The Soul Stealer (6 page)

They walked back toward Eric and Hunter, who were talking about surfing, although it seemed Eric was doing most of the talking. After Malia turned off the lights and locked the door, they all walked outside.

“We’ll meet you there,” Lani said, and she walked away with Eric without another look back.

Malia wanted to protest. She didn’t want to be alone with Hunter, but it made more sense to drive in separate cars since they would be going in different directions at the end of the evening. She turned and walked toward her car parked on the street and Hunter followed. She could feel his eyes on the back of her neck.

Hunter went to the driver’s side, where he opened the door and held it for her. A guy had never opened a car door for her before. Malia stood on the sidewalk for a moment and hoped her heart would stop racing, but it didn’t. She would have to brush by him in order to get into the car, so she took a breath and walked up to him. Hunter’s gaze never wavered from her face. She had to step sideways to make it through the space between Hunter and the car because there wasn’t much room. Malia hesitated for a moment, and Hunter could easily have leaned forward to kiss her, but he didn’t. Instead, he touched her cheek with his hand so briefly it was almost as if it didn’t happen. Time froze and her heart stopped beating. He smelled so good, a mixture of cinnamon and cloves.

A smile started at one corner of his mouth and then made it over to the other side. His teeth were like white pearls but just crooked enough to make him look charmingly human, instead of some sort of ethereal being. “Get in, before we both get run over by a car,” he said in a voice that had enough of a soft edge to make her even more aware of the power of his masculinity. The tone hinted at a secret treasure of tenderness he kept hidden from the world.

Malia tried to look graceful as she got into the car but didn’t think she succeeded. Hunter shut the door and went around to the other side. They drove in silence for most of the trip to Waikiki. She tapped her fingers on the steering wheel, trying to think of something to say. “So, tell me why you were walking up Nu’uanu Avenue every morning?” she finally asked. A confused look crossed his face. “I used to see you every morning when I drove to work,” she explained.

“You did?”

“Yeah,” she replied, trying to sound casual, as if seeing him had not made much of an impression. “You caught my eye because you always had on the same thing, a white shirt and black jeans. Where were you going if you didn’t have a place to live or a job to go to?”

They stopped at a red light, so Malia looked over at him. Hunter furrowed his brows and stared straight ahead, his face a mask of serious thought. The light changed to green, and she concentrated again on driving but waited for a response, which never came. At the next red light, she looked over at him again with raised eyebrows.

Hunter shook his head and sighed. “I had a part time job for awhile in a food establishment, but they let me go when I became ill. The wage wasn’t enough to pay for rent,” he said in his odd accent.

“So where did you live?”

“Mostly on a bench in the park. Hawaii has good weather for an outdoor life.” He smiled but didn’t look toward her.

“So you have money saved in the bank?”

“I can get money from the bank,” Hunter said with a nod.

“And where are you from originally?”

“A bit of everywhere really, but somewhere around Great Britain, I’d say.”

“That’s a little vague.”

Hunter shrugged in answer, making Malia feel like she was asking too many questions. He was definitely hiding something.

Unable to contain her curiosity, she asked, “What brought you to Hawaii?”

Hunter turned his fiery violet eyes toward her. “To find you, beautiful girl.”

She had to force herself to look away from him and back to the road. Swallowing hard, she decided not to ask any more questions as she drove forward.

“Malia,” he whispered in his silky voice. “You don’t understand how long I’ve waited for you.” He brushed his fingers across her hand as it rested on the bench seat.

She pulled her hand away and turned into the parking garage, unable to acknowledge his last comment. There was too much desire and longing in his voice. Malia wondered if maybe she should have a brief fling with him to get it out of her system and then kick him out of the studio. Could she forget him so easily? She didn’t think so. She watched him out of the corner of her eye as they walked a block to the nightclub in silence.

Lani and Eric waited for them just inside the door to the club. They nodded at each other, but inside it was too loud to try to talk. They went straight to the bar, where Hunter ordered a round of drinks. He pulled a wad of cash out of his pocket and paid for them before anyone else could, and then handed each person a beer. Malia downed hers in just a few gulps, hoping it would steady her nerves, and ordered another one. She wasn’t normally a drinker, but her emotions were raw and the beer tasted unusually good. Hunter stood on the other side of Eric and watched her with some concern on his face. She noticed that more than one cocktail waitress came up to Hunter and offered to get him a drink, even though he was standing right at the bar and his beer went untouched. Hunter ignored them and never let his eyes waiver from Malia.

After finishing a third beer in a short time, her head was spinning and the loud music gave her a headache. Eric and Lani went to the dance floor, so Hunter edged in closer, which made Malia unable to focus on any one thing. His hand caressed her face, and those lips touched softly against her forehead. She leaned into him and put her head on his shoulder and felt the hard muscles of his chest, the protective shield of his arms around her, and the soft curls of his long hair against her face. He smelled fresh and inviting. In his arms, she felt safe, natural, as if she had been there before and now was home again after being separated from him. Malia closed her eyes, but the spinning didn’t go away.

“I should get you home before you pass out,” she heard him whisper in her ear, even though the music drowned out all other sound. He left a tip on the bar, took her hand, and led her out the door.

Malia had a dim notion they should say goodbye to Eric and Lani, but she didn’t much care at the moment because Hunter had his arm around her waist as they walked back to the car.

“I don’t usually drink like this,” she tried to say, but the words didn’t come out right.

When they got to the parking garage where they had left the car, she went to the passenger’s side and slumped against the door. “You need to drive. I can’t.”

“Well, that’s a problem. I don’t know how to drive. So which is worse, someone who’s drunk, or someone who doesn’t know what they’re doing?”

Malia laughed and shrugged her shoulders. She tried to shake her head, but it just made her world swirl too much, so she stopped.

Hunter looked around the parking garage. “I guess there’s only one thing to do,” he muttered, with another glance around.

He took Malia in his arms. She thought he was going to kiss her, so she closed her eyes, but instead he crushed her against his chest to the point she almost couldn’t breathe. She tried to push him away but didn’t have the strength.

“Relax and close your eyes. This won’t hurt.”

Malia did as she was told, because she enjoyed the sensation of being near him, even though she didn’t understand what was happening. He put his hand over her eyes. Her head started to spin again. She felt the ground disappear from beneath her feet and the wind rushed at her. She had the strangest feeling that gravity didn’t work anymore. Malia tried to open her eyes, but Hunter kept his hand clasped there. For a moment, she almost gagged with fear because his hand was over her nose as well, and she couldn’t get any air. Just when she thought she was going to suffocate, he took his hand away and held her away from him. Hunter took her by the shoulders to steady her and bent down to look her straight in the eyes.

“Are you all right? You look a little green.”

“I don’t feel very well,” she agreed.

“Let’s get you upstairs and to bed then. You’ll feel better in the morning.”

“What are you talking about? We’re in a garage.”

“No, we’re at your house.”

“I’m not that drunk,” Malia said, but then she looked around. “How did we get here?” She blinked, unsure of what her eyes told her. They were standing at the bottom of the stairs that led up to her front door by the kitchen, and the porch light made her squint.

“Don’t you remember taking a taxi here?”

Malia shook her head, but the ground started to move again, and her head wanted to fall back to meet it by her feet.

“Don’t faint,” she heard Hunter say as her eyes closed. He grabbed her before she slumped to the ground.

Malia opened her eyes in a warm place. Someone had taken off her dress and shoes and put her to bed. The house was dark and quiet, except for Max’s snores reverberating from the floor at the foot of the bed. She felt something heavy across her waist, so she turned to find Hunter lying on top of the covers, fully clothed, with his arm over her. His body radiated heat. She couldn’t make out every detail of his face in the dark, but she could tell his eyes were open. “What happened?”

“You had a little too much to drink and passed out after we got home.”

“How did we get here? I don’t remember driving.”

“We took a cab,” he said as he nuzzled closer. His voice sounded soft and reassuring in the still of the night. His breath warmed her neck and sent a shiver down her spine.

“We did?”

“Go to sleep, beautiful girl. You’ll feel better in the morning.”

Malia shut her eyes, knowing that was good advice. She drifted off to sleep feeling safer and happier than she had in a very long time. Her body relaxed and molded into his as if her curves were made to soften every hard angle of his body.

The sun intruded into her bedroom, which made sleep no longer possible. Malia’s head pounded and her mouth felt dry, but the smell of coffee brewing motivated her to get to the kitchen. She regretted the idea as soon as she sat up, and decided not to go any farther.

Hunter walked into the bedroom and set a mug of steaming coffee on the nightstand.

“This might make you feel better,” he said. He sat down on the bed and leaned over her. “You still look a bit ill.”

“I feel even worse. I’m really not used to drinking anything, let alone pounding beers.”

Hunter chuckled.

“I’m glad you weren’t drunk, too. At least one of us was sober enough to call a cab.” Malia picked up the mug of coffee, very aware of his nearness.

“That’s why I don’t drink. It distorts reality too much.”

“Ever? You don’t drink ever?”

Hunter shook his head but didn’t take his eyes off her.

“I’m so sorry. You must think I’m a lush, or something.”

“No, you were okay,” he said as he brushed the hair out of her eyes with a quick sweep of his long fingers.

The contact made her lungs feel constricted, and she remembered the comfort of going to sleep in his arms. It couldn’t happen again. She pulled the blanket up higher to her shoulders, knowing she was almost naked.

“Besides, I enjoyed being with you,” he added in a soft voice while leaving his hand entwined in her hair.

Malia swallowed the coffee with a gulp and put down the mug on the nightstand as an excuse to move away from him. “I was surprised to see you at the shop yesterday. How’d you know where to find me?”

“You’re full of questions, aren’t you?”

“About you, yes.”

“You shouldn’t worry so much,” Hunter said as his hand moved from her hair to brush across her face, and then his finger outlined the curve of her lower lip—an intimate and possessive gesture. Hunter’s eyes became hooded and his breathing ragged as he leaned in closer. His fingers traced along her jaw line and then down around her neck and rested on the pulse in her jugular vein.

She closed her eyes. “What do you want from me?” Malia asked in a barely audible whisper.

“Everything, my love. Everything, forever.”

His sweet breath filled her senses, and his lips followed the path of his fingers to her neck. For a moment, she was lost in the pleasure, but then her eyes flew open. She almost felt intoxicated again. “I, uhh, have to go. . . I need to get my car,” she managed to get out.

Hunter straightened up and backed away with a confused look on his face.

“I have to figure out a way to get my car.” Malia felt panic course through her veins, and it wasn’t caused by her car still being in Waikiki. Hunter was too close, which made logical thought and normal breathing impossible.

“How about if I ride the bus with you to Waikiki, we pick up your car, and then you show me the island the way it should be seen? I’ll take you to an early dinner somewhere on the way home,” Hunter said.

Malia hesitated. “You know, I think I’ll just call Lani and ask her to take me there. I need to get back by this afternoon. I have plans for dinner.”

Hunter backed off the bed and stood. “Oh. You have a date?” The surprise in his voice was apparent.

“No, no, I. . . .” Malia didn’t know what to say. “It’s just a. . . well, sort of a date.” She didn’t need to explain anything to him, so why did she feel so guilty? The hurt and disappointment in his eyes made her feel awful. It was clear he had expected her to want to be with him. Malia wondered if he had ever been turned down by a woman in any way before. He was so beautiful and seductive, so probably not. “Listen, I appreciate you getting me home last night, and going to sleep in your arms was great, but that doesn’t mean it will happen again.”

The surprise in his eyes deepened. He looked stunned. “But you enjoy being with me. I can tell. You want to be with me, not anyone else, right? Cancel your date and spend time with me.” His tone was a mixture of pleading and demanding. “I know you want to.”

Anger at his arrogance surged through Malia as she threw off the covers and got to her feet, not caring now that she was almost naked. He watched her closely as she dug one of Alex’s old T-shirts out of the dresser and put it on, knowing it would fall almost to her knees. “I just got a divorce, so I really don’t want to get myself into another situation with a man thinking he can control me. And I certainly don’t want to fall for someone I barely know,” Malia said through gritted teeth as she turned to look him in the eyes. “I don’t want to feel that over-the-top charge like I’ve met the right person. Okay? Being in love is a false net, and the fall is way too hard when it disappears.”