Rekindled Heat Ch. 01

Hunter grinned to himself. Well, if she was going to make it that easy, he would just have a little fun.

He slipped out the door, waiting long enough so that she wouldn't see him, and caught a glimpse of her bag as she turned onto a path leading to her dorm. He jogged to catch up, falling a few yards behind, hoping she wouldn't notice him. When she stopped short, so did he, shrinking to the edges of the path so that she wouldn't see him if she looked. Following her as she continued on, Hunter tried to decide on the best way to scare the shit out of Little Miss I'm Too Good For You Durand, when she came to a curve in the path. Most students cut across the curve, which only meant traveling through about thirty feet of woods, but tonight Rachel stuck to the paved road. Smirking, Hunter hurried across the stretch of woods, and waited for Rachel to catch up. Moments later, he saw her approach, still walking quickly and sending darting looks all around her. Just as she reached his hiding spot, he shot out in front of her, yelling "Freeze!"

A tingle of unease spread through him at the terror on her face, before she recognized him.

"Gallagher! What the hell!" she shouted, her voice almost imperceptibly higher than normal.

He grinned, shoveling some hair out of his eyes.

"Scared, Rachel?" But now that she had gotten over the surprise of seeing him, her face was a mask of anger. Rachel was royally pissed off.

"How old are you, Gallagher? You hid and waited for me? That's pathetic."

Fury rolled through him, his gut clenching at her words. "Pathetic? I'm not the one heading home at ten on a Saturday."

She laughed humorlessly. "Wow, that's bad. You're taking shots at my social life? What, Gallagher, did your last choice reject you?"

He scowled, then settled a satisfied expression on his face. "Why, Rach? You jealous?"

"Jealous? No, you don't have to worry about that, Gallagher. I pity the girls you sleep with. Assuming there are any."

Making a noise deep in his throat, he stepped closer, silently cheering when she retreated. "There are plenty. And they are all more than satisfied. But I don't fuck whores that my friends have passed around like a bong, so you're SOL."

A flicker of confusion darted across her face, but he had no time to analyze that before Cooper appeared, scowling at him, hands on Rachel's shoulders.

"Are you calling her a whore, Gallagher?" he said, voice low and threatening.

Never one to back down from a fight, he stepped forward again.

"Are you sleeping with her too? Cuz man, you got bad company if you are."

A muscle in Coopers jaw twitched, and he eyes darkened. Hunter simply grinned.

Suddenly, Cooper moved Rachel, using his firm grip on her shoulders, behind him, giving her a little push as he turned back to face Hunter.

"Go on ahead, Rach. I'll catch up." He ordered, ignoring her attempt at a protest.

When she was out of earshot, he stood toe to toe with Hunter, his height putting them eye to eye.

"I don't know why you decided to pick on Rachel, or why you can't pull your head out of your ass long enough to realize what you're doing, but I don't care."

"Is this a warning?" Hunter asked offhand, knowing his casual tone would infuriate Cooper.

"It's a promise. Leave her the hell alone, or you'll answer to me. And you know me well enough to know I don't pull punches."

Hunter stopped for a second, remembering the fight that they'd gotten into not long after Rachel left. Cooper hadn't pulled punches then, and he had no doubt he would now.

"I'll do what I want, Winters. But don't worry; when I fuck Rachel she'll be begging for it. On her knees."

A low growl was his only warning before Cooper hauled his arm back- and was caught in Rachel's gentle grasp.

"I don't know what he said. Knowing him, it's crude bullshit. But come on, Cooper. Your scholarship. . ." she warned.

Shaking her off, taking care not to hurt her, Cooper stepped back, taking a deep breath.

"You're not worth my future, Gallagher. But don't think I won't make good on my word."

Then, pulling Rachel with him, he stalked off, leaving Hunter standing there wondering when the hell this had gotten so bad.

We used to be friends, he thought. What happened?

Then he remembered, and a cold vise wrapped around him.

She'd chosen Cooper. She believed that bastard over him, and she'd taken the grudge far enough to crush his feelings along with their relationship.

*****

Rachel hugged Cooper goodbye as she shut the door to her dorm, then kicked off her shoes and sank into the chair squeezed between her bed and desk. Hugging her knees to her chest, she wondered what Hunter had meant, about his friends. She was used to his taunts about her imagined sexual promiscuity, but usually he wasn't so specific. For that matter, it had never bothered her that much before. Groaning, she rose to her feet and changed into a tee shirt and short shorts, then crawled into bed. But she still couldn't get the incident out of her head, tossing and turning, unable to stop her mind from whirring. Finally, one thought gave her peace.

Whatever Hunter's problem was, she was safe with Cooper.

Rachel sighed as the smooth silk dress slid over her waist. They had been shopping all morning, and Kate had convinced her to try on this luscious red dress she could never afford. Really, it was more of a gown, reminding her of the elegant French balls she had read about as a child. A sweetheart neckline topped a fitted bodice in scarlet silk, with a skirt that belled out around her hips and floated to the floor. She could easily imagine a princess in a fairy tale dancing the night away with her prince in this dress.

"Hey! Get your butt out here!" shouted Kate from outside, pulling her out of her reverie. Smiling to herself at her foolishness, she unlatched the dressing room door and stepped out.

"Holy crap, Rach. That dress." Jenna remarked appreciatively.

Rachel grinned and turned, watching the skirt float around her in the mirror.

"It's amazing, isn't it?"

"You have to get it," added Kate.

She laughed. "And wear it where exactly? I don't really have any formal stuff to go to. Plus it's-" she glanced at the price tag again and winced. "Four hundred dollars. That's my clothing budget for two years."

Kate sighed, looking longingly at the dress. "Yeah, I guess that's a little steep. Even for something that great."

Returning to the dressing room and slipping out of the gown, Rachel smiled. After she pulled her comparably boring everyday clothes on, she carried the gown out and handed it to the clerk.

"But hey. When you're some famous brain surgeon making more money than God, I'll let you buy it for me."

"Sounds like a plan."

They both laughed as they left the store to find Jenna, who had stopped to flirt with some guy she saw in the food court.

Just as they greeted her, her phone beeped, alerting her to an incoming e-mail. She turned to check it as Kate teased Jenna about the guy.

"You guys, Bauer found me a tutor!"

"That was fast. Who is it?"

"I don't know. This just says to meet him at the Kaiser library at 3."

"Oooh, him. Wonder if he's hot?" mused Jenna.

Rachel laughed and swatted her arm. "He's my tutor. He'll probably be some math nerd. But I don't care what he looks like so long as he can help me understand this crap."

Kate grinned and hooked her arms through each of theirs. "Come on. I need to find a new pair of boots, and they're having a sale at Bunny's."

*****

At three oh six, Rachel rushed into the library, hurrying up the stairs to the tables in the middle of the second floor, bypassing the computer terminals and study tables on the first floor. This room was much more quiet than the first, huge bookshelves taking up the middle of the room, muffling noise, while floor to ceiling windows covered one wall. She hurried to the small area by the windows with several tables. They were empty, except for one lone person at the table furthest from her.

When she recognized him, she froze.

No. He's probably just here to study.

Then why is he looking at you, waiting for you?

And he was waiting, arms folded over his chest, a wicked grin on his face.

Resigned, she started towards the table, wondering what fucked up kind of luck she had, that Hunter Gallagher was the tutor Professor Bauer had chosen.