Protect Me(47)

After awhile, Lia finally starts to calm down. Her body starts to sag against me as the weight of her emotions subsides. All of the fight has left her body, leaving her completely spent. After the day I’ve had, I’m pretty much toast as well, so I gingerly lift Lia fully into my arms and stand up as best I can. I use the wall as leverage as I finally get us both upright. I stroll into her bedroom and slide onto the made bed. I don’t let her go, and I don’t pull the covers back. I need to keep holding her tightly and securely in my arms right now.

I feel her warm breath against my neck as she tucks herself tightly against me. Exhaustion settles in again, and I feel my eyelids slowly close. I have so much to say. So much to ask. So many questions that need answered.

But right now, I need this woman to feel safe. I need her to know that I will never hurt her physically. I am not the man who has hurt her in the past. I need to show her how much I care for her.

Lia’s breathing starts to even out against me signaling that she’s drifting off to sleep. I slowly release my death-grip on her and just revel in the feel of her body against mine.

Her beautiful, smiling face is the only thing I picture as I drift off to sleep.





*****




I’m startled awake from a deep, restless sleep. I dreamed of a faceless man with dark, empty holes where his eyes should be. He was stalking towards Lia and no matter what I did, I couldn’t keep him from going after her. Everything I did, he was right there.

I suck in deep, calming breaths as I take in the room. Night has fallen which means it’s well after nine. I look over to catch the time on Lia’s alarm clock and slam straight into her crystal clear eyes.

“Hey,” I say hoarsely.

“Hi,” she whispers and shifts closer. I pull her tightly against my hard body, my hands roaming up and down her back in a soothing gesture.

“So, I have some things I should probably tell you,” she whispers without making eye contact.

“I won’t push you, Lia, but I have a lot of questions. I want to listen. I want to be here for you and listen to what you need to say,” I tell her. “But, I’m going to be honest. Hearing you tell me what I know is coming is going to kill me. I may get mad and angry, but please know that it’s not directed towards you. Do you understand that? I will never be angry at you,” I tell her as I place a kiss on the side of her head.

“I know that. Before… that reaction was just that, a reaction. It was what my life was like before. Before you. I know you’d never hit me,” she whispers as the words get caught in her throat.

I slowly turn her around so that her back is to my front. I want her to feel my strength wrapped around her and know that I’m here for her, but know that it might be easier for her to talk if she isn’t staring at me. Because, like I told her, I’m not sure I can keep my emotions in check.

When Lia is snuggled tightly against me, she begins. “I met Garrett my senior year of college. He had already graduated and was working for his dad. We met at the bakery I was working at, and I remember thinking he was so handsome and put together. Completely unlike me. I was a mess, finishing school full time and working just about as many hours as humanly possible.

“When Garrett came back in the next day for another coffee, we seemed to hit it off. I couldn’t believe this great-looking guy with loads of money and a political background was interested in me. We started seeing each other whenever we could fit it in between my school time and work hours. Within a few months, I was graduating college and ready to begin my adult life,” Lia tells me.

“Garrett came from money and was kept firmly in line under his father’s thumb. He lived in the Governor’s mansion full time, but had a house in Daytona.”

“Wait, Governor’s mansion?” I ask as my body tenses uncontrollably against hers.

“Yeah, Garrett is Garrett Monahan. Only son of Warren Monahan, Governor of Florida,” she states.

Fuck me. I suck in several deep breaths before I can get the words past the lump in my throat. “Go on,” I tell her.

“Everything was great for the first year. Garrett moved into the house in Daytona and proceeded to work for his father from that location. I moved in shortly after he did. Garrett strongly encouraged me to quit the job I had just gotten. He said it was because he wanted me available at any moment’s notice for fundraisers, parties, or dinner meetings. I didn’t really want to, but Garrett wouldn’t be deterred. I didn’t see anything other than the politician’s handsome son. I didn’t see the monster lurking underneath until it was too late.