Page 99 of Animal's Reformation
Chapter Twenty-One
The only lightin the den was from the small lamp covered with a red shade beside the wingback leather chair. There were two books stacked on the lamp table and he reached for one, changed his mind, then curled his fingers around the wineglass. The room was quiet except for the soft ticking of the grandfather clock in the corner of the room; the hands on the face read 9:16 p.m. In fourteen minutes Rose would call, and he’d try and lure her in some more so she’d agree to meet him.
HunterknewRose was the one he needed to make his world feel back in balance. From their conversations, he had grown to care very deeply for her, and his hunger for her had grown exponentially with each conversation. She had begun to consume his thoughts, and he desperately needed her to feed the hunger which had become harder to contain.
He picked up the burner phone and engaged the voice changing app in anticipation of the call. Since Rose lived in Pinewood Springs, he had to be especially careful in case she wasn’t who she said she was and may recognize his voice. A bit paranoid? Perhaps, but the articles that had appeared in thePinewood Springs Tribunehad contributed to his suspicions. After Rose, he’d start hunting again outside of the county.
Hunter rested his head back against the chair and his latest victim flashed through his mind, bringing a smile to his face.Pretty, sexy Samantha.He tapped his index finger against his lips.Her fear was exquisite.Normally, he didn’t go in for women who had children—he liked his victims pure, but he’d made an exception with Samantha.
It was true that he hid his real self like a snake covered in leaves, and some people might have said he was evil, like that ridiculous journalist who’d penned the article about Hunter’s lovely Samantha and Katie, but Hunter would say that he was just wired differently. To him, the most important thing was that heknewwho he was, which was something that most people couldn’t say about themselves.
A small sigh passed his lips, and he rested his chin on a hand, his elbow propped up on the arm rest. When he’d reached adolescence, he’d realized he was different from the other boys. Where they craved carnal pleasure, he craved sensual connections. They’d sit around talking about women as if they were nothing but body parts, but Hunter had seen the female sex—and still did—as beautiful creatures with hearts and souls. Of course, the hormones inside him craved their luscious bodies, but he saw so much more than breasts, hips, and butts.
As he grew older, all the men around him just wanted to fuck as many women as they could—it was like some sort of contest, but he sought that one perfection—the blending of body, soul, and mind with him. The only way Hunter could achieve the ultimate balance was through fear, pain, and the mixing of primal sex with sheer terror. It was dark, perhaps a bit disturbed, but very necessary. He had known the darkness dwelled inside him from the time he’d come of age.
Had he wanted that?
Yes. Very much so.
The sound of the burner phone snapped him out of his thoughts, and Hunter looked at the time: 9:30 p.m. A slow smile spread over his face as he picked up the phone.
“Thank you for being so punctual, my sweet. This is your ardent lover.” He chuckled. “How are you?” He picked up his glass of wine and took a sip as adrenaline pumped through him.
“Good. How’re you?”
“Perfect, now that I can finally hear your voice, which I knew I’d love.”
“I wasn’t sure if you’d pick up. The last few times I was online, I saw that you were too, but you didn’t message me—I had to do it first. Are you talking to other women?”
My sweet Rose is jealous. That’s perfect—it means she cares.
“No worries, my sweet. I’m very busy with my job. Sometimes I’m online for work and don’t have time to chat with you, but that doesn’t mean that you aren’t on my mind. You’re always in my thoughts, you know.” Hunter loved the cat-and-mouse game they were playing; he loved to be in control and the one who set the pace.
“I wasn’t really jealous. I just want to make sure you’re not a player since that’s not what I’m looking for, you know?”
It sounded as though she were trying to disguise her voice. Disappointment ran through him. “I’m not a player, and I’m very hurt that you’d think that of me.” He took another sip of wine and waited.
After a few seconds, a small audible sigh. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you, it’s just that so many men are looking to just hookup on this site.”
Hunter didn’t respond. He wanted Rose to sweat for a bit.
“Are you still there? Are you mad at me?”
After another pause he spoke, “Not mad … just terribly disappointed. I thought we trusted each other. If you don’t trust me, then we have nothing. Don’t you think believing in each other is paramount?”
“I do. I guess I’ve been burned too many times.” A soft giggle.
His heartbeat suddenly raced.I know that laugh.A pause.
“I understand,” he said in a low voice. “Please don’t accuse me of something like that again. Now tell me what you did today.” Hunter had to get her to talk longer—he had to place the voice.
As Rose spoke, Hunter listened carefully without interruption, and the longer she did, the clearer her voice became until realization jabbed him right between the eyes.Olivia! Rose is Olivia.He felt small beads of perspiration form near his hairline as a jolt of excitement rushed through him. At the sound of her voice, desire flooded through him—the beast within fighting for control.
How many times had he wanted to bury his fingers into her lush dark hair? And her eyes … so beautiful … were anything but ordinary: the kind of green that revived dull grass from the harshness of winter.
He had to admit that her eyes were never more beautiful than when she cried. He’d caught her once, and even though she’d tried to pretend that she had an allergy, he’d known better. Hunter had loved seeing the tears in them and the anguish they held, and he’d wanted to hold her close and feel those tears on his shoulder. He couldn’t wait to see her cry again.
Very soon, my sweet.
