Rey’s voice lingered in the room long after he let go of my chin and walked out, closing the door behind him.
My head was spinning. I sat on the edge of the bed, wrapped tightly in the duvet, staring at the floor. My whole body ached, but the mess in my mind felt a hundred times worse. I couldn't wrap my head around what had happened between me and Rey, but right now, the heaviest weight on my chest was Max.
I reached for my phone on the nightstand. My hands trembled as I dialed his number.
It rang four times before going straight to voicemail.
I called back immediately. This time, it went straight to voicemail on the second ring. He was hanging up on me.
"Come on, Max... pick up," I muttered, pressing the call button again. Declined. Again. Declined.
A sharp knot tightened in my stomach. Max could be mean when he was angry, but he had never ignored me like this. I couldn't just sit in my room waiting. I needed to see him. I needed to fix whatever was breaking between us before it was too late.
I forced myself up, wincing as a dull pain shot through my lower body. I threw on a pair of sweatpants, a dark hoodie, and grabbed my keys.
I bolted down the stairs, making sure I didn't run into Rey in the hallway, and ran straight into the garage. I jumped into my Tesla, punched Max’s address into the GPS, and slammed my foot onto the accelerator.
Ten minutes later, I pulled into the alley outside his apartment building. I practically ran up the stairs to his front door and knocked hard.
No answer.
"Max! Open the door!" I called out, knocking again. Silence.
Panic and frustration boiled over. I turned around, ran back down to my car, and grabbed a small metal tire iron from the trunk. I stomped back up to his door and started smashing the metal rod against the wood, the loud clanging echoing down the hallway.
"Max! I know you're in there!"
The lock clicked, and the door jerked open.
Max stood in the doorway, shirtless, covered in sweat, with fresh purple bruises and dried blood on his face from where Rey had hit him the night before. His eyes were dark with fury. Before I could say a word, he grabbed my wrist, yanked me inside, and slammed the door shut behind us. The tire iron clattered onto the floor.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" he snapped, his grip tight enough to bruise my arm.
Giggle sounds came from the bedroom area. My stomach dropped.
I looked past his shoulder. Sitting on his unmade bed were two girls—a blonde and a brunette—wearing almost nothing, laughing as they passed a pack of cigarettes back and forth.
My breath caught in my throat. "Max... what is this? who are they?"
Max didn't even look bothered. A mean smirk spread across his lips as he turned around. The blonde girl on the bed blew smoke into the air and winked at him. Max walked over, reaching down grabbed her neck and kissed her, right in front of me.
When his lips tore from hers, he turned to me. "None of your business," he said coldly.
"None of my business?" My voice cracked. "I’ve been calling you for an hour! I drove all the way here because I was worried about you, and you're here with—with them?"
Max turned back to me, crossing his arms over his chest. His eyes scanned me up and down like I was an annoying stranger standing in his living room.
"Enough of your bickering. You have two options, Amelia," he said, his voice flat and empty. "You can join us, or get the fuck out."
I stared at him, completely frozen. "What?"
"You heard me," he scoffed. "Make a choice. I don't have all day."
"Are you insane?!" tears burned behind my eyes, hot and stinging. "Is this a joke to you? After everything that happened last night?"
"You're the one who ruined last night!" Max barked, stepping toward me. "I haven't had real fun in weeks because of your prudish attitude. You refuse to let me fuck you even though I’m your boyfriend. And then your crazy bodyguard shows up, attacks me, and breaks my nose! I don't need your drama anymore."
"He attacked you because you drugged me!" I yelled, the words spilling out before I could stop them. "You gave me something in that shot, Max! You let him touch me—"
"Shut your mouth!" Max's jaw clenched tight. He took two fast steps toward me, his face twisted in rage. "Get out of my house, Amelia. Get out before I throw you out."
The disrespect, the betrayal, the coldness in his eyes—it was too much. My hand reacted before my brain could stop it.
CRACK.
I slapped him across the face with everything I had.
Max’s head snapped to the side. For a second, the room went dead silent.
Then his eyes locked onto mine, red and terrifying.
Before I could back away, his hand shot out and grabbed a handful of my hair, yanking my head backward. I let out a sharp cry as he pulled me off balance.
"You think you can lay hands on me?!" he growled.
He raised his fist and slammed it straight into the side of my face.
Pain exploded behind my eyes. I staggered back, but he didn't let go of my hair. He pulled me back in and hit me again—once, twice—a brutal blow right across my cheekbone. My knees gave out, and I hit the floor hard.
"It's over between us, you crazy bitch," Max spat down at me, wiping his knuckles. "Don't ever come back here."
He turned his back on me and walked toward the bedroom, leaving me curled on the cold floor, clutching my face.
I lay there for a minute, my body shaking violently, tears blurring my vision. My jaw throbbed with a burning, unbearable pain. The sweet, loving boyfriend I thought I had didn't exist. He had never existed.
I dragged myself up off the floor, holding onto the wall for support. I didn't say another word. I stumbled out the door, down the stairs, and into my car.
When I caught my reflection in the rearview mirror, a quiet sob escaped my chest. The left side of my face was already swollen and turning purple, a split cut bleeding near my lip.
I drove home on autopilot, my hands trembling on the steering wheel the entire way.
As soon as I pulled into the driveway and stepped out of the Tesla, the front door of the house flew open. Rey came striding down the steps, his face dark with concern.
"Where the hell did you—"
He stopped mid-sentence.
His eyes landed on my face, and the air seemed to leave his lungs. The angry expression vanished, replaced by an eerie, terrifying silence. His blue eyes went completely cold—colder than I had ever seen them.
He stepped close, his hands rising slowly, hovering near my face like he was afraid to touch the bruises.
"Who did this to you, Amelia?" his voice was barely a whisper, but it sent a shiver straight down my spine.
I flinched back, looking down at my shoes. "Nobody... I just fell."
I knew what he would do if I said Max's name. I knew how dangerous he was.
Rey didn't argue. He didn't say a word. He reached down, snatched my phone right out of my jacket pocket, and swiped it open. He tapped the call log.
At the very top of the list were twelve missed calls to Babe.
Rey stared at the screen for three long seconds. His jaw flexed so hard I thought his teeth would shatter.
Without a word, he tucked my phone into his pocket, leaned down, and scooped me up into his arms. He carried me into the house, up the stairs, and laid me gently on my bed, pulling the blanket over my shoulders.
He leaned down, his eyes locked onto mine.
"Don’t get out of this room, Princess," he warned softly, his voice deathly calm. "I'll be back soon."
He turned around and walked out, slamming the bedroom door shut behind him.