A/N: I totally acknowledge that I’ve messed up the city Emma moved from, confusing Vancouver/ Toronto and LA. My bad, guys! Sticking to Toronto hereon! Too many cities that I love!
They didn’t end it in the car. Worried for Sarah’s safety in the house, Emma forced Hunter to drive her back to the house. The car ride back was silent, but not awkward. There was simply an intensity and restlessness in the car, that wasn’t there before.
She was still fiddling with the buttons of her jeans when he parked in front of her car, not looking at her as she unbuckled the seatbelt. Her skin felt like it was on fire.
The words came out of her mouth before she even really thought it through. “Want to come in?”
The question caught him by surprise, and a mischievous glint glimmered in his eye. “What for?”
She rolled her eyes, trying to hide the blush that crept up on her cheek. “The offer stands if you want it,” with that, she stepped out of the car and shut the door.
She heard the ignition die behind her and felt excitement course through her as the driver’s door opened and snow crunched under Hunter’s footsteps as he stepped out of the car. The house was silent as she unlocked the front door, the lamp by the fireplace the only source of light in the circular living room.
The door shut behind her and before she could turn to address what had happened between them, Hunter came up behind her and wrapped his arm around her waist. The words died in her throat as his lips found her neck, tiny kisses burning skin that had become cold from the few seconds spent outside.
No time was spent on formalities. Her jeans were unbuttoned in an instant and his hand slipped inside the front of her panties, his groin pressing against her ass firmly.
Sarah would kill her if she knew what she was up to right now.
A small whimper escaped her lips, but his hand covered her mouth firmly as he pushed his finger against her clit. His hand forced her neck back, the back of her head resting on his shoulder, providing his mouth more access to her throat. Her knees nearly buckled underneath her as his fingers rubbed in circles inside of her jeans, his other hand catching the moan that escaped her lips.
And just like that, as quickly as he had started, he let her go.
She turned hazily to him, feeling irritation as she saw how cool, calm, and collected he appeared to be. He nodded to the couch, “kneel down in front of the couch with your hands behind your back.”
“Why should I listen to you?” she asked playfully, leaning forward to kiss him. He caught her face before her lips touched his. He leaned her chip up with his finger, her belly aching for his kiss.
His eyes were stern, eyebrows furrowing. “If you want what I think you want, you’ll listen to me.”
She struggled against his grasp, but his grip was like an iron stronghold. “You love being in charge, don’t you?”
His smirk was devilish, his blue eyes seeming darker than normal. “I don’t like being questioned.”
“What will –.” The sentence ended in a gasp as he pinched her butt.
“Get over there.”
“Fine,” she hid a grin as she turned around and tiptoed to the couch, careful to be quiet lest she wake Sarah.
She knelt onto the wooden floorboards, her heart pounding slightly and her skin tingling with anticipation. The house was warm but quiet, and all the curtains were drawn shut, blocking out the moonlight outside. It was so silent she could hear a pin drop.
She heard the unbuckling of a belt, and the slide of leather against denim as he pulled the strap out of his jeans. She bit her lip in nervousness. What in the world was he going to do with…
The cold metal of the buckle pressed against her wrist as he gathered her fists in his palm and wrapped the leather of his belt around her wrists. He pulled the belt tightly, so she could barely move her arms, and her fingers clenched tightly into tiny balls.
“How asleep is Sarah?” He asked as kneeled down behind her, his deep voice making her shiver.
“I’m not sure, asleep.”
“Will we hear her if she wakes up?”
“Yeah, the floorboards are creaky on the stairca-.” She didn’t get to finish her sentence, as Hunter pulled her shirt up over breasts, gathering it into one tight band, using it to gag her mouth.
“Bite on this,” he muttered, his voice heavy as he pushed her down so her chest lay flat against the couch cushions, her knees still kneeling against the carpet.
She gasped against the gag as he unzipped her jeans and pulled her pants down. She felt so naked then, kneeling on the couch, with nothing but her shirt in her mouth and panties that were already soaked with her wetness.
She tried to squirm to try and face him, but his hands were firmly on her hips as he knelt down in between her legs. Moaning into the gag, she buried her face into the cushions as his mouth found the spot in between her legs. The only word that made sense in her mind then was fuck.
The next few minutes were torture. Unable to move her hands or her body, she simply had to kneel there and take the slow, sweet torment. By the time that he began to slow down, she had already started to shake, and tremble. Her stomach felt knotted in pools of honey, with a delicious, and sweet agonizing sensation building up inside of her.
He pulled back, and she heard the sound of him removing his jeans. “You know you drive me crazy right?”
She was so dazed that she barely had the mental capacity to know what he was saying. He didn’t seem to care. Within seconds, he was pushing up against her from behind and her body immediately tensed against him. He gave a guttural groan as he entered her, her muscles slowly accommodating his girth. She was a little sore from their sex session mere minutes ago, but the slight tinge of pain gave way to a sweet, aching deliciousness that filled her up from top to bottom.
He pulled her up from her waist and gathered one arm around her waist to hold her close to his chest. Her head fell limply back against his shoulder as he thrusted inside of her. She didn’t last long, the tightness uncoiling as soon as one of his fingers found her clit, persistently rubbing it whilst he filled her with his length. She moaned into the gag, actually grateful to have it so the noises didn’t wake up Sarah upstairs.
xx
They didn’t stop after that one time. After he finished the first time, she lay lazily against him on the sofa. They talked about random things, like what it was like when she left Toronto to come here, and why Hunter hadn’t left Harbordale at all. They talked about how irritating the townsfolk could be, and who it was that Hunter loved here. They talked until they fell asleep in a hazy, sex-drugged, fog. He woke her up a few hours later, around 3AM and the two began kissing until they rolled over onto the carpet. That initiated round three, which involved having sex on the floor. She straddled him, which drove him crazy, and her position of control didn’t last long. Going slowly to torture him on purpose, he eventually flipped her over to take her at his own pace. Round four started an hour later when Emma woke up to get water in the kitchen, waking him up in the process. This time, the dining table was utilised.
After the fourth time, the two fell asleep in a heavy slumber on the couch. Emma brought a blanket from upstairs and the two used it to shield themselves from the chilliness creeping in from outside.
She felt, oddly, like a teenager. Tip-toeing around the house to cuddle with a boy in secret, while someone else slept in the same house. She giggled as she snuggled in beside him, nuzzling into his warmth as he pulled her closer to his body.
It felt like the two had barely slept when she heard some noises in the kitchen. Jumping up immediately, she grabbed the lamp from the side table to attack whoever was nearby.
Sarah stood at the kitchen door, startled. Gazing at Emma, who looked like a deranged warrior holding a spear, she snorted before bursting into laughter.
“Jesus, Sarah. You scared me,” Emma relaxed, placing the lamp back on its spot. Hunter stirred from his spot on the couch, reminding Emma of his presence. She blushed immediately, his chest was bare, since she was wearing his shirt, and it was very clear to anyone who saw them what it was that the two of them had been up to.
“You guys want coffee?” She didn’t look fazed. In fact, she didn’t look remotely surprised. Her dark hair was tied up in a bun, and she was wearing one of Emma’s oversized sweaters, “unless he’s weird and drinks tea in the morning.”
“Um…” Emma felt like she didn’t know how to operate. It was sunlight, and Hunter was still here. She prodded him in the leg. When he didn’t wake, she shook him.
“What is it?” he garbled sleepily.
“Do you want coffee?”
He opened one eye, looking angry that sunlight was peeking through the window into his face. “What time is it?” he sounded rough, as if his throat was parched for water.
“It’s ten in the morning,” Sarah said, humming a tune as she went back into the kitchen, “Emma – do you have any groceries in here?”
“Um…” She couldn’t help but laugh as she made eye contact with Hunter, seeing him become immediately more aware once he heard Sarah’s voice. “Yeah, I think I have some Cheerios. Not sure if the milk has gone bad though.”
“Hunter? Coffee?” Sarah called out again, and this time, he sat up on the couch.
He looked mildly embarrassed at having been caught. “Sure,” was all he said as he pulled the blanket closer to himself to hide his nakedness.
When Sarah disappeared into the kitchen, Hunter hissed at Emma to get her attention. “give me back my shirt.”
“No.”
“Why?”
She narrowed her eyebrows at him, “it’s cold.”
“Can you please give me something to wear so I’m not undressed in front of Sarah?”
“Why do you care?”
Hunter growled, “Emma…”
She giggled, finally caving in and returning his shirt. She stood up to get her own top, realising that her body was aching from the activities of last night. A few moments of hustling around later, Sarah came back to the living room with three cups of coffee, and the three gathered around. Whatever awkwardness that was absent minutes ago, came crashing back. It was so quiet that it was deafening.
“So…” Sarah started, and Emma had to hold back a giggle as she caught her friend’s eye. This situation was absurd. Sarah’s first day here, and she was sitting across from the sheriff of the town, who had clearly been fucking her best friend the entire night. “I hear you have a brother.”
Whatever Hunter had been expecting Sarah to say, it was not that. “Um…” he took a swig of the coffee, using it to clear his own head. “And?”
“Is he looking?”
“He’s married.”
Sarah cocked her head to the side, “You didn’t answer my question. Are they looking to spice up their love life? You know… with a threesome?”
Emma laughed, “Sarah!”
“Your friend is insane,” Hunter shook his head into the coffee cup, taking another sip. “Now I know why you two are friends.”
Xx
Hunter’s shift at the station started at noon, and considering he had to go home to shower and change, he left fairly quickly. As soon as the door shut behind him, Emma was bombarded with questions, rightfully so. So, she told Sarah everything, from the beginning to the end – excluding some of the kinkier parts of the story. Sarah didn’t ask for more details about her dad. Sarah knew that it was a sensitive topic for her, and she wasn’t quite ready to dig into the amount of shit Hunter had dropped on her last night, and for that she was grateful.
“So how do you feel about him?” Sarah asked, over her second cup of coffee. They had turned on a space heater halfway through the conversation, since the thermostat only went so high. “I feel like we are in ambiguous waters.”
“I don’t think it’s anything more than something physical…” Emma avoided looking at Sarah as she said this. She didn’t need to be psychoanalysed, she had barely had time to psychoanalyse herself. “I think the moment I’m back on my own two feet, I’m still leaving.”
“Stay with me.”
This caught her by surprise, “hm?”
“It’s time I move back to Toronto,” Sarah made a face of exasperation, “lord knows I’ve been running away from facing my life for years. Why don’t we move back together?”
She didn’t know why the question filled her with such anxiety. “I’m not ready,” Emma started, “I’ve barely got a dollar in my savings -.”
“Oh, I’m not saying now,” Sarah waved a hand in her direction, “Take a week. Maybe a week and a half? You’re done your debt with Hunter tomorrow, right? That’s your last shift?” she continued as Emma nodded, “Then you’ll have your car again, and plus – you’ll have saved enough money for at least one month’s rent, which will be pretty cheap if we split it between us. Besides, it’s not safe for you here, Em – this town is clearly full of psychos.”
“So I’ll just be letting this asshole win.”
“Whoever’s trying to drive you out isn’t an asshole,” Sarah leaned forward as if to emphasize a point “he’s a murderer. Do you get that?”
“But if I find the deed to this place, I’ll be able to sell it. I’ll be set. Do you know how much this land would bring in for me?”
Sarah rolled her eyes, “who gives a shit? Your life is in danger!”
Emma bit her bottom lip, “can I think about it?”
“No, there’s no thinking. I was being polite before but now I need to the play the role of your best friend. I’m giving you a week and a half and then you’re coming home with me.”
Emma sighed, knowing that when Sarah was stubborn, there was no way to prove her otherwise. “I said I would paint a mural for the town, in honor of the girl who was murdered.”
“Ok, then I’ll help you.”
Emma broke into a smile, “No offense S, but you can’t paint for shit.”
The two laughed, moving onto other topics such as Sarah’s trip across Asia, how she got lost in northeastern India, and accidentally ended up crossing an unmarked border into Nepal where she got arrested for illegally migrating into the country. They chatted for two hours, getting caught up on the past few months, talking about how Emma had hit a new low when she’d gone through her last breakup, right after her mother had died. The loneliness and abject helplessness had driven her to find her way up here, once she’d heard that her father had left her some property.
It was around one p.m. when she finally got up off the couch to get ready for her day. She had a shift in the evening at the bar, and she had wanted to get started on painting that mural for the town. Her muscles were aching for the hot steam of the shower, and she nearly groaned when the water hit her back. Hunter had worn her down completely.
At the thought of Hunter, a weird rush of warmth filled her body. It was unmistakable that he made her feel a certain way, and she almost hated how happy she felt whenever they spent time together. Sarah’s offer to move back to Toronto with her made sense. She didn’t have a home here after all, why would she stay if she had someone who was essentially family, asking her to come back with them? It was hard not to think of Hunter as she considered the thought of leaving Harbordale. After all, her whole body ached as a result of last night. Her legs ached, her arms ached, her shoulders ached. He had bent her in every which way, and had left the scent of him everywhere.
Advising Sarah to come with her, since it wasn’t safe to stay at the house alone, Emma packed up her purse and quickly checked her phone. Another missed call from Kat. A few more texts messages too. She pressed the ‘delete all’ button. Out of sight, out of mind.
It had snowed the night before, which made the trek to town a bit more laborious, but Emma found that she enjoyed the crisp, fresh air that surrounded her as they made the walk through the forest-shrouded pathway. The sky was clear, after having dumped all of its white, fluffy contents onto the ground, so the sun was shining an extra bit more brightly than it had been for a while.
“Wait till you see the harbor,” Emma said, as they turned the corner to head into center of town.
“Won’t it be frozen over?”
“The sea doesn’t freeze dummy.”
“Niagara Falls did once.”
“No way.”
“Yes way.”
They went back and forth until the harbor came into view, the endless blue sparkling under the sunlight. A large ship was docked near the market stalls that were setting up, which meant that people were getting their monthly shipment of groceries. A month. It had been a month since that boat had last arrived – how had a month passed so quickly?
“This is pretty damn beautiful,” Sarah said from behind her. Emma turned to see her standing, taking it in.
“It is, isn’t it?” Emma breathed in the air, as chilly as it was. She remembered when she had first arrived, she’d been coughing and wheezing. It was as if the oceanside town had sucked the pollutants of the city right out of her, discarding them to the breeze to make her lungs stronger. “I’ll miss it.”
And she would.
She found Nick inside the town hall’s office and introduced him to Sarah. He was pleasant, acting cordial and offered to show her around town while Emma started her mural. She had made a draft of it a few nights ago, nervous to show Nick the outline. But after one look at the draft, he smiled and had said it was perfect.
“Do you reckon these paints will be enough?” he said, motioning to a few buckets of color he had bought. “I wasn’t sure how big you were planning on painting it.”
“No, this will be perfect,” she carried the paint buckets out one by one to the side of town hall, where they had decided she would paint the city the mural in honor of the family’s loss. The snow beside the building had been cleared to make sure she had access to the whole wall, and after a few trips, she had all the brushes, paints, and tools she needed to start. It would take a week of painting, but she was excited nonetheless. She said goodbye to Sarah, who winked at her before she left with Nick, indicating that she was definitely going to try and make a move, and then she went back to the side of the wall.
Either way, whether she left in one and a half weeks or not, she was going to leave her mark.
She began the outline of her painting on the wall, going slowly to make sure that she didn’t mess it up. Nerves were biting at her throat at first, driven both by the fact that she was painting in public but also because most of the townspeople who walked by would galk at her for a few minutes before carrying on their way. The winter harvest festival was beginning today, so more people were out than normal, coming out to see all the different market stalls set up by the sea. She was sure at some point, someone said something to her with some profanity, but she made sure to ignore it. If they were still mad at her for being here at this point, then they weren’t worth her time. The large majority, however, ignored her presence there, and simply walked by her like she didn’t exist.
She had been painting the outline for about thirty minutes when she heard a familiar voice.
“Emma!”
She turned to see Clayton hobbling over on his crutches, his leg still bound up in a cast. “Clayton!”
It had been a week since she’d seen him, and she cringed as she remembered the kiss that they had exchanged at her house during the small party she’d thrown. He smiled at her sweetly, “how’ve you been?”
“You know,” she shrugged awkwardly, a paintbrush still in her hand. “same old. How are you?”
“Yeah, not bad,” his brown eyes were warm under the sun, and he hobbled in closer to look at the mural, “what’re you painting?”
“You’ll see.”
“A woman with secrets.”
“Oh, you know me. By the way – are those winterized crutches?”
He laughed, “my mom wrapped them with hockey tape so the wood doesn’t get damaged from the snow.”
“Genius.” And it really was.
Clayton smiled, “you know it’s really nice of you to do this for the Jennings’s family. I know they haven’t been out much since the incident, but they told my dad they weren’t mad at you for this.”
She paused mid brush and looked at him, caught off guard. “Thanks for saying that. That means a lot.”
“I know. I thought you should know,” he brushed a hand through the messy mop of brown hair. “And about Kat…”
“Clayton…”
He pushed on, “She’s got nothing to do with all of this stuff that’s been happening to you.”
“You realise her fingerprints matched, don’t you?”
He sighed, “yeah, but she did it for money. She said she doesn’t know who asked her to do all the stuff. Trust me Emma, Kat doesn’t have a mean bone in her. And she really likes you. She would never want to hurt you.”
“Tell the police that,” was all she said before turning back to the wall. “Sorry, Clayton. I just don’t have time in my life to be friends with people who want to blackmail me.”
Clayton let out an exasperated breath and paused before speaking. “Want to come to the market to check out a few stalls? Someone’s apparently selling reindeer horns they got while in Finland.”
Emma gave him a sympathetic smile, appreciative of the invite. “Thanks for always being so nice to me, Clayton.”
He shrugged, “it’s not hard.”
“I’d love to come, but I want to get a good start on this before my shift at the bar tonight.”
“Alright, your loss.” He winked, before hobbling away through the snow to the festival.
Emma turned back to the wall, dipping her brush back into the dark brown paint. She had a weird feeling in her gut and had had it since the morning. For the first time since she’d been here, she had an ally – a friend, hell – a sister with her. The nagging sense of loneliness had nearly dissipated. Seeing Sarah had been so cathartic and hugging her had been all she’d wanted to now for months on end. So why did she feel so weird?
Flashes from the night before kept flickering in her mind, searing across her brain as if they’d been burned to her memory. She’d finally had her fill of him. They’d had their fill of each other all night long. But still, she felt strange. Tomorrow she’d have her car back, her debt fulfilled and then that was it. She could drive away from here. Leave everything behind.
So why did she feel so weird?
She continued painting, ignoring the sinking feeling that it had to do with one, very specific police officer.