steal a glance, taking note of the small grin on Shell’s lips as Craig whispers in her ear.
“She likes him too, obviously. But I think she really does like him, I haven’t seen her this giddy in a while,” I murmur in reply. He sighs deeply.
“They make it look easy, don’t they?” he half whispers.
“What?”
“You know, the whole flirting bit, finding someone, learning everything about them,” he responds. I tilt my head with a smile on my face.
“If I didn’t know you were a pompous bastard, I’d almost call you a romantic,” I say. He grins that lopsided, stupidly attractive smile.
“But you don’t really know me, do you?” he replies. I lean back against the wall and take a delicate sip from my drink.
“I guess not,” I say. He leans in toward my ear, and instead of feeling threatened or imposed on, it almost feels natural, like we’ve always been this close.
“But you want to know me, don’t you?” he whispers. I pause for a moment, studying him, his lanky swagger, his shaggy hair, the tiny admonitions that he’s not some asshole but actually carries a soul inside.
“Maybe,” I reply eventually. I’m expecting him to pull me closer or whisper more, but instead he backs away, his eyes turning dark and sullen.
“You don’t want to know me, Red. I’m not who you think I am,” he says, and then disappears into the thick crowd without another word. I’m left standing stock still, breathless from the encounter, and more confused than when I’d arrived. I look around for Shelley, but can’t find her, so I finish my drink and go home.
Chapter Seven
My legs jiggle uncontrollably in the Hunter meeting room. I’d thought to come early so I could scout everyone out as they arrived, but am dismayed to find everyone already in the large room seated comfortably with each other, drinking coffee and telling jokes. Grier is surrounded by a gaggle of female Hunters clinging to her every word, while Tor and a few other guys lean by the large windows, speaking in low tones, probably comparing battle scars or secretly checking out the girls. Nothing’s changed.
Except for the fact that I sit alone in a corner flipping through an old magazine from before the war while the rest of the team steals the occasional glance, thinking I don’t notice. I feel the light nudge of an elbow and turn to see Sandy, who pulls up a chair beside me. I don’t think I’ve ever grinned wider.
“You have no idea how happy I am that you’re here,” I say, ignoring the almost lethal glance Grier throws my way. Sandy chuckles and takes the magazine from my hands.
“What, you’re not enjoying 50 New Tips To Make Your Man Go Crazy ?” he asks, citing the article I’d been pretending to read. I snap the mag back from him and toss it back onto the pile of old, crumpled light reading materials.
“It was more interesting than Make Yourself Ten Pounds Thinner in Ten Minutes ,” I quip, and we laugh together. Sandy leans back in his chair, pulling a tiny laptop from his messenger bag and placing it neatly on his lap. He’s not really a Hunter, but being the head of the VR mod design team, he needs to know what we’re up against. Usually I would go to his place after these meetings to help him with the specifics, but this time I’ve got both feet in the water.
“So, you ready?” he asks. I inhale deeply before nodding.
“Money is money,” I reply. He rolls his eyes as if to say stop pretending you don’t miss it . Maybe he’s right.
The entire room snaps to attention as Myra Elder steps into the room, flanked by a young girl with glasses and a flashy palm-pilot, her gaze never wavering from the screen.
“At ease,” Myra says. She takes a seat at the head of the room as the rest of the team finds chairs around the long meeting table. The Director waits patiently until everyone is seated and looking up at her attentively, then she stands and holds her arm out to me.
“Let me introduce Ace Piper
“She likes him too, obviously. But I think she really does like him, I haven’t seen her this giddy in a while,” I murmur in reply. He sighs deeply.
“They make it look easy, don’t they?” he half whispers.
“What?”
“You know, the whole flirting bit, finding someone, learning everything about them,” he responds. I tilt my head with a smile on my face.
“If I didn’t know you were a pompous bastard, I’d almost call you a romantic,” I say. He grins that lopsided, stupidly attractive smile.
“But you don’t really know me, do you?” he replies. I lean back against the wall and take a delicate sip from my drink.
“I guess not,” I say. He leans in toward my ear, and instead of feeling threatened or imposed on, it almost feels natural, like we’ve always been this close.
“But you want to know me, don’t you?” he whispers. I pause for a moment, studying him, his lanky swagger, his shaggy hair, the tiny admonitions that he’s not some asshole but actually carries a soul inside.
“Maybe,” I reply eventually. I’m expecting him to pull me closer or whisper more, but instead he backs away, his eyes turning dark and sullen.
“You don’t want to know me, Red. I’m not who you think I am,” he says, and then disappears into the thick crowd without another word. I’m left standing stock still, breathless from the encounter, and more confused than when I’d arrived. I look around for Shelley, but can’t find her, so I finish my drink and go home.
Chapter Seven
My legs jiggle uncontrollably in the Hunter meeting room. I’d thought to come early so I could scout everyone out as they arrived, but am dismayed to find everyone already in the large room seated comfortably with each other, drinking coffee and telling jokes. Grier is surrounded by a gaggle of female Hunters clinging to her every word, while Tor and a few other guys lean by the large windows, speaking in low tones, probably comparing battle scars or secretly checking out the girls. Nothing’s changed.
Except for the fact that I sit alone in a corner flipping through an old magazine from before the war while the rest of the team steals the occasional glance, thinking I don’t notice. I feel the light nudge of an elbow and turn to see Sandy, who pulls up a chair beside me. I don’t think I’ve ever grinned wider.
“You have no idea how happy I am that you’re here,” I say, ignoring the almost lethal glance Grier throws my way. Sandy chuckles and takes the magazine from my hands.
“What, you’re not enjoying 50 New Tips To Make Your Man Go Crazy ?” he asks, citing the article I’d been pretending to read. I snap the mag back from him and toss it back onto the pile of old, crumpled light reading materials.
“It was more interesting than Make Yourself Ten Pounds Thinner in Ten Minutes ,” I quip, and we laugh together. Sandy leans back in his chair, pulling a tiny laptop from his messenger bag and placing it neatly on his lap. He’s not really a Hunter, but being the head of the VR mod design team, he needs to know what we’re up against. Usually I would go to his place after these meetings to help him with the specifics, but this time I’ve got both feet in the water.
“So, you ready?” he asks. I inhale deeply before nodding.
“Money is money,” I reply. He rolls his eyes as if to say stop pretending you don’t miss it . Maybe he’s right.
The entire room snaps to attention as Myra Elder steps into the room, flanked by a young girl with glasses and a flashy palm-pilot, her gaze never wavering from the screen.
“At ease,” Myra says. She takes a seat at the head of the room as the rest of the team finds chairs around the long meeting table. The Director waits patiently until everyone is seated and looking up at her attentively, then she stands and holds her arm out to me.
“Let me introduce Ace Piper
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