Chapter 4

Hunter

Sunday 12.34am

I can’t sleep. I can’t get her out of my head. But I can’t follow through and screw her either, not when she can’t even stand, and she’s been drinking.

I know a dozen guys who wouldn’t give a flying fuck about either of those things. But despite my broken moral compass, that’s low even for me.

Come morning she’ll be embarrassed and relieved we didn’t take it any further. Her ankle will be better, and she’ll drive away none the wiser to how much of a bullet she dodged.

I don’t need the complication, and I doubt she does either. Despite my rational brain trying to convince me otherwise, my cock is trying to talk me into going back out there.

I could be curled up in bed with her. Instead, I’m freezing my ass off, thinking way too much about what I’m missing out on.

When there’s no chance I can sleep, and I can’t get her out of my head, I try to convince myself it’s not a big deal if I did go back out, just for a few minutes so I can warm up.

She should be fast asleep given the whiskey and the amount of time that’s passed; I can probably risk sneaking out and warming up.

Natalie won’t even know I’m there.

I swing my legs out of bed, shivers wracking my body as I creep into the living room. The room is warmer than the bedroom, but judging by the embers on the fire, it won’t stay that way for long.

I don’t see her at first, mainly because I’m looking at the mattress, but she’s not lying there asleep, she’s sitting in the corner, her arms wrapped around her shins.

I know she sees me, but she doesn’t say anything or move when I put another couple logs on the fire. I turn, ready to go back to the cold when she speaks in a quiet voice. “You don’t have to leave.”

I know a trap when I hear one, so I just pivot ready to walk back. She starts to cry, but it’s quiet like she’s trying to hide it from me. Despite my promise to leave her alone, the words slip out. “What’s wrong?”

I can barely see her, the candles I lit have burned down, and the firelight isn’t bright enough to reach the corner she’s propped up in.

She sniffs. “If I ask you for the truth, will you give it to me?”

I adjust my weight, crossing my arms as I consider. The truth has rarely been an ally of mine. “Most people don’t want the truth. They only think they do.”

Her laugh comes out bitter. “Is that a no?”

I exhale slowly. At least if I keep her talking to me, I can warm up a little. “I can tell you the truth, depending on the question.”

She sighs. “Is there something wrong with me?”

That was not the question I expected her to ask. “Not following.”

Natalie shifts out from the shadows, shuffling on her ass until she’s closer to the light. Her hair is loose around her shoulders, the firelight casting her in a golden glow as she uses the wall to rise to her feet.

She limps but manages to stop in front of the fire. “Is there something about me that turned you off?”

My eyes nearly pop out of my head as she gestures to her incredible body. “What?” I manage.

Tears glisten in her eyes, and her voice cracks “I just want to understand why Jed stopped wanting me. Why you didn’t want me.”

I frown at her. “Who’s Jed?”

Her gaze drops to the floor. “My husband until six months ago.”

I frown at her. “He left you?”

She keeps her gaze on the floor, looking so defeated I flinch. “If you weren’t interested and he isn’t…”

Not interested? What the fuck?

“Natalie—”

She doesn’t let me finish, just gives me a smile that near rips my heart out. “Sorry. You don’t need this. We don’t know each other, sorry.”

I huff out an exasperated breath at her continued apologies and cross the distance so we’re standing eye to eye. “The only reason I didn’t sleep with you was that it felt wrong because you were hurt, not because you are wrong.”

I know I shouldn’t say it, but I’m pissed off, and I’m not sure why exactly. “If your husband walked away from you, he’s a fucking moron.”

She sucks in a breath; then her breathing starts to increase. I think she’s about to slap me, but she issues me a challenge. “And what about now? Does it feel wrong now?”

I don’t know whether she’s drunk, but I’m past the point of caring.

She’s waiting, holding my gaze, mouth open, looking wild and sexy enough for me to quit trying to do the right thing.

My cock is getting hard just thinking about it, so I grab her by the back of her neck and kiss her again.

She responds hungrily, twisting my hair into her fingers. I kiss her harder, taste the whiskey lacing her breath, her tongue merging with mine until I’m rock hard against her.

This time I have no intention of stopping until she’s screaming my name and she’s forgotten all about the asshole who left her.

***

Natalie

I don’t know why he came back into the room. I don’t really care; all I care about is that he wants me as much as I want him.

Without a word, he picks me up and puts me on the table. His stubble is rough against my skin as his tongue seeks out mine.

He starts to unzip my pants, and I have to wriggle so he can tug them down and throw them across the room. Whatever pain I had in my ankle is fast being replaced by need I’ve never experienced before.

He slides his hand inside my panties and groans as he feels just how slick I already am. His kiss becomes more insistent, more desperate as he tugs them off me, so he can rub me faster. “Say my name,” he whispers in my ear.

I can’t even breathe let alone speak as his other hand tugs my shirt up, and he starts to stroke my nipple through my bra. “Say it,” he repeats, his voice ragged.

I arch my back and spread my legs wider. “Hunter,” I pant.

With a growl, he drops to his knees and pushes my thighs apart so he can use his tongue instead of his hand.

I’m so turned on; I’m coming and screaming his name in seconds. I think he’s done, but he’s just getting started. He tugs off his shirt, kisses me deep then starts to pull my shirt up.

I raise my arms, and he tosses my shirt away as he kisses me and manages to unhook my bra. I grab his belt buckle and start to undo his jeans, panting in his ear as his fingers return to stroking until I explode in his hand.

He shrugs out of his jeans until he’s standing naked, his cock hard and almost too big for me.

Hunter grabs my hips, and I think he’s going to take me on the table, but he picks me up so I’m nestled against his chest and carries me to the mattress.

He lays me down and lies on top of me, and in a slick move, slides his cock inside me. I wrap my legs around him and squeeze my arms around his thick torso as he pumps harder.

The rain beats down on the roof as ripples of pleasure rush through my body with every thrust and every movement of his hips.

I scratch my nails down his back and pant nonsensical words as he makes me erupt again. He pounds me harder until his face contorts and he’s gasping and releasing inside me.

He shudders and eases off me, trying to catch his breath as I try to find mine. My heart is still thudding in my chest as he rolls on his side and kisses me again, softer. “I don’t know about you, but everything about that felt right to me.”

I have no response so I kiss him, enjoying the way his tongue caresses mine and sends shivers running over my body.

I’m so blissfully satisfied that if my body wasn’t fighting against me, I’d stay kissing him for longer, but my eyelids are drooping, and sleep is tugging at me.

When I have to smother a yawn, he wraps me in his arms, encasing me in muscle.

My eyes close as I listen to the sound of his rhythmic breathing, his heart beating slow and steady and the rain outside and the crackle of the fire.

I start to drift off, feeling utterly satiated and content lying in Hunter’s arms, the oddest question is circling.

How is it that one time with Hunter was more satisfying than an entire four years with Jed?

***

I’m groggy, and my foot is aching when I pry my eyes open to the grey day. I rub a hand over my face and blink away the sleep to find Hunter restarting the fire that burned out in the night.

He’s not wearing a shirt, just his jeans. I admire him for a while. watching the lines of his muscles as he moves.

I’m studying him so closely that I miss the first ring of my cell phone. He throws the matches to one side, cocking his head and running his tongue over his teeth. “You going to answer?”

A shiver runs through me. He’s looking at me with such obvious intent; I swear if I were standing, my knees would give out. The phone keeps ringing. “I should take it if it’s from my father,” I mutter.

I reach for his t-shirt, and tug it over my head, inhaling his masculine scent as I slip my arms through.

When I look at him, his eyes have narrowed, and his entire upper body is tensed. “It’s not your father. It’s Jed.”

I scramble to get up, but he presses talk and holds the phone to his ear. “Natalie’s busy right now. She’s shacked up somewhere with a stud who can’t keep his hands off her. Can’t say I blame him.”

I’m so horrified by his behavior it takes me a while to notice he’s struggling to keep a straight face. “I’m her assistant.”

My eyes pop as he runs a hand through his hair and glares. “Yeah, I can pass the message on. Her dipshit ex wants to make sure she cancels the cable since it’s under his name. I got it; you’re a cheap ass as well as a dick, huh?”

That does get me out of bed, half hopping, half limping as I try to get to the phone before he makes it worse. “Yeah. I would say that to your face. Then I’d probably come up with a truckload of other insults.”

I stare slack-jawed at him as he ends the call and doesn’t look anything close to guilty about what he just did.

I get close enough to grab my phone from him and toss it on the bed. “Why did you do that? Why did you get so angry at him?”

He grabs me and jerks me closer to him. “I told you. Things that matter bother me.”

I’m still reeling when he kisses me and runs his hands over my bare ass. “You want to go take a dip in the hot springs?” he says.

I glance at my foot, then back at him. After insulting Jed, that’s what he’s thinking about?

My nose wrinkles as I try to think. “I don’t think I can climb down.”

Hunter’s grip tightens around my waist, and without warning, he throws me over his shoulder. I scream as he stalks across the room and opens the door to the rain outside. “Hunter put me down. It’s muddy.”

He only grips me tighter. “I got you.”

The rain pelts me, soaking my borrowed shirt. I smack his back with my hands as we get closer to the slope.

When it’s clear he’s not going to stop, and we’re descending the hill, my annoyance at him is overtaken by worry I’ll fall.

I’m soaked through and freezing by the time we reach the springs. He doesn’t even set me on my feet or take off his pants just wades into the river, leaving my hair to trail in the water.

He’s alarmingly surefooted which makes me think he’s either done this to livestock or more worryingly to other girls.

When we reach the thermal spring, he flips me so I’m in his arms. He’s rain-soaked and grinning at me as he sits down with me in his lap. I try to get away from him, but he locks me in place. “Stay.”

I glare at him. “I don’t really have a choice, thanks to you.”

He starts to laugh as I try to tug my billowing t-shirt down. “Take it off; no one’s around.”

I splash him, but he only laughs harder. The rainwater keeps bouncing off the hot pool, half of my body is in warm water while the rain is pelting me with cold. Worse, his t-shirt is clinging to my breasts, highlighting just how cold I am.

I push off him and sit down on the rock ledge opposite. “How am I supposed to get back up? It was dangerous enough climbing down here. And what if someone finds us? I’m naked.”

He doesn’t look in the least concerned as he starts to remove his jeans. He nearly slides under the water but manages to take them off and toss them on to the rocks. “Happy now?”

I pull a face at him. “Why would that make me happy?”

“Now we’re both naked.”

I’m still too annoyed with him for bringing me down here, even if he’s technically more exposed than I am. He eyes the shirt that’s covering me. “Take it off.”

“No.”

He’s grinning at me, rain falling down his face like this is exactly where he wants to be right now. “I’ll need it back eventually.”

I sigh and twist my face into a scowl. “I’m not giving it back.”

He swipes a drip of his nose then gets up so all the water runs down his body. My lungs seize up as water cascades down his muscles, running off his tattoos, his nipples, his abs, and his already stiffening cock.

There’s an irresistible tease in his voice as he sits beside me and tugs at my collar. “I couldn’t leave without getting you thoroughly wet.”

A tiny trickle of anxiety overrides my growing lust. “You were planning on leaving?”

He kisses me again, silencing my question as his hand slides down my thigh until he’s pushing my legs apart. “Take it off.”

Despite my protests, the water does feel good, and with his hand sliding closer to my crotch, I do as he says and toss the shirt onto the rocks surrounding the pool.

My nipples are out of the water, rain caressing them, making them harder as I take his shaft in my hand and start to stroke him.

He chews my earlobe, sucks it, and plants kisses down my neck making shivers travel down my body. When I’m as wet as the water, I climb onto his lap, and put my legs around him, pushing him inside me as rain pours down over our naked bodies.

I ride him, kissing him as water caresses my skin below and above. Ripples of pleasure rush through me as the water amplifies the intensity of my orgasm.

When I’m breathing hard and shaking from muscle fatigue, he positions me so I’m on my knees, back facing him and leaning over the edge of the hot pool.

The water tickles my nipples as he slides inside me and starts to thrust slow and deep. I’m panting as he pounds me harder until he’s grabbing my hips and speeding up and half cursing, half praising me as he explodes inside me.

When he’s done, he sinks back down into the water bringing me with him so I’m sitting on his lap. He wraps his arms around my body and holds me snug against his chest. “Why the hell are you selling this place? The things I could do to you up here.”

I lean my head back so I’m resting against his shoulder, a smile playing at my lips as his hand rests under the water on my knee. “It’s not really up to me. We made the decision as a family.”

Hunter’s lips brush against my ear, sending a shiver down my spine. “But if it were up to you, would you sell?”

I exhale slowly and look around at the mountains, the trees, and the river. My eyes start to burn with tears. “No. I love Haven Springs. I always wanted to move up here. Some of my happiest memories are inside that cabin.”

“But you don’t have the money to keep it?”

I sigh. “Dad can’t come up here anymore, and since Jemma and her husband don’t use it, it isn’t really a priority.”

I don’t say I haven’t been here in over five years either. There didn’t seem to be any point without bringing someone who loved the mountains as much as I did.

His arms tighten around me. “So, if money wasn’t an issue you’d keep this place?”

I wonder why he’s asking me so I move off him so I can see his face. “Why are you so interested?”

He licks rain off his lip before answering. “Is that a problem? Me being interested in your life?”

The rain carries on relentlessly as the silence between us grows. His eyes are locked on mine. My heart is racing, but I can’t bring myself to speak. “Hunter, what are you saying?”

He shifts closer until our knees are touching, his expression serious. “I’m not saying anything. I’m just trying to figure out a way to do this on a more permanent basis.”

I suck in a breath and inhale rainwater. I manage to speak through my choke. “Permanent?”

He frowns. “Would that be so bad?”

I frown back at him, a dozen reasons all spinning wildly in my brain. “The cabin is as primitive as they come. I’d be cut off from everyone, everything if I lived here.”

He cocks his head. “You’re hardly cut off. The valley is a few miles down the track, and you have cell access.”

I’m so surprised I splutter a laugh, and his mood darkens almost instantly. “Right. What was I thinking? We’re all a little primitive up here in the mountains.”

Before I can say anything else, he pulls himself out of the water, looking furious as he locates our clothes. He doesn’t say a word as he hands me his sodden t-shirt. I don’t know why he’s so annoyed with me. Did he really think this little fantasy vacation could go on forever?

He doesn’t bother pulling his jeans on, just throws them over his shoulder the way he did me and offers his hand as I start to climb out of the pool. “Can you walk?” is the only thing he says.

Out of sheer stubbornness and my own annoyance, I make it back up the hill with minimal help from a glowering Hunter. My ankle is a little sore, the wrapping falling off when we reach the cabin again. He’s still naked, and despite my best efforts to not look, I can’t help admiring him as I pull the wrapping off my foot.

I give my ankle a cursory glance as I flex my foot and test it out. There’s bruising, but the swelling is gone. I have no idea if soaking in the springs helped. It’s highly likely I accidentally discovered a cure. My mother used to swear by them for pretty much any ailment that befell us up here.

I shrug my clothes over my damp skin and manage to pull my boots on all while sending Hunter discrete glances.

I can’t help but watch him as he tugs another pair of jeans from his pack and pulls them on.

By the time I’m dressed again, my stomach is growling. I limp over to the table and rummage around in the bag of food from my car and settle on a granola bar.

A jolt of alarm runs through me as I see him pulling wet weather gear out of his pack and start to tidy away his things. “You’re leaving?”

He flicks a glance at me. “The cabin’s done. I’ll be moving on.”

I gape at him, utterly speechless he can be so cold after such an incredible weekend.

My cell rings as he zips up his pack. I glance at the phone and see it’s my father calling. “Can you just wait a minute? I need to answer this.”

Hunter doesn’t say anything as he pulls on his socks and boots and laces them. “Damn it. Would you please just stop?”

He grunts but stops lacing his boot. I frown as I answer. “Dad? Are you okay? I’ve been—”

“Nat? It’s Jem. Um, Dad’s in the hospital again.”

I slump into the chair. “What happened?”

Jemma sniffs down the line. “He forgot to take his meds. I’ve been trying to reach you all morning. You aren’t at your hotel? Where are you?”

Nausea starts to grow in my stomach. “I stayed in the cabin. I hurt my ankle. I couldn’t drive until this morning.”

“Do you want me to send Brett to pick you up?”

I look at my foot and flex it. “I’ll be okay. I’ll meet you at the hospital.”

I end the call with raw guilt spinning through me.I feel sick. My father was lying in a hospital bed while I was having sex with Hunter.

Hunter hasn’t moved. But his expression has shifted from irritated silence to empathy. “Can I do anything?”

I shake my head and snatch up my keys and purse. “You did enough,” I snap at him.

He doesn’t respond, and if I weren’t so worried, I’d apologize, but he just carries on lacing his boots as I lock up the cabin again.

He’s right beside me when we step outside. The rain has made the grass slick and muddy, and I slip in my haste to reach my truck. Hunter grabs my arm as water pours down his face. “For fuck’s sake, woman. You’ll hurt yourself again at this rate. Give me the keys.”

He holds his hand out, a fierce expression on his face that tells me he’s not backing down. A half-choked sob escapes as I hand them over.

For a minute, he just stares at them, rain pounding us as he seems to be rethinking his offer to drive me.

Finally, he moves, muttering to himself as he opens the backseat and throws his gear inside. I get in the passenger side, and wait for him to start the engine.

He closes his eyes for a moment as though either praying or trying to calm himself. I’m too concerned about getting to the hospital to worry about what’s going on with Hunter, or where this weekend is heading, so I look out the window as he pulls away from the cabin.