if it was meant to be, I spot Holly hanging around out front and decide to take matters into my own hands.
I call out to Rita and tell her I’ll be taking my break as I make my way outside. At the sound of the bell chiming, Holly turns, her face scrunching in distaste when she sees me.
“Can I help you?” She raises a brow, clearly annoyed by my presence. I’m not exactly chipper to be standing here with her either.
“You called my daughter a bitch, Holly. She’s a child, for Christ’s sake. Do you not have an ounce of respect for anyone in this town?”
Anger flares in the depths of her eyes. “I did not call your child a bitch. Would you go harass someone else?”
I scoff. “Are you seriously calling my daughter a liar, right now?”
“Well, it would definitely make sense. Like mother, like daughter.”
I jerk back. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
Fury clouds Holly’s expression. “It means you fucked my boyfriend! Lying obviously runs in your family.”
I send a menacing glower her way, and my hands curl into fists at my sides. “You know nothing about me or my family.”
She laughs, taking a step closer. “Oh, I know enough. I know you’re not this sweet, perfect girl this town makes you out to be. You’re not the girl Endymion thinks you are.”
“And what, you are?” I challenge.
“I’m a whole hell of a lot better than you! The only reason he’s with you is because he accidentally got you pregnant. You have to know that.”
Pain rips through my chest. I suck in a ragged breath and narrow my eyes. “If you say anything about my daughter again, our next conversation won’t be half this civil. I couldn’t care less about what you think about me, but you’ll keep her name out of your mouth. Oh, and if you really think I’m the source of all your problems, you need to have a look in the mirror and ask yourself why you were never enough for Endymion to begin with.”
Her face shutters.
With those harsh parting words, I turn on my heels and head back into the diner.
On the drive home from work, I stop at the empty store lot Julia was telling me about earlier. I don’t know why I do it. It’s not like I’ll be able to have it, but she’s right. It is a cute place. I can’t even remember what store was here as a kid, but she said the town hasn’t been able to sell or lease the spot. It’s in downtown Dunsmuir in a prime area. The storefront is brick and rustic, and with a little TLC, it could be something special.
Maybe.
In the far future.
If I ever decide to follow my dreams again.
With a quick glance at the clock, I decide to pull over and park along the street outside of the empty building. Endymion still isn’t back home with Luna yet anyway. I spoke to him after I got off work, and he mentioned they were still at his parents’ house having dinner. He told me to stop by, but I said I’d meet him at home. I didn’t feel like rehashing my day in front of his parents.
Locking my car behind me, I walk up to the building, assessing everything about it. It’s too dark out here to see inside. I’ll have to stop by during the day, but I still peer in through the windows. It’s shadowy and difficult to see what condition the inside is in, but as far as space goes, it’s a good fit. A little bigger than the last place I leased i
n Pasadena.
A part of me wants to say to hell with it and make this happen, but a bigger part of me is afraid. Afraid of failing again. I did this once, and while things were good, it was really good, but it didn’t last. Even though this is my dream, something I’ve always wanted, I don’t believe following your dreams is the smartest thing to do anymore. At some point, we have to let them go. Maybe they were dreams for a reason? Always meant to be a distant goal, nothing that would ever come to fruition.
The sound of glass shattering behind me has me whirling around, a gasp catching in my throat. My eyes widen, and my stomach drops when I see who caused the noise. Thomas reeks of alcohol, and when I glance down at the shattered tequila bottle on the ground, I can guess why.
“Well, well, well, funny running into you here, Selene Drake.”
I glance around the street, trying to find anyone else out walking around, but it’s quiet, deserted, even for being a Saturday night. I swallow thickly, taking a wary step back. My heel collides with the building behind me, and my stomach cramps.
“Thomas, what are you doing here?”
He closes the distance between us, and with each step he takes toward me, I feel the blood roar through my veins, and my heart hammer against my chest, trying to burst through my rib cage.
“I could ask you the same thing, little moon. It’s almost like fate put us on the same path tonight, isn’t it?”
I shake my head, swallowing the lump blocking my throat. “I should go. Endymion is waiting for—”
End’s name was the wrong thing to say. Anger flares in the depths of Thomas’s dark brown eyes, and he slams his hand against the glass behind me, caging me in against him. I let out a shriek of fear, stilling against the glass. His breath fans my face. The heat of his body smothers me, making it impossible to breathe. My pulse is pounding so hard, it’s making it difficult to think clearly and find a safe way out of this.
“Endymion. Endymion. Endymion. It’s always about Endymion, isn’t it?” He glares down at me, eyes filled with a turbulent heat, his lips twisted in a snarl. I don’t know what happened to Thomas while I was gone, but the handsome football player from my childhood has turned into a drunken mess. The town disgrace.
He leans into me, pressing his nose against my cheek, smelling me. My bottom lip trembles, and bile rises up my throat, fear clawing at my flesh.
“P-please don’t hurt me,” I whisper.
His eyes flash to mine, and he chuckles. The sound turns my stomach. “Hurt you? Oh, no, little moon. I want to make you feel good. Show you what it’s like to be with a real man. Do you know how long I’ve wanted you? How long I’ve waited?” In a flash of movement, his hands are on my hips, squeezing in a painful grip. I struggle against him. With adrenaline coursing through my body, I shove at Thomas’s chest, trying to get him a safe distance away.
“Thomas, stop it. I don’t want this.”
He slams me up against the window behind me, banging my head. A burning twinge shoots through my skull. Thomas presses his body flat against mine, and I can feel his erection digging into me. It spurs a sob to rip from my chest. I try to knee him, but he must sense it coming because he smothers me with the weight of his body, his hand digging into my hair and pulling so hard, I feel the strands rip free from my scalp. I cry out in pain at the sting as it burns across my flesh.
Taking advantage of my weakened moment, Thomas kisses me, shoving his tongue in my mouth. I gag at the invasion, shoving at his chest, doing everything I can to get him off me. For someone as drunk as he is, he’s strong, so much stronger than I expected he’d be.
“Get off me!” I yell, but it gets muffled beneath his lips.
“What’s the matter, sweet little Selene? Scared to get fucked by a real man? Spread those legs for me. I know you can.”
He reaches his hand between us, and I panic. Bile threatens to expel. Adrenaline flows through my body, and I strike him, clawing at his face. He lets out a strangled roar, and in the blink of an eye, his hand sails down across my face. The hit is jarring. Pain flares in my cheek, dazing me. I’ve never been hit before. Especially not by a man. There’s a ringing in my ears that drowns out the sound of everything else around me. When I feel his hand trying to reach up my dress, I snap out of it and dig my nails into his forearms, ripping open his skin.
“You fucking bitch!”
This time his hit is a fist, and the second his knuckles make contact with my face, I feel the skin split. Black dots dance around my vision, dazing me. The throbbing reverberating from my skull is endless. A cry of pain rips from my chest, and I fall onto my side, skidding along the pavement. My elbows scrape against the gravel there. Glass from the shattered bottle embeds itself into my skin. I struggle to push myself upright, hot tears rolling down my cheeks.
“This works out perfectly,” Thomas murmurs, as he shoves me back down onto the ground when he sees me struggling to get up. I fight beneath him when I feel him settle on top of me as he works my dress up my body. I’m bucking so forcefully he can’t get ahold of me. With a punishing grip in my hair, he shoves my head down onto the sidewalk, applying pressure to keep me pinned down. I still fight. I fight against the throb radiating from my face. I fight against the feel of his heavy body on top of mine. I fight against the visceral fear percolating through my veins. The flesh of my cheek scrapes against the concrete as I try to get away, but it’s no use.
When he attempts to dig his hand up my dress, I scream. The sound echoes around us, painfully bouncing down the quiet street. Tears pool beneath me, every part of my body burning as I feel him work to lift the dress to get better access.
“Hey!”
He freezes at the sharp voice, and so do I.
“Hey, what the fuck?!”
Thomas scrambles to his feet. When his heavy weight is no longer crushing me into the pavement, I try to inhale a deep breath, but it gets trapped in my throat. I slam my eyes shut, and a sob rips past my lips when I hear his footsteps pound away as he flees. Shame washes over me. Pain grips my body, and an ache blooms in my chest at what could’ve happened. What almost happened.
I hear the sound of pounding footsteps in time with my racing heart. A sharp pain shoots through my arm when I try to move, and when I glance up, the side of my face burns. Someone skids to their knees before me, and when my eyes clear on the figure, tears of relief spring to them.
“Jesus Christ,” Landon breathes, his face crumpling when he sees me. “You all right, Selene? Tell me where it hurts.”
I press my palms into the concrete, trying to push myself upright. In doing so, he gets a good look at my face, and it tells me what I already know. It’s more than just a scratch. He lets out a string of curse words. “That son of a bitch.”
Landon helps me into a sitting position, taking stock of my injuries as he pulls his phone out of his pocket. I know who he’s calling, without even having to ask, and my stomach drops.
It’s on the tip of my tongue to beg him not to say anything, but there’s no way I can hide this or stay silent about this. I’ll be the talk of the town. News will travel back to my parents, and it will worry my dad.
“End, we have a problem.” There’s a pause as he glances at me. He proceeds to recount what happened in a low tone.
I wince when I hear the roaring sound of Endymion’s voice on the other end of the line. Great.
My eyes slam shut. The side of my face is burning, and there’s a dull, incessant throb at the base of my skull. I can’t escape it. A cold chill shoots down my spine, and I flinch when I feel Landon’s hand on my shoulder. His hand is gone immediately as if sensing I don’t want to be touched after what happened.
“I’m sorry, Landon. I didn’t mean—”
His brows pull in, and he looks frustrated. “What are you apologizing for, Selene? You did nothing wrong here tonight. Nothing.”
I nod, swallowing thickly because I don’t know what else to say. He takes a few steps away, giving me a little privacy as
he calls his dad, who works for the sheriff. I hear his hushed tone, and even though I can’t exactly make out what he’s saying, I imagine he’s relaying what he saw.
In what feels like no time at all, everyone is pulling up, parking near my car on the empty street. My heart stumbles in my chest when I see End. The muscle in his jaw jumps wildly, and his eyes light with a burning rage as he stalks toward me, his gait stiff. Despite all the anger I see written all over his face, I can clearly see the fear and the panic there, too. It crumbles the wall I’d just built around my emotions. I didn’t want to fall apart in front of an audience; I wanted to do that in the privacy of our home, but apparently, that isn’t going to happen. Dropping to his knees before me, he pulls me into his arms, and I grip onto him, a sob ripping from my chest.
“Shhh. I’m here,” he soothes, trying to keep his tone even. Despite that, I still hear it in his voice. The anger. The rage he’s barely restraining. He pulls back ever so slightly, gently taking my face in his hands. His expression turns murderous as his moss eyes sweep across my features. His nostrils flare, and he shoots an undecipherable look at Landon.
“What happened?” he demands. I glance over his shoulder, toward the officer that is heading our way.
“Where’s Luna?”
“She’s with my parents,” he says, putting me at ease before turning back to Landon. “Now tell me what the fuck happened before I lose my shit.”
“I heard a scream, so I followed the sound. Then I saw—” Landon pauses, his gaze darting to mine. I glance away, feeling entirely too vulnerable. As if sensing that, End tightens his hold around me, and I seek his warmth, falling into him. “He had her pinned to the ground. I didn’t see what happened before. He got spooked when he heard me coming and ran off.”
