Page 51 of Hunted
I nod as he picks me up again. “You know, I can walk.”
“Nope!” Bower says, tapping my nose lightly as he moves past us to open the bathroom door. “No walking until your stitches are fully healed.
I’m carried back out to the kitchen and the delicious smell of dinner. It’s dark now, and I can't see out the windows anymore. What I do notice is the older gentleman in dress pants and a dress shirt, wearing an apron.
“Who’s that?” I whisper to Weston as he carries me to the table and places me in one of the chairs.
“That’s Arnold.”
Hearing his voice, Arnold turns around and gives me a soft smile. “Miss Danvers, it’s good to see you awake. How are you feeling this evening?”
“You know my last name?” I ask in surprise.
“Of course, how else would I have been able to get you a passport?”
My eyes widen in shock. “Passport? How could you possibly do that so quickly?”
Reece sets a large dish of something on the table as he answers. “He’s excellent at his job. Besides, it pays to be rich.”
Weston sits beside me and the other three help Arnold carry the food to the table. “Arnold, this looks amazing,” Kingsley says, sitting acrossfrom me. I give him a tentative smile, which he returns, easing my heart just a fraction.
“Well, I hope you all enjoy your dinner. I’ll see you in the morning.” He pulls the apron off, folding it, and putting it in a drawer as he adds, “Breakfast will be at eight.” Then he says goodbye and leaves out the front door.
I look at Reece in confusion, while he takes a seat beside Kingsley. “He’s not staying with us?”
He shakes his head. “No, I offered, but he said he thought it was better if we had some time together alone, and that he’d be more comfortable in a hotel room, anyway.”
I nod, my eyes dropping to the food in front of us. Bower grabs a large serving spoon and digs in. As he pulls out a big scoop and plops it on my plate, my eyes widen. “Chicken pot pie!”
“It was your favorite,” Reece says with a tight smile.
“You remembered.”
“I remember everything about you, Darla. You’re impossible to forget.” My cheeks heat from his words, and I watch Bower serve himself next, then pass the spoon around as everyone fills their plates. They start digging in, eating like they haven’t had anything in days.
“You guys did eat while I was in the hospital, right?” I ask in concern.
“Yeah, but it was takeout food, nothing as delicious as this,” Bower mumbles between mouthfuls.
“Zee, eat up,” Weston says, pointing to my plate.
I pick up my fork and tentatively take a small bite. My tongue is assaulted with a variety of flavors that instantly overwhelm my senses. Everyone seems to be watching me intently, waiting for my reaction, so I give them a small smile and a thumbs up as I dig in for another piece.
I try to eat slowly, but the flavors are too intense, and after a few bites, I put my fork down, unable to fake it anymore as my hand comes up to my stomach.
Instantly, the guys are on alert. “What’s wrong?” Kingsley asks first, watching me with concern.
“It just tastes really… rich.”
“Shit, we should have thought of that. You probably need to readjust for a while with some simple food.” He pushes his chair back and stands up.
“Wait! You said you couldn’t cook. Besides, you should finish your dinner while it’s hot, I couldn’t eat anything else right now, anyway.”
“Are you sure?” he asks, narrowing his eyes at me. I nod and he sits down, watching me as he goes back to eating.
“I want to show you something,” Reece says as he pulls out his phone and does something on it. He passes it over and I read the article he’s pulled up.
The first thing I notice is the date; it’s from a few months after I landed on the island.
