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“The only reason I’m letting this slide right now is because you didn’t rush me with my pent-up feelings, but, girl, you have some explaining to do someday.” I shook my head, laughter seeping out from where it had been buried for the last couple of weeks.

Now, all I could do was wait. Hopefully, Carter making a house call would be what Hunter needed. Maybe Hunter would text me back eventually, or maybe I’d run into Carter at work and hopefully get the confirmation that he was doing alright.

When it all came down to it, I just wanted Hunter to be okay. Even if it was a hard pill to swallow, that maybe his happiness wouldn’t lie with me, I was desperate for that man to live a happy life without the burden of his past haunting him at every turn.

“Hunter! Open the damn door! I swear I will break a window if you don’t get your ass up and let me in!” Carter’s voice roared as he beat his fists black and blue against the thick wood of my front door.

A couple of days after the video surfaced, I finally found enough strength to get off my ass, take a shower, make some food, and send a couple of e-mails. One to the board, telling them I needed to take some time off for a family emergency. And another to my assistant. Told her to order me a fuck ton of food to be delivered to the house, and I’d be off the grid for a while. That she could take a vacation and not worry about me. My phone eventually died, and I didn’t care enough to charge it to see their responses.

Peace and quiet. That’s all I wanted.

When food showed up at my house a couple of hours later, it was all I needed to know that she heard my message loud and clear. It also happened to be the only time I opened my front door since Andi walked out of it.

I locked myself inside of my house and cut off access to the outside world. Barricading myself felt like the safest way to protect others from me. Mostly, Andi. With it being a couple of weeks later, it was only a matter of time before she realized she deserved better than me if she hadn’t already.

I would have given up on me by now, too.

I didn’t tell her I loved her back for fuck’s sake.

“Hunter, goddammit!” Carter continued to shout and throw his fists against the door so hard that I was convinced the entire neighborhood could hear him.

The last thing I needed was for the cops to show up here.

Mustering up any strength I had left, I pulled my lethargic body from the couch and unlocked the front door.

Since I already knew who it was making a ruckus on my doorstep, I flipped the lock and walked back to my brown leather couch that had formed a permanent dent from where I’d been rotting.

My ass barely brushed the cushion when Carter barged in caveman style and stood just feet away from me in my living room, taking in the scene around him.

He had that look on his face that my dad used to get when I had a poor game. A look of sheer disappointment.

“What the fuck, man?” Carter’s eyes wandered over the dirty dishes covering the coffee table. “No more housekeeper?”

“Gave her some time off.”

“Yeah? Did you give yourself some time off, too?”

Unable to find the right answer, I shrugged.

“So, your phone goes straight to voicemail, you haven’t stepped foot in the arena, your house looks like a bunch of frat boys moved in, and honestly, kind of smells like it, too.” He shook his head and started to pick at the mess in front of me.

“You don’t need to do that.”

“Well, someone needs to, and it sure as hell doesn’t look like it’s going to be you.” Carter left the living room and returned moments later with a garbage bag. “I’ll stick around and get this place back in order while you go clean yourself up. It will give you some time to think about how you’re going to tell me what the fuck is going on and why you’ve disappeared on damn near everyone.”

Carter was my best friend, and he’d been through it all with me. But that didn’t mean I wanted to talk about my feelings. So, instead of answering him, I silently walked away, hoping that if I took a long enough shower, and shaved the facial hair that I only ever grew during playoff season when I was younger, he’d eventually give up and leave.

Unfortunately, I was wrong. Even after locking myself in my bedroom for forty-five minutes, he still hadn’t taken the hint. When I returned, Carter had his feet kicked up on a freshly polished coffee table, and that damn box of VHS tapes sat dead center, haunting me.

Carter didn’t bother to look in my direction; he already knew I was standing behind him in ear shot.

“You still have all these old tapes your mom used to make.” It wasn’t a question, more of a curious observation.

“Yeah.” I huffed, walking toward the open box.

Slapping the lid on top, I stuffed the entire thing under the coffee table. I couldn’t have them out in the open anymore and risk Carter asking any questions.

But I knew better than that. Whether I liked it or not, he knew me better than anyone, and he had already been on to me since before he even entered this house.