Page 53 of Hunter

I need time. I need more time to figure out what to do.

“Find me a job for the rest of the summer?” I ask.

She squeals, pulling me into a hug and knocking over the popcorn in the process.

Looks like I’m spending my summer in Skagway!

Chapter 9

Hunter

I’m not sure what transpired during Isabella and McKenna’s chat after dinner last night, and I didn’t ask, but the sex we had when we got back to the boat? It was epic. And because it felt more emotionally charged than our previous nights together, it was especially hard to leave her and go back to my room…but that pain of separation gave me a great idea.

With teams leaving the ship every day, there are four cabins now vacant. I tell Isabella to ask for her own, using Beto’s snoring as the reason, and we’re pleasantly surprised when she’s assigned to the empty cabin next to his.

We move in our stuff, shove the twin beds together, and—voila!—we finally have our own private bedroom for the next three nights until we leave the boat behind in Whittier.

There’s something about holding someone in your arms while you both fall asleep naked. Her back pressed against my chest, the weight of her breasts over my arm, the steadiness of her breathing, the smell of her warm, soft skin.

But no matter what; no matter how Iwantto feel; no matter how much Iwantto fall for her with abandon, my mantra every night as I drift off to sleep remains the same:

Friends with benefits. Friends with benefits. You’re only friends with benefits.

It’s a bitter pill to swallow as she sighs softly in her sleep beside me, but I remind myself that I’m keeping my heart safe this time. I’m going to enjoy her and the time we’ve decided to spend together. I’m not going to get carried away and scare her off. I’m going to honor our short-term arrangement and say goodbye to her, as agreed, in ten days.

Ten days.

As we arrive at our hotel in Anchorage on a Tuesday night, in two luxury buses holding the contestants and production staff, that sad reality hits home more sharply than ever. We have two nights in Anchorage, two in Talkeetna, two in Fairbanks, two in Nome and two in Utqiagvik. Only ten days left together.

With Team Nerds eliminated after the Jet Ski challenge in Whittier, only six teams—Bradys, Hot Docs, Newlyweds, Primos, Outlaws, and Soul Sisters—are left.

We have a conundrum now that we’re in Anchorage: I’m assigned to room with Rick (the dick) and Isabella’s supposed to be rooming with her cousin. And that’s how it’ll be at the next five stops. Sure, there’ll be times that Beto or Rick are out of our rooms, but I’ve quickly become accustomed to having Isabella beside me as I drift off to sleep, and with so few days left to be together, I’m really not interested in giving up a moment.

I ask at the front desk if I can get a room of my own and pay for it out of my own pocket, and I’m delighted when they offer to comp it since I’m on the production crew, and the room would’ve been empty anyway. I order a bottle of champagne and chocolate chip cookies via room service and text Isabella to come over.

She schleps her luggage into the room and falls into my arms.

“Hi, you,” she says, grinning up at me after we kiss hello.

“Hi,” I say, placing a sweet kiss on her forehead before offering her a glass of champagne.

“Ooo! Fancy! And what a great view!” she says, pulling off her boots and settling into a corner of the couch near the windows. We’re on the seventh floor of the hotel with the lights of Anchorage surrounding us. She holds up her glass and smiles. “What are we celebrating?”

“The race? Being alive? Having fun?”

“Good reasons!” She takes a big sip of champagne.

I toe off my shoes and sit down in the other corner of the love seat. This room is a lot bigger than the cabin we shared on the ship. In addition to the plush king-size bed, it has a desk and a bureau and a shower big enough for two. If I have my way, we’ll be trying out every space and surface together before daybreak. I’m about to suggest we get naked when she turns to me.

“Hunter…I wanted to talk to you about something.”

The slightest bit of uncertainty eases into her expression, and my heart drops.

Is she breaking things off again?

“O-Okay.”

Pleasedon’t break things off again.

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