45. Hunter
forty-five
hunter
MY FATHER IS unconscious on the floor of my living room.
Stevie stands over him, both hands pressed to her mouth. The bottle of wine she clocked him with is shattered, and white wine is all over the floor, my father’s prone form, and me.
I lick my lips, tasting alcohol for the first time in my life.
I hate it.
Jesus Christ. Did that really just happen?
I only allow myself a second of disbelief and shock before I push myself off the floor and go to Stevie. My sweater is soaked with wine. She throws herself against my chest. “Oh my god,” she breathes.
“It’s okay,” I say, even as my heart races a mile a minute. “You’re okay.”
“Me? What about you? Oh my god, I thought he was going to kill you.”
I stroke her hair. I thought the same thing. I don’t want to say my life flashed before my eyes, but for a moment there, as my father tightened his grip on my throat, I thought about everything I had to lose.
“Hunter.”
“What, baby?”
“I love you.”
I tighten my arms around her. “I love you so fucking much. You have no idea.”
“Promise me I’ll never lose you.”
“Only if you promise me the same thing.”
“Okay.”
“Okay.”
I take her face in my hands and kiss her softly on the mouth.
My heart expands with all the love I feel for her.
I’ll never have my mom back, and my father was never a father to me, but the love I feel for Stevie has reached inside me and filled in all the empty spaces. I feel solid when I’m with her.
A pounding on the front door breaks us apart.
“Hunter! It’s me! Open the door!” comes my grandfather’s voice.
Surprised, I walk slowly to the door, gripping Stevie’s hand tight. I open the door to find my grandfather and my uncle staring at me with concern.
“Is Ben here?” my grandfather asks.
“Yeah.”
His eyes widen in alarm.
“He’s unconscious on the floor,” I say, stepping aside and pointing towards the living room. My grandfather and uncle walk inside.
“My god,” my grandfather says when he sees his eldest son on the floor surrounded by puddles of wine and shards of glass. “What happened?”
“He was choking me. Stevie hit him on the head with a bottle of wine.”
My grandfather turns to Stevie, but I push her behind me. I’m not letting anyone touch her. But Grandad surprises me.
“Good job, young lady,” he tells her.
Stevie’s grip on my hand tightens.
“He had that one coming for a long time,” my uncle puts in. He crosses his arms over his chest and stares down at his brother.
Taking a deep breath, my grandfather exhales and says, “I’ll take care of this. I should’ve done it years ago.”
“Better late than never,” I say, and a look passes between us. My grandfather nods, then takes his phone out of his pocket and dials a number.
“Robert,” he says into the phone. “I need a favor.”
Uncle Jack steps toward me and Stevie as my grandfather wanders into the living room, talking in a lowered voice.
“Who’s Robert?” I ask Jack.
“Robert Lennox,” he says. “Chief of police.”
“Oh.”
“Shouldn’t we, maybe, like, call an ambulance for your dad?” Stevie asks. She’s holding my hand tight with both of her hands now.
My uncle smiles. “He’ll live. Unfortunately. Don’t worry about it. The police will be here soon, and everything will be handled.” He looks down at his unconscious brother again. “You really nailed him, Stevie. I’m proud of you.”
My uncle turns out to be right about everything being handled.
When the cops arrive with the chief of police, they don’t even question me or Stevie.
EMTs quietly and efficiently put my dad on a stretcher and carry him out of my home.
The tightness in my chest subsides. I never want to see him again.
My grandfather and Robert Lennox talk quietly in a corner. My curiosity is piqued but I stay silent. Grandad has so many connections in this town, it’s not even a joke. Who knows what favors he can pull from Concord’s own chief of police? I can only wonder.
I still can’t believe he and Jack came. I couldn’t count on him to do the right thing when I was eight, but 14 years later, maybe he’s finally seen the error of his ways.
My uncle claps me on the shoulder. “It’s gonna be alright,” he says.
A DAY LATER, while still recovering in the hospital, my father is officially arrested for the murder of my mother.
My grandfather called me over to his place earlier that morning and told me how everything would unfold, how he would admit that he covered up for my father’s actions and told me to forget what I’d seen.
He apologized to me for all of it, and I felt his true sincerity and remorse. I think it healed a part of me.
I still can’t get over my shock, though.
The newspapers will have a field day with the news of my father’s arrest, and it’ll be nice to have him smeared left and right. He’s always been considered a pillar of the community. I’ll be more than happy to see that stripped from him.
My phone’s been ringing nonstop with journalists calling asking for a statement. Most of my friends have been stunned. Jamie sent me a text saying congratulations. That made me smirk. I wish I could take a week off and take Stevie to a tropical island away from all the insanity, but hockey calls.
I have a game tonight, and if anything can take my mind off all that’s been happening, it’s either sex with Stevie or a competitive hockey game. Luckily, I can have both. I have to be at the arena in an hour, but in the meantime, I’m staying in bed with Stevie until the last minute.
“You’re insatiable,” she says as I shower her neck with kisses.
“It’s your fault. You’re irresistible.”
“Don’t blame me!”
I pluck her nipple. “Stop being irresistible.” I suck her nipple into my mouth and her moan gets me rock hard. “Stop making me hard.” I lightly bite the tip of her nipple. “Stop making me want you.” I flick the tip with my tongue.
She moans and gasps, her hips already rising to meet mine. I love how much we both want each other.
“Stop teasing and get inside me.”
“Patience.”
“No. No patience. Give me your dick.”
I chuckle as my tongue plays with her nipple. Her skin smells and tastes so fucking good. She reaches a hand between us, going for my cock. I grab her hands and pin them above her head. “See? This is why I tie you up.”
She pouts. “You’re mean.”
“You love it.”
She giggles. “Okay, yes, I do.”
I slip my fingers against her folds and she’s already so wet. Fuck. I can’t believe I get to do this whenever I want.
“Hunter,” she moans. “Please?”
Relenting, I give her what she wants, pushing my cock into her hot, tight, wet pussy. My brain tingles with the pleasure of it.
“Yes,” Stevie moans. “I want every inch.”
“Fuck, baby.” I kiss her as I slide inside.
All desire to pace myself vanishes, and I drive into her hard and fast. She wraps her long legs around my waist and meets each of my thrusts with her own.
Our kisses are wild, hungry. I use one hand to keep her arms pinned above her, the other to play with her nipple.
I should probably slow down a little, but the thought doesn’t turn into action.
I fuck her harder than I ever have before.
“Oh god, Hunter, I’m gonna come.”
“Come. All over my cock, baby.”
She moans and wraps her legs tighter around me. “I love your cock.”
“I love your pussy. I love you. You’re my fucking goddess.”
I feel her pussy clench, and then her body bucks as she climaxes. The feel of her around my cock is unbelievable. Her sexy moans and the dirty things she says make me lose my mind. I hammer into her as hard as I can, knowing she can take it. She spreads her legs further.
“I’m going to fucking explode inside you, baby.”
“Yes. Give me every last drop.”
Her words send me over the edge, and I groan as I spill inside her. I bury my face against her neck and don’t pull out right away. She holds me tight and I feel like nothing will ever go wrong again.