3. Hunter #2
I glance up at the pinhole camera and make a one fingered gesture. Maddie watches with fresh horror.
“Are we being watched?”
“It’s the twenty-first century. Everyone’s being watched.”
“No,” Maddie persists, looking from my cell to the camera. “You’ve had a message from whoever’s watching that feed. What did it say?”
I choose wisely not to share the message, and tap out a reply to my brother.
Hunter: I’ll head back in fifteen. Reid can take the first watch.
Mace: You don’t usually last that long .
I stare unblinking at the camera until the elevator stops.
As I drag Maddie out, I throw Mace’s tracker in the nearby trash can and pull Maddie along to the room.
This is one of Moncrief’s more affordable hotel ranges so there are no penthouse suites, but it’s good enough for our purposes. I unlock the door, and hold it open.
“After you.”
Maddie’s eyes widen. “I’m not going in there with you!”
She’s ready to retreat back to the elevator, but I block her path. Grabbing her arms, I walk her backwards into the room, flicking her dress out of the way with each step. Keeping her exit blocked, I let her go.
I can’t help the smirk creeping across my lips. “Seriously, Maddie, you need to stop with this obsession of getting me undressed. I haven’t brought you up here to fuck you,” I say, which is mostly true. “I mean, not unless you insist.”
Maddie’s hand comes out fast, but I grab her wrist before her palm can connect with my face. The other hand moves and I hold that wrist too.
“I gave you one free shot at the chapel. You don’t hit me again without there being consequences,” I warn as I kick behind me to close the door.
I steer Maddie backwards again until she can feel the king size mattress behind her. I’m about to release her when she lets out a godawful scream that sets my teeth on edge.
Clenching my teeth, I try not to show any outward reaction and wait for her to run out of breath. When that doesn’t happen, I let go of her wrists and push hard against her chest. Her scream cuts off as she lands flat on her back on the mattress.
Before the many layers of her dress have settled, I leap on top of her, my legs straddling her waist. Her hands fly at me again, so I pin them over her head.
“I really didn’t want to do it this way, Maddie.”
“If you don’t get off me right now, I’ll scream again!” she yells, continuing to fight me.
I stroke a thumb against the inside of her wrist. I can feel her pulse racing and damn, it turns me on. “Do your worst,” I goad her. “But next time, could you call out my name too? Most women do when they’re underneath me.”
“Asshole!” she yells at the top of her lungs.
I wait for her to take a breath, then softly say, “The name’s Hunter.” And suddenly, I’m desperate to hear her say it.
Maddie presses her lips firmly closed, glaring at me as she continues to struggle. It goes on for another minute before her body sags into the mattress and the fight leaves her. “Please, just let me go.”
The sound of her voice breaking makes me feel like a real douche. She’s not making this fun. Damn it, I don’t blame her. “If I get up, will you behave?”
She nods and I loosen my grip on her wrists. When she doesn’t fight back, I know I should climb straight off her, but my face hovers over hers a little longer. My gaze drops from her wide eyes to the lip she’s tugging between her teeth.
“Good girl,” I whisper, kissing her cheek softly.
Her breath stutters and I can’t be sure, but I think she’d open that mouth for me if I tried to kiss her. But that’s not why I’m here.
As I climb off the bed, Maddie sits up. She’s eye level with my hardened dick, so I crouch down in front of her.
“What do you want with me?” she asks, her voice trembling.
It was a shitty move to scare her. I need to backtrack. “ All I want from you tonight is to get some rest. I’m going to leave you alone for now, and tomorrow, we can talk business.”
She turns her head away, unable to look at me when she asks, “Do you normally conduct business by disrupting a wedding, dragging the bride up to a hotel room and pinning her to the bed?”
My lips twist with shame. “No, this is a first. And I’m sorry about just now. I just needed to stop you from screaming. I promise you, Maddie, I don’t hurt women and I certainly don’t force them to do anything they don’t want to. Not ever.”
“Really?” she says with a sneer I don’t much like, but probably deserve.
“Look at me, Maddie,” I say, keeping my expression open as she turns those beautiful blue eyes back to me. “I won’t hurt you. I’m not the bad guy here.”
“Well, I’m sorry, but you look like a baddie to me.”
I don’t think she’s being completely honest. I reach over her head and try to straighten the tiara that’s trapped in her mess of hair. Her eyes close briefly, but she doesn’t flinch at the touch. “Are you sure that’s what you see?”
She makes a half-hearted attempt at a laugh. “No, I see just another man weighing me up, trying to figure out how much he can take, and how little he needs to offer in return,” she says, her eyes glistening. “So go on, prove me wrong. Tell me you’re not looking to take.”
Her words are like a cold fist around my heart. This woman’s been hurt, and there’s a part of me that wants to order up another bottle of whiskey so she can tell me what happened to make her so jaded. Maybe I’d tell her my story too .
But she’s right. I was looking to take, and far more than I’d intended when I burst into the chapel earlier.
I straighten up and walk to the dresser so Maddie can’t see the erection that continues to strain against my zipper.
I set down my business card. “We’ll talk tomorrow, but if you need anything in the meantime, my number’s on the card,” I say.
“Call room service and order whatever you like. I’ll be back around ten in the morning. ”
Maddie closes her eyes, dismissing me before I’ve even left the room. “Fine.”
“Oh, and Maddie,” I say, hardening my tone so she flashes those deep blue eyes at me one last time. “There’ll be someone watching the door. Don’t try to leave.”
Her laugh is more like a last gasp of air from someone who’s drowning. “You seem to think I have somewhere to go.”
It takes a concerted effort to leave her. I’ll only make a fool of myself if try again to convince her that I’m not a bad person. I might do bad things, but it’s only ever to protect my own. My gut tells me I’d do the same for this woman. And my gut is never wrong.