Chapter Two
Hunter
The music blared all around me, giving me a massive headache. I massaged my temples as I looked around the room. It was crowded with stupid kids, and I had no idea what had happened to my niece or nephew.
I groaned as another pimply teenager pushed past me and nearly spilled his red cup on my shirt.
“Watch it,” I snapped. “Are you even twenty-one?”
The kid snorted. “Fuck off,” he said. “What the hell are you doing here anyways, old man?”
“Go home,” I growled. “It’s not a good look if you get caught drinking underage.”
Usually, I don’t care if young people have fun, so my niece and nephew were welcome to host a party. But now, I was oddly irked to come home to pounding music and flashing lights. I don’t know if it’s because I’m pushing forty or because I’m tired as hell.
Besides, I wasn’t even supposed to be here today. My flight was supposed to take off yesterday, but a tropical storm blew in and fucked everything up. Believe it or not, flights to the Alsatian Islands only leave once a week, and I’d missed my chance. As a result, I was grounded here for god knows how long, and my sister swooped in on the opportunity. Priscilla took the unexpected delay as an excuse to ask me to look after her kids, as she and her third husband left for vacation on their yacht. “Quality time with Uncle Hunter,” was what Priscilla called it.
And I agreed to it because one, I had nothing to do, and two, it’s not like Kristi and Aaron are animals or anything. They’re not even that young, so I figured it’d be no problem. I moved my luggage into their house, prepared to hunker down until I could catch another flight out. Of course, it’d be just as easy to live in my own apartment two hours away, but some quality time with my niece and nephew actually sounded nice.
Besides, Priscilla has been hounding me all year to come home and spend more time with the family. It’s underlined in every conversation we have over the phone, but the problem is that I don’t really have the time. I’ve been running our father’s media empire and the work is all-consuming, although clearly my sister has no idea. I think Priscilla’s trying to convince me to settle down, maybe take a wife and pop out a couple of rug-rats.
But I don’t need a family. Not when I’ve already got one. At least, that’s what I tell Priscilla whenever she pesters me. I tell her that her kids are like my kids. Maybe it’s a defense mechanism, or maybe it’s because I’m Hunter Maddox. I’ve never experienced a hurdle I wasn’t able to surpass.
As I walked through the house, carrying my suitcase, staring at all these drunken kids, I was tempted to call a cab and go to a hotel. At least there I would get some peace and quiet. Kristi and Aaron had probably been partying for hours, and showed no signs of stopping.
As I turned to leave, I found myself staring at a group of girls standing in the kitchen. One girl, in particular, looked uncomfortable as she stood and toyed with her plastic cup. She was wearing a scrap of clothing that didn’t leave anything to imagination, but the look on her face was one that I wasn’t used to seeing: she almost looked frightened, like she knew she didn’t belong.
As I watched, the brunette smiled uncertainly, her lips wavering. There was something so shy and innocent about her that I could feel my breath catch in my throat. Because this girl was different.
The brunette was a mash-up of contradiction what with the come-hither outfit yet deer in the headlights look. When I looked at her, I felt a strange desire to possess her, to keep her as mine forever. The need to own her was more than anything I had ever experienced before.
The air sizzled as she turned towards me. To my surprise, the female didn’t shy away from my stare. We locked eyes and I fell headfirst into that warm caramel gaze. Despite the loud party around us, the moment was intense and intimate. She drew in a long breath, and lust stirred inside of me as her huge tits heaved in the air.
I wanted to walk over there to stake my claim.
“Uncle Hunter! What are you doing here?” I snapped out of my trance and looked over to see my nephew Aaron as he sailed up next to me, patting me on the arm. “Oh wait, that’s right. Mom said you’d drop by this week.”
I nodded.
“Storm came into port early, so my flight was delayed,” I said, turning my attention back to the girl only to find that she had disappeared from sight. I discreetly looked from side to side, hoping that I would catch a glimpse of her again. I turned back to Aaron, who looked confused and dopey. Typical teenage face.
“Where’s your sister?” I demanded.
Aaron shrugged his shoulders. “Don’t know. She’s around here somewhere,” he said, looking around the room. Aaron and Kristi were twins, and new high school graduates to boot. Aaron was tall, with dark brown hair and a baby face. He wasn’t very bright – his sister had clearly gotten all her mother’s intelligence. He looked down at my suitcase. “Maybe you should put your stuff away? Unless you want to carry it around.”
I nodded ruefully.
“Yeah, good idea champ. Let me just get my stuff settled, and I’ll come back down and join you guys.”
And with that, I turned around, looking once more for the brown-eyed beauty. Who was she? Where had she gone? But first things first. I needed to put my suitcase away into the guest room and then spend more time looking for the brunette again because I was going to find her … even if it took me all night.