All eyes were on her now. Becca half-smiled as her heart raced. She had no idea what to say!
“So you’re the inspiration behind the Rebecca Lange fund,” Mrs. Sundstrom noted, looking over her curiously.
Heat rushed to her face. “Yes, I guess that would be me,” she squeaked out. Ugh! Awkward!
“You don’t have to be shy, honey. I’m glad to finally meet you. Not everyone knows your connection with Hunter and what happened, but we’re one of the few. The both of you are remarkable people. And what Hunter’s done … well, it’s a beautiful tribute. He created something that has helped many people.” Mrs Sundstrom bowed her head, breaking the connection. Her husband immediately scooted closer and wrapped his arm around his wife.
What was this? She wanted so badly to ask, but kept the questions to herself.
“I’m sorry. The pain is still fresh. It’s not easy.” Mrs. Sundstrom pulled a tissue from her purse and dabbed her eyes. She gathered her composure and sat up straight again. “Sometimes, as much as one wants, they can’t all be saved.”
Becca had no idea what she meant. If she had to take a guess, someone close to her recently passed away. “I’m so sorry,” she managed. She just wished she knew what she was sorry for. Another example of things she didn’t know.
“Gamma!” Sienna shouted, coming from behind Becca and dashing straight into her grandmother’s arms.
“Well hello, sweetheart! Gramma is so happy to see you!” Mrs Sundsrom covered Sienna’s face with kisses.
Hunter now stood behind Becca. She shivered when he brushed his hand gently across her arm, reaching for her hand. She was surprised he’d want to be so close to her while his former inlaws were here. It made her feel better, though. She thought Eva’s parents would have torn into her about being here or something. She’d honestly had no idea what to expect, but their kindness toward her was not on the list of scenarios that briefly popped into her head.
Once Sienna broke free of the kiss fest, she hugged her grandfather. Then she turned to Becca and Hunter. With a big smile, she proudly displayed the few things she’d learned from Becca earlier. She signed ‘I love you’ to Hunter.
“Oh my word, that was too adorable! Where on earth did she learn that?” Mrs Sundstrom’s face lit up, along with her husband’s. Sienna jumped up and down with excitement, very proud of what she’d done.
Hunter tugged on a lock of Becca’s hair. “Did you teach her that?” he asked softly.
Becca’s heart raced as she answered. “I did. I hope that’s okay?” They’d been having fun with it earlier.
“Of course it’s okay, Bec!” Hunter exclaimed, wrapping her up in a hug.
“Yes, why would that not be? That was absolutely precious!” Mr. Sundstrom let out a deep, hearty laugh. Neither of them even seemed fazed at Hunter’s display of affection toward her.
“I-I don’t want to overstep any boundaries.” Becca bit her lap. She’d stuttered. Ugh. Gosh, she was so nervous around Eva’s parents! She couldn’t muster up a sense of calmness.
“I promise you’re not.” Hunter’s eyes were full of question. He tugged on her hand, urging her to sit with him on the couch across from the Sundstroms. Sienna twirled in a circle in a fit of giggles before she plowed into Hunter’s arms. He lifted her to sit on his lap. “So, you said you got a text from Eva. She’s fine?”
“Well, I wouldn’t go as far as fine, but she’s been in contact with us. Only with texts, though. She refuses to answer our calls, but I guess we’ll take what we can get. She said she needed a break before she lost control, and she was sorry for the way she left Sienna. We thought nothing of it until we learned she’d taken off, and we had no idea who had Sienna. I didn’t even know you were home already.” Mr. Sundstrom shifted in the chair.
“I wasn’t due back for a few more days, but I was ready to come home. I invited Becca to stay with me for the summer.” Hunter touched her hand lovingly.
“As we were telling Becca, it’s wonderful to finally meet her,” Eva’s mother beamed. “I do hope you’ll accept our invitation for dinner one night.”
“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Hunter hesitated.
The woman let out a deep sigh. “Hunter, I love my daughter dearly. I hate that she’s hurting, but I know there’s nothing you could have done differently. However, I’m not going to take sides. You’ve worked with Todd for years before Eva had her sights set on you. I considered you one of my own long before you married her. Our feelings about you as a person haven’t changed.”
“I appreciate that more than you know. I wasn’t sure how things were going to work after Eva filed for divorce, and with me wanting full custody of Sienna.”
Becca marveled at their relationship. She would have figured even though it seemed Eva had the problems, that her parents would have sided with their own flesh and blood. For Hunter to be so honest about Sienna’s custody in front of them surprised her. She wasn’t used to such openness. She’d never been able to have that kind of relationship with her grandparents. The whole thing struck her as odd.
“If I knew that Eva wanted to work out her problems so she could be a better mother to Sienna, I’d support her fully. To be honest, Todd and I want to stay out of the middle of this as much as possible, but if it comes down to it, we won’t lie. Not when our only grandchild’s welfare is at stake. You do what you have to do. I just hope it doesn’t get ugly. Speaking of Miss Sienna, it’s been a while since we had quality time with her. Would it be all right to keep her for the weekend?”
“I bet she’d love that!” Hunter tickled Sienna’s belly. “Wanna spend time over at Gramma’s house, baby girl?”
“Yay!” Sienna clapped her hands.
“Well, I guess that answers the question,” Hunter chuckled, setting Sienna down on the floor. “She’s getting over an ear infection, so I hope she won’t be too much trouble.”
“Nothing we can’t handle.” Mr. Sunstrom waved his hand in dismissal. “We had two kids. We’ve seen and dealt with it all.”
“I didn’t mean to say you can’t,” Hunter started. He shook his head. “I’ll go get her bag together. Becca, would you come with me for a moment?” The look in his eyes told her he had something to say and he wanted to get it out of the way.
“Sure.” She stood, her knees a little shaky. Goodness, why couldn’t she get control of her body or her thoughts?
“We’ll be right back,” Hunter told the Sundstroms.
Up the stairs and in Sienna’s room, Hunter set his hands on her shoulders and looked her square in the eye. “Angel, I don’t even know where to begin. I know you have a lot of questions. I-I didn’t expect them so soon. This is leaving me in an awkward place, because there’s things I haven’t said yet.” Regret flashed in his eyes.
“I noticed that,” Becca said softly, unsure how to proceed. “How is it that I know so much and so little about you, Hunter? I feel like I’m missing a huge piece to things and it’s been going on all day.”
He lowered his head. “You know it’s not easy for me to open up, but I know if we even have a shot at a future that I have to change that. I promise you, I’m going to try. I might fail a few times before I succeed, but for you, I want to try.” He took her hands in his, the look in his eyes so intent on her it made her shiver. “I love you. We’ll see them off and I’ll take you out for that sunset photo shoot. Then we’ll talk.”
“Okay.” Becca leaned in to kiss him. “Let me in, Hunter. Let me know the deepest parts of you, no matter how much they hurt. I want to be strong for you like you’ve been for me, but you have to open that door.”
“I’m going to, or I’ll die trying,” he said seriously before holding her face in his hands and kissing her with an immense passion.
*****
So the good thing was that Becca meeting his former inlaws went well. The bad thing was that he had so much explaining to do. Not that he didn’t before, but the position he’d put Becca in was awkward. He could tel
l she had no idea what to say, how to react. He thought he’d have more time. At least without Sienna home for a couple of days, he had a chance to really spend some time with Becca. She was right. He needed to let her in. Time to get to the gritty things in his life and lay it all on the line.
He wasn’t about to lose her when he’d just found her again.
He’d fully intended on taking Becca to capture the sunset with her new camera, but the clouds were too thick on the horizon, so it ended up being a bust.
She’d been fairly quiet the last few hours. She wasn’t one to be angry, but she definitely seemed to be thinking. They had a quick dinner. She was about to pick up her plate and head to the kitchen when Hunter stood before her and took it from her hands gently. He set the dish back down on the table, then took her hands in his. Before he spoke, he raised her hands to his lips and kissed them. He had so much to say, and he figured he’d start from the beginning. From meeting Eva’s father, and everything after that.
“I was eighteen when I met Eva’s dad. He helped me with flight lessons, and we struck up a friendship. He took me under his wing in a lot of ways. The first few times I couldn’t deal with being on the plane. He sat me down and asked why I had a desire to fly if I couldn’t even get on that plane without freaking out. So I told him. I thought for sure he’d tell me to forget about it. Instead, he helped me even more. We’ve been friends ever since. I used to spend a lot of time with them and their son. It was nice, especially because I was on my own by then. After I obtained all the hours and certificates I needed, he hired me on with his small charter company. I didn’t meet Eva until four years later. She’d just gone off to college when I came around. She pursued me for a few years before I gave in and went on a date with her. She’s hard to read, and my first impressions of her weren’t the best.”
“I remember you telling me about being on again, off again with someone,” Becca said when Hunter stopped talking to gather his thoughts.
“Yeah, that was her. Want to sit outside and I’ll tell you the rest?”
“I’d like that very much.” Her tone was gentle.
Hand in hand, they settled on the patio. Hunter cleared his throat. This was the part that he found hard to talk about. “I’m going to cut to the rough part of this story. Eva had a twin brother. Not too long after I married her, Jeff was in a serious head-on motorcycle accident.” The pain of the memory burned in his chest. Everything had changed after that. Everything.
Becca gasped. He faced her, seeking comfort from her touch. She wrapped her arms around him tighter. He wanted to get lost in her and forget all about the pain, but he had to finish getting this out.
“He couldn’t be saved. I did what I could to pull a few strings and get him in the program, but just as he’d been accepted, he made a turn for the worse and didn’t make it.” Hunter fought back the regret that rose in his throat. “I couldn’t even help save the brother of my own wife. That took it’s toll on my relationship with Eva. She was devastated! I know a family bond is strong, especially with a twin. I couldn’t take her pain away no matter how much I wanted to. The moment I walked out of that room and stood face to face with her, she knew. They all knew.” They all knew that I failed. That’s what he’d wanted to say, but held back. No need to play the blame game, even though he played it often inside his head.
“And you blame yourself,” Becca stated in a voice tinged with a deep layer of emotion.
Unable to breathe, Hunter turned away. Warm air engulfed him and threatened to swallow him whole. He’d come outside for fresh air and still couldn’t find comfort. Deep, rugged pain took control of his body and tore him up from the inside out. “I blame myself,” he repeated slowly. “I could have-” He could have, should have done so many things. “Eva and I were already in trouble. After Jeff’s death, she pulled completely away. Turned on me. I think she blames me.”
“Hunter, look at me,” Becca requested. At his hesitance, she cupped his face. “Sweetie, you can’t save everybody. It’s just not possible. I know it’s harder because it was someone you were close to, but there’s nothing more you could have done to save him. If Eva blames you, that’s her anger talking. You have to let that pain go.”
Her words slammed into him with full force. In his heart, he knew she was right. But his mind had conflicting thoughts. He loved her for trying.
“For the longest time, as I worked hard to get a sense of normalcy back in my life, I thought my injuries and struggles were brought on because I didn’t do enough to save my family.” Becca looked him straight in the eye and at her words, his heart shattered.
How could she ever think that?
“Becca-” His voice came out strangled and ragged. Now this was something she’d never, ever told him!
“I thought I was being punished. Yes, that’s where my mind went at a point in time. I wondered how a little thing like me could survive when my parents and sister died!” She drew in a deep breath. She was trying hard to fight the tears. Hunter pulled her to him, ready to comfort her again. “They should have had a chance!”
“Angel, no way did you do anything wrong.” God, what could he say to this? But he understood that pain all too well.
“I learned after a while that I didn’t have the power to change the outcome, and that’s what I’m trying to tell you. You’re so emotionally invested in trying to save people that it takes everything out of you when someone loses their life. You feel so strong, so passionate about it that every little loss takes it’s toll.” Becca kissed his cheek. “What you need to remember is that you’ve saved far more than you lost. Mourning for those you’ve lost is normal, but taking the blame every single time there’s a loss isn’t good for you. No wonder you’re so torn up. Just when I think you’ve been through so much, I learn more.”
The last thing Hunter wanted was pity, but he knew better with Becca. She didn’t pity him. She hurt right along with him. A pair of fireflies danced in the air almost above them. Hunter pulled Becca closer again and rested his head on top of hers. They sat there in silence for a while. He wasn’t exactly sure how long. He half expected to be interrupted by Sienna crying or the ringing of the telephone, but that was silly because Sienna had gone down for the night already. He’d talked to her on the phone right before dinner and she’d been doing well.
He finally had a free night with Becca at home and they were sitting in strained silence because he hadn’t opened up earlier.
“I love you, Becca.” He raised his head and drew invisible circles on her cheekbones with his fingertips. A hot spike of desire shot through him, especially when Becca raised her gaze to his face. Her lips parted slightly. Hunter took that opportunity to make his move, inching closer to her. The way she was so open and waiting for him only drove that stake of desire deeper inside. No way did Becca know just how much he wanted and needed her in so many ways. He’d have to show her as much as possible. The last thing he wanted was to ruin the start of something new with the one person that always understood him, when he chose to let her in. That too. He had to let her in more. Becca wasn’t going to judge him or point fingers. She would listen and give him a fair thought.
“I love you too,” she responded in between hot, fiery kisses.
She was startled when he jumped to his feet and reached for her hands to have her standing at his side. As he wrapped her in his arms, he leaned over and whispered huskily in her ear. “I want you. In my heart, in my bed, in my world. I want you forever.”
Chapter Twenty Two
Becca barely had a chance to respond when Hunter swept her up in his arms and carried her back inside the house. He tried to close the door one-handed while still attempting to keep a firm grip on her. She laughed, holding on to him as tight as she could. “Hunter!” she cried between fits of laughter.
“You’re finding out little by little that there’s not much macho to this man,” Hunter teased, setting her down in order to close and lock the sliding glass door. “Or maybe it
’s that I’m so awestruck around you I can’t keep focus. Yeah, you know what, that’s how it is. It’s all you.” He flashed her a sweet grin. His eyes held a mixed glaze of love, need, and a little bit of humor.
“All me, huh?” Becca taunted, loving the way he looked right now. So handsome. She still had to keep from pinching herself to find out if this was all a dream. Who would have thought she and Hunter would find love with each other? But as he’d said before, the signs were there. They always had been. Both of them were oblivious for so long. “I could find ways to use that to my advantage.” She’d never been like this before with anyone, but Hunter made it easy. She was always safe with him. Always.
“You’re saying you don’t already?” he tossed back playfully. A low growl escaped from his lips before he reached to pull her in his arms again.
“Maybe, maybe not,” she said coyly, leaning in for a kiss. “Told you I’m not so innocent.”
Hunter laughed. “Nice try. I hate to tell you this, but it’s going to take a lot more than that to make me rethink your innocence.”
“I had to try.”
Hunter shook his head, a gleam in his eye. In a split second, the gleam faded and Hunter’s expression turned serious. “Hey. Thank you for today. Really, for every day, but I know you were put on the spot when Eva’s parents came by.”
“You don’t have to-”
Hunter shushed her, gently touching her lips with his fingers. When he removed them from her lips, he gave her a soft kiss. “I do have to. You’ve been so great about everything. You-”
“Hunter?” She interrupted, moving her hands to touch his face.
“Yeah?”
“I love you dearly, but you really don’t have to thank me. Really. I’d do anything for you. I admit, it’s been a strange day just for the fact that there were things I didn’t know, but it’s okay. This is the time for us to really learn more about each other, awkward as that might be.” She kissed the corner of his lips. “So, let’s busy that mouth of yours with something else.” Need pooled in her gut, spreading throughout her body.
Passionate Kisses 2 Boxed Set: Love in Bloom Page 100