Preyed (Hunted: Book Two)

Chapter Eleven

    I laugh as Seth spins me around, his arms around my waist.

"This means I win, right?" he asks, his lips at my ear.

He sets me down and I turn around and curl my fingers in his hair.

"I believe it does, Clearwater. So, what would you like as your reward?" I ask.

Seth bites his lip, thinking his answer over.

"I don't know. I mean I have a lot of options..."

His face brightens as an idea comes to him and his thumb traces circles on my hip.

"I know what I want," he says.

"Oh, yeah?"

"A date."

I pull away to make sure that I heard him right. There's a bright smile on his face.

"A date?" I ask.

"Yep, a date. Just the two of us. What do you think?"

I'm silent as I think it over. Our last date didn't exactly go as planned due to the appearance of Asher and the licking of my face. I shudder at the memory of Asher's tongue on my cheek. A date would be nice, and I did promise a reward to the winner. I smile at Seth before bringing him in for a kiss.

"A date it is."

We are interrupted by the sound of my phone ringing. Seth groans as he continues his assault on my neck.

"Ignore it," he says, pressing his lips to mine again.

"I can't. It could be important," I say.

"It's not. Whoever it is can leave a voicemail."

I laugh before pulling away from Seth, he frowns before pulling me into his arms again.

"Hello?" I say.

"Mia?"

"Hunter?" I ask.

There is a silence on the other end of the phone like he can't believe that I called him Hunter instead of dad.

"I see my brother has wasted no time in making you forget who raised you," he says.

"He didn't. It's just that you're not exactly my fa..."

"I raised you. Therefore, I am exactly your father. It doesn't matter though because I am on my way to La Push."

"A. You weren't there to raise me, mom and Gabriel were. B. What? Why?"

"Because my brother had decided that he wants custody of my daughter and I would like to know why. I'm boarding the plane now and should be there in a few hours."

"Okay. I guess I'll see you then," I say.

"Goodbye, Mia."

"Bye."

I hang up and Seth brushes my hair out of my face.

"You okay?"

"I honestly don't know. Hunter is coming to the reservation."

"Hunter as in your dad Hunter? The guy who hasn't stepped foot on the reservation in sixteen years?" Seth asks.

"Yeah, apparently Gabriel petitioned the court for legal custody of me."

"Can he dot that?"

"I have no idea. Either way, I have to go deal with this which means our date can't happen tonight. I'm sorry, Seth."

Seth nods, "It's fine. I have patrol tonight anyway, go deal with your dads and then we'll go on our date some other time. I already told you, I'll wait as long as it takes."

He kisses my forehead and I smile at him before heading inside to ask Esme if I can borrow a car.

"Hey, Esme?" I call out.

She emerges from the kitchen with a smile on her face.

"Yes, Mia. Is everything alright?"

"Everything's fine. I just wanted to know if I could borrow a car. I need to head back to the reservation to talk to Gabriel about something. I would have gotten a ride with Seth, but has patrol so he's not taking his car."

"Sure, Mia. Just give me one moment."

"Thanks, Esme."

I follow Esme to the garage and she grabs a set of keys before handing them to me.

"A gift from me and Carlisle."

I raise an eyebrow at her and hit the button, listening for the chirp of a car. I hear it and make my way past the other cars. My mouth hits the floor when I come to a stop.

"No way. You guys didn't, " I say.

"Do you not like it?" Esme asks.

"Not like it? I love it! How... when..."

"Carlisle thought you might like a way to get around. We thought about buying you something simpler, but Edward insisted on picking the car out himself. Something about how it's his duty as a big brother or something," Esme says.

Sitting in front of me is a black Aston Martin DBS Superleggera. I walk around the car, taking a moment to take it in.

"This has got to be the greatest day of my life," I say.

Esme laughs, "I'll let Edward know you like it."

"I'm pretty sure he already knows due to the internal screaming I'm doing in my head, " I say.

Esme laughs again before gesturing to the car.

"What are you waiting for? Take it for a spin."

I nod, "you don't have to tell me twice."

Climbing in, I sigh as I sink into the seat.

"This. This is what heaven feels like," I say running my hands over the steering wheel.

"Have fun, dear. But please be safe. You may be indestructible, but the car is not."

"I will," I say.

Esme heads back inside and before I know it, I'm out of the garage, down the driveway, and on the open road.

Rage roars through his veins like water relentlessly beating a pier. He had underestimated her newfound strength, underestimated her bond to the wolf. It was not a mistake he would make again. He'll rip them all limb from limb if he has to. He'll do whatever it takes to consume her, mind, body, and soul. She was his and no one elses. No one was going to take her away from him.