Holding On

Chapter 13 - Plans Are Made

Courtney's POV

We walked down the stairs, hand in hand, Hunter practically leading me along. He gripped my hand firmly yet gently, our fingers laced together. His rough skin was opposite of my soft skin, but my hand seemed to fit perfectly with his.

As we entered the kitchen, I could see John relaxed at the table with his laptop, tapping on it like he had been last evening. But what surprised me was that Alex was standing next to the stove, apparently cooking. The food actually smelled alright and there wasn't any fire. It caused my stomach to growl. "Good morning," Hunter said to the two as we entered.

John looked up from his laptop and smirked at the two of us. "So I've hear," he joked and cast a glance towards Alex. Alex kept his gaze and head down, focusing on the pancakes he was making. He shook his head back and forth now as John talked.

"You know, to keep me from scarring myself for life, you could have had the decency to put a sock in the door," he stated, "or you could have been a bit louder! Anything would have been nice to warn me not to open the door!"

To this, John and Hunter both burst out laughing. My face, I'm sure, was dusted with pink once more. "We didn't do anything," Hunter said as he wiped some tears away, trying to control his laughter.

I looked over at Alex and smiled slightly as I shook my head. Poor kid. However I couldn't help but join in a little bit. "Maybe you should learn to knock before entering," I teased gently.

"I didn't think I would have to knock after last night," he said in defense. "I also didn't think I would find you and Hunter, in bed, together! I just assumed you were sleeping!" He made a gross expression as he moved the pancakes from the pan to a plate.

"Well, you know what they say about assumptions," Hunter said. "They are the mother of all mess ups." Hunter went over to the table and took a seat, relaxing as he did.

John shot a weird look towards Hunter. "Wow. I thought for sure that you were going to say the real version of that."

Hunter gave a huff of amusement then shrugged. "Well, normally I would, but Courtney is here so I need to keep things PG." He glanced over at me and gave me a wink.

Before I could say anything, Alex was at it again. "This is coming from the guy that had her PINNED TO THE BED!"

Hunter was laughing once more. "This is really bothering you, isn't it?" I could tell he was having a lot of fun teasing Alex with this.

Alex looked my way with an almost desperate look. "Courtney, please help me," he begged. "Please control your delinquent."

I crossed my arms. "I don't know if I can since apparently I'm not older than thirteen according to him," I said motioning to Hunter. I looked over at John and rolled my eyes.

He laughed and motioned to the open seat at the table. "Courtney, would like to join me at the adult table while our two children argue?" He asked, joking and chuckling all the while.

"You better watch yourself, O'Connell. She's mine," Hunter said as he cast a glare towards John. He reached over and wrapped his arm around my waist, pulling me over to his side. He held onto me firmly as if someone really were trying to take me away.

John just let out a huff, clearly unfazed by Hunter's threats. "Trust me, Adams. The last thing I want to do is mess with your girl." Clearly Hunter didn't pose much of a threat to John as he was.

Alex came in once more, but this time a plate was held in his hands. "Food's ready," he announced as he set the on the table along with another plate with bacon. "Grab some plates a dig in."