Hunter
I was livid. I was considering committing other crimes just to at least put my anger to work.
Mister wasn't just some fling who got off on pretty young girls; he was a predator hunting his victims and waiting for the perfect moment to strike. He was a coward who was going to meet the other side of my fist.
I listened to Addi confess how much he wasn't taking no for an answer and even about the blackmail. Her master list of dangerous to-do’s was now becoming my problem. He wasn't going to stop until he was stopped. Her luscious lips may have been the color of a stop sign, but one that begged you to blow through it.
“I can handle it. I don't need you to fix my problems.” She stood up frantically, probably from the detachment from her cellphone that was glued to her hand. She was eighteen, and I was practically 30. That hadn’t really settled in until now.
She started undressing; my eyes were glued to every new patch of skin she was exposing. Her tan was fading from its deeper tone, and her hair was no longer perfectly smoothed down. She was a mess. I stood up, taking my jacket off and my shirt immediately after, as I watched her open the door to the bathroom, turning the knob for the shower.
Kicking off my boots and hearing her broken phone get kicked one more time made me wince. I stood behind her while she poked and prodded herself in the mirror. It made me wonder what she saw, because it couldn’t possibly be what I did.
My hands smoothed over her hips, pushing the fabric of her panties out of my way, while I kissed her shoulder. “I like you like this—yourself. You don't need all that shit.”
She continued to prod and ignore my fingertips sinking into her hips. She was memorized by flaws—ones invisible to me.
“But it got your attention, didn't it?”
His too.
My hand snaked up her skin, until I had my fingers around her throat loosely, stealing her attention and forcing her to look at me. “You think your fake tan and fucking lipstick got my attention? No, Addi. It was these gray eyes and how much you didn't want to be loved.”
Her eyes drowned in moisture; this was more powerful than any “I love you” would ever be for her, because she knew I was saying I loved every part of her, even the ones she considered ugly.
“Too bad. You’re stuck with me, babe.”
I pulled back, undoing my pants. My belt slapped her ass, and her stained red lips turned her frown into a smirk. She was corrupt down to her core. Parts of her accepted not being loved, and because of that, it meant there was no hope for me. That wasn’t a world I wanted to live in; I was gonna love her until it destroyed every ounce of self-loathing and hate she had in her.
I turned around after stepping out of my boxer briefs that had become snug around every inch of me. “Are you really gonna try to resist me right now?” I cupped myself in my palm, looking up through my eyelashes at her, waiting patiently for her will to break.
I convinced Addi to skip her bronzed lotion, the red lipstick, and whatever she planned to do with her hair before we left with Liz and her clan to her parents’ house. They lived only minutes from Liz’s brownstone, so we weren’t actually late. Thankfully, I had my Mustang back, so all I had to do was follow Leon’s car.
Addi snapped, “We’re with Liz; they won’t care if we’re late now.” The tone of her voice was all sass and unapologetic.
“Try to relax, babe. I’m meeting your parents, remember?”
I was trying to appeal to her desires—something inside me knew she didn’t want their approval anyway. It made me question if I was armor or truly something she wanted, down under all that contempt for them.
I shifted my eyes her way. Her small body looked uncomfortable against my leather seats for the first time since she stormed her way into my car, making demands like her name would be the only one I ever said again.
She wasn’t wrong.
I pulled into the driveway behind Leon and waited for Addi to make a move first, until Liz was nearly tapping her foot and shouting, “Guys! Let’s go!”
Practically dragging Addi to the front door, I pushed her hips in front of me, shocked she wasn’t dragging her feet too. Their dad opened the door with a huge smile on his face. “Angels! Your mom was about to start calling you. Get in here!” I could see Addi’s resemblance to her dad—same pale tone without the fake tan, same eyes, and cut jaw. He waited for Liz, baby Bijou, and Leon to walk by, before he laced an arm around Addi, kissing her hair. He knew she needed extra attention in these situations, and my protective defense came down slightly. At least someone in her family cared how she felt.
I heard him whisper to her while I trailed behind, “She’s in a good mood today. This should be easy. Should I be worried there’s a guy following you?”
She giggled, innocently, almost childlike. “No, Daddy. He’s a good one.”
He stopped walking with her to now focus on me. “Addi’s dad… you are?”
“The other guy she calls daddy too… for other reasons, obviously.”
His happiness drained from his face, like melted butter, slipping right off.
This is why I wasn’t the meet the parents type.
Addi turned around with a fresh blush covering her new paler tone. “Hunter!”
I shrugged. I couldn’t take it back now, even though I didn’t want to. I wasn’t here to impress people who made Addi feel so unlovable that I had to fix her.
“I’m gonna ignore that and call it nerves. Take a seat at the table, son.” Her dad was more of a father than mine: warm, forgiving, unconditional. It made me wonder what the hell he acted like behind closed doors. Was this just a facade? His company face?
I sat down next to Addi at their long table when Leon’s fist was held in the air, waiting for mine to bump against his. I took pity on him, knowing he was just as much on the outside as I was. The Amherst Sinners weren’t a club accepting new members, yet we were always right on the edge of being involved, so my fist bumped into his. Solidarity or whatever bullshit you wanted to call it.
Addi’s mom finally made an appearance, carrying two dishes of vegetables for the table, when she realized I wasn’t part of their normal traditions. “Addileigh didn’t say she was bringing company.”
Moms loved me. I wasn’t worried about her at all. Every mom had some version of me that got away when they traded in the danger for stability and suburbs. I was probably already making her panties wet enough to be on her approved list instead of shit list.
She pushed out her hand in a reason to touch me, and I obliged. “Hunter.”
Her dad’s eyes were still grilling me uncomfortably now. I was stealing the attention from both his girls—actually all of them, if you counted Liz’s crush on me in college.
Must be a record for me.
Addi was silent. Not one word escaped her, and every dish passed to her she skipped on. Her plate was empty and clean. I was waiting for the shoe to drop. Once Liz talked about Bijou, all bets were off. Whatever gag was in their mouths before had been ripped out.
“Addi, do you want a salad?” She leaned over the table, handing her the bowl and whispering in a way we could all hear still. “Gotta keep the weight under control.”
This was my shoe, dropping, loud and down the stairs. The protective need to protect women who couldn't do it for themselves was in full force. “Her weight is fine. She's pretty fucking small.” I didn't shift eye contact once, making sure her mom knew to sit down and perhaps be quiet.