by Natalie Ann
“I do care about what you think.”
“Then stop constructing walls and let me tell my family about us.”
“Will they be mad?” she asked.
“I have no idea how they are going to react and I don’t care. It’s only about us, not them.”
“If you say so.”
“I do.”
His father wasn’t angry, but he sure the hell wasn’t happy the next day when Hunter broke the news of how he’d met Kayla.
“Hunter, you know better. Your great-great-grandfather—”
“I don’t need to hear the story again, Dad. I’ve heard it enough in my life along with every other family tale that is out there. I’m not him; he wasn’t me. What I’ve got with Kayla is important to me.”
“You don’t even know this girl. She’s been on the island for less than two months. She could be after your name or your money.”
He ran his hand through his hair. He expected some of this reaction, but didn’t realize how he’d feel hearing it. That putting his fist through a wall wouldn’t even be satisfying enough.
“She wants nothing from me but me.” He wasn’t going to tell his father that he’d offered to help with Kayla’s car and she said no. There was no reason to give details.
“So she says now.”
“It’s the truth. She doesn’t want anyone to know about us. She doesn’t want to be judged. If she wanted me for my money or my name, she’d be bragging about our relationship, not keeping it a secret.”
“Maybe she is holding out for something bigger? Maybe she just wants you to believe that.”
“You don’t even know her and you want to label her. I didn’t expect this of you. Why are you being this way?”
“Because you know how hard we worked at restoring our name.”
“Fuck the name,” he said.
“Hunter!”
“No. I’m sick and tired of this. Hailey said I’m the perfect child. Is that the problem? You’d expect something like this from her but not me and you’re disappointed?”
His father looked like he was going to shout back which might be the first time Hunter would have ever seen him raise his voice. The emotion would be welcome. Instead he said, “I just don’t want you to get hurt.”
“That’s my risk to take. I’m not a child.”
“Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
His father walked out of Hunter’s office after that remark. There was no use following him or continuing with this conversation. If you looked up stubborn in the dictionary, you’d see Charlie Bond staring back at you.
An hour later, there was a knock at his door. He looked up to see his grandfather standing in the open doorway. “Got a minute?”
“Of course,” he said. His grandfather shut his door. “You heard?”
“I did.”
“Did you come here to lecture me too?”
“No. I wouldn’t do that. You’re a grown man. We all know you’ve been with women. You’re pretty private about your life and you’ve always been careful about who you were seen with. My guess is you kept most of your relations with women private so no one knew or judged you.”
“Maybe,” he said back.
“And the fact that you don’t want to keep this one a secret is telling me Kayla means more to you than anyone else.”
“Yes,” he said, glad that someone understood that.
“Your father doesn’t get it. He’s a little old school. Hailey gave him enough headaches in life and he was thrilled you just fell in line.”
He snorted. “Maybe I should have zigzagged more.”
His grandfather’s lips lifted slightly. “Possibly. Looks like you might be starting now.”
“I’m entitled to a life and to be happy,” he argued. “Aren’t you the one who told me I needed to get out and have more of a personal life? I’m finally doing that and this is the reaction.”
“You are. I told your father that too. I reminded him what it was like to be chased by women that always wanted something from him and how he knew your mother was the one because she didn’t care what his last name was.”
“Ahh, but Mom didn’t work for you or Dad. Is Dad afraid I’m going to start having women in my room all the time like his ancestor did that started the Retreat? That I’m going to start leaving bastards all over the place?”
“Your father knows you aren’t going to do that. He just wants you to be happy like the rest of us.”
“Kayla makes me happy.”
“Then you need to let him know that.”
“I tried.”
“Try harder. If it’s worth fighting for, then do it. If not, then give up.”
“I don’t give up,” Hunter argued.
“I know. So stand up for her and fight. Otherwise you’re going to be running away from this the rest of your life. You always wanted to be your own man. You always wanted to make your own mark. No one says it only has to be on the business.”
“You’re damn right, Grandpa.”
“You know I am.”
28
Big Fat Lie
It’d been a few days since Kayla had seen Hunter. They’d talked briefly and texted but nothing more.
He’d said he was going to tell his father about them and how they met yet she had no idea if he did it or not since he hadn’t said a word.
Maybe he was just playing with her, wanting her to make the next move. Or maybe it hadn’t happened yet. Or worse, his parents could be livid and Hunter didn’t want her to know about it.
She figured maybe she should find out and decided to send him a text right when she pulled into the parking lot before her shift on Thursday. She wasn’t even to the building before he replied back that he’d see her on break.
That was it. Nothing else.
By the time eleven thirty rolled around she was a bundle of nerves. For someone that was telling herself what they had was more casual than not, she was starting to realize it was a big fat lie. One that she held onto when she was scared of letting others in. Scared of getting too close and being hurt in the end.
“Hi,” she said when she got off the elevator.
“Hey.”
Hmm, this wasn’t good. “How have you been?”
“Busy, you?”
They were like two strangers waiting for the bus in the middle of the night afraid of the silence. “Did you talk to your father?”
“I did. Come have a seat.”
“It didn’t go well, did it?”
Her stomach was flipping and flopping like fish in a net and the grilled cheese sandwich and chips she had for dinner hours ago was threatening to make an appearance. Probably too much grease on a nervous stomach.
“Could have gone better but about what I expected.”
“What did you tell him?”
“The truth. We had some choice words to say to each other. I got the lecture on the family name and not taking after my great-great-grandfather.”
He laughed when he said it, but she didn’t think it was so funny. “Have you done this before for him to say that? Are you seeing someone else?”
She stood up and started to pace. Big mistake. The minute she took two steps she was running for the bathroom and tossing her dinner up faster than jugglers with balls in the air.
“Hey, are you okay?”
She turned her head and narrowed her eyes at him. “Does it look like I’m okay?”
He backed up and left her there to heave some more, then returned with a bottle of water. “Here. Drink it slowly. Are you sick?”
“I don’t know. I think its nerves or I’ve got a bug or something. My stomach has been off for a few days now, but I haven’t gotten sick like this.”
“Sorry if you’ve been upset. Maybe I should have told you what was going on. Of course you could have called and asked at any point.”
Kayla knew a dig when she was given one. “I could have. I didn’t.”
“Why?”
“Be
cause I’ve been afraid that whatever happened that it would be the end of us.”
She figured she was done puking now, but then she started to cry. Good lord, she was a hot mess.
“Come here,” he said, pulling her up to her feet and bringing her to his room. “Sit on the bed. Or maybe lie down.”
“I’m fine now. I think I just needed to get it out. I shouldn’t have had so much grease for dinner, but I ended up eating two grilled cheese sandwiches drenched in butter. They were just so good. Then the chips on top of it.”
He grimaced. “That might do it to me.”
“It sounded good when I was looking to make something. Tell me, what else happened with your father? Are we over?”
“No, we aren’t ‘over.’ I’m not so weak that I would end things with you because he isn’t happy. I told him my thoughts on the matter. Then when it was all done my grandfather and I talked and he said to give my father time.”
“What does your grandfather think of it?”
He talked of his grandfather, Stephen, often. It seemed to her that Hunter might be closer with his grandfather than his father.
“He told me how he reminded my father that women chased him for his name too. That we’ve all had to deal with this and that I wasn’t stupid.”
The tears started to fall some more. “So they think I’m after your money?”
“I told them you aren’t. We hardly go anywhere or do anything.”
“I have my pride too, you know,” she said lifting her chin up a tad.
“I know you do. I wish you didn’t, but I understand too.”
“So where do we go from here?”
She stood up and started to leave the room, but he reached for her hand and stopped her. “Nothing changes with us. Well, that isn’t true. I’m not hiding it anymore. I’m not going to go down and talk to you while you are working because you are working. But there is no reason for you to not come up here after work or on the weekends. You can still use the same access you have been, but no reason to worry if someone sees you either.”
“I’m hungry now. I need to eat something.” She shook his hand off and walked out, him following behind.
“That’s it? No comment to what I said?”
“I’m processing it. Who else knows?”
“My sister and mother, you know that.”
“Your mother didn’t know I worked here.”
She opened her lunch that she brought up with her and pulled out a peanut butter sandwich. She figured it’d be fine, but she was passing on the chips.
“My mother doesn’t care about those things. She met you and she liked you and that is all she thinks about.”
“What about Hailey?”
“Hailey could be tough, but she gets it too. She understands me and why I’m private.” He laughed. “She thinks my father is so hard on me because I’ve always been the perfect child and she wasn’t. She doesn’t care if she sticks needles in open wounds. She is used to marching to her own beat and not joining the band for the next song and they are used to her doing those solos.”
“So that is part of it?” she asked. The sandwich seemed to be settling fine in her stomach so she continued to eat. “You always did what was expected and now you aren’t so they don’t know how to react?”
“I think that might be part of it. It’s not like my father ruled with an iron fist. Never that. We always got along. I just never made waves. Hailey practiced the perfect cannonball on a daily basis.”
Kayla grinned. “I need to meet your sister.”
“Trust me, she wants to meet you. So, does this mean we are done hiding? No more stressing about it and getting yourself all worked up that you make yourself ill?”
“I guess. I’m still nervous and I’m going to be. I’m not telling anyone I work with. Does your staff know?”
“Marcy does. Obviously Patrice does. Carol might now, not sure. If you want to come in early one day and have dinner with me before work, I don’t think anyone is going to think anything of it now.”
“So I could cook you dinner one night when you get out of work and then change here before going downstairs?” she asked, the thought pleasing her more than she thought it would.
“I think I might like that. How about tomorrow?”
“How about next week?” she said. “I’ve got plans for dinner tomorrow.”
“Plans with who?”
“Pizza with my roommates. Bri has a new guy she thinks is the one. She thinks everyone is the one at first, but she likes to dish the dirt to us. I already said I would.”
“Then you wouldn’t want to cancel those plans. But maybe you can come up here tomorrow on your break and we could spend time doing something other than talking?”
“Now that we don’t have to sneak around as much, we don’t have to take advantage of the time any way we can get it.”
He smirked. “I get it now. Already finding that comfort zone in the relationship and the fun is all gone.”
“Not me,” she said. “You’re the old one.”
He picked her up in a hug, then slapped her ass. “I know I’m serious more than I should be, but I can have fun when I want.”
“Then I expect you to prove it to me tomorrow.”
29
Back To Life
Kayla rolled over knowing it was too early for her to get up, but her bladder felt like a ten-ton truck was sitting on it in a traffic jam.
When she looked at the clock she noticed it was just after two, so not that much earlier than her normal time to wake up.
She threw the covers back and thought she’d grab some clothes to bring into the bathroom with her to shower but found that she needed to pee now.
Thankfully no one else was home and she ran in there and did her business, not even shutting the door. Damn it all for the water she drank last night after getting sick. She couldn’t seem to get enough in her and had three bottles when she normally had one.
Once she was positive there wasn’t anything left in her bladder she flushed and started to wash her hands and the smell of the new soap that Bri put in there hit her hard. She wrinkled her nose and looked at the cherry blossom-scented bottle and wondered why Bri had to always buy flowery things.
Kayla was showered and changed and baking in the kitchen when Bri and Amanda came in the door, Bri carrying pizza.
“Yum,” Kayla said. “I’m starving. I’ve been up for a few hours and all I did was eat some fruit so I could save room for this. What kind did you get?”
“Amanda wanted a chicken wing pizza. I got a salad to offset it too.”
“Sweet,” Kayla said. “I’m making chocolate chip cookies and, let me tell you, it was hard not to eat any. Well, I lied. I had one. I had to make sure they weren’t horrible since I’m not one to bake often. I hope you don’t mind I used your ingredients, Amanda.”
It was a last minute decision to make the cookies, but she felt that Amanda was always baking for them and it’d be nice if someone did other than her.
“Not a problem. I was just telling Bri when we walked in that I wish I had some chocolate. I’m PMSing in the worse way possible. I could eat a cow. Well, first I’d milk it, make ice cream, then I’d eat the cow.”
“Eww,” Bri said. “That’s a nasty thought.”
Kayla laughed. “I don’t know. Burgers and milkshakes sound pretty good to me.”
Amanda got the plates out and Kayla grabbed a bottle of water while Bri got down two wine glasses and opened a bottle. “Wish you didn’t have to work tonight and could have a glass with us.”
“It’s fine. Another night,” Kayla said. She wasn’t much of a drinker but could enjoy a glass now and again. She was just happy to have the girl time. Something she never thought she’d look forward to as much as she was.
Sure, she’d always craved time like this with friends, but after never getting it in life, she’d kind of given up on it.
“So tell us about this new guy you are all gaga over,”
Amanda told Bri.
“Well, he isn’t Hunter Bond by any means, but he is older. He’s pretty hot for his age.”
“How old is he?” Kayla asked, ignoring the dig Bri always seemed to get in about Hunter.
“He’s forty.”
Amanda started to cough after sipping her wine. “That’s fourteen years older than you.”
“So?” Bri said. “He doesn’t look it. He has all his hair and none of it is gray.”
“Probably because he dyes it,” Kayla said, hating when men did that.
“So what if he does,” Bri said. “He likes to look good. He drives a nice car too.”
Always material with Bri. “So what does he do?” Kayla figured she’d ask because Bri was hinting toward them wanting to know.
“He’s a lawyer here on the island. Well, partially on the island.”
“That’s nice,” Amanda said. “How did you meet?”
“At the bank. He came in to make a deposit.”
“Does he live here?” Kayla asked.
“He has a summer home here. He lives in Boston, but he comes here on the weekends or when he has to work here.”
“Hmmm,” Kayla said. “That’s nice.”
Though in her mind she was thinking this might be another one of the winners that Bri seemed to gravitate toward.
“He is awesome in bed too,” Bri said. “He pays so much attention to my body and what I like and don’t like. He’s not just after getting a blow job.”
Kayla rolled her eyes. It was more information that she wanted. “Sounds like you really like him. What’s his name?”
“Mark. Mark Greene. Okay, so what is going on with you, Kayla? You’ve been quiet lately. Everything okay?”
“It is.”
“Bri is right,” Amanda said. “You’ve been on edge. What’s going on with you and Hunter?”
Guess there wasn’t much use hiding anything from her roommates. She figured she might as well share this with them. “Hunter told his father about us.”
