1: Stay Close, Lisa
Lisa's P.O.V.
“You’re mine, Lisa. You can’t get away,” Branden hissed beside my ear as he held my throat tight. I couldn’t breathe, fear gripping my heart. My voice was nonexistent as his hand tightened around my neck.
Why do I always choose the shitty guys?
I closed my eyes, waiting to feel the pain of him all over me. He’d found me — again — or more like he’d followed me. There was no escaping him, and I refused to let my brother, Lucas, or his wife, Liv, know. They were happy right now. They had a kid and didn’t need to be involved in my mess again.
I needed to learn to fight for myself.
With Liv in mind, I gained some courage. If she could fend off men twice her size, so could I! Then again… probably not, seeing as I didn’t have as much experience as her—but itwaspossible. I gripped Branden by his shoulders to steady myself as I lifted my knee, meeting the dangling bits between his legs. His hand tightened on my throat further as he bent forward.
I pushed on him, but his grip would not relinquish. I hit the inside of his elbow, forcing his arm to bend. The moment his hand eased, I slid away, freeing myself. I didn’t waste a moment as I ran out of the alley he’d dragged me into. The adrenaline in my body kept me going until I was several blocks away.
Bending forward, I rested my hands on my knees as I tried to catch my breath. The breeze caused my long, black hair to curtain over my face, blocking my view for a moment. I stood up, pushing it out of the way, catching the eyes of strangers who looked at me and then at my neck. I instinctively covered it with my hand, rushing towards my car.
I would hide it with makeup.The benefit of being rich was that you could afford the expensive stuff. I had the best concealer available.
The action of swallowing caused a radiating pain down my throat, burning where he had held me. My car was in view, just across the street, when the sound of my name in the distance stopped me in my tracks.
“Lisa!” a familiar voice called out, but I refused to turn and look. Whoever it was couldn’t see me like this. I pushed past the crowd, hearing the voice continue to yell out my name from behind. They were getting closer… probably walking faster to catch up. Within a few seconds, a hand lightly gripped my arm, catching my attention—literally. My steps halted, but I didn’t turn.
“Lisa, what’s wrong?” they asked, but I knew if I spoke right now, my voice would be too hoarse. I shook my head instead, looking down so that my chin could cover my neck. “Hey…I know we don’t know each other that well, but I can tell something is wrong. Tell me what’s the matter,” his powerful voice demanded with a stern—yet concerned—tone.
He stepped in front of me, giving me a view of his dark shoes with their uneven laces. The curiosity in me was too much, so I looked up, wanting to know who stopped me. Who was the man who could tell something was wrong, just from seeing my back?
Liv’s ‘adoptive’ father stood before me with his long, braided blonde hair matching that of a Viking’s… which was exactly what Lucas called him:Viking Man…for good reason, it would seem. I almost forgot how large his muscles were as they sat crossed over his chest. His sapphire-blue eyes studied me carefully, landing on the bruised mark upon my neck. I’d heard from Liv and Lucas about how protective Davis was of women.
I could see the anger brewing in him as his firm jaw clenched. He was a powerful Viking of a man with a heart of gold… A man who ran a whole underground fighting ring with a daughter of his own, and who took Liv in when she first arrived in New York. He hated abusers—being his own vigilante and beating them to a pulp, including Liv’s father at one point.
“Where’s your car?” he asked with his brows pinched. He waspissed, but he didn’t let it seep into his tone. His voice was steady and calm as he spoke to me… almost gentle.
I pointed across the street, unable to speak. My cheeks tinged pink with embarrassment, hating to be seen this way. A wave of shame washed over me, knowing he would see I was abused. I was not strong like Liv. She fought in his rings, but I didn’t even stand a chance against one man. I wondered what he thought of me. I must have looked so pathetic to him.
He slowly reached for me as if fast movements would cause me to run. His enormous hand wrapped around my wrist, carefully pulling me towards my car. After releasing my hand, he opened my passenger door, looking at me like I needed to get in. I cocked my head to the side with an arched brow.
“I’m driving you home, and then you’re telling me everything—starting with the name of the man that did this to you,” he explained, gesturing for me to get in with his head. There was a giant storm brewing in him… one I would never want to be on the receiving end of.
Reluctantly, I got into my passenger seat, handing him my keys as he held his hand open. I watched him circle the car and open the driver’s side door. The car was new, still having that strong leather smell inside. I had tried to mask it with a floral-scented air freshener, but it didn’t work, only causing the car to have a strange odor of leather and flowers.
Davis looked comfortable behind the wheel, as if this was his car and not mine. Was this something he did often—run into panicked women and then drive them home in their cars? He started down the road, taking the correct way without me saying anything.
How did he know where I lived?
The ride was silent, with me further sinking into myself. I felt a deep sense of shame the closer we got to my apartment—the one Lucas had stayed in previously. Dad had me move in there when he found out Lucas had moved out. He didn’t like that I lived outside the city. He wanted me close, to control me better.
Dad found out about their wedding the day after, while they were gone on their honeymoon. He wasbeyondfurious, complaining about how marrying her did nothing to better his business. She didn’t have connections like Clover Camilo did. It seemed he wanted Lucas to marry the daughter of a businessman so that their companies could merge. He was calling a judge to force them to annul the marriage when I stopped him by offering myself in Lucas’ sted.
‘Stay close, Lisa, or I’ll make your brother’s new life hell. You know, I have the power to force her to divorce him if I want. It would be easy to make it impossible for her to find a job,’Dad had told me as he hung up the phone that day.
‘You can’t do that! She’s worked hard for her career.’It was one of the few times I had actually spoken back to him.
‘I can do whatever I want, Lisa. I have the power and the means to do so.’
‘That’s the mother of your grandchild. Don’t you feel anything?’I thought I could pull at the strings of his heart—but I’d forgotten—he’d never had one. He was a heartless demon, disguised as a man.
‘All I feel is disgust. That’s no granddaughter of mine.’
