Finally, his tongue brushed the inside of my thigh. A small whimper escaped my mouth. Hunter gently spread my legs apart and pulled my panties down around my ankles.
The breeze lifted my dress a little, making me feel exposed and edgy, but it all disappeared when Hunter kissed me between my thighs, teasing my sex. I squirmed as the pleasure rose in waves, and grabbed a handful of his hair, raising my hips up to meet his hot mouth.
He worked long strokes up and down my swollen lips until I was a shuddering mess, before switching to quick circular flicks on my clit. An orgasm built in my core until I was near the edge of madness. He held me there, hovering between tension and release. The hot softness of his tongue pressed against my wetness until I lost track of time.
Then his touch was suddenly gone.
I moaned his name, and became aware of the quiet outside of the distant crashing of the waves. I opened my eyes to see why he he had stopped. Hunter stared at me with a possessive gaze, unbuckling his belt. He ripped open the condom wrapper with his teeth while one hand stroked his cock. In quick efficient movements he sheathed himself while I admired his rigid length. I bit my lip, anticipating the moment that he would enter me.
Hunter rubbed my clit with his cock, teasing me. I pushed myself towards him.
“You’re so wet,” he whispered, breathless.
I nodded, unable to say anything else, but letting him know with my eyes what I wanted.
Hunter leaned his massive body above me and slid his cock into me, inch by inch. I clutched at his back in helpless pleasure as my sex slicked pussy stretched around his girth.
He moved in and out of me slowly several times. Then he picked up the pace, thrusting himself feverishly into me, as waves of bliss washed over my body. I squeezed his firm hips between my thighs, holding on for the ride, getting closer and closer to release.
I came. My spasms forced me to grind my pussy against him even faster, overloading me with ecstatic sensation.
Hunter grunted, a primal rumbling from low in his chest, as he shuddered and then lay still. The warmth of his semen spilling into the condom inside me turned me on so much, I almost came again.
We held each other, sweaty and breathless. Then he picked off a strand of hair from my face and kissed me. I had never felt so deeply satisfied.
A little while later, when I came back to my senses, I looked quickly around us in a brief moment of panic. But Hunter had been right. We were safe. There was no one was in sight.
He rolled off of me and leaned his head on my chest, still panting lightly. We caught our breaths under the tree for a while, listening to the soft chirping of crickets and the rustling of the water on the beach below.
We didn’t say anything else to each other, but we didn’t need to.
Chapter Fifteen
STRONG
The next day we dropped by the post office so I could send off my portfolio to the art competition. Hunter even brought a kazoo he borrowed from Joel, which he blew loudly when I dropped the package into the bin. It was silly, but it helped keep our minds off of Hunter’s looming test results.
Despite our mini celebration, the rest of the day was tense. We both knew that we would get his results the following day, for better or for worse.
Before we were ready the next day came and it was time to find out the test results. We told Aunt Caroline we were going to the mall and left the house in the afternoon.
Hunter had seemed pretty nonchalant on the drive over, but now that we were at the clinic, he seemed more nervous. One of the lights in the waiting room flickered on and off, buzzing like there was a bug flying around inside of it. I looked at the bright teal colored chair I was sitting in. There were rows of them arranged around the waiting room.
The room was mostly empty except for a middle aged man sitting in a wheelchair and an older lady next to him. They were having a heated whisper conversation. Hunter was at the front desk, giving them his information. When he came back, his lips were a tight thin line. He sat down without a word.
Even though he seemed like he was healthy for the past few days, we both knew that didn’t mean anything. He was fighting something that was unseen but very real. Any second it could knock him down without warning.
I could feel the panic starting to rise in my chest but I fought it down with a fury.
“Hey, it’s going to be okay,” I said. I patted his hand gently.
He looked straight ahead, his jaw clenched. “Yeah. I know.”
I didn’t know exactly what was running through his head but I could guess. Whatever the results were, I needed to let him know that I would be there for him. I reached an arm around his hunched over shoulders and leaned my head against him. Maybe I could give him some small amount of comfort.
He took shallow breaths, gripping the arms of the chair tightly.
“Do you want some water?” I asked.
“Nah.”
I watched his profile carefully. Hunter looked around the room, not volunteering anything else. His sharp gray eyes darted to the man in the wheelchair.
The whispering between the lady and the man on the other side of the room got louder.
“—just why it had to happen to me?” The man had his head in his hands. The lady was patting his back gently, making soothing noises.
Hunter stared at them, his face grim. Maybe it would help if I could distract him.
“Hey,” I said as cheerfully as I could. “Do you remember that night when we first met?”
He pulled his eyes away from the conversation across to the room, but he wasn’t giving me his full attention. “Hm? You mean at the lake?”
“No, not the lake. I guess that is when we first met, but I was thinking about the night at the Bearded Squirrel and then afterwards when we went to that broken down amusement park.”
Hunter’s eyes wandered across the room when the whispers broke into our conversation.
“—how shitty my life is now. I used to play football in high school for Chrissakes. First team all county. We were state champs. I thought I’d get to play ball with my kids one day. Now I can’t walk.”
“Hey Hunter?” I stroked his arm soothingly. He was shifting around in his seat, an uneasy grimace on his face.
“Yeah. Mmhm. The amusement park.”
“Remember how we threw the rocks at the old booth game and it fell down?” I asked. I smiled ostentatiously for him. It had been a fun night, and I wanted him to remember it. Hopefully that would get Hunter to think about happier times instead of the results looming over us.
“What about it?”
“Well, I’m happy you won Bernie for me at the carnival last week. I’m glad we finally got a chance to play some real―”
“—can’t provide for them. We’re up shit creek in debt. Last week they took my car. They’re coming for the house next. Disability ain’t comin’ close to makin’ the payments.”
I looked over across the room, feeling a little uneasy myself. The man had started sobbing quietly into his hands. When I turned back to Hunter, the muscles on his neck were tense and he was breathing heavily.
I tried to get him to meet my eyes but he was fixated on the scene across the room. “Talk to me,” I pleaded. “Please.”
“—used to look up to me. I had a job. Construction. Now I can’t even walk, forget about working. I’m a burden on them. Now with this damn MS I’m useless. What have I got to live for?”
Hunter bolted upright, almost knocking over the chair. Then he turned on his heel, his body a tight rod of tension, and stormed out.
I sat stunned.
“Wait!” I yelled, but he was already through the doors. I shot up to my feet and followed.
When I got outside he was in the parking lot, pacing back and forth. I sprinted to him, heart pounding and reached for his wrist. His forearm was a tight bundle of muscle, but he didn’t pull away.
Hunter stopped pacing and shook his head. I paused to catch my breath, but I didn’t let
go of his arm. His entire body was trembling.
“Sorry,” he said. “I just can’t listen to that guy anymore.”
“It’s going to be okay,” I said, panting.
“No, it’s not,” he said. He pointed angrily at the doors of the clinic. “Did you see him? Hear how miserable he was? That could be me in a year!”
“It won’t be like that.”
“Can you promise me that?”
“I . . . ” I knew I couldn’t do that. No one could promise that, but I had to believe that it would be okay. I tried again. “No matter what happens, I’ll be there with you. We can deal with it together. You know that!”
“What if we can’t?”
Frustration clenched in my chest. What was he talking about? I thought we had worked this out. Why was he talking this way now?
The words poured out of his mouth. “Even with you by my side maybe I can’t deal with it. Maybe I’m not the guy you think I am. Maybe I won’t be able to handle finding out that I’m gonna end up being crippled or worthless or dead in a few months. Maybe I’m just too weak . . .”
He looked away from me, his face red.
A knife sliced through my heart, making every breath difficult to take. Was he just saying those things because he was scared or did he really mean them? Hearing those words come from his mouth hurt more than anything he could have said at that moment.
A bubbling fury rose in my chest, ready to explode.
“STOP IT!” I yelled, stomping my foot. “How can you even say those things? If it wasn’t for you, I’d probably be at the bottom of a lake right now.”
My vision was starting to get blurry and my face wet, but I didn’t care. If people passing through the parking lot wanted to watch me cry, so be it.
Hunter didn’t say anything, his fists working at his side.
I hit him on the chest as tears beaded and fell down my face, trying to drive every word into his heart. “If it wasn’t for you, I’d still be numb and empty because of what happened to my parents. You were the only one could drag me out.”
He grabbed at my hands to stop me from hitting him. “Lorrie, stop . . .”
I wrenched my hands away. I wasn’t done yet.
“If it wasn’t for you, I’d still be hiding in bed, afraid of the world, afraid of everything. Every time I fell, it was your strength that picked me up off the floor so don’t you dare say you’re weak. You’re the strongest person I’ve ever met!”
My lungs felt like they were about to burst. I angrily wiped my eyes and shook the tears off of the back of my hand. Pursing my lips, I stared at him defiantly, daring him to challenge what I had said.
Hunter stared right back at me, his chest heaving. At first I thought he was going to argue with me, but the intensity in his eyes faded away into sorrow.
I knew that he’d been fighting this battle for a long time before I came into his life and I knew that it wasn’t easy for him. I also knew that he was a lot stronger than he gave himself credit for. Maybe no one had ever told him that, maybe he just needed to hear it from me, but I knew that he had it in him.
I took a few deep breaths to steady myself. Then I continued more softly. “I know this is your choice to make, but if finding out the results of this test will help the doctors treat you better, then I think you should go back in there. Whatever happens, I know you’re strong enough to face it.”
Hunter puffed up his cheeks and blew out a long breath. “You still think I’m strong?” he asked, “Even after you’ve seen how scared I am?”
“There’s nothing wrong with being scared. I’m scared too. Maybe I’m even more scared than you, but someone I love once told me that when you’re in a fight being afraid of getting hit is worse than the hit itself.”
He shook his head in disbelief and ran a hand through his hair. Then he turned to look at me again before lifting his face to the sky and sucking in a deep breath through his teeth. When he exhaled, it was like all the tension had left his body.
Hunter wrapped his arms around me. I let myself sink into him for a moment, before I threw my arms around him too and hugged him close to me. We had to face this battle together.
When we finally untangled ourselves from each other, a small smile cracked on his lips and he met my eyes sheepishly.
“I gotta be careful what I say around you,” he said. “Else you’re gonna use it against me someday.”
I choked out a laughed, still sniffling and slapped his arm lightly.
Hunter smiled and looked down at the asphalt, lost in his thoughts for a few moments. After a while, he looked at me, his eyes sharp and clear. “Thanks for not letting me do something stupid again. I know it’s been difficult for you.”
I shook my head. “It’s okay. That’s what we’re here for right? To save each other from doing stupid things? You’ve saved me a few times already, so I guess it’s my turn now.”
He nodded slowly, a thoughtful expression on his face.
“Let’s go back inside. They’re probably gonna call me in soon.”
When we got back inside the clinic we each spent a few minutes in the bathroom, cleaning ourselves up.
Hunter and I sat down after we’d straightened ourselves out. We waited for his name to be called. The old lady and the guy in the wheelchair were gone; they must’ve been called inside already. A few minutes later a doctor cracked the door open.
“Hunter Jensen?”
I squeezed Hunter’s hand and we got up and walked over to the doctor together. The doctor had to be at least sixty. His hair was completely white, and his thick black rectangular glasses covered his wrinkled eyes.
We followed him to the back. The room was like any other doctor’s room, with posters of veins and nerves up on the walls. The beige exam table had seen better days. Its cushioning looked lumpy and uneven and the wood laminate on its base was chipped. Hunter eyed it with a distaste and sat down in one of the waiting chairs. I sat down next to him.
“Hello Hunter,” the doctor said. “I’m Dr. Miller and I’ll be interpreting your MRI results today.”
He gave us a small smile, then pressed a button on the wall behind the counter. The light box hummed on. Apparently Dr. Miller wasn’t one for small talk. Hunter didn’t say anything, but he did nod. I watched him carefully to see if he was still okay, but I couldn’t read his expression.
I thought I was ready and his mini freakout from earlier had distracted me from my own emotions, but now I was feeling the full weight of what was about to happen. When Dr. Miller produced an extra large manila envelope, I didn’t feel prepared.
“I’ve received the scans back from the test center and had a chance to read them,” he started. He pulled out the films and began put them onto the light box.
Hunter fixated on the images, as if he was trying to interpret them himself.
“Now, your primary care doctor over in Illinois sent me your records. The notes said that you sustained physical trauma to the head recently from ‘cage-fighting.’ Is that correct?”
Dr. Miller raised an eyebrow at Hunter. I held my breath.
“Yeah.” Hunter replied, tearing his eyes away from the MRI scans.
“Well, I’ll cut to the chase. Your doctor was worried about extremely rapid progression of your MS symptoms as a result of the physical trauma you suffered, but the good news is we’ve avoided the worst case scenario.”
We both let out a breath and I gave Hunter’s hand a small squeeze. We were going to be okay.
Dr. Miller cleared his throat and continued, pointing to a few spots on the MRI film. “However, it does appear you have some new lesions on your spinal cord and brain since your last scan.”
The hairs on the nape of my neck rose and my palms grew sweaty. What? I thought we had avoided the worst case scenario.
“So what does that mean?” Hunter asked, frowning.
“Well, even though we’ve avoided the worst case scenario, these lesions are worrying, and could make your next flar
e-up a lot worse.”
“How much worse?” Hunter asked.
“I can’t say. But I would strongly advise you to refrain from continuing to fight. Sustaining lesions like this is not good for your long-term prognosis with this disease.”
I looked to Hunter’s face, but his brows were furrowed and he didn’t seem to register my concern. Dr. Miller’s words echoed in my mind, but I was only slowly starting to understand what he meant. Hunter was okay for now, but his next episode could be a lot worse if he didn’t stop fighting?
Hunter squinted at the scans on the lightbox. “So if I stop fighting, will it prevent another attack?”
“It would certainly help a great deal, but there are no guarantees. MS is an autoimmune disease. Your body is attacking itself and it’s very unpredictable.”
Hunter clammed up and looked down at the linoleum tiles on the floor. I could tell he was tense. He looked the same as when he stormed out of the clinic earlier. I stroked his hand gently, trying to provide whatever comfort I could.
Even if Hunter did everything he could to be healthy, his MS could still knock him down at any moment. It made any preventative action he took seem trivial. I was starting to understand why he felt so helpless.
“Is that all?” Hunter grunted. I could tell he was upset, but I didn’t know how to make it better.
“Yes, that’s all we can tell from the MRI. Treatment-wise, we don’t need to make adjustments. Have you been continuing with your injections regimen?”
Hunter nodded.
“Other than that, make sure you stay healthy and call the clinic immediately if you notice any new symptoms. Do you have any other questions?”
“Nah, thanks doc.” Hunter stood up and I followed his lead. Dr. Miller walked us out to the waiting area in front while Hunter seemed deep in thought.
After the doctor parted ways with us and Hunter had completed his post-visit paperwork at the front desk, I followed him outside in silence.