Happy Hump Day and welcome back to Mid-Week Tease hosted by the lovely Sandra Bunino.
This week we are back with Tony and Rita in
Riding Rebel as I rush to complete my WIP before the end of November. Can I write 20,000 words in 4 days? Come back next week and find out.
In the meantime I give you a teaser from RR. Just before this scene, Rita revealed to Tony that her boyfriend had hit her because she'd been in Tony's hotel room. Tony is livid about this and then the said boyfriend shows up.
This is an unedited draft. Enjoy.
Tony's mouth slackened and he blinked at a rapid fire rate.
"You've got to be kidding me. This asshole hit you and you want me to
leave you alone with him. Not going to happen."
Leaning back, he scrutinised Rita's face although she
refused to meet his gaze. Despite the shadowed street, he made out her
trembling lips. She was frightened. He could swear it. Shit. He reached for her
shoulders.
She took another step backward and stepped into the beam of
light from the car headlamps. "Tony, please don't make it worse for me,"
her voice sounded so small and tight.
His gut tightened and he wanted to haul her back into his arms. Wanted to shield her from anything that would hurt her.
Doesn't that include you, Tony? Aren't you going to hurt her? Who is going to protect her from you?
He shook off the niggling voice in his head.
The car stopped beside the building, the other side of where
Freddie had parked his motorbike. Tony's bodyguard was already at attention
watching the car and the occupant and providing a barrier between whoever was
in there and Tony. This was part of his job. But today Tony wished he didn't
have that barrier because he wanted to have a go at the new arrival himself.
Give the man a dose of his own medicine.
Feet planted apart, all his muscles tensed as he waited. His
hands balled into fists at his sides as his veins throbbed in his temple.
A dark-skinned man in a white shirt and dark trousers
stepped out of the red car. Since he was behind the beam of light, Tony couldn’t
see his facial features immediately.
"Rita. Is that you? What are you doing out here?" The
newcomer stepped into the light and stared from Freddie to Rita to Tony, his
expression and tone of voice harsh.
Older than the three of them, perhaps in his mid-thirties, the
man stood large, not as tall as Tony or Freddie but wider and definitely bigger
than Rita. She was really a tiny girl compared to the men surrounding her at
the moment. Tony's fury rose at how anyone would want to take advantage of her
vulnerability like her boyfriend did. Moreover, he was a man who should know
better, not a boy.
"Yes, it's me. I'm just getting home. Welcome, Anayo."
Her voice trembled a little and Tony noted she didn't make a move toward the
man who had just arrived.
Good. He didn't think he could bear it if she walked into
the man's arms just moments after she'd been in his arms. As it was, he didn't
even want the man anywhere near her. Shit. This was so messed up already. And
he wasn't even involved with her. Couldn't be involved with her. Still here he was, dropping her off home and ready to fight monsters for her.
"Why are you outside with these men?" The man's harsh
voice got louder and Tony took a step forward involuntarily. He so wanted to
knock the living daylights out of the man.
"Ehm, this is Tony Essien. I told you I had an
appointment with him today. It was so late when we finished and he brought me
home."
"Is that so?" The man eyed Tony and then Freddie.
"Yes, it is," Tony cut in. "I wanted to make
sure she got home safely, something that her so called boyfriend should be
doing." He couldn’t resist having a dig.
"Look Mr whatever –your-name-is I don't need you to
tell me how to treat my girlfriend." Anayo sneered at him. "We get on
just fine without you. Rita, get inside the house. Now."
She gave him one last frightened look over her shoulder before rushing through
the side pedestrian gate. Tony was glad she was out of earshot and he strode up
to her boyfriend and stood in front of him, blocking his entrance.
"You should treat women a lot better, mister,"
Tony said as he towered over the man making himself appear much bigger. His
fists itched to connect with the face of the man in front on him. In therapy,
he'd been taught techniques to control his temper. And he struggled to apply
any of them now. "You should be honoured that a beautiful girl like her
gave you her time."
"What are you talking about? Get out of my way,"
Anayo replied in a condescending tone.
Bam. Tony's fist
connected with flesh and bones on the man's chin. Anayo cried out and fell with a dull thump
onto the bonnet of the car. Tony shook out his right hand. It hurt like hell but seeing the
cowering asshole of a man made the pain worthwhile.
***
Tony is certainly an act first, talk later kind of man. What do you think? Leave me a comment and check out these fabulous mid-week teasers.
And Happy Thanksgiving to my American friends!