Page 35 of My Revenant
Jonah gasped, like he hadn’t quite expected I’d do exactly what he’d done.
The moment he recovered from his shock, he launched himself at me, knocking the remaining coffee out of the tray as we slammed against the table at my back. Roy’s coffee, black and extra hot, burned in a way the other two hadn’t, and all that seemed to do was ignite Jonah further as he clawed at me, hands going for my neck.
There were gasps and shouts of shock from the surrounding crowd, but I hardly cared. If my rabbit wanted to fight this out in the middle of the diner, I was happy to oblige.
We tumbled to the ground, trading hits and grabbing fists of each other’s clothing as we fought to get the upper hand. Jonah snarled at me like a rabid dog, fueled by rage, but I was euphoric. Having his body thrashing against mine was so right, even if it hurt. Violence tasted a lot like passion, and I craved Jonah’s passion.
With a grunt, I had him pinned to the ground beneath me, where I wanted him more than anything, his captured wrists pinned to the tiled floor on either side of his head. Before he could make a move to kick at me, I straddled him, weighed his lower bodydown with mine so any attempt to move only pushed him further into me.
Coffee dripped from my messed-up curls down onto his cheek as he glared up at me and attempted to thrash out of my hold, but I had him now, and I wasn’t letting him go. Jonah grunted and tried to buck me off. I pushed down against him, and at the heavy pressure and friction I watched as his breath caught in his throat. Heat crept up his neck, his pupils expanding.
“Would you look at that. It seems my rabbit likes being held down,” I said in a voice low enough for only him to hear, and whatever trance he’d briefly fallen into shattered.
“Get the fuck off me!” he shrieked.
Before I could respond, ice-cold water was being splashed over the both of us.
“Get out! Both of you! Out now!” Amanda shouted, brandishing a mop as a weapon.
Beside her, Becca stood with eyes wide, clutching a now-empty water jug.
With a grunt, I relented, releasing Jonah as we both got to our feet. I half expected him to launch at me again, but it seemed he couldn’t even meet my gaze as he pulled his wet hood over his head and dashed out of the diner much like he had that very first day. Becca stared at me, both confused and shocked before she put the jug down, apologized to Amanda, and took off after him.
I sighed, watching them leave before reaching a hand out to Amanda for the mop.
“The fuck happened to you, boy?” Roy asked from the desk where Bryce was now sitting. The bigger man rested a hand on his shoulder, which Roy quickly removed as my eyes locked onto it.
“Nothing happened,” I grumbled as I made my way to the bathroom at the back to clean up. Fortunately, I kept a few changes of clothes here, in case of days I wasn’t able to go home.
When I returned from cleaning up, Roy stared at me as he leaned against the wall, arms folded, brow furrowed. “Talk to me, son. What’s going on?”
My eyes shifted to the door that led to the reception area.
“I sent Bryce to get more coffee, seein’ as you decided to wear the first lot.”
I rolled my eyes, ready to shrug Roy off again, but the way he stared at me told me he’d be having none of it. It was annoying, really, the way he genuinely seemed to care about me. No one else in my life would be bothered. It frustrated me. I didn’t know what to do with it. For a moment we simply stared each other down, each waiting for the other to give in first, but the grumpy old bastard was infuriatingly patient.
I conceded with a groan. “So there’s this guy.”
sixteen
Jonah - Past
HYPOTHETICAL OPERATION.
I hate him. I hate him.I hate him. I fucking hate Dex fucking Weller.
I didn’t wait for Becca as I stormed away from the Cozy Cow. The wind chilled my damp clothing. It hung heavy on my body, and my hair stuck to my face and neck in wet clumps that smelled like coffee and vanilla.
Granted, I had been the one to throw the first cup, but what else was I supposed to do when he’d bought a cup of coffee forBecca?He wasn’t even interested in her. Was he? No, he couldn’t be. The thought of him being interested in her made my blood boil and my vision turn red. I’d acted before I thought about it, hurling the coffee across the diner. What the fuck was that? That wasn’t me. I didn’t do shit like that, but when he was around, I couldn’t think clearly. I became someone else, someone I didn’t like. He did this to me. Somehow, it was his fault.
“Nah, baby, I’m the devil.”
His words from the field that day circled around in my mind, and I couldn’t think of a better way to describe him. Dex Weller was the devil, and he was set on corrupting me and dragging me down to hell with him. Well, I wouldn’t allow it. Whatever this was, this invisible, immense thing that pulled me into his orbit like fucking gravity, it was over now. I wouldn’t play his games. I wouldn’t sink to his level. I never wanted to see Dex again.
“Jonah,would you wait up?” Becca called after me as she ran to catch up.
I didn’t know how to explain myself to her. I’d called her non-stop until she woke up this morning, and demanded she come meet me at the diner because I didn’t want to be alone. That old house and that old man made me feel like I was going crazy. The pain in my leg flared because it was colder today, and I wanted to tear it apart. Today was absolutely no good, and thenhehad to come in and make it all so much worse.
