Lieutenant Casanova

Chapter 11 - Paige

This week was extremely busy for me making it go by fast. Hunter has been stopping by in the mornings on his way to work so we could have coffee together, and in the evenings he comes by with take-out and stays with me until I finish for the night. He then follows me back to my apartment and walks me to my door, making sure I get home safe.

Dillon never did anything remotely close to that when we were together. The nights when I would work late, Dillon would take that opportunity to hang out with his friends. Now that I think about it, it was more likely he was with other women than with his friends. It boils my blood just thinking about how dumb I was not to see the signs that he was never serious about us. It does not matter anymore. I'm done with him. I have my career to focus on now, and I have Hunter.

Hunter stayed true to his word to let me set the pace for our budding relationship. That does not mean, however, that he has not done everything he can to show me how serious he is about us. There is always a text message from him waiting for me when I wake up in the morning, and he texts me just before I go to bed. Throughout the day, he will call and text just to tell me he is thinking about me.

One day this week, when Maddie and I were busy with a fitting for a bridal party of fourteen, Hunter and Nick came by and brought us lunch. I was in the backroom when they walked in, but Maddie was out front to greet them. When I returned to the main area, I saw some of the bridesmaids were shamelessly throwing themselves at Hunter. I am sure they would have done the same with Nick except Maddie had her face stuck to his letting them know he was off-limits.

Hunter had a smile on his face as he was trying to put some space between him and the sea of barracudas. When he saw me, he excused himself and quickly walked over to me. As soon as he reached me, he scooped me up in his arms and kissed me, sending a message to the hungry little girls in the room there was only one person he was interested in. Maddie later told me, the disappointment on their faces and their jaws dropping to the floor was priceless. I wish I had a camera in the store to record their reactions.

He tried to apologize for those women flirting with him, but I did not let him finish because there was nothing for him to apologize for. Even though technically we are not committed to each other, I know I can trust him to be faithful to me. He has not given me any reason not to. And there is nothing I want more than to make this work between us, but I have to take things slow and do this right. He has a great relationship with my family, and it is just as important to me as it is to him that it remains that way.

The night of our high school reunion had finally arrived. Tori and Maddie insisted that I get ready at my dad's house since they wanted Hunter and me to take pictures in the gazebo before we left. I was still feeling a bit anxious about going, not because this is my first official date with Hunter, but because I would be seeing the same people I had hoped to never run into again for the rest of my life.

Tori and Maddie help me with my hair and makeup. You would think Hunter and I are getting married tonight from how excited they are. Tori put my hair in a loose updo and accented it with a pearl-covered hairpin. Since I normally did not wear a lot of make-up, Maddie made sure to use subtle tones and made me look glamourous without making me look like an eight-year-old playing with her mother's make-up.

They leave my room when they finish to get the gazebo ready for pictures. I take my dress out of the garment bag and slip it on, being careful not to ruin my hair and make-up. My dress is a burgundy satin dress with a halter top and open back. The dress came down to just above my knees with a slit stopping mid-thigh on my left leg. I put on nude stockings and matching burgundy heels. I take one more look at myself in the mirror before pushing down my nerves and heading downstairs to meet Hunter.

As I descend the stairs, I see Hunter standing in the middle of the living room with my family with his back towards me. My dad notices me first and nods to Hunter to turn around. The smile on Hunter's face when he saw me awakened the butterflies in my stomach. He meets me at the bottom of the staircase and wraps his arms around my waist.