Devastated (Anger Management, #1)(47)

“That about sums it up.”

“What did they say?” Hunter asked, as he glanced back towards the door he just came through only to head back that way with a curse.

“First thing out of their mouths was to make sure everyone knew that Kylie was a liar,” Ryan said, catching up to him.

“What else?” Hunter asked, throwing the door open and heading back towards the pool area where he’d told Kylie to wait.

“Some bullshit about being concerned about Kylie stealing from Shadow Security and its clients. They claimed they were worried that she wasn’t taking her psych meds.”

“Did the men believe them?” Hunter asked when he spotted Kylie sitting at the table, worrying her bottom lip as she sat there, looking fucking helpless as his men stood near her, keeping her safe.

“Not one fucking bit,” Ryan said, which meant that they weren’t done trying to ruin Kylie’s life.

---

“Can you please just talk to me?” Kylie said, deciding that she’d waited long enough.

“Leave it alone,” Hunter said, looking lost in thought as they waited for the driver to finish helping Ryan with his bags.

She wasn’t sure that was a good idea, but she didn’t think that she had much of a choice, not when he was like this. She still had no idea what happened, one minute Hunter was reaching for her hand and the next, he was snapping at her to stay where she was and ordering his men to keep an eye on her before he took off with Ryan running after him.

Whatever happened had Hunter deciding to leave the convention early. She’d barely had time to wonder what was happening when Hunter came back, ordering his men to escort her back upstairs so that she could pack. Ignoring the pitying looks his men were sending her, she did what she was asked. Before she’d had a chance to close her suitcase, Hunter was there, closing it for her and handing it off to one of his men with orders to get her downstairs and stay with her until she was in the limo.

“What happened, Hunter?” Kylie asked when they started driving again.

“Nothing,” he said, staring out the window.

“This doesn’t feel like nothing,” Kylie said, trying to figure out what would cause Hunter to leave the convention early when it meant going back on house arrest only to feel her stomach drop when she realized that this was her fault.

He’d left because of her.

God, she was sick of this, sick of being afraid, sick of the nightmares, sick of letting her past control her life, she was just…

“I’m sorry,” she said quietly, knowing that it wasn’t enough.

Hunter went still and then, he was reaching across the dimly lit car and pulling her onto his lap with a sigh. “What the hell are you talking about?” he asked, as he settled her on his lap so that she was facing him.

“Let’s just go back to the convention,” Kylie said, hoping to avoid this conversation.

“No,” he said softly, as he reached up and pushed her hair back. “Are you going to tell me why you’re apologizing?”

“Because we had to leave the convention early,” she said, as she absently toyed with one of the buttons on his shirt.

“That had nothing to do with you,” Hunter murmured as he placed his hands on her hips.

“Then why are we leaving?”

“Because I violated the terms of my house arrest,” Hunter said, shifting his attention to the Shadow Security ID that she still wore around her neck.

“You’re lying,” she said, watching as Hunter slowly looked up to meet her gaze.

“Does it really matter?” he asked softly.

“You don’t have to take care of me, Hunter,” Kylie said and after a slight hesitation, she reached up and cupped his handsome face in her hands and gently caressed his jaw.

“Yes,” he said, covering one of her hands with his as he turned his head and pressed a kiss against her wrist, “I do.”

“Why?” she asked, searching his face for an answer.

“You know why,” he said, as they felt the car come to a stop.

“No, I don’t,” she whispered softly, as she moved to pull her hand back only to have Hunter stop her with a, “Liar,” before he released her. Keeping his eyes locked with hers, he opened the car door and helped her out. Taking a shaky breath, she accepted her bag from the driver with a murmured, “Thank you,” and waited for Hunter, well aware of the way he watched her every move.

This was a mistake, she tried to tell herself as they headed to the door, but as they silently made their way upstairs, she realized that she didn’t care. She didn’t care that he was her boss or that this wasn’t going to end well for her. The only thing that she cared about right now was the way that he made her feel.

When they reached her door, Hunter placed her bags in her room. With a soft smile, he cupped her face in his hands as he leaned down and pressed a kiss against her forehead with a, “Goodnight, Miss Moore,” before walking away.

It took her a minute to realize that she was staring after him and another before Kylie grudgingly accepted the fact that he wasn’t coming back. Trying to convince herself that she wasn’t disappointed, she walked into her room and closed the door behind her with a groan before she stepped back against the door, closed her eyes and-

“Stop leaving your bedroom window unlocked, Miss Nielsen,” Hunter said, startling her into opening her eyes as he cupped her face and gave her a kiss that had her breath catching and her hands fisting in his shirt. He moved his lips against hers, teasing her into kissing him back only to swallow his groan when he deepened the kiss. Just as she felt herself starting to melt against him, he brushed his lips against hers one last time with a, “Goodnight, Miss Davis.”