Page 50 of Chaos Destiny
“Okay, Thandie, Mommy needs you to keep a secret. Uncle Gage said not to come up to the room, but I need to changeyou, milady. I can’t have you—oh, I’m so,” she paused, “so sorry. Wait…Julien?”
16
ARIHI “ARI” HUNTER
Although his hair was longer,and he didn’t smell like his usual Tom Ford cologne, this man was the love of my life. Hopefully, he didn’t honestly believe that hiding his face was enough to avoid having me recognize him. I would know that build anywhere—his shoulders, his neck, the backs of his arms. If I’d held it, kissed it, and cherished it, I knew it, and I knew it well.
I crossed the room, grabbed his right bicep, and ignored how easy it was to turn him to face me. His features were more gaunt, meaning he likely hadn’t been holed up in a fancy, government-sponsored facility like I’d imagined. At some point, he’d starved, and it pained me to know that he’d had to experience so much as an iota of deprivation. Throughout our relationship, he’d sacrificed all but his life, though close to it, to give me a good one. To me, that meant Julien Hunter deserved every abundance.
“How?” I asked.
He cupped the side of my face. “Gage, as usual.”
“Are you hurt?”
“Jesus, Ari.” He stroked my cheekbone with his thumb. “I can’t believe I’m looking at you right now. Feels like it’s been years. I’m sure I look like it’s been years. And no, I’m not hurt. Are you?”
“We’re all right. We’re good. I missed you.”
It wasn’t the longest we’d ever gone without seeing one another. The student from my network security class, the one with the insatiable curiosity and smile that made me both excited and nervous, suddenly disappeared one day. Years passed before I saw him again, also courtesy of Gage. Nothing blossomed between us before he vanished, but I’d missed him more than I anticipated I would.
This time around, not having him was hell.
“I missed you too,” he said, his voice unsteady. “God, I missed you.”
I barely had time to rise onto my toes before his lips found mine, one of his arms wrapping around my waist. But we didn’t get to indulge in anything more than a light brush. A loud smack against his cheek pulled us apart.
Julien, smiling sheepishly, rubbed the spot.
“Thandie, no,” I gently scolded. “Gentle hands, baby. This is Daddy.”
Tayler, Carolyn, and the terror twins were the only people she’d warmed up to, and it probably had everything to do with Gage being present when she first met them. Uncle Gage, she trusted with her life.
“Hi, baby girl,” Julien greeted.
He went to stroke her cheek, but she jerked away. Although he chuckled, I could tell that having his daughter pull away from him hurt. But he couldn’t blame himself for not being there. If he could, he would have crawled back to us on nubs.
“Give her some time,” I reassured him.
He continued to stare at her in an almost palpable awe. “She doesn’t ever have to like me. As long as she’s happy, healthy, and safe…”
“She’ll love you, Julien.”
“Yeah, but if not, it’s okay.”
It appeared that more than my husband’s appearance had changed over the last several months. During the moments when I was at my lowest, Julien always found a way to prevent me from falling into darkness. Our time apart seemed to have changed that, which made me curious about what else was different. Regardless, I would love him through the changes.
“Did you eat?” I asked.
“No, not yet. I wanted to get cleaned up first. I didn’t want you to see me all,” he motioned to himself, “messed up.”
“It wouldn’t have mattered.”
“You say that, but?—”
“It wouldn’t have mattered.”
The man I fell in love with, married, and had a child with hid behind those empty, ice-blue irises, sunken cheekbones, and that weather-beaten skin. Until he regained his energy, I would use all of mine to fight to get him back.
