Page 65 of Fumble

“Faith, take a breath,” Hunter interjects. The officer eyes him with the usual sycophant admiration.

“Can I see your license? I understand this car isn’t yours?”

“No. It belongs to Hunter’s, I mean, Mr. Vaughn’s best friend. As you can see, he can’t drive right now, and all I wanted was a double cheeseburger. Sir.” I hand over my license, catching Hunter shaking his head out the corner of my eye. He called it—verbal shitter.

“I’m going to run this, and I’ll be back in a minute.” The minute the officer is out of earshot, Hunter leans through the window, pressing his lips to mine. I’m not sure if he’s endeared by my fumbling idiocy, or if he really just needs me to shut the fuck up.

“You’re cute, but if I ever hear you call another man, sir, again, I’m going to be pissed.” He tugs my bottom lip with his teeth. “Got it?” I only manage a moan in reply. Turned on, even when I’m about to be stuck with a ticket by the po-po.

When the cop returns, he hands back my card with a knowing grin. What does he know? What did Hunter say?

“I’ll let you off with a warning this time, but if I see you driving around here again even one mile over the speed limit, you’ll be treated to a night in the cells.”

“Oh my God. Thank you so much, officer.” Hunter cuts me off before I put my foot in it again.

“Yes, thank you. I appreciate you taking mercy on her. Today just hasn’t gone according to plan.”

“Well, it was nice seeing you again, Mr. Vaughn. You take care now.” And just like that, he leaves us to our day.

Hunter slips back into the car with a smug-as-all-get-out grin on his face.

“How the hell did you manage that?”

“I’m a charming guy.”

“I know that. Believe me, I know that, but still.” He gives me a wink and gestures for me to switch the engine back on.

“Yours is not to question how but revel in the spoils. Now, can we please get back to Coop’s without the sky falling in? I have work to do.”

“Hunter, I really am sorry about today.” I feel awful that he’s having to deal with my comedy of errors.

“It’s all right. It is normal to gag on a dick as impressive as mine. It was still a stellar BJ.” He braces himself for the onslaught of shoving, slapping, anything I could muster, but instead, I burst out laughing.

“God, I hoped you didn’t notice that.”

“Sorry, love. I felt bad for you but simultaneously proud of my cock. I’m not lying when I say everything other than that split second when I just about ripped your throat in two, was fucking awesome.” I cover my eyes, wishing he couldn’t see my embarrassment in this moment. Why is it that when I try to be sexy, I fail? And, not just in a small way, I like to fail with epic finesse.

“Ugh, I hate that I’m not sexy.”

“I did not say that. I think you’re incredibly sexy. So, you have your moments of being a little less elegant than you’d like. Fuck it. You’re hot, and I find your quirks sexy as hell.”

As we pull back into Coop’s driveway, I’m aware that my stomach is still growling. Guess I’m making something from the fridge. We should’ve just stayed in, and none of this would have happened.

Zee and Coop are at the front door before we can even grab the handle.

“What the fuck?” Coop looks to Hunter, whose playful demeanor is knocked right out of him as he takes in the seriousness of his friend’s expression.

“Where did it break?”

“TMZ. Pictures and about half of the audio recorded on phone.”

“Fucking hell.” He storms inside, leaving Zee to fill me in on the shitstorm that’s brewing all over social media—my proclamation of losing my virginity to Hunter Vaughn for the world to hear. Zoey ushers me inside, leading me to her room, before slamming the door shut behind us.

“What were you thinking?”

“How bad is it?”

“Bad. Coop says he’s going to get his manager to step in and run interference while Hunter organizes some PR to mitigate it. It’s not going to be a good look for him. It’s going to take about three seconds for people to do the math when they see your last name. The minute they connect the dots, he’s a cradle robber who deflowered his mentor’s daughter. There’s no good way to spin that.”

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