The driver heads back to his van, and I step out onto the porch to examine the parcels. Both boxes are addressed to “Hunter Bain.”
Intrigued, I head back upstairs. Hunter must have finished in the bathroom by now. I pause at the door to our room. Should I just walk in? What if he’s still in the bathroom? What if he’s naked? My treacherous stomach swoops at the thought. There’s no doubt Hunter is objectively attractive. It doesn’t meanIfind him attractive. I nod, agreeing with myself, and turn the knob to our room.
I walk in at the moment the bathroom door opens, steam billowing out, Hunter appearing through the fog.
He’s got a small white towel wrapped around his waist. Other than that, he’s very naked.
I squeal and cover my eyes.
Hunter’s chuckle sets me off.
“Are you laughing at me?” I ask, my hands still over my face.
“Am I laughing at you screaming at the sight of me? Yes, yes I am. Because you’re ridiculous.”
“You’re naked. I wasn’t expecting it.”
“I just got out of the shower.”
“I thought you were ... doing something else,” I say. “I didn’t realize you were showering. And I didn’t realize you’d be wandering around the room naked, or I would have given you more time.”
“Perfect. Well, FYI, I fully intend to be wandering about naked the entire time I’m in here, so maybe you should find another room.”
I slump on the sofa and try to focus on the ocean.
I’m overwhelmed.
“I can’t fight with you like this the entire weekend,” I say, keeping my gaze trained on the horizon. Behind me, I hear a suitcase zipper and the sound of wet terry cloth hitting the floor.
“Then stop fighting,” Hunter says.
“I have to get changed and put out the canapés. Then my mom is arriving with my aunt and our two bitchy cousins. I just ... can’t.”
The adrenaline that’s been racing around my body since this morning is ebbing away. I’m tired. So very tired.
“Then stop fighting, Lucy. I don’t know why you’re so mad at me in the first place. Maybe you’re mad at everyone.”
“You forgot the wigs, remember?”
“Right. And nobody died. Everyone still had fun on the plane, and Ed will still think it’s cool that you’ll all be dressed up like Uma Thurman tomorrow night.”
That’s true, I suppose. “The wigs just would have made it perfect. But you’re right. I overreacted. I’ve just been so wound up about everything. I took it out on you and I’m sorry. I really am.”
The sofa bounces beside me, and I snap my head around. Hunter is sitting next to me. I scan his body quickly to make sure nothing’s on display that shouldn’t be. He’s dressed in a navy polo shirt and khaki shorts, and his hair is still a little wet from the shower. It’s sticking up everywhere, and when I glance up at it, he tries to tame the unruly strands with his fingers.
“You’re dressed.”
“You’re forgiven. Tell me about the bitchy cousins,” he says.
“They’re bitchy and they’re our cousins. Not much else to say.”
Hunter laughs, and the corners of my mouth twitch at how warm the sound is.
“So Katherine likes them, but they’re bitchy to you?”
I shake my head. “Nope. They’re bitchy to both of us. But our aunt is here, and it would upset her and my dad if we didn’t invite them.”
“So the only thing that trumps Katherine’s happiness ... is your mom’s,” he says knowingly. I feel that gentle poke against my armor again. It’s like he’s trying to understand me. I’m not sure I deserve him to do anything more than hate me.
