CHAPTER 16
Kylie
I had a firm grip on Carter’s hand when I knocked on Hunter’s door. My heart was beating fast and I was constantly looking over my shoulder, even though I was pretty sure that we hadn’t been followed here. I didn’t even know if he was home. Was Hunter even the kind of guy who hung out at his apartment a lot?
When the door opened, I felt a wave of relief flood over my body. Hunter was standing on the other side of the door, in a t-shirt and a pair of old jeans which had holes in them. His tattooed arm was openly on display, his sandy blond hair was ruffled and he had a bowl of what looked like pasta in his hands.
Neither of us spoke for a few moments, I stared at him, while he stared at Carter who was standing beside me.
“Hi,” I finally broke the ice. Hunter looked up at me, his blue eyes were calm but also confused.
“Hi,” he said blankly.
“Hi,” Carter echoed and I noticed that he was craning his neck to look up at this tall strange man in front of him.
“Can we come in?” I asked, feeling a tremble in my arms now. Hunter stepped aside quietly and I ushered Carter into the apartment. I wondered if Hunter could smell the fear off me.
The TV was on, Hunter was watching the game and behind us the kitchen looked like it had been recently used. Hunter shut and locked the door and then joined us in the middle of his living room.
“Are you hungry?” he asked, looking at Carter who nodded his head.
“Sorry, I didn’t have time to feed him before we came,” I said to Hunter, who had already walked over to the kitchen island. He was serving a small portion of pasta into a plastic bowl, which he then brought over to Carter.
“What do you say?” I spoke to Carter kindly.
“Thank you,” Carter said when he accepted the bowl from Hunter.
“You can sit here and eat,” Hunter reached for my son and placing his large hand on Carter’s back, he led him to the couch. Then he flipped through the channels, till he found some cartoons and helped Carter settle into the middle of the couch.
I was still standing where they had left me, feeling shivers running up and down my spine. I was debating what to tell Hunter. Dealing with Tony was my responsibility. I shouldn’t be asking for Hunter’s help to deal with an angry ex. All I really wanted was for Carter to be safe somewhere while I spoke to Tony. While I tried to talk some sense into the man. If I could. But I had to try. How long was I supposed to live in fear?
“Everything all right?” Hunter walked back to me and there was a dull worried expression in his eyes now as he spoke. He was talking in a softer voice and we heard the sound of Carter’s laugh in the background. I was glad that my son was comfortable here.
Under Hunter’s watchful gaze, I tucked some strands of stray curls behind my ears and tried to force a smile on my face.
“Yeah, no, everything is all right. We got locked out of our apartment and I didn’t really know where to go,” I lied quickly while he looked at me with furrowed brows.
“You got locked out of your apartment?” he confirmed, and crossed his bulging arms over his muscular chest. I felt that familiar tug in my belly. That pull between my legs which said that I wanted him again.
“Yeah, I just need to go wait for my landlord to get back so I can get a new set of keys made,” I said and added a nervous laugh for good measure. Hunter was eyeing me with a look that said that he didn’t quite believe me, but he didn’t protest either.
“So, you’re going to wait here?” he asked, his voice softening a little now.
“Yeah, well no, I know it is a lot to ask, but I was hoping that you wouldn’t mind having Carter here for a few hours. I’ll go wait for the landlord. I know Carter is tired and hungry and will probably want to sleep soon. I didn’t want him waiting with me outside our building for ages,” I said, holding Hunter’s gaze while he studied me again. For a few moments, there was silence between us and I thought he wasn’t going to believe me, then finally he nodded his head.
“Of course, he can. He can stay with me,” he said and I smiled, relieved again.
“Okay, good. I’ll be back as soon as I get the keys made. Thank you Hunter!” I said and rushed past him, to avoid any more questions, and went over to Carter. I placed a quick kiss on top of his head.
“You be good with Hunter, okay? He’s my friend and he’ll take care of you while mommy’s away. Just a few hours,” I said to him and Carter nodded his head. He was enjoying the cartoons and had pasta sauce covering his lips.
“Thanks again, Hunter. I promise, I won’t be long,” I turned to him again, and then rushed towards the door. I could sense that he was staring at me, still trying to figure out if I was telling the truth or not, and then I was gone.
I was bounding down the stairs, starting the car…trying to steady my hands so I could drive safely. I had to put an end to this. I had to make Tony understand that I wasn’t afraid of him and that he couldn’t have my son.
Now that I knew that my son was in a safe place, I didn’t care what Tony did to me, as long as he stayed away from Carter.