Working With Rex Ch. 02

Mark came into the bedroom as Becki rooted through the drawers, trying to find her portfolio.

"What are you doing?" Mark asked.

"Looking for my portfolio, I could have sworn it was in here..."

"Why do you need that?"

Becki closed the drawer and pulled open the cupboard above it. "Rex said I should call in and show it to his boss."

Mark scoffed, "Come on babe, this is pointless. How many interviews did you go through after uni? All that rejection? Why would you want to go through that again? You have an easy job that pays the bills, why rock the boat?"

"Because that's not what I want to do with my life. Why can't you just support me?" She pulled out a glossy A3 art case from the back of the cupboard and lovingly brushed the dust from the cover.

"I'm just being realistic Becks, it's a lot of effort to just be rejected again."

Becki frowned, "Well Rex thinks I've got a chance. He thinks I should do it."

"So some random bloke on the street thinks you should do something and off you go? Doesn't my opinion matter?" Mark fumed.

"He's not some random bloke, Rex and I were in uni together."

"I see how it is, one of your conquests or a future one you want to impress?" He sneered. "I think you should just stay in your job with Stacey. What's the point in getting your hopes up for no reason?"

She frowned, "Rex thinks I'd get the job, it's worth a try surely? After all the work I put in?"

"Well go on then, hand your portfolio in and fuck Rex while you're at it if the jobs so important to you."

Becki stared at him open mouthed.

"Get out. I don't want you here anymore. You can come and collect your stuff when I'm not here."

Mark stopped, "You can't kick me out."

"Yes I can, it's over, I'm done. Now fuck off."

Mark laughed, "I give you two days before you're on the phone begging me to come back." He grabbed his jacket and his car keys and slammed the door behind him as he left.

The following day Becki phoned Stacey saying she had a Doctors appointment and would be late in, before picking up her portfolio and heading for the address Rex had given her.

"Hey, you came!" Beamed Rex, kissing her on both cheeks as he had in the street.

"Nothing to lose have I?" Becki smiled nervously as she followed him through the spacious office. She glanced around longingly at the designers workspaces, trying not to feel jealous about them already living the life she desperately wanted.

"So, you didn't actually tell me the name of your boss?" Becki whispered as she watched Rex reach for the door handle to a small room off of the main work space. Rex paused, "It's Mr Harrington, but most people call me Rex." Becki chuckled nervously thinking he was joking, until he opened the door to an empty room. She frowned, unsure what was happening as he gestured for her to go in and sit down, while he took his seat on the other side of the desk.

"Wait, YOU own the company!" Becki's mouth dropped open in shock. Rex blushed awkwardly. "Why didn't you say anything?"

Then she stopped herself. He didn't say anything because she didn't ask and Rex doesn't like to seem boastful.

"I'm pleased for you, well done." She smiled, a little disappointed in herself for not achieving what he had. Rex shuffled some papers around on his desk.

"I was working for myself, you know, freelance stuff. Marketing designs and websites, whatever I could get. Then I landed a bigger job and had to bring some people in to get it finished in time. Some of the guys I bought in had mad illustration skills, so we decided to pitch our own graphic novel to a publisher."

Becki sat there quietly, unsure what to say.

"So, Miss Reeves, I believe you have your portfolio to show me?" He smiled. Becki went to pass her portfolio over but stopped herself. She shook the mess of thoughts from her head. "Hold up. So you asked me to come in because there's a job going, or because you just wanted to show me how well you'd done?"

Rex's face fell in confusion, "What? No, Beck why would you think I'd do that? I genuinely want you to work here."

Becki let him take the folder from her and straightened her top nervously as he flicked through it.

"It's even better than I remember... If you want to work in this industry Beck, just say the word and there's a job for you here."

"You're not winding me up?" Becki asked quietly. Rex frowned, "Of course not."

Becki sat quietly for a minute.

"I'll have to work my notice at the bookshop..." Becki said, looking down at her lap. Rex tipped her chin up with his fingers so she was looking at him. "I can wait. I'd be stupid not to take you on. You've got my number, soeak to your boss and let me know when you can come and join us here." Rex smiled and passed her portfolio back to her.

*****

Four Weeks Later

They sat side by side at the desk for hours, drafting out the first issue, so close their shoulders were almost constantly touching. Something was missing though. Becki watched the sun begin to set behind the river, her frustration with Rex growing by the second.

"Fuck," she cursed as Rex started listed what he thought was wrong for the fifth time. "Stop it will you! This isn't getting us anywhere!" Becki rubbed her face with her ink stained hands, as someone knocked quietly on the door.

"That'll be dinner." Said Rex, stating the obvious as he went to collect the pizza delivery. He dumped the box on the desk in front of her, the rich cheesy smell coming from the box made her feel instantly better. Rex came back from his office with two beers, passing one to Becki before sitting down next to her. He moved his chair over a little, aware of the tension between them and wanting to avoid a fight. Neither of them realised how hungry they were as they quickly finished off the pizza in silence. This job should have been a piece of cake, combining their skills should make for an incredible combination, but in reality they just seemed to be getting on each others nerves.

Rex tossed the empty box onto a nearby table and pulled the storyboards back towards himself.

"See the problem is with this character, he's just not working for me..."

Becki sighed, "Right so what do you think we should do? I just feel like we are going round and round in circles. We agreed on all the characters before I started the storyboards..."

"I know, I liked him then but something's not right."

"For fucks sake Rex, you're a pain in the arse. I can't make any changes if you don't know what you want to change!"

"This isn't all on me! This is your work too, you can't pin all the shit on me!" He leaned across her to pull the conceptual drawings towards him. Becki stayed put, stubbornly refusing to move back out of his way. He was so close to her, that as he pulled the artwork across the desk they were face to face.

In an instant his lips were on hers, he didn't know what made him do it. He was so pissed off with her it didn't make sense. He almost wanted her to pull away and slap him, start the fight that had been building between them for a while. Instead Becki kissed him back. It wasn't a gentle kiss, the anger was still there evident in the ferocity of it and the way Rex gripped her shoulders. Without looking, Rex reached behind her and shoved their work off the desk and onto the floor, pushing her back onto the empty space. Barely breaking their kiss, Becki pulled his sweatshirt and t-shirt over his head in one go, as he pressed his body against hers.

There was a fierce need inside them both, an itch they both needed to scratch. An angry passion between them. Becki grasped his bare waist, her nails digging into his skin as he fumbled with the zipper on his jeans. She barely noticed him tug her jeans down until he was inside her.

The anger was still there, an underlying need to hurt each other in some way as Rex fucked her on the desk. There was no consideration, no desire to make her cum as he roughly thrust himself inside her, over and over, the desk thumping noisily against the wall.

Becki glanced at his face as she felt him empty himself deep inside her. For a moment she thought a flicker of remorse crossed his face as he slid off of her, hastily tucking himself back into his jeans. Becki watched him walk into the toilets without a word.

"Fuck" she breathed quietly to herself as she slid off the desk, pulling her trousers up at the same time. Without thinking about it, she picked up her bag and left, hoping Rex wouldn't try to follow her.

It was late as she drove home, cursing herself over and over for the way today had ended. She let herself into the darkness of her flat and went straight to the kitchen. She poured herself a generous slug of gin and downed it, before pouring herself a second one- taking her time to add tonic to this one. She glanced at her phone. Two missed calls from Rex. She didn't want to face that tonight so switched her phone off and settled onto her sofa with her gin, before deciding to call it an early night.

Her dreams were cluttered and filled with Rex; the scent of him and the way his body felt, the aching desire it had awakened within her. She awoke, hot and unfulfilled in the early hours of the morning. Becki knew what she needed and instinctively reached for the drawer next to her bed. It wasn't exactly the same as sex, but she knew ten minutes with her vibrator would take the edge off it a little. She slipped her hand into her pyjama bottoms, surprised at how wet she already was. She twisted the base of her rabbit vibrator to turn it on and eagerly positioned the buzzing head against her opening. She moaned as the flicking 'ears' touched her clit, sending an instant spasm of pleasure through her body. She couldn't help but think of Rex as she worked the vibrator in and out of her slick opening.

She turned the water temperature down in the shower, letting the cool water wash over her, calming her body and her mind. Once she could no longer smell the lingering scent of sex, she switched off the shower and towelled herself off.

While Becki waited for the kettle to boil, she reached for her phone that was still sitting on the kitchen counter where she'd left it the night before. There were a lot more than two missed calls from Rex now, and a whole string of messages:

Becks please answer the phone x

Please talk to me Bec x

I'm sorry, just answer the phone x

Beck I've been up all night, please call me back x

Becki sighed. She hated awkward conversations and she wasn't in the mood to do it over the phone.

I'll come in early this morning, talk then?

His reply was almost instant, agreeing to meet her early before the others came in. Becki glanced at the clock, she'd better be going if she was going to get there early.

As she quietly pushed the door to the office open, she grimaced a little to see that he'd tidied the desk up. Stacking the drawings and storyboards neatly on top as if nothing had happened.

"Rex?"

Becki was startled to see that he was still wearing yesterday's clothes, he clearly hadn't gone home last night.

"I'm sorry for walking out like that." She started, keen to ease the awkward tension between them.

Rex looked horrified, "What? Don't be daft, of course you left after the way I behaved. I'm so sorry Becki, I don't know what happened. I've never treated anyone like that, ever..."

"Wait a sec,". Becki frowned, "I'm not sure what you think you've done... we're both adults, Rex. We had sex, that's all."

Becki turned at the sound of the door as Dave let himself in.

"Morning guys, alright?" He called, heading for his desk.

"Rex was just going over to Starbucks, want anything Dave?" Becki called, raising her eyebrows at Rex.

"Black coffee please mate! A big one!"

"Same please and a croissant, I missed breakfast." Becki smiled.

Rex nodded and let himself out of the office. As Becki settled at her desk she sent Rex a text:

I would have stopped you... if I'd wanted to ;)

He didn't reply, but as he handed her a coffee later she could have sworn his hand brushed against hers on purpose.

Becki was struggling to focus on the work in front of her, as she heard Rex call her name. She turned to see him nod his head in the direction of his office.

"I've been thinking, it was wrong of me to be so overbearing with your work. I trust you and if you're happy to have a go at the brief on your own, well I'd love to see what you come up with?"

"Oh, wow really? You're sure?" Becki said, trying to keep the grin from her face.

"Yes. Take it right back to the start and do it how you see fit."