“That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. I guess you believe guns aren’t dangerous, it’s the bullets,” Hunter countered.
Kyle pushed his brother away and offered to show Byte his computer system. There were many things Byte could ignore, but a good operating system was her Achilles’ heel.
“Let’s go,” Byte said as she walked past and let her elbow connect with Hunter’s ribs. She giggled when she heard him grunt. She might not get the last word, but she would leave her mark.
Inside, Byte looked over the house. It was nicely, but not overly decorated. It was obvious that it was lived in by a single person. She couldn’t say if male or female lived there. She didn’t fit the mold most had about women making a house into a home. She kept her place clutter-free, minus her office, where sticky notes overruled her desk.
She heard Hunter slam the door, which made Byte smile. She wanted to throttle him when he grabbed her arm. It took her back to a dark time in her life. His touch was both frustrating and something she wouldn’t delve into. Perhaps he felt the same frustration.
“Ignore him. He’s been on a warpath ever since he got home.”
“I understand. His life was turned upside down in a matter of days, as was yours. We all handle stress differently.”
“He’s usually a nice guy, but he’s so angry. I’ve never seen him like this before.”
Byte wanted to chuckle at his observation. She’d seen anger before, and it looked nothing like what Hunter was doing. In her opinion, not only was his anger justified, but it was controlled.
Neither Byte nor Kyle realized Hunter was standing outside the door. The way Byte spoke with Kyle was with kindness and understanding. More surprising was how she stood up for him. He couldn’t let her flowery words affect him. She already had him confused and tied up in knots. How could he hate everything about her and still long to taste those lips? It was stupid and made absolutely no sense. He couldn’t ignore the fact that he was attracted to her despite her protective shell and those stupid blue lips.
He nearly chuckled when he thought about wiping the color off and seeing her pout devoid of color. Were her lips rosy or pink? Were they pliable or would they be as defiant as she was? Would she have to moisten them or were they ready for an assault?
It doesn’t matter, he practically said out loud. He wouldn’t ever find out. He couldn’t. She wasn’t his type. Hunter had to remind himself that he liked law-abiding women.
Realizing that he was stalking, he stepped aside and slowly retreated to the living room. He’d planned on spending time downstairs, reading his next project. He was going to give his brother space. If Kyle was as riled up as he was, they needed to decompress separately and in their own way. However, when he returned home and found Kyle missing, he’d gone into sheer panic mode. He didn’t know where to even start. He didn’t want to leave the house in the event Kyle returned. But he couldn’t stand by and do nothing. It had been sheer luck that when he’d stepped out to go search for him, Kyle arrived on the back of Byte’s motorcycle. He felt both exhilaration, knowing Kyle was safe, and outright anger knowing Kyle had gone to find Byte. And as much as his anger was with Kyle, he couldn’t stop himself from lashing out at Byte.
A few minutes later, the vixen herself stepped into the family room. He could see that she wasn’t as confident as she had been in their previous interactions. He’d done that and had only amplified that anxiety when he put his hands on her. Hunter couldn’t even recall why he’d done it. Perhaps he wanted to shake some sense into her, not that he believed it could happen. But he owed her more than a few apologetic words.
“You were right,” he said without turning around.
“About?” Byte asked.
“That my apology was half-hearted and was for my own guilt and not how I’d frightened you.”
“I wasn’t frightened. It takes a lot more than a beefy hand to scare me,” she stated just before she sat across from him.
“I don’t know what to do with Kyle. How can I get it into his head that hacking is dangerous? You’d think these past few days would paint that picture for him.”
“I think he knows that already. I’m a fascination for him. He’s curious, but cautious. At least he is now, and that’s a good thing.”
“Nothing is good about this. I just don’t understand why you intentionally break the law. Why risk your freedom?”
“My entire life I’ve searched for freedom and when it didn’t happen, I decided to embrace what life did offer me. I’m good at what I do, and I don’t have any regrets. I also don’t have to justify myself to you or anyone else.”
Byte stood, preparing to leave. She stopped when Hunter put his hand on her, trying to stop her from leaving. Byte stiffened, looked down at the appendage, and watched as Hunter quickly removed his hold.
“Will you do me a favor and stay away from my brother?”
“I didn’t seek him out. He came to me.”
“Don’t encourage him.”
“Again. He. Came. To. Me,” Byte stated slowly, one word at a time.
“Right.”
“You want him to stay away, then I suggest you watch him better.”
Byte opened the front door, walked to her bike, and placed her helmet on before looking up. The interior lights shone behind Hunter. She couldn’t see his expression, but she could read his body language. It was similar to hers. And just like her, she knew he would never be impulsive enough to act on that spark they’d felt when he touched her hand. That both pleased and saddened her.