By the time the call ended, her mood had lifted and she felt relieved all over her body. She handed the phone back to Hunter.

He gave her the look that said — ‘I told you’ and she could only shrug.

“So,” she said, adjusting on the counter. "Why has your mood changed all of a sudden?"

Hunter didn’t answer right away. He just looked at her, then stepped closer. He opened her legs and stood between her thighs, resting his hands gently on the edge of the counter on either side of ...