by Eden Finley
Hunter Erikson is in a relationship with Sara Shaw. It really was official now.
“Happy?” Ryan asked Blair.
“You’re the girl from the wedding last week,” Gage said. Pip nudged him with her elbow.
“She’s Paige’s best friend,” Reece said. The contempt I expected to hear in her voice was absent. “Hey, Sara.”
Maybe Ryan was right and she was capable of putting everything aside.
“Awkward,” Blair said.
“Only if we make it that way,” Reece said. Pip gave her a strange look but then sent me a smile.
I gave them a weak smile of my own as I slid into the booth next to Reece.
“Drink?” Ryan asked me. I nodded.
“So, for real? Hunter has a girlfriend?” Pip asked me when Ryan was at the bar.
“Is it really that big of a deal?” I asked.
I was met with a round of nods.
“Should I be worried?” I joked.
It was only when the table went silent again I realised they all thought I should, in fact, be worried.
“I guess I should enjoy his prettiness while I can then, hey?” Another joke, more deflection. At least I made them laugh.
When Ryan got back with our drinks, the jokes about us died. There was still some awkwardness around the table, but that might’ve had more to do with the tension between Reece and Spence than anything else. They were sitting opposite each other and talked to everyone but each other. Even so, the main vibe of the group was easy-going and light.
At one point, Reece disappeared and I figured she went home. That was, until I ran into her when I went to the bathroom. She was at the sink, wiping her teary eyes. Her medium-length blonde hair fell forwards over her face as her head hung low.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
She sniffed and waved me off. “Of course. Nothing I don’t deserve, right?”
“Uh …”
“I’m not looking for sympathy here, Sara. I know what I’ve done. I’ve made my bed and now I need to lie in it.”
“Umm …” I didn’t know what to say. At all. I had nothing. I went to step around her and head for the stall, but she stopped me.
“Have you ever fucked up so bad you don’t know how to get yourself out?”
Okay, we’re doing this. “No. I can’t say that I have.”
She laughed a sad laugh.
“Sorry.” My apology was empty and we both knew it.
“I hope you never do. I know you probably hate me because of what I did to Cole and Paige—”
“I …” I went to cut her off, but she was right so my words didn’t come out.
“I get it. I do. I can’t say I’m happy about them being together, and I’ll always fear for Cole’s sobriety because of Cody, but for what it’s worth, I know what I did was wrong. I’d only just found out about the baby”—her hand went to her non-existent baby bump—“and I knew it most likely wasn’t Paul’s. So to add finding out about Cole and Paige on top of that, I felt like everything was falling apart beneath me.”
Her tears were freely flowing, and before I could stop myself, I realised I had my arm around her shoulder, consoling her. “You don’t have to explain—”
She wiped her nose and eyes. “Sorry. I shouldn’t be dumping this on you. I’m not trying to make excuses, I just wanted you to know I’m not who Cole and Paige make me out to be. I’ve been a nasty bitch and I know that, and one day I’ll give my sorry speech to Paige and Cole, but it’s too fresh right now. I never meant for any of this to happen. Believe me when I say no one could hate me as much as I hate myself right now for what I’ve done.”
“I told Ryan there had to be more to the story and that you couldn’t have been a bitch for absolutely no reason.” I smiled.
She burst out laughing through her tears. “Thanks. I think.”
“No worries,” I said, overly too peppy.
“God, it’s weird to hear someone call him Ryan again. I’d almost forgotten that was his actual name.”
I smiled. “I find it weird when people call him Hunter. Are you going to be okay? Because I really have to pee.”
She laughed again. “Sorry, yeah, go. You caught me at a weak moment is all. It’s nothing. Pretend this never happened.” She turned her back to me and started to check her reflection in the mirror.
The pity I already felt for her grew, but I also knew she was the type of woman who wouldn’t appreciate being felt sorry for, so I didn’t try to make her feel better.
After peeing, I came out of the stall and she was still there.
“I have to wait for the crying to stop before I can wipe my mascara off and head back out there,” she said.
“Did you want me to go get Pip, or …”
She shook her head. “Pregnancy hormones suck. I was the same with Cody.”
“Okay.” I washed my hands and went to leave when her voice stopped me.
“Try not to let the joking about Hunter get to you. I’ve known him practically my whole life, and even though we tend to bicker a lot, he’s one of the best guys I know. We all knew he’d settle down eventually, we’re all just giving him shit about it. It’s what our group does.” She shrugged. “It doesn’t mean anything. Hunter’s not the type of guy to lead a girl on if he wasn’t serious about her. So in answer to your earlier question when we were sitting out there, you have nothing to worry about.”
I was frozen to the spot.
Before I could think of something to reply, she wiped her eyes one more time, turned on her heel, and exited before me.
And when I found my seat again in the booth next to Reece, she pretended we didn’t just have a moment in the bathroom. Her strong façade was back in place, and an unspoken agreement flitted between us. The conversation in the bathroom never happened. But when no one was looking, she gave me an appreciative smile. I felt I could honestly return it without forcing myself to have to play nice. We weren’t going to be friends, but I didn’t have to punish her for what she did to Paige. It was clear she was punishing herself enough.
“Everything okay?” Ryan asked.
I nodded and smiled. “I’m good. Really good.”
“That’s the scotch talking. Ready to head home?” The anticipatory gleam in his eye let me know exactly what he had planned for me when we got back to my place.
“Hell yes.”
15
- HUNTER -
I dragged my ass into Lawson Management for a meeting with my boss on Monday morning. I had big plans to buy Kimberly Lawson out one day, but until I could set myself up into a position to do so, she was still reigning manager of the place. She wasn’t only my mentor—being one of the most successful Australian models herself—but like a second mother to me. I’d been with her since the beginning. She was at retirement age but was holding out for me to get my ducks lined up. Or in a row. Whatever that saying was. I was so close to being able to take over.
“Okay, so you’ve got a few opportunities coming up. All repeat clients so it should all go smoothly.”
“I’m great today, thanks for asking, Kim.” I’d literally just stepped into her office and sat down.
“Sorry,” she said, flustered. She was standing at her desk, seemingly trying to put it in some kind of order. “It’s been a crazy morning. How are you doing, dear?”
“Good. You?”
“I’d be better if you take a look at your upcoming jobs and concepts and tell me if you’ll do them or not.” She handed me a list of my possible jobs.
I loved that I was at a point in my career where I could pick and choose. In the beginning, it was accept anything and everything or be forgotten. It led to some very embarrassing discount store catalogue shoots and some very low-budget sets.
Looking at the list, I saw Georgie’s name. “I’ve already promised Georgie I’d do her shoot. But …” I hesitated.
“But?” she asked.
“Well, we didn’t discuss what would be involved, and by th
e look of this, she’s going more risqué than I was expecting. Maybe it should go to a younger model.”
“Feeling a bit over the hill, sweetie?” she asked, finally plopping down in her seat.
I smiled. “Something like that. The models I’d be teamed up with are probably ten years younger than me. That’s like fifty years in the modelling world. I’d look like a dirty old man.”
“I know, I’m so ancient, right? That’d make me a hundred and fifty years older than you.”
“I didn’t mean—”
“All good, hon.” She smiled. “But are you sure that’s the real reason?” She knew me so well.
“Might also have to do with the fact I’m seeing someone who may not appreciate the necessities of the shoot.”
The fact I was taking Sara’s opinion into account at all should’ve shocked me, but strangely, it didn’t. Being with her, it was as if a switch had flipped, and I was suddenly in couple mode—something I didn’t even know I had a switch for. And it wasn’t about asking permission, it was about respecting that my girlfriend wouldn’t want to see me in an intimate pose with someone else, even if it was my job. A few years ago, there wouldn’t have been much of a choice in accepting it or not, but I had the luxury of being able to turn it down.
I so wished I’d thought to get my phone out and take a photo of my boss’s face as I told her I had a girlfriend. It took a lot to shock her, but this had floored her. Her eyes darted around the room, as if she were trying to find a hidden camera.
“You have a girlfriend? Like an honest-to-God girlfriend?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Was there an apocalypse or is this the beginning of one?”
“Har, har.”
She gave me her warm motherly smile. “I’m happy for you, honey. But … the campaign pays well, and—”
“I know. I just don’t think it’s a good idea.”
She nodded. “I’ll get someone else onto it. The client may not be happy. She specifically requested you after Sydney.”
“You’ve got some great guys here. I’m sure you’ll find someone perfect.”
***
Paige was in the kitchen when I got home. Being mid-afternoon, Cole was still at work.
Without Cole as a buffer, the air between us was thick.
“Hey,” she said. It was obvious she was trying to act like her normal self, but instead, she was a jittery, nervous Paige. It was weird.
“How was uni?”
“Usual. We have a lot of exams coming up.” Her voice was not her own.
“What’s wrong?”
“Umm …” She shuffled her weight from one foot to the other. “So Cole was going to talk to you.”
“About?”
“Things at home … well, they’re kinda awkward right now. Reece is still there, in the spare room, and it’s not exactly a great environment for studying.”
“You’re moving in here?” I jumped to conclusions.
Her eyes went wide. “God, no. Not permanently. We’re at least a year or two away from that. Geez.” She grabbed at her chest as if her heart was beating too fast.
I couldn’t help laughing. Her mini freak out was hilarious to watch.
“I just need a place to crash until exams are over.”
“That’s cool. But, umm … wouldn’t you get more study done if you were at Sara’s?” I didn’t mean for it to sound like I was kicking her out, but I knew that was how it sounded.
“If you don’t want me to stay, that’s all right. I just figured you and Sara would be …”
We were both silent for an awkwardly long period.
“Why is it suddenly weird between us?” I blurted out.
She giggled. “Maybe because you saw me naked and you’re doing my best friend? I’m embarrassed about our incident and overprotective of Sara at the same time. I don’t know whether to run away from you and hide or threaten your life if you put her through the same shit you did four years ago.”
“I’m not just doing Sara. I care about her more than I’ve ever cared about anyone.”
“That’s not hard to do when you’ve only ever cared about yourself.”
I blanched and took a step back. “It really sucks you think of me that way.”
“Shit, that’s not what I meant. Can we sit down and talk?”
“O-Okay.”
We went into the living room, and she sat on the couch. I avoided eye contact as I took one of the untainted armchairs.
Then a thought occurred to me. “You haven’t had sex on this chair too, right?”
She burst out laughing but went bright red as she did. “No. You’re safe.”
We went back to being silent again.
“Okay,” she started, “I want you to know that I think you’re a great guy. You’ve done so much for Cole and his … problems.”
“You’re allowed to say alcoholism, Paige. In fact, it’d probably help. He needs to be reminded that he does have an actual problem. He—”
“This is what I mean. I know he has real issues, but that’s another topic. I have faith he’ll sort them. What I’m saying is, you’re the best friend Cole could ever have. You’re like brothers and I know how much you’d do for each other. But you have to remember that Sara is my best friend—my only friend, really—and I hate seeing her hurt. I’m scared because you’ve never had a girlfriend before. She’s scared because she’s falling for you and it’s only been a little over a week.”
“She’s what?” My heart kicked up a notch, but not in the “holy shit, crazy woman alert” kind of way, but in the “holy shit, I just heard the best thing in the world” kind of way.
“Crap. I shouldn’t have said that.”
“Paige, look at me.” Once she was looking into my eyes, I continued. “It’s been way longer than a week for me. Part of me fell for her four years ago. If you really want to break it down … how long does a date usually last? Three hours?”
Her eyebrows drew together in confusion. “About that? Why?”
“That first night, we spent almost nine hours together. We pulled an all-nighter, had no sleep, and pretty much got to know the basics about each other. So that’s, what, equivalent to almost three dates? Then we have the night all four of us went to dinner. I don’t care if it ended with us yelling at each other and her kicking me out of her apartment, but—”
“You went to her apartment that night? Why didn’t she tell me?”
“It was the night before you and Cole broke up. I guess she didn’t want to tell you when you were dealing with so much stuff. Anyway, so that’s another date … a disastrous one, but whatever. Then we were texting back and forth for a while; they equal at least another date. A few phone conversations, so add another date to the list. Then there was the wedding on Saturday, and then I’ve spent nearly every night there this week. That’s a handful of dates right there. I figure we’re on at least date fifteen.”
She was smiling. “You really do care about her, don’t you? I mean, if you’re willing to break it all down like that—”
“Paige …” I knew I shouldn’t have told her what was going on in my head, but I couldn’t stop the words from coming out. “I’m falling in love with her.”
Her mouth dropped open.
“I know it’s really fast, and there’s no way in hell I’m telling Sara that anytime soon, but it’s the truth. No one has ever come close to making me feel what I do for her.”
“Okay then.” She still seemed shocked, but at least she looked pleased with my confession.
“So, if you two need to get together to study for the next week or so, you should go there. You’re welcome to stay here, but I know you and Cole, and keeping his hands off you while you try to study has proven difficult in the past. I can’t say it’d be any different if I was at Sara’s. And unlike Cole, I don’t want to be responsible for you two flunking out of law school.”
Her face broke out into a genuine smile. “I’ll ask her tomorrow.”<
br />
“So, you’re staying here the night?”
“I already told Cole I would.”
I stood. “Right. Guess I’ll have to go to Sara’s.” I sighed exaggeratedly. “I swear you ask so much of me.”
She laughed as I went to my room to pack a few things.
It didn’t take me long until I was on the road and pulling up to Sara’s apartment.
When I knocked, I got the sudden feeling I should’ve at least texted her to let her know I was coming, but as soon as she opened the door and I saw her smile, any doubt went away.
“I promise to let you study, but Paige and Cole are at it again … or will be from what Paige told me. I told her she should come stay with you so you two can get actual study done, but she said tomorrow.”
“Screw study.” She pulled me inside and had her tongue in my mouth before the front door was even closed.
Yup, I was definitely in love with this girl.
***
Garrett:
Baby bro! Coming up in 3 weeks. The usual? Go out, find some pussy, never call them again?
“Your brother’s still a pig, I see,” Sara said, reading the text. She wasn’t being nosy—it’d be hard to miss considering we were in bed and she was wrapped in my arms with her head on my chest.
“He’s not really that bad.” I was lying through my teeth.
“Are you forgetting he asked me to give you a lap dance within minutes of speaking to me?”
I laughed. “I was, actually, yeah. So in that case, he really hasn’t changed at all. And I’m still waiting for that lap dance by the way. Four years is a long time to wait.” I typed away a reply on my phone.
“Mm, keep waiting,” she mumbled.
Hunter:
Yes to going out, but I’ll be bringing my girlfriend.
Garrett:
No ducking way. I can’t believe u got her to agree to go out with u.
I snorted a laugh. Part of me couldn’t believe it either.
Garrett:
Dear autocorrect – I have never meant to type the word ducking in my life.
Does Mum approve of the girlfriend?
