Page 82 of Hunted
Darla gives her a warm smile. “Thanks. I’m glad you two came over. I was hoping I’d get to meet the woman who raised such amazing men.” My cheeks heat at the compliment, but the huge smile on my mom’s face is worth it.
“I’m just happy you’re all safe. It sounds like you’ve been through a lot. And if you ever need another woman to talk to, you can call me, or Hazel. You’re part of the family now, too, after all.”
Darla’s eyes grow a little misty, so I give her waist a little squeeze for support. “Thanks, Mom.”
“Thanks, Mrs. V.”
Having my mom’s approval means a lot. I knew she’d love Darla. I mean, who wouldn’t? But hearing her offer to be there for her, it just helps reinforce that Darla is part of our lives now and isn’t going anywhere.
Chapter twenty-three
Darla
Ican’t stop swinging my hair side to side to try and get a better look at it cascading over my shoulders. Hazel really is a talented hair stylist. I didn't want to completely change my look by cutting my hair short, as I worried that much of a change might be too much for me to handle, so instead, we compromised on cutting off some of the length, so it ends about mid chest instead of hanging all the way down to my butt.
She added in layers, and it feels so light and soft, I can’t stop touching it. The guys had all given me such heated looks when they saw it, that I knew it wasn’t just me who liked it. They all took photos of me and took turns taking photos with me. Hazel managed to get a few of all five of us together, and I asked her to send them to Kingsley so I could look at them. It was making me start to want a cellphone, so I could look at the photo of us whenever I wanted.
Spending time with Hazel had been fun. At first, she was a lot to take in, constantly talking a mile a minute. But as I got used to her, it became a comfort, filling the silences so I didn’t have to. She asked me questions, and I answered, but I think she could tell it wasn’t easy for me. Besides, what did I have to talk about? The best way to skin a boar?
She yammered on about celebrities and her favorite shows. She talked about some local clubs that she said I needed to check out, which reminded me of the conversation I had with the guys back on the island. How going to a club was on my list and they insisted they needed to come with me.
I wasn’t sure I was ready for that sort of crowd yet, but maybe with some alcohol I’d feel more relaxed? It was something to consider. Right now, my thoughts were more occupied with where we were going right now.
I’m gripping Kingsley and Weston’s hands tightly in the back of the SUV as we head to Titan Tech. It’s my first time out of the house since I arrived there and I’m silently freaking out. Not only am I dreading being around other people, but there is still the possibility of someone trying to kill us.
The guys have reassured me the office is being heavily monitored and only employees are allowed inside. Reece even added extra security, and that’s on top of the driver currently in the car with us and the other vehicle following us with four other security guards he hired.
The part I’m most nervous about is talking to the press. Today we are meeting with a PR firm to discuss making a statement about what happened to us. We’re obviously going to leave out many of the details, but their PR person insisted that it’s better for us to make a statement, then to let the press make up their own story. It won’t stop the paparazzi and requests for interviews completely, but we hope it should calm them down a bit.
Luckily, nobody knew where we lived, but without any sort of security fencing around the property, I was worried it was only a matter of time before they were knocking on the door and peeking through windows.
We decided to keep the intimate part of our relationship out of the statement at this time, and just give them the facts about the past. I met Mira, the head of the PR company, on a video call yesterday, and she seemed to know what she was talking about and had our best interest, and the interest of Titan Tech in mind.
“That’s it, there,” Bower says, leaning forward to point over my shoulder at the building coming up on our right.
I assumed it’d be this giant tower in the middle of the city, but when I get my first glimpse of it, it eases a little of my worry. It looks to be only four stories and is in more of an industrial area, rather than the downtown image I had in my head.
There’s a large parking lot that the driver turns into, right beside the building. What I don’t like, though, is the dozen or so reporters hanging right outside the front entrance. When they see our vehicles pull in, they all turn to watch, and when we park, they come running over, surrounding both our vehicle and the one belonging to security.
“Shit,” Bower mumbles, looking at the people who are eagerly awaiting us. Thankfully, they aren’t banging on the glass. They’re just waiting, cameras and microphones at the ready.
“What do we do?” Weston asks, wrapping his arm around my shoulder and pulling me into his side.
“Stay put,” the driver says as he pushes his door open. “We’ll handle it.”
We all watch as he rounds the vehicle and the security from the other vehicle joins him as they stand in front of ours, blocking us from the press.
“Mira is coming out,” Reece says from the front seat. I look at the building and can see her pushing through the crowd with two security officers of her own.
“If you can please clear a path for them to enter the building. They won’t be making any statements at this time, but as I told you, we will be coming outside later to make their official statements for you. If you can give them some space, we would appreciate it.”
A bunch of people start to shout out questions, but the security team does a good job of pushing them back and making a path for us.
“Alright, here we go. You ready?” Kingsley asks, looking down at me. Nodding my head, I take a deep breath as he opens the door.I can do this.
He steps out and helps me down. I stare at the press and the flashing lights as I try to breathe.
They’re just people and cameras. Zee wouldn’t be scared of them, even if Darla is.
