Chapter 7 - He Appeared
993 Words
MIRA
He rushed forward. “Did he hurt you?” His tone held concern.
Never would I have predicted meeting him here. What were the odds?
I stumbled, collapsing onto the ground with my gaze raised to his. I didn’t blink or breathe. I just gaped, emotions swirling and enveloping me. Why did he appear after two years of silence? I’d been running away from him, trying to kill the demons he’d instilled in me, but whenever I was close to healing, he appeared—either on television or billboards—and ruined it.
What now?
He’d appeared in front of me this time, our eyes piercing into each other’s.
“Are you okay?” He snapped his fingers in front of my face.
Stooping in front of me, he grabbed my shoulders. I was jolted out of my reverie instantly. His hands pierced into me like needles and burned me like hot coals.
I shuddered and jerked his hands away from my shoulders. “Don’t touch me,” I snapped at him, trying to get up, but I was too weak and shaken to do any of it properly. I kept falling back to the floor.
“You must be too shocked. Let me help you up.” Again, he lurched forward to hold me.
“Don’t touch me!” I yelled, leaning backward, terrified to the bone.
Memories rushed in. The way he disregarded and discarded me after the death of our son. His hysterical laughter and the condescending look he gave me in the courtroom. Those were the demons that had haunted me for years. His demons.
I watched his expression morph into one of surprise at my outburst. Just shock. I expected something else. Something more from a man like Roman. He would yell back, grab me violently, and remind me that I was nothing but beneath him. Then he would laugh hysterically to mock me.
But nothing like that happened.
He stared at me, scrunching his face in confusion, like he didn’t know me. Like he hadn’t seen me before.
What now? What was his deal? What would he gain from this pretense?
“This isn’t the way to treat a man who saved you,” he said, rising from the floor. His hands tucked into his pockets. He exuded a dangerous, cold aura, and his demeanor was calculating and egoistic.
I didn’t expect less from a man who thought the whole world was beneath his feet, who treated his wife like she was some game of chess. That was exactly who he was. Arrogant and cruel.
Trembling, I stood up, finally managing to pull myself off the floor. I staggered, trying to steady my posture.
“You looked at me like I’m the one who just tried to take advantage of you,” he mumbled. “You’re probably mistaken because it’s dark.”
He leaned forward. The shining moonlight fell on him, revealing the face that had tormented me for years.
“I would have preferred being taken advantage of than having you as my messiah,” I yelled, taking steps backward. “What’s your deal? What do you want from me?”
His gaze deepened, yet it still didn’t resemble the one I was used to.
“You think a man who tried to r**e you is better than me?”
I dug my nails into my skin, trying not to break down in front of him. “Yes. He’s better than you in many ways. I would pick a man like that over you a thousand times!” My voice rose, and my chest heaved up and down. I was losing it.
His mouth opened, then closed almost immediately, as if he reconsidered his words and decided against them. Just when I thought he wouldn’t say anything else, he fired back.
“You don’t even know me, woman. You know f*****g nothing about me.” His tone was filled with frustration and anger.
I was taken aback. I blinked.
What the hell was Roman’s deal? Why was he acting like we were just meeting for the first time? What exactly was he trying to achieve?
I scoffed, erased the gap between us, and jerked his collar. “I know nothing about you, huh?” I pulled his face forward. Our faces were so close I could feel his hot breath against the tip of my nose. “I know you’re a devil. A devil who would do anything to succeed.”
His eyes widened, and his face morphed into an expression I couldn’t fathom. Shock? Anger? Anxiety? Or shame from being caught in his act?
“I don’t care what you’re after or what you’re trying to achieve by pretending to be a stranger. Don’t come near me again. And if I’m part of one of your plans, I’m excited to let you know that you’ve—”
He didn’t let me finish.
Angrily, he yanked my hands off his collar and stepped backward, smoothing out his rumpled shirt. “You’re a crazy b***h. I should have allowed that bastard to have his way with you,” he mumbled.
Then he pointed a finger at me. “Don’t show your ugly face near me again. And don’t think I’ll ever forgive you for what you did today.”
He didn’t wait for my response. Instead, he spun around and dragged the weirdo, who had already passed out, away.
Until he disappeared, I didn’t stop nibbling on my bottom lip. I was a hundred percent certain that was my ex-husband, Roman Monroe, but the way he looked at me was strange. Like he had forgotten I was the same woman he ruined with a lie.
A chill rushed over me like a tidal wave as his face appeared in my head.
No way that was someone else.
He was Roman.
And whatever he was trying to do, I could tell it wasn’t going to end well.
- Writer
