Page 22 of Capitally Unexpected

She nods again. We may have only spent hours together, but I already know nodding covers for when she’s too overwhelmed to speak. I wonder how to show her she can always speak her mind with me.

She walks up the few stairs to the outer door. Right as she steps through, ready to let the door close behind her, I lob my final shot, designed to get her out of her own head.

“Oh, and Michelle? I really hope that’s not the only thing about me you’ve been dreaming of.”

I think I hear a gasp, but she doesn’t turn around to let me see her face. Still, a smile creeps onto mine while I wait for my phone to buzz, letting me know she is safely inside.

Her text arrives seconds later. I drop a pin, so I don’t need to ask her for her address and open an app to request a ride share to Hayden’s place. I hope I’ll beat Hayden and Charlotte home. I need his help.

Ispend the ride to Navy Yard making lists and writing down rambling thoughts. Trying to make sense of the jumble in my head. I manage to get back to the apartment first. On the couch with a glass of whiskey is where Charlotte and Hayden find me when they get home twenty minutes later.

“Hey Hunter, how was your night? We weren’t sure if you’d be home tonight or not.” Charlotte comes to sit on the couch next to me, smiling expectantly.

I paste on a fake smile. “Now, Charlotte. You know agentleman doesn’t kiss and tell.” I love Charlotte. She’s perfect for my brother, and once I bring her into the know, she’ll be so helpful and supportive. But this is something I need to talk through with Hayden first.

“Hey, Char, why don’t you go ahead to bed? I’ll be there in a little bit,” Hayden says. Duncan teases him about only knowing my tells, but that’s because we have the same ones.

“Got it. Twin thing.” Charlotte stands up. “Night, guys.” She reaches up to lay a peck on Hayden’s lips and ruffles my hair as she walks past. He watches her walk down the hallway with a small smile before sitting in the seat she vacated.

“Do I need one of those?” He nods toward the glass of whiskey in my hand.

“Way ahead of you, bro.” I flip up the cushion between us, revealing a storage compartment where I stashed another glass and the bottle before I sat down.

“What? I didn’t know the couch had storage!” Hayden exclaims, leaning over to lift up the cushion on his other side. I nudge him in the shoulder to take the drink I pour for him. “Annnnd I’ll explore it another time. What’s up?”

“So. My date tonight.”

“Finally. It’s been driving me up a wall I don’t know anything about her.”

I laugh, taking another sip of the whiskey. “It’s Michelle.”

Hayden connects the dots. “Preston’s coworker’s cousin?”

“That’s the one.”

“So, you hit it off last night?”

“There’s a bit more to it than that. Remember when I came to visit in March? You may have never realized, but I didn’t come home one night. I snuck in before you and Char got up.”

“Wait, what? Where were you? I know we’re grown, man, but you need to tell someone where you are.” Hayden looks pissed. This won’t help.

“Well, Preston knew.” I put my arm up to block his hand. “I know, I know, but you were really drunk and excited to get backto your girlfriend. I wasn’t going to cockblock, nor did I want to have to listen to it. So, I found an alternative.”

“Okay, but what does that have to do with tonight?” I stare at him, blinking. “Oh, shit, you hooked up with Michelle back then? She moved here not long before, right?”

I nod. “Yeah. We didn’t exchange names or anything and promised it would be a one night thing. But I haven’t been able to get her out of my head since. So, when I saw her last night, I had to spend time with her again.”

“I know you don’t do many repeats, so this is a big deal. She must be special. Why the long face?”

“I’m going to need you to put your hand in front of your mouth, so if you get the urge to yell when I say the next part, you can bite on it and not scare the shit out of Charlotte, okay?”

“Okay ...” he says warily making a fist and holding it in front of his mouth.

“Michelle is pregnant.” Hayden gets out a quick yelp before biting down on his hand. “And to come full circle, yes. It’s my baby. I’m going to be a dad.”

Hayden starts to turn red.

“Hay, breathe. I didn’t tell you to hold your breath!”

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