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Chapter 17
Hunter
What the fuck was wrong with me? I did miss Amelia—not only her soft body keeping me company at night, buther. The smiles and giggles, seeing her play with Sofi, the disobedience, the sex, I’ve missed it all. Her question choked me, though, and I couldn’t answer out loud.
I had three meetings and a couple business dinners in L.A. where one of my biggest clubs was set to open doors in the fall, but all the time I found myself daydreaming about going home. I even woke up one night thinking I should go check on the baby. My life wasn’t mine anymore, I was sharing it with Sofi and Amelia and they were threatening to take my heart too.
Fuck! My instincts were screaming at me to pull back, but how could I? Amelia was shining like the damn sun in her cherry red dress with her hair held back by a matching headband. She was warm and beautiful, promising me things I had no right to wish for.
Remembering what she’d told me a while ago, I called the Kitz and asked for a table close to the fountains, and that made my kitten really happy.
“You really didn’t have to bring me here, Hunter. I just wanted to see you for a few minutes.”
“I promised to do so, if I remember correctly. Are you hungry?”
“Not really, but I could have some desert.”
I ordered her a Mont Blanc Pavlova and chocolate covered strawberries along with a coffee, which was a mistake on my part because watching Amelia bite the fruits and licking the chocolate off her lips had turned my cock into cement.
“You’re too fucking hot,” I mumbled, and it made her laugh.
“You say that like it’s a bad thing.”
“Your beauty is fucking with my head, Amelia. Itisa bad thing.”
“Are you afraid you might lose control?”
I felt a jolt of panic traveling through my body.
“That’s not a fucking option. I put a collar on you, didn’t I?” Her eyes moved away from mine. “Was everything alright while I was gone?”
“Yes. We stayed at home for most of the time. I didn’t want you to be worried. I’m sure Scott sent you constant updates.”
“Good girl. And Sofi?”
“Oh, Hunter, she’s more and more amazing every day. She learned to pull herself up by grabbing on the furniture, which is exciting and terrifying. She started it Monday and ever since I’ve had to watch her like a hawk. Just so you know, there are baby gates on the stairs and the patio door now. And I’ve closed the wall that opens to the pool.”
“I see. Is she going to start running around?”
“Soon, yes, and when that happens, all your plans of keeping her locked up in her room and away from you will be ruined.” There was a smile on her face, but it felt more like a threat than a joke.
“The plans went to shit the moment you walked into my office. I hated being away from her these past few days.”
“Of course you did, she’s yours.” Shot fired. “You’re fighting your feelings, Hunter, but you love Sofi.”
“That was never in question. She’s my blood.”
“It’s not only that. You love her in your house, you love seeing her grow up. Don’t take that away from you because of fear. I won’t let you push her away.”
My fists closed and my body became rigid. Every time, Amelia kept pushing, and pushing, and pushing, eroding the tight wall I built around my heart, but what she didn’t understand was that I hadn’t built that to keep people out. I built it and reinforced it to keep myself contained so no one else would end up hurt. I thought I was a protector once and the only thing that got me was death and loss.
“You just don’t fucking get it, do you?” I said calmly, but looking away from her. “Elena was…I raised her. We’re the children of a prostitute, did you know that?”
Amelia looked at me, blinking a few times before speaking.
“No.”
“I’m not surprised. I buried our past. As far as the public is concerned, I just showed up out of thin air when I was in my twenties with a few millions in my bank account. That’s not the story, kitten. I stole, I worked, I gambled, I did everything I had to do to build my fortune. I came from nothing and now I’m on top of the world.” I stopped and took a deep breath. “And it cost me everything.”
