Page 16 of The Hunt

My interest was really piqued now. “Like what?”

Bree lowered her voice. “I heard they run some sort of sex club where they hunt down women and fuck their brains out.”

“No way.” Sloane scoffed. “Someone would’ve talked at some point, ifthatwas what they were getting up to.”

“Maybe they make the women sign NDAs,” I said, raising a brow.

“Honestly, I think they’re just assholes who like to shoot deer,” Tessa said. “Like,actualhunting.”

“Why would that be a secret, though? Tons of people hunt.”

“But it’s totally mean, right? Killing cute, innocent animals,” she said. “I bet they wouldn’t get laid half as much if everyone knew they were shooting at Bambi every weekend.”

“I don’t know about that,” Sloane replied. “My mom’s an environmentalist, and she said the deer population in this area is actually way too high. It can mess up the ecosystem, so hunting isn’t exactly the worst thing that can happen to them.”

As the girls debated the ethics of hunting animals, my gaze drifted to the table that Rhett had gone over to earlier. He was holding court with a few other guys… including Jake.

Shit.

I jerked my gaze away, cheeks instantly aflame. I hadn’t even noticed Jake come in. It made sense that a prick like him would be friends with Rhett, though.Birds of a feather stick together.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him glaring over at me.Damn.I hadn’t looked away fast enough, and he’d spotted me. Like clockwork, my phone chimed with a text from him thirty seconds later.

J:Stalking me now, huh? You really need to get the fuck out of Hollingsworth, you crazy cunt. You’re not welcome here. Get it through your fucking head.

“Asshole,” I muttered.

Tessa frowned. “What happened?”

“See that guy three spots away from Rhett? With the blondish hair,” I said, slightly tilting my head. “That’shim.”

“He Who Shall Not Be Named?”

“Yup. He just sent me this.” I lifted my phone to show the girls the nasty message.

“Why don’t you just block him?” Bree asked, eyes flashing with anger.

“I have him blocked on socials already. But I left his number unblocked.”

“Um,why?” Tessa said, forehead wrinkling. “Are you a masochist or something?”

“I want to have proof to show to the police if he ever gets really bad. Like, full-on threats or whatever.”

“Oh, right. That makes sense.” She slowly shook her head. “Still, it sucks that you have to deal with this. Why can’t he just leave you alone?”

“Because he’s a monumental dickhead, clearly,” Sloane said before I could reply.

A shadow fell across our table, and we all looked up. Rhett was standing there with a familiar smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. His dark eyes held a glint of amusement, like he knew the effect he had on women and wasn’t shy about using it.

“Ladies,” he said, voice smooth as he slid his hands into his pockets. “How are you doing?”

“Um… good?” Sloane practically squeaked.

“I wanted to let you know that there’s a bonfire party at the Wilder house on Friday, and you’re invited.” His gaze lingeredon me a beat longer than necessary, a silent dare flashing in his eyes. “All of you.”

Bree’s face lit up, and she exchanged a glance with Sloane, barely able to contain her enthusiasm.

I suppressed the urge to shout, ‘Fuck no!’ and met Rhett’s eyes, trying not to give him the satisfaction of a reaction. “Thanks. I’ll see if I’m free,” I said, keeping my voice steady even as my heart raced at a million miles an hour.

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