The night had been wonderful with Hunter and when Arabella woke up in the morning, her skin was still tingling with the memory of her touch, his breath, his kisses. She wanted to close her eyes and live in that moment forever. Sleep had not come easy to Arabella that night. Once Hunter had drifted off to sleep and she was alone with her thoughts, she had thought about the man that had tried to mug them. He had scared her, a lot. But he also made her realize that she needed to learn how to defend herself and Hunter. They had gotten lucky that he only had the knife and he didn't know how to use it but what if he did know how to use it? Or what if he had been a monster? Would Arabella be able to help Hunter take the thing down? She wasn't sure and that worry tugged at the back of her mind for the rest of the night. When she woke up in the morning, it was early and Hunter was still asleep so she quietly slid out of bed, pulled on Hunter's tee shirt and a pair of sweatpants before slipping into her shoes and walking out of the hotel room. She walked down to the breakfast buffet and she fixed up two plates with a little bit of everything before grabbing a cup of coffee and heading back to the elevator.
Hunter woke up and felt sad. He loved waking up with Arabella in his arms. What made him even more sad that the fact that she was gone, but the reason she was gone. If she was gone that meant that she didn't sleep well. That meant that she either had a bad dream or something was bothering her. Hunter sat on the foot of the bed. He had looked for clothes, but Arabella must have put them on to go downstairs. He looked over and ate a stale chocolate covered strawberry. He grimaced a little and took a swig of the left over cider before standing up and adjusting his boxers. He set the tray on the table and sat back down on the foot of the bed, waiting for Arabella to come back. When she did, he immediately looked up. "Hey, what's wrong?" He said, taking the tray of food from her and setting it on the bed next to him. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her onto his lap. "You woke up before noon. Tell me what's wrong." He said, kissing her shoulder and wrapping his arms around her midsection.
Arabella looked at Hunter and she took a breath, closing her eyes a little bit. "It's nothing" She said softly and she ran her hand down his arm a little bit before reaching beside him to the food tray and she tugged on it a little bit. She didn't want to have to talk about the bad things with Hunter. She didn't want to have to include him in her worries again. She didn't want to see him worried about her. "I got a bit too much bacon for myself, so you can have some of mine" she said softly.
Hunter ate a strip of bacon and then pushed the tray away, out of her reach. He was hungry and he could tell, but he wanted Arabella to talk about what was bothering her. "Ellie." He said with a sigh. "Talk to me. I can tell when something is bothering you and I want to know what it is." He said, rubbing her back a little. He hated seeing her upset. He figured that it was a bad dream or something, but part of him was worried that it was something that he did. "Ellie, did I do something? Please, talk to me." He kissed her on the shoulder and put a hand on her thigh. "You can talk to me."
"You did nothing wrong, Hunter. You're amazing" Arabella said softly and she looked at him with a slightly worried look on her face. She didn't want him to be worried like this. He didn't want him to be upset because of her. Arabella brushed her fingers across his cheek briefly and she took a deep breath. "There's nothing to worry about, really. I'm just being silly. Thinking too much. I'm fine" She said softly and looked down at her lap for a moment, running her fingers through her hair.
"Well," He started, rubbing her thigh a little. "Let me help you think." He said quietly. He sighed and felt a little hurt that she wouldn't just tell him. They were going to get married, but she wouldn't let him help her? She waved him off again and Hunter sighed. "Ellie...." He whined slightly. "Come on." He kissed her shoulder and put his chin on it. "Talk. To. Me." He said, taking her hand and holding it in her lap.
Arabella closed her eyes and she let out a small sigh. "I just..." She started but stopped, trying to find the right words to explain how she felt. "After you fell asleep last night, I stayed up and I started thinking about the guy with the knife from last night. I couldn't really sleep after that, you know?" She confessed softly. The last thing that she wanted was for Hunter to worry about her. She didn't want him to feel like he had to protect her all of the time which was part of the reason she was so upset. She felt like she couldn't protect herself and she hated that.
"Ellie..." He started to talk, but stopped when he started laughing a little. "Ellie, that guy had absolutely no chance of hurting either of us. He held up his bandaged arm. "You've hurt me worse than this, first of all. Second of all, let's say he had something else." He said, clearing his throat. "Let's say he had a gun. He points it at me and for some reason I can't defend myself. All you have to do is tell him to go away and he will." He said, kissing her cheek. "You could tell him to take off his clothes and dance like an elephant and he would. Even if you didn't have your charmspeak, you've got that knife and I know that I taught you how to throw it with some accuracy. It can't hurt him, but it can hit the gun." He turned her head and kissed her on the lips. "That's assuming you remember anything I taught you." He said with a chuckle as he kissed her again.
"It's hard to remember anything when your teacher is such a stud" Arabella said softly and she kissed him lightly. After a moment, Arabella pulled away a little and looked at Hunter with big eyes. His arms around her were making her feel a bit better. She was happy that he was there for her and that he was going to protect her. He was saying great things to her and she leaned into him slightly. "I don't know Hunter. I grew up at camp and all of my closest friends were incredible with stuff like that. They all had these incredible skills that they had gotten from their parents and sometimes I just feel like I can't protect myself and it sucks. I don't always want to be the damsel in distress"
Hunter sighed and looked at her. "Ellie, you will never be the damsel in distress." He said, shaking his head. "'Incredible skills' don't even get close to matching your charmspeak. You don't need to fight when you can make the enemy go away." Hunter said, rubbing her back again. "Ellie, I chose to protect you last night because I love you and I couldn't imagine anything bad happening to you. If you had chosen to, you could have protected me just as easily. At no point did I think you were the damsel in distress." He put his cheek on her shoulder and pulled her closer. "You're the demigod here. Not me."
"You're the one that has killed too many monsters to count. Not me" Arabella said softly and she turned her head to kiss him. Maybe he was right. She knew that her charmspeak was pretty amazing and she was proud of it but she couldn't help but feel a little jealous when she saw a daughter of Ares or someone like Hunter, kicking serious butt. "Thank you, by the way. For everything. I think I would have totally lost my mind last night if I didn't have you next to me" She breathed and looked at him with big eyes.
Hunter smiled and kissed her back. "That's what best friends are for." He said gently, putting a hand on her thigh again. "We can do knife-fighting lessons again, if you want." He said quietly. "It's a shame you can't give me charmspeaking lessons. Ellie, you've got something that years and years of practice can't teach." He reassured her. "I was bored for a long time. You were naturally gifted with the ability."
"I think that knife-fighting sounds like a really good idea. Maybe some archery too. Might as well learn from the best, right?" Arabella said softly with a little smile and she brushed her fingers across his cheek. She was blushing a little bit from his compliments about her charmspeak and she kissed him lightly as a thank you, not really being able to find the right words to tell him just how much that all meant to her. She reached over and tugged on the tray of food, bringing it closer to them. Arabella picked up a strawberry and she took a bite out of it, kissing Hunter right after.
"Mmm...Sweet." He said with a smile against her lips. "Oh, you ate a strawberry?" He teased, running his hands along her thighs again. "Thanks for getting breakfast, Honey bunch." He said, pressing his lips to hers. He felt better about the whole situation. He knew that she had broken up with Brian previously because she felt that she needed to figure out how she would do on her own. He didn't want that to happen to them. He took another swig from the cider and handed her the bottle. "You can finish it if you want." He said, eating another strip of bacon.
Arabella drank the last sip of the cider and she placed the bottle down. She was looking forward to the drive. Just her and Hunter in the car for hours on end. It was going to be relaxing and simple and wonderful. Arabella rolled off of Hunter's lap and she laid down on her bed, picking up her phone so that she could look at the map. With a yawn, she put the phone down on the bed beside her. "I am going to sleep well in the car today" she said with a little giggle and she looked up at Hunter. His words from that morning were echoing in her head and they made her feel amazing. He knew just how to make her feel better.
Hunter chuckled and smiled at her. "Oh, yeah?" He said, rolling on top of her. He looked at the map. "St. Louis. That's...5 hours." He took her phone from her and set it on the bed. "The arch. Other stuff." He kissed her lightly and teasingly on the lips. "There's so much to do there." He kissed her again and grinned at her. "Mia bella." He whispered against her lips. He knew that his actions would likely get her riled up and he loved it. He kissed her one more time before crawling away from her. "Well, let's get packed up." He said with a chuckle.
"You are the biggest tease I have ever met. Like..I thought that I was a tease. But nope. You beat me at that too" Arabella giggled and she stretched out on the bed, taking deep breaths. She sat up and crawled over to him, kissing him tightly. "You're going to have to put some clothes on before I jump your bones" she said and patted his chest before rolling off the bed and stretching. Packing wouldn't be too long but she knew that if would be difficult to do with Hunter teasing her like that.
Hunter smiled and looked back at her, blushing a little. He had completely forgotten about his lack of clothing. "Well, I would have clothes except you're wearing them." Hunter turned around, back to his backpack and flexed. He didn't make any poses, but he flexed, assuredly exhibiting his back muscles, knowing that Arabella would get even more excited. "I won't look if you want to get changed real quick." He said, putting his hands in front of his face, but still flexing.
Arabella looked over at Hunter and she took a breath, openly gawking at him. At this point, it was honestly taking everything she had not to throw herself on him and start kissing him. She closed her eyes, turning away from him for a moment because she needed to regain some of her composure. Arabella smirked a little and she slipped out of Hunter's clothes and she walked over to him. She placed the clothes over his arm and she pressed herself against him for a moment, placing a kiss on his collar bone before turning and walking towards her suitcase.
Hunter froze for a moment before taking a deep breath. He gave her another minute to get dressed before removing his hands from his face. He looked back at her to see her completely nude. "Would you..." He started before closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. "And I'm the tease?" He said with a chuckle. "You're packing in the nude." He said as he moved the clothes from his arm to the bag. He thought for a moment before deciding to go all in. He slipped his boxers off and looked into his backpack for a new pair, taking his time to make sure that Arabella had plenty of time to get her eyeful.
Arabella looked over at him with a smirk on her face. She was checking him out and there was no shame in it, at all. Arabella walked towards the bed and as she passed him, she gave his butt a little pat and she giggled. It was things like this that made her love being with Hunter that much more. He would do things like this with her and it would be fun and kind of hilarious and not to mention it would get her pretty excited. Arabella looked over at him and she tossed her teddy bear back to her bag then walked over to him, standing behind him and placing a kiss between his shoulder blades. "Man..I am one lucky girl" she giggled softly.
Hunter blushed a little when she patted his butt. He was about to give in and put some clothes on when he felt lips on his back. Hunter turned around quickly and grabbed her by the hips. "I am one lucky guy." He said, checking her out. He whistled softly and pulled her close, kissing her tightly on the lips. He felt her respond, leaning into him, putting her hands on his arms. He ran his hands across her back and down, pushing his luck. He grabbed her butt and pulled her closer to him, feeling passionate yet competitive at the same time.
Arabella felt her heart race and she ran her hands down his arms, holding onto his biceps. She didn't really know what to do at the moment. Part of her wanted to step backward and fall onto the bed with Hunter and have her way with him. The other part of her really, really wanted to win whatever unspoken competition was going on between them. She pressed herself closer to him and she nibbled on his bottom lip slightly then she pulled away. "Well, we should get back to packing" She said, giving him a wink and she headed towards her suitcase, trying not to laugh.
Hunter sighed and took a deep breath. He had gotten so worked up, he thought his heart might jump out of his chest. He slipped on a pair of boxers and walked over to her. "Il mio unico e solo." He said, putting his hands, lightly on her hips. He kissed her neck and breathed on her skin. "Pour vous tenir à proximité." He breathed gently into her ear. He didn't kiss her, but he more grazed her skin with his lips. "Je veux t'embrasser tendrement." He finally placed a small kiss on the back of her neck and breathed warm breath upon her skin. He smiled deviously, almost positive that it would work.
"Oh..that is not fair" Arabella shivered and she dropped the clothes in her hands so that she could turn around in his arms. She placed her hands on his chest and she pulled him closer. As her fingers grazed against his skin, she kissed his top lip then his bottom lip. Arabella knew that she wasn't going to win their competition. She just wanted to be as close to him as possible. "You are going to drive me insane one of these days, Hunter" she breathed with a smirk.
Hunter grinned and kissed her briefly on the lips. "I....win!" He said, putting his hands up and stepping away from her. She gave him a look and glared at him. He laughed and winked at her before stepping forward and sweeping her into his arms. He kissed her tightly as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "I was about to breakdown, myself." He muttered against her lips. He fell back on the bed, their lips still locked together. "This trip is going to take forever if we keep doing this." He said with a chuckle, trailing kisses down her neck and across her shoulder. "I guess you really will sleep well in the car."
"I am going to have the best sleep ever" Arabella said softly and she hooked her toes in his boxers so that she could start to tug them down. Being able to do something like this with Hunter felt like such a dream to Arabella. It was something that she never thought would have happened when they were younger and now that it was, it almost seemed too good to be true. Arabella kissed him lightly and she looked up at him, getting lost in his dark eyes. "You're incredible, Hunter" She breathed.
Hunter grinned an unbreakable grin. The morning had started out shaky, but now it felt perfect. Hunter lifted his hips and pulled his boxers down, kicking them off before running his fingers through her hair. He kissed her tenderly and sighed happily. He looked at her, feeling happier and happier that he would be able to look into her eyes and gaze upon her face every morning for the rest of his life. "I love you." He said with a smile. "I really really really do love you."
-----
Arabella was curled up on the seat in the car with her head on Hunter's leg. She was looking up at him with a small smile. They had been driving for about 3 hours and Arabella had slept for most of that time. she was awake now though but she didn't really feel like sitting up. It was comfortable on the seat like that, looking up at Hunter. Her smile got a little bigger and she bit her lip. That morning had been so wonderful with hunter and he was able to make her feel so amazing. She couldn't believe that she had been lucky enough to be with someone as wonderful as Hunter. "Do you need me to drive at all?" She asked him lightly.
Hunter smiled at her and laughed a little. "Nope. Everything's perfect." He said, tapping her lightly on the nose. She scrunched her face up a little and Hunter thought it was absolutely adorable. He laughed again and sighed, feeling like nothing could ruin this moment. "You doing okay, miele grappolo? Do I need to change the radio station or do we need to stop?" He asked, brushing a little bit of hair out of her face.
"I'm doing wonderful" Arabella said softly and she took his hand, brushing her lips against his knuckles. She yawned a small yawn and she turned her eyes back to him, holding his hand close to her heart. Arabella liked to look at him, just look at him. Everything about him amazed her. "We should have a movie night tonight or something like that. Or maybe we can watch a TV show, something like Friends." Arabella suggested.
Hunter laughed at her and kissed her hand. "If you'll recall," He started, sarcastically. "I proposed a movie night last night." He said with a grin. "You had other plans in mind. Much more...intimate plans." He nodded and kissed her hand again. "Not that I'm complaining. I was just stating a fact. You and that beauty of yours." Hunter muttered with a playful scoff. He looked down at her and smiled. He loved how easily he could make her blush. He felt a little bad that she had been with so many bad guys that not one of them told her how beautiful she was. She was so hard on herself and all Hunter wanted her to know was that she was the most beautiful girl in the world. "You're so beautiful, Ellie, and you don't hear it enough." He said quietly.
Arabella blushed a deep pink and she looked up at Hunter with happy eyes. She loved hearing that sort of thing from Hunter. The way he said it made her believe it. Growing up, no one ever told her that she was beautiful. She was with guys that never told her and were horrible to her, first of all. But no one ever told her. Everyone assumed that she heard it all the time or that she knew she was beautiful because she's Aphrodite's daughter. "You make sure that I hear it plenty" Arabella said softly and she closed her eyes. "Thank you"
Hunter smiled and sighed happily. She was absolutely beautiful and he hoped that she knew how beautiful she actually was. "I can stop saying it if you want me to." He said quietly, giving her hand a squeeze. He exited toward St. Louis and switched on the cruise control again. "I really don't want to though. I rather like it." He kissed her hand again and stopped at a stoplight.
Arabella pushed herself to sit up and she slid next to him. She placed little kisses along his jaw, placing her hands on his arm. "I like it too" She said softly in his ear and she brushed her lips against his jaw. She was happy with him. She was happy sitting next to him and holding onto his arm and kissing him. It was simple and easy and it made her very happy. she never thought that she could be this happy. "You're handsome" she giggled.
"You too." He said with a smile. "Except...pretty. Not uh...handsome. You're...Never mind." He said, feeling incredibly stupid. "I'll just not talk ever again. Thanks." He nodded and went back to driving, his cheeks very red. He loved her and he felt comfortable with her, but sometimes he would become so shocked that someone like her would be with someone like him. She had a way of making him all flustered. He opened his mouth to speak, but decided against it. He shook his head and went back to driving.
Arabella placed her chin on his shoulder and she smiled at him as he drove. Seeing him get all flustered like that made her heart flutter. One of the reasons she fell in love with him in the first place as the way he would get flustered and stumble over his words. She found it very endearing and wonderful. "That's too bad, because I like it when you talk. I like it quite a bit" She said with a nod and she placed a kiss against his cheek.
Hunter smiled and turned his head, lightly kissing her on the lips. He sighed and turned back to the road. They were getting close and Hunter pointed to the St. Louis arch as they passed it. He wrapped his arm around her and sighed, wanting to be out of the car for a little while. He drove for a while and stayed silent, but hoped that she was keeping an eye out for a good hotel.
Arabella leaned against him, gazing out of the window. She was lost in her own little world, not thinking about anything right infront of her. Her eyes closed for a moment but she shook herself and looked out of the window. Arabella was looking forward to getting to a hotel and being able to stretch her legs. It would be nice to do something. Suddenly, she realized that Hunter wasn't looking for a hotel and that she was supposed to her. "Oh! Right there!" She said, pointing towards a hotel that looks pretty decent.
Hunter smiled and quickly turned into the parking lot. He looked at the hotel and then looked at Arabella. He shrugged and shut off the car. Hunter quickly kissed her on the lips and slipped out of the car. He ran around to the other side and opened her door, kissing her hand as she stepped out. He grabbed their bags out the back and walked in. He pulled out his credit card and waited for Arabella to talk to the man at the counter.
Arabella looked over at Hunter and she gave him a small smile before turning back to the man at the counter. She was trying to think of something that she could do to get Hunter to start talking again. With a little sigh, she passed his credit card back to him and put hers down on the counter. She felt bad that Hunter was paying for so much of their trip. "Could we get one of the rooms with a king size bed and nonsmoking?" She asked nicely. "One of the really nice ones" she added with a grin. The man looked at her for a moment before smiling at her and typing on the computer. He got everything squared away and passed the room key over to her with a smile on his face.
"Here's your room key, Ms Foster" He said and looked over at Hunter, the smile fading slightly. Arabella thanked him and grabbed her stuff. She turned to Hunter and gave him a wink before walking towards the elevator.
Hunter grimaced a little when he took his card back. He wanted to complain about her paying, but that would involve talking and he said he would stop talking. He sighed and followed her to the elevator, bags in hand. He looked over at her and smiled, setting the bags down on the ground. He stood there for a minute before kissing her on the cheek, laughing quietly.
"Would you talk?" Arabella said, looking over at him with a small smile. She stepped closer to him and she slipped her arms around his neck. Arabella pulled him down to her and she kissed him tightly. "I miss your sexy voice" She cooed and ran a finger down his chest. The doors to the elevator opened and an elderly lady walked in. With a giggle, Arabella pulled away from Hunter and she stood beside him with her hands in her pockets. She looked over at the lady and the lady looked over at Hunter then looked at Arabella and gave her a wink, as if to say 'good job, hun'. Arabella had to bite her lip to keep from laughing out loud and she was thankful when the elevator finally stopped on their floor.
Hunter raised an eyebrow at the elderly lady as he picked up the bags and walked out. He followed Arabella down the hallways and to their room. She gave him a look for a second before opening the door and walking in. Hunter followed and set the bags down on the bed. He was curious what they would do for the rest of the day, but he couldn't talk so that made communicating difficult. He ran a hand through his hair and then sighed. He looked at her for a moment before signing to her that he was going to take a shower. He grabbed some clothes and kissed her cheek before walking into the bathroom.
Arabella smirked at him and she followed him into the bathroom. She closed the door and leaned against it, folding her arms across her chest. "I'm not letting you get a shower until you start talking to me again." She said in a defiant voice. She thought about it for a second then shrugged. "Well, I suppose you could take a shower but I'm not leaving and I don't know how eager you are to shower naked with me in the room" Arabella shrugged and grinned up at him.
Hunter sighed and looked at her. He wanted to talk to her, but this had become more of a game for him than an actual problem. He slipped off his socks and shoes before stepping into the shower. He pulled the curtains and made sure that there weren't any gaps. He knew that this wasn't going to work, but he had no choice. He undressed and tossed his clothes over the top of the curtains before turning on the water. After a moment or two of adjusting the temperature, Hunter got the water right and started to shower.
Arabella gasped when his clothes fell into a pile at her feet. She had not been expecting him to actually do that. It took her a moment to full understand the situation before taking a breath and walking over to the curtain. "Hunter Reed, you talk to me right now" She said, trying to sound stern but she quickly dropped that and pouted. "Hunter..please...I am so sick of the sound of my own voice" She huffed and after a few seconds of silence, she sighed, folding her arms across her chest.
He put shampoo in his hair and thought for a second, a small smile on his face. "I didn't think that was possible." He said with a chuckle. He laughed quietly and stuck his head out of the curtain, giving her a wink before pulling his head back in. He was kidding, but he just couldn't resist it. She had set herself up so perfectly. He finished showering quickly and reached through the curtain, grabbing a towel and pulling it back in. He wrapped it around his waist and stepped out of the shower to see a still slightly shocked Arabella.
Arabella looked at him and she opened her mouth to say something but she closed her mouth again when she realized that she didn't know what to say. She didn't really expect him to say something like that. She wasn't angry, she was just shocked. "Yeah, well..you.." She stumbled then huffed and stuck her tongue out at him like a little kid and she folded her arms across her chest.
Hunter laughed at her and stepped forward. Hunter took her wrists in his hands and lightly unfolded them, placing them around his neck. He kissed her on the forehead and put his hands on her hips. "I know. I'm so mean to you." He said quietly as he pressed his lips to hers, smiling softly. "I missed talking to you." He said quietly.
Arabella smiled and she leaned into him, kissing him again. "I missed hearing your voice" She said softly and looked up at him with big eyes. She leaned into him, loving that he was wearing only a towel and that his arms were around her. Arabella didn't have to do anything with him. She didn't need to be ripping his clothes off. She was happy to just kiss him. "You should get dressed before I jump your bones" Arabella said softly and she gave him a wink before pulling herself out of his arms and stepping out of the bathroom.
Hunter followed her out and quickly dug a pair of boxers out of his bag. He hurried back into the bathroom and put them on before reemerging. He walked over to his bag and pulled out some clothes. "You want to watch a movie tonight? We can get room service and some sparkling cider." He described as he pulled on his jeans. "Cuddle up in bed. Watch movies until we fall asleep. How's that sound?" He pulled his shirt over his head and walked over to her, grabbing her hands in his.
Arabella slipped her arms around his waist and she rested her head on his chest, taking a deep breath. She liked standing as close to him as she possibly could. Feeling his arms around her and hearing his heart beat. "It all sounds perfect" She whispered and she turned her eyes to look up at him. "It's missing ice cream though" she giggled and she stretched up to kiss him lightly.
Hunter laughed and kissed her nose. "Well, we just can't have that, can we?" He said with a grin as he wrapped his arms around her, holding her close. He slid his hands up her sides and reached her armpits, picking her up and carrying her to the bed. He set her down and crawled on top of her, kissing her on the chin and then tightly on the lips before rolling off and grabbing the phone. "I'll take care of room service. You pick the movie."
"Wonderful" Arabella said and she folded her legs under her. She grabbed her blanket and wrapped it around her shoulders before grabbing the remote and going though the movies that they had. After a few moments, Arabella picked out a movie and she put the remote down. She stretched and leaned towards Hunter, placing a few kissed along his jaw while he was on the phone.
Hunter grinned and glanced at Arabella as he talked on the phone. He kissed her on the forehead while he was being transferred. "Yes...Hello. Could I have the...chicken fingers and...the mac & cheese and...the spaghetti and meatballs and...the pulled pork. Yes...Yes...No, it'll be paid separately." He said with a grin, sticking his tongue out at Arabella. "No, could I also have a bottle of sparkling apple cider and--I see this build-your-own sundae bar? Could--Yes...Okay...Good. Yeah. We'll have that too." He put an arm around Arabella and kissed her forehead. "It'll be separate. Okay. Thank you!" He hung up and snuggled up to Arabella. "It'll be here in a while. What movie did you pick?" He asked with a smile.
"Two Weeks Notice" Arabella said and she looked up at him and sighed. "Would you let me pay for something, for once?" She huffed and laughed a little bit. She closed her eyes for a minute, just out of pure happiness. Whatever Hunter was ording on the phone sounded wonderful and she was looking forward to watching movies with him. Maybe tomorrow they would spend some time in the city before heading out. Arabella brushed her fingers against his cheek and she smiled a little bit at him.
Hunter smiled and closed his eyes. He was so glad that they had gone on this trip. He kissed her temple and laced his fingers in hers. This all seemed really perfect. A lot of people would probably say that things were too perfect, but Hunter didn't want to think about it. He was happy. She was happy. That's all that really mattered. "I like you." He said with a chuckle as he leaned his head on hers.
"Mmm...I like you too. I think I'll keep you around for a little while" Arabella giggled and she looked at him with happy eyes. She had forgotten all of the bad things, all of the worries that she had. Hunter calmed her down and made her blissful. Arabella moved her fingers down to his collar bone and she leaned in to give him a kiss. Just then, there was a knock at the door and Arabella jumped a little bit out of surprise. She had forgotten all about the room service and she wasn't expecting to hear the knock.
"Oh, that'll be the room service." He said quietly as he stood up from the bed, giving Arabella one last kiss on the cheek. He hurried over to the door and opened it revealing 2 women pushing carts in. He helped them come inside. "You can set that on the table. Thanks." He watched as they set the trays on the table. "Is that everything?" He asked, reaching for his wallet. One of the girls pushed the carts out of the door and let it close behind her.
"That's everything." the other girl asked, stepping forward and standing close to him. She glanced over at Arabella and giggled a little before turning back to Hunter.
Arabella glared at the girl who was standing far too close to Hunter. She slid off of the bed and walked over to them and she slipped her arm through Hunter's, giving the girl a fake smile. "Thanks, have a good night" she said to the girl in a tone that said 'this is final, please leave'.
"If you need anything, at all..just give me a call. My name's Tiffany" The girl said with a little giggle. She was totally ignoring Arabella and was leaning towards Hunter, so her shirt was falling down a little bit.
"Okay, you need to leave. Now" Arabella said to Tiffany. Tiffany froze for a moment as soon as Arabella spoke to her with a dreamy look on her face. Eventually, she turned and walked out of the room.
Hunter watched the door close behind Tiffany before turning to the food. Everything that had just happened went completely over Hunter's head. "Everything looks great!" He looked at her and kissed her cheek. "Go sit down on the bed. I'll make you a plate." He said, kissing her gently. He turned to the food and grabbed a plate, filling it for Arabella. He made himself one and then handed one to her, and sat next to her. "What did I miss?"
"Did you seriously not catch any of that?" Arabella asked and she took the plate form her hands before flopping down on the bed. She was kind of happy that Hunter never really caught onto girls flirting with him. At least she knew that he wasn't looking at other girls like that. It kind of ticked her off when she saw girls flirting with him like that but at the same time, she kind of felt lucky too. She knew that girls could flirt with him all they wanted but she was the one that he was going to wake up to every morning. Arabella took a small sip from her drink then looked over at Hunter. "That girl was pretty much throwing herself on you. I had to charmspeak her to get her to leave"
"Who?" Hunter said, taking a bite of chicken. He looked over at Arabella and raised an eyebrow. "Oh, Tiffany?" Hunter thought back to what had happened. In retrospect, she might have been flirting with him a little. "She was?" Arabella nodded and Hunter shrugged. "It doesn't matter really." He laid back and kissed her temple. "She doesn't hold a candle to you, babe." He said, turning back to the movie and eating some pork.
"Pssh, I know that" Arabella said with a small smile at Hunter's words. She looked over at him and let out a small sigh as she took a bite of her food then slid across the bed, so that she was beside Hunter. She leaned into him ever so slightly and she took another bite of her food. "I guess I'm just going to have to get used to girls flirting with you. You're too good looking for there to NOT be any girls throwing themselves on you"
"That's fair." Hunter said with a chuckle. "You're too beautiful for there to not be any guys drooling all over you." He kissed her on the cheek and smiled. "I probably won't get used to it though...I'll still be insanely jealous." He laughed and turned back to the movie, leaning into her a little. He finished eating and looked over at Arabella. "So, did I make good choices?" He asked, referring to the food.
"Hmm? Oh! Wonderful choices" Arabella said with a little smile and she took the last bite of her food. She pushed the plate away and laid back on the bed with a hand on her stomach. Arabella let out a little moan and she looked over at Hunter. "So much food" She moaned "You're trying to make me fat, aren't you" Arabella teased with a small giggle.
"Yep. You've finally figured me out." Hunter said sarcastically as he grabbed the plates and threw them away. "I was waiting outside your building for that giant to go to your office, so that I could kill it and then have you fall in love with me and have you move in with me and make plans for a future, just so I can make you fat." He said with a nod. He started to consolidate the food when he noticed the sundae bar still sitting there. "Oh. What's this?" He asked, looking through the various toppings. "What are gummi worms?" He asked, holding one up and examining it.
"Oh, Hunter...you have been missing out. First cotton candy and now this" She said, shaking her head slightly. She pushed herself to sit up and she plopped herself down beside him. Arabella picked up a gummi worm and she took a big bite out of it. "I used to eat so many of these. I could seriously eat an entire container in one day" She confessed with a nod and she finished off her gummi worm. "Just try it. It's not something I can really explain. Here, have my favorite" She said with a smile and she passed him one of the green and orange worms.
Hunter raised an eyebrow and took it from her, gingerly holding it in his hand. He cleared his throat and took a deep breath before popping it into his mouth. He chewed and made several odd expressions as he assessed gummi worms. "That's...Why did...What is the point of eating these?" He said with a raised eyebrow. He thought they tasted good, but they were just odd.
"The point is to eat so many, you're on a sugar high for hours" Arabella giggled and she popped another one into her mouth. She chewed on it happily then started to build her sundae. She put a few gummi worms out of the top of her ice cream and loaded it up with pink heart sprinkles and chocolate sauce. Arabella chewed on another gummi while she put a spoonful of whipped cream ontop of it all with a small drizzle of strawberry sauce. "Oh man, this looks heavenly"
Hunter looked at Arabella's sundae, slightly impressed. He poured Cap'n Crunch cereal on his ice cream and added sprinkles, chocolate sauce, caramel, and M & M's. He grabbed his dish and sat down next to Arabella. "Ice cream was a good choice." Hunter said, taking a spoonful and shoving it into his mouth. He winced slightly at the extremely cold ice cream, but soon let a smile spread across his face as the richness of everything melted together. He took another bite and then kissed her on the cheek, leaving a little smudge of ice cream on her cheek. He laughed a little and went back to his ice cream.
Arabella looked at him with a confused look on her face when he laughed. She didn't feel the ice cream on her face and she had no idea why he was laughing. Cautiously, she touched her cheek with her fingers then made a face. "Oh, Hunter" She whined. Arabella put some strawberry sauce on her lips and she kissed Hunter's jaw before he could stop her. She laughed and took a bite of her whipped cream, smiling happily at the sweet taste of it.
Hunter sighed and wiped it off using the back of her hand. Hunter nudged her a little before reaching his spoon into her sundae and taking a big bite. She looked at him, mouth slightly agape and Hunter smiled defiantly. "Yours looked better than mine." He said with a shrug. She went to go for a bite of his, but he stopped her by putting a hand on her forehead.
"This is so not fair!" Arabella squealed as she struggled against his hand. She knew that she probably looked like an idiot but she didn't care. Arabella was happy to be with Hunter and she was comfortable with him, so she knew that he probably wouldn't make fun of her. Even if she did look like an idiot. Arabella stopped struggling and she pouted. Her eyes turned up to look at him and she gave him the puppy eyes. "You are so horrible to me"
"See?" Hunter said, pointing to the puppy eyes. "That's not fair. I can't resist you even when you don't have puppy eyes. How do you expect me to do so when you do?" He handed her the rest of his sundae and leaned back, wrapping his arms around her. "You are going to be bouncing off the walls, Ellie. So much sugar." He sighed and rolled his eyes a little, turning back to the movie.
Arabella took a bite of her ice cream and she giggled, snorting a little bit in an adorable sort of way. "I know. It'll be fantastic" She said with a laugh and she finished off her ice cream. She grabbed the bowl of gummi worms and she started eating them like they were nothing. Arabella leaned back into Hunter and she looked at the movie but she wasn't really watching it. She had seen that movie so much, it wasn't like she was missing anything. Arabella laid down with her head on Hunter's lap and she ate another gummi worm. She looked up at him with a smile and stuck a worm in her mouth with the other end sticking out as an offer to Hunter.
Hunter looked down at her and laughed, more of a snorty short laugh. He wiggled his eyebrows and leaned down, kissing her tightly on the lips, mostly ignoring the gummi worm being shared between them. When he finally pulled away, he bit off his half and swallowed it with a smile. "I don't want you complaining about not getting enough sleep tonight. It'll have been all your fault." Hunter said, sounding slightly motherly. He turned back to the movie and absentmindedly played with her hair a little, just keeping his hands busy.
"I'll just sleep in tomorrow" Arabella giggled and she closed her eyes as he played with her hair. It was a wonderful feeling. Having her hair played with had always been one of her favorite things. Her siblings used to play with her hair in the Aphrodite cabin, her dad used to play with her hair to put her to sleep when she was a baby, her mother played with her hair all the time when Arabella was visiting her and now Hunter was playing with her hair. It was a relaxing, wonderful thing. Arabella took a breath and she sat up, tugging at her shirt a little bit. "I need to change out of these sweatpants..I'm really warm" she said and she stood up, tugging on the pants. Without thinking about it or caring about it at all, Arabella got a pair of shorts out of her luggage, she pulled off her pants and she tugged the shorts on, adjusting them slightly.
Hunter gasped a little at her lack of modesty. He wasn't sure why he should be surprised at this point. He crossed his legs under him and pulled her back by her waist into his lap. "There is a thing called modesty. It does exist." He said, teasingly as he rubbed her shoulders. "I'm sure it must sound like a foreign concept, but it is a thing." He kissed her neck and pulled her back toward him, so she was leaning up against him.
"Meh. Who needs modesty?" Arabella shrugged and she closed her eyes, leaning into his kisses. "Modesty is boring" She giggled and she placed her hands on his thighs. She could feel all of the sugar in her body but Hunter's hands and kisses were calming her down a little bit. "Mmm..so, since the movie is almost over..what do you want to do next?" she asked in a soft voice.
Hunter moved his hands to her back and smiled as he placed kisses along her shoulders. "There is a pool downstairs. It's probably still open." He said quietly. "It's not very modest, but we could go swimming if you like." He ran his hands down her back and to her sides, squeezing gently, making her squirm a little. "We can just stay in and watch another movie. Or I can go swimming. I'm sure Tiffany would love to join me." He teased, kissing her slightly behind her ear.
"The bitch" Arabella muttered and she giggled at the feeling of his lips behind her ear. "Mmm...let's go swimming. That sounds like fun" She said with a nod. Arabella pulled away from him so that she could turn around and look at him. She kissed him lightly, leaning into him and she slid off of the bed, walking over to her suitcase and pulling out her bikini. "I'll be back" She gave him a wink then walked into the bathroom, closing the door.
Hunter chuckled and walked to his bag. He yanked out his trunks and set them on the bed as he stripped down. "So, you're willing to change shorts in front of me," He slipped them on and stood by the door to the bathroom. "But you won't change into a bikini in front of me." He leaned on the threshold a little and smiled. She reemerged from the bathroom and he grabbed her by the hips, pulling her in and kissing her. "Mmm...You're pretty." He said with a smile.
"You're hot" Arabella said with a little giggle and she leaned into him. It felt good to have Hunter say that to her and hold her like that when she was wearing a bikini. So much of her was exposed and Hunter made her feel good about herself. She kissed him, slipping her arms around his neck. "I hope that no one is at the pool. I don't want to deal with annoying teenagers" She joked.
Hunter smiled and sighed happily. "You ready, honey bunch?" He asked with a chuckle as he grabbed her hand. She nodded and he kissed her hand before leading her out the door. He slipped their room key in his pocket and walked to the elevator. They got in and Hunter pressed the 'L' button. He kissed her cheek and ran his thumb across the back of her hand as they waited for the doors to open again. When the door opened they stepped out and walked to the pool. Hunter pulled off his shirt quickly and leapt into the empty pool, curling into a cannonball and making a huge splash.
Arabella squeaked and she jumped away from the water as it splashed up around him. She giggled, holding her sweater around herself and watching as Hunter's head popped back up and he looked at her with a grin on his face. Arabella slid her sweater on and she adjusted her top before walking over to the side of the pool and she sat down, sticking her feet in. "It's nice that it's just us here. If we decide to make out, no one is going to give us weird looks" She giggled.
Hunter smiled and swam toward her. "We might as well do it before someone comes in." He said with a chuckle as he stood between her legs, placing his hands on her thighs and his lips on hers. She wrapped her legs around his waist and kissed him tightly, running her fingers through his hair. Hunter ran his tongue across her lips as he lifted her up and walked deeper into the pool, making holding her up a little easier. That was when he heard the door open and people gasping.
Arabella let out a sigh and she put her head on his shoulder but she didn't let go of him. She didn't turn around to see who was there but she knew who she didn't want to see and that was a bunch of teenage girls that were going to spend too much time here, fixing their hair and giggling over at Hunter, checking him out. She would have no privacy with him. Arabella sighed and she looked up at Hunter. "Who is it?" she asked him softly, keeping her back to the entrance.
Hunter waved nervously at Tiffany and her friends as they walked into the pool area, followed by a maid replacing the towels. "It's Tiffany and some other girls." Hunter said to Arabella, in merely a whisper. Tiffany waved back and then turned to her friends, giggling quietly.
"You're the guy who bought all the food, right?" She asked with a raised eyebrow. She pulled off her cover to reveal a very small string bikini that left not much to the imagination. She looked at Hunter as she adjusted it and then slowly walked into the water. Hunter nodded and looked back at Arabella, wishing a little that she would let go of him.
"Yep. That's me." Hunter said, shortly. He put his hands on her thighs and pinched and tickled until she finally let go.
Arabella looked over at Tiffany and she took a breath, fliddling with her fingers a little bit. Tiffany's friends were giving her looks that made her feel pretty uncomfortable. Tiffany was looking at Hunter, ignoring Arabella completely. Seeing Tiffany in that tiny bikini was making Arabella feel very self conscious. Tiffany was a good looking girl and seeing her looking so confident made Arabella fold her arms across herself nervously.
"How long are you in town for?" Tiffany asked, moving ever so slightly closer to Hunter. Arabella looked up at Hunter and she let out a sigh. She knew that Hunter would never do anything but it still made her feel anxious and a little ticked off to see this girl flirting with Hunter so much. Arabella shivered and she got goose bumps on her arms.
"I'll be in the hot tub" She told Hunter softly and she climbed out of the pool and walking over to the hot tub and slipping in.
Hunter frowned a little at Arabella as she left before turning back to Tiffany who had moved even closer and had a satisfied smile on her face. Hunter backed away a little and cleared his throat. "Just the night, I think. We'll be leaving tomorrow." Hunter said with a nod, looking her in the eye. She moved in a way that attempted to accentuate her body's features and draw Hunter's eyes to them, but Hunter resisted. He swam around her and started walking toward the stairs out of the pool. One of Tiffany's friends stood in his way and put her hand on his chest. Hunter backed away quickly, turning around only to be met by Tiffany again.
"Do you workout?" She said, placing her hands on his arms. "You seem like you workout. Maybe some heavy lifting?" She said quietly, nodding over toward Arabella.
"I don't really workout." Hunter said, missing the blatant jab at Arabella. "I'm just very active." He said, pulling away from her and rubbing his arms. "Do you?" He asked, not recognizing that she was hitting on him.
"Are you kidding?" She said, rolling her eyes. She turned around and lifted her butt into the air. "You don't get an ass like this without working out."
Arabella looked over at Hunter with Tiffany and her friends. She took a breath and slid down into the hot tub, closing her eyes and trying to focus on the hot water. She didn't like that Tiffany was with Hunter. She didn't like that Tiffany was pretty much wearing nothing. This was the first time that Arabella was actually aware of the fact that Hunter could leave her if he wanted, if he found someone better. When they were at camp was the only time she ever saw girls flirt with him and he was a hunter at that point, she had nothing to be jealous of. Now, however, he was in the pool with an attractive girl and they were talking about their work outs. Arabella looked down at her stomach for a minute and sighed. Maybe she would start running again when they got home. Why wasn't Hunter leaving the pool? Arabella was a little ticked off about that.
"So, what time are you leaving tomorrow? We should do something together" Tiffany said in a suggestive voice and she brushed her fingers across his chest.
Hunter swallowed hard and backed into the wall before sitting down on the edge, trying to stay away from her. "Pretty early. Not much of a chance to do anything." He said, looking down at her as she put her hands on his legs. Hunter stood up quickly and cleared his throat. "It's a shame. You seem...like a...enjoyable...personality." He lied before walking over to the hot tub and sitting down next to Arabella. He could already feel his body relax. "Hey, beautiful." Hunter said quietly with a smile as he wrapped an arm around her and kissed her cheek.
"Oh, there's plenty of time." Tiffany said as she sat down close to Hunter, pressing her chest against his arm. Hunter moved away a little and closed his eyes, wishing this were over. He just wanted to relax. He hoped he could do that here, but he was wrong. He moved his hand to Arabella's leg and gave it a loving squeeze before drawing an 'I' and then a heart and then a 'U' on her leg.
He gulped and then looked over at how uncomfortable she was. He patted her leg again and then started to write a letter at a time. "Do you want to l-" He was interrupted when Tiffany managed to take his hand away and hold them in hers.
"You've got big strong hands." She said, gently blowing on the palm of his hands. Hunter tried to pull them away, but her grip held strong. He wanted to push her down and run off, but making a fuss and being mean to a girl was not on his to do list.
Arabella couldn't take it anymore. The more and more Tiffany talked, the angrier and angrier Arabella got. She wanted to smack that girl so hard. Having Hunter sit next to her was calming her down a little bit but she was still pissed off.
"I'm sure that you're really good with your hands" Tiffany said, almost breathing it and she placed Hunter's hand on her own thigh. This was the last straw for Arabella. She couldn't stand it anymore. She knew that Hunter was probably feeling uncomfortable and Arabella was furious.
"Listen, bitch. You're going to get your hands off of my man and you're going to go away, unless you really want to see how great of a fist I can make" Arabella snapped at Tiffany and she glared over at her. Tiffany was looking at her, stunned, like she didn't really expect Arabella to say anything like that. Soon enough though, Tiffany composed herself and she looked over at Arabella with a cocky look on her face.
"I'm not scared of you." She said, almost in a mocking sort of voice. Arabella sat up a little and leaned across Hunter so that she could look in Tiffany's eyes.
"You should be" Arabella hissed then she stood up, grabbing Hunter's hand and tugging him out of the hot tub with her.
Hunter followed obediently, drying off quickly and slipping his shirt on. It clung to his body and made him a little cold as they rushed through the lobby. He, honestly, felt like he got in trouble. Arabella was uncomfortable and Hunter could tell, but he couldn't bring himself to leave. He felt like that would be rude. When they got onto the elevator, Hunter took the towel from around his waist and lightly put it over Arabella's shoulders. "Sorry." He said quietly, shivering slightly.
Arabella was still furious when they walked into the elevator. She knew that the threat might have been a little uncalled for and she also knew that she would never do anything like that. but she wanted Tiffany to think that she would. She wanted Tiffany to think that Arabella was not someone to be messed with. Arabella sighed softly when she felt the towel around her shoulders and she gingerly reached a hand up to hold them closed. Hunter said that he was sorry and she didn't really know how to respond at first. Arabella was a little bit ticked off at him but it was nothing big. She let out a little sigh. "It's okay" She said in the same quiet voice as him, not looking over at him.
Hunter took a deep breath and nodded softly before studying the pool of water collecting at his feet. "Umm...Well, never mind." He said, waving it away. Arabella gave him a look that said, 'Tell me or I will bite your face off,' and Hunter nodded again, feeling regretful of the whole situation. "Am I in trouble?" He asked quietly, putting a sort of kicked puppy look on his face. He hated fighting with Arabella and he hated when there would be awkwardness or discomfort between them. He glanced briefly at her before studying the ground again. He really didn't want to be in trouble.
Arabella looked up at him and the look on his face and she sighed. She didn't want to fight with him either and the last thing that she wanted was to go up to the hotel room that only had one bed and go to sleep angry. "No" Arabella said softly and she took a step closer to him, wanting to feel closer to him even if she was a little bit annoyed with him. "I just...why did you leave the pool? Or tell her to back off or something? Especially when she was insulting me and practically molesting you"
"She was insulting you?!" Hunter said, feeling angry now. He didn't notice her insult Arabella at all. He clenched his fists and felt the urge to run down there and yell at Tiffany. The elevator doors opened and Hunter took a deep breath, unclenching his fists and taking Arabella's hand. "I'm sorry. I just...I wanted to swim. I was hoping I would be able to, but then she showed up and I tried to continue, but she kept messing with me and I really didn't want to be mean to her, I guess I could have, but I would have felt bad and whenever she touched me I pulled away or at least tried to pull away, but I don't like being mean and I thought it would have been mean, you know?" He said all in one breath, finally arriving at their room. He felt bad for everything that had gone on in the pool. He looked over at her and sighed before studying the ground again, wanting to sit down, but unable due to the wetness of his swimsuit.
Arabella walked over to her suitcase and she pulled out a pair of sweat pants and a loose tee shirt. With a sigh, she walked over to Hunter and kissed his cheek. "It's okay, Hunter" She said softly and she chewed on her lip. "I'm going to get changed" She said with a nod and she walked towards the bathroom, closing it behind her. As soon as the door was closed, she dropped the towel and looked in the mirror, down at her thighs and her stomach. Heavy lifting, that's what Tiffany had said. Tiffany was a very small girl and the way she talked about her work outs made Arabella want to jump onto a treadmill. After a moment, Arabella pulled off the wet bikini and tugged on her loose clothes.
Hunter changed into a pair of pajama pants and waited for Arabella to leave the bathroom before hanging up his wet clothing in the shower. He reemerged and looked over at Arabella. He could tell that he hurt her, but he wasn't sure how to fix it. "Hey, Ellie? I..." He took a deep breath and walked over to her, wrapping his arms around her and hugging her. "I'm really sorry. I really want to make it up to you, somehow, but I don't know where to begin." He held her tighter, feeling so glad that she was even talking to him. "What do you want me to do? I will do anything." He said, pulling away so that he could look her in the eyes.
Arabella looked up at Hunter with big eyes. She didn't really know what to say to him at that point. She was so upset but she was mostly upset with Tiffany. Arabella was happy to have his arms around her. It calmed her down. It held her to the ground. She took a breath and looked up at him. "Can we just..lay in bed or something?" She asked softly. She didn't really want Hunter to do anything to make it up to her. She just wanted to curl up in bed with him.
"Absolutely." Hunter said with a nod before scooping her up into his arms and setting her down on the bed. He laid down close next to her and looked into her radiant blue eyes. "I'm really really sorry." He said quietly, putting his forehead against hers. Hunter felt so bad. He didn't even do anything, but he felt terrible. He wrapped his arms around her tightly and held her close, never wanting to leave her again. He didn't want to look at another girl ever again. He loved Arabella and nothing else.
Arabella closed her eyes for a moment, calming down her nerves and trying to get back to a place where she was happy and content. She was in a hotel room with the man of her dreams. Everything had to get better soon, right? Arabella slowly opened her eyes and she looked up at him again. "It's okay, Hunter. It's not your fault" She said softly. It sucked to know that he felt bad. Even if he didn't say it exactly, she could hear it in his voice. "I'm sorry I lost my temper"
"No. Don't be sorry." Hunter said, shaking his head. "That contagious slut deserved it." He said, waving toward the door. He hesitated a moment before kissing her lightly on the lips. "I never thanked you. For saving me from her and her friends." He closed his eyes and kissed her tightly on the lips, tasting her emotion. "Thank you." He sighed and ran a hand up and down her arm. "I love you more than anything. You're perfect and I love you. And not a day will go by without me being surprised at how beautiful you are."
Arabella closed her eyes again, taking a deep breath. She didn't know if hunter knew just how much those words meant to her in that moment. Arabella was feeling so low about her looks because of one little jab from some girl and to hear Hunter tell her that he loved her, she was perfect and that she was beautiful overwhelemed her. His words comforted her and even though she tried really hard not too, a few tears slid down her cheeks. She was just so full of so many emotions in that moment, she couldn't really stop herself from crying a little bit. "I love you too" She finally breathed after a few moments of silence.
Hunter gasped when he saw her tears fall down her cheeks. "Ellie," He started, cradling her cheeks in his hands and kissing away her tears. "Don't listen to what Tiffany said. She's not important. She works at a hotel and gets kicks by having meaningless flings with random guests." He kissed the corner of her eye. "You own a major fashion company. You make money every time you breath. You're in love with a very handsome man. You're more beautiful than her ad her friends combined. She's small beans. You are amazing." He said, running his thumbs across her eyes, gently wiping the tears pricking at her eyes.
Arabella looked up at him for a moment then moaned softly. "Oh, Hunter..you're not making this any better" She said with a watery giggle. She snuggled in closer to him and she took a slightly shaky breath. "I'm sorry, I just..I don't know" She whispered and she wiped at her eyes. "I hate crying" She muttered and put her face into his neck. There had been so much that happened, she didn't even really know how she felt yet. Her emotions were all over the place.
Hunter rubbed her back and felt her tears dampen his shoulder. "Shh...It's okay." He said quietly. "Would it help if you were mad at me?" He asked quietly. He just wanted to see her happy. Everything that he had said was true, but he hated seeing her cry. She looked adorably cute when she cried, but he still didn't like seeing her unhappy. "Come on. Look at me." He said, raising her chin to look at him. "You are not fat. You are not ugly. You are not heavy. You're beautiful and perfect and I love the way my arms fit around you and I love how easy it is to pick you up and carry you around." Hunter said before kissing her lightly on the lips.
'You're too sweet to me" Arabella said softly against his lips but she loved what Hunter was saying to her. She loved how it made her feel, like she really was beautiful and perfect. Arabella took a little breath and she leaned into him, kissing his top lip softly. It was nice to just be in the bed with him like that. It was relaxing and her whole body just wanted to stay in that bed. "You really are amazing, Hunter" She whispered and looked up at him.
Hunter smiled softly, still feeling bad for this whole situation. "You are too." he said before kissing her lightly on the nose. He never wanted to be without her and he hoped that she knew that. That he could never love anyone else lik he loves her. "I'm never going to leave you, Ellie. I promise." he kissed her on the lips and gently rubbed her arm, dancing his fingers up and down.
Arabella smiled softly up at him and she kissed his nose lightly. "I'm going to hold you to that promise" She teased in a softly voice and she cleared her throat. Arabella pulled away from him and she rubbed her hands together. "Lay down" She said and Hunter looked at her with a slightly confused look before he lowered himself onto his stomach. Arabella took a breath and she scooted over, sitting down on him lightly and she started to rub his back. If she was doing something like this then she wouldn't be thinking about other things and they could go to sleep happy.
Hunter closed his eyes and could only think about how good it felt to have Arabella rubbing his back. "Ellie, you don't mmm...Have to...Do this." He mumbled into the mattress. He didn't want her to be upset about this. She had every right to be, but he really didn't want her to. Hunter felt bad enough for the both of them. He turned his head and looked at her in the corner of his eye. "I should be rubbing your back. I'm the big dumb idiot." He said with a sigh, closing his eyes again. "I really am sorry, Ellie. I never wanted to hurt you."
"You're not a big dumb idiot, Hunter." Arabella said softly as she rubbed his back. She slid her hands up his back and she started to rub his shoulders. It felt good to have something to do with her hands. It was relaxing. Arabella took a deep breath and she closed her eyes briefly. She was still upset about the whole night but she was more upset with Tiffany at that moment. Tiffany's words had cut deep and even though Hunter had hurt her a little bit, it was nothing compared to how Tiffany had hurt her. "I don't want us to go to bed feeling bad or angry or guilty, okay? Let's just...talk about all of this tomorrow" she said softly.
Hunter nodded softly. "Sorry." He said, burying his face in the mattress again. Hunter felt so bad about this whole thing and going to bed not feeling guilty wasn't going to be possible for him tonight, but he wanted to do anything to make Arabella happy. He turned his head and kissed her hand for a second before putting his face into the mattress again. "So, I thought that we could go check out the arch and walk around a little bit before we leave. We're headed to Kansas City next. Does that sound okay?"
Arabella let out a soft sigh and she continued to rub his back. She brushed her hands down his back and she started rubbing circles in the small of his back. Arabella knew that Hunter was still beating himself up. She could feel it. She didn't want him to be upset or feel guilty. Arabella let out a sigh. "Yeah, that sounds good. We can talk about that tomorrow too though, okay? Let's just...try to relax tonight" Arabella said softly and she leaned down so that she was laying ontop of him and she placed her hands on his sides. She placed gentle kisses along the nape of his neck, moving her lips down his skin towards his shoulder.
Hunter sighed and closed his eyes. He was comfortable and he loved having her so close to him, but he still felt bad. She wanted to relax tonight though. He wanted what she wanted. "I love you, Ellie." He said quietly, his eyelids feeling heavy. He was forcing himself to relax, but it was slowly taking less effort. He turned his head and felt her lips against his one more time before slowly drifting to sleep.