Chapter 81 - Heartwarmingly Cheesy
Gone was her waist-length long hair he loved so much. Now it reached only her shoulders, resting right on the upper swell of her breasts.
\'She has cut her hair!\'
\'She has cut her hair?\'
Hunter silently examined her new look. Abby had cut her hair into layers, and now Hera had bangs covering her forehead. She looked great with short hair too, but he loved her long hair better. Her forest green eyes looked mesmerising as usual, drawing his full attention to them like a magnet.
Though she didn\'t need any makeup to enhance her beauty, he could see that she\'d done something with her face. Her pink lips were glossy and shining, tempting him to taste them. The exposed skin under her neck was sparkling.
\'You are an ethereal beauty, my Goddess Hera..\'
But he was not in a mood to compliment her as he knew she\'d cut her hair only to annoy him and so he decided to ignore her earlier question.
"You\'re late," he said, repeating the words for the third time. He wanted it to sound casual, but it came out as an angry snap. Hera threw her head back inside the door to look at the clock and smirked before taking his left hand in hers. She tapped on his silver wristwatch for him to see, and said, "Nope, I\'m on time. We\'ve one more minute until its six."
"Oh, how nice of you, I\'m grateful," he replied sarcastically. Hera shamelessly admired his back as he walked ahead of her, hands buried in the pockets.
"You know, a guy usually asks the girl for her permission before taking her out on a date. And for your information, it\'s a date only if the girl agrees," Hera said, still trailing behind him slowly. "And your point is?" Hunter asked, looking over his shoulder. His tone was rudely disinterested.
Hera jogged until she matched his steps and wrapped her hands around his arm. He looked down at her hands and then at her face. It\'d been years since she held his hand, and the gesture warmed his heart. "My point is that you never asked me," she looked up glaring at him. "You declared that we\'re going on a date, demanding that I should be ready on time," she snapped, tone sharp as a knife.
He shrugged his shoulders and clucked his tongue, adding more to her frustration. "What does it matter? You agreed anyway, and you\'re going with me, aren\'t you?" He asked rhetorically.
\'Wow! Could he be any more arrogant?\'
"You didn\'t even bring flowers for me! Some gentleman you are," Hera said, rolling her eyes at him. Soon they walked out of the gate of their dormitory building. Hera slowed her steps and withdrew her hands from the crook of his arm as she saw Mathew making his way towards them. He greeted Hera and handed Hunter the keys to his black sports car, Audi R8.
Hera watched as Hunter moved across to the driver\'s seat and she threw up her hands in frustration before blowing a raspberry. He pulled his door open and looked at her gesturing her to get in. Adamantly Hera stood still, with her arms crossed around her chest, like a child throwing a tantrum.
"What now?" He asked impatiently, and Hera faked a sweet smile still not budging.
"How chivalrous you are!" Her sarcasm made him clench his jaw. "No asking out, no flowers, and you don\'t even open my door for me. Oh, I\'m enjoying my date so far," she mocked, faking excitement. He walked back to her and opened the door for her with a smile.
With a huff, Hera turned to get in and saw a bouquet of purple orchids resting on her seat. Her green eyes found his purple eyes and Hunter smiled again, while his hand reached out to pick up the bunch of flowers. Hera gasped and jumped back in surprise as his hand brushed against the front of her breasts.
Hera lowered her head to hide her blushing cheeks from him, and he cleared his throat to get attention. His face showed no sign to make her believe that the earlier action was intentional.
"Here, these are for you, I got your favourite flowers in your favourite colour," he said, with a lovely smile. Hera accepted the bouquet, her smile as radiant as his. "Now shall we go?" He gestured for her to sit in the car and closed the door after she got comfortable in the seat. Hera was admiring the flowers, and her smile refused to die down for some unknown reason.
Startling her Hunter\'s hand came into view, in-between the flowers and herself. She looked at him with her widened eyes, confusion filled in them. Hunter half lifted his body leaning towards her, and she pushed herself more into the seat, trying to create some distance.
\'He smells so good, heavenly.\'
She held her breath while he tried to fasten her seat belt. Meanwhile, her heart went crazy, scaring her that he might hear her loud heartbeats. Securing her seat belt, he smiled and started the engine, one hand on the gear, and the other clutched the steering wheel. Hera released the breath she\'s holding and tried to return his smile, but all she could do was stare at him.
She was nervous, and thankfully he focused his eyes on the road.
"Where\'s Mathew?" Hera asked, trying to ease the tension between them. Hunter briefly glanced at her before answering her question. "I asked him to stay away and give me some privacy for tonight. But I\'m sure he\'s his ways to stay close to me," he said, words followed by the soft laughter, and Hera smiled with a nod.
Silence filled the car and Hera needed some distraction to avoid staring at him.
She dropped her gaze back to the flowers and frowned in confusion when she saw a silver foil inside the bunch of flowers. She carefully separated it from the flowers and laughed when she opened it.
"Oh, my God!" She exclaimed loudly.
Inside the foil was a large portion of candy floss split up into three smaller bites wrapped around the end of snack sticks like lollipops. She found a note attached to each one of the sticks, a sweet messenger. Still giggling merrily she ate the candy floss, and Hunter smiled to himself in satisfaction.
Hera licked her lips, and it was too late to realise that she ate her lipstick as well.
\'We haven\'t even reached the place, and I already messed up my makeup even before my date officially started. Just great!\'
Hera scolded herself inwardly. Sighing audibly, she picked up the sweet messengers to read the messages.
Goddess Hera,
Thank you for saying yes to our date and making my evening extra special.
I\'m honoured.
P.S. I vow to make this evening the most memorable evening for you as well.
Hera smiled pleasantly before reading the second message.
Goddess Hera,
You\'re very precious to me.
I can take on the world when you stand by my side.
P.S. You\'re my strength as well as my weakness.
After reading the second message, her eyes watered as his every word touched her heart. Cheesy but heartwarmingly touching. She turned fully to look at him only to find his eyes fixed on the road ahead. But the broad grin spreading across his face told her that he knew. Biting her lips in anticipation, Hera read the third message.
Goddess Hera,
I\'m sorry for all that time when I hurt you.
Please forgive me.
P.S. I love you so much. I don\'t ever want to lose you.
She carefully placed the notes inside the dashboard. She didn\'t bring handbag or purse with her. "Remind me to take this later," she said, her voice was thick with overwhelming emotions, and Hunter hummed a response. He knew she\'d kept all his messages since their first meeting.
Hera couldn\'t resist anymore and taking off her seat belt, she moved towards him and kissed him on the cheek. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she rested her head on his shoulder as silent tears escaped her eyes.
Hunter dropped a kiss on top of her head. "I meant every word," he whispered in a soft tone. "I know," Hera said, wiping her tears, "I forgive you, Hunter."
She heard him sigh in relief and he pulled over to the side. When Hera looked at him, he\'d tear in his eyes. Before she could say something, he\'d her locked in his arms.
Hera tried to pull away from the embrace, but Hunter held her tight in his arms. He inhaled sharply before releasing her reluctantly. When Hera looked into his eyes, his sight dipped to her lips. Hera nervously licked her lips as his eyes never left her lips.
Hera knew he wanted to kiss her, but he never made a move. After waiting for a few more seconds, she moved back to sit comfortably in her seat and heard him sigh.