Hunter's Rose (First Draft)

Chapter Five

"Alright, can you go ahead and lift your shirt high enough for me to see what's going on?" Mak questioned, as he knelt in front of me.

My eyes found their way over to the couch where Hunter sat, his gaze was already on me. He had his elbows on his knees, his jaw leaning against one hand. He smiled at me softly, making my cheeks heat up.

"Rose?" Mak called my attention. My eyes snapped to his, watching his braids sway as he shook his head.

"Sorry." I said, not sounding sorry at all. He let out a chuckle. 

"It's alright. It's the beard, I get it." He joked. My eyes automatically moved to the mentioned feature. Hunter shot me a quick wink, his face amused. I narrowed my eyes, sticking my tongue out before glancing away. His laughter filled the room, making butterflies fill my stomach. 

"Shirt?" Mak reminded me, making me nod before reaching down to pull the shirt up. I stopped just above my ribs.

Hunter shot to his feet, making my eyes snap to him. His jaw was clenched as he stared daggers at my side. 

"Honey that doesn't look like a bruise from a fall." Mak murmured out, making me glance at him, his eyes filled with concern. I winced lightly as his fingers probed the area. "Do you know what else might have caused it?" I shrugged my shoulders before sneaking another glance at Hunter. His head tilted to the side, eyes narrowing as he stared at me. 

"It's not broken, just bruised so that's good." Mak reassured me. "I've got a salve that will help the bruises heal faster, you can apply it every 3-4 hours."  He turned to grab another jar. 

"I've got it." Hunter gruffed out, moving to stand beside us. Mak raised his hands as his lips raised in a smirk. He rose from the ground and moved back, handing Hunter the jar as he kneeled in front of me. I glanced at him before looking away as he started to apply the salve to my side, I tried to hide the shiver that ran through my body.

"My final diagnosis is rest. You'll need to spend a few days off of that knee to allow a faster healing process." Make stated. My eyes snapped to him, I felt my heart beat faster.

I quickly shook my head. "No. I need to leave." I couldn't stay here. I still didn't know when Jacob would be back and I didn't want to bring my problems to Hunter's door.

My body froze as I realized I already had. I felt a hand on my chin, my gaze met Hunter's concerned one.

"They saw you." I whispered, my breathing came out faster. His eyes narrowed for a moment before his hand moved from my chin to cup my cheek. 

"The men from last night?" He questioned as his thumb rubbed my cheek. "Are they the ones that caused your bruises?" I stared at him as my breathing slowed slightly, I gave a small nod.

"When I was running, one of them caught me." I said softly, watching as his eyes narrowed for a moment before they softened slightly.

"Who were they?" He asked in a soft voice. I blinked for a moment, breaking from my small daze. I felt my face pale slightly. 

"Bad people." I muttered. "I need to leave, they'll come looking for me. I don't want to cause you anymore problems." My breathing picked up again as I tried to pull my face away, his hands tightened lightly.

"Let them darlin." He said with a small smirk, his voice coming out harder. "I'd like to have another chat with them." 

"You don't understand." I tried again, staring at him as I tried to make him realize the situation. 

"I think I understand enough darlin." He said softly, his thumb rubbing my cheek again making my face lean into it. "You don't need to worry. You're safe here, I promise." I shook my head lightly.

"I'm not worried about me." I whispered, narrowing my eyes when he let out a small chuckle. 

"You're so cute." He mused with a soft smile. "I've dealt with a lot worse than a couple of low lives. I've got plenty of back up darlin, there's not a thing to worry your pretty little head about." 

"But..." I started before stopping and tilting my head. "You think my head is pretty?" I questioned, scrunching my nose slightly. 

"Everything about you is pretty, darlin." He stated, softly tapping my nose with a soft smile. "Now, no more worrying. Let's finish fixing up these wounds and get you some rest. You heard the docs orders." He winked before he started to apply the salve to my cheek and neck. 

"Just for a few days." I let out a soft sigh, nodding my head reluctantly. 

"A few days." He murmured in agreement. "At least." He quickly added, shooting me a quick wink making my eyes narrow again. 

His laughter filled the room.

Mak left shortly after with strict instructions to rest my knee as much as possible. He said I was welcome to move around, but as soon as it started to hurt I was to head back to rest.

Hunter handed me the remote to the tv once I settled back into the bed, before he walked over to the desk in the corner of the room. I watched him for a moment as he turned on the laptop and shuffled through a few papers, before directing my gaze to the tv and switching through the stations. I found a rerun of Family Guy, clicking on it before I moved the remote back to the bedside table.

I glanced over at Hunter to see he had abandoned whatever he was working on, his chair turned as he stared at the tv. As if feeling my gaze, he looked my way and shot me a lopsided grin. My cheeks heated as I looked back to the tv.

"Hey darlin?" His voice questioned making my gaze move back to him. "Is there anyone you want to call?" My head tilted to the side for a moment before I slowly shook my head, my gaze dropping to the comforter.

"No." I said softly. "Well maybe Lisa, she was my roommate. I lost my phone though, I don't know her number." My voice trailed off in a whisper. 

He hummed softly. "I may have a guy that can help with that." He offered making my gaze shoot back up to him. He sent me a small smile. 

"There's a few others that live here as well. They each have their own special.....talents." He said with a small chuckle. My head tilted.

"They live here with you?" I questioned. How big was his house?

"Yeah. We do most things together, so living in the same place made the most sense. Ace and I found the house and went in together on it. The other guys slowly made their way in over the years." He explained. He stared at me for a moment before giving me another small smile. "Would you like to meet them?" My eyes widened as I looked at him. It would be nice to move around a bit, but the thought of meeting new people made my palms feel sweaty. I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath, before glancing back at Hunter. 

"Umm, sure." I agreed softly, blushing when he shot me another wide grin.