It's a comfortable night!
In the early morning, along with the sound of birds chirping outside the window,
Hunter slowly opened his eyes!
"Hmm?!"
Feeling the numbness in his arm, Hunter glanced at Mia, who was still sleeping soundly beside him.
He gently tapped Mia's cheek and then pulled out his arm, which her head had been resting on all night.
"Comfortable!"
Getting out of bed, he walked to the window.
Hunter breathed in the fresh sea breeze blowing in from outside and immediately felt his spirits lift.
Last night, because he had received Dominic's tacit permission,
And with Mia's persistence, Hunter ultimately didn't leave Dominic's residence and stayed over for another night.
Young men and women in their late youth are at an age where their hormones are restless.
The result naturally goes without saying; it was another night of deep affection and intimacy.
Even though they had been active until the early hours of the morning the previous day,
Hunter, who woke up just after five o'clock, didn't feel tired at all.
On the contrary, he now felt as if his entire body was filled with inexhaustible strength.
Because he had sweated a lot last night, his body felt sticky and uncomfortable.
After waking up, Hunter went to take a cold shower.
Then he took out a clean pair of boxers from his private space and changed into them. Holding a dry bath towel, he walked out of the bathroom while drying himself.
Unexpectedly, just as he arrived in the living room.
A greeting rang out, "Hey, up so early?"
Hunter followed the voice and saw Letty leaning on the living-room sofa.
When he looked over, Letty picked up a pack of women's cigarettes from the side table.
She pulled one out, lit it, took a drag, and ran her eyes over Hunter's sculpted muscles.
"Didn't expect that."
"Turns out you're the 'slim in clothes, ripped underneath' type."
In June, Los Angeles after five in the morning is already bright.
No lights were on, yet Letty could clearly see the muscles bared on Hunter's upper body.
Every muscle stood out in sharp definition.
Like a statue in an ancient Greek temple, they looked as perfect as carved art.
Letty was Dominic's girlfriend; she often saw her workout-obsessed man's explosive power.
She'd always thought her boyfriend's frame was burly and strong, his muscles a major plus.
But today, after seeing Hunter's body in person,
Letty suddenly felt her boyfriend's build was a bit too bulky.
Even those once-powerful muscles
now looked oddly out of proportion.
"Nice body!"
Letty couldn't help giving Hunter a thumbs-up, not hiding how much she enjoyed the view.
"Thanks for the compliment."
Hunter smiled and nodded; he'd already gotten used to Western women's bluntness over the past two months.
He draped a towel over his shoulders, leaving only his eight-pack visible.
"Letty, why are you up so early?" he asked curiously.
Letty reluctantly dragged her gaze from his abs and took another puff.
Then answered irritably, "You guys made too much noise last night—couldn't sleep."
Dominic's house, like most American homes, was mainly wood.
Without special soundproofing, the result was predictable.
Clearly, they'd never considered the problem before,
so last night became very awkward.
Worse, Letty's monthly visitor had arrived.
To keep her boyfriend from temptation, she'd slept out in the living room.
Hunter's shower had been loud enough to wake her again.
She had a fierce case of morning rage; if she hadn't just enjoyed the eye-candy,
the tomboy in her would've exploded.
The topic was awkward, so after a bit of small talk Hunter excused himself to change.
When he came back, Letty was up and had tidied the living room.
By the time Dominic and the others rose, it was past eight.
A breakfast that left everyone amazed was already laid out, courtesy of Hunter.
Two months in, Hunter knew American tastes.
Besides his own portion, he'd modified Chinese dishes for Dominic, Letty, and Mia.
For a moment, they all ate contentedly.
"Didn't expect you to have decent Culinary Skills."
Letty devoured a quick-made Mexican wrap filled with sweet-and-sour pineapple pork, face glowing.
The sweet-tangy flavor suited her perfectly.
Dominic stayed silent, but his empty plate
showed the black-pepper beef had hit the spot.
Mia finished a plate of tomato-braised beef; she'd grown addicted to the dish.
With some mashed potatoes on the side, she ate happily.
After breakfast, Mia and Letty cleared the dishes.
Hunter sat with the obviously sleep-deprived Dominic, then broke the silence: "Dominic, I've got some things to take care of."
"Once I'm done, I'll come visit."
They couldn't be sure the house wasn't bugged or watched by the FBI,
so the real message was: I need to prepare some things;
when I'm ready, I'll finish your commission.
Dominic looked like a hulking brute,
but he was actually sharp and meticulous.
His shaved head gleamed, easy to spot at night.
He nodded.
"Call me Dom from now on."
Dominic asked Hunter to switch to the nickname.
Hunter wasn't surprised—he knew Dom was short for Dominic.
Only people who are very close to Dominic ever call him that.
"All right!"
Hunter nodded, stood up, said goodbye to Mia and Letty, and left Dominic's place.
He wasn't sure whether the FBI was already watching him.
After leaving Dominic's place, Hunter walked for a while.
Finally he hailed a cab and rode away.
Instead of going home, he headed straight for Brief Locksmith Company.
Three days had passed since the night Hunter slipped through the darkness and stole Steve's two safes.
For the past two days most of his energy had been spent rescuing Dominic.
So he couldn't help neglecting to keep an eye on Steve and Charlie.
He didn't care much about Charlie's side, but the lock-picking expert Slater was a different matter.
Hunter planned to drop by Brief Locksmith Company first and ask if they were hiring.
He had level-2 Lockpicking; with nothing more than a plastic card or a wire he could pop most common door locks.
For trickier ones, given the right tools, Hunter could still open them—he just needed a bit more time.
So he was going to apply for a job at Slater's company.
He wanted to join her firm through proper channels.
Then he could get close to the beautiful lock-picking expert and learn her techniques.
If he was rejected, he would have to find another way to make Slater teach him.
As for what that "other way" might be, he already had a plan.
Steve, the man who murdered his father—Hunter figured the bastard's head would make a perfect calling card...
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