Stolen Memories: A Novella (8 page)

The next morning, I ventured out of my apartment even though I felt like I had been run over by a bus. My dark sunglasses hid my red-rimmed eyes, but they didn’t explain my red nose. I worked out a cover story in my head that I had a cold from hell if anyone actually asked me what was wrong. I was craving bagels from the coffee shop down the street, and I hoped I could make it there and back without running into anyone I knew.

Luck wasn’t on my side, though. One of my old sorority sisters stood waiting in line to get her morning coffee. Even worse she spotted me as soon as I walked in the door.

“Megan! How are you doing?”

“I’m good, Samantha. How are you? It’s been a while.”

“The last time I should have seen you, you didn’t show up.”

I winced. I had forgotten she was invited to the wedding.

“About that,” I started. She grabbed my hand and squealed.

“Your ring is gorgeous. Did you guys end up eloping? Michael looked pretty mad that you had left him at the altar all by himself, but I guess you guys reconciled. You never were one for pomp and ceremony.”

“No,” I said quickly. “I definitely didn’t marry Michael.”

“Then who in the hell did you marry?”

Shit. I should have thought this through first. Leaving my apartment was a horrible idea.

“Um...Hunter and I eloped on the night I was supposed to marry Michael.”

To her credit, Samantha didn’t look surprised; instead, she looked elated. “Oh, thank goodness. You guys needed to be together. I’m glad you both wised the fuck up.”

Huh? What the damn hell?

“Come again? I’m sorry; I thought you just said that Hunt and I needed to be together.”

“Yeah, I did. It was obvious to everyone but you that he was completely in love with you. I didn’t think he would ever admit it, even though he wanted to kill any guy you ever went out with. He even threatened a few of them. I’m so happy he finally told you how he feels!”

The woman was giddy. She bounced back and forth on her heels as she spoke.

“Oh.”

Dumbfounded. I was completely dumbfounded.

“You two were so fucking dense. It was right there and neither of you would just go for it. You kept dating the worst assholes you could find and Hunt went through girls like they were water. It drove us all crazy.”

To my horror, I started crying in the middle of the coffee shop. Not just tears streaming down my cheeks, but big gasping sobs that took away my breath and made me feel like my whole world was falling apart. Samantha took my arm and led me out the door. She leaned me against the brick outside the building and patted my back soothingly.

“Breath, Meg. Honey, you have to calm down.”

I nodded and tried to catch my breath. Having a panic attack was not how I wanted to start my morning. When I finally caught my breath, I looked at Samantha wearily.

“I bet you want the story behind that, don’t you?”

“In the end, it doesn’t matter,” she said, waving it off. “Do you love him?”

I hung my head in defeat.

“Yes, more than I should and it scares the hell out of me. Things aren’t exactly simple when it comes to my relationship with Hunter.”

“Trust him then. He’ll figure it out. That man is gaga over you. I’m surprised he didn’t interfere with your relationship with Michael.”

“He was out of town for most of it. He spent two weeks in China, then New York. Everything did happen rather suddenly.”

She rubbed her hand on my arm comfortingly. “It’s all going to be okay, honey. He loves you.”

“I’m not so sure he’s the one that needs to figure it out,” I said softly.

She gave me a long look like she wanted to say more, but instead she grabbed my hand and tugged me back towards the door.

“Come on, let’s go get you a coffee and I’ll tell you all about my fucked up love life. It all comes together with a misguided, drunken swipe and horrible date that I regret with every fiber of my being. Never Tinder and drink; it’s a bad combo.”

I barked out a laugh and followed my friend back into the coffee shop to get my coffee. When I emerged an hour later I felt a little better. Being around my friend had helped raise my spirits. Samantha had also unknowingly given me information that might just save my marriage, and I would owe her forever if it actually worked.

Running was the therapy I planned for today. I needed to figure out what was real and compare it to what I thought might have happened, but wasn’t sure. If I had all of my memories back it might help me make the decisions I was putting off, but I didn’t want to ask Hunter for his help. He wasn’t the only one that could be stubborn.

A few miles would probably help me clear my head. So I shoved my earbuds in and took off. My body was still sore, but it was time for me to start getting back to normal. Running was part of my normal. Thirty minutes later, I felt so much better; my mind was clear and I felt focused for the first time in almost two weeks.

I climbed the stairs to my apartment with a renewed confidence. I had a plan and it was ready to be set into action. First things first, I needed a shower. As I turned the corner to my door, I did a double take. Hunter leaned against the door to my apartment.

“What are you doing here?”

“I came to see my wife. I also didn’t want to scare the hell out of you, so I decided to wait out here.”

I brushed past him to open the door. He followed me as I walked into the kitchen to drop my keys and phone onto the counter.

“Okay, you came to see me. What do you need? I told you I needed time.” I crossed my arms over my chest and his eyes immediately went to my cleavage. He tried to recover, but I liked knowing that I had an advantage.

“Damn it, Megan. Can you just talk to me? Since when do I need anything to see you?”

He crossed the room and stood in front of me. I took a few steps back before getting pinned in the corner. He took another step closer with a smirk covering his handsome face.

“Nowhere to run to now, baby.”

His fingers brushed along my collarbone and neck and a shiver ran up my spine.

“Stop that,” I hissed, brushing his hand away.

“Just admit that want me. Your body can’t resist me no matter how much your head says no.”

Damn it, where was my upper hand when I needed it? He had taken control of the situation and I didn’t like it.

I didn’t respond, but he knew he was right. It pissed me off to no end that my body was betraying me. Before I could push him away, his lips were on mine. My fingers threaded in his hair and I moaned as his fingers tugged at my nipples through my sports bra.

I started to unbutton his shirt, but when my fingers fumbled awkwardly, I gave up and ripped the fabric open. Buttons popped all over my kitchen, and Hunter groaned into my mouth as he picked me up and placed me on the edge of the counter. He tugged my bra up over my head and threw it behind him. Before the bra landed, his mouth and tongue were already sucking at my breasts. As he sucked on my nipples, I reached down between us to unfasten his pants. I used my toes to push his pants down his hips.

“Commando?” I asked with a raised eyebrow.

He smirked back at me. “Easy access.”

Hunter picked me up from the counter, and I wrapped my legs around his waist. His erection rubbed against my entrance we both groaned. He tried to move towards my bedroom, but we made it to my front door before I was on the ground and he was on top of me. I positioned him at my opening he didn’t hesitate before thrusting inside.

I moaned as his lips sucked at my neck. My fingers grasped his taut ass as he continued with his hurried pace. His thrusts were deep and punishing. It was everything I needed right that second.

“Harder. Fuck me harder, Hunt.”

“Fuck, Megan. You’re so tight.”

His fingers dug into my shoulders as he held me close against him. My back arched as he thrust in one last time and his warmth filled me. He yelled out as he pinned his hips against mine. My body shattered around his and I sank my teeth into his shoulder and dug my fingernails into his ass.

Hunter rolled off of me, but pulled me into his side. We were both breathing hard and covered in sweat.

“Holy hell,” I groaned.

“I know. Fuck, baby.”

“I’m still fucking pissed at you.”

“Completely fine as long as we can keep doing that. Mad sex is fucking amazing.”

He grinned and I felt my anger melt a little. His lips brushed the back of my head and I felt the resolve that I had gathered during my run start to dissipate. My fingers trailed along the hard lines of his abs while we laid on the hard floor.

“Where do we go from here?”

“I’ve done a lot of thinking about this. Go on a date with me.”

I sat up and turned to look at him.

“What?”

“I’m serious. Go on a date with me. You’re my best friend, Megan, and we know everything about one another, but now we need to figure out what’s next.”

“You’re insane,” I said and playfully slapped his shoulder.

“Ouch.” I stifled a giggle. “I’m serious about you going out with me, though. I think it’ll be fun. Let me wine and dine you, baby.”

I laughed as he continued to rub where I had bit him. The spot
was
starting to bruise.

“I’m sorry I bit the fuck out of you, but it was your own fault for making me come so hard. To make up for it, I’ll agree go out with you.”

“One: Don’t ever apologize for coming hard. That’s my goal every fucking time. Two: Be ready for our date tonight by six. I’ll take care of everything.”

“Isn’t that how we ended up married?” I joked. He shot me an indecipherable look. “Too soon?”

He groaned and stretched his arms over his head while I shamelessly looked at his abs and script tattoo covering his torso. The man was sexy as hell and it wasn’t fair.

“I need to get up and go back to the office for a while, but you wore me out.”

“Hunt?”

“Yeah, baby.”

“Why didn’t you tell me everything sooner?”

He paused for a moment before asking, “Are you sure you want to do this now?”

“I think we need to.”

“Let me at least get pants on and we will sit and talk. I’ll tell you everything you want to know. Okay?”

I nodded.

Hunter stood up and extended his hand to help me. I grabbed it and as I stood he pulled me into his arms. His lips met mine in a gentle kiss. It was perfect after our almost violent session a few minutes before. We walked hand in hand back to the kitchen to gather our clothes.

I reached down and grabbed Hunter’s shirt. There were two buttons that were still intact after my attack on the poor thing. He helped me shrug into it and fastened up the buttons while running his fingers softly over the slope of my chest. He grabbed my panties and I took them from him while I blushed furiously. The man had seen me completely naked more times than I could count, but something about him holding the thong embarrassed me. I pulled them on and walked towards the living room without saying anything to him.

Hunt settled into the corner of the couch and reached to pull me against him, my back against his chest. His fingers dug into my hair and he rubbed for a few minutes before he spoke.