Page 55 of Capitally Unexpected

Michelle

Twenty-six weeks pregnant

The past two weeks have been some of the longest of my life. The weeks between learning I was pregnant and finding Hunter again? The blink of an eye compared to the weeks since we got home from the cruise.

Duncan had a jet land at dawn the next morning. I slept on a couch in the airport while Hunter sat in a chair next to me. The bags under his eyes made me think he didn’t sleep at all.

That’s when the silence started.

It continued as the nurse on board the private jet started a thorough exam as soon as we were at cruising altitude. Hunter’s eyes watched intently as she billed me in good health, and then promptly handed me an electrolyte drink. I smiled at him as I sipped it like a good little patient. He nodded and looked out the window.

After we got home, he made some excuses about not wanting to disturb me while I slept—me needing my rest and wanting tobe sure I had enough room for my pillow. He started sleeping in his room that night and hasn’t entered my bedroom since.

I sit, watching as my “boyfriend” does the dishes after another dinner he made for me. It probably tasted delicious, but I stayed too busy trying to force a conversation to tell. Sure, he asks how my day went and doesn’t ignore a direct question, but that’s it. The banter, the fire, the laughter. It’s gone out.

I excuse myself to take a long bath. It’s the most excitement Hunter’s shown in a few days. I’m not sure if it’s the fact I’m doing something for myself or I’ll be occupied for at least an hour that’s lighting him up. Regardless, I feel like my muscles are going to knot up so much I’ll gain weird bumps on my shoulders like body builders have if I don’t do something to try to relax. The last of the bubble bath Hunter pretended to find for me at a grocery store spills under the roaring faucet. Fitting. I slip under the bubbles and breathe in deep, trying to let the lavender and eucalyptus scent relax me. Instead, my mind quiets enough to hear my mother’s voice.

“Don’t get knocked up to keep a man. You’ll think you’re tying them tighter, but they’re waiting for you to open the cage so they can bolt. You need to give a man a long leash. Then he’ll come back to the one who feeds him.”

I dunk my head under the water, like it can wash away the thoughts from my brain. I think I was fourteen when she told me that pearl of wisdom. I came home, excited to let her know Petey Garfield asked me to homecoming. I didn’t talk to her much about guys and dating afterward. She didn’t return the favor.

You didn’t trap him. Hewantedto be here. He’s just working through some stuff. You need to give him time.

When Hunter didn’t follow me into the airport on Eleuthera, I went outside to find him. Once I realized he had called Duncan, I should have gone back inside. The pain in his voice when he said, “You knew I’d fuck this up, didn’t you?” rooted me to my spot.

Trying to tell him it’s not his fault hasn’t worked. I tried different variations in the first few days after we got home. “I’m completely fine” was met with “but what if you weren’t.” And “it’ll be a story to laugh about one day” actually made him leave the room. I stopped trying to assuage his guilt. He seems to want to sit with it.

I’ve avoided seeing any of the girls, because they’ll take one look at my face and the whole thing will spill out. As far as they know, we got home on Tuesday as planned. Considering Jax hasn’t broken down my door means Duncan hasn’t told any of the brothers either.

I know I should make him talk about things. But every time I try to get the courage to bring it up, my mother’s voice rings again. “Don’t be a nag. Maybe if you waited on him for a change.”

“No,” I say out loud, bringing my hands down onto the water, sending some of it cascading over the side of the tub. That’s going to be a bitch to clean up.

“Michelle? You okay? I heard you say something and then a big splash?”

How the hell did he hear me? I open my mouth to say everything’s fine, but eye the water on the floor and my robe hanging on the back of the door. Instead, I say, “I’m okay. But I slipped a little trying to get up. Can you come help me?”

The door is open in another second, Hunter’s eyes tracing over my body in the tub, as if he needs to see for himself I really am okay. I start to regret tricking him when I see his eyes linger, his brain releasing the worry of me being hurt and processing my nakedness instead. He shakes himself.

“Yeah, of course. Let me ...” he trails off, frozen between grabbing my robe first or getting me up. He finally grabs the robe off the hook, lays it across the closed toilet at the foot of the tub, and gives me his arms to hold on to. His eyes stay trained on my face as we work together to get me standing. I realize halfway up I’m not totally sure I could have done this onmy own after all. We might have preemptively saved me from a fall.

He keeps his arm out for me to hold on to while I step out of the tub. For a moment, I’m standing in front of him, water dripping down my naked body. Hunter shakes himself again. That’ll bring on a headache if he’s not careful.

“Here.” He helps me slip on my robe, one arm at a time. I let him move my limbs, happy to cede control for a moment. A gentle push on my shoulder has me spinning to face him. He holds the sides of my robe open for an instant, his gaze traveling one more time from head to toe, before he pulls the robe closed. A gentle yank on the loose ends of the of the sash has me stepping forward into him. My head rests on his chest, my hair soaking his shirt. We stay like that for a moment and I savor the closeness.

His lips press a kiss into my hair before he puts some space between us and ties the sash loosely around my waist. Enough to keep it closed, but not constricting around my growing belly.

“Goodnight, Mich,” he says before turning and leaving the bathroom.

“Goodnight, Hunt,” I respond, right before the door closes.

It’s hard to brush my teeth with a smile trying to force its way onto my face. Smiles are rare these days, but for the first time in weeks, it feels warranted. In those quick moments, I regain a bit of hope. Maybe we can find our back after all.

Chapter

Twenty-Two

Michelle

---