Hunter blinked at everything that she had purchased. “You do know that we’re going to a beach house for a weekend? And not traversing across the Sahara?” He said, sorting through all of the miscellaneous things.
“Oh, shut it.” She said with a grin. “I hope I got your size right.” She said as she tossed him a bag full of clothes. Hunter caught it and dug around. He pulled out a sleeveless shirt and a pair of swim trunks.
“Yeah. It looks like it.” He said before pulling out a bikini. He raised an eyebrow at her. “You needed a bikini? I can’t imagine that you don’t have a bikini.” He said as he pulled out another bikini. She sighed and snatched them from his hands.
“I’m pretty sure you can imagine me without a bikini.” She said with a wink. Hunter turned a new shade of red and went back to looking through the bags. Hunter picked up another bag full of clothes. “Oh, those are for you. They’re more beach-friendly. You would burn up if you wore jeans on that beach.” She said giving him a smile. Hunter reached in and pulled out a couple of pairs of shorts, a pair of flip-flops, and a few t-shirts. He set them among his other new clothes before looking into the bag again and rolling his eyes.
“So, are you expecting me to try one of these on or something?” He said as he pulled out yet another bikini.
“Shut it.” She said as she snatched it out of his hand again. “I thought they were cute.’ She defended herself. “And they were on sale, too.” She said with a smile. She sighed as she, no doubt, imagined herself in one of her new swimsuits. She let out a brief sigh before rolling down the partition between David and herself. “David? Let’s go to lunch.” She said.
“Yes, Ms Foster.” He said with a nod. “Where would you like to go, ma’am?”
“Surprise me, David.” She said with a giggle. David nodded and changed his course to a new location. Arabella smiled and turned back to Hunter. Hunter glanced at all of the clothes she had just bought him.
“Arabella. I can’t accept this. You can’t keep buying me stuff.” He said quietly. “I appreciate it, but it’s still going to be near impossible to pay you back for everything you’ve given me.
“Hunter, please.” Arabella said calmly. “You’re my friend and I would do anything I could do to help you.” She said with a smile. “On top of that, you saved my life. Again. And on top of that, you’ll be hard at work this weekend. When I said ‘help me fix it up’ I really meant, ‘work on my tan while you singlehandedly repair a house.’” She said with a laugh. Hunter sighed and blinked a few times.
“So, tell me about this beach house. What was it like there?” He asked her, hoping that it wouldn’t bring up anything too emotional. Hunter watched as Arabella put her head back and smiled softly.
"It's big and very old, right on the water. We used to go up there and it was breathtaking. My grandpa and I used to walk along the beach, looking for sea shells and talking. He used to tell me stories or he would sing a song from his childhood. The floor of the house was always covered in sand and it smelled like the ocean. But it was beautiful" She said quietly. “I really loved going there. It’ll be different without my grandpa there.” She added. Hunter reached out a hand toward her, but she waved it off. “I’m not crying. Relax. I just…It won’t be the same without him. We weren’t particularly close, it’s just…a nice memory.” She said with a small smile.
“What was he like? Your grandfather?” Hunter asked, trying to kill time as they drove to lunch.
"He was a really great man. Kind and loving. Very funny. He got along well with everyone. Except for Aphrodite.” She said with a small smile.
“How does someone not get along with your mom? She’s the goddess of love, after all.” Hunter said with a bewildered shrug.
“He hated her. Hardly even met her but my dad had fallen in love with my mom so much and was so heart broken when she left, it made my grandpa mad" Arabella said with a giggle "But all in all, he was a wonderful man"
“He sounds like it.” Hunter said with a nod. “According to Artemis, my grandmother had a little thing with Apollo. Apparently, she was one to go after a fast car and a nice smile.” Hunter said, thinking back to the time Artemis told him his life story and history with the gods. “She told me that my grandfather was a very successful mechanic, who collected cars. My grandma had a thing for guys with cars.” He said with a chuckle. He had never told anyone that before. It was an interesting part of his life that he just shared. He looked at Arabella and sighed.
“We’re here, Ms. Foster.” David said as the limo slowed to a stop.