Hunter

"Bangers and mash?" Galen remarks, giving me a teasing look from across the table. 

He seems so much better now that he's had a long sleep. His dark blue eyes are clear and bright, and his smile is sly, making my stomach do some fancy acrobatics every time he throws it at me. He doesn't look like a hockey player at all now. His hair is neatly styled, and the grey collared shirt under a navy blue knitted V-necked sweater he'd changed into is extremely respectable.

I know that hockey players are individuals off the ice and not all the same, but almost all the ones I happen to know are as scruffy off the ice as on it. Galen looks like he's going for an interview at an accounting firm... or a modelling job. Very handsome, very wholesome... until he smiles.

That smile should come with a warning label.

I felt safer when he looked forlorn and near collapse with puffy, red eyes and a broken smile, the way he did last night. It made my heart hurt to see him like that, though. This new rejuvenated look is almost as bad as the sexy naked look I ran into last night.

"I thought we were having that for lunch," he smirks, and I wonder how obvious it would be if I dove off my chair to locate my brain under the table. It just slips right out of my head every time Galen says something in that deadly accent of his or looks into my eyes.

There I go again, giggling like a schoolgirl... well, a younger one... 

My dad is giving me looks. He's as confused as I am by the fact that his usually level-headed daughter is acting like a love-sick kitten.

"This is lunch, dude," Jax, sitting beside Galen, chuckles, slapping him on the back in an aggressive, brotherly way. "And a pretty late lunch too, because Hunter didn't want to move her lazy ass and cook for us." 

Jax clearly has no problem finding his speech and his brain when Galen smiles at him. It seems that I'm the only one suffering from a severe case of Galenitis, the deadly disease that causes heart palpitations, severe drooling, a lack of logic and intermittent, random giggling.

"Your breakfast hasn't even been digested yet," I remind Jax and then my eyes slide away guiltily, and I can feel a warm blush spreading on my cheeks. "Besides, I was in the middle of a really good book about a house and murdered people. Who wants to cook in the middle of that?"

Galen's face is clouding with confusion, and his eyes search for and find the large clock against the kitchen wall. They widen when he sees the time, and he realises that he'd slept through more than half the day.

"Yup, I'm afraid you've missed out on the first part of the sausage fest, Sleeping Beauty," I inform him when he looks at me again. He laughs sheepishly, his hands disappearing under the table, and another troubled look draws his brows together. I think he's looking for his phone. He might not have found it where I left it for him and automatically went to reach for it, forgetting he didn't have it.

The poor guy woke up just in time for lunch and hurried to the bathroom to wash up and get dressed before coming to the kitchen. I'm not sure he's entirely awake yet. He must be feeling completely disoriented. I'm so glad he managed to sleep well after all. Hopefully, all the cobwebs will be gone from his brain soon. It can be hard to find your feet in a new place far, far away from home.

"Your phone is probably still on the coffee table where I left it last night when you fell asleep," I help him out, and he flashes an awkward look at my dad, which is so cute. Jax told me that according to his cousin, Galen is a good guy but pretty messed up and has a bad reputation when it comes to girls. He said I probably need to be careful until we know him better. Seeing the supposed rogue give my dad sheepish looks because I made a remark about being with him last night after everybody had gone to bed is rather funny.

My father knows that I took care of Galen last night. In fact, he would've been disappointed if I hadn't. Many of the boys who find a home with us come here from some level of hell or another. I never know exactly what they'd been through unless they tell me. My father doesn't break their trust, ever.

I only had to look into Galen's eyes to see that he was haunted and hurting. I know the look all too well. My father always says there's nothing that soothes a man's restless heart quite the way kindness does, especially when a sincere, gentle woman offers that kindness.

I don't know if that's true, and I'm not sure how gentle I am, but I definitely do care. Seeing a big, strong guy like Galen look as lost as he did last night always breaks my heart.

A few months ago, Denny and Jax arrived together from different parts of the world. They were not in the best place mentally either, and on their first night, the three of us played Uno Flip, Cluedo and Rummikub until they became sleepy. Virtually every new arrival sleeps downstairs on their first night here because the living area is always filled with warmth and comfort.

Except Kame. When he came last year, I thought the culture shock would be huge for him, especially since he was struggling with English, but he latched onto Tucker right away, following him around and helping him with every task he took on. Tuck treated him like he was a lost puppy he'd adopted from a shelter. He took Kame under his wing, and it worked really well, helping him settle in fast. The first night, he slept on the fold-out bed in Tucker's room. 

By the time Jax and Denny arrived, Kame was already an experienced housemate, able to mentor one of the new recruits. Dad placed Denny in his room though they are polar opposites. It was a good choice because they make a pretty good team and like hanging out together. Their differences complement and supplement each other.

Poor Jax got Chester for a roommate, but to be fair, Ches helped him settle in fast... just not in the room itself, unless he was very quiet and went to sleep right after entering the door at night. Though they knocked heads quite a bit at home, Chester took good care of Jax at the academy, and they always had each other's backs.

Jax was very down after Ches left.

That's how it works in this house. We're a family. Here, at home, we can fight; out there in the world, we're a unit.

"Your phone rang while I was still reading your brother's book on it," I offer Galen the piece of information I was looking for a chance to let him know about. "When I saw the caller was called Mam, I figured it must be your mother, so I answered," I say with a grimace, hoping he's not mad. "You didn't even flinch when it rang, and you'd just fallen asleep. I didn't have the heart to wake you, but I didn't want your mother to worry, so I answered. I hope that's alright?"

"Sure look," he mutters, and I'm not sure if that means it's fine or that there's nothing we can do about it now, but he is not glaring at me, just frowning slightly, waiting for the rest of my story.

"When I told her that you were curled up with a teddy bear and a nice warm blanky, sucking your thumb, sleeping like a lamb, she didn't want me to wake you either," I assure him, and he smirks again, making my stomach hoolah dance. 

"She said to tell you she loves you and misses you and... Wait! I need to get this right," I say, pausing dramatically and narrowing my eyes while I get my words in line and find my best Irish accent. "Gan, donna be a bleedin' melter, gettin' into fights and mind yer manners, me lad! Stay warm, donna get hurt and..." Now, I'm obviously veering off into fiction. "Listen to this lass, and do what she tells ye to do because she's now the boss of ye, and she's always right."

"Och, it's like the woman is here in the kitchen with us," Galen chuckles, giving me a deadly look, and I grin at him with a wink. Stabbing a sausage and raising it to my lips, I take a big bite, laughing when he widens his eyes.

"She also asked that you call her at a decent hour for both of you; she would love to hear your voice. I didn't read any of your messages, I swear!" I say when I'm done swallowing the piece of sausage, and the boy is still looking at me with an unreadable look on his face that is making my heart vibrate unhealthily. "I only answered because I had the phone in my hand, and it was your mom. After that, I left it on the coffee table near you and went to bed. Promise. I installed the reading app on my phone so I could keep reading your brother's book."

"Cheers for that," he finally says with a sincere smile. "She would've been worried if ye didn't answer. I didn't have a teddy bear, though," he adds, looking sulky until Jax grabs his shoulder, laughing.

"But you did suck your thumb, right?" he queries happily.

"Probably," Galen shrugs. "The lass who's always right read me some scary shite, dude... and there was a big ass storm going on outside. Those alone warrant some thumb-sucking."

For the record, he didn't suck his thumb, and he didn't have a teddy bear, but I did put a blanket over him before I left him. He looked so vulnerable, curled on his side, with his arms wrapped around himself; it took a lot of willpower not to lie down beside him and snuggle him.

"I am sure we can arrange a teddy bear for you to sleep with," my father assures Galen. The sparkle in the boy's eyes tells me that he is about to say something terribly inappropriate, but he catches himself in time, chuckling almost nervously. Now, I wish I knew what he was about to say. Instead, he flashes me that sly smile again, and I almost squeak.

Dad told me last night that the guy was delightfully cheeky. He also told me to be careful because he might be a wily one. This had me laughing because I think in the Galen-Hunter scenario, I'm the wily one, and he's the one who needs to be careful. I'm probably right, but now I've seen that saucy grin, and I know I might be out of my depth.

I have never been this ridiculously affected by a guy I've barely met before, and I've met my share of charmers and good-looking boys. I've met hotter guys than Galen McKenna, and yet...

Sitting here, seeing his face every time I look up, is sheer torture. I've never been this attracted to a boy before in my entire life. Not even Xavier. It's not comparable at all. Xavier was boyish and cocky in an endearing way that soon became a bit menacing.

I liked him well enough, and when he showed interest, I decided to take a chance and date someone for a change rather than being so picky all the time. Boy, was that an epic failure?!

We weren't compatible at all. I wanted a boyfriend. Sweet romance. Someone to hang out with, chat with, and joke around with. He wanted a blow-up doll to play with. I wanted to take things slow since I was new to the game, and to him, slow meant trying to unhook my bra during our very first kiss. To him, I was just a more challenging puck bunny.

He didn't enjoy being slapped half as much as Denny did. I guess that's when things started to go wrong. He apologised but tried again every chance he got like someone squeezing an avocado every day to see if it was ripe yet.

I guess I'm not the kind of fruit you can squeeze ripe.

After that experiment, I decided I would just take a pass on the whole romance thing because it's clearly not for me. Yet, here I am now, unable to look up into this boy's eyes without wanting to giggle, pass out or break into song.

This is so weird!

He doesn't say anything; he just looks at me, but it feels as though I can hear him clearly. I have no idea what he is saying, though, but those eyes of his don't shut up for a second, and it's driving me nuts. My heart is so engorged with emotions that I'm in serious danger of it exploding from my chest. Blood and gore all over the table! Wouldn't that be yummy?

Surely he feels it too?

Galen's hunger finally wins, and he mercifully stops giving me looks to lay into his food hungrily instead. The guy must be starving. Last night, he mostly just pushed his food around on his plate, looking like he was going to fall from his chair any minute.

I'm glad he is finally eating and that I got to make him something he seems to enjoy. Yeah! I have it that bad! I want to cook for the guy and rub his feet... and some other parts. I can almost imagine what it might be like to kiss him.

Oh, my soul!

Bangers and Mash with Gravy are not that hard to make, even when you're struggling to put down your phone because you're reading a terrifying horror written by your massive crush's brother. I managed not to burn anything, though I came really close a few times. Even I think the food doesn't taste half bad. I might've found my inspiration to really learn to cook properly. I am going to watch some YouTube videos.

Oh, my word! I'm losing my mind. Next, I'm going to want to knit him something!

I've had crushes before, though. What I'm feeling for Galen McKenna is no crush; it's different, but I'm not sure how exactly. I don't know the guy at all, and yet...

"Gan, I have a really important question to ask you," Jax says when the topic of discussion around the table unavoidably turns to ice hockey, the way it always does. "That slapshot you did yesterday; who taught you that?"

"How's that an important question?" Galen snorts with a chuckle.

"Slapshot?" My dad asks, intrigued by Jax's interest in something that isn't of itself anything out of the ordinary.

"Yes, yesterday, this guy, who was supposed to be jet lagged and exhausted after travelling for more than two days, put the biscuit in the basket clear across the barn with one slapshot. He hit it bar down. It was a snipe!"

"It wasn't bar down," Galen grunts.

"I heard the ding clearly, though it was too damned fast to see."

Jax is right; I also heard the puck strike the goal's crossbar before it went into the net. It was a perfect shot.

"I was just lucky," Galen says, and I can see that Jax is starting to get riled up. I wonder why Galen seems so uncomfortable with this line of questioning. It was not a strange question at all.

"Stop blowing smoke up my ass, mate!" Jax grumbles. "From what I've heard, you haven't had any formal training and played for a non-existent club where the coach gets his knowledge from the internet, not experience, so how did you learn the trick behind a perfectly controlled shot like that."

"It wasn't a trick shot."

"Come on, dude, just tell us, who were you training with," Denny joins the questioning, and I can tell that the guys have had a discussion about what Jax experienced with Galen on the ice yesterday. What I'd seen was rather impressive, and I'd only seen a few seconds.

"Fine," Galen huffs, looking irritated, handing out dark looks to everybody watching him with keen interest. "From when I was five years old until I was about 12, me aul fella taught me everything I know. I just built on that, is all. There's no big secret."

"Your dad trained you?" my father asks, and I can tell that he has a lot on his mind while his grey eyes slide over the boy's face. I think my dad has always been disappointed that he didn't have a kid to hand down all his ice hockey skills and knowledge to. I tried it for a while, but it's really not for me. I'm an ice dancer through and through.

The void he has is perfectly filled by the boys he brings home, but I think he would've loved to have a son (or daughter) like Galen, learning from him as a small child.

"Yes, Sir."

"Was he a professional player?" Naresh asks, leaning over to see past Jeroen and Jax, and Galen meets his eyes over the length of the table, shaking his head.

"Naw, he's a farmer in Ireland. His farm provides hops and barley to Guinness breweries." I can see that it's hard for Galen to talk about his father. I know his parents aren't together, and he wasn't living in Ireland before coming here. I wish they would stop asking him about it because the hurt is lying shallow in his pure blue eyes. "He was quare savage on the ice, though... if I remember it right."

"Can I see it?" Tucker asks, and Galen gives him a look, clearly confused, since the farm and his father are in Ireland, and there's no way to show him.

"He means your play," my dad explains. "I would like to see it again too."

"S-sure," Galen shrugs, looking confused by their interest.

"Thank you," Tucker says, pushing back his chair and rising.

"After lunch, Tuck," Dad smiles. "Let's finish our food first."

"Oh! Right!" Tucker exclaims, looking at his plate as if he wonders where the food on it suddenly came from. "Yes, let's finish our food first," he agrees, sitting down again. Though Tuck's brain damage hadn't been severe enough to affect his daily life much, it still sometimes interferes with conversations and impulse control. Other than that, he's as sharp as a tack... most of the time.

"What position do you usually play, McKenna-san?"

"No set position. A wee bit of this and a wee bit of that," Galen shrugs, looking at Kame. "I'm usually just a goon or a mucker. Sometimes, I'm a pigeon."

"There he goes, blowing smoke again," Jax growls, shoving Galen with his shoulder, making him laugh.

"I agree," I say. "There's no way you're just on the ice to stir trouble or be violent, and you're definitely no pigeon, picking up after more skilled players." Goon, mucker and pigeon are not actual positions. They're roles picked up by less skilled players to help out the better players. Players often call each other pigeons in good-natured insults.

"Come here to me, and I'll tell ya," Galen says, and I cannot stop the smile spreading on my lips. I would love nothing more than to go there to him. "I tend to end up in those roles because I'm a spanner with a temper I cannot seem to sit on, no matter how hard I try. Whether I'm a wing, center or defence, I always end up in the sin bin for stirring shite. The only position I'm fairly safe in is goalie, and even then-"

"I guess we're just going to have to help you sit on that temper," my father says, putting his hand behind Galen's head and giving it an affectionate stroke. I'm not surprised to see Galen gaping at him, blinking his eyes. He did not expect this level of affection from him, and neither did I. It seems the new guy is having as profound an effect on my dad as he's having on me... just in a very different way, of course. "You will go far in pro ice hockey if we can find a way for you to control your temper and urges, son. I don't think your skill lies in keeping the goal. Not from what I've seen."

My dad sits quietly, looking at Galen, and I can see the gears shifting and working in his mind. I wonder what it is about Galen that has him so intrigued. I know what's captivating my heart and imagination, but I know for certain that it's not the boy's accent and obscenely seductive smiles that have my father interested.

"Yes," my dad finally says with a warm grin. "We're going to have to remedy that temper."

"Aye, that would be grand," Galen smiles, and I'll bet my life that at one point or another, his smile has caused every nymph from mythology to fall at his feet, melting in a puddle of swoon. "It's gonna be murder to fix it, though."

"As long as it's not you doing the murdering, I think we'll be fine," Jax laughs, throwing an arm around Galen's broad shoulders.

~~~