Year with me,” I say with arms open.
His eyes narrow on the carpet, and he doesn’t say a word.
I lower my arms. “That’s not what you want. You want an adventure and the romance. You believe in a strong drink, clever conversation, an excellent first kiss, and a good fuck. You said those words to me at the bar after the holiday party when I asked you to teach me how to seduce Branson. Turns out, I was the one being seduced.”
I step back, shake my head in disappointment, and continue, “That’s what you do. You seduce because you love to fall in love, but you don’t like the relationship. That’s why your relationships only last two weeks. I bet you never make it past the first fight.”
“Don’t make me feel bad about being angry when you’re the one turning down a weekend with me”—he swallows with disgust—“to be with him.”
I move closer to the door and open it. “I’m sorry that’s how you feel. If you think I’d rather be with him on New Year’s, then you don’t know me at all.”
Hunter takes two steps closer, his body just inches from mine. “Cancel on him, Katie. Come with me. Choose me over him. Just like you did on Christmas Eve.”
I see the garment bag out of the corner of my eye. The computer screen with my PowerPoint is still lit up with the words I’ve worked so hard on over this past month.
When I look up into Hunter’s eyes, I can tell he’s searching for the answer he wants. What he wants though is not what I need.
“I’m sorry, but I’m going to the event. And it’s not because I’m choosing him or you. I’m choosing myself.”
He pinches the bridge of his nose as he takes a deep breath. I want to lean up and kiss him to show him how I feel about him, but I halt when Branson comes back from his meeting.
“I had to reschedule for tomorrow because there’s no way—” Branson pauses when he sees the look on Hunter’s face. “Oh, hello. You look like you have a migraine. Can I get you something for that?”
Hunter shakes his head. “I’m good.”
“Very well then.” Branson goes to hang up his coat and sees the garment bag. “Katie, love, I see you’ve gotten your dress. Jasmine said you went with the burgundy one. Thank you for picking that one because it’s my favorite.”
Hunter looks at me like a boy who just had his puppy run over by a car. “Good night, Katie.”
He’s out the door, and I don’t run after him.
I’m hurt by his accusations, and I’m saddened by his actions. And I’m being summoned by a Brit who has way too many tasks for me on a day when I need to focus.
Chapter Seventeen
Hunter
There are a few things I am a master in.
Football, producing, cooking, and whiskey.
And then there’s women.
In thirty-three years, I’ve had many women. I’ve never used one, nor have I been disrespectful. In fact, my intentions are always to make the woman feel incredible.
Tell a woman she looks beautiful in her dress, and her bad day turns right around. Offer to cook her dinner, and it surpasses any expensive meal. Give her a foot rub, and she’s putty in your hands whether that was your intention or not.
While I aim to please women, I know that many have their sights set on something long-term. That is why I let them know from the beginning that I’m not looking for anything serious.
Cassidy taught me that.
I never talk about her because I feel awful for breaking her heart. She was the girl I had my first wet dream about, my sister’s best friend who was always at our place for sleepovers and on family vacations with us at the beach. She was two years older than me and developed at a time when I started noticing girls. I couldn’t keep my eyes off Cassidy. She, however, only saw me as the younger brother.
Then, I grew. The boy came home from college a man, and Cassidy noticed. I remember the day. We were home for the night before Thanksgiving. She was at the bar when I offered to buy her a drink with my fake ID. She took one double take and eyed me up and down, and I knew she no longer saw me as a kid.
We didn’t hook up then. I was still the younger guy, her best friend’s baby brother. That didn’t stop