Page 17 of 2204 Hunter Lane
I pounced on him, knocking my fist against his ribs before fully tackling him to the ground.
“I’ll throw you off the fuckin’ cliff in a burlap sack, don’t think I won’t?”
“I give up, I give up!”
I eased my grip on his shirt and stood up, extending a helping hand. When he grabbed hold, I let him slip, laughing raucously.
“That’s for touchin’ me against my will.”
He grumbled in annoyance and stood up on his own, shooting me an irritated sneer.
“You let girls touch you all the time.”
“Yeah,” I shrugged, “then they suck my dick. Want to suck my dick, Josh?”
He let out a snicker and dusted off his sweats. “What I wantis some fucking ice cream. What’d ya say, Hunt? Let’s hit up Blu’s?”
“Kind of defeats the purpose of our hike, man.”
He smirked, slapping my shoulder before shooting a playful grin my way. “Not if we run there.”
???
“Got to admit, I come up with the best ideas.” Josh chided, mauling his double fudge ice cream cone. “First the hike, now the ice cream. Should I choose the bar tonight or d’you wan’ go back to Cid’s?”
We made our way out of Blu’s ice cream parlor and began our walk to my truck. I parked in The Square even though the hiking trails had free accommodation just to get some extra steps in.
“Cid’s.” I responded, shovelling a scoop of cookie dough into my mouth.
Josh smirked. “Goin’ to see our girl Britt? Or what’d you call her that night.Addison?”
I rolled my eyes. “It’s half price rum on Thursdays man, can’t beat it.”
“Uh huh, so how did last night go with her?”
It was then that I noticed Payton walking up to P&D’s, the store she owned with my dad. But she wasn’t alone. She was with fucking Bambi.
“Did you remember it this time?” Josh’s voice hovered over my racing thoughts.What the fuck was she still doing here?
“Earth to Hunter?”
I shoved my ice cream cup to Josh’s chest and marched towards P&D’s. Why in the hell Bambi was still in Aurora was a mystery to me, and a mystery I was going to solve, excavate and squash.
Fuck she made me angry. I couldn’t even place why. She reminded me of everything I hated about the big city folk. The pearls, the dressy clothing, the silky hair and shit. All of that was a no for me. It was one thing to walk into my lane, demand we fix her car and gather sympathy. But now she was too close to home, and I wasn’t about to let her rock my placidity.
Rebecca was just like her. She waltzed into my life about four years ago, and within six months waltzed right back out. She was visiting her sister at Iowa State where I played baseball for a year on scholarship, and we’d hooked up one night at a frat party. Fuck, I thought she was the darndest little thing I’d ever seen.
A graphic designer from Chicago, made the meanest little toy out of me when we were fooling around. We dated on and off for those few months and she played me like a fucking fiddle; cheating on me, pretending she didn’t, wheeling me back in just to run me over. Over, and over, and over again.
I’d never trusted a big city girl before her, but now I’d never trust one again. If it walks like a duck and talks like a duck, it’s probably a fucking duck.And Bambi, baby, you’re as identical to a duck as Rebecca.
Payton and Bambi were heavily engaged in a conversation at the front of P&D’s when I hastily interrupted.
“Payton,” I acknowledged. That’s all I ever really did.
Her blue eyes, so uncannily similar to mine, found my gaze. Sometimes I felt like the biggest asshole when I looked at my stepmom like this. Objectively, she was a sweet woman. I’d believe it any day. But she wasn’t my fucking mom. She’d never be, and trying to replicate that love and energy was damn near impossible. Yet, she tried to. And over the last year, I guess she finally accepted her defeat cause she stayed out of my waymostof the time.
Next to meet my eyes was Bambi. Her brown spheres roamed over me with curiosity. She was so short, God, so fucking short. Probably half my height and a quarter of my weight if that. Her cheekbones were high and an assortment of tiny freckles covered her nose.
