Just When I Needed You Most (Sequel to Forever & Always)

Chapter 50

ALLI POV: Hunter kisses me over and over again. Everything just feels so right in this moment. His hands cradle my head, pulling me in even closer. He stops for a moment and looks in my eyes and smiles. 

"Alli, I think I'm in love with you." He says, grabbing my hand and holding it tight. 

"I think I'm in love with you too." I say, trying to act cute. I think it works, because he's giving me the look that says it all. We sit back for a minute and laugh at our selves for getting that heated, but we don't apologize. I'm just glad he let it stop there, and didn't attempt to take it any further. 

"Tell me something I don't know about you." I say, as we both eat a bit of candy. 

"You know like everything about me." He replies

"Something like deep and dark that you've told nobody." I say.

"My Dad used to abuse me, after my mom died. I mean it was just for a few years while he mourned but... I don't know. It still left an impact on me." He says, looking down at his hands.

"I'm so sorry. I had no idea Hunter..." 

"Okay, now your turn. Tell me something I don't know about you Alli. I'm pretty sure I know everything about you by now." He laughs.

"Oh really? I'm adopted." I say, awaiting his reaction. 

"There's no way... You guys are like twins."

"He is my biological Dad, but he put me up for adoption a few hours after I was born, because my mother died. He didn't think he had the capability to raise me right. I went through multiple foster homes where people would neglect me and beat me. So my social worker contacted him, and when I was around 6 years old, he adopted me back." I say. Hunter takes a minute to soak it in. 

"How'd your Mom die?" He asks, staring into my eyes. 

"Car wreck. It's kind of ironic, because they were driving back from this tribute concert for my Dad's first wife who he was married to for like 20 years. Apparently she was a really good singer and they were head over heels for eachother till the day she died." I say, looking at the lantern.

"Wait... Your dad's name is Tim McGraw right?"

"Yep!" I say, giving a bit of a somber laugh. 

"Wow... His first wife was Faith Hill, if I'm not wrong. Country king and queen." He says giving me a nudge. 

"Yeah, I guess so. I never knew her name though. He never really talks about her at all." I say. 

"My parents were at the benefit concert that was bombed." He says. 

"What benefit concert?" 

"Your Dad never told you? There was a bomb set underneath the stage at their benefit concert. The bombers intention was to kill your Dad, but your Dad walked away from the bombs right as they were detonated. Then, the bomber came out with a gun and shot everybody who wasn't killed by the bomb, including Faith. There was this whole big thing about it... They actually still talk about it a lot. They found out the bomber, and the one that killed her was actually her ex-fiance. He wanted to kill your dad for revenge. How have you not heard any of this?" He says. My hand covers my mouth, as I think about how much my dad has been through. Hunter pulls out his iPhone and goes on youtube and finds a few videos of the two of them. She's gorgeous.

The video is of them sitting in a room full of candles. Dad's holding a guitar while she sings along. They are incredible together. 

"You know what, if I could just find something to play, cause she can sing anything and I can only play like that much" He says holding his two fingers close together. "I used to play guitar and I used to play rhythm on everything we did on stage until I could afford to hire one." Dad says. Faith interrupts

"You're good!" She says reassuringly, he shoots her a look, as she starts laughing.

"You don't lie very well." He says.

"I really don't" She says, as Dad begins to strum the guitar.

"Baby don't leave me. Please turn around and do me a favor, before my world comes crashin' down." They harmonize so effortlessly. It's beautiful. 

"Hold on. You just sing harmony on the chorus."

"Why?" She says laughing. "I can't help it. I'm just sitting her doin' nothin'. I wanna sing." She says.

"Well you can hum or something in between the notes but..." He says.

"Are you serious?" She says, sounding kind of mad with him.

"Don't screw my melody up." He says. She laughs and lets go of whatever anger may have been emerging. 

"Baby don't leave me..."

"I can tell you didn't sing in church very much" She says while he plays. He smiles and continues singing.

"Please turn arou-" He stops playing, because he screwed up his own melody. Faith starts laughing so hard that she might fall off her chair. 

"See, now she's got me all flustered." He says, trying to defend himself as Faith continues to laugh.

"It doesn't take me to screw your melody up. It's you!" She says, still laughing.

"Well... I make a living out of screwing melodies up, thank you." He says smiling at her.

"You're supposed to be getting the energy from this room. This is Hank's house, remember? Let him play through your fingers." She says, revealing a smile. Dad begins to play around with chords, till he finds the right one.

"I wish I was in the land of cotton. Old times are not forgotten. Look away, look away, look away Dixie land." The harmonize in parts then Faith starts laughing.

"I think I like you, you make me laugh." She says as the video cuts out. He must've really loved her. 

I look at my phone to see that it's almost midnight. 

"Oh my gosh. We better start heading back." I say. 

"Alright!" Hunter says as we grab everything and start walking back to his truck. A song comes on the radio and I can tell it's Dad's. But somebody else is singing with him on the track. I can't tell who it is. 

"This is their duet I think." Hunter says, as if he's reading my mind. 

"Faith and him did duets?"

"You saw the video. Of course they did. Nobody would hide that ability away." He says. He turns it up. 

"The reasons that I can't stay don't have a thing to do with being in love. And I understand that lovin a man shouldn't have to be this rough. You ain't the only one who feels like this world left you far behind. I don't know why you gotta be Angry All The Time." They sing. It's beautiful. 

We pull up to the house and my heart stops. There's an ambulance sitting in the driveway along with Audrey's car. She runs out to me and Hunter. 

"Where's Dad?" I ask in a panic. She hugs me, not answering any questions. "Audrey! Where is he?" I say, this time with more urgency in my voice. 

"He's gone Alli."