Olive's P.O.V.
"Lucas?" I furrowed my brow as I opened both eyes. "What are you doing here?"
"I thought you could use some company." He smiled.
"Oh did you?" I sat up, no longer relaxed in the slightest.
"Yeah, I know you have too much going on in your head. Honestly, I couldn't get you out of my head." He shocked me with his revelation.
"I don't want to think about any of that. I just want to pretend like everything is fine and not falling apart all around me." I sighed, laying back on my chair again. "I kind of wonder how mom felt when they told her she had cancer."
"I am sorry, Rose. I hate that her cancer wasn't caught sooner. She was an amazing woman to have passed away over something that could have been cured if caught soon enough." He shook his head as if he were so mad over the fact.
"No, kidding." I sighed, staring up at the one lonely cloud floating above.
"She seemed like a wonderful woman. I know she left you when you were young to deal with a lot of shi.t that you shouldn't have, but she seemed like a good person when I met her."
"I am glad you got to meet her. She seemed happy. She deserved to be happy after everything she went through."
"You deserve happiness too, Rose, after everything I am sure you went through. Your mother told me her biggest regret in life was leaving you behind. She was sure that your father wasn't hurting you, but there was no way for her to be certain and it killed her. Was she right? Did your father leave you alone?" Lucas' deep brown eyes stared at me, desperate for my answer.
"When did she tell you that?"
"The next day. I went back to see her after you left, and we spoke a while longer." He admitted, making me freeze for a moment as I thought about them talking together without me. I'm not sure why it touched my heart to know that he had spent more time with her. "Now answer my question, Rose. Did he leave you alone?"
"He would only ever hit me when he was teaching me how to defend myself. Never hard either. The only thing he was good for was teaching me to fight, and being a drunk that I had to take care of." I shook my head at the memory.
Lucas' eyes didn't stop staring at me as he took in my words. His chiseled jaw ticked for a moment.
"I hope you were able to beat his ass."
"Not once." I shook my head. Dad is the only one I could never beat. He's the only one I refuse to fight too.
"Sorry I brought it up." He let out a breath as he sat back on the lounge chair.
"It's no big deal." I shrugged, too used to my trauma. It's nothing now.
"It is a big deal, Olive. Don't down play the shi.t you've been through."
I just shrugged, not sure what to say to that. I've noticed he tends to call me Olive when he's being serious about something. We sat in silence for a while, staring up at the now cloudless sky that was painted a red orange with the setting sun. It was so beautiful to watch from up here.
"Beautiful." Lucas whispered.
"It really is." I turned to look at him, finding his eyes already on me.
I blushed a bit under his gaze. He was a handsome man that I knew I couldn't have. I wanted to ask him about Francesca. I wanted to know if that was the reason why he slept with so many women now. I also knew that he probably didn't want to talk about it. It's probably not something he wants to bring up.
"What's on your mind?" He asked me, not looking away from my eyes.
"The truth?" I asked, seeing him nod in response. "Wondering why you sleep with so many women."
Lucas sighed, pouting for a second.
"I'm only sleeping with you, Rose. I haven't slept with another girl since we slept the together the second time."
"Are you serious?" I couldn't believe what he was saying. "What about Janessa?"
"I broke it off with her the very same night she showed up. I don't want anyone else, Rose."
"It's kind of hard to believe, Lucas." I shook my head.
"I know it is." He sighed again.
It got quiet again as I watched Lucas stare up at the sky. He tapped his foot on the lounger rapidly as he thought. Eventually, he turned and looked at me. He looked so serious that I had to swallow the nerves in my throat down.
"Something happened to me a few years ago. Something I don't think I've ever really told anyone. It changed me, and the way I looked at women. It's the reason why I slept around so much." He gave me a vague reason, which was more than I was hoping for.
"I'm sorry, Lucas. Do you want to talk about it?" I hoped he would open up more.
"Maybe another night." He looked away from me, staring at the multicolored straps on the lounge chair as he stuck his finger between two of them. Is he fidgeting right now?
I pulled my chair closer to his, having them meet. I could smell his hearty cologne with how close we were. Lucas looked back up at me again. I could see the pain he was trying to hide in his eyes. I scooted closer to him, never breaking our eye contact.
"I am going to hold you to that, Lucas. I hope you know I'm here for you the same way you've been here for me." I assured him.
I leaned forward, kissing his lips tenderly. I am not usually one to initiate our kisses. I've always been worried about feeling too romantically about him. I think with what I know about him now and what he's telling me, that maybe it is time I gave him a real chance. We'll see how the date he wants will go.
"Thank you, Rose." He whispered, as he ran the backs of his finger over my arm. Goosebumps erupted under his touch, it was electrifying.
"Lucas, I need to know what you want from me? Am I some conquest or do you want something serious in the end?" I bit the bullet asking him the question that's been eating away at me since he asked me on another date.
"You're not a conquest, Rose, you're so much more. I would like to be serious with you."
His answer was what I was hoping to hear, but it didn't relieve my worries. I still felt like I was taking a huge chance on liking him. It would be so easy for him to crush my heart. I still need to be careful. I think I'll need time to trust him before this feeling finally goes away.
"Okay, Lucas. I hope you know Leo feels the same way." I reminded him that he wasn't the only one after me.
Leo was worming his way into my heart too. We may not have the same intensity that I have with Lucas, but he's sweet and secure. I feel I can trust him a lot easier than I can Lucas. I wish that wasn't the case, but it is.
"I know. I have a thought about that, and Leo and I have already discussed this too. We are wondering if you will seriously date us both for 6 months and at the end of the 6 months pick which one of us you want to be your boyfriend. Are you up for that?"
His suggestion caught me off guard. I didn't realize that they spoke to each other about dating me. It seemed they have a great friendship, and I was glad that I wasn't ruining it. I thought about his suggestion, and it seemed logical enough.
"Okay." I nodded.
"There are rules." He added.
"Alright tell me."
Lucas explained that each of them would get at least one date a week. If there were to be more than one date the other would have to have a chance to have at least one more date as well. They can't interrupt each other's dates with me, which includes texting. They told me I can't share what the other one is doing or what they have planned. I don't have to share when or if I sleep with either of them. They don't want to hear and they don't care.
I feel like the bachelorette. What is this daytime drama?