Free Shades of Deception by Amanda Meadows Page A

something I need to say out loud for my own sake.”
    Megan reached over and patted her hand. “Say whatever you need to. Just know that you don't have to.”
    Amber smiled ruefully. “That's why it feels important for me.”
    She turned and gave Hunter a quick peck on his cheek. “For us.”
    Amber saw that Hunter was trying to keep himself from objecting so she quickly continued.
    “Even when I saw that there was not another car around that she could have driven, I ignored my instinct. I wanted so hard to believe that she hadn't changed, that she wasn't out to use me. But that was a lie. Even in high school, she used me. I was always her alibi when she went to parties. I would be sitting in the library and she would be getting wasted. Then I came home and lied to the very people who had given me nothing but love.”
    Amber sniffled.
    “Okay, Amber, this is enough,” Hunter warned, his voice a growl. “You've been through hell and you don't need to do this to yourself. This was not your fault!”
    Amber squeezed back her tears. She turned and put a finger on his lips. “I'm just telling you and Caleb and Megan and myself that Wimpy Amber is gone now. I'll never let someone treat me like that again.”
    “Nobody is ever going to hurt you again, Amber,” Hunter said, his green eyes smoldering.
    “Not on our watch,” Caleb said grimly.
    Megan put up a hand and winked at Amber.
    “I think Amber gets the point, guys,” she said. “How about we lower the rage-induced testosterone levels in the room a bit?"
    Amber giggled as Hunter gaped at her.
    “Hunter, I don't know how well you know Megan. But you should know she isn't the meek little girl she pretends to be.”
    Megan laughed. “Hey, don't give away all my secrets!”
    Hunter and Caleb visibly relaxed and Amber was glad that Megan had come.
    “So how did you track the Range Rover?” she asked.
    “Oh, that was easy,” Caleb said. “Hunter installed a tracking device on it when he first got it.”
    “What? It saves on insurance,” Hunter said, when Amber looked at him incredulously.
    “So the police caught up with the mother  fu . . . um . . . the bad people . . . and were able to arrest them,” Caleb continued.
    “So they told you where I was?” Amber asked, still not understanding.
    Had the police taken all day to find the car?
    “No,” Hunter said, tightly. “The guy you called John must have scared the shit out of your so-called friend because she wouldn't talk.”
    “But then how did you find me?” Amber asked, suddenly aware that there was something nobody wanted to tell her.
    “You know, I think that Hunter and Megan need some alone time,” Megan said suddenly.
    She stood up and leaned over to give Amber another hug.
    “We'll come by and see you at home if you're up to it later.”
    Amber watched as Caleb sent Hunter an apologetic look.
    Megan snapped her fingers. “Let's go, Caleb.”
    Caleb blushed as he hugged Amber. But he looked happy as he followed Megan out the door.
    Hunter gaped as the two left the room.
    “Did Caleb just allow her to order him around?” he asked, sounding shocked.
    Amber grinned. “He's like a little puppy trying to please her,” she said. “I'll tell you about their first meeting later.”
    “Sound's interesting.”
    Hunter stared at her with those hypnotic green eyes. He looked nervous.
    Amber folded her arms across her chest. She narrowed her eyes at Hunter.
    “I think that you have something you want to tell me,” she said, her voice firm.
    Hunter cleared his throat.
    “Maybe you should get a little rest first,” he said, clearly trying to stall.
    Amber sighed. “I know it was rough on you. But I need to know the rest of the story. Everything. Then I can put it behind me. Behind us.”
    Hunter groaned and ran his hands through his hair.
    “I hope you understand that everything I've ever done was to help you.”
    Amber stared at him.
    “Why don't you just start at the beginning from Caleb's