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Hunter paused and turned back, unable to stop himself. “I didn’t do it foryou.”
Roger let out a light laugh. “Right, you did it because you owed Cheryse after hitting her with your motorcycle.”
Hunter grunted. “Well, you said you owed me for not going to Trent’s funeral, so I guess we’re even.”
Roger glared at him. “That’s different and you know it.”
“Is it?”
Cheryse cleared her throat. “Please … don’t.”
Hunter didn’t move.
Roger shook his head. “Fine. Hunter, why don’t you just ... take off.”
Hunter didn’t like being dismissed, but he wouldn’t put Reese in a bad position. “No problem.” He turned to Reese. “I’d like you to come tomorrow.”
She didn’t say anything.
He stalked out onto the street and toward his truck; he always kept a pair of workout clothes stashed inside. Without caring that he was in public, he switched from his jean shorts to exercise shorts right there. He switched to a different pair of shoes and took off his shirt. Then he put in his AirPods and connected to his classic rock playlist.
He needed to burn off some energy, and he needed to do it quickly.
Chapter 29
For the rest of the afternoon, Cheryse did her best to work on clients, but she couldn’t pull herself out of this angst. Roger tried to man the front desk, but he didn’t know what he was doing and constantly needed correcting. He got several transactions wrong, and she didn’t have time to train him on all the proper ways to make sure he was recording inventory and sales.
Finally, he threw his hands up and said, “I guess I’m not needed here. I have some clothes to drop off for different cancer centers for children.” He looked around the salon and smiled at the lady waiting. “I don’t doubt Reese has told you,” he told her, “but my work with cancer children and fundraising is amazing.”
If the situation was different and Hunter was there with the beach crew, she knew they would’ve burst out laughing. Until this minute, she had never noticed how arrogant he was about his work. She disliked the bragging way he talked about his fundraising, and it was increasingly getting on her nerves.
By the time her day at the salon was over, she had fixed over twenty mistakes from Roger trying to be “helpful.” Unlike Hunter, he hadn’t planned anything for dinner, and when they walked into her house, he looked around and asked, “What did you have in mind tonight?”
Cheryse felt tired and dejected and guilty, and she was in no mood for Roger and his entitled attitude. “What did you have in mind? You never make dinner. You could’ve made dinner while I was fixing your mistakes at the salon.”
Roger jerked to face her, and a confused look crossed his face. “What?”
“You always talk about wanting to marry me, but when you’re home, would you help with things around the house?”
Roger’s expression turned somber. “Reese, where is this coming from? You’ve never mentioned wanting help around here before. I don’t live with you. You have made it clear that you don’t want that kind of relationship with me. Unless you have changed your mind.” He waggled his eyebrows and leaned in, trying to kiss her.
But she pulled away. “And another thing. Why do you always shove it in people’s faces that you fundraise for cancer kids? It sounds entitled and selfish, and it makes the work I do seem not as important. You’re telling people so they think you look good.”
Roger said nothing for a moment, crossing his arms and looking her up and down. “Is this about Hunter Stone?”
Cheryse turned away from him and moved to the kitchen, still not sure if she wanted to have this discussion. “No. This is about you acting like you’re some kind of savior because you fundraise for cancer wings in hospitals.”
He let out a laugh. “You mean, I fundraise forchildren!”
She grabbed a spoon and one of the yogurts Hunter had bought. Her ankle was aching, but she was pleased that she had been able to handle a full day at work. She was starving, though, and part of her was upset that Roger wasn’t like Hunter, so helpful and willing to have dinner ready. “See, when you brag about it like that, it sort of takes all the goodness out of it.”
“How come I don’t think this is about me and my fundraising, I think it might be about a Stone man.”
Her mind flitted to all the intangibles Hunter had brought to the table over the past three weeks: his help around the salon; the way he worked with customers, flattering them and always making them feel good; and the thoughtful way he anticipated her needs and took care of her. She thought of the look on his face today. Dang it, she had hurt him.
“Clearly, you’re in a bad mental state.” Roger said it like he was a psychology expert. “I think I’ll go. I’ll go back to my little apartment because you don’t want to take our relationship to the next level.”
It was strange to realize her beach crew friends were right. Roger was a master manipulator. She sucked in a long breath and digested this revelation. For so long, she’d been grateful that he seemed stable. She had looked at his job in the same way he had looked at it. Which was ridiculous.
