The Hunter's Angel

Date Night

I didn't move. Not an inch. 

They're watching you. 

They're fucking watching me. A freaking cartel. That's it, I was dead. Officially toast. 

I knew I would end up dying a virgin. 

"Layla, are you okay?" 

I didn't respond. What the hell was I supposed to say? Yeah, I'm totally fine, just waiting to be murdered by a bunch of drug lords. 

"Are they going to kill me?" I blurted out. Ugh, I sounded like an idiot. Yes, that's kind of what they were known for. 

"Angel, nobody's laying a finger on you. I'm not letting that happen. Trust me." His tone was ominous. 

"Am I safe? I mean, can I even leave the house anymore?" 

"As long as one of my guys or I are with you, you'll be fine. For now, I think they're just scoping out, trying to collect some information. They won't risk anything obvious. The last thing they want is an all-out war."

I blew out a deep breath. Breathe, Layla, breathe. I was going to be okay. I had to be. 

"Angel, I didn't mean to freak you out. It's just that the last thing I wanted was for you to be under their radar. One of their guys probably saw me giving you a ride to my place." He let out a sharp curse. "I should have been more fucking careful." 

I think I was more in shock than anything. Maybe that could have explained what came out of my mouth in response. 

"I have a date tonight." 

"What?" 

"I can't stay at my place. I have a date tonight," I repeated slowly. 

I was definitely in shock. 

"Layla, I really don't think that's our main concern - wait, you have a date?" 

I almost laughed. "Don't sound so surprised." 

"Who the fuck do you have a date with," he snapped. 

Woah. That had to be a record mood change. "This guy from my internship, we're going out to dinner in an hour." 

Hunter chuckled humourlessly. "Yeah, you're not going." 

I didn't respond.

Taking my silence as a warning, Hunter affirmed, "Layla, you're staying home. End of discussion." 

 I knew the last thing I should have been doing was going on a date, but something about Hunter being so cocky in his response pushed me to retaliate. 

"You just told me I could go out as long as someone was with me," I stated. "So, call up one of your guys, and they can watch me while I attend to my date. I mean, it's like you said, the drug runners won't cause a scene. What are they gonna do, shoot up a whole restaurant?" 

I seriously had no idea what came over me. Maybe it was the fact that it seemed like shit just kept getting worse, or maybe it was the fact that I secretly liked pushing Hunter's buttons. Maybe, it was just the fact that I had never been on a date in my life, and I was tired of missing out on all of this crap. 

He didn't speak for a moment, and then his voice came through, stern and bitter. "You wanna go out? No problem. I'll just call up one of my guys to walk you to your car, and keep watch outside the restaurant. Sound good?" 

I hesitated. That was way too easy. I was about to question his compliance, but the last thing I wanted to do was look a gift horse in the mouth. "Um, yeah, perfect..." I stammered.