Chapter Fourteen

My head whirled like it was in a blender, my chest feeling as if it had been punched. I breathed through my nose, trying to keep myself vertical. I wasn’t ready for this. Not yet.

But watching him slam the door and take a step toward me, I realized I would never be ready to see him. He had a power over me no one else in the world held. And I hated that in a matter of seconds everything I worked hard to build was ripped away.

“Hunter.” His name rose thickly from my throat, my nails digging into my palms.

He folded his arms, his head turning to the side. “You’re back.”

“Yes.” I swear I was going to pass out from the temperature overheating my body, sweat beading down my lower back.

“Doug didn’t tell me it was you.” Tension clipped every word as if each one was torture to utter.

“Oh.” In that moment I realized it was not good-looking men who could make me go dumb. Luca was sexy as hell, almost beautiful, but I never lost my mind around him. It was Hunter alone who turned me into an inarticulate idiot. A scoop of ice cream on the searing concrete.

Tension weaved around the silence, neither of us speaking, the air pulsing like it had a heartbeat. The crickets and bugs hummed in the dense foliage, as if they were giving us background music for this encounter.

“So… um…” I cleared my throat, motioning at the engine. “My jeep overheated.” Yeah. Duh.

“I see that.” He dipped his head with a sardonic lilt, hooking an eyebrow. “There’s a reason they put warning lights on your dashboard.”

My eyes narrowed. “Yeah. I know that. Thanks.”

“If you did, then we wouldn’t be here, would we?” Animosity seemed to fill him. He swung his arms down, his boots moving over the pavement to the front of my car. Stalking past me, the hitch in his leg was very apparent, reminding me this work of art had been rebuilt from the crushed pieces it had been left in. He moved to the hood, and his arm grazed mine, raking electricity across my skin like a fine-tooth comb, the hairs standing on end. I heard my molars crunch, my lids squeezed together, and I held back the gasp in my throat.

Get it together, I chastised myself, my nails digging deeper into my palms. Taking a deep breath, I swirled around.

Hunter lifted the hood of my jeep, allowing the steam to escape before peering into the engine.

Crossing my arms, I tried to keep my eyes from tracing over every inch of him, but failed miserably, watching him through my lashes.

“When was the last time you checked it?” He grabbed a rag from his back pocket, calling my attention to his ass.

“Uhhh.” My head darted to the side, my throat bobbing. “A year ago.”

He shook his head, scoffing, but didn’t say anything, the tension building back up between us. The only other men I’d been in a relationship with, Colton and Luca, were so different, as they both loved to talk. And Luca really had no problem speaking about his feelings or clearing up any tension between us right away. His constant need to communicate drove me crazy some days.

Hunter kept to himself. Stayed silent. Only a few people got to see the real guy underneath and were permitted into his heart. He didn’t care what people thought. Even if it was wrong, he let them believe what they wanted. If anything, he loved that his muteness could discombobulate someone.

Right now, that was me. I no longer knew how to be around him.

“So…” I kicked my sandal at a pebble on the road. “You work at the garage now?”

“No, I merely roam the back roads looking for stranded motorists,” he quipped, a nerve pulsing behind his dimple.

“So… you’re a serial killer now?” I drew my arms tighter to me, like they were my security blanket.

Hunter slowly craned his neck to the side, a pitiless smirk on his face. “It has great benefits.” The way he said it, I had no doubt he wanted to make me his first victim. His hostility and aloofness twisted my heart with grief, and yet anger also flared up. Why should he be so angry at me? He was with Krista and Cody, probably happily married to her.

Without thought, my gaze shot to his left hand, finding it bare of ornament. That didn’t mean anything; lots of men didn’t wear wedding rings, especially mechanics.

A smirk curved his mouth, like he knew exactly what I was searching for, his head waggling as he turned back to the truck.

“Doug owns the shop now?” I licked my lips, trying anything to reduce the strain in the air.

“Yep.” Hunter’s one-word answer grated.

“Jesus, Hunter, I’m trying here.” I tossed my arms out, glaring at him. “Give me something.”

In a blink, his hand grabbed the hood and slammed it down, causing me to jerk back in fright.

“Give. You. Something.” A scornful laugh clipped over his teeth, rage coloring his deeply tanned cheeks. His eyes wandered over me like he was livid I could say that to him. His head shaking, he shoved past me, muttering under his breath, “I gave you everything.”

“What?” Not sure I heard him correctly.

He swung around, coming within an inch of my face. His proximity rattled my head, while his familiar sexy smell filled my nose, making my legs wobbly. “Let me give you something now.” Hunter tilted his head, his breath sliding down my neck. “Stop. Trying.”

He whirled back for the truck, his shoulder hiked up at his ears. “Your radiator is shot. Need to tow you to the garage.”

My heart hammered in my chest, the pulse in my neck violently shoving against my skin. But rage boiled inside me, burning my ears, a feeling I hadn’t experienced in a long time. Actually, since the last time we were together. He was the only one who could reach inside to the depths of my soul and bring forth this level of fury in me.

I wanted to scream at him, throw something, but then he would only know he could get to me. Air puffed out my nose, my hands scrunched up tight, taking even breaths to try and calm myself. He hopped into the truck, Doug’s Garage written on the side. A part of me wouldn’t have been surprised if he kept on driving, abandoning me here. But the brake lights flashed, and he reversed the truck close enough to my bumper to hook it.

Grabbing my bag, I silently left him to do his thing, climbing into the passenger side of the tow truck, grumbling under my breath. My attention landed on his reflection, making me do a double take. Out of the driver’s side mirror I saw him, bend over, hooking up my car, his shirt riding up, showing off his cut torso and tattoos clenching as he worked. My teeth drove into my lip, feeling like a voyeur, but I couldn’t look away, knowing I could observe him unnoticed.

The way his arms flexed, the twin dragon tattoo inked up his arm contracted like it was alive. I couldn’t help but recall the times my fingers trailed over it. And with absolute detail, the ones I traced with my tongue, running up his back and side to his V-line. Like a bullet, lust fired through me, forcing me to grip the door handle, only to be chased by anger.

Jayme. Stop. I rubbed my face, dropping my head forward. But like a forbidden pleasure, my gaze drifted to the mirror again. He stood on the side of the truck, flicking the button for the winch to pull the front of my car up. His free hand grasped his face, pinching his nose before he tipped his head back, staring at the treetops. A flash of agony fluttered over his face and disappeared. He dropped his head down, chest rising like he was inhaling deeply, and shut off the switch, disappearing from the mirror.

He checked the cables holding my car and walked back to the truck. His face was locked down like a walled city, not acknowledging me. He slipped into the seat, assisted his left leg, as though it couldn’t bend properly, and curled it on the floorboard.

I jerked to stare out the side window with a strange guilt. The recent accident had done that to him. The one he barely lived through and, as far he knew, I never even cared enough to call, because Krista would probably not want him to know.

I was curious how he came to work for Doug. Did he do this because he could no longer compete? I wanted to hear everything, what he had gone through, to know all about his life up to now. But at the same time, some of those details would kill me.

I knew Hunter and Krista were together. And to hear him talk about her, with warmth in his voice… I would probably open this door and dive right out into the middle of a busy street. The pain would be far less than seeing his eyes light up talking about her.

The truck jerked forward, the rattling of cables and chains locked down on my car, towing it with us. Hunter’s arm went on the window ledge, his eyes on the road as he drove, the wind blowing through his dark hair. He didn’t speak or turn the radio on, unfazed by the pressure breeding like rabbits in the cab. It was so Hunter I chuckled to myself.

“What?” His gaze drifted for a moment.

“Nothing.” I set my arm on the door, enjoying the cool breeze sliding through my hair and clothes. “Just some things never change.”

His hand went to his mouth, scrubbing at his chin, his eyebrows lowering.

“And some things do,” he replied enigmatically.

Yes, like us, going from hate to love and now back to hate. Hunter and I had come full circle.

I shifted in my seat, staring out the window, trying to ignore the painful ache in my heart of being so close to him physically but worlds apart.

I wanted to hate him, or even better, to feel nothing at all, but I never could. I would always love him. That had become glaringly obvious the moment he stepped out of the truck.

But our lives had taken two different paths. And I had to learn to live with loving someone I could never have.

 

 

The rest of the drive to the shop was silent and uncomfortable, the unspoken words braiding a wall between us.

He slammed, vibrating the truck as he climbed out, and he lowered my car back to the ground inside the large garage. Two other mechanics I didn’t know barely glanced up from the cars they were working on. The garage and the lot outside were stocked full of cars when we pulled up. It seemed Doug had improved the business.

I slipped out of the truck’s cab, thankful to be putting space between us. The pungent smells of oil, gas, and metal permeated my nose so strong I could almost taste them on my tongue. I didn’t hate it, far from it. Something about it reminded me of Hunter. Being around bikes all day, fixing or riding them, the scent clung to his clothes, mixing with the soap he used. Clean but sexy with a bit of spice.

Jaymerson. Stop. I cringed, my thoughts spiraling down a path no longer accessible to me.

“Hey!” Doug stepped out from the office, his arms raised in greeting, a goofy smile on his face. “Aren’t you a sight. Fuck, were you always this hot?”

Laughing, I went to him, giving him a quick hug. Doug couldn’t help but lighten any bad mood. His simple outlook on life was so genuine and harmless you ended up adoring the bluntness that spilled from his mouth.

“Good to see you.” He patted my back, stepping back, his eyes lifting over my head. “See, aren’t you glad I sent you out?” he spoke to Hunter.

I turned around to see Hunter glaring at him, as though saying: Just wait. I will kill you later. His gaze shot to me, then dropped back to dealing with the car, unlatching it from the tow truck.

“Jeez, I thought seeing you again would lighten his mood.” Doug rolled his eyes, waving me to his office. A girl named Aubrey, who was from my year in school, sat behind the counter, typing data into the computer.

Her gaze drifted to me, to her computer, then snapped back to me, her eyes widening slightly.

“Jaymerson.” A strange expression I couldn’t place flicked over her face. Embarrassment? Dislike? Shock? I couldn’t tell. But I couldn’t hide my surprise at her being here. We were cheerleaders together, but she was never particularly popular. She had been far too overeager and clingy for Savannah to include her. They even ripped her apart for hooking up with some freshman and because her family couldn’t afford the latest styles. I couldn’t either, but Colton had exonerated me from their assault… until he couldn’t. Then I became the punching bag.

“Aubrey. Hi,” I greeted her warmly, way past the drama of high school. Italy had put in perspective how unimportant it all was. Even if you felt it was the most imperative thing at the time to fit in and be part of the crowd, it wasn’t. Life was so much bigger and greater than your years in high school.

I was mainly surprised because she was one of those who used to make fun of Dougie, the loser druggie, and belittle him because he never graduated or made it out of this town. Now she was working for him.

“Heard you were in Italy.” She sniffed, her voice sounding so much like Savannah’s bitchy manner it felt like a recording. Savannah, beautiful, head cheerleader, and my so-called ex-friend, turned on me the moment I no longer followed her rules. She was nice to you when you were part of her cluster of adoring fans, but the moment you stepped out of line, she reduced you to shreds

“Yeah. I just got back.”

“Oh.” She flipped her hair. “I’m only working here for a bit to get extra money. Going to Virginia University in the fall with my boyfriend.” Rushed, vehement words shot out like she had to defend herself. “You know Jason and I are together, right?”

“Jason McKee?” No, I hadn’t known, or truthfully cared, but it kind of shocked me. He had never even acknowledged her existence a year ago. Jason had dated Savannah all through high school.

“Yes,” she snapped. “And we’re so in love.” She again sounded overdramatic.

“I’m happy for you.” I nodded, realizing how far from all this crap I was.

My body turned toward Doug, signaling an end to the conversation. “Hunter said something about my radiator needing replacing?”

“Oh, right.” He shook his head. “Let me go talk to him, check it out, and give you an update. Fill out the info sheet, and she’ll get you in our system.” He ambled out into the garage space. No one else was in the waiting room, which left Aubrey and me staring awkwardly at each other.

“Here. Fill this out.” She shoved a clipboard toward me then returned to the computer. It was as though she was so insecure she feared even speaking to me, as though it would get back to her boyfriend, and his friends would find out, and she’d be dragged back to no man’s land.

It was liberating to realize I didn’t care about these people or what they thought. During high school, hearing the hate, scrubbing away the comments on my locker, really hurt. At the end of high school, I chose Hunter and stood up for what I wanted, and others’ opinions bothered me less. Now I felt nothing while they were all still in the same small bubble. The life I experienced in a year had changed me.

Finishing the form, I handed it back to her and went outside to get away from her not-so-subtle glances at me. She had no reason to dislike me except the popular group did, and she was a sheep.

I texted my mom what happened, telling her I’d be home later than planned and wandered around the front of the garage, trying to stay in the shade of the building. From the corner of my eye I couldn’t help but watch Hunter work as he bent over my engine, his shirt rising, showing off the muscles coiling around his narrowed waist, sweat glistening his tan skin.

“No,” I growled to myself, forcing my gaze away.

“Jaymerson.” His voice raked up the back of my neck, spreading tingles through my shoulder blades. I twisted around to him waving me over. My pulse picked up as I strode to him, schooling my face to a blank expression.

“Like I thought, your radiator needs replacing, along with the filter.” His eyes went everywhere but mine.

“Okay.” I nibbled on my lip. “How much is that going to cost?”

His attention dropped to my mouth, his nose flaring, tightening and heating everything in my body in response. And it didn’t go unnoticed. His eyes trailed down to my thin tank top. His jaw tightened, and he turned toward the car again, gripping the metal. “Around three hundred.”

“What?” I gulped. “Three hundred dollars?” I didn’t have a lot of money. The museum gave me a minimal stipend to live off, but it barely covered my food. Not much was left in my savings after that impromptu trip to Denver.

“That’s just for the parts.” His attention shifted over his shoulder to me.

I groaned, sliding my hand through my hair. “There’s not a layaway plan, is there?”

His mouth quirked, his dimple diving in. “Doug’s been playing with the idea of having a strip pole in the middle of the garage. Maybe you can work it off.”

Snorting, my hand went to my mouth, my lips parting into a grin. “What’s sad is I know it’s probably true.”

“That’s Dougie for you.” The first hint of a real smile tugged at his mouth, cranking heat around me like a boiler. Our eyes locked on each other, unable to look away, ripping the rest of the world away.

“Daddy!” A high-pitched cry peeled through the garage, stabbing pins along my vertebrae. Both of us jerked toward the opened doors, watching a toddler waddle into the space, his arms reaching out for Hunter. A figure strode in a few yards behind the mini-version of Hunter. As if the heater switched to deep freeze, a chill ran down my skin, icing me in place.

Krista’s hair was in her usual sexy ponytail, her skin tan, makeup free. She wore a strapless black maxi dress and large black sunglasses. Her smile was huge, her expression full of love as she watched her son run to Hunter, a paper bag in her hand.

“Cody.” Hunter stepped back from me, meeting the almost two-year-old halfway, picking him up with ease. “Hey, little man.”

“We brought you lunch.” Krista stepped into the garage. She looked like she belonged here. Like she came here all the time. She turned to me as she went up on her toes and kissed Hunter’s cheek, letting me fully take her in.

In one second my world crashed head on into a wall, stealing breath and function. A sharp inhale sucked through my teeth; a sound like a choke shoved through my nose. My gaze moved over her, my mind trying to grasp what I saw was true. From head-on, I hadn’t noticed, but from the side you couldn’t deny the baby bump curving her belly.

Oh. My. God.

A buzzing hummed in my ears, darkness edging around my vision, my lungs unable to get a solid breath. I had anticipated a lot of scenarios but never this one.

Krista was pregnant. This time with Hunter’s child. The need to flee made me step back. I couldn’t breathe. I clutched my chest, drawing her attention over to me.

Fuck.

She did a double take, halting in place. Her eyes lowered into slits, her face locking up with hate.

“Jaymerson.” My name sounded like a curse word in her mouth. “You’re back.”

“Yes.” The word barely made it out, drowning in the noises of a working garage, unable to process anything going on around me.

Krista watched me for another beat before turning back to Hunter, rubbing his arm in a comfortable and intimate way.

“Your lunch break is soon, right?” She made a sharp glance to me then back to Hunter. “Cody packed your lunch himself.” Her hand returned to her belly, which she rubbed tenderly. “The baby and I are starving.”

Hunter’s Adam’s apple bobbed, his jaw tightening, but he gave her a quick nod. “Yeah, let me wrap this up and I’ll be all yours,” he said, tickling Cody’s belly, forcing a howl of laughter out of the child. “Go set up on the table outside. I’ll be right there. Okay, little man?”

Cody wiggled out of his arms and ran for the tiny patch of green grass in front of the garage. A picnic table sat under a tree, a tiny piece of nature in their machine-laden world.

Krista’s lips pursed, her eyes continually darting to me. She didn’t want to leave him alone with me, that was clear. But Hunter didn’t give her a choice, nodding his head to the table.

“I’ll be out in a moment.” There was not a shred of emotion in his intonation, almost commanding her.

Anger pulsed through the vein in her forehead, but she went back on her toes, giving him a quick kiss, then made her way to the benches. Hunter made a strange noise, rubbing his head with frustrated strokes. He sighed, coming back to the jeep, his expression pinched.

Lava burned in my chest, but ice froze my soul. I blinked, trying to clear my blurred vision. Do not cry, Jayme. Keep it together. Stay strong.

Hunter snatched the clipboard with my car info on it, ripping off the top copy. “We’ll need a few days to order the part and install it. Should be ready by Saturday or, at the latest, Monday.”

Numbly I took the paper he held out to me, not able to look at him. “I’m sure Doug will give you some discount or something.”

“Thank you.” Don’t cry. Don’t cry.

He was having a baby with her. They were truly a family now. I shouldn’t have been surprised. I had always sensed it, but actually seeing it still felt worse than any pain I had ever experienced. He had moved on and was happy. I thought I had, but watching my prediction come to fruition had me grasping for something to hold on to.

My instinct was to escape… to run back to Italy… to my life there. I needed to get away from him, from them, and the image of them screwing each other every night. His hand rubbing her belly, kissing it.

“Do you have someone to come pick you up?” He fidgeted with his tools, like he couldn’t settle on anything.

“Oh. Um.” I shook my head, realizing I hadn’t thought about that. “Yeah.” Taking my phone out of my bag, I sent a text to Stevie, using more exclamation marks than necessary. Her response came instantly, telling me she was on her way. I took a few steps to the office, hoping I could keep it together until she came.

“Jaymerson.” He called out my name, a crack breaking through the middle of it, stopping me in my tracks. I swallowed hard as I looked back at him. A pained expression filtered through his eyes before he cleared his throat, his eyes going blank again. “I forgot to ask… How was Italy?”

“Amazing.” It came out almost a whisper, but he seemed to have heard me. His head bowed forward, nodding in acknowledgment before it rose back up, and he pulled his shoulders back.

“I’m glad,” he replied, his voice raspy. “I hope you found what you were searching for.”

Agony flinched my cheeks, my airways congealing together, not letting me speak for fear of crying. I gave him a small nod before stepping into the office, shutting the door between us.