Thank you for reading. While you wait for new chapters on this book, you can try my other books~ Try "The Savage Alpha's Rebel" If you want to. And "MR. Rogue King, can you kidnap me please?" They both are from a series called "Unholy Allies" try the free chapters if you want:) Also, my bday is on 14th Aug lol. But thanks for the early wishes.
118Claire's lips quivered with a relieved smile. She felt as if oxygen was blown into her screaming lungs. Right before they failed functioning like her car. She knew she was being stupid by looking in the rear view but she couldn't help it.Hunter was in an open jeep, which was being driven by Reggie, in the passenger's seat. He was half sitting and half leaning out as his sturdy hands held onto the frame of the windshield and the other on the back of his seat.Her eyebrows flew up to meet her hairline when she detected a caravan of six huge SUVs, all black, trailing after him. She wasn't dreaming when she caught sight of black commandos peeking out of the windows of each SUV, their faces masked. Hunter's come prepared. His face was contorted, his eyes focused on her car as he opened his mouth to yell a shaking command at her."Claire, look ahead!"His apprehensive voice snapped her gaze from the rear view. She fluttered her eyes like the wings of a bird in a cage as fear consumed
119"And you think I will leave without you?" Her eyes scorched ferociously.Claire thrusted her hand against his forearm and shook her skull sideways."You want to save my life while risking yours. That's not happening.""It's not that, Claire. I'm just going to do what is necessary.""Throwing yourself down the valley is not necessary, Hunter. You are not staying back. No. No way at all." She resiliently eyed him. "We both are jumping out together. That's my final decision.""It's not possible, Claire. Try to understand. The car is moving at a neck-breaking speed. Someone will have to hold the steering wheel to prevent the car from steering to prevent it from deviating."With a click of her tongue, Claire folded her hands, "We both will jump out together or none of us will."Hunter heaved tensely, "Claire, why are you arguing with me? I told you it's gonna be fine.""Besides, what makes you think I'm throwing myself with the car down the cliff? Gosh, you have become paranoid." He swi
120Hunter didn't stop himself when his mouth curled in a ferocious scowl. He grabbed Zara's arm and lightly shook her to reprimand her."Why the hell are you here, Zara?""I... I heard about the firing from Cole a-and... And couldn't stop myself from wanting to meet you. I'm sorry if I..." She trailed off. Zara made a dreadful face as if she was scared of Hunter's wrath and even lowered her skull to appear like she was hurt by his coldness. "You could have waited till I came back home, Zara! You destroyed our moment. God dammit!" Hunter heaved angrily as he ran a hand through his wet hair. “I had been chasing after Claire for weeks, and just when she was starting to warm up to me, you had to appear and make her go ten steps backward. You reversed all my efforts and progress.”"I... I am sorry but I..." Zara ran back to Cole and shed tears in front of him.Though Cole wasn't any closer to Zara, he didn't like the way she sobbed and asked him to take her back. He also recalled the wa
121"Fine, I will forgive you. But I have a condition," Zara eyed him narrowly as she pouted."Let's hear your condition then." Hunter nervously rubbed his nape. He had been trying to placate her for ten minutes. Zara couldn't drag it further. Who knows if he had a change of heart! She wasn't here to piss him off. Rather, she was here to make him see she was his right choice. "You will allow me to treat your wounds." She handed him a smile. She added, "Hunter, we couldn't be a couple. But we can be good friends. Best friends. I also want to pay you back in some way, in any way I could, for all you have done for me. I can't just take everything and give back nothing. You saved me from my in-laws and many other threats, Hunter. The least I can do is be your doctor and treat you.""If it will make you happy then be it. But Zara," Hunter heaved. "I hope you will respect my privacy. You know I am chasing Claire. I don't want her to misunderstand this as anything else.""Rest assured I w
122Claire's POVI stepped inside my father's house by Eleven. I was completely drenched and left a trail behind me like a snail when I walked in. My parents were sitting in the hall with worried pale faces. Scott was continuously dialling a number.I was heading for the stairs when, "Laire, oh darling! You are home finally." Mom rose to her feet hastily and sauntered towards me.She cupped my cheeks and kissed my full face. Her heavy breaths fanned my face. Seeing her snapped something within me. Tears welled up in my eyes and I wrapped my arms around her torso while she caressed my hair and held me by the shoulders with her cold and jittery fingers."Where were you, baby? You gave us all a heart attack. Your phone is unreachable and your secretary said you left earlier. Wh-why are you drenched? Wh-where's your car, baby?" Dad stammered towards the end as his concerned eyes raked over my face.The gentle touch of his hand on my head sent my emotions spiraling into chaos. I felt a lum
123Claire's POV "You know? H-how did you—" Another squeeze from her and I calmed down. Now it was starting to make sense. My mom came to my room and gave me all the time in the world so I would confide in her. She was encouraging me to trust her with my emotions. I wanted to reason out, give her some explanation because I had promised my family to never see Hunter again. To never let him influence my life ever again after the divorce. For them, I was moving ahead in my career without Hunter's shadow falling on me. They believed Hunter was out of my life for good. But they didn't know the secret of my life. The dirty secret I found both soothing and anguishing. Hunter's confession. Him still being a part of my life. Him still meeting me frequently although my family presumes he is non-existent in my life. I opened my mouth to confront her but she beat me to it. "Cole called your father after I brought you to your room. He told us about the malfunction and how Hunter risked his
124Claire's POV She shifted and a dark look rose on her face before she answered thoughtfully. "That's a risk, sweetie. But, think about it this way: if you don't give him a second chance, you'll always wonder what could've been and whether Hunter truly regretted leaving you or not. And, more importantly, you deserve to know if he's truly changed. Forgiveness doesn't mean forgetting; it means releasing the hurt and moving forward.""As far as Zara is concerned, there are many women like her out there, who want to achieve a luxurious life the easiest way. But there are men who are loyal to their wives and don't give them any attention. If Hunter's truly in love with you, he would never look back at her even if she's there."We both looked across from us at the silent garden. In the lights around the fence, we witnessed drizzling water drops coming down one after another. It was exquisite. "Don't forget that he's had a chance to be with her. You left him to have a happy life with Zar
125Claire stared at him as her heart throbbed with a furious rhythm. Her hands were suspended around his shoulders. Just suspended an inch or so away. She wasn't touching. She didn't want his heat to transfer to her body and make her quiver. Whereas he was tightening his hold like an anaconda does upon feeling his prey exhale inch by inch. It became difficult to breathe.However, she didn't thrust him back. She didn't even try to uncoil his muscled arms from around her frame and put distance. Somewhere, deep down in her heart, she found this type of physical contact with him soothing. Like a balm on forehead searing with relentless ache."I know it sounds ridiculous coming from my mouth, but Claire," Hunter arched his head up and a blistering current of anguish coursed up her spine.The whites in his eyes were red. All the little veins popping up and becoming visible. That's not what anguished Claire. It was the tears.She had seen Hunter in tears before. But this was different. This
203"Mr. Argent, it's very important for me to see your daughter. Allow me this one time, please. It's about our future." Hunter said ignoring Andrea as he addressed Dominic. Feeling insulted, Andrea spoke with disdain, "What future? My daughter's future is better off without you. You left her when she needed you the most. Now that we are trying to set her up with a far better match, you want to waltz back in her life. Dream on, Hunter. It's not happening. Her parents are standing in between her and you. We will never let you get to her again.""Did you really think you could slink back into Claire's life after your ex's true nature was exposed? You're delusional if you think that's possible."Hunter gave her a stoic look, although his red eyes showed his turmoil."And do you think I'm coming back only because Zara's arrested now? It's you who's dreaming, Mrs. Argent. Claire and I've never parted ways even after the divorce. Our separation brought us closer— me actually.""I realized
202"SCOTT, NO!" They exclaimed in unison, but Scott was already charging towards Hunter like a madman.Claire, who had been sobbing against her father's chest, snapped her head up at Hunter's mention. Color drained from her face witnessing Hunter at the doorstep with crimson-rimmed eyes. Their gazes locked, and everything he had said to her came flooding back to her in an overwhelming wave. Despite the look of pleading on his face and apology in his eyes, she remained hard-hearted. However, the part that loved her once... The part that basked in the sight of him being praised and respected by her family became distressed. Scott was a decade younger to Hunter, and even though the latter treated her like a doormat wife with zero worth in his life, he was still related to her. Ex-husband... But still they had a past. Claire stepped out of her father's arms as Scott dashed towards Hunter, driven by instincts. "Hunter MacIntyre, you've hurt my sister enough. Time to pay back!" Her hea
201Outside the Argent Villa,Scott and Shawn met each other outside the former's house. Their faces were dull with worry and in the rain storm, they stood soaking wet."Did you find anything about your brother?" Scott asked as he wiped a hand on his face to clear his vision."Yeah, he's at a pub.... With a woman." Shawn uttered the last three words between clenching teeth.Scott wasn't surprised. He was aware of his best friend's elder brother's way to avoid media attention concerning his personal life. He was just slightly affected that Tyler lied to go to pub to find a random chick to click with, so he could post fake dating news with her, instead of attending a dinner with his family.They've been waiting so restlessly to have him at home. The look of sorrow on Andrea's face was pitiful. Scott recalled that expression and exhaled a sigh. His mother had been overly excited to have Tyler at home. She had prepared so many dishes for him, which they had to eat alone and in silence. Cl
200"This is all, but I swear, I haven't seen any other woman since that encounter with that wench. It was after that incident I started noticing you. The second year of our marriage consists of me observing everything you did. That's how I learned your favorites, although I never let it show until now."Hunter tried to close the gap between them with small steps, hoping that when he was standing before her, Claire wouldn't push him away. After all, he had a huge list of extra marital relations. "When I started learning things about you, it slowly came to my understanding that you were exactly how I would have preferred my life partner to be. You were firm with a touch of boldness. You could be extremely caring at times and extensively outraged if annoyed. You didn't hesitate to make me pay for my ignorance and then you also came to show your love to me when you felt that I wasn't going to do it. You held the torch in our relationship and lives, and radiated it with your resilience."
199"I was mentally dead. Although I married you, I didn't feel the excitement as that of a married man because you weren't the woman I want. So, I just spent my time at the club with Cole and other friends.""Even if you weren't the bride I saw myself saying 'I do' for, I was determined to never stray. But that night, that night something got into. I was not heavily drunk but I kissed a woman who sat in my life. I groped her even though Cole and my friends warned me of having a wife. I didn't know what I was doing."Claire's stare became painful. She internally lamented as her heart yelled from the pain of his treachery. His confession now hurt like a third degree burn. She didn't know when she started sobbing, but that was the only sound she heard. She felt as though she’d suddenly jumped off a cliff. What she was feeling was beyond anyone's imagination. Accepting Hunter's infidelity before marriage was bearable. But thinking of him doing the same in the first week after he was dec
198"It happened a few days after Zara left me. I was heartbroken and mentally disturbed. The blaring music of the club became my companion as I found solace in alcohol. I would spend the days at office and my nights at the club." Hunter began. Now that she asked him to be honest, he was not going to skip anything. She also warned him to share it even it's hurtful, so he would do that too. As long as it convinced her to stay and be with him, he would do anything. Although that's not what he thought he would be compelled to do when he left his house to find Claire, he had no other choice. Hunter's heart raced in his chest. He was making mistake after mistake recently. One action he took to soothe his nerves ended up causing a ripple effect of consequences. Hence, he wasn't going to make another mistake by skipping any detail of his infidelity. The air was cool, and yet he sweated profusely while his face remained as white as the moon. "But I was never alone. Cole was there with me.
197A thunder clapped in the sky with lightning, illuminating their faces for a nanosecond. Hunter was panicked by her words and the expression he caught in the light from her face made his blood rush to his head. He moved closer. He pulled her to his chest and leaned his face near hers. Claire squirmed and wriggled like a fish taken out of water. But she calmed down the minute he pinned her to the tree and rested his forehead against hers, his mouth aligned with hers while his thrumming heart synced with her own. The air seemed to turn colder as darkness increased. They couldn't see each other. But in the back of their minds, they pictured each other's expressions and emotions as they breathed heavily in sync. "You are a jerk... And I hate you." Claire sobbed. Her body was shaking in misery. She was crying because of his disappearance and caressed her back. He moved his mouth to her jaw and trailed a line of kisses along her jaw to her neck as he whispered sorry to hers. Claire
196Claire dashed a hand over her cheeks to wipe her tears. She didn't know where else to go— where she could cry without being interuptted by her loved ones or well-wishers— so she came to the only place she thought would offer her the privacy and quiet she needed during this phase of her life... The lake.The same lake that was her companion during her teenage years. The same lake around which she touched herself for the first time while imagining Hunter. The same lake that soothed her heart and brought delight to her face whenever she came here in the past.However, she felt cold in her heart tonight when she came here. Her eyes stung from tears that build up. Stopping near a tree, Claire slumped down. She was tired of feeling disappointed at how her life was unfolding.Twists and turns aggravated her. It was like every month her life took a turn. While one month she was all gloomy and struggling to focus in life, the other month she was too exhilarated to contain it. The changing
195There was silence on the line from both sides. They contemplated where their siblings would go at this hour of night. A thunder roared outside and they both returned back to their senses. "It's completely okay for Tyler to stay out at this hour of night. It's not the first time. But Claire..." Shawn trailed off. "This isn't like Claire. Something's wrong." "We have to find them. Now. I'm coming to your place, Scott. I'll pick you up and we'll go together." Shawn announced."Let's go find them. I need to know what's going on. Claire would never disappear without a word." ***At Hunter's Mansion, Cole sat on the patio, his weary figure slumped in a chair. He was smoking while scrolling through his face. His face was grim while his lips twisted at the posts he came across on his feed. Tyler and Claire were trending. Some stupid social media manipulator started a rumor and it was going awfully viral now. Although Cole understood that it was fake, it sparked widespread frenzy. Us