Hunter
“So, how many books have you read today?” I walked over to Vince as he read another new book from Mrs. Tomms. He was seated at my desk, quietly enjoying his new set of books.
“Too soon to ask, Daddy. I just started this new set Mrs. Tomms gave me.” He did not bother to look up at me. His attention was on the new adventures he would be exploring. I gave him a pat on the shoulder as a well-done job sign. Before I could turn my back to him, he finally asked me.
“Dad, Cat’s having her birthday party tomorrow. Can we go with Kylie?” He put the book down, looking up to stare into my eyes. It was as if he’d wanted to talk about it for a long time, but felt hesitant.
I recalled how many times I had disappointed him. It might have been the reason why he was pretending to be busy reading all week. It would buy him some time in thinking how to open up about Cat’s birthday celebration tomorrow.
I thought about my schedule. No clients had called to meet with me, nor previous customers to practice at the gun range. It was a pretty good day to take a rest from work and go spend time with Kylie and Vince.
“Yeah, buddy. We can go to her party tomorrow.” This time, I was certain I’d be able to keep my promise. I would talk about my plans with Garren and grant him a day off as well. He deserved it for working so hard at the gun shop.
“Thanks, Daddy! Kylie said she’ll buy something for Cat. I bet she will get the best present for her ever!”
“I bet so too, buddy.”
Vince returned to his seat, smiling from ear to ear, which warmed my heart. He was treating Kylie more and more like a mother figure in his life.
I felt the same. I’d fallen for the beautiful blonde. I just had to get my fear outta the fucking way and step into our relationship fully. Soon. I kept promising myself that I would soon.
Garren’s warning rose up in my head, reminding me about Linda and forcing me to promise to be careful. It wasn’t just my heart on the line. Kylie would never do that to Vince. She couldn’t break his heart.
She wouldn’t leave me behind either. Would she? Fuck.
I shook my head and tried to get away from feeling like such a loser. Walking out to breathe some fresh air, I exited the gun shop. As I looked down the road, I spotted Kylie’s car pulling up.
All the negative thoughts drifted away as I saw her face. It felt like having her around was the only cure to keep me from thinking the worst. Whenever I saw her, all my worries melted away.
I walked toward her car, opening the door for her. She got out with a bright smile on her face. She glistened under the sun’s rays, her beauty illuminating before me like a precious gem.
“So, what brings you here?” She was carrying a paper bag from the convenience store. Handing it over to me, I peeked to see what was inside the bag.
I saw several juice drinks in bottles and packages of cheese bread in it. “Thank you for this.”
She smiled back, her eyes still on mine. “You’re welcome. I stopped by to tell you about Cat’s birthday party tomorrow. Did Vince tell you about it?”
“Yeah, he’s pretty excited about the gift you’re getting for Cat.” I pointed back to the gun shop. “He’s in there reading some more of the books your mom gave him. She’s too good to him.”
“He’s a great kid, Hunter. We love him to death.” She smiled and ran her fingers through her long locks, causing my thoughts to move back to our last night together, which was over a week before, if not more. I wanted her so bad it hurt. What the fuck was holding me back?
“He is. I’m sure he’d like to see you.”
“Great, I’ll go see him in a little bit. I wanted to see if I could go practice shooting today again? The last time I shot was when we went hog hunting, and I didn’t do nearly as good as I thought I should have.”
“You were amazing, baby.” I reached out and ran my hand down her forearm, taking her hand. “Best female shooter I’ve been around.”
She laughed, captivating me. “And you’ve been around a lot of us?”
“Nope, and I’m not digging myself into that hole. Let’s get back to talking about shooting practice. I’m all in.”
“Wait. Now?”
I smiled. “Absolutely. Let me tell Garren that I’ll be right back.
“Thank you so much.” She turned and walked to her car.
I walked into the shop and called out to Garren. “Going back to the range. You good with Vince in here?”