Page 3 of Prey

Tessa

Butterflies fluttered around my stomach while I led Hunter into his room. They’d been there since I left the church. The weird prickling sensation eased a little and I turned and gestured to the full size bed resting in the far corner. “It’s not much, but I think it’ll do for now. You can decorate however you’d like now that you’re here.”

The thud from the bag dropping to the floor made me jump, but I didn’t understand why. My smile was in place, but I felt off—skittish.

“It’s perfect. You outdid yourself.” He walked to the dresser, picking up a picture of us that was sitting on top. It was of senior year, right before he left for the Army. He looked so much younger then, and definitely lankier. The large arms and wide chest he had now had me shifting on my feet. Although we’d kept in contact over the phone and through letters, it was hard to imagine he was the same Hunter I’d known so long ago—my best friend since childhood. Even the pictures over the years didn’t do justice to the man standing before me now.

He laughed, setting the picture frame back down. “The good ol’ times. Look what I have.” His hand reached to his back pocket and he brought out his wallet, pulling a photograph free. I gasped and stepped forward, taking it from him.

“Your senior prom. I can’t believe you’ve kept this in your wallet,” I laughed, shaking my head. “I look horrible. My hair is just…ridiculously big.”

“Your hair? Look at me. Could I have been a bigger dork?”

Harder the laughter came, until we were both collapsing to the bed. Hunter moved on his side, propping his head up while he held the weight with his fist. His flexed bicep had my eyebrow raising as I met his blue eyes.

“I never saw you like that, and I can tell you now, you’re definitely not a dork. Every girl in Austin is going to be banging down our door. I’m going to have to keep a pair of earmuffs in the bedroom just so I don’t get woken up by all the knocking.”

Hunter rolled his eyes. “Oh, please. You’re just trying to butter me up because you know I brought you presents.”

My smile dropped. “You didn’t.” I was already flying up and diving toward his bag. A large arm wrapped around my waist, pulling me back to the bed. I laughed, feeling like we’d moved right back into being kids, not a thirty year old man and a twenty-eight year old woman. It all came in a rush of giggles while he tickled me. Weight settled on the top of my chest and Hunter’s serious expression had me blinking past the changing atmosphere. It only lasted for a few seconds, but our stares were locked and it was almost impossible for me to look away. The butterflies exploded back within while he eased up, looking at the window. I didn’t miss the way he pulled at the shirt around his neck.

“I’ll just get them.” The smile was back and he didn’t take his eyes off me as he made it back to his bag and started digging through.

Slowly, I pushed to sit. The previous excitement was gone, leaving me with a mix of uncertainty. Hunter and I had been here before. Shortly before he decided to go into the Army. It was the whole reason I thought he was running away. Taking my virginity hadn’t gone as we both thought it would. For months, we had avoided each other. It wasn’t until he wrote me after boot camp that we started talking again. We’d both agreed we hadn’t made a mistake. There was no one else we would have picked to be our firsts, but had it come naturally and not been forced on both of our parts from peer pressure, maybe it would have ended in something other than tears and distance.

“There’s quite a bit, so you’ll have to bear with me.” Four packages were pulled out and placed next to me. One of the wrapping papers looked old and worn. It was even torn in a spot at the corner. The next three had two corners that were the same. I smiled as he sat down beside me, causing the bed to shift. “Here,” he said, picking up one with red and green older style Christmas paper. “Open this one first. I got it three years after I left.”

My mouth parted. “That long ago? Why didn’t you ever send it? Or any of these?”

His lips pulled back into a smile and his head dropped while he shrugged. “Maybe it was my way of making sure I made it back to give them to you myself. I’m not even sure that makes sense.”

Reaching out for his hand, I brought it to my lips, forcing the tears that clouded my eyes not to spill over. Hunter had seen so much fighting during his time of service. I couldn’t even imagine all that he’d witnessed or been forced to do, but I knew whatever it was had changed him over the course of time. I’d felt it. Picked up on the troubles he held within while reading his letters.

“You’ve been so brave. What you’ve done for this country—what you’ve all done—hasn’t gone without appreciation. Thank you.” My lips pressed into his knuckles and he looked up, turning my hand to place his own against mine. Our grips tightened and he let go, nodding at the package.

“Open it.”

All I could do was grin as I reached down and pulled at the tape that secured it. A small black box had my pulse jumping and I shot my gaze up, only to see his attention on the box. I swallowed hard, popping the top. A heart hung on a silver chain. What I saw wasn’t cheap. My hand rose to my mouth and I couldn’t stop myself from bringing it down and sliding my fingertips over the diamonds surrounding the pendant.

“It’s beautiful. Hunter…I can’t believe you’d buy me something like this.”

“What can I say, I saw it and it reminded me of you.”

I pulled the necklace free and unclasped it. “Will you put it on me?” My voice almost gave out at the explosion of my pulse. I swallowed hard, not sure what had caused it. Sure, I was surprised by the gift, but I couldn’t help but feel like it was triggered by something more. Something…threatening.

“You bet.” He stood, coming over and taking the ends. As I held my hair up, I shivered at his breath brushing against the back of my neck. It clashed with an odd prickling against my skin and I tried not to shift uncomfortably. My reactions had to be just nerves. It was Hunter who was with me. There was no reason to fear anything or feel uncertain.

The width of his chest was eye level and I closed my lids at the smell of his cologne, trying to calm myself and focus on him. Was this really the boy I’d grown up with? Although the familiarity was there, our closeness felt off. Sure, I was attracted to him, but it didn’t feel right. Didn’t feel…real. I loved Hunter. He was my best friend, but could we ever be more? The unexplainable fear left me unsure.

“There.” He stood and my hand came to my chest, feeling the weight that settled against it from the heart. The next box was placed before me and I nervously pulled at the paper. Seeing the keychain of New York, I glanced up at him.

“You remembered,” I said, lowly.

Fingers rubbed over his short hair and he laughed. “You always wanted to go there. You can’t imagine how guilty I felt going without you.”

“I’m glad you got to see it. Maybe someday I’ll get to go.”

Blue eyes rose to mine and he gave a sharp nod. “You will. I’ll take you. It’ll be fun. And, you’ll sing.”

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