Temporary Bliss

Chapter 9

Nine.

V e r a.

I shakily walked the narrow streets to Hunter’s vast house, gripping the photography journal in my hands. It was mostly empty, containing only three photos: the one with the sunflowers and Hunter, the one with the two sisters from the park, and a photo of Nate, Diana, and Hunter walking together from that same day in the park. It was three more than I had before and I thought that it was good enough to put in the book.

The incident from the night before had replayed in my mind over and over again, like a broken record, stuck in one place. I could still feel the heat from Hunter’s hands as they ran through my unruly hair. I could still feel his soft lips moving against mine.

I could still feel the riot going on somewhere inside my stomach, toying with my nerves. Making me crazy. And I can definitely still see Diana’s cruel eyes boring a hole through me.

 Like I didn’t have enough bullshit to deal with.

The sun beat down against me as I tried to hurry to their house. It was really hot today and I regretted wearing these stupid long black cargo pants and converse.

I knocked on the door, grateful to see that a maid answered instead of Hunter. I didn’t want to see him right now. I was still flustered about the whole thing.

“Can you tell me where Mrs. Reid is?” I asked the maid. She had short chestnut brown hair and had to be at least in her early thirties. I couldn’t imagine why someone so young would want to clean up after a bunch of rich people, but I wasn’t one to question. Everyone needed to make a living somehow.

“She is in a meeting right now. But she should be done in about,” She glanced at the watch that hung from her small wrist and looked back at me apologetically.

“About an hour.” Her voice came out in a very delicate British accent. I almost wanted to make her keep talking. I smiled politely and glanced at my watch that was dangling freely from my wrist. It was just after two. I couldn’t blame Tara. She had the demands of keeping up with a big company that was based in a small town. It wasn’t her fault.

“You’re welcome to stay if you’d like. Master Reid is in, you can visit him if you’d like.” I knitted my brow in confusion, and I guess she must’ve understood because she giggled in response.

“Master Hunter. He is in his quarters, outside. The barn. Take a visit.” She said. I handed her my photography journal to take it and keep it for me. She took it and ushered me towards the back door. I couldn’t exactly say no, so I quietly obliged and walked slowly out to the barn.

Everything was exactly the same. The stables were off to the side and the barn and the oak tree sat to the right. The paint on the barn looked even brighter in the blistering sun. I pulled my hair back into a ponytail as I walked slowly to the barn. This time, I knocked softly and listened. But there was no answer.

“Hunter?” My voice traveled through the barn. I walked further in and noticed that no one was in here. The air was heavy and musty, with a warm draft coming through. I could feel the beads of sweat dripping down my back, but I continued walking through the barn to the back door.

When I stepped out, my eyes landed on a huge, very inviting pool. The water was glistening, promising a cool refreshing feeling, and my body ached to just fall in. But I had to restrain myself. Summer was never my favorite season.

The sound of giggling made my wandering eyes snap towards the sound. I looked around, not quite finding the source. I relaxed a little. Maybe the heat was getting to me. The giggling sounded again. This time I knew I wasn’t far.