“Excuse
me,” I said, trying to push my way past him. He wouldn’t move though, not by
will and not by force.
Who was
this douchebag? I moved to step around him.
A firm
hand grasped my arm. “Not so fast.”
The
familiar voice halted my footsteps. I looked up and saw beneath the gray hood,
those dark eyes I’d seen before both in real life and in my daydreams.
Hunter.
NEVERLAND
“I thought I saw you.” His
presence was powerful and his voice, although no louder than normal, somehow
seemed to drown out the raucous around us.
His sudden
appearance was alarming. “H-How did you get out here so fast?”
“I saw you
run off so I threw on a new sweatshirt and came out here before you could run
away again. Gotta be quick to catch a thief.” He winked. “Don’t think I’ve
forgotten you still have the clothes I lent you.”
Damn
it.
He
continued, “So you came to cheer for me huh?”
“I don’t
know what you’re talking about,” I shot back, suddenly unnerved by being so
close to him. Not to mention his hand firmly around my shoulder and the warmth
from his palm seeping through the thick fabric of my coat. It should’ve been
comforting but I found myself becoming edgy and restless.
“You were
right in the front. You seemed really concerned about me during Abram’s
takedown attempt. I was touched.”
We were
surrounded by Hunter’s adoring female fans but he was hooded and in
inconspicuous attire so nobody noticed who he was. Except me. Was that his
intention?
“What
makes you think I was concerned about you? Maybe I was concerned about ‘Mr.
Hyde’.”
He
grinned. “I doubt that.”
“You’re a
little full of yourself, Hunter.”
His grin
widened. “You know my name now, that’s not fair. Now you have to tell me
yours.”
Realizing
I had the upperhand on him, I couldn’t help a small smile from breaking
through. “Sorry, that’ll have to remain a secret. Now if you’ll excuse me, I
need to get back to—”
“My boy!”
said a male voice.
“Gary!”
Hunter responded. Sensing an opportunity in Gary’s distraction, I tried to make
my escape but Hunter’s hand remained firm around my shoulder. I moved but he hugged
me closer to him, my face mooshing into the soft cotton covering his chest. I
caught a whiff of his just-been-fighting scent and my brain fried for a moment.
Gary
appeared by my side, shook Hunter’s hand, and they bumped shoulders.
“Congrats
on the win. Didn’t look like you even broke a sweat out there. Looks like all
that practice defending takedowns paid off.”
“Couldn’t
have done it without you man,” Hunter said.
Gary
noticed my presence and eyed Hunter’s arm around my shoulder. “Lorrie! Didn’t
expect to see you here. I thought you were going back inside.”
“
Lorrie
huh?” Hunter looked down at me with a grin that made my heart skip a beat.
Shit.
He knew my name now.
“It’s such
a pretty name. Here I was referring to you in my mind as Dorothy. Looks like I
was somewhat close.”
Double
shit. He had a nickname for me as well.
Except ‘Tim’ was nowhere close to ‘Hunter’.
“So how do
you guys know each other?” Gary asked.
My stomach
dropped. Not only did Hunter know my name now, he was going to spill about how
he saved me from committing suicide last week. It would draw more attention to
me and wreck my attempts at a normal semester.
Hunter
looked at me carefully then turned to Gary. “I was out jogging last weekend. I
slipped on the ice and fell flat on my ass. She rushed over to see if I was
okay and we got to chatting.”
I was
shocked that Hunter had just lied to Gary. Why was he covering for me? And at
his own expense?
Gary
laughed. “I’ve been telling you man. You gotta work on your footwork.” He
laughed again and slapped Hunter on the shoulder. “C’mon let’s go inside, I’ll
buy you a drink. Although you should really be the one buying with all that
prize money you just won.”
We made
our way through the crowd. Hunter kept his arm around me, holding me close so I
wouldn’t get lost—or run away. When we made it into the clearing, a pair of
blonde girls with large breasts and slim waists approached. Hunter turned away
to hide his face.
“Gary?
Gary Wilkins? Oh my god we’re like your biggest fans!”
Gary
grinned and opened his arms. “Why hello ladies. It’s always great to meet my
adoring fans.” He turned to us. “Sorry guys, I’m going to have to catch up with
you later. I have some important business to attend to. You understand.” He
winked at us.
Hunter and
I walked off toward the bar and I looked over my shoulder to catch a glimpse of
Gary laughing with his arms around both girls. The two girls had their hands
all over his shaved head, relishing the smoothness beneath their fingertips. I
had a feeling those girls were going to get a very special “autograph” by the
end of the night.
Hunter
suddenly stopped. “How are you feeling?”
I froze,
thinking he was referring to the day he saved me from becoming an ice cube at
the bottom of Lake Peepee. “How am I feeling about what?”
“About
getting a drink. I’m not really that thirsty right now. I’d rather walk and
talk. You interested?”
“I’m
flattered but I really have to get back to my friends . . .” The thought of
returning to Justin almost made me gag. It would be uncomfortable but at least
it was an uncomfortableness I could handle. I had no idea how to handle being
around Hunter Jensen, especially now that I knew he was a badass cage fighter.
His
expression turned tender but serious. “I’m not going to bite ya know.”
I’d just
seen him uppercut a guy’s mouth guard out so I didn’t know how to react to this
side of him. “I never said you would. What makes you think I have that
impression of you?”
“Because
you’re trying to avoid me.”
I laughed.
“No, I’m not.”
“Yes, you
are Lorrie.” Hearing my name uttered from his lips sent a jolt through my
system, heightening my already strong awareness of him. “You ran from my
apartment. And now you’re trying to give me the slip. What’s the deal? Do I
smell bad?”
I had to
suppress a grin at his line about smelling bad. If anything, he smelled
good
.
Strong, musky, manly. Which was strange. I couldn’t put my finger on it but I
did know that a guy wasn’t supposed to smell as good as he did after working up
a sweat. My mind swirling, I decided to go with a standard brush-off line.
“It’s not you. It’s me. I can’t explain it, it’s complicated.”
He
narrowed his dark eyes. “If it’s not me, then why do you act this way only
around me? I noticed you didn’t have the same reaction around Gary.”
I wracked
my brain for an answer. “Gary’s friendlier.”
Hunter
smiled. “Hey, I saved your life, lent you my clothes, made you tea, and let you
shower at my place. And you’re saying Gary is friendlier? Psh, and here I
thought you were polite.”
“I am. I’m
politely stating facts.”
“Alright,
since you don’t think I’m such a friendly guy, I’m gonna have to charge you for
my hospitality.”
“See?
Proved my point.” I folded my arms across my chest but I was eager to settle my
debt to him so I wouldn’t have to deal with him anymore. “So what do you want
in return?”
“You’re
going to have to join me on my cooldown walk. I usually go alone, but this time
I want company. Unfortunately that means you’re going to have to ditch your
friends.”
I frowned.
“That’s not very nice.”
“I’m Mr.
Not-So-Nice remember?” A smile played at the corner of his full lips. The
combination of boyish charm and rugged brawler was becoming too difficult to
resist.
“Alright,
fine. We’ll walk, but just to make us even. Then I don’t owe you anything,
okay?”
“Sounds
good.” His smile turned into a wide grin. “Go tell your friends you’re ditching
them.”
I took a
step then halted and turned back to him. “You’re willing to wait?”
His grin
remained firmly in place. “Not nice isn’t the same as mean. Give me a little
credit here.”
“Aren’t
you concerned I’m just going to go inside and end up ditching you?” The
question rode a thin line between teasing and serious. I didn’t know which way
he’d interpret it maybe because I didn’t know which way I meant it, myself.
“We have a
deal remember? You seem like someone who respects that. I trust you.”
“Maybe
you’re a little too trusting.”
I went back inside the bar,
leaving Hunter out back. I seriously thought about ditching him. What was I
doing agreeing to go on a walk with him anyway? I wanted a normal life again. I
wanted peace. I wanted to feel like a regular person again. I had to keep
telling myself that going on one walk with Hunter wasn’t going to ruin any of
those things. I had to convince myself that the feelings I felt while being
around him weren’t real, that it was a fluke the numbness I constantly felt
somehow magically disappeared for a moment when I was near him or thought about
him. It was hormones. A “biological quirk” as my therapist liked to refer to
disorders. Just a result of being without a boyfriend for over a year. If I
allowed myself to fall for Hunter, I could really get hurt. Guys like him had
women literally fainting to be with him. Hadn’t I been hurt enough already?
I spotted
Daniela, Cody, and Justin across the bar still at the same moosehead booth
where I’d left them. For a moment, I considered making up a good excuse to tell
them in person but decided that I didn’t owe Justin anything. I pulled out my
phone and texted Daniela.
There’s
a mixed martial arts thing going on out back. Gonna hang out with one of the
fighters instead of Justin :P.
A moment
later she replied.
Can’t blame ya :). You gonna be okay by yourself?
Yeah,
don’t worry about me. I’ll catch a ride back. Tell Justin and Cody I got sick
and had to leave.
Leaving
out the back door, I saw Hunter leaning against the side of the bar, alone. His
warm breath made billows of fog in the cold air. I’d half-expected him to be
surrounded by women when I returned, but the only thing around him was his gray
hoodie. People were still gathered beneath the large tent, chatting excitedly
about Hunter’s fight. I couldn’t help but wonder what some of those fan girls
would do if they got the chance to be in my position.
“Congratulations,
I just lost my friends,” I said. It was Hunter’s fault that I’d ditched my
group so I figured I might as well give him a hard time.
He smiled.
“If that was all it took to lose your friends, then they weren’t good ones to
begin with. Besides, you just made a new one.”
I cocked a
brow at him. “You?”
“See
anyone else around?”
I looked
around for Gary but didn’t see him anywhere in sight. “I guess I don’t see Gary
here. . . Speaking of which, why did you lie to him about the lake incident?”
He
shrugged. “I didn’t want you to look bad. Friends look out for one another.”
I took a
deep breath of the crisp air and cleared my throat. “Just because we’re walking
together, doesn’t make us friends. This is just a deal. Let’s just get this
over with okay?”
“After
you,
Lorrie.
” He grinned wickedly.
We walked
away from the clamor of the bar along a dirt path leading into the dark forest
surrounding the bar. For a popular venue, it was kind of in the middle of
nowhere. I was concerned about going into the darkness of the forest but
strangely felt safe around Hunter. However, neither of us said anything. The
silence was awkward.
Once we
entered the forest, I broke the silence. “So . . . you go on cooldown walks
after you fight?”
“Yeah,
it’s a good time to reflect and clear your head, ya know. That’s why I usually
go alone.”
“You don’t
go with any of your female fans?” I asked, nonchalantly. “Why walk with me
then?”
“Most of
the time I like just hanging out by myself or with Gary—I don’t get along with
most people . . . You’re different though. I don’t know what it is exactly but
I feel like we can relate, you seem cool.” He looked at me and grinned.
“Thanks, I
guess. Always nice to be thought of as ‘cool’.” I didn’t know what he meant but
it sounded like a compliment and my face flustered anyway. “So, I’ve been
wondering, why did you think my name was Dorothy?”
He stopped
to pick up a large branch on the ground. “‘Cause you remind me of Dorothy from
the Wizard of Oz except you almost got swept away by an icy lake instead of a
tornado. Then you ran off from my place because you were in a hurry to go
home.”
I stooped
to pick up my own branch but it was smaller than Hunter’s because my hands were
smaller. “What can I say? There’s no place like ‘Floyd Hall’.”
He
chuckled as he idly tapped the leaves and bushes with his branch as we walked.
“I suppose that makes me the cowardly lion?”
I smiled
despite myself. “From what I saw tonight, you definitely found your courage.”