Stella pulled on her arm, “Thea!”
Lukas ignored them all. I could feel his eyes on me. My body was coming back to life wanting its own sun back, wanting so badly to go back to its private world. He reached for my hand.“Alexia?” He almost asked as he pulled me off my seat and took us out of the café. We continued to walk his large steps making me quicken my pace. His touch burning my skin as tears began to roll down my cheeks. My eyes blurred and I almost tripped. He turned and picked me up and carried me to his waiting car. Mike stood at the car door waiting for us. I could hear my mother screaming and running after us but it was too late. I could no longer hear her muffled screams to get back here and see Niko.
I didn’t realize that I had fallen asleep. I awoke to the all too familiar warmth of Lukas’ body as I lay wrapped in his embrace. I pretended to be asleep so that I could stay longer, knowing the moment I was awake I needed to leave. I could feel him caressing my cheeks and hold me gently as he breathed in my scent. “I love you.” He whispered.
I stirred and finally moved it was too painful to be here, to want this knowing what I knew. He stood up from his bed and blocked the door afraid that I’d bolt out of there.
“You lost a lot of weight.” His voice was so full of concern. It hurt to hear him being so worried. Was he concerned for me or for this lost love he had? “Are you eating?” He asked again but I didn’t answer. “I know you’re not sleeping, how could you? You fell asleep the moment I carried you. God baby you look so exhausted. It breaks me even more seeing you like this.” He voice grew hoarser.
“How did you know I was there?” I blurted out.
“What? On your little date?” He hissed.
“Easy, I have a bodyguard on you. I had one on you since I met you.” I sat there shocked.
“I told you that I needed you safe.” He banged the wall with his fist. “How could you go? How could you just agree to this and start seeing him? Alexia I know you, I know you’re just as broken as I am right now.” He cried out.
“I didn’t know.” I barely whispered it “she tricked me.” I wiped the small tears that were now falling.
“Were you going to agree to his idea, to his…?” He stopped I could tell he was getting angrier.
“No, I wasn’t.” He let out a sigh and stood watching me for the longest time. He stared at me, drinking me in and I let him. I knew all he was seeing was her face maybe he missed her maybe that’s all I was to him, but to me he was the very thing that gave me life.
I licked my dry lips, my eyes hurt and burned from all the tears I had cried.
“Stop looking at me.” I finally wailed warning him.
“Why?” He asked knowing where this was going.
“You must have really loved her to fight this hard for a ghost.” His fist clenched and his breathing became erratic.
“When you see me you see her don’t you?” I questioned. He opened his mouth to say something, but he didn’t, his eyes brimming with tears, he walked over to me and sat at the edge of the bed.
“Olivia was… I had known her since we had gone to university. She caught my attention with her cute little ways. She smiled a lot and loved life. She was charming and her voice sounded like someone singing. She was quiet and demure but my parents hated her. She had no money and no family but I didn’t care. They treated her with contempt and hate. Olivia cried a lot, wanting to gain their approval.” He stopped and smiled probably at a memory of her. “It all became too much for her and we broke up. A few years went by and I had dated but couldn’t get her out of my mind. She was the exact opposite of my family and I needed her warmth and her love. I found her and we got back together. We announced that we had decided to marry. My family’s behavior grew more cold and vicious towards her but she no longer cared. She was going for her finally dress fitting when… she was hit by a car. She died from her injuries three days later. My parents said that it was fate. That she wasn’t meant to be with me that Mollie was my perfect fit. That’s when I cut my ties with them. They have always wanted Mollie and her parents’ power and wealth at their disposal.”
My heart broke for Lukas as he told me his story, he reached for my face but I jerked away still uncomfortable with myself and him, his hand fell to my side.
“After her death I poured myself into my business, wanting nothing more than to be rid of my parents and their connections. By day I worked but at night I would lose myself in alcohol and women. I blamed my parents for her death. I knew it wasn’t them that killed her but they wanted her gone and it was enough for me to hate them. I have barely spoken to them in the last twelve years.” I watched as my Suit poured out his heart wanting me to know everything about him.