Lisa's P.O. V.
"Dad, stop! You'll kill him. " I pulled at his arm to no avail, having to watch him beat Lucas in front of me.
Lucas was bloody and bruised. The bridge ofhis nose was gushing blood from the deep wound. His eye was swollen shut, and his cheek was double its size. His head dangled as dad held him up by the shirt.
"He won't die, " Dad argued, hitting him again.
I yelled, begging for him to stop. I kept trying to stop him, to make him turn his attention to me, but he refused. He continued to beat Lucas in front ofme even when I placed myself between them. His fist went through me as if I were an apparition, hitting Lucas in the face again and leaving me unscathed.
"Lisa!" I felt a firm hand on my shoulder, shaking me awake. "Lisa, wake up. It's just a dream. You're okay."
My eyes began to slowly flutter open, blinking as they adjusted to my surroundings. I wasn't in a room I recognized, remembering that I was in Davis' house, in his guest bedroom. His face came into view, his brow furrowed and his eyes concerned as they looked at me. My vision blurred as tears pooled. I cried hard, clutching onto Davis for dear life. Lucas' beat up face haunted me even now that I was awake.
"Shhh, it's okay. I've got you now," he whispered as he held me close, grazing my back. I ugly cried for a while before I could calm myself. My tears finally stopped. I sniffled as I collected myself.
"Are you okay?" He asked me, lifting my face to look at him.
"I'm so sorry," I said, feeling guilty for waking him, for clutching onto him for comfort, for keeping him up.
"What?" He asked, a bit shocked. "There's nothing you need to apologize for."
"I woke you and kept you up." I shook my head. "Look, I even got your shirt wet with my stupid tears." I pointed to the giant wet spot near his shoulder.
He grabbed me, pulling me into his chest again. It surprised me, but I didn't pull away, enjoying his embrace and finding comfort in it. He rubbed my back again as he smoothed my hair with his other hand.
"You have nothing to be sorry for. I am a grown man, and I came in here and comforted you. Now, tell me what happened."
"I just ..." I sighed.
I don't know how much of our past Davis knows about. I don't figure he knows much. Lucas doesn't exactly broadcast that we grew up with an abusive dad.
"I dreamt Dad was beating Lucas up again. Only this time he wouldn't stop, and he was killing him. I couldn't stop him either, and when I put myself between them, his fist just went right through me and hit Lucas. It was terrible. I can still see his face all beat up any time I close my eyes." A tear slid down my cheek again only to be wiped off by Davis' large thumb.
"Lucas is safe. He's with Liv and his daughter in that beautiful home he built for them. Your Dad has not bothered them, and Lucas has been coming up with safeguards to keep your Dad away. You really don't have to worry about him, Lisa," he tried to comfort me, but it must have fallen on deaf ears as my emotions were still high.
"He can get to Lucas if he really wants to. I need to keep him safe this time," I pleaded, clutching onto Davis' shirt again.
"He's got it, Lisa. He and Liv are working on it. They're okay."
I nodded my head, still not believing him, or shaking this feeling off. I didn't want to hear him keep saying the same thing, so I just sat quietly, listening to his heartbeat against my ear.
"Get some sleep," he said, getting up.
I grabbed his wrist tightly, not ready to let him go. He turned to face me, looking down at me as he was standing. I shook my head at him, pulling at him to come closer.
"Please don't go," I practically begged. "I don't want to be alone right now."
He leaned down, scooping me in his arms and carrying me. I blushed as he held me, bridal style, and took me to his room.
"You can sleep in here with me. I have a larger bed than the one in the guest room."
He placed me down gently on his soft bed, causing him to hover over me for a moment. The tension between us was thick as his eyes held mine. He was a mere few inches away, letting me feel the warmth radiating off his body. I felt a deep desire for him to lean down further and kiss me. I know that would be a terrible decision.
I'm to marry Chris and there's no way of getting out of that. To keep Lucas safe, I have to marry Chris, no matter what. I can't act on these feelings, these impulses that are driving me to want Davis more and more. Perhaps it would be best if I found someone else to teach me how to fight. I fear my feelings for Davis will only grow and intensify if this continues. I can't handle that.
"Thank you," I whispered to him, feeling grateful to have him right now. I would have hated to be alone after that nightmare.
Davis laid beside me, and without warning I snuggled up to him, wrapping my arms around his large biceps and holding it against my chest as if it were a teddy bear. He didn't pull away or say a word, letting me just hold his arm like that until I fell asleep.
When I woke, he was no longer with me. I noticed it was well past 7. We were supposed to go for a run, but he surprisingly didn't wake me. Even though he'd gone through the trouble of hunting me down to work out last night. He more than likely just feels bad for me after last night. I don't want to be pitied, though. I want to learn, and if he says running in the mornings will help with that, then that's what I need to do.
I dragged myself off his ridiculously comfortable bed, hating every moment. I opened his door, greeted by the smell of bacon. My stomach grumbled as if the smell alone caused it to realize I was starving. I followed the scent down to the kitchen where Davis was humming along to the country music he was playing on his phone. He was lightly dancing as he cooked breakfast.
It was slightly comical to see him dance around a kitchen like that. I smiled as I watched him, enjoying the moment. He turned to grab the eggs and froze when he saw me. Our eyes, and for a moment I thought he'd be embarrassed, but he smiled instead.
"Care to join me, Lisa?" He asked, staring straight into my soul.
"I don't know the song," I admitted.
Davis grabbed my hand, spun me around, and then quickly pulled me into his chest as he swayed us. He smiled down at me, causing my heart to skip a beat. His hair was down, not braided or pulled up, just hanging around torso beautifully. I never thought I would be attracted to a man with hair as long as mine, but it was absolutely gorgeous, and he looked so damn handsome. He spun me out, letting me go before going back to cooking. I just watched him, stunned for a moment, trying to calm my swooning heart.
"We'll go running tonight, and exercise this afternoon. It's supposed to be a full moon. I thought it would be nice to run under it."
That explains why he didn't wake me. So it wasn't out of pity then. He sat a plate before me on the kitchen island and we ate side by side as his music continued to play. I was never a huge fan of country but sitting here beside him made the music better.
"Thank you for breakfast," I told him as I rinsed my plate off in his sink.
I washed his dishes when his hand grabbed mine from behind. He leaned forward, making me feel all his muscles against my back. He turned the sink off before he spun me to face him. The space between us was abysmal, causing me to feel the warmth of his body against my own.
"You're a guest here, Lisa. Don't worry about cleaning up. I'll get it," he said as his breath fanned over my face, smelling of the food we just ate mixed with coffee.
My breathing felt erratic as I tried to convince myself that kissing him would be a terrible, terrible idea. I think the universe thought the same as my phone buzzed, cutting our tension filled moment. It took a second for our eyes to break apart. Finally, I reached for my phone, pulling it out to see who saved me from myself.