Arabella groaned when she sun hit her face and she opened her eyes. It was early in the morning and Hunter was still asleep. With a sigh, Arabella turned over and closed her eyes again, trying to fall asleep. She was too excited though. She was excited to get packing, she was excited for the day ahead of her and she couldn't fall back to sleep. Slowly and gingerly, Arabella slid out of bed, wrapping a throw blanket around her and she padded out of the bedroom and down the stairs. She looked into the dog's crates and smiled. Ajax was sleeping near the back of his with his head on his paws. Jolie was curled up against the front bars of her cage. Arabella gingerly opened up the crates then walked to the kitchen, putting on a pot of coffee. She walked over to the dogs dishes, putting a scoop of food in their dishes. Jolie trotted over on tired feet and licked Arabella's hand before she started eating. A smile spread across her face and she looked around for Ajax. Maybe he was still asleep. Arabella walked over to his crate and sat down in front of it. "Are you going to wake up, buddy?" She asked in a gentle voice and Ajax lifted his head, looking out at her. Arabella smiled lightly and urged him out of it. Ajax stepped out of his cage and Arabella started to pet him gently. "Good morning, sleepy head"
Hunter moved his face forward, expecting to find Arabella's hair within reach. Nothing. He patted the bed to find her gone. He raised an eyebrow and quickly rolled, unintentionally falling out of bed. He groaned as he slowly stood up. Stumbling over to his dresser, he adjusted his pajama pants and rubbed his face as he made his way downstairs. He looked down at Ajax who moved into Arabella's lap and curled up. "Good morning, Ellie. Ajax. Jolie." He said as he walked into the kitchen and started to make breakfast.
Arabella smiled and she patted Ajax before standing up and walking to the kitchen. She slipped her arms around his middle from behind and she placed a kiss between his shoulder blades. "Good morning, Hunter" she said softly and moved away from him to start making her coffee. She poured the hot liquid into a big mug and took a sip. "How did you sleep?" Arabella asked him, turning her eyes towards him.
"Wonderfully. Until you left. And then I fell out of bed." He said as he moved the eggs to two plates. He put some bacon in the pan and turned around in her arms. "Overall, pretty well. How about you?" He asked before feeling a cold nose on his leg. He looked down to see Ajax looking up at him. "No run, this morning, buddy. We've got stuff to do." He said before glancing out the window. "Oh. And we got snow." He said with a smile. He loved snow. He didn't see it much, but he loved it when he saw it.
Arabella gasped, looking out the window. She didn't even notice the snow at first. "We got snow!" She said excitedly and she looked down at Jolie who had just jingled over to them. Arabella picked Jolie up, holding her close to her chest and she turned her face towards the window. Jolie's tail started to wag and she barked happily before turning around in Arabella's arms to lick her. Arabella giggled and gently placed her back on the ground. "We have to play in the snow today" She said in a matter-of-fact voice and she nodded.
Hunter smiled. "I'm up for it." He said with a nod as he turned the bacon. "So...packing. Frolicking in the snow. Dropping the dogs off at Danny's. Anything else we have to do today?" He asked as he walked behind Arabella and slipped his arms around her. He kissed her cheek and put his chin on her shoulder. "Breakfast is ready, by the way." He said, kissing her cheek again.
Arabella closed her eyes when he kissed her cheek and she smiled from ear to ear. "You're amazing" She said with a giggle and turned to kiss his lips. She turned towards all of the food and her stomach rumbled. "Wow, Hunter. I must say that I am very jealous of your cooking skills" Arabella teased, giving him a wink. She put the plates on the table then took another sip of her coffee, finishing it off. "Packing is going to take so long.."
"We'll see if we can make it a little more entertaining." He said with a wink. He smiled as he pulled her chair out for her. She sat and then he sat down himself. He took a bite of bacon and broke off a piece. He fed it to Ajax and smiled up at Arabella. "Have you talked to Daniel to see how he was doing with the company?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.
Arabella nodded, smiling a little bit. "He's so happy. Everything is going perfect for him. He's always been really good with the business side of it all, you know? I started the company because I like making clothing not because I wanted to run a business" Arabella told him with a shrug and she nibbled on her bacon. It was perfect. Just like it was everyday. "I'm so happy that I gave it to him. It's the perfect job for him and I don't have to deal with it"
"Now you can be my beautiful trophy wife." He said with a smile and a wiggle of his eyebrows. He took a bite of his eggs and looked down at Jolie who had her paws up on the chair that Ajax had hopped onto. He helped her up and she sat next to Ajax, her tail wagging rapidly. Ajax looked at her and growled before barking a few times. "Ajax!" Hunter shouted at his dog who looked at him, teeth still bared. Hunter put his hand forward and Ajax bit his hand. Hunter pulled his hand back before reaching forward again and grabbing Ajax's muzzle, forcing his mouth closed and holding it. "Jolie, Ellie's got food for you." Jolie hopped down from the chair and ran over to Arabella. Hunter let go of Ajax who growled at him again. "Ajax. No." Hunter said, pointing at Ajax. Ajax snapped at him and Hunter pushed his face down. "Ajax. What did I tell you? You be nice. Be. Nice." He said, holding his muzzle. Ajax's angry eyes softened and Hunter let go of his muzzle. Ajax's ears drooped a little and Hunter picked him up. "I'm going to let him out in the backyard for a while. He'll be fine in the snow." He shrugged and walked to the back of the house, setting him down outside. Hunter stepped outside under the deck where no snow had landed and examined his backyard. It was a fenced in area, mostly flat, with a tall oak tree in the middle, nearly perfect for a rope swing, something Hunter had only heard of. He tried to make one in the forest, but all he had were vines and ragged pieces of wood he had cut with his knife. He looked down at Ajax who walked out in the snow and started sniffing around, looking perfectly comfortable. Hunter walked back inside and to the table, leaving the door open a crack, enough for Ajax to push his way back in. "Just his wolf side showing." Hunter said with a sigh.
Arabella looked up from Jolie and her eyes landed on Hunter. She nodded and turned back to Jolie, who had curled up on Arabella's lap and was nibbling on a piece of bacon from Arabella's hand. Arabella was nervous about Ajax's wolf side, to be honest. She trusted Hunter, though and it was clear that he knew what he was doing with Ajax. She stroked Jolie's soft fur and let out a little sigh before turning to look up at Hunter. "Is Ajax going to be okay? Or do you think that this is something that's going to happen a lot?" She asked him in a slightly nervous tone.
"He'll be okay." Hunter said, sitting at the table again. "A wolf, especially an arctic wolf, needs to protect his food." He ate his eggs and looked back up. "Once he recognizes that he'll have plenty of food and that he doesn't need to compete for it, he'll be as docile as Jolie. He'll be like Orion, probably. Willing to protect us if needed, but otherwise playful, calm, a house dog." He shrugged and wiped his mouth. "I just need to train him a little more. Be a little more consistent, I guess." He sipped his water and looked at Jolie in Arabella's lap. "Assuming, Jo doesn't keep toying with his emotions like that." He smiled and looked over when he heard the door open. He watched as Ajax walked back into the kitchen and shake himself dry again before trotting over to Arabella and sniffing her. "See?" He said with a smile as he got up to close the door.
Arabella smiled softly down at Ajax and she scratched the top of his head. She gingerly placed Jolie on the ground who sniffed Ajax for a moment before sticking her nose in the air and trotting off. Arabella laughed and patted Ajax's head. "Jo is a diva, sorry buddy" She teased and she looked over at Hunter with a little smile on her face. "Jolie is going to love Daniel so much. He is going to spoil her like crazy and we'll never be able to get her home" She said in a teasing sort of voice.
Hunter smiled and finished his bacon. He picked up his plate and stood before grabbing her plate and putting them both in the sink. He refilled her coffee and sighed. "I'm going to start packing. Do you want to get the dogs ready? Well, actually, it'll probably take you all day to pack." He said with a smile. "I'll get the dogs ready to move and you go start packing." He said with a nod as he took Jolie. "Don't just go upstairs and fall asleep, okay?" He said with a smile as Jolie licked his face.
Arabella rolled her eyes and she smacked his arm. "Shut it" She said with a playful smile. She ran her fingers through her hair, fixing it before she turned and started to walk upstairs. "Don't be too long, stud muffin" She called back to him, looking over her shoulder and giving him a wink before disappearing into the bedroom. Arabella cleared her throat and pulled out as much luggage as she could find and she started to pack.
Hunter packed up the dogs' things and put them in a little duffel bag. He figured that he could move them in the carriers but bring the cages. He put some food in and their food dishes, but left their water dishes in the mean time. He was really excited about the trip, but he was a little nervous about leaving the dogs. He knew that Daniel would do a great job, but he didn't want anything bad to happen. He finally climbed the stairs, leaving the dogs on the opposite sides of the couch. Ajax occasionally glanced at Jolie, but put his head down. It's like they were an old married couple. Hunter walked into the bedroom and smiled. "You should see the-You have so many bags..." He said with a chuckle.
"I don't want to forget anything!" Arabella said defensively and looked up at Hunter, her hair a little messy from walking around and getting all of her things together. She took a deep breath and put a folded up blanket into one of her bags. "The last thing I want is for our car to break down somewhere in the middle of the country, miles away from any sign of life and we don't have any supplies. That's the opening scene from a horror movie." Arabella said, gingerly putting her teddy bear into a bag. "How are the dogs?"
"Fighting, actually." He said with a sigh. "Not like actual fighting, but fighting like an old married couple." He gingerly grabbed his backpack and set it on the bed. He looked at it and sighed. "You know? There was a time where I could fit everything that I would ever need in this backpack." He said quietly. He reached into the closet and brought out a duffel bag. "That was a long time ago." He nodded as he pulled out a pair of jeans and set them on bed.
"Well...you can pack whatever you want into that backpack and I'll just pack the rest into one of my bags. We'll pretend that all of your stuff is in the backpack" Arabella giggled and she kissed him lightly. She looked up at him and took a deep breath. Sometimes, she forgot that he used to be a Hunter and that he never grew up in a household like this. He grew up in the woods. Arabella hoped that he was okay with it all. She took a deep breath and looked over at his backpack. "We should go visit camp sometime. Just to see how it is and how everyone is doing. I miss being around there"
"Me too." He said quietly. "I'm glad that I've seen something outside, though. I mean, I've been all over the United states on quests, but it was never for my enjoyment. I was always serving the 'great and all-powerful' gods." He said with a scoff. He still felt a little bitter against the gods. He assumed that if he were to leave camp, that he would be okay with the gods. Considering all that he had down for them, he thought it would all be okay for him. To find out that as soon as he left, they abandoned him... "I'm glad I had your mom watching out for me." He said as he pulled out a several pairs of boxers and set them messily on the bed.
Out of habit and her OCD tendencies, Arabella started to fold the boxers neatly and she nodded softly. She was proud to say that Aphrodite was her mom. Arabella felt like the rest of the gods just didn't care about their kids like Aphrodite did. "I always felt bad for a lot of the kids at camp. Even the ones that were claimed. I always knew that Mom loved me and that she was looking out for me. Even if she didn't say it. I could feel it. I never resented her or thought that she didn't care about me." Arabella explained and gingerly laid down a pair of boxers before picking up another pair and starting to fold them. "I think that she was always on your side. She has good taste" Arabella said with a smile.
"She was more of a mom than I ever knew." Hunter said with a shrug as he snatched the boxers out of her hand and threw them in his duffel bag. He grabbed the pile and threw them in before giving her a defiant smile. "Alright. How are we going to make packing more interesting? There has to be a game." He said as he stepped forward and put a hand on her hip. "Come on. You know this kind of stuff." He said as he placed a kiss on her forehead. "Like...strip packing or drinking packing or something." He said with a smile.
Arabella laughed. "Drinking packing? I don't know about that but I can go get some drinks if you'd like.." she teased and wrapped her arm around his neck, pulling him down to kiss him tightly. She smiled against his lips before looking back at his duffel bag with a sigh. "You know what's fun about packing? Doing it neatly" She giggled and picked up one of his shirts. She looked at it for a second then pulled away from Hunter and she yanked off her sweater, pulling Hunter's shirt on over her tank top. "I like this one" She said with a nod.
"You can keep it." He said, pulling her close and kissing her again. "Don't expect anything for Christmas though." He said with a laugh as he pulled the shirt off of her, folding it neatly, and putting it in his duffel bag. He grabbed another shirt and folded it, putting it in his bag. Hunter looked over at her before grabbing his sweatshirt. It was a little big on Hunter, meaning it was enormous on her. He slipped it over her head and grabbed the sleeves. He pulled her in and kissed her before tying the sleeves together behind his back. "I think I like this idea." He said with a smile as he kissed her tightly on the lips, putting his hands on her hips.
Arabella giggled against his lips and she wiggled around, not being able to move to much. But she didn't mind. Arabella kissed his top lip before kissing his bottom lip, nibbling gently. Arabella brushed her lips away from his and along his jaw. "Mmm..I think I like this sweatshirt too. Maybe I'll steal it from you at some point" she giggled and pulled herself closer to him, gazing up into his eyes.
"You're welcome to it." He said, running his hands up inside the sweatshirt. He smiled and kissed her again. "It'll get cold in the car. It's possible we'll only have each other to keep us warm. There's plenty of room for the both of us in this sweatshirt." He said with a smile as he pressed his lips to hers. He slipped his fingers up her tanktop, dancing them up and down her sides. Hunter smiled against her lips and untied the sleeves, setting her free. He kissed her again and again, not wanting to stop kissing her. "I love you and I am more than excited for this trip. And after the trip and during the trip and right now and next year and twenty yeas from now." He laughed and kissed her tightly on the lips, pulling her closer with his hands on her hip.
Arabella smiled softly up at him and she slid her hands to his chest, holding onto his shirt lightly. She stretched on her toes, leaning into the kiss more. "Mmm..you are still going to be so sexy 20 years from now" She giggled and pulled away from him, but only so that she could take his hands in hers. Walking backwards, Arabella flopped down onto the bed and she pulled Hunter down beside her. She moved closer to him and pressed her lips against his collar bone. "I can't wait to see everyone from camp's faces when they see you, the eternal virgin, with a girlfriend" She said with a laugh and kissed his collar bone again.
Hunter laughed and ran his hands along her sides. "And especially one as beautiful and sexy as you." He said with a smile. Hunter rolled on top of her and kissed her again trailing kisses across her cheek and down her neck to her shoulder. He pulled the sweatshirt up over her head and kissed down her shoulder to her arm and across to her chest. He felt her squirm slightly and Hunter realized something. "Ellie?" He said as he pulled away slightly. "This isn't packing." He said with a chuckle as he stood back up.
Arabella let out a sigh and she pushed herself into a sitting position. "Damn packing" She said with a little smile and she pulled the blanket from the bed around her, wrapping up in a little ball so that only her head was visible. "I was thinking that we should leave as soon as possible tomorrow. I mean, I might be half asleep but I figured that if we can get on the road early we'll move along faster" she said with a small shrug, but it looked like the blanket was moving by itself.
"Sounds good." He said as he looked at Arabella in tiny little ball form. He smiled and pushed her onto her back. She held her legs tightly and was on her back, rolling from side to side slightly. She whined due to her current turtle-like status. Hunter ignored her and went back to packing. "We'll leave early assuming we're packed by tomorrow." He said with a teasing grin on his face.
Arabella squealed and she rolled around on the bed, trying to find a way to get up but she just couldn't manage it. "Maybe we would be packed if I could sit up" She said and rolled over so that she was on her stomach and she was able to get hands free enough to push herself into a sitting position. "You are so mean to be" Arabella said and squeaked when she lost her balance and fell back onto the bed.
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"It's this way, right?" Hunter asked as he turned left toward Daniel's apartment. In the back of the car he could hear Ajax and Jolie loudly barking and howling from their cages. "We're almost there, you guys." He said as he parked on the street. Hunter got out and ran around, opening Arabella's door. She got out and he closed it behind her. "You go talk to Danny. I'll start bringing stuff up." He said, before kissing her cheek and opening the door to grab the cages.
Arabella nodded and she slipped out of the car, shivering a little in the cold air. She pulled Hunter's sweater out of the car, wrapping it around her shoulders before walking to the apartment. Arabella pressed the buzzer multiple times until Daniel pressed the button to open the door. Arabella moved a door stop in front of the door so that Hunter could bring all of the stuff in and she climbed the stairs to Daniel's apartment. Arabella yawned as she knocked on the door.
"Oh yay! Th dogs!" Daniel said in a happy voice, opening up the door. He looked at her then looked around her. "Where are the dogs?" He asked
"Good to see you too, Danny" Arabella said sarcastically and she rolled her eyes. She stepped into his apartment and looked around. He had clearly set up for the dogs and spent a bit of money on dog supplies. A good part of his living room looked like a doggy heaven. "You are going to spoil them so much" She said with a giggle. From the back of the apartment, Arabella could hear the water shut off but she didn't think anything of it. She tugged on the sleeves of the sweater that we too long on her.
"Hey, Daniel? Do you know where I left my sweater?" A voice from the hallway said, coming closer. Arabella looked up and saw Tom with damp hair and only a pair of jeans on. "Oh! Uhm..hi" Tom said with red cheeks when he saw Arabella.
"Alright. Where should I put little miss Princess here?" Hunter said as he carried the very loud and very anxious Jolie into Daniel's apartment."Too late. She's licking my arm through the cage and it tickles." He said before quickly setting the crate down in the middle of the apartment. He looked up with a sigh and looked at Daniel before seeing Tom out of the corner of his eye. "Oh...." He said quietly. "Hey, Tom." Hunter said with a wave. "How's it going?"
"Hey, Hunter. I'm doing okay." He said with a laugh. Hunter nodded and clapped his hands together.
"I'm going to go get Ajax. I'll be back." He said before leaving the apartment again.
Arabella watched Hunter walk out of the apartment then she bent down, gingerly opening Jolie's cage. Jolie stumbled out of her crate and Arabella picked the small puppy up in her hands, holding her close to her chest.
"That is one of the cutest dogs I have ever seen" Daniel said in a soft voice and he stuck out his hand for Jolie to sniff him. Jolie looked up at him for a moment then she started to lick his hand happily. Arabella smiled and she passed her over to Daniel to hold.
"She's a bit of a diva. She also has the hots for Ajax so you're probably going to want to watch out for that. Make sure that she doesn't do anything to piss him off too much" Arabella said with a nod and she smiled at Tom. "Jolie plays hard to get. It's the funniest thing" She said with a giggle.
"Does she?" Tom laughed and Arabella nodded.
"Oh yeah...She'll flirt with him like it's her job and then as soon as he does something back to her, like give her half of his treat, she'll stick her nose in the air and walk away" Arabella said.
"She's going to give him a complex" Hunter said as he walked in the door, placing Ajax's crate on the ground beside Jolie's. "This poor dog already has trust issues. He doesn't need Jolie messing with him." He said as he opened Ajax's cage. Ajax barked a few times and stepped out to be lifted by Hunter. "Come here, Danny." He said as he grabbed Ajax's muzzle. Danny cautiously stuck a hand out and Ajax sniffed it and growled a little. "It's just because you're new. Come on. Pet his head." Hunter said with a nod, taking a step closer.
"No way. That dog is going to kill me!" Danny said, stepping away. Tom walked up behind him and patted Danny on the butt. Danny jumped a little before giggling. Hunter rolled his eyes and let go of Ajax's muzzle. He scratched behind his ear and Ajax closed his eyes, leaning into Hunter's hand.
"Come here, Ajax." Tom said as he approached Hunter. He took the opportunity of Ajax having his eyes closed and scratched under his chin. Ajax opened his eyes at the addition of a new hand and looked at Tom who pulled away a little. Hunter moved Ajax toward him and he happily licked Tom's hand. "What a big softie..." He said with a smile as he took Ajax from Hunter.
"Come here, Ajax." He said with a smile.
Arabella smiled up at Tom and Ajax then looked over at Hunter. "Oh! Before I forget!" Arabella said and picked up a small bag that she had put with the dog stuff. "Danny, if it's cold outside when you take Jolie out, make sure that she has one of these coats on. She gets cold really easily" She said with a nod and held the bag up so that Daniel knew which one she was talking about.
"Does the little princess have a tiara too?" Daniel asked with a giggle and Arabella rolled her eyes. She took a breath and walked over to him, petting Jolie softly.
"Oh...I'm going to miss them" Arabella said and Daniel passed Jolie back to Arabella. She held her close and kissed the top of her head. "She likes carrots, by the way. She hates limes, too. She actually barks at them. I dropped a slice of lime today and she took a bite of it, spat it out and started barking at it. Also, she likes to crawl under the blankets so I like to make sure that she has her little blanket in her crate when she goes to bed and-"
"Hun..you sound like a mother. She will be fine" Daniel said, trying not to laugh at Arabella.
Hunter looked at Arabella and was curious about how she felt about being called motherly. He knew that she was going to make a fantastic mother and this only proved it. "Ajax is fine. Make sure he has food and water." Hunter said, patting Ajax's side. "A walk would be good for him, but it's not necessary." Hunter shrugged. "As long as Jolie doesn't toy with him too much you guys will be fine." Hunter said and he walked over to Arabella and slipped a hand around her waist. "Shall we go before you change your mind and we end up fitting Jolie into your luggage?" He asked before kissing her on the cheek. "It would probably have to be mine. There's no room in yours." He teased.
"She would fit!" Arabella gasped and looked up at him with wide eyes but the look he gave her made her remember that he was only joking and that the trip wouldn't be as fun with the dogs to worry about. She nodded and she gently put Jolie on the ground. With a small sigh, she watched for a second as Jolie jingled around the living room, sniffing everything. It felt odd to hear Daniel call her motherly. It also made her feel a little sad. She never thought of herself as a motherly type until she had that pregnancy scare. Then they got the dogs and Daniel had pointed out to her just how motherly she was. Arabella took a breath, shaking herself and she looked up at Hunter. "Okay, I'm ready" She said and gave Daniel a hug then hugged Tom.
"Have a great trip!" Daniel said and he hugged Hunter quickly. Tom shook Hunter's hand and Arabella looked down at Jolie.
"Oh! And make sure that she has her stuffed dog when she goes to bed or else-" Arabella started to say.
"Goodbye, Arabella!" Daniel said, cutting her off and waving them out of the door.
"Bye, you guys." Hunter said as he pushed Arabella out the door. "Danny, don't do anything I wouldn't do." He said with smile.
"Too late, Hunter!" He shouted in response as Hunter closed the door. Hunter looked at Arabella and placed his hands gingerly on her waist, giving her a slight hug. "You okay?" He asked quietly. "Danny and Tom are going to take great care of Jolie." Hunter said with a comforting smile. Hunter figured that Ajax and Arabella didn't have much of a connection, so her concern would be focused on Jolie. He wrapped his arms around her waist and hugged her. He kissed her lightly on the head before closing his eyes and swaying a little.
Arabella let out a big sigh and she nodded. "I know...Danny is going to treat her like a queen" She said and she leaned into Hunter. "I'm just going to miss those two" She said. Arabella stood with Hunter like that for a little while. His embrace was comforting and soon, her worries were ebbing away. She pulled away a little bit so that she could kiss him then smiled a little. "Let's go home" she said and together, they walked out to their car. Arabella held his hand the whole way, leaning into him slightly. "What time do you want to wake up tomorrow morning?" she asked Hunter, looking up at him.
"I was thinking 3 and then we'd be out by 4." He said with a nod. She looked at him like he was crazy. Hunter laughed and rolled his eyes. "I'm kidding. Let's wake up at 8 and I'll make you a really good breakfast and we'll be on the road by 9." He said as they reached the car again. Hunter kissed the back of her hand as they finally let go. Hunter opened her car door and closed it behind her before getting in on the driver's side. He started it and drove toward the house. "I'm really excited." He said quietly as he reached over and put a hand gently on her leg.
Arabella smiled softly, placing her hand on Hunter's. She flipped it over and she started to trace patterns in his palm with her fingers. "Me too" She said, her tone matching his. "I mean..it's going to be difficult to be stuck in a car with you for a few days but I guess I can deal with it" She teased in a sarcastic voice. Arabella looked back down at his hand and she spread his fingers apart before drawing a heart in his palm with her finger. "I feel like we're making up for lost time on this trip, you know? All of that time that we could have been together but we weren't because I was a wimp" Arabella said with a giggle.
"You were a wimp?" Hunter said, shuddering slightly at the feeling of her hand tickling his. "You weren't a wimp. That's nonsense." He took her hand and held it tight, running his thumb across the back. "You're a strong, beautiful, smart, kind, wonderful, amazing, sexy...Gorgeous...magnificent...Did I say beautiful?" He said with a chuckle. "I'm glad that everything has worked out this way. Was it tough? Absolutely, but look at us now." He kissed the back of her hand lightly. "Your mom told me something about 2 years ago. Back at camp. Did I mention how awesome your mom is? Anyway, she told me to never give up on love." He said with a nod. "It has a lot to offer, according to the goddess." He said with a smile. "It's a testament to your strength that you never gave up. Even after all these years, you still had hopes and that's what matters." He kissed her hand again and smiled. "I probably wouldn't have had the courage."
Arabella's cheeks were a bright pink and she didn't even know what to say to Hunter at this point. He was so wonderful to her and everything he said made her feel like incredible. Like she actually was all of those things. "Oh, Hunter...you're too kind ot me" She said softly and she slid over, so that she was sitting next to him. She pressed her lips against his cheek in a tender kiss and she trailed her lips down the side of his neck. "Not giving up on you isn't a testament to me strength, though. It's hard to forget about someone as incredible as you" She said softly with a smile. Arabella loved the fact that her mom was the way she was. So approving of Hunter and so kind to Hunter. She always believed in Hunter and it made Arabella happy to know that her mom did too.
Hunter parked the car in the driveway and looked over at Arabella. He wrapped his arms around her and held her tight. He kissed her on the forehead and smiled. "Come on. Let's get you in bed." He said as he adjust the sweatshirt around you. She looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "No...Not like that." He said with a chuckle before kissing her cheek. "That is one way of keeping warm though." He said before holding her close and getting out of the car. He closed the door and the two of them hurried into the house. Hunter didn't stop and didn't let her stop until they were in the bedroom where he wrapped his arms around her again. They were both shivering a little, but quickly enough they warmed up again. "You know making sure you have clothes on seems counter-productive." He said with a smile as he kissed on the lips.
Arabella laughed against his lips and she ran her hands down his sides. "I know...it's almost depressing to see you in so many layers of clothing" She teased and kissed him before walking towards the bed with him. Arabella wanted to be under the blankets, snuggled up to Hunter's side. She didn't care what they did or what they talked about, she just wanted to be warm and cozy with him. "Why does it have to be so damn cold?" Arabella pouted and she let go of Hunter. In what seemed like less than a second, Arabella threw herself into the bed, pulling the blankets up tightly. "We need to move to some place warm. We could buy a tropical island in the middle of the ocean and live there" She said with a nod.
"You could see if Circe's selling her place." Hunter said as he took off his sweatshirt. He changed all the way down to pajama pants and looked over at Arabella who was already changed and in bed again, giving him a 'come hither' look. Hunter raised an eyebrow and got in bed next to her. She wrapped her arms around his torso and pulled herself closer to him. Hunter smiled for a moment before responding in kind. He loved being close to her. Just holding her in his arms and telling her that everything was going to be okay. That he was going to keep her safe and warm. He kissed her head and gave her a squeeze as he pulled the blankets up around them. He held onto her tightly before putting his head down and closing his eyes. "Mmm....I love you." He said quietly, his words slightly slurred from the rapid oncoming of fatigue.
Arabella looked up at him, smiling softly. She curled up to him, melting into his arms. She couldn't think of any other way to spend her nights. Arabella didn't need to go out with a bunch of people and get drunk. She didn't need to flirt with every guy that looked at her. Arabella just wanted to spend her nights with Hunter. She took a breath and closed her eyes, tracing a heart on his chest with her fingers. "I love you, Hunter" She whispered and slowly drifted off to a heavy, comfortable sleep.