Page 19 of 2204 Hunter Lane
Yeah. I, uh.
I hope not.
Chapter Nine
Marley
Stupid Hunter.
Stupid freaking Hunter with his stupid nicknames and stupid questions.God I could kill him. I could legitimately feed him to an apex predator and smile while his head was being ripped off.
He didn’t want me to go to the bar tonight, boo freaking hoo. I didn’t want to go anyways. He knew that, I mean, why else did he scowl at me when I refused the invitation? Probably didn’t want me around his friend, who was actually sort of cute now that I thought about it.Ugh, Marley stop. He is NOT your problem, and neither is anyone he associates himself with.
I was so deep in thought I barely registered Payton speaking to me. “And this is where you’ll be settin’ up shop, hun. The computer’s old but it’s still kickin’ and all the ad info is on the table there –”
When her words trailed off I turned to her with an apologetic smile.Apologetic because I couldn’t focus on jack shit thanks to that bloody heathen.
“I’m so sorry, Payton. So much has happened in one single day, my mind is all over the place. Please, continue, seriously. My attention is all yours.” And I meant that.Well, I’ll be trying my best to mean that.
Her gaze softened as she let out a hand, squeezing my fingers gently. “Want to talk about it?”
“Talk about what?”
“Hunter,” she let out. “I don’t know what in the hell was bein’ said but Hunter’s got a mouth on him sometimes. If he said anythin’ that offended you, I’ll talk –”
“No,” I shook my head, “no need, Payton. I’m sure he was just in a bad mood.”Like always.
A scoff escaped her throat as she moved towards the grey lockers in the corner of the office, decorated in stickers. She pulled out a crimson red vest with a name tag reading: Payton Lane.
Payton Lane.Huh. You know those names that just fit? Like, from the moment you hear them it clicks and you think, wow, that really suits you? That’s exactly how I felt when I read her name tag, and my thoughts immediately drifted to the rest of the family. Dex Lane and…Hunter Lane.
“It’ll be the day when Hunter’s in a good mood, Marley.”
I almost completely forgot what we’d been speaking about but then it came back to me and I chuckled, nodding my head in agreeance.
A soft knock alerted both Payton and I as we turned to the doorway, my eyes meeting a tall man with black hair and brown eyes.
He wore the same red vest as Payton with a name tag that read: Cramer Hughes.
“Hi, Payton, and…” He flashed me a cordial smile and extended a hand. “Payton’s friend?”
“New hire,” Payton corrected, slapping his fingers away. “I don’t want no germs spreadin’ around, Cramer. What ya need?”
Cramer smiled brighter, a dimple poking through his right cheek. My gaze trailed up his face once more, admiring the fact that his eyes seemed to smile with him.Freaking precious.
“A customer out front wants to know if we got more of those socket wrenches in stock.”
Payton wiggled her nose and narrowed her eyes, seemingly in deep thought as she scurried towards the door.
“I’ll check the storage, ‘think we got a shipment a few days ago. Thanks Cramer.”
And she was gone, leaving me alone with this tall, adorable man.
An awkward silence passed between the two of us which I’m pretty sure he noticed. He rubbed the back of his neck and glanced behind him, waving at a customer passing by.
When his attention returned to me I decided to shake off the tension and extend a hand of my own.
“She isn’t looking,” I joked. “I’m Marley.”
