"She's Sadie's friend." His voice is calm and controlled. I stare into his eyes and I see a veil of darkness there. His body is there, next to me, leaning into mine but his mind is somewhere else.
"No," I whisper. "I'm here alone."
"Is she old enough to travel alone?" Faye asks flatly. "She's a teenager, isn't it?"
"She's older than that." Christina blurts out. "I heard she goes to college."
"She's a student at Harvard." Hunter's hand brushes against my leg and I flinch. "She's studying to be a doctor."
I pull my eyes around the table, stopping to study each of their faces. I feel as though I'm invisible to these two women. The way they're carrying on a conversation as if I'm not present is disheartening. I had such high hopes for this evening and they've all crumpled into a messy heap.
"She goes to Harvard?" Small droplets of wine shoot from Christina's mouth onto the stark white tablecloth.
Hunter finally turns to look at her. "Control yourself, Christina."
The blush that rushes over her face isn't from embarrassment. The rage in her eyes is unmistakable. "Don’t humiliate me. You'll regret it."
The threat sits in the air with a heavy silence. I glance at Hunter and I see him roll his eyes in exasperation.
"I wanted to do something substantial with my life," I spit the words out hoping that they'll shift the conversation to a brighter place. If I can just make it through this dinner, I'll be free from having to see any of these people again.
"With Coral's life you mean," Faye reaches across the table to tap my hand. "It's Coral's life."
"No." I lean back to gain distance and hopefully some perspective. "It's my life."
"Sadie. You would be dead if it weren't for my daughter." The muted chuckle that accompanies her words bites into me. She truly only sees me as a vessel for Coral's heart.
"That's enough." Hunter pulls my hand into his under the table. I know I should pull away but I can't. I'm so close to falling apart.
"What's enough?" Faye's eyes bore into him. "What? We wouldn't even be here if it wasn't for you."
"I didn't find her so you could treat her like this." He squeezes my hand.
"That's not what I meant." She flippantly waves her hand in the air. "We wouldn't be here if you hadn't killed my precious Coral."
Chapter 9
There are no words as the waiter sets each plate down on the table with a flourish. He explains in pointed detail what each dish contains. The smell of the food should be making my mouth water but al I feel is a deep and penetrating sense of nausea.
No one speaks as they each eat in silence. I move the salad I ordered around on my plate, never once bringing the fork to my mouth. How could she speak to him like that? How could she blatantly accuse him of killing Coral right in front of me? She said it so effortlessly. It flowed off her tongue as if she's said it countless times before. Maybe she had. Maybe that's all he's heard for the last ten years.
"He didn't kill Coral." I drop my fork onto the plate and the sound echoes through the silence hovering over our cramped space.
They look up in unison. I can't look at Hunter. I can't pull my eyes away from Faye's face.
"You don't know what happened that night," Christina jumps in. "You weren't there."
"You think he killed her too?" I snap. "You think he killed your sister?"
"Why the hell are you defending him?" She pushes her plate away from her as if she's readying herself for a fistfight. "Who are you to stick your nose in our business?"
"You don't seriously believe he intentionally killed her, do you?" I push back. I can't believe that they've spent most of our time together, pointing their fingers at Hunter over an accident that happened more than a decade ago.
"What do you know about it?" Christina takes a long drink from her wine glass and my eyes settle on her massive engagement ring.
I pull in a deep breath, trying to calm my pounding heart. "I know that Coral died in a tragic car accident. An accident." I say the last word slowly as if I'm hoping she'll magically comprehend the meaning of it.
"If he had been paying attention that night, Coral would be here," Faye's voice cracks. "He killed her."
I bite my lip trying to temper my emotions. It's as if these two women are stuck on the side of the road next to the smoldering remnants of Hunter's car. They haven't moved past that point in time emotionally. Why did Hunter tell me Faye was amazing? She's amazingly cruel; maybe that’s what he meant.
"It was an accident," I repeat.
"You're saying that to make yourself feel better. That's your guilt talking." The calmness in Christina's voice is jarring.
"My guilt?" I raise my brows. "What guilt?"
"The guilt you have to live with every day." She pulls in a heavy breath. "The guilt of knowing that my beautiful sister died and that you're alive because of that."
"I don't have any guilt," I say defensively. "It was an accident. Accidents happen."
Hunter shifts in his seat so his leg is pressing harder into mine now. I'm finding strength in his touch even though I can't bring myself to look at him.
"You should feel guilty every time you take a breath," Faye seethes as she points her finger at me. "My baby is dead. You should be dead and not her."
I feel as though my lungs collapse at the contempt in her words. I can't speak. I look down at my lap.
"That's disgusting." Hunter's voice carries over my head. "Don't talk to her like that."
"Why not?" Christina spits back. "You're just as guilty as her. You killed my sister and she stole her heart away."
"Shut up," he bites out. "Shut the hell up."
"Don't you dare tell me to shut up," she snaps harshly.
"You two are getting married?" I push my hands against the table to make room so I can rise out of my chair. Why is Hunter marrying this bitch? Why would he choose to build a life with her? She's so vindictive and cruel.
"What kind of question is that?" Christina pulls herself to her feet. "You don't know anything about us."
"I know you're all stuck in the past." I sigh as I grab my purse. "I'd say it was lovely to see you but that would be a lie. I'll take care of Coral's heart. Which..." I lean down so my face is mere inches from Faye's. "Is my heart now."
I stare down at Hunter's face silently before I turn and walk away.
Chapter 10
"That sounds like a circus." Alexa's voice has been the comfort I craved since I got back to my hotel room. I called her to check the train schedule to see if there was any way I could escape the hell that was Manhattan tonight but I was going to have to tough it out until the morning. No good seemed to come from my being in New York.
"It was surreal." I realize it's an understatement but there are no words to describe the sheer hell that I endured at Axel.
A soft knock at the door invades the quiet solace of the room.
"I have to go. My dinner is here." I perch the phone between my shoulder and my ear as I reach for the white plush robe in the closet. I'd pulled all my clothes off the moment I got back in the room before jumping in the shower. Unfortunately, the hot water had done little to wash away the bitter taste of my time with Coral's mom and sister.
"Weren't you just out for dinner?" Alexa's smile carries through in her words.
"Bitter resentment steals my appetite away." I laugh. "I'll call you before bed."
The knock is more persistent now and I pull the towel off my head and shake my hair out before I swing open the door.
My breath stalls. Hunter is standing in the doorway. One arm is leaning casually against the door frame while his hand stops in mid-air just about to knock again.
"How did you find me?" I stand my ground. I can't let him into my room. I just want to forget that this night ever happened and I can't do that if I have to spend another moment looking at him.
"I followed you." He pushes past me to enter the room. I don't resist. I know I should but I can't.
"What?
" I turn around, the open door still resting in my hand.
I jump at the sound of a steward behind me announcing that he's brought my room service order up. I motion for him to leave the tray on the desk as I sign the receipt with shaking hands.
Hunter casually walks over and removes the steel lid from the plate. "You must be starving," he says as he pops one of the fries into his mouth. "A tiny thing like you is going to finish this entire burger?"
I purse my lips at the mention of how diminutive he thinks I am. He may tower over me, but after that ridiculous evening at the restaurant I've realized that his outer presence is only a thin façade. The man underneath the brawn is weak and emotionally porous.
"Why are you here?" I perch myself on the very edge of the bed, pulling the robe tighter around me. I should excuse myself and throw on some clothes but I just want him to answer the question so I can get this over with as soon as possible.
"I wanted to apologize for them." He rolls the padded chair that is near the desk so it's facing me directly. He casually unbuttons his suit jacket before he sits down, his knees almost touching mine.
"So you followed me here?" I shift slightly to gain some distance. He's so imposing and being this close to him is already melting my resolve.
He nods. "I waited in the lobby for almost an hour." He taps his finger lightly on my knee. "I didn't know if you'd want to see me."
"What about your fiancée?" I ask harshly knowing that the question will bite him.
"Don't call her that."
"That's who she is." I move again, this time shifting my entire body over. "By the way you have excellent taste in engagement rings."
He moves the chair so he's closer to me. "I didn't choose it. She did."
A brief moment of joy courses through me. Why should it matter to me who picked it out? It's not about the ring. He's still marrying her. He's still going to spend his life with that bitch.
"When's the wedding?" I know it sounds childish but I've wanted an answer to that question since the night I stumbled into their engagement party.
"I don't want to marry her."
"How long have you been engaged?" I spit out the question with a vile tone in my voice.
"Weeks. Not long," he answers abruptly.
"Long enough," I mutter under my breath.
He traces a path over my knee. I pull back harshly.
"Don't touch me," I say quietly. "You never should have touched me."
There's a moment of silence before he speaks. "You're all I've ever wanted."
"You're marrying her." I push his hand away. "You shouldn't be here."
"I can't be anywhere else." He reaches to grab both of my hands. "You are where I belong."
Chapter 11
"You realize that makes no sense, right?" I try to pull my hands free of his grasp but he's too strong.
"None of this makes sense," he counters. "None of it."
"We're on the same page then." I tense. "You need to go. Let's just end this and walk away from each other. Please." My voice is pleading. I can't keep looking at him. I can't keep imagining what it would feel like if I were wearing that ring. I can't keep wanting him even though I know he's a two faced liar and a cheat.
"You were fifteen the first time I saw you," he says hoarsely. "You were coming out of a movie theatre with a boy."
I'm speechless. Fifteen? Six years ago?
"I saw him reach for your hand but you pulled it away." A small smile pulls at the corner of his lips. "You were shy. He looked heartbroken."
That was so long ago that I can't even recall who he's talking about. It was before Will. It was before I dated.
"I sat in the balcony at your high school graduation." His fingers brush against mine and I'm too stunned to pull away.
"No," I whisper. He's a liar. He's saying those things to make me weak.
"You were the valedictorian. Your speech was amazing. I don't think there was a dry eye in the house."
He's making that up. He read somewhere that I was the valedictorian. He couldn't have been there.
"I choked up myself when you mentioned the brevity of life and second chances. I knew you were referring to your heart." His voice cracks.
My breath stalls. I remember that as if it was yesterday. The speech had been deeply emotional for me. It was so difficult to share with my classmates the promise of what tomorrow would be for all of us while I was living with someone else's heart inside my body.
"Then your first day at Harvard." He scans my face before he reaches in his pocket to pull out his smartphone. "I have a picture of that."
I recoil. I feel as if I'm being assaulted. "You don't," I mutter. "You can't."
He hands me the phone and I peer down. I'm there, in a pair of jeans and a pink sweater. My hair piled on my hair in a messy bun. The shot is from the side but I'm clearly walking towards the front doors of one of the buildings on campus. I pull my index finger to the screen and scroll through the images. There's one of Alexa and me. The Christmas decorations and our oversized winter jackets suggest it's winter. I'm smiling as she stands in a long line in what appears to be a shopping mall. Another is of me and Dylan at our parent's country house. He's getting behind the wheel of his car while I stand and watch him. I drop the phone in my lap. My hands are desperately shaking. There are so many images. So many years captured in photographs.
I vaguely realize that he's dropped to his knees. "I've loved you forever."
I don't protest when he rests his head in my lap. "I don't understand," I say weakly. I can't understand. He's been there, in my life, for so long.
"I first came to find you when you sent the letter." He pulls his head up so he's looking at me. "I watched outside your parent's house until you came out."
"Years ago?" I ask.
"You were fifteen. I was twenty-one." He stresses the numbers. "I went to Boston every Saturday on the train for years and years."
"You didn't." I stare at his face. How do I know he's telling me the truth?
"I took the early train there and the late train back," he pauses briefly. "When I was completely impatient from not seeing your face for an entire week, I'd book a flight on Friday night and stay in a hotel near your parent's home."
"You didn't talk to me." I'm sobbing now. The realization that he'd been so close for so many years is washing through me.
"I couldn't." He lowers his head and pulls in a deep breath. "Your father had me arrested."
"When?" The thought that this had gone on without my knowledge chills me. Why hadn't my father told me about Hunter?
"A few years ago." He pulls himself up so he's sitting next to me now. "I was at the airport, waiting for arrivals. You'd been in Europe with your mother for three weeks. I couldn't breathe anymore. I missed seeing your beautiful face so I was there waiting for you to appear."
I pull my hands to my face, covering my eyes in an effort to push my mind back to that day. "No, Hunter. No." I turn to look at him, my hand reaching to grab his suit jacket. "There was a man. He was on the floor. The guards had tackled him. I remember the chaos when I walked out."
He nods his head slowly.
"My father rushed me out. He said it wasn't safe." I pull my hand down his lapel before resting it on his thigh.
"He recognized me. I stopped him outside of your house one day months before that to explain who I was and to ask to see you." He reaches to squeeze my hand. "He told me to go to hell and that if he ever saw me again he'd call the police. He wasn't lying."
I twist my hand around his. "He called you Zander. That's why when I said I was seeing a man named Hunter he didn't connect the dots."
"I hate my name." He cringes as he says the words. "I'm Hunter. I've always been Hunter."
"You're Zander." I correct him. "They all call you that."
"My mother calls me Hunter." He drops my hand. "When I was young she'd call me that because I hunted creatures outside. Bugs, spiders, mice. I'm her Hunter."
Chapter 12
He's my Hunter too. He hunted me. He watched me for years. He was always there. Always in the background of my life.
"Why are you marrying her?" I know the question is ill timed but I can't contain it any longer. I've wanted to ask him that since I saw him at the doorway of my room.
"It's so complicated." He twists his hands together. "I took Coral away and then Ben died because of me."
"Ben?" I stare at his face.
"Coral's dad." He winces as he says his name. "He died of a broken heart."
I don't know how to respond. I can't imagine the pain her parents must have felt in the days after her death. Blaming himself for her father's death just didn't make sense. It was too much weight for anyone's shoulders to bear, even Hunter's.
"His death wasn’t your fault." I try to sound reassuring but I can't comprehend everything I've learned since he walked into the room. It's all too much.
"It was." He pushes back slightly so he can turn and face me directly.
"I managed to destroy their entire family when I crashed that car." I see the weight of the words as they cling to him. His expression speaks of such deep regret that it's almost palpable.
"They're blaming you for this." I reach to cradle his cheek in my hand. "I saw that tonight."
He pulls his hand up to cover mine and closes his eyes. "I blame myself for it."
"You have to let it go," I whisper. "It's been such a long time."
His eyes flash open and a darkness flares over them. "It's not that simple." His tone is deep and low. "You can't just let something like that go."
"You can and you need to." I exhale in a rush. If he's marrying her out of guilt, he can change that. He can let that go and end things with her tonight.
"Sadie, you don't understand," he says softly. "I've taken care of them for years now. Since Ben died, I'm the one who takes care of everything."
"It doesn't have to be that way." I want him to see that a future with me is just one conversation away. All he has to do is tell Christina he can't marry her and I can have him back. He can be my Hunter again.
Exposed - Part Three (The Exposed Series, #3) Page 3