Lieutenant Casanova

Chapter 5 - Paige

"How rough?"

I paused at Hunter's question. I never told my family about what has been happening between me and Dillon after I broke up with him. I knew their protective instincts would kick in and Dillon would end up in the hospital or dead. Well, maybe not dead, but maybe wishing he was. The only ones who know what has been happening are Carter, Connor, Karina, and my other two best friends Nicki and Marisa.

Hunter lifted me off his chest when I did not answer right away. He held my face in his hands and gently stroked my cheeks. His eyes held a softness in them that made my heart melt. This side of Hunter was new to me. Actually, seeing every side of Hunter was new to me, and the way he has interacted with me today made me feel like a shy, nervous teenager again. I swallowed my nervousness before answering him.

"Rough enough to leave bruises but not cause serious damage. Since it was just us in the room and there were no witnesses, it was a 'he said/she said' situation and the police did not know if they should charge him or me. Dillon somehow talked them into not charging either of us and instead, gave us warnings and left." Hunter's arms drop to my hips as he leans back on my couch and closes his eyes. I can tell he was trying to calm himself down after hearing what Dillon did to me.

My arms instinctively reached forward and ran my fingers through his hair to help calm him. He took a deep breath and slowly opened his eyes. He leaned forward and placed a soft, lingering kiss on my forehead. He then looked me in my eyes and pulled my body against his.

"Tell me what happened today." I nodded and just as I opened my mouth to tell him, my phone started ringing. I started to lift myself off Hunter's lap to answer my phone, but he held me tighter and stood from the couch with me still in his arms. I giggled and shook my head at him as he walked us over to my phone on my kitchen table.

"I can walk Hunter."

"Uh, did you not hear me earlier? This is our thing, Paige. I'm not letting you down." I laughed harder as he reached down and grabbed my phone. I thought he was going to give it me to answer but, to my horror, he pressed the button and answered the call. "Hello, Mrs. Jameson's phone. How can I help you?" My eyes went wide as I heard the caller laughing through my phone. Hunter walked us back to the couch as he carried on the conversation with whoever called me. "Yes, she's here...Yes, she's fine now...Ok...See you in a few." He hung up the phone as he sat us down. "That was your dad. They're on their way here."

"What?! Why?!"

"They found out about what happened with your ex." Hunter looked at me apologetically, as if he was the one who told my family about what happened. "Corey and the guys are going out tonight after the barbecue. He decided to call Carter and Connor to ask if they wanted to join them. Carter had told him he couldn't go because he was chasing something down due to what happened with your ex. Corey, of course, told your family."

"And now they're all on their way here," I sighed. Hunter nodded as he gently rubbed my back. I looked around my apartment and let out a long exhale. "I should clean up a little."

"I'll help you," Hunter said as he lifted me off his lap. I suddenly missed the warmth and safety of his arms and almost decide to leave my apartment a mess and sit back on the couch in his arms. I shake that thought from my mind and start picking up my work area. Hunter went to the kitchen and put the food my dad sent over in my refrigerator. He said we could eat after my family left.

Wait. Was he planning on staying longer?

Before I could ask Hunter about his comment, there was a knock on my door. Did my family run every red light to get here? I opened my door, and my dad and siblings barreled their way inside. My dad immediately swooped me into a tight hug and then held me out in front of him checking to see if I had any injuries on my body. After he was satisfied that I was physically ok, my brothers sandwiched me in a tight hug, with Maddie and Tori joining seconds later.