Hunter's Rose (First Draft)

Chapter Four

We sat in silence as we ate. My eyes were glued to the action movie playing on the tv, but I couldn't pay attention.

I could feel his gaze on me every few minutes but pretended I didn't notice. My mind was whirling. I couldn't believe I had actually escaped, at least this far. I needed to figure out my next move. I know I had to leave, but I wasn't sure where to go. I didn't have any family, and my roommate Lisa had been the closest thing to a friend.

She would probably be my first move, get in contact with her and see if she still had any of my things. It's not much, but it would at least be a start. I wasn't sure when Jacob had planned to be back and I wanted to be far away from here when that happened.

The thought of him made my body tense, I closed my eyes for a moment. It was over, I wasn't there anymore. I escaped, I was in a safe place, and I was with a man who called me a flower. My eyebrows pulled together and my thoughts halted.

I didn't even know his name. The man saved me, took care of me, called me a flower, and I didn't even know his name. I felt my gaze move to him, our eyes meeting.

"You alright darlin?" His eyes and face held concern. I tilted my head as I looked at him. 

"What's your name?" I watched as his eyes widened for a moment before a chuckle of disbelief came from him.

"I'm doing this all wrong ain't I?" He said as he shook his head before shooting me a soft smile. "My name is Hunter, darlin."

I felt my lips pull up slightly, Hunter. The name suited him.

"You like to hunt?" I joked, my heart skipping as he let out a laugh.

"Yeah, I suppose you could say I do." He laughed, his smile growing into a grin.

A knock sounded at the door, making my head tilt. Hunter shot me a reassuring smile before he stood up and walked over to the door. My gaze followed him, watching as he opened it and greeted someone on the other side. He stepped aside, allowing a tall native man carrying a small bag and small tote inside. He was dressed in a black t-shirt, jeans and boots. His hair was tied in two long brown braids that swayed as we walked further into the room. 

"Hello." His voice was soft as he smiled in my direction. "My name is Mayukh, but you can call me Mak. You must be Rose?" I glanced at Hunter, who shot me another smile, before glancing back at Mak and nodding.

"Mak is here to take a look at your knee darlin." Hunter explained as he came back to the couch, carrying the small bag Mak passed to him. "He used to be a medicine man at his old tribe before he moved here with his brother. I also called Ace's sister and asked her to bring you some clothes while you were in the shower. I wasn't sure what your sizes were, but I described you the best that I could." My heart swelled as his cheeks tinted slightly, his beard making it almost unnoticeable. 

"Thank you." I whispered. He smiled and nodded his head towards the bathroom. 

"You can go ahead and change while he's getting everything set up."  I nodded, slowly standing and taking the bag of clothes from him. Once I made it to the bathroom, I sat the bag on the counter and glanced inside. There was a small white shirt, a pair of black sleeping shorts, and an unopened pack of womens underwear. I pulled the pants I wore off and sat them in the laundry basket before pulling on the underwear and shorts. They were shorter than I would have prefered, but they covered everything they needed to. I decided to keep the shirt I was wearing on to avoid aggravating my side, plus I enjoyed the comfort it gave. I opened the door and stepped out, watching my feet as I walked back towards the couch. 

"Avert your eyes, sir." I heard Mak scold. I glance up to see Hunter staring at me.

"Shut up." He grumbled as his arm moved to shove the laughing man, his eyes staying on me. I felt my cheeks heat as I dropped my glance to the floor again.

"Alright honey, you can hop up on the bed here." Mak said as I made it to them. I climbed on the bed, watching as he observed the wound. "That's a pretty nasty one. How'd it happen?" He questioned as he turned to his tote.

"I fell." I mumbled, wringing my hands together in my lap. 

"What, into a couple of power tools?" He joked as he turned back around, placing a few bottles and gauze on the side table. I let out an awkward laugh.

"Yeah, something like that." I mumbled. I felt a gaze on me, glancing up to see Hunter staring at me curiously, before dropping it again. 

"Surprisingly, I think we can get away with no stitches." Mak said, causing me to let out a relieved breath. He chuckled before he applied a salve on the wound, placing the gauze over it and wrapping a bandage around it.

"You'll need to clean and reapply the salve twice a day, let the wound breath for 30 minutes each time." He instructed as he moved to put the remaining item back in his bag. "Anywhere else get injured in your fall honey?" He questioned as he turned back to me. I shook my head.

"Her side." Hunter spoke. I glanced at him in confusion. "It bothered you when you sat on the couch earlier." I shook my head again.

"No, I'm ok. Just bruised it a little is all." I stated. Tilting my head as he stood up and walked over to the bed.

"Even if it's just bruised, it wouldn't hurt to let Mak take a look darlin." He said as he sat next to me. His hand came up to push my hair behind my ear. 

"Really, I'm fine." I tried, my voice faltering as his hand moved to cup my face. I heard Mak mutter something before he disappeared. 

"I know darlin, but it would ease my worries." He persuaded, his thumb rubbing lightly over my cheek. I felt my head nod.

"Yeah?" He whispered, a smile forming on his face. "Thank you flower."

"I'm a flower." I heard myself breathe. I internally face palmed. He let out a light chuckle, his smile pulling into a grin. My gaze dropped to it for a moment before going back to his eyes.

"That you are darlin." He murmured, his smile dropping as his face moved closer. My breath caught as the look from earlier appeared on his face.

"A beautiful flower." He hummed as his other hand came up to move hair behind my ear. My face leaned more into the hand cupping my cheek, my eyes fluttering closed. 

"Ahem." A voice coughed out. My eyes popped open, blinking for a minute, before I quickly scrambled backwards. Hunter's hands dropped from my face. "I leave for two minutes and you're already seducing my patient." Mak joked. My face warmed as I glanced down at the comforter. "Quit glaring at me and get out of my work space." He scoffed. I glanced up to see Hunter staring daggers at the medicine man. 

His gaze moved to mine, giving me a soft smile before he got up and moved to the couch. The blush on my face deepened. What was wrong with me?