Invisible

Chapter 46 Quiet Times

When I wake up the space next to me is cold and I hear a soft voice across the room, I close my eyes and listen to Hunter's calm and intense tone. "I'll be back tomorrow. I'm sorry but this was an emergency... No, everything is fine now... Yeah... Yeah, yeah... Okay... I'll see you tomorrow... Sure.... Bye."

"What time is it?" I stretch out and curl up again to retain the warmth.

"A little after 2." Hunter crosses the room and lifts the covers, crawling in and wrapping an arm around me to draw my body closer. "Figured you needed to sleep as long as you could."

I stare at his green tee shirt, for as much as I've seen Hunter and talked and texted and face timed, we've always been moving around, something was happening. This silent moment seems weird, I breathe in deeply and I hear him sigh. My eyes travel up to his and find he's watching me. "What?"

"You are so beautiful."

I immediately blush and start to move away but he applies a small amount of pressure, keeping me close. "Please don't." I can't look at him.

"Don't what?"

"Draw attention to me, even when it's just us. I don't like it."

"Would you rather I lie?" He moves his right hand to my cheek and lifts my face from the pillow lightly as he brushes his hand over my face.

"How do you feel when fans tell you you're hunky or smokin'?"

Hunter laughs loud at this, "no one uses words like 'hunky'."

"Still..." My eyes fall to his chin. "I don't like unwelcome attention."

"Well, nice to know you appreciate my affection so much." Hunter sighs and rolls away, getting up again and running a hand through his hair.

"Hunter, it's not that..." I follow him and stand, wrapping my arms around his torso and resting my head on his back. "It's just... I'm so used to not being seen, it's comfortable. I don't know how to be noticed."

"That's not right." He turns while I'm still embracing him and hugs me right back. "Tell you what, I'll keep trying to make you see how amazing you are if you promise not to run, I can't keep catching you. And I don't want to let you go."

I mull the thought over for a minute. "As long as you promise to wait until I'm ready to say something about us dating. I want to be there to support you and right now I don't feel like I can and it makes me feel like I don't deserve you."

"Nonsense!"

"Please Hunter, let me try to deserve you?"

"If anything I don't deserve you, I still can't believe you want me around at all. I thought you would get so fed up with me." He tucks the hair that has tumbled out behind my ears one hand at a time before looking back into my eyes.

"I was." I giggle a little as his hand rises to my chin and I blush from his closeness.

"What changed?"

"I'm still trying to figure that out."

He smiles as he brings his mouth down on mine. When he tries to move though he winces and I pull back.

"What?"

"You've got a painful bite."

"Sorry." I wince for him.

"Just another challenge of dating you, gotta work around it." He places a light kiss on my lips then my cheek. I close my eyes and gasp in a breath as he laughs against my neck.

My mind shifts back in time, now, where Hunter's face is I can only imagine Jacob, his face buried against my neck as he cried when his father took off, then I see his sad face as I told him it was over. I can't take it, too much pain, too upsetting. "Too much, too soon." I move away, wrapping my arms around my midsection, looking at the floor as I try to again control of my breathing.