SWNOVELS Hale: Chapter 16
I stop the car near my parents’ house, quickly jump out, and open the door for Story. My daughter smiles at me when I take her hand and help her climb out of the backseat. She’s been in a particularly good mood, chatting the entire ride about all the things she wants to do with her grandparents. I’m grateful for the distraction, because otherwise I would’ve been thinking about my brother’s show the whole time. My brain refuses to believe it’ll be anything but a disaster.
“Are you excited about tonight?” My daughter’s voice interrupts my thoughts, and I focus my attention on her as I lock the car.
“Intrigued.”
“Why?”
“Well, I’ve never seen Hayden play in person. I have no idea what it will be like.”
“It’ll be awesome,” she murmurs, clasping my hand in hers as we stroll to my parents’ house. “I’m sad I can’t go with you.”
“You’re too little to be at a club. Loud music, a crowd, alcohol. It’s not the best place for a seven-year-old.”
“Will you be drinking?” Story tugs on my hand, and I squint at her. When I ruffle her hair with my other hand, she giggles. “Daddy?”
“No. I’m the driver, remember?”
My daughter halts in her tracks. Her eyes widen, and her mouth falls open. “Will you give Piper a ride home?”
My right eye twitches when I force a smile. “As far as I know, your nanny will be with her friends. I highly doubt she’ll want to come to our house after the show.”
“Yeah, you’re probably right.” She shrugs and keeps walking. “You and Piper don’t get along.”
“Wh—” I swallow a sudden lump in my throat as my daughter stops near the front door. “What do you mean?”
“You act like two strangers when you think I’m not around.”
“Story, Piper and I aren’t friends. And we’ve never been friends.” In two strides, I’m at the door and pressing the doorbell. “I’m her boss.”
She silently holds my gaze, shifting a little and grasping her backpack strap. “I know, but it wasn’t like that before. You two are starting to remind me of you and Mom, right before…right before you moved out.”
Thank goodness my mother finally opens the door, saving me from having to respond. Things between Piper and me aren’t as bad as my daughter thinks. They’re just…nonexistent.
“Hey hey, my little sunshine,” my mother greets Story. My daughter rushes to her and wraps her arms around her waist. “Did you miss me that much?”
“I did.” Her voice is muffled, as she keeps her face pressed to my mom’s belly. “You’re the best granny in the world.”
“Sweetie, you make me wanna cry. And I hate crying!”
Story leans away, looking up at my mom’s face. “Why do you want to cry?”
“Because you’re too sweet.” She cups my daughter’s face with her palm. “And because I’m over the moon that your dad decided to come home.”
“The best decision I’ve ever made.” I meet my mom’s gaze and smile. “Hey, Mom.”
“Hey, Hunter. Can you stay for a few minutes?”
“Only a few minutes?” I step inside as Mom and Story move back to give me space. “I can stay for an hour or two.”
Mom’s expression darkens, and she narrows her eyes. “An hour tops, Hunter. Your brother’s show starts in an hour and a half. You’ll need time to get to the club.”
I can’t really bail, can I? I sigh and nod, accepting the inevitable. No way she’ll let me skip my brother’s show. Besides, I made a promise, and I’m not a quitter. Who cares if I’ll be forced to spend time with a girl who hates my guts and only talks to me if my daughter is present? I’m the one to blame for that.
Fifteen minutes later, Mom and Story go upstairs to set up for their sleepover. I take a sip of coffee, feeling my father’s gaze on me. I arch an eyebrow, lifting my chin in question. “What?” I ask.
“Nothing.” Nothing? Then why are you looking at me like that? “When do you think Amelia will visit?”
“In December. She’ll be here for Story’s birthday.”
Dad smirks and shakes his head. “What a mother. When was the last time she saw her daughter?”
“In August.” I know where this conversation is going, and I can’t say I like it. He doesn’t have any right to comment on Amelia’s parenting skills.
“Why do you look so calm? Story loves her mom, and she misses her. Why can’t you insist on her visiting more often?”
“Would you have visited more often if you knew Hayden and I were missing you?”
“Hunter,” Dad mutters, shifting uncomfortably in his chair. “It’s different.”
“How? She has a job that requires constant traveling. You had a job that required you to stay here while Mom and I were living in Europe. What’s the difference, Dad?”
He averts his gaze, staring off into the distance. I wait for his answer, feeling indifferent. I’m not the little boy who craved his dad’s presence anymore. I don’t hold grudges, even if I can’t quite forgive him for his mistakes. But if he’s going to criticize my ex-wife, he better look back on his own life and realize how it was for me, and then for my brother also.
“You’re right. There’s no difference,” he finally says, meeting my gaze. “I didn’t even think about comparing it, and that was wrong of me.”
“Glad you see it that way now.” I take another sip of my coffee and heave a sigh. “Story misses Amelia, but they FaceTime a few times a week. And she also has Piper. She won Story over in such a short time, I’m baffled.”
Dad smiles, and his shoulders instantly relax. “Piper is a real gem. You’re lucky she agreed to work for you.”
“Yeah, I am.”
“You know, your mom and I often wondered if Piper and Hayden would ever become more than just friends,” Dad confides, and my heart pounds. “But those two are living proof that friendship between a man and a woman is possible. They act like siblings more than friends.”
“I’ve asked myself the same question.”
Dad slowly sets his mug on the table, peering at me. “How do you like Piper? She’s a beautiful—”
“No, no, no.” I shake my head, immediately shutting him up. “Piper is my daughter’s nanny. End of story.”
My father blinks at me from under furrowed eyebrows. I’m too defensive; I’m giving myself away. The buzzing of my phone startles me, and I grab it from the kitchen counter.
“Hey, man,” Hayden mumbles, out of breath. “Any chance you’re on your way to the club?”
“I’m still at Mom and Dad’s, but if you need something…” I let the words linger in the air, hoping for the best. Dad continues eyeing me, and I feel uncomfortable. The last thing I want is my parents thinking there’s something going on between me and Story’s nanny.
“You’d be my savior if you could stop by Piper’s house. I forgot my lucky pick at her place, and I can’t fucking play without it.” Lucky pick? But who am I to judge. My lucky charm is a little stone I found years ago in Madrid. I always have it with me.
“No problem. Can you send me her address?”
“Sure, one minute.” A shuffling sound makes me take the phone away from my ear. “Piper’s home. I told her I’d come pick her up, but things got crazy, and…Hunter, you’re doing me a huge favor. Thank you.”
Do I really think this call is a blessing? A forty-minute ride to the club with someone who can’t stand me. Splendid. “No worries. You can count on me.”
“Thanks again, Hunter.”
I end the call, meet my father’s gaze, and say, “I need to get going. Hayden needs my help.”
“I heard,” he says slowly, his lips stretching into a huge grin. “Piper’s house is ten minutes from here.”
“Great.” I stand up and rinse out my mug. “I’ll go tell Mom and Story I’m leaving.”
“Sure. See you tomorrow, Son.”
“See you tomorrow.”
I park near a small one-story house with an earthy red facade and a neatly manicured lawn. I take out my phone and call Piper, waiting for her to answer. To no avail. I close my eyes and groan. Why do I get the feeling she has no idea I’m coming to pick her up? Dammit, Hayden.
Knocking on the front door, I feel like a fucking teenager picking up his homecoming date. Ridiculousness at its finest.
The door opens, and my eyes land on Riley. She stares at me slack-jawed, in total bewilderment.
“Mr. Hale?”
“Hey, Riley.” I smile. “And please, call me Hunter.”
“Sure, Hunter.” Her cheeks flush, turning red and reminding me of her sister. They don’t look that much alike except for their blond hair, but right now the resemblance is striking. “Is everything okay with Story? Do you need Piper’s help?”
My smile grows wider as I hide my hands in my pocket. “Story’s fine; she’s with her grandparents. Thank you so much for asking.”
“Your daughter is precious. It’s impossible not to love her.” Riley flashes me a lopsided grin. “Our dance teacher, Ms. Martinez, adores her. She always has something nice to say about your daughter and her talents. She’ll be a great dancer someday.”
“I hope so, because she’s very passionate about it.” I fall quiet. The sound of footsteps reaches my ears, and in the next moment Piper shows up in the hallway. Our eyes meet, and she scowls.
“Hey, Piper.”
“Hey, Hunter.” She stops by Riley’s side. “What are you doing here?”
“Lucky pick,” I say, and her face drops. “Hayden asked me to come pick you up so you can bring it.”
“Gah, he’s impossible. I was going to call an Uber.”
“Hade thought his best friend would look better in a Lexus…” Riley laughs, looking at me for help.
“Lexus RX.”
“Yeah, Hade thought you’d look better in a Lexus RX, sis. I can’t really blame him.”
“I hate you, kid,” she mutters, threading her fingers through her hair. Then she brings her gaze back to me. “I need twenty minutes.”
“I’ll wait in the car, don’t worry.” Without saying anything, Piper disappears into the house, and I shift my gaze to her sister. “Bye, Riley.”
“Bye, Hunter.”
The door closes, and I edge back to my car, taking my phone out of my pocket. Might as well use this time to read some news.
I immediately regret my decision. Photos of Amelia and her new boyfriend pop up on every account I follow. I curse and toss my phone onto the passenger seat, then fold my arms over my chest. I’m not jealous. Just mad at myself. More and more I think that Angelo was right. Maybe I’m making a mistake in neglecting my needs.
I spend the next ten minutes scrolling through Tinder, swiping left over and over again. No one seems to pique my interest—until I stumble upon a familiar face. I’m so surprised to see Autumn Dunn that I swipe right on impulse and then just stare at the screen in horror. What have I just done? No, fuck no. I bang my head on the steering wheel. Another complication I don’t need.
“Um, is everything okay?”
I sit up, turn my head toward Piper’s voice, and feel as if I’m falling down a rabbit hole. Can I fucking skip to the good part of this night? To when I’m alone, not swiping right on the reporter who was making bedroom eyes at me, with no nanny looking sexy as hell in a little black dress?
“Hunter?”
“Is there any way to swipe left retroactively? Like, if you swiped right but didn’t want to?” I plead, and she blinks. “I mean, on Tinder…do you know if I can take back my swipe?”
Piper holds my gaze, and I see her expression waver. Irritation and anger are the two most recognizable emotions on her face. She exhales loudly and climbs into my car, buckles the seatbelt, and only then turns to face me. “Give me your phone.”
I hand it to her and watch as she taps the screen, once, twice, and then shows it to me. “This one?” I see Autumn’s face and nod. Piper takes my phone back, taps a few more times, and shoves it back into my hand. “Done.”
“Thank you, Piper. Honestly—”
“Can we go? I don’t want to be late. Hade needs his pick.”
“Yeah, of course.” I start the engine and drive away from her house. The silence in my car becomes suffocating, and I hate it. “I’m very sorry for being rude to you the other night. I should’ve handled it differently.”
Piper continues staring out the window, toying with her butterfly pendant, and for a moment I think she’s going to ignore me for the whole ride. But I’m wrong. Eventually she says, “Thanks.”
“I should’ve apologized right away, but…I kinda freaked out.”
“Uh-huh.” She trains her deep brown eyes on my face. Her bright makeup highlights her cheekbones and eyes, and her lips are painted red, making it impossible not to admire her. A heavy curtain of hair veils her shoulders, with two little braids framing her face. “Why did you cancel your swipe? That woman looks exactly like your type.”
And that’s how I know she followed my advice and googled my exes. It only gave her more reasons to believe me. Reasons to turn against me completely.
“She’s a sports reporter. I met her during my press conference, and I swiped right on instinct, because I recognized her. I was surprised to see her on the app.”
“Of course…because it’d be highly unprofessional to date her, right? And you’re keen on keeping things professional.”
“Yes.” I set my jaw hard and keep my eyes on the road. “Piper, I’ve been single for a while, and also—”
“Can you please stop?” She raises her voice. “I’m your daughter’s nanny. You’re my boss. We’re not friends, and we don’t have to talk about anything that isn’t related to my job. So please, spare me the stories about your single life. I’m not interested.”
“But it’s your day off. And we’re going to my brother’s show together.”
She focuses her gaze on me. “Then we can talk about Hayden and Sabotage, about the club we’re going to, about the people around us…and nothing else.”
I watch her for a second and then nod. “Good. Should I turn on the music?”
“Do whatever you want.” She takes a deep breath, putting her hands on her bare legs. Her little black dress ends just above her knees, and I force myself to look away. The view is perfect, but I have no right to enjoy it. “I just want to get to the club already.”
You and me both, Piper. You and me both.