Hunter grabs onto my hand. “They’re idiots. I think fathering you was the best thing that Chris Lawson ever did.”
My heart stops.
Why does Hunter have to be such an enigma? One minute, he has me ready to murder him because I’m so mad. The next minute, he has me ready to melt in a puddle because he’s so sweet.
“It would be a lot easier to hate you if you were rude to me all the time.” I go back to playing with my shoestrings, not wanting to look at Hunter. I don’t have to look at him to know that he’s smirking.
“I will have them look into your grandparents,” Hunter says.
When I look up, I’m surprised that he’s not smirking. In fact, he looks downright concerned about me.
“I still don’t understand why you care.” I shake my head. “Your job… it sounds like you get to do a lot of exciting and fun things. But this… it’s got to be boring, right? Just looking after a kid, making sure she doesn’t get killed.”
He shrugs, a smirk playing at his lips. “Cove, you’re the least boring assignment I’ve ever had.”
“Really?” I’m surprised by his answer.
“Yep.” He nods. “You’re my first solo mission. I mean, my team has been helping a little bit, but for the most part, this mission is all mine. Besides, I volunteered for this.”
“You volunteered to babysit me?” I’m beginning to wonder if he’s sane.
“They needed somebody who could pass for a high school aged student. And, sure, lots of other agents could’ve come, but your case sounded interesting to me.” His jade green eyes meet mine. “Besides, I kind of like you, Trouble. You’re a good kid. I’m glad I volunteered.”
I’m glad he volunteered too, but I won’t be admitting that out loud.
I clear my throat. “I, uh, I probably could’ve gotten stuck with worse.”
He snorts. “Admit it, you like me.”
I snort. “I tolerate you. There is a big difference.”
He pushes himself off the ground, but he beams at me. “Nope. I already know you like me, Trouble.”
I roll my eyes. “Stop calling me Trouble. My name is Cove.”
“The nickname is already chosen, sorry. Once you get a nickname, it can’t be changed. I don’t make the rules.” He holds out a hand to me. “Come on, we need to finish up training so we can get ready for school.”
I ignore his hand, pushing myself up. “You’re such a pain, Hunter.”
His grin widens. “Oh, I know.”
At least he’s self aware.
Hunter spends another thirty minutes trying to teach me some defensive moves. I’m not particularly good, but he’s patient. I have a feeling that he will be able to teach me a lot.
Even though he gets on my nerves, I’m glad that Hunter Duran volunteered to take my case on. He’s not so bad. To be honest, I kind of like him. I think we may even end up being friends.
Maybe.
Or maybe I will end up murdering him. Really, it’s too soon to tell.
Who needs boys?
My whole body aches. I knew that I wasn’t exactly in shape, but I didn’t realize just how out of shape I am.
I groan as I sit down by the fountain outside.
As we were leaving to head back to the cabin after school was over, Hunter got bombarded by a horde of giggly cheerleaders. He looked super uncomfortable. Wanting to make him miserable, I excused myself. I laugh as he gives me dirty looks over a partially handsy blonde.
Honestly, it’s nice to get a little break from my bodyguard. I feel like I spend all my time with Hunter and he’s so intense. I just need a moment to think and breathe.
I wince as I move my arm.
That seriously hurts.
As I look around the quad, I spot Preston talking with a redheaded girl in a dance team uniform.
I hadn’t even thought about Preston lately—probably because I’ve been preoccupied with the whole somebody is trying to kill me thing. That definitely trumps a crush on a cute boy. But looking at Preston, my heart still flutters a little bit.
Preston is adorable in the way only a completely unattainable guy can be. He’s a player—the kind of guy that all girls should stay away from.
His eyes meet mine, so I quickly look away. The last thing I want is for Preston to think he’s getting to me. Instead, I turn my attention to Hunter. He’s managed to get away from the cheerleaders, but now a group of girls from the dance team are talking to him.
I laugh, shaking my head.
Poor guy.
I get what girls see in Hunter—he’s older. They don’t know that, but now that I know, I wonder how I didn’t see it before. He doesn’t look like a high school boy—he’s entirely too buff for that. As much as I hate to admit it, Hunter is good looking.
His jade green eyes search me out at the fountain. Even when he’s surrounded by beautiful girls, his focus is still on his job—me. He must really love his job to put up with all of this.
I’m about to get up and rescue him from the horde when somebody takes a seat beside me on the bench.
I look over and see a pair of chocolate brown eyes and my heart flutters.
“Preston.” I hate how breathy I sound when I say his name. Even though I know he’s bad for me, I can’t seem to get my heart to listen.
“Hey, Cove.” He smirks at me. “Long time no see. You’re not avoiding me, are you?”
I swallow hard, shake my head.
He chuckles, like he doesn’t believe me. “I saw you hanging out with that one guy.”
I raise an eyebrow. “Guy?”
He’s talking about Hunter. I know that. But I don’t want to admit that I’m ‘hanging out’ with anybody. Because I’m not. Hunter is just my bodyguard.
Preston points a finger toward where Hunter is standing. I look over at him and see the concern in his eyes. He has made it very clear that he doesn’t want me hanging out with Preston Lomax.
“Ah, Hunter.” I turn back to Preston. “He’s just a friend.”
Preston raises an eyebrow. “That’s not what I heard. I heard he was interested in you.”
I roll my eyes. “Oh, good grief. Trust me, Hunter is not interested in me. We’re just friends.”
He nods, but I’m still not sure if he believes me. “If you’re just friends, that means that you and I can hang out sometime then.”
I lick my lips, which are suddenly dry. “Uh…”
Preston chuckles. “I love how I make your cheeks turn pink. It’s so clear you’re into me, Cove. Why are you playing hard to get?”
My eyes widen.
Preston thinks I’m playing hard to get?
“Maybe I just really am not interested in dating while I’m in high school,” I say. Especially not pretty boys who will most definitely break my heart.
He chuckles. “You’ve never had a boyfriend before, have you?”
I open my mouth to say something, but nothing comes out. Truthfully, I’m not sure what to say.
No, I’ve never had a boyfriend before, but I haven’t really wanted one. How could I explain the mess that is my life to a boyfriend? No guy would ever understand.