HUNTER (The Caine Brothers Book 1) (13 page)

Hunter hadn’t been so pissed off, or felt so betrayed, ever.

It was Thursday morning, the day of Allison’s interview in California. He sat at his desk, not getting anything done, trying to ignore the corner of the last condom packet, stabbing his thigh through the fabric of his pants pocket.

He was such a wuss for keeping the damn thing. But he couldn’t let it go.

The trip back from Costa Rica had been painfully tense. They’d spoken only when necessary, and when they returned to Houston, he’d had a driver take her home.

In the two days of work since then, they’d avoided each other, and when they’d had to talk it was strictly business and as brief as possible.

He didn’t know how things had gone off the rails so badly. He’d meant to tell her that morning that he’d been thinking about their agreement, and that he wanted to renegotiate. He’d wanted to tell her that she’d made a difference in his life in only a couple of days, and that he didn’t want to go back to the way things had been. He wanted to figure out a different way forward.

But she’d dropped the interview bomb on him as if she couldn’t have given two shits about the time they’d spent together.

Now she was gone to California to interview for a job she’d probably get, and he’d never see her again, which was completely unacceptable.

The problem was, he couldn’t figure out how to fix it.

His phone rang, interrupting his moping. It was Missy.

“Yes, Missy?”

“Your brother’s on the phone.”

“Which one?”

“Alexander.”

“Fine. Put him through.”

He had no desire to talk to any of his brothers, but he didn’t want to sit and dwell, either. He needed to suck it up and stop being such a pussy. Maybe talking to Xander would help.

“Bro,” Xander said.

“What is it,
Alex?
”

“Stop fucking calling me that. You guys know I hate it.”

“I’m in a shitty mood. I want everyone to share.”

“Great. Listen, Damian’s shipping out tomorrow so I thought we should get him good and sloshed so he’s miserable when he leaves.”

Getting good and sloshed sounded like an excellent plan. Something Hunter could get behind.

“The rest of the family on board?”

“Yeah. I managed to corral all the sibs.”

“Even Bishop?”

“Yep. But Dad’s out. He and his wife are leaving for Europe tomorrow, so he doesn’t want to be hung over.”

“That’s okay. It’ll be better without him, anyway.”

Xander chuckled. “Yeah, it will.”

“Okay. I’m in. When and where?”

“Your place. Seven.”

“My place?”

“You have a massive condo. The rest of us are either nomads or have shitty apartments.”

“What if I’d said no?”

“We’d have shown up anyway.”

“Of course.”

Nothing like a pack of alpha siblings who rode shotgun all over each other. He thought of Allison and the way she’d referred to them as a lot of testosterone in one house.

If he left the office now, he could be a few drinks ahead by the time everyone else showed up.

“So,” Xander said. “Seven?”

“Yeah. That’s good. See you then.”

He hung up and checked the clock. Two. Had Allison had her interview yet? Was she nervous?

Fuck. Why should he care? She’d snubbed him. It had never happened before, but now that it had, he had to figure out how to deal with it.

Drinking sounded like a good place to start.

“You’re a fucking bitch tonight,” Damian said, shooting some unsuspecting zombie on whatever video game he played with Colton.

The brothers had all shown up precisely at seven and now they lounged around Hunter’s living room playing his games, drinking his alcohol, and eating the buffet of takeout they’d ordered in.

Hunter knew Damian was right, but he couldn’t help himself. The more he drank, the crankier he got. Allison hadn’t called him to let him know how the interview had gone. Hadn’t even texted him.

But why should she? She didn’t owe him anything. He hadn’t said, hey, maybe we should talk about this.

“Fuck you, too.” He sat at the breakfast bar and gulped beer.

“What crawled up your ass?” Damian gave him a sidelong sneer, keeping most of his focus on the game.

“Maybe you should ask who.” Five sets of eyes shot to the other side of the room where Bishop sat in a leather chair, sipping a beer.

Hunter felt the uncomfortable shift as all of his brothers considered the wisdom of the youngest, and realization finally hit them.

Damian turned to him with a shit-eating grin. “Well, fuck me. Hunter’s
in love.
”

“I. Am. Not. In. Love.”

From one of the couches, Xander paused from shoveling Chinese in his face with a set of cheap chopsticks. “Never thought I’d see the day the king of cold would get all warm and mushy over a woman.”

“He’s not all that warm and mushy,” Jaxon said. He propped his booted feet on Hunter’s coffee table and laced his fingers behind his head. “He’s bitchy, like Damian said.”

“So maybe he loves her, but she doesn’t love him.” Xander raised a brow as if asking a question.

There was a collective intake of breath and five faces filled with pity turned to look at him.

“Oh for Christ’s sake.”

Hunter went to the bar and poured himself a shot of whiskey. Beer wasn’t nearly strong enough for him to deal with his brothers. He swallowed it down and tried to figure out how to change the subject. Knowing his brothers, though, they’d work it to death.

“What happened?” Colton asked, pausing the zombies to turn his full attention to Hunter. Leave it to him to get straight to the point.

“Nothing,” Hunter said.

“Maybe that’s the problem,” Damian offered, snickering. “I thought you knew how all that sex stuff worked.”

Hunter leveled a hateful glare at Damian. The others laughed at Damian’s joke.

“Who is she?” Jaxon asked.

Hunter tried not to growl his frustration. He didn’t want the third degree. It only made him think about Allison and where he went wrong.

“It doesn’t matter. It’s over.” He refilled his shot of whiskey.

“Doesn’t look like you want it to be over,” Xander said.

“It’s not like the great Hunter to take no for an answer,” Damian teased.

“You should talk. Your list of conquests must be five miles long,” Hunter said.

Damian opened his arms in a magnanimous gesture. “I like to spread myself around. Gotta keep all the ladies happy.”

Jaxon snorted. “Can’t wait for you to fall in love Damian. That’s going to be fun to watch.”

“Not gonna happen, little bro,” Damian said, shaking his head.

Hunter smirked. “Jax is right. That’s going to be fucking karma.”

“Don’t change the subject,” Damian said, pointing the gaming controller at him. “If you love this chick, why aren’t you fighting for her?”

“She’s a woman, not a chick. We had a short term agreement. We’d,” he paused and ran his hand over his short hair, trying to figure out how to say it without sounding ridiculous. “We’ve been attracted to each other for a while, but weren’t able to act on it. We decided to spend a weekend getting each other out of our systems, and move on.”

They all looked at him as if he’d clucked like a chicken, then they broke out in guffaws of laughter. Everyone but Bishop, who just looked at him with eyes far too wise for a 21-year-old.

“Dude,” Bishop said while his brothers fought for breath through peals of laughter. “That
never
works.”

Hunter gave him a withering look. “Tell me something I don’t know.”

“So, how’s it feel to realize you can’t control every tiny thing in the world?” Xander asked.

“Shitty, actually.”

“What’re you going to do about it?”

“What the hell am I supposed to do?”

“Tell her,” Colton said, as if Hunter was an idiot and should have figured that out himself.

“You’re a 23-year-old kid. What do you know about women? They get more complicated the older you get, by the way.”

Colton shrugged. “Seems like talking to someone’s the best way to clear stuff up.”

“What the fuck is it with the
children
in the family? How’d they get so smart?” Damian grumbled.

“They’re not saturated in alcohol yet?” Xander asked, sipping his beer for emphasis.

“I think maybe they just haven’t been jaded by life,” Hunter said.

“In this family, jaded is relative, brother,” Xander said. He saluted Hunter with his bottle.

“When are you going to see the lucky lady again?” Damian asked unpausing his game and half-turning back to the big screen.

“Tomorrow.”

“Wait, you
work
with her?” Xander asked.

That set off another round of laughter. Bishop even smirked.

“Fuck you all,” Hunter said.

Allison’s interview went spectacularly well. The company was a perfect fit. She liked the people. She liked the corporate culture. She liked the job description and the potential for advancement. She liked the money. She even liked California. And California meant she’d be close to her brother and get to see him more often.

What she didn’t like was that Hunter didn’t fit anywhere into a scenario where she worked at National Energy Group.

She’d called Jesse from the airport after her interview and told him all about it.

“Sounds exciting, sis.”

“It is.”

“Then why don’t you sound excited about it?”

She’d paused, maybe just a tick too long. “I am.”

Jesse had snorted in her ear. “Right. Soooo…who is he?”

“There’s no
he,
” she’d said in her best indignant voice.

“Uh huh. I’m guessing he’s back in Houston, so California sounds too far away.”

“Shut up,” she’d said, but laughed at him anyway.

Damn him for being so intuitive.

“What does he think about you interviewing for a job out here?”

“He didn’t seem all that affected by it.” Her voice dripped sarcasm.

“So he’s, like, in love with you?”

“Didn’t you hear me? He doesn’t care. He didn’t say a word. Just ‘fine.’”

“Just let me know when the wedding’s going to be, okay?”

“You are
no help at all.
”

“Did you try talking to him? I hear that works sometimes.”

She’d grunted a “Love you, bye,” and hung up.

She’d tried not to think about Hunter as she flew back to Houston. The HR manager had told her they’d be making a decision very soon since hers was their last interview, and they wanted the position filled quickly. She tried to focus on reevaluating the interview, daydreaming about a move to California.

But her mind kept coming back to Hunter. There was no denying she wanted him, and for more than just a sex partner. Somewhere along the line, her heart had become involved, and wouldn’t shut the hell up. She wouldn’t go so far as to say she’d fallen in love. That was ridiculous, but she might go so far as to say there was some intense like going on.

Jesse had said she should talk to Hunter. What was she supposed to say to a man who had made a proposal with a deadline, fulfilled the deal, and been ready to move on? He obviously didn’t want her beyond their weekend. Wouldn’t talking to him be humiliating? And what was she supposed to say? “
Hunter, I had a fabulous time this weekend, but it turns out I’m unable to get you out of my system and I need more. A lot more. Like the rest of my life more. Oh, and I might be falling in deep, deep like with you. Okay, fine, maybe love. I don’t know. But I want to explore it to find out. What do you think?”

Now it was Friday morning and she had to face him, and she was a nervous wreck.

She stopped in at the Starbucks near the office and ordered a double shot mocha espresso—caffeine bravado. Plus, it helped delay the inevitable.

In the lobby of the Caine Building, she poked the up button for the elevator. When it dinged, the doors slid open and she walked in. But when she turned to press the floor for the executive suite, she noticed Hunter striding in through the front doors.

All suited up he made her mouth water. Even though she’d seen him buck naked and appreciated every delicious inch of him, there was something erotic about a man in a suit.

He headed for the elevators, and when he saw her about to press the button for their floor, his stride became resolute, his expression unwavering. His gaze met hers and held it by sheer force of will.

Her mouth went suddenly dry and swallowing became a challenge. Dear Lord, he was a force of nature. How was she going to talk to him about anything personal? It was like the Hunter from their weekend had disappeared back into the depths of CEO Hunter, and she’d never find him again.

He marched into the elevator and pressed their floor, without saying a word. Once the doors closed, he kept his gaze forward, but he fidgeted. Just a bit. He rolled his shoulders and cracked his neck.

Could he be nervous, too?

As they neared their floor, he finally said, “We need to talk.”

“Yeah, we do.”

They exited the elevator on the executive level and headed into their suite. Missy was already at her desk and offered them a chipper, “Hi.” She looked like she wanted to say more until she got a load of their faces, then she suddenly found a huge interest in shuffling papers.