Learning to Live

Chapter 44

"We need to talk," Antonio said.

And that didn't sound ominous at all.

My heart rate spiked. What could possibly be wrong?

Hunter squeezed my hand. I went ahead to the car, my heart in my throat. Shamelessly, I rolled down the window just a smidge to hear what they were saying. No luck. They were out of earshot.

Whatever, I'd just grill Hunter when he was done.

I drummed my fingers on the steering wheel. The conversation grew more heated as minutes went by. Even Hunter grew more agitated.

He ran his hand roughly through his hair, face thunderous, pointing and waving his hand around. What the hell was going on?

Finally, he threw his hands up and marched to the car. He got in and slammed the door shut with a bang. Antonio walked away to the elevator.

I looked at Hunter. He looked pissed off. I wanted to ask, but I felt he needed some space, so I just drove off despite my curiosity. It wasn't until we got into the driveway of our place and the gate closed behind us that he spoke.

"Don't be mad," he said.

I glanced at him. He looked completely serious. My heart dropped to my stomach. "Okay. You're scaring me."

Unstrapping his seat belt, he turned to face me fully. "I'm going to have to fight in the bare-knuckle tournament."

I blinked. Then laughed. "What? What are you talking about? Why would you-"

He reached over and took my hand. "Breathe."

I gasped in a breath, only realizing I was a second away from hyperventilating. I closed my eyes and focused on my breathing, on Hunter's firm pressure on my hand.

"Better?" Hunter asked. I opened my eyes to see his worried gaze.

I nodded. "Tell me."

"Antonio made a bet," Hunter said. "In the tournament's venue, there's a casino there where you can bet on practically anything. Antonio likes gambling, but since he always bet his own money and never went overboard with it, I didn't worry about it too much."

"What's that has to do with you?"

"He made a bet that I'll take a fight with Cullen next week," Hunter said.

"Can he do that?" I asked. "It's not like he can force you to fight? Would they even accept the bet?"

"They did." Hunter sighed, rubbing his eyes. "The guy he lost to is one of the tournament's big shot organizers. He's been trying to get me and Cullen in another fight. A lot of people want to see it, and it's going to bring in a lot of money."

"What happens if you don't fight?" I asked.

"Then they make an example out of Antonio," Hunter said, his brows heavy.

I looked out the windshield. I didn't like this. I didn't like this at all.

What if Cullen did something underhanded like he had last time? What if Hunter was seriously hurt? What if-

Air thinned out. My vision blackened around the edges. A sense of doom twisted my guts and filled them with lead. I clawed at the door, opening it and stumbling out. My breathing was too loud to my own ears. Hunter's deep timbre faded into unintelligible mumbles.

I sat down on the ground, shutting my eyes tightly.

"Look at me. Focus on me." I looked up. Hunter was crouched in front of me, his dark eyes calm and reassuring. "That's it. In and out. You're okay. Everything is okay. Breathe. In and out."