Chapter 50
Hunter
Two nights ago, in Piper’s bed, I should have got this out of my system.
Got her out of my goddamn system.
I didn’t.
If anything, the problem only grew.
Again, I’m unable to do a damn thing about the way I feel.
Nothing is under my control anymore, and I bloody hate it.
So I throw myself into finding out who hurt her. And when I’m not doing that, I’m in the ring.
Because whoever laid a hand on her is going to answer for it.
The problem is, it’s proving more difficult than I expected.
It’s not as though I can pull up a list of abusive pricks and work my way through it.
And Piper refuses to give me so much as the smallest clue as to who it might be.
There are moments when I find myself questioning it.
Why do I keep pushing?
Why don’t I simply walk the fuck away?
Erase Piper Ashthorne from my thoughts and system.
From whatever hold she seems to have over me.
But I can’t.
I bloody tried.
And it proved utterly useless.
If anything, every attempt only made it worse.
I genuinely thought the more I had her, the sooner I’d tire of her.
What a load of fucking rubbish.
The more I have her, the more I want her.
This morning, I had a meeting with my grandfather in London, which meant cancelling my classes for the day.
Not exactly a hardship.
At the moment, I can’t think of anything more tedious than standing in front of a room full of overprivileged idiots who think the size of their trust fund makes them untouchable.
But it also meant not seeing her.
And that...
That has left me distinctly out of sorts.
Being in London gave me the opportunity to visit my father before returning to the academy tonight.
I could stay until tomorrow.
The reason I won’t is obvious.
I don’t want to go another day without seeing her.
For fuck’s sake.
The car slows as we approach my father’s estate. The familiar house comes into view, warm light glows from the windows into the darkness.
The additional cars outside catch my attention immediately.
So he has company.
Perhaps I should have given some warning before arriving unannounced. If he’s hosting a dinner, I’ve chosen a poor time to visit.
The driver opens the door, and I step out. After a brief nod, I make my way up the stone steps towards the house.
Maria greets me in the hall. She’s the head housekeeper and has worked for my father for as long as I can remember.
“Good evening, sir.”
“Evening, Maria,” I reply, loosening my jacket slightly as I move past her.
“Is my father occupied?”
“He has guests for dinner,” she says with a small smile. “But I rather doubt your presence will be unwelcome.”
I never imagined it would be.
I acknowledge her with a brief tilt of my head before continuing towards the dining room.
The moment I step inside, my attention lands on the figure seated beside my father.
Fuck.
For a second, I consider the possibility that I’ve finally gone mad.
Because if one day without seeing her is enough to make me conjure Piper out of thin air, then perhaps it’s time someone locked me in a psychiatric ward.
But as I move closer, the illusion doesn’t disappear.
There she is.
Piper.
Seated between my father and hers.
For the briefest moment, everything else ceases to exist.
She looks up at the sound of my footsteps. The moment her eyes meet mine, all colour drains from her face.
She didn’t expect me to be here.
And judging by the stricken look that crosses her features, I’m the last person she wanted to see.
That grates more than it should.
Then again, I did promise to keep us a secret.
“Good evening,” I say.
Every head turns in my direction.
“I trust I’m not intruding.”
“Not at all,” my father replies with ease as he rises from his seat. “Come in, son.”
I move towards him and shake his hand before turning my attention to his guests.
Not that it’s easy to focus on anyone who isn’t her.
As I make my way around the table, I stop beside her father.
General Jonathan Ashthorne. Former special operations commander. Current Deputy Secretary of Defence.
I’ve read enough reports on the man to fill a small library.
He rises as I approach and extends his hand. I take it, my grip a touch firmer than necessary.
The change in his expression is subtle, little more than a slight tightening around the eyes, but he holds my stare and returns the handshake without comment.
“General Ashthorne.”
“Hunter,” he replies.
The fact that he knows who I am comes as no surprise. He’s having dinner with my father, after all.
Besides, everyone knows who I am.
I spare Piper a brief glance as I take the empty seat beside my father, directly opposite her.
“Miss Ashthorne, I didn’t expect to see you here.”
Her eyes meet mine for the briefest moment before they return to her plate.
My father looks between us with a hint of amusement on his face. Jonathan, on the other hand, appears thoroughly perplexed.
“Miss Piper is one of my students,” I add.
“Is she?” Ashthorne says, one bushy brow rising. “I wasn’t aware you were teaching at the academy.”
“It’s a recent arrangement,” I reply as I reach for one of the serving dishes.
I glance between him and my father.
“Am I interrupting something important, or is this simply a social visit?”
My father chuckles.
“Nothing quite so serious,” he says. “Jonathan and I have... overlapping interests. It was only a matter of time before our paths crossed.”
“In our line of work, these things tend to happen,” Ashthorne says, reaching for his wine glass.
I accept the explanation without pressing further, though I make a mental note of it.
I can’t think of many reasons my father and Jonathan Ashthorne would choose to spend an evening together.
Much less discuss business.
Let’s not pretend the Thirteen Circle and the Ferrum Syndicate weren’t at each other’s throats until recently.
Something unusual is going on.
Then again, perhaps my father simply saw an opportunity and chose to make use of the truce.
After all, they occupy remarkably similar positions. The only real difference is that one operates in England, while the other does so across the Atlantic.
The conversation resumes and, as expected, revolves largely around their work.
Throughout it all, Piper avoids my eyes.
And I say nothing.
I let her.
After a while, my father seems to remember that Piper and I are also at the table.
“So, Piper, what became of the skating?” he asks. “I understand you competed at the Olympics.”
She looks up and offers a polite smile.
“I did,” she replies. “When I was younger.”
“And you won gold, I believe. That’s a remarkable achievement.”
“I was fortunate.”
“Nonsense,” my father says with a smile. “Olympic gold doesn’t come down to fortune.” He leans back slightly. “And you’ve stepped away from it?”
“For a time,” she says carefully. “I stepped away from competition for a few years. I had considered returning this season, but I haven’t competed enough to secure my place.”
A slight frown appears on my father’s face.
“That may not be the problem you think it is,” he says. “I know a few people in the federation. If you’re serious about returning, there may still be a path forward.”
For the first time since I arrived, she looks genuinely excited.
And the selfish bastard inside me hates that I wasn’t the reason for it.
Fuck.
“Really?” she asks, unable to hide the hope in her voice.
“I’ll have a contact sent over,” my father replies simply. “If it’s something you’re serious about, it would be a shame to let it go.”
“Thank you,” she says, and this time her smile reaches her eyes.
The conversation carries on for a while longer. Eventually, dessert arrives, and not long after, Ashthorne rises from his seat.
“I think we’ll call it a night,” he says. “It’s getting late, and Piper needs to be back at the academy tonight.”
She rises with him and turns to my father.
“Thank you for having us,” she says.
“My pleasure,” he replies warmly.
She glances my way and quickly looks elsewhere when she finds me already watching her.
My father looks between us, a question written on his face, and I ignore it.
“Leaving so soon?” my father asks as I move to follow them into the corridor. “Surely you can spare a drink with your old man.”
“Another time,” I reply, already on my way out. “I have somewhere to be.”
He watches me for a moment before giving a shake of his head.
“Very well then.”
Leaving my father behind, I step outside just as they’re preparing to leave, Ashthorne’s driver already holding the rear door open.
“Jonathan.”
He turns.
“I’ll save you the journey,” I say. “I’m returning to the academy. Piper can ride with me. No sense in taking two cars when we’re both going to the same place.”
His attention moves between us, assessing the situation. I expect him to refuse, but after a brief pause he relents.
“Very well.”
He turns to Piper and presses a kiss to her forehead, murmuring something too low for me to hear.
Whatever he says earns a reaction from her. It’s subtle, but I don’t miss it.
And I don’t fucking like it.
“Shall we?” I say, unable to keep the bite from my voice.
Because the longer I stand here and watch them, the harder it becomes to ignore the suspicion that has taken root in my head.
A suspicion I have no proof of and yet can’t seem to shake.
That he might be the one who hurt her.
And if he is, I’ll put him in the fucking ground.
She sends me an unimpressed look but says nothing.
Jonathan gets into his own car, and I gesture towards mine. After a brief hesitation, Piper walks past me and climbs into the back seat. I close the door behind her, circle the car, and slide in beside her.
The moment the door shuts, the space between us feels smaller than it is.
Her coconut scent fills the car, and every instinct I possess urges me to pull up the privacy screen and haul her onto my lap.
Instead, I keep my hands to myself.
As the car moves through the city towards the private heliport, she keeps her attention fixed on the view outside, determined to avoid me.
I let her have her silence for a while.
After a few minutes, I decide she’s had enough of it.
“I didn’t expect to find you there,” I say. “Of all the places I thought you might be, my father’s dining room wasn’t one of them.”
She keeps her attention on the window for a few seconds, watching the lights of the city pass by.
Then, slowly, she turns towards me.
“I had lunch with my father earlier. He had some business in the UK and made a last minute visit,” she says quietly. “Afterwards, he suggested dinner with one of his associates. I was already there, so...” She shrugs. “It didn’t feel like something I could refuse.”
I study her closely.
There’s something in the way she says it. Like she didn’t even have a choice in the matter.
The thought does nothing for my mood.
I knew I should have at least punched the bastard.
Looking at her, she seems tired.
Not just physically, she looks worn.
And because of that, I don’t push.
For once, I leave it alone.
The silence that falls between us remains for the rest of the drive and follows us all the way through the helicopter ride back to the academy.
By the time we arrive, darkness has fallen.
The car pulls up outside the private dormitories and, before I can say a word, Piper has already opened the door and disappeared into the cold November air.
I follow a moment later.
Without so much as a glance in my direction, she makes her way towards her building.
I find myself following before I’ve even made the decision to do so.
She must hear my footsteps because she stops and turns.
“Not tonight, Hunter.” Her voice is quiet, but there’s no mistaking the resolve behind it.
It stops me in my tracks.
I say nothing and make no move to follow.
I simply watch her.
She turns and disappears inside the building, the doors slide shut behind her.
I remain where I am, staring at the entrance long after she’s gone.
With one last look, I head towards my own dorm.
Just for tonight.
Because tomorrow is another matter entirely.
Tomorrow, I won’t be so easily kept at a distance.