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No. He wouldn’t undo the ground he’d gained with her in the past week. She was in a relationship with Roger, and he didn’t want to tick her off. “I’m going to head to the hardware store before going to the inn. What can I help you with?”
She shook her head like she could dislodge the same feelings he had. At least, he hoped she had those feelings. “Okay. Um, nothing. Maybe just walk me in so I can get settled.”
He followed her inside and locked everything up.
She went to the kitchen and grabbed herself a glass of water, drinking it down. Then she got another and held it out for him. “You’re not drinking enough. I noticed that today at the salon.”
Surprised that she’d noticed anything about him, he took the glass and sipped from it. “Thanks.”
Her eyes had taken on a guarded look, and she watched him as he drank.
He put the glass in the sink. “Can I tell you something?"
She nodded.
He swallowed, not sure how to say it. "Sometimes, I actually don't think Trent's gone."
She cocked an eyebrow.
He put up his hand. "Let me explain, I just don't feel like he's really gone. Like he can't be gone. And, I can't tell if that's the twin thing or if it's something else."
"I could see how your feelings about Trent would be hard to navigate. I think that would be normal."
He sighed. "It's like, some days, I just hope he'll show up, ya know. Have some wild story about what happened to him and … then he'll just be back." He blinked, feeling like an idiot.
"That makes sense, cause I think that would be awesome."
He pulled back on his emotion. "Okay, I’ll be off. Just call if you need something.”
“Hunter …”
He paused. “Yeah.”
“I think I will go treasure hunting with you.”
A smile flashed across his face. “Trent would be happy we are treasure hunting together.”
“I know.” She smiled. “But I’m not doing it for him. I’m doing it for you.”
Every part of Hunter wanted to grab this woman and kiss her, hold her, tell her to forget the snobby fundraiser and they could be together. But his SEAL instincts told him to hold back. This op needed more time.
He winked at her and opened the door. “Good. We’ll start tomorrow.”
Chapter 22
Cheryse lay in bed that night and stared at the full moon shining through her window. She was filled with nervous jitters about going treasure hunting with Hunter. Which was ridiculous—they had gone treasure hunting literally thousands of times when they were kids. Sure, they had always been with Trent, but she and Hunter had been friends for what seemed like forever.
Her phone buzzed, and she rolled over, annoyed with herself that she hadn’t turned off her notifications.
The text was from Roger.Are you too tired to talk?
She didn’t respond. She didn’t want him to know she’d even seen it. If he knew she was awake, he would be offended that she didn’t talk to him.
No sooner had she put it back down than it buzzed again. Bracing herself, she reached for it. To her surprise, this text was from Hunter. It was a meme of a joke he’d told her years ago, a stupid joke with a guy throwing a steak at someone. Trent and Hunter used to laugh for hours about it. She would laugh just because they were laughing. Now she grinned as a surge of warmth filled her. She hearted the meme.
It looked like he was typing, and she waited to see what he would say.
Want to talk?
