Chapter Seven
Hunter covered Payton’s eyes as she was standing in his office overlooking the city. It had been a week worth of shooting, and he’d spent way too much time overseeing it. This was Elise’s little baby, and she had told him to keep his nose out of it. Only family could talk to him like that.
“Hey,” he said.
“Hey.” Payton spun around, smiling. “So, are you coming to dinner tomorrow night with Rick and his girlfriend.”
“I’ve not seen you all week. Between work and everything else, can’t I just have you all to myself?”
“No, you can’t. I promised him, okay? Please, say you will come.”
“Fine, fine, I’ll be there.”
“Excellent.” She patted his chest and walked around him. He took hold of her hand, and pulled her close. Pressing his lips to hers, she melted against him, and this was what he adored more than anything, the way she pressed against him.
It was like her body called to him in ways that he didn’t understand.
“I’ve got to head out, do some shopping.”
“You’re not going to order takeout?”
“Hunter, this is my best friend who is serious about this girl. I’m not just going to order some takeout.” She put a hand on her hip. “Come with me,” she said.
“Come with you where?”
“Come shopping with me. Not clothes or fancy stuff either. There’s a supermarket not far from where I live. Come on. It will be a lot of fun.”
“I’ve not shopped for groceries since I was a little boy.”
She rolled her eyes. “And I bet your mother is ashamed of that. Come on, hot shot. Let’s get you out in the big old wide world.” She moved toward his desk, and he laughed as she closed down his computer, grabbed his cell phone and keys, heading toward the elevator.
“You’re kidnapping me?”
“For a good cause.” They went down toward his car, and she climbed behind the wheel.
“That’s not happening.”
“What’s the matter, you don’t want me to drive your precious car?” she asked, strapping in.
“Do you think you can handle a car? I’ve not seen you drive.”
“Get in, Hunter. You probably don’t even know what a supermarket looks like.” She gripped the steering wheel, and he closed the door, rounding the vehicle and climbing inside.
“I do not like this. I do know what a supermarket is like.” This was the strangest date he’d been on.
Wait, it wasn’t a date. Nothing was a date unless it had fancy clothes, and sex guaranteed at the end.
“Buckle up,” she said, already pulling out of his parking space, and heading off into some unknown direction.
He didn’t like being in the passenger seat.
“Your car is so nice and smooth,” she said. “You’ve got a thing for leather.”
“It came custom with the car.” He folded his arms.
“I’ve told you about my parents and my lack of a relationship with them. Tell me about your parents,” she said. “Do you still talk with them?”
“Yes, I do. We’re still close. They still live in the home they raised me in, and they visit me from time to time. The corporate world was never for them. All my life they encouraged me to be what I wanted to be.” He loved his parents, and glancing over at Payton, he knew they would love her as well. “My mom was a stay-at-home mom, always taking care of her family. I was an only child. My parents couldn’t have any more children. I know they wanted more, and they want grandkids as well.”
“Do you think you’ll ever be a father?”
“Do you think you’ll ever be a mother?”
She laughed. “I asked first, but you want to be difficult, fine, I will. Yes, I see myself as a mother. I never thought I’d be a model if I’m being honest. I’ve heard some bad horror stories. Women having to make the choice between their career and motherhood. Being super slim has its advantages and disadvantages.” She patted the steering wheel. “I like the thought of being a mom. I can imagine taking her out to the park, or standing baking cookies together.”
As she spoke about it, he imagined her in a large country style house with a kitchen that was homey. Flour all over the place, including all over her. A little girl standing on a stool, rolling out dough looking as messy as the work surface.
He rubbed at his chest as his heart seemed to tighten.
“I would love to be a mother. I’d call my first daughter Bethany. Your turn.”
“I honestly don’t know. Being a father isn’t something I’ve thought all that much about to be honest. It has always been work, and one new venture after another. I want to make my parents proud.”
“I don’t think you need to be a dad to make them proud. I bet they already are.”
“I know they are. I also know that they don’t want to see me grow old and lonely. I think that is their biggest fear. I’ll spend all this time working, and not enough time building a family.”
“Family is really important. I think so anyway. I know I’ve got a messed-up relationship with my parents, but one day soon I want to settle down, have a family. I don’t imagine being in front of the camera all my life. It’s not what I want to do.”
They pulled up into a very busy parking lot. She found a space, pulled into it, and he cringed as she seemed to be close to other cars.
“You are such a wuss,” she said, laughing. “It’s a car, not a newborn baby.”
She climbed out of the car, and he followed behind her.
“Do you cook for Rick often?” he asked.
“No. If we’re running behind schedule and have some stuff to go over, he’ll stay for dinner. I told you, we’re friends.”
“I know. Just making conversation.”
She nodded. “Here, push this. You look totally out of your depth.”
“Does the suit give it away?”
“No. You look pale. Don’t worry. No one will think you’re going soft.” She patted his chest, and away they went, heading into the supermarket.
He hadn’t stepped foot inside one of these places ever since he’s made his first million. Shopping for himself had never been important. He watched Payton as she gathered fresh ingredients, and she seemed totally happy and relaxed.
“You’re aware that no one cares who you are, right? We’re just two people shopping late on a Friday evening.” She put a hand on her hip as they made their way to the abundant meat counter. He just kept on watching her as it was something he enjoyed doing.
Payton was a down to earth woman. She didn’t need all the flowers, the designers, and everything else.
After he had stepped out of the bathroom, Rick had warned him, had told him that he better not play with Payton, to keep it straight with her, as otherwise he would have to deal with him.
According to Rick, men had come and gone, but Payton was different with him, and Rick was worried about that. He didn’t want to see Payton getting hurt, and he knew all about his reputation. Hunter didn’t dispute him either. His reputation had been there long before he met Payton.
He hadn’t been with another woman in some time, a few months before he’d met Payton. Now, no other woman interested him. There was no way anyone else would have ever gotten him inside of a damn supermarket picking up chicken breasts and thighs. He enjoyed spending time with Payton, and not just fucking her either. He enjoyed her company.
After spending an hour in the supermarket, they were carrying their goodies to Payton’s apartment.
She had allowed him to drive his own car back to her place.
“That wasn’t so bad, was it?” she asked.
“No. My mother would be very proud of me.”
Here was another thing that surprised him with Payton, he wanted her to meet his parents.
So much for this thing between them just being sex.
****
Hunter was dressed for sex in the tight jeans and white crisp shirt he was wearing. Payton couldn’t believe how seeing his ass in denim could turn her on, and yet it was. It was official. She was losing her mind over a guy she barely knew.
“You look fine,” he said, coming up behind her.
She had settled on a mid-length skirt and a wraparound shirt. “I’m nervous. I feel badly for putting my friend to one side.” She held his hand. “You’ll be on your best behavior, right?”
“Of course I will. Totally best behavior. You won’t have to worry about me for a single second.”
When the doorbell rang, she stepped out of Hunter’s arms and made her way toward the door. Rick had the code, which was why he didn’t need the buzzer to be allowed in. Opening the door, she smiled.
“Hey,” she said. Rick was there with a beautiful redhead. Just by looking at her, Payton knew she was sweet. “You’re Francine, right? I’m Payton. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
She took Payton’s hand, and her cheeks heated. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“Likewise. Rick has said you’re so sweet. I’ve been such a horrible friend to him, and I’m really sorry about that. I was hoping my cooking skills will show you that I’m not all horrible,” she said.
“Nah, she’s just ten percent mean,” Hunter said, coming out of the bedroom. “I’m Payton’s … boyfriend.”
Now that felt incredibly weird hearing him say that. Hunter shook Rick’s hand, and she was sure something was going on with that, but ignored it. He also took Francine’s hand, and gave it a kiss.
“Pleasure to meet you.” Hunter gripped her shoulders, his thumbs rubbing at the tension she was feeling in her back.
“You really didn’t need to go to this much trouble,” Francine said.
“She wanted to meet you, and I’m the one that has been keeping her away, not anything else. I know Rick’s pissed at me about that.”
“I’ve not got a problem with it, Hunter,” Rick said.
“Let me grab you something to drink.” Payton moved into the kitchen, going to the fridge, taking the bottle of wine out. She placed four glasses on a round tray and entered her sitting room. Hunter was standing in the corner, while Rick and Francine were on the sofa.
Putting the drinks on the coffee table, Payton took a seat. “I’m so pleased things are hitting off between you and Rick.”
“I’ve told her that you were the one who encouraged me to go on that date,” Rick said.
“What do you do, Francine?” Hunter asked.
“I work in accounting at the bank. Knowing what Rick does, it was kind of a shock. A manager to a model.”
“Rick and I go back a long way. We’re friends, and at times enemies.”
“Francine has a love of the law as well.”
Payton really didn’t like the tension that was in the room. Glancing over at Hunter, she saw him watching the two, and he kept looking at Francine. This was becoming really awkward.
Before she could say anything to try to cut through the tension, though, Hunter did.
“So, Francine, what kind of job do you do in the bank?” he asked.
“You know, I just work in the accounting department, so I handle all of that.”
She noticed that Francine got a little blush on her cheeks.
“My dad used to work in accounting, and he had so many tales to tell. You know the stories of what happens behind the scenes, and at times the horror of having to balance those books.”
“It’s all really cut and dry to be honest.”
“Really? What’s the bank that you work for?”
Francine hesitated, and Payton saw she was fumbling.
“We really don’t need to talk about work here,” Payton said.
“What about you, Rick? Know what bank she works for? Why she knows a thing or two about the law?”
“I think that’s enough,” Rick said.
“Hunter, come into the kitchen with me, please. I think I want to check on dinner, and I know I’ve got something you can do.”
Entering the kitchen, she waited for him.
“What the hell are you doing?” she asked when he finally entered. “Leave her alone and stop giving her the third degree.”
“That woman doesn’t work in a bank.”
“You shouldn’t be questioning a guest like that. Are you completely insane?”
Hunter moved toward her, grabbing her arms. “I’m telling you, Payton, that woman doesn’t work in a bank. My dad did for years, and don’t you think it’s a little suspicious that she can’t even remember where she works for? Hello, a bank is open a lot of hours. Everyone knows where they work. No one hesitates like that, and completely forgets the name. They sign your checks.”
“She was flustered.”
“Yeah, but you don’t forget that long.”
Payton thought about it, and even flustered people didn’t forget where they worked. Moving toward the doorway, she looked out to see that Francine wasn’t paying much attention to Rick. She was looking around her apartment, and Rick leaned back against the sofa, talking, asking questions.
Pulling away she turned to Hunter. “Who is she then? You look like you know her.”
“I think she’s press.”
“What? Why?”
“The way she’s looking around. Let’s face it, what better way to get an inside story than to be on the inside?”
“Is this about you?” she asked. “Is that why she’s here?”
“My gut is telling me that there’s going to be a story about the fact I’m your boyfriend. It will depend what other stories Rick has told her, and let’s face it, the guy looks smitten with her as well.”
“He is. He even told me that he wanted me to meet her. Usually, women don’t like how he takes care of me, managing me.”
“Then I think this woman is trying to get the inside scoop on the current flavor of the month,” he said. “I don’t mean for me, babe. I mean for the press. You’re doing a lot of interviews, a lot of personal details. I wonder if they’re trying to find fault.”
She had been asked about her diet, about how she felt about her own curves. What she thought of the current obesity problem in kids, how she was also contributing to that. She had been asked a lot of questions. Rick had told her before they went down this path that she would need a thick skin. She’d need to be prepared for everything.
“You can’t know this for sure.”
“I recognize her, Payton. She’s press. She’s after a story.”
How would she say anything? Rick was her best friend, but if this woman was using her, then she couldn’t allow it to go on.
This could risk her friendship with Rick, but she had to keep him safe.
Entering the sitting room, Payton smiled. “What story are you hoping to get?”
Francine turned toward her, and her eyes went wide. “Excuse me?”
Hunter moved in behind her, and Payton was thankful for the strength he offered her in that moment. “You heard me. What story are you wanting to write? Are you after information about Hunter, me, Rick? What is it? I don’t have all day, and I’d rather you cut the crap with my friend.”
The timid little woman changed before her eyes. Francine drew her shoulders back. “I wanted to get the inside scoop on the new plus-size model. I wanted to know if you’re really confident about your curves, and what stories are true. If you’ve slept your way to the top, or if Rick helps you in that department.”
Rick stood from the sofa. “Are you fucking kidding me right now?”
Francine shrugged. “My boss wants the story, and when we saw your ad, it was perfect. Sorry, no hard feelings.”
“Get out,” Payton said. “I want you out of my house now.”
“That’s okay. I’ve gotten what I needed.”
“You print any story and I will have your career,” Hunter said. “You think long and hard about what you do next.”
“You think we’re not used to big corporations coming after us?”
“It’s not my corporation coming after you. It will be me.”
Francine paled, stumbling over her own feet.
In the next second she was gone.
“I cannot believe that! I liked her, and all this time she was just fucking using me.”
“The press will use any means necessary to get what they want. I’m surprised you didn’t get suspicious of her. Did you give any information away?” Hunter asked.
Payton stared at Rick, and saw the sadness in his eyes. “You told her about Bethany, about my promise.”
“I wanted her to like you, Payton. You’ve talked about Bethany before.”
“Yeah, she’s going to go and dig deeper. It’s okay. She’ll probably latch onto the fact I’m screwing Hunter Reynolds, and I’m currently working on Elise Hamilton’s latest shoot.” She rubbed at her brow. “I hate the press.”
“I’m going to go.”
“You are not. I’ve got dinner. She was the bitch. You’re still my BFF. Nothing will change that. Not even scheming bitch girlfriends.”
“Or boyfriends,” Rick said.
“You mean shitty boyfriends, not the good ones.” She looked toward Hunter.
Hunter held his hands up. “I know I’ve got to deal with you to be with her. Let’s call a truce. I’m not going to hurt her.”
“Payton, I’m going to need more than wine,” said Rick.