Throughout the meal, he couldn't drive the feeling out of his mind. He saw that something was holding her back. She didn't interact with him spontaneously. Every now and then she would get lost in her own thoughts. The sparkle which should have been constant in her emerald eyes were missing. He saw only a glimpse of it every now and then when she forgot herself like the time when he asked her to eat the entire pie without sharing with him. Her childlike happiness had won him over. He tried to make her happy throughout the course of the meal, narrating hilarious tales of their childhood. He wanted to see the sparkle in her eyes again and again. They finished their meal and Rex paid and they walked slowly towards Rex's car in the parking area.
"You don't play football anymore?" She asked him curiously when he spoke about everything but football. Rex stared at her with shock. How did she know that he played football? He hadn't mentioned once to her about football. It was a topic he hardly talked about. After his knee injury, he had been banned from playing. He was selected for the Montana State Football team but his goal was to join one of the NFL teams. However, as fate would have it, at the practice session of his first big match, he had injured his knee. After three months, he was fit enough but couldn't ever play. His hopes and dreams had been shattered for ever. It was his dad and granddad who helped him cope with his mental depression. Since then, he had never talked about football. It was a banned topic at home and also amongst friends who knew him.
However, after years, hearing about the game which had been his heart and soul didn't invoke the feelings which it used to before. He was stunned. Talking of football didn't hurt him at all!
He pinned her with his stare. His arms on either side of her, holding onto the car trapped her against it. "How do you know that I used to play football, Ember?" He asked her, his face inches from hers, watching her with a hawklike stare.
Ember was in a dilemma. Should she tell him that she knew him? Should she tell him that fourteen year old girl who had a crush on him and watched him from afar for a whole year, till he disappeared from her life? His finger touched her chin in urgency, forcing her to look up at him. "Have we met before, Ember?" He asked, almost pleading with her. How did he not remember having met her before? He would never have forgotten if he would have met her.
"You don't remember me, Rex? I'm Ember Fischer, Zoe and Stacey Fischer's granddaughter. I was at Fordsville High with you. You dropped me home one day," she said softly, in almost a whisper, trailing off. She couldn't say anything more. Let him figure the rest out. He wouldn't remember her.
"Ah, of course, now I remember you. You've changed a lot, Ember. For a whole year, I tried to talk to you but you always stayed far away from me. I wanted to be friends with you but you didn't give me a single chance," complained Rex, releasing her and standing straight with a smile on his face, remembering the young Ember who watched him from far. He had noticed her many times unknown to her. Her eyes were still beautiful then but not quite as beautiful as it is now though.
"Why did you stay away from me, Ember?" He asked her curiously. Ember blushed and looked down at her shoes, playing absent-mindedly with her bracelet. It was a habit which she did when she was embarrassed and nervous. Rex found it too adorable to ignore and his hot gaze remained fixed upon her little gestures that endeared her more to him.
"I.. ," she started but couldn't continue. What could she say? I stopped because while I fell in love with you while you were busy with that beautiful cheerleader?
"Tell me the truth or else, we can stand here the whole night," threatened Rex. He had to know why she stayed far away from him for an entire year.
"You had a girlfriend and I didn't want to disturb you," she admitted while her face heated up profusely. If she could, she would have evaporated from the site. Rex stared at her as if shocked by her answer.
"I never had any girlfriend as far as I remember?" He said, frowning and thinking hard.
"Yes, you had. Lauren Samuelson, head cheerleader of Great Falls High. Does it ring a bell now?" She asked him, with eyes flashing defiantly. Of course he had girlfriends. Who was he kidding? All the girls at school were crazy about him. Rex's eyes widened. Oh that girl?
"Were you jealous of her Ember?" He asked with curiosity.
"No, not at all," she lied, looking down and fiddling with her bracelet.
"Why can't I believe you?" He chuckled unlocking his car. Ember quickly went inside and he fastened her seat belt, without removing his eyes from her. She could feel his hot breath fanning her face. Finally he eased out and closed the door, going to the driver's side and climbing inside. The whole car was filled with his masculine scent which hovered upon her senses making her numb. His presence was dominating within the close confines of the car.
"I met her at a restaurant since she wanted to make her boyfriend jealous but he broke up with her instead. She wanted a no strings attached s*x and I obliged. I never saw her after that," said Rex. He wanted her to know the truth.
Ember just nodded. She didn't like the fact that he'd shared physical intimacy with Lauren. Of course he was his own person. He might have indulged in such acts quite frequently. He drove towards Fordsville looking at her every now and then. She had gone back into her shell, looking out of the window, deep in thought. "So what do you do?" Asked Rex, curiously. Work was the safest territory and he needed to talk to her to get her out of her shell.
"I'm a pediatric nurse at Fordsville Public Hospital, " she told him.
"Wow, that's so noble, nursing the little ones to life," he said and Ember smiled.
"It's what I love doing, " she told him.
"What else do you love doing?" He asked quietly. He was dying to know everything about her.
"Cooking with granny," she said with a smile.
"That's good. I would like to taste your dishes. When are you inviting me?" He asked hopefully.
"You don't need any invitation. It's your granny's friend's house, after all," she pointed out.
"You remember that?" He asked her with surprise.
"I remember everything, " she said quietly. Rex absorbed that piece of information. Did she like him, in that sense? He couldn't hope.
"In that case you should have kept in touch with me," he pouted. Ember looked at his childlike pout and her eyes went to his mouth. They looked so kissable and delicious that she had to look away. She didn't want to be caught staring at his mouth after all.
"I.,," she started and then looked down at her hands, fidgeting absent-mindedly with her bracelet. Rex noticed her pale face and stammer. She was uncomfortable with that question.
"It's okay Ember. I was just kidding with you," he comforted. She looked up at him with tortured eyes.
"So what do you do after work? There aren't many good places to go to here," he asked. He was dying to know whether she was in a relationship with anyone or not but couldn't find the opportunity to ask her.
"I don't go out. I just cook or spend time with my grandparents, " she told him.
"Your boyfriend doesn't mind?" He couldn't help but ask her. He had to know for his own peace of mind.
"I don't have one, " she answered, a small smile playing on her lips.
"Really? A beautiful girl like you doesn't have a boyfriend? I thought all the guys of Fordsville were after you," he said with a smirk. She looked at him incredulously.
"Isn't it the other way around?" She asked him. His grin widened.
"Are you trying to tell me that I'm extremely good-looking?" He asked with a laugh. Ember rolled her eyes at him.
"As if you didn't know that already," she said, looking away towards the window.
"It's different when you say it," she heard him say. Ember smiled. Clever and an impossible flirt!
"Are you in the habit of flirting with all the women you meet?" She asked him, with a glare.
Rex grinned, "No, only you," he told her.
"Why can't I believe you?" She said with a small cheeky smile, returning the same question that he had uttered a few minutes back.
Rex's smile widened. This was getting more and more interesting. He prodded. They reached her house and he parked his car right in front of her gate. She got down without a word. Then closed the car door and looked at him. "Thanks," she said with a smile.
"When can I see you again?" He asked, hopefully.
"Bye Rex, " she said and walked away, leaving him dumbfounded and more in love with her.