6. Hazel
Chapter six
Hazel
“ F uck.” He pushes off the wall and backs away from me. His coffee eyes drill into me as if he might eat me alive. His shoulders drop along with his head, he opens his mouth as if he might say something. I watch as he rubs his hands over his face and looks away. And even though I don’t have any right to feel this way, a stab of pain hits me right in the heart.
“How do you do that? How do you always make me forget myself?” he demands.
I stay silent and still. He's not really wanting an answer to his questions, so I don't answer. How could I even? Every time I'm around him I lose myself; I just want to drown in him.
He paces the room as he asks these questions out loud. His hand juts out and Dexter wraps his hand around my chin, holding it tight. I try to look away, but his fingers dig into my face not allowing me to move. I brace myself for the question that I know is coming.
“Why did you leave, Hazel? And don’t tell me that bullshit you tried to tell me five years ago," he grits out.
My gaze drops as if I've taken a sudden interest in my feet. What do I say? How can I explain any of this to him? No, I can't tell him. Whoever is texting me has already texted me a few times since I've been home. Worry skates down my spine when the idea that me just being this close to him might cause us more problems than we're ready for, but I can't seem to stop. Like a moth to a flame, I'm instantly drawn closer to him. Will he understand if I tell him the truth? My heart and body want to lean into him, trust him but a small voice in the back of my head isn't so sure. Hopefully, I can figure out who this person is that is trying to keep us away from each other. I’m just going to have to convince him, without going into much detail. I steel my spine and look him dead in the eye. “The reason doesn’t matter. I’m back. I’m here to help my family, and for you.”
No matter what my mystery texter thinks.
Dexter drags his hands through his hair and then cages me in with his arms. He leans down with an unreadable look.
A sense of bravado takes over. “I’m so sorry. I’m sorry for the way I left. I’m sorry that I stayed away for so long. But I’ve always loved you, Dexter. It has always been you from the moment I saw you at eight years old. What will it take for you to forgive me?” My chest heaves from getting the words out in one breath.
He doesn't take his gaze from mine, but he doesn't utter a word. My stomach drops as a thought comes to my mind.
What if he doesn’t forgive me?
“You want my forgiveness?” He whispers, his eyes never leaving mine.
I lick my lips as a tremble sets into my bones. “I want that more than anything.”
“Then tell me, Sugar Lips. Why did you leave me five years ago?” He whispers the words right against my ear and his breath sends a chill down my spine.
My body goes cold. I can’t tell him why. If I do then he will go off and do something crazy and I won’t allow him to get hurt. I don’t know who this mystery texter is, but I won’t let him get anywhere near Dexter if I can help it.
“Can’t we just leave the secrets behind us?” I whisper.
“No. If we get back together, there will be no secrets.”
Turning his back on me, he struts out of the staff room. I can’t help but watch how the muscles on his back ripple through his form fitting shirt or how his ass clenches with every step. I imagine he has the same muscle movements as he pushes into me.
Shit, how is it just being in his vicinity he can melt my body into a puddle like that?
I shake my head; I’m buzzing with energy. Since I’m already here, I might as well get a workout in. I need to. I will be spending time with my mom later at the hospital for her doctor’s appointment. It will be good if I can run off some of this energy that's buzzing through me.
The next hour zips by as I pound my feet on the treadmill. When I’m done, I go over to the mats and stretch out my body.
Sitting in the straddle position, I stretch my legs; I look up into the mirror and find Dexter watching me. Not just watching me but taking me all in and by the heated look on his face, I know I’m not the only one being affected by this crazy chemistry that seems to surround us.
A giddy feeling runs through my body as hope flares in my chest. I know it’s going to be hard to convince him and it’s going to involve a lot of groveling. But I still have a chance and that’s worth something. This time I don’t give into the need to talk with Dexter and make him see my side of things. I just ignore him and get back to my stretches.
Just as I finish stretching, Mateo walks over to me with a blank expression. “How was your workout?”
My brows pull together in confusion. Why the hell does he care how my workout was?
"I own the gym,” he replies as if he knew what I was thinking.
My eyes widen, and I smack him on the shoulder. “Wow. Impressive.”
Mateo's never been a big smiler, but I do get a small smirk. “Thank you.”
He glances over at Dexter and then looks back at me. There's a glint in his eye that I can’t quite read.
“You know if you want me to train you, I can.”
I let out a laugh, understanding what the glint was about. The idea of Mateo training me is hilarious. We would never survive each other. He’s too bossy and I’m too stubborn. “Are you trying to make him jealous?”
His eyes soften in the corners just a tiny bit as he runs a hand over his jaw. “Maybe. Sometimes as a big brother I’ve got to step in. I know he misses you.”
My heart swells with emotion. So many emotions it's so hard to decipher exactly what is going on in my mind. Part of me feels sad and happy that Dexter could miss me, maybe I have a chance in hell to get him to forgive me. The other part of me is full of love and happiness to know that Mateo is in his corner, ready to support him.
Mateo instantly pulls his mask of indifference back on and leans into my space when he hits me with his sharp tone. “But if you hurt him again, I will not stand back this time.”
“I get it.” I swallow and take a step back.
A quick glance at the clock makes me realize I’ve spent more time here at the gym than I anticipated. “I have to go and take my mom to her doctor's appointment in a little bit.”
“I’m sorry to hear about your mom and her cancer.” His voice rings with sincerity.
I let out a small gasp. “How did you know?”
He shrugs. “It’s a small-town, Hazel. Word gets around fast.”
“Yeah. I forgot about that.”
My eyes well with tears but I don’t let them fall. I turn to leave as I whisper, “Thank you.”
I step up on my tippy toes and give him a hug, which makes him stiffen. The Hernandez brothers don't show emotion. They really don't let anyone in. They have walls a million miles high around them but when they do, they've let you in for life.
I try not to laugh out loud. If he’s going to play games so can I. Besides its the second time he’s subtly threatened me, he deserves whatever nonsense Dexter gives him.
I let go and walk out the door of the gym, the whole-time keeping eye contact with a pissed off Dexter.