Fierce(30)

“Excuse me?” I stammer.

“That’s what I need.”

“You. You need me?” I say, befuddled.

A short, cute laugh comes out of his mouth, and he wipes his finger along his lip. Oh, how I wish I could be that finger.

“Help me with studying.”

My jaw drops. I’m shocked. He wants to study? Hunter Bane actually cares about his college degree?

“Well … this is new,” I say.

“Don’t look so surprised. I told you, I think it’s important, but there are other … things in my life right now that make it … difficult, to say the least.” He clears his throat. “So, are you in or not?”

“Uh … Yeah, sure.”

Hunter grabs a book lying on my bedside table and dangles it in front of me. “If you help me with this, I’ll teach you how to defend yourself.”

“All right. Deal.” I try to snatch away the book, but he skillfully avoids me.

With a devious smile he turns around and starts walking toward the door. “Great. Then let’s get started.”





Chapter 11


Infatuation



I walk after him like a puppy dog, and we go into his room. He puts my book down on his desk and turns around.

“We’ve got an hour or two. My roommate will be back by then.”

“What does him coming back have to do with us studying?” I say, peering into his room.

He sits down on his bed. “Can’t have him see me read a book.”

I gaze at him, and the serious look on his face makes me burst out into laughter.

“What? Are you serious?”

“I’m dead serious.”

“It’s just a book.” I use the table to lean back.

“Not to them. They’d kick my ass if they saw me trying too hard. Nah, I gotta fit in.”

“With who?”

“No one.”

So, he refuses to talk about it. I’m still going to want to know. I won’t stop asking about it.

He clears his throats and pats the bed. “Sit down.”

It sounds more like a command than a question. Still, I do as he says. Those eyes of his are luring me, coaxing me to come. My body wants to do whatever it takes to get close to him.

I’m not so sure anymore what my brain has to say.

As I sit down, I look at his bruises and the scabs on his wounds. “It’s healing quite nicely.”

“Yeah, about that, do you think we could take off the bandage? I don’t really want to go out into the world looking like I have a war wound.”

I chuckle. “Sure. I didn’t know you were that insecure.”

“I’m not. I just don’t want them to ask any questions.”

I have no idea who ‘them’ is, but I think it has something to do with the guys he keeps hanging around with.

Squinting, I start peeling off his bandages. His eyes are on me like a hawk, checking my movement. I have to twirl it around his head to take it off, so I lean forward. Sometimes I catch him flashing a glance at my boobs. My entire body zings from seeing it. Like I want him to see me. Almost as if I’m prepping to be touched.

I clear my throat once I’m done, and check the remaining scar to see if it’s healing well enough.

“Are you afraid they’ll ask you why you were in a fight?” I say.

He snorts. “Oh, no. They know already.”

“Then what? You’re afraid to look weak?” I say.

When he doesn’t answer, I know I made the right guess. “What does it matter what they think? You were the one who told me that the only thing that matters is what you think of yourself.”

His eyebrows tighten and he looks down at the floor. “I said that because it’s true, but my situation is a little more complicated than that. I need to be fit and ready, at all times.”

“For what? Fighting?”

He sighs, which sounds more like a dragon’s breath, and reaches over to his fridge, taking out a bottle of water. He holds the plastic bottle against his swollen face, the coldness of it probably soothing to him.

“I fight because I have to.”

“Why?”

“Stop asking so many questions. I saved your ass. That’s the only thing you need to know.”

I swallow and sit back. I feel I overstepped his limits a bit. “Thank you for helping me back there. If it wasn’t for you, I’d be …” I push away the word again. “How come you were there anyway?”

“I was watching them. Still pissed I didn’t spot them leaving the joint. Otherwise I would’ve been there way quicker.”

“You were watching them?” I say with a voice that makes me sound like an interviewer.

He shuts his mouth and just stares at me.

Okay … I guess even that question is too much for him.