Stolen Memories: A Novella (3 page)

Hunter shifted beside me, but didn’t pull out. His arms wrapped around me tightly. My eyes drifted to a close as his arms circled my body, pulling me closer to him. We were connected in the most intimate way possible and I suddenly felt shy. The man beside me was my best friend in the world, now my husband, and we had sex. Everything seemed surreal.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

I was quiet for a minute before saying anything. “I started to.”

“You could have tried harder and you know it.”

“I was embarrassed, I guess.” He gave me a blank look, and I continued, “Sometime during college all of our friends assumed I had done it, and I never corrected them.”

“It’s me. Your best friend. We tell each other everything.”

“Exactly. How was I supposed to go ‘Hey Hunt, it was fun hanging out, oh and by the way, I’m still a virgin.’” He kissed my temple, and I smiled. “I’m glad it was you, though.”

“Me too. Now that I know I’m the only guy you’ve ever fucked, you’re going to be in trouble. I have all sorts of kinky things I want to try with you, especially since I’m the only one that gets to do them.”

I laughed and watched as his hands trailed lines along my body. I tingled everywhere he touched me and it was difficult to keep my train of thought. His cock was stirring back to life inside me. Hunter shifted us so I was lying was on top of him.

“Holy shit. Again?”

He grinned in answer and kissed my neck.

We stayed in the hotel room for days without coming up for air. Hunter hadn’t been kidding when he said he had all sorts of kinky things he wanted to try. My body was deliciously sore, and my husband had a smile on his face that wouldn’t quit. My husband.

That was an insane statement. I finally called uncle on the third day and we decided to go and get dinner. There was a beautiful little seafood restaurant right on the ocean down from our hotel.

We strolled down the boardwalk hand in hand. Hunter’s show of affection was surprising. Before, he might have put an arm around me as we walked, but now it was different when he pulled me into his body. The heat between us was confusing as hell, but I wasn’t going to question it. I knew that the longer we acted like this, the harder it would be for me when our marriage ended.

The hostess sat us down and Hunter ordered a one of our favorite red wines. My thoughts wandered as I stared out into the ocean.

“Are you okay, honey?”

I started as his hand touched mine. “I’m sorry. I guess I’m just distracted.”

“I noticed. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong, per se... I’m just concerned about when we go back to California.”

“What are you worried about?”

“I can’t even begin to imagine the mess I’ve left behind.”

“Do you want me to check on things and see what’s going on out there? I can text my brother and have him tell me who’s freaking the fuck out if you want. We can wait a little longer to go back. Maybe wait until things settle down before we stir everything up again,” he said grinning.

“You're acting like this is a game and I’m stressing the hell out over here.”

“I don’t mean to make light of the situation, but it’s going to be fun sticking it to your dad and the asshole who thought he could buy you.”

“Hunt?” I whispered.

“Yes, honey?”

“They knew I was a virgin,” I said so quietly I wasn’t sure he could hear me.

I saw the anger flash in his eyes and I flinched. Even though I knew he wasn’t mad at me, seeing the fury hiding behind his eyes was scary. Hunter was rough around the edges, but laid back for the most part. I’d only seen him this mad one other time and it hadn’t ended well for anyone involved.

“We are going to go back to California and I’m going to bury those fuckers,” he growled.

“Please calm down.”

“How can you tell me to calm down, Megan? If I hadn’t helped you get away, you would have been stuck with Michael, knowing your father had sold your fucking virginity to him.”

“Lower your voice, Hunter. People are starting to stare.” I ducked my head as I turned scarlet. My hand itched to smack him.

“I don’t care. Let them fucking stare.” I calmly lifted my napkin from my lap and stood up. He reached over and took my wrist. “I’m so sorry. It just pisses me off that your own father could do that to you.”

“And probably my sister, too.” I sighed and sat back down. “As loath as I am to say it, we need to go home soon.”

“Son of a bitch. It just keeps getting better, doesn’t it? Do I know everything yet? Or is there more?”

“That’s everything.”

“Thank fucking God.”

Hunter stood up, moved to the chair next to me and pulled me into his chest. I hadn’t even realized I was crying but, to my horror, tears streaked my cheeks. His fingers brushed away the wetness and his lips grazed my forehead.

After a few minutes, he asked softly, “Are you okay?”

I nodded, unable to speak around the lump in my throat. If I opened up my mouth I was going to sob all over him, and I never cried. His hand rubbed my back comfortingly as I tried to take a few deep, calming breaths. The waiter brought over our wine and quickly left the table after seeing the state I was in. Hunter laughed softly. “I don’t know that I have ever seen you cry, and of course the first time I do, you lose it in a beautiful restaurant in public on our honeymoon.”

I smiled a little. “I’ve got to keep you on your toes.”

“I’m sorry I got so mad, baby.”

“It’s okay. I know you weren’t mad at me.”

“I’m warning you, though, when we get back home I plan on doing some major damage to both of them and anyone else I find out is involved.”

We finished our dinner without any additional drama and slowly walked along the boardwalk back to the hotel. Hunter had a beautiful smile as we pointed out places we used to go as kids. I could tell that his anger was still boiling just below the surface, but he had done a good job calming down and comforting me. When we walked back into the hotel room, I wanted to help take his mind off of the issues we couldn’t deal with from across the country. As soon as the door closed I pounced on him, shoving him down in one of the large leather club chairs and unbuttoning his pants.

I sank down onto my knees in front of him. By the time I pulled him out of his pants, he was already hard.

“I like this side of you, Megan.”

I smirked up at him and teased the tip of his length with my tongue, circling the tip, and then lightly biting down on the head. Deep groans filled the room as I started to circle him with my lips and tongue. His fingers tangled in my hair, and I could tell he was restraining himself from thrusting into my throat. I opened my jaw wider and took him as deep as I could, bobbing my head back and forth. My hands stroked his sack and tugged lightly. Hunter groaned as I took him out of my mouth and used my hands to stroke him.

“Fuck, baby. You’re going to kill me with the sight of your pretty lips circling my cock. I’ve wanted this for so long.”

His words took me by surprise. He had wanted this for so long? I grinned up at him and went back to work with my tongue, running it up and down his length before circling the head again.

I put my hands behind my back and opened my mouth wide. Hunter looked at me with hooded eyes as he thrust softly into my throat. It was amazing that as far gone as he was, he was still able to be careful not to hurt me. His groans grew louder and I felt him swelling in my mouth as he got closer to the edge. My lips sucked down on him, and he cursed loudly as came down my throat. I swallowed every drop. He groaned as I smirked and tucked him back into his pants. The look on his face made me giggle.

“Don’t you have some work to do?” I asked innocently.

“I don’t even know what work is right now. Fuck.”

I laughed as he leaned back in the chair and ran his hands through his hair. He looked so disheveled and unlike himself. It was a very sexy sight. Hunter always looked in control and perfect, but right now he looked wild and untamed.

The water from the tub felt amazing as I soaked in the scented bubbles. I decided to turn on my phone for the first time since we left and immediately regretted the decision. There were over a hundred missed calls and text messages and countless voicemails. My finger hovered over the voicemail button, but something held me back. Maybe I was scared of what would be there. Checking the text messages was probably a safer option.

When I looked they started out concerned, but quickly moved to angry, and ended up nasty and threatening. Each message made my heart beat harder in my chest. Hunter heard my shriek from the bedroom and came running into the bathroom.

“What’s wrong,” he demanded.

I thrust my phone into his hands and turned away before he could see the tears forming in my eyes. The threats weren’t just from Michael; some were from my father and his business partners.

“Damn it! We’re going back tonight. It’s time for me to deal with this. I thought time would help, but it’s only going to make it worse.”

“I brought this on myself when I ran.”

“You’re my wife and no one is going to treat you this way.” Hunter reached into the tub and pulled me up and over the edge against his body, soaking his dress shirt and pants. I gasped in surprise. “You’re fucking
mine.
Do you understand?”

I nodded, but I’m sure my face mirrored the confusion swirling around inside me. Where was this possessive side coming from?  

“I’m acting like a fucking caveman. What the fuck is happening to me? You undo everything in me, Megan. I’ve never felt this way before.”

His mouth crashed down on mine and I moaned. His tongue slipped into my mouth and demanded that I surrender to him. As quickly as it began, he pulled back and stormed out of the bathroom, leaving me confused, hurt, and really fucking turned on.

I emerged from the bathroom about fifteen minutes later, once I had calmed down. Hunter was on his cell phone and frantically throwing things into our suitcases. Crossing the room, I took the clothes from his hands and folded them carefully, instead of letting him ball them up. He leaned over and kissed my forehead as he continued to schedule our flight with whoever was on the phone. Disappointment flooded me that we were going back, but I understood we needed to fix things back home. It had been nice hiding from the world for a moment, though.

If we flew out now, we would be back home by nine a.m. the next morning. It amazed me that he could get these things done on a whim in the middle of the night. I zipped our suitcases and looked at Hunter expectantly. He still wasn’t off the phone, but he grabbed my jacket and helped me slip it on. Grabbing our bags, he led the way out of our suite and down the stairs without a second glance.

Hunter never hung up his phone, and I was getting more frustrated with each passing moment. I willingly walked alongside him and boarded the plane, but his detached attitude was more than I could take after more than forty-five minutes of being ignored. When he did actually acknowledge me, I was bossed around. He finally hung up as the flight attendant started towards him. We sat down, and I made sure to be on the opposite side of the plane. Turning towards the window, I tried to lie down and get some sleep. Every time I would start to drift off, though, Hunter would sigh or grumble something that would jar me awake.

After an hour of listening to him, I got up and shot him a dirty look before walking back to the small bedroom. His private jet had a freaking bedroom. Who in the hell did I marry? Even though I’d known Hunter my whole life, I was still intimidated by his wealth. My measly trust fund was nothing compared to what he had amassed in thirty-two years. It was even more impressive that he hadn’t taken any money from his parents for his startups.

I lay on the bed, trying to get comfortable with no luck. My body couldn’t relax and I was so tense I felt like I was jumping out of my skin. Hunter cracked open the door and looked down at me.

“Seriously! What the fuck?”

“What?”

God men were so oblivious.

“I came back here to get away from you and your sighing. I can’t go back home and face everyone if I haven’t had at least an hour or two of sleep, and you throwing a fit is keeping me up.”

“What do you mean me throwing a fit?” He sounded baffled.

“I’m sick of the sighing, and the mumbling, and the muttering under your breath. Being treated as an afterthought isn’t all that great either while we’re on the topic. I’ve never seen you like this and I have to say, I’m not really a fan.”

“I’m fucking worried about you, that’s why I’m
throwing a fit
.”

“It not your job to worry about me.”

“Did you forget I’m your husband? Of course it’s my job. Hell, even if I wasn’t your husband I would be worried about you, Megan.”

I turned over on the bed so I didn’t have to face him. Everything was too confusing. He wasn’t acting like the man who was my best friend; he was acting like a caveman. And it scared me because I knew my feelings for him were deeper than I wanted to admit, even to myself. Maybe marrying Hunter had been a bad idea, even if it was only meant to keep me safe. My heart would be in pieces by the end of our marriage and I was going to lose my best friend because I sure as hell couldn’t divorce him and be okay with it. I never should have slept with him.

“What do you want me to do, Megan? Do you want me to leave?”

I winced. “I don’t know.”

He slid down into the bed next to me. I tensed for a moment, but I let him wrap his arms around me. “I’m sorry, honey. I’ll try to calm down, but it’s killing me that you keep saying this is your problem and you don’t need my help. Quit pushing me away. The whole reason we got married was so that I could help you.”

A tear escaped from the corner of my eye. Why did that feel like a slap in the face? “I hate this. Just being married is enough to keep them away from me, so don’t feel like you have to do any more than that. They will yell at me and it will be over. I’ll move out of my apartment since its family property, and as long as I keep my distance from them, everything will be fine.”

His words echoed in my head,
the whole reason we got married was so that I could help you.

“You’ll move into my house when we get home. We’re married and people will talk if you don’t.”

“If appearances are so important to you, I think you married the wrong woman, because I don’t give a fuck what anyone thinks about you, or me, or us.” He didn’t speak for a few minutes. The conversation had taken a wrong turn somewhere and I wasn’t sure what to say without making him even angrier. Hunter was a ticking time bomb, and anything I said could set him off.

“Let’s just go to sleep and talk about everything in the morning,” he said finally.

That was fine with me because I needed time to come up with a plan. A plan to get rid of my ex-fiancé, controlling father, and, most importantly, I needed a plan on how to keep from turning into a broken mess when Hunter decided our marriage was over.

The car pulled up to my building and a sigh slipped from me as I unbuckled my seatbelt.

“Are you coming up or do you just want me to go change and come back down?”

“It’s up to you. Do you want me to come?”

It had been like this since we had woken up. Hunt echoed every question back at me. It was unnerving because this wasn’t his typical behavior. Even if he wasn’t in charge, he at least had an opinion on everything. Not this morning though. I’d gone to sleep with a man I had known forever, only to wake up with a complete stranger. He was acting cool and detached towards me, and I didn’t like it.

“Just wait here, give me five minutes to get changed and then we can go find Dad.”

He nodded once and pulled his phone from his pocket.

My apartment felt humid and stagnant when I walked inside. I pulled off my top as I walked through to my bedroom. As soon as I opened the door a chill ran up my spine. Michael sat on my bed. His eyes bore holes in me as I quickly pulled my shirt back down to cover my chest.

“Why bother covering yourself up? It’s nothing I haven’t seen before.”

I pulled my shirt back over my head quickly. “You act like we’ve actually fucked before.”

“No, but it’s mine. I paid for it.”

“I didn’t marry you and my dad made that deal, not me. I don’t owe you a fucking thing besides a restraining order.”

“Oh get real and quit being a child. When we’re married I won’t handle you with kid gloves like your dad has. We’ll be down at the courthouse by the end of the day, and I’ll take your precious virginity by tonight. You
are
going to marry me whether you like it or not. You’ll be my nice little fuck doll that I’ll show off to everyone.”

“You’re so fucking sick and there’s a slight problem with your plan.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I’m already married.”

“Quit lying, you stupid bitch.”

I tried not to smirk. This was going according to plan so far. “I’m not lying. I was just about to go visit my dad and show him the proof.” I pulled up the picture of the marriage certificate I had taken with my phone and threw it over to him.

“What the fuck did you do?” he said through gritted teeth. His figure seemed to grow as his anger filled him. A frisson of fear filled me as I stood there waiting for him to react.

“I protected myself. I’m not marrying you or anyone else my Dad throws at me. Not now. Not ever.”

My phone hit the wall right above my head and shattered into pieces. He flew across the room at me, his fist hitting my eye before I could even react. My head cracked against the door as I fell back. Stars filled my vision and I had to shake my head to keep from blacking out.

Michael grabbed my wrist and pulled me against his body. His hands fumbled with the button of my pants, and I writhed against him trying to get away. Bile rose in my throat as he rubbed his erection against me. He wouldn’t get away with this. Hunter would realize I was taking forever and come save me.

I fought and scratched as he continued to rip at my clothes. Finally, I was able to yank my wrist out of his grasp. The force knocked me off balance and I stumbled before I could escape. He smacked me hard across the face and swirls of white danced in front of my eyes. It was getting harder to stay conscious, and I was terrified of what he would do to me if I actually blacked out.

I backed up against the wall and kicked out at him as he went to grab me again. My foot caught him in the knee and he stepped back long enough for me to stand up. As he started towards me again, I sidestepped him and shoved him into the dresser. It gave me enough of a head start to get out of the bedroom and run towards the front door. As I reached the living room, Hunter opened the front door and I ran into his arms sobbing.

“Michael’s here.”

“What in the—get behind me now, Megan.” Hunter’s voice was deadly calm. He glared at Michael as walked out of my bedroom slowly. Blood ran down his face from the places where I had scratched him. My body shivered each time he took a step closer.

“Megan, go to the car and call the police.”

I shook my head that I wasn’t leaving and a frown crossed his face. Very slowly, so Michael wouldn’t see, I reached into Hunter’s back pocket and grabbed his phone. He didn’t take his eyes off of Michael as I pulled it out. I backed away, but I wasn’t about to go down to the car and leave him alone in my apartment with this psycho. My back hit the wall as I stepped out of Michael’s line of vision. Tremors shook my body as I whispered instructions to the operator.

“We can do this the easy way or the hard way,” Michael said with narrowed eyes. “You’ve got something that’s mine and I’m not leaving here without it.”

“She’s not property, you asshole,” Hunter growled. “And you can bet that Megan’s not leaving with you.”

“I paid her father so I’m damn sure going to take her with me.”

“Did you expect her just to go with it? Fall in line easily? Just let you beat her up and rape her? Her dad never told her that he was fucking selling her virginity to the highest bidder, so I’m willing to bet she’d have some major problems with that, even if you don’t think so. I know—as her husband—I have some really fucking big issues with it. Thank God she knew she had people she could count on to help save her.”