Lost Boy in Neverland

She nodded and smiled, “I wanted to know you all my life, honestly. Dreamed of it even, what you would look like. I hoped that if we ever did get meet that you would say something along those lines.” Her smile faultered a bit it wasn’t the exact words of I’m proud of you or I love you, but it was close enough for now. After all he had no idea she had even existed. “Yeah, it probably wouldn’t have been easy for you to come visit or for her to bring me here.” She nodded at his admittance, “it is very scary but it seems like it’s the only chance I would have to get to know you and I do want that chance.” She nodded again with more surety in her choice. “Yes, I am. I want to. I want… I want to know you. I can’t do that if you need a kidney. I want you to know me. I want.. I want you to know Arthur and to hear about what I’ve been doing.” She smiled and bit her lip, a little teary eyed as she finally reached out for his hand, “I want to be able to invite my father to one of my ballets. You can’t really go to the ballet if you’re in need of a kidney, now can you?”

-

Luke couldn’t help but smile, though the sudden worry of if he was good enough ran through his veins, not wanting to let her down or something like that. After all, it had seemed like she had waited so long to meet him and he had no clue that he had anyone to meet, or he would have been trying to do that this whole time. “We would have made something work, but dreaming about what could have been won’t change the fact that we couldn’t done that. But I want to know you now, know everything about you, about what you love, about who you love. I’m sure there is so much to be proud of and I can’t wait to get to know what that is.” He said and offered her a smile. “Arthur huh? And who is Arthur?” He asked as he couldn’t help but smile again. “Ballet? You dance? That’s great. I would love to go watch you dance.”

~ “Oh shit,” Viggo said walking up on the seen that was Luke and he quickly blocked Jilly’s view, dropping down to her level, “Hey… hey sweetheart. I want you to take my phone okay and call nine-one-one. I know… I know it’s only for emergencies but this is an emergency okay, After that I want you to go wait by the car okay?” He nodded gently nodded, rubbing her cheek before heading over to help Luke out.  He started by putting pressure on his wounds ripping pieces of Luke’s shirts. “Hey Luke. It’s me Viggo, okay. Stay talking to me, please. We’re getting you help.”

-

Luke groaned as his head started to spin and he was getting dizzy and lightheaded and he barely recognized the other person as Viggo. “W-what...” He managed to get out before his body fell back to lay on the ground, cough up blood as his vision faded in and out. He cried out as pressure was applied to the wounds. “D--Dani...” He managed to get out before his eyes closed.

~

Madelyn nodded, “she remembers you too. She wasn’t the biggest supporter of me coming to find you. I think she didn’t want to add any burden onto you. Especially since we were back in France and everything.” She shrugged and tried to make a semblance of a joke, “I guess it’s better than how we could have met.” She bit her lip still intimidated by the thought of giving him a piece of her but she nodded. She shook her head with a smile, “No, no… uh.. I was kind of already on my way here looking for you when I found out. I uh.. I wouldn’t be lying if I said I was terrified of doing this because I am. I just thought… I thought meeting you would make it easier.” She exhaled trying her best not to cry. “I don’t think it did though.” She bit her lip before realizing how that sounded, “I think it made me want to do it more.”

-

Luke frowned slightly. “You would have never been a burden to me, ever, I promise.” He said as he looked over towards Madelyn. He carefully pushed himself up on the bed, wincing slightly as he carefully lowered his back against the bed again, having sat up some in the bed. “Oh...I see, well I’m glad you came looking so I could know about you.” Luke said and offered a small smile. “I know the whole kidney thing is scary, it’s scary to me and I need it so I can only imagine that it’s scary for you, having to make a choice to give part of yourself to someone you don’t know...” He said and raised an eyebrow. “A-are you sure? You don’t have to..please don’t feel like you have to...” He said softly.

~

Madelyn shook her head, “I.. I’m sorry that was a lot.” She sighed knowing it was a lot any way to be standing here meeting your father for the first time with him deathly ill wasn’t something to take lightly. “Thea. She… she was a French exchange student.” She nodded, “she told me about you when I was younger but I didn’t ask many questions until recently.” She shook her head but smiled, “I guess she didn’t see a point? I don’t think she knew about me until she was back in France.” She nodded, “Yeah… definitely not how I thought we would meet if we ever did.” She quietly made her way to sit down and she smiled at him, “so uh… what… what happened? They said you might need an organ?”

-

Luke nodded his head slowly but let the other speak. “Thea....I remember Thea.” He said as he looked at her, head tilted to the side slightly. “Wow. I uh...if I had known...I would have tried to reach out...I...wow.” He said, nearly speechless. “I’m sorry that we did have to meet like this.” He said and nodded his head once more. “Yeah, a kidney. I uh....I was shot a few times, it’s a long story but one of the bullets destroyed the one good kidney I had left after a previous car accident.” He said as he looked over towards her. “Is that...is that how you found out about me? I know they said they were going to try and find a donor for me..I uh...I didn’t realize they would try to find a living donor...I...”

@lukexxking​

To say she was scared would be an major understatement. She was terrified. She chewed her lip standing outside the hospital door and tracing her fingers over the room number that she had jotted down. Her hands shaking before she heard someone behind her clear her throat. The nurse trying to get in to check on the man that she had learned to be her father recently. She licked her lips and nodded, getting out of the way. She wished she could walk in as easy as the nurse did, it took a beat… or two before she stepped in.

It was scary being there, hospitals were after all never fun and adding the pressure of meeting her biological father in one she was a little worried. So she stood back and watched the nurse work. Smiling at them before they left and a eerie silence filled the room for a second before she stepped forward, “you are Luke? Right? If not I’m so sorry I must have got the wrong number.” She said licking her lip before biting down on it and tapping the piece of paper to her hand, “umm if you are him, I know you don’t know me but uh..” She finally looked up, her eyes meeting his, “I think I’m your daughter.”

-

Luke had already had several different surgeries to try and fix the damage that Jason had done and he was exhausted as he laid in the bed. He had been drifting in between awake and asleep, his leg stabilized in the air as they were waiting on fixing his other injuries first. He was awake, talking with one of the nurses who had just checked his vitals before leaving when Luke saw someone come into the room. “Yeah, I’m Luke.”  He said as he used the bed controls to help him sit up as he looked at the young woman. “I..uhhh...wow...” He said, eyes locking onto hers as he took in when was being said to him. 

“Who...” Luke started, wincing slightly as he moved in the bed. “Who’s your mom?” He asked, though he knew in the back of his head who it must have been since he hadn’t really been with that many women, and definitely not multiple at once. “I...how come she never said anything..I...wow...” He said, speechless for a change. “I’m sorry we have to meet here...”

JASON

It had been months now. Months of endless tracing and tracking. Jason was going insane but he needed to find her. His fingers curled and crunched the plastic water bottle in his hand, the vodka inside spilling lightly over the rim. How dare she leave him? Jason still couldn’t wrap his mind around it. All he had ever done was loved her and provide for her. And yet – that ungrateful bitch had run. Didn’t she see how much he loved her? For a while, Jason had lost track of her. He almost had her in New York but somehow, she had caught wind of him. Smart girl.

 It had been nothing after that. It seemed Danielle had learned how to cover her tracks but that didn’t stop Jason. He spent months trying to search her bank accounts for any movement, tracing her car, looking at traffic camera. He even went as far as putting out a ABP for her. He didn’t care if his chief found out – that’s how much Jason loved her. Why didn’t his stupid wife see that? Finally, his hard work paid off. His darling wife hadn’t been so careful.

When he finally got that trace of her, Jason didn’t waste any time.

 Soon, he was standing outside of where his beloved was staying and he kept watch for days. Beyond their vantage point but he watched. Anger and heartbreak festering and growing each day. However, it was this particular early morning that truly set him off. Dani was standing outside with the farmer - Luke King. Jason looked into him but he hadn’t been able to figure out what Danielle was doing on this farm with him. He sat back in shadows, watching, calculating but all of his logic went down the drain when he saw that man wrap his arms around his wife and fucking kiss her.

 But the worst part? Danielle kissed him back. That bitch! After everything he’s done for her? How dare she!

 Jason went into a blind rage then, punching the tree next to him until his knuckles bled.

———————————————————–

Dani couldn’t help but giggle happily as Luke wrapped her in his arms, kissing her as if they were parting for days when in reality, he was just going to clean out the stables. Her hand cupped his jaw, her touch tender and full of love. When they pulled away, the younger one couldn’t help but smile brightly at him. “Have fun out there,” she chuckled, leaning up to give him another quick peck on the lips. “I will work on that paperwork and get lunch ready for us.” It had become routine between them. Dani would help around the house, with some of the paperwork from the farm, and happily provide warm, home cooked meals for Luke while he busied himself around the farm. It was normal and it was home for Danielle now. There was nothing like it, especially since she had come clean about her abusive marriage. It liberated her to know that Luke was aware of her past and still chose to love her.

The day had gone relatively well for her. She had sent out the invoices that were pending, cleaned around the house and did some laundry. Lunch was already, considering it was a little past noon, when the doorbell suddenly rang. It struck her as odd considering that no one ever really wandered by this area – no one but herself, apparently. And the folk that were around here, usually knew Luke well enough that they didn’t ring the doorbell. Still, Dani put down what she was doing and approached the front door, opening it with a smile. However, the smile quickly faded as soon as her eyes landed at who was at the door.

Dani stood frozen – staring into the blazing eyes of her enraged husband. Jason’s normally icy blues were ignited a deep cobalt as her glared at her. There was a craziness around him that Danielle had never seen before, even in his wildest moments, and it scared her so deeply.

Fear penetrated her, making her unable to move, stagger or even breathe. While the room spun around her, she finally took inventory and realized her husband had his gun in his hand by his side.

Taking a deep breath, Dani stepped forward. “Jason…what are you doing here?” Her voice trembled, watching as he took a couple of steps back. Now, closer to him, Dani could smell the nauseating stench of vodka radiating from him.  

“You let me…after everything you left.”

“Jason - you hurt me. You kept hurting me.” Her voice wavered with emotion and Jason’s face contorted with deep anguish like it always did before he hurt her. “Of course, I left.” Dani tried to stay calm, knowing the slightest twinge could set off her insane husband.  

“I know, I know.” He lamented, wringing his hands through his messy and sweaty hair, clutching at it as if he was trying to fight off the demons that tormented. Dani prayed that Luke wouldn’t hear the commotion; she didn’t want him to get hurt too. “Let’s just go home – I’ll change.” He begged but Dani just crossed her arms, appearing strong when that was the last thing she felt.  

“I am home.” She proclaimed, sure and steady because for the first time in forever, she knew what home felt like. The answer seemed to tip the scale on whatever internal war was raging in her husband.  

“With that cowboy loser?” Jason spat in her direction, waving his gun aground. “I saw you with him! You think you can just cheat on me and get away with it?”

It was then the gun was lifted and pointed to her. The world stood frozen as reality set in that this could very well be the way she died. Deep down, she always knew that she would die at the hands of her husband, one way or another.  

It was Luke’s voice that broke through her shock but the events that unfolded next seemed to happen in a blur.  

Horror struck her as she watched Jason fire his gun into Luke, watching the man she loved fall to the ground, surrounded by a pile of his own blood.  

“No!” Dani choked out, lunging herself towards Luke, but Jason caught her in his arms. “Luke! No! No! No!”  She started thrashing against her husband’s grip, wanting nothing more than to get to Luke and help him!

“Shut up!” Jason screamed at her. “This is your fault! He’s dead because of you!”

But Dani didn’t stop thrashing and sobbing. She didn’t see it coming when Jason hit her with the butt of his gun.

The last thing she saw was Luke’s limp body as Jason carried her away towards his truck.  

-

Luke laid there on his stomach, blood seeping from the wounds. He was out cold, vulnerable to infection, Jason coming back, and the very real threat of death. He was out for a long time until the sound of tires pulling up brought him out of the darkness. He groaned as he tried to move, wondering who’s blood he was laying in. He didn’t have a memory of what happened, something he would later learn was his brain trying to protect him from the trauma of him getting shot multiple times. “Dani...” He called out lowly, not having the energy to get much else out. 

~

Viggo held tight to Jilly’s hand and smiled at Lance. “Hey! Thank you… uh this one wants horse back riding lessons if that’s possible.” He shrugged, “I figure no better man to talk to than the owner right?” He laughed but shook his head. “I used to go riding as a kid but I haven’t been forever and I’m pretty sure if my sister knew her niece hadn’t been on a horse she would probably kill me. She never brought it up though so I didn’t think she was interested.” He rubbed he back of his neck, “I’m talking too much huh?” He said looking down at Jilly who simply nodded. “Can we go see some of the horses please?”

-

Luke couldn’t help but smile as he listened to the other talk. “We can absolutely do lessons. My horse guy is currently taking some personal time so we can get those scheduled for when he is officially back but for now we can definitely go see the horses.” He said, directing his attention more to the young girl. This interaction had been a few weeks back and then Lincoln had gotten injured and Luke had forgotten about the lessons which is how he found himself in this current situation. His eyes blinked open slowly, the pain not yet hitting him fully as he slowly tried to push himself up from the ground. “Dani...” He managed to get out as he rolled himself over carefully, still laying flat. He could hear a car roll up and he tensed as he thought it might be the guy who had done all of this and took Dani. He pushed himself up into a sitting position with all the adrenaline starting to pump through his veins, a pool of blood still surrounded him and he thought it looked like the slaughtering room floor, part of his brain fogging over that it was in fact his own blood. He turned to face the direction of the footsteps he heard.

The promise that fell from Luke’s lips was meant to be comforting, but it felt like the final nail on her coffin. In her gut, she knew this wouldn’t end well. Jason was the kind of man that women purposefully crossed the street to avoid. He was evil to the core, malice circulated in his veins but he was so charming that it was a paradigm to entertain. Jason was going to find her; Danielle knew that. He wouldn’t stop till he was dead, a deadly vow whispered into her ear the first time she ran away. When he found her, Danielle wasn’t the only one that was going to pay. Her eyes shifted to Luke; they were both in danger now. 

Though the looming inevitable pain lingered, Dani was pulled momentarily from her thoughts by the soothing feeling of Luke’s hand rubbing her back and the soft subtle perfume of fresh alfalfa hay, ripe apple and a scent that was uniquely Luke’s to calm her down.  The ease left as fast as it came and Luke’s prodding had Dani clamping her eyes shut. Luke needed to know; she knew that, but it didn’t make her any less afraid. His story caused Danielle’s heart to shatter as nimble fingers reached out for the photograph. She tried to imagine Luke’s life beforehand. Married. Happy. Him kissing his wife while soothingly running his hand along her pregnant belly. Oh… he must have been so happy. A marriage so different from her own. And suddenly, she answered the question she had yet to voice. Why was he still alone? It made sense now. 

“I’m so sorry, Luke.” Gingerly, Dani reached up with one hand and turned Luke’s face to her, her thumb wiping the tears that rolled down his cheeks, weighed by the grief still so evident in his eyes. “Thank you for sharing that with me… Erin was beautiful and your son. I wish I could have met them.” She whispered, leaning up to press their foreheads together, giving him the time to process through the emotions he had dug up with the comfort that she was here if he needed her. They stayed there for a few moments before Dani broke the silence. “I met Jason five years ago in school.” And with those words, Dani was transported to a different time of her life. “He wasn’t bad at first, not in the beginning years. We were in love and after growing up in a home with an abusive father, it felt like my luck had finally changed.” She paused them, mindlessly tugging on a piece of loose thread from Luke’s shirt. “But as years went away and we got married, things got worse. I think his work, seeing that awfulness of human nature, got to him. It got him to drink and the drinking got him to get physical. At first it was only when he was drunk. Then it was when he was sober. It started small, a slap here and there. A tug of hair. Until one time he kicked me so hard, I miscarried our baby.” It was endless, Luca, every day was something new. A bruise, a new insult. I had no one. You just get into this dark space and everyone else feels so far away. You feel trapped. I tried to run away once and he found me. He beat so much after that, I didn’t know if I’d survive and he swore that if I ever tried that again, he would kill me and I believe him.” She sniffled then, trying to hide her tears or the fact that she was upset. Jason never liked it when she cried. “I was in New York before coming here and I know that he followed my trail there and then to a small town further south but I lost him after that. I don’t know if he knows where I’m at yet but he’s a cop…so he can use whatever he wants to find me. That’s why I have to be so careful.”

-

Luke smiled sadly at the photograph then looked to Dani when she had turned his face towards her. “Erin would have loved you and Simon, I uh...only got to hold him once before they needed to take him away from me.” He said softly. “They were perfect and it broke me when they were taken like that. It wasn’t fair you know? You finally get that happy ending you always dream of only to have everything taken from you in the blink of an eye, on what was supposed to be the happiest day of your life.” He let out a shaky breath as he composed himself. “I thought I could never be happy again, that I could never find love, and I came out here and bought a ranch. I had no idea what I was doing, never owned a farm in my life, but I had to start over and honestly, I thought living out here on my own would somehow help heal the pain I was feeling.”

Being on his own had in fact done some sort of healing for Luke and it allowed him the space to start moving on but he wasn’t truly happy. When Lincoln had come along with his daughter though, that’s when his healing truly started and he could feel himself coming to life again, slowly. He loved Ellie so much and her and Lincoln had slowly become his family and he became more and more himself. Now that Dani was here though, he felt alive, like the weight on his shoulders was eased and that he could spend his time not stuck in the past with Erin and Simon, but thinking about his future. He would always love Erin and Simon, always hold a special place in his heart for them but Dani had now become the woman he loved.

Luke listened to her talk about Jason and he frowned, already not liking what he was hearing. He hated men who put their hands on the women they swore up and down they loved, or any woman in general but to hear how this man was to Dani infuriated him.  “I’m going to do whatever I can do to make you feel safe.” He said and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “I know someone who used to work as a private investigator, he owes me a favor. He can try to find out where Jason is without alerting him.”

Jessie leaned against the stall door of the next horse she was supposed to check, gently petting the mare when she approached. It was hard to wipe the grin from her face as her friend gushed and told her the story. She hadn’t seen Luke like this in a long time. It overjoyed her to know that this woman felt the same way. Even with their age difference. “I know. I haven’t seen you like this since you were with her. I’m happy for you, Luke. You deserve to find love and happiness again.” Pausing for a moment, she reached for the mares halter and slipped it on before allowing her out of the stall and hooking her halter up to the grooming post. A hand ran along her long back, assessing the horse as she went. “You don’t have to tell me, if you can’t, but just…be careful, Luke. Complicated isn’t necessarily good and I don’t want to see you hurt.” She nudged Luke lightly as she neared him, offering a small smile. “So tell me more about her. She watched the kids a couple of times but I don’t really know much about her.”

-

Luke watched Jessie interact with the horses and he smiled as he stayed out of the way. “Thanks. I never thought I actually would. I thought I was going to be alone forever, that I couldn’t find someone again but Dani...She makes me feel alive again, like I can breathe.” He said as he nodded. “I’m always careful. Plus, she herself isn’t really the complicated part of her.” He said as he moved closer to Jessie and the horse. “She is amazing, smart, funny, caring...” He started on about Dani.

As he got closer to the house, Luke could hear a commotion coming from the front of the house so he picked up his pace. He knew Dani probably greeted whoever it was that had come and it wasn’t going well from what he could hear. As he neared the house, he could hear yelling anf the sound of a gun being cocked. It was a noise he knew well as he had a gun of his own to protect his livestock from animals should he have needed to. He was angry now that he didn’t have his own when he turned the corner to see a gun pointed at Dani. “Hey!” He called out, in hopes of getting the attention turned onto him.

“You don’t have to do that...” Luke said as he took a few steps forward once the man was turned to face him. “Stay where you are.” Luke heard, a warning and he put his hands up in the air as the gun was pointed in his direction. “You can just go and we won’t tell anybody you were here.” He said as he took a step foreword. It only took a moment to see the craze in the other man’s eyes before the sound of the gun firing went off and he felt a blinding pain rip through his knee. He fell to the ground, hands gripping at his knee which was losing blood quickly. “I SAW YOU KISS HER. SHE’S MINE, NOT YOURS, MINE!” Luke heard being shouted. “She belongs to nobody but herself.” He said between breaths as he got up from the ground slowly. 

Luke looked at the man, vision slightly blurry as he took more steps towards him and Dani, giving her a look for a moment, hoping she was okay and uninjured. “Please...just go...” He said as he approached Jason with a significant limp, mostly unable to use his right leg. He felt the barrel of the gun push against his shoulder and push him backwards and he stumbled, falling to his knees. “Say goodbye, Dani.” He said before the gun went off three more times, one bullet hitting his ribs, the other his abdomen, and the last having grazed his shoulder. Luke groaned as he fell on his front, blood seeping from his wounds and pooling on the ground underneath him. The last thing he saw was the look on Dani’s face before his eyes closed and all he saw was black.

@viggolance​

Dani was expecting a lot of reactions from Luke but a reaction of sincerity and concern was definitely not one of them. It didn’t make sense. She had just admitted to lying to him and hiding something from him and he was worried? Why wasn’t he mad? His question made ice run through her, painful memories running in her mind. She couldn’t quite answer with words; her throat constricted and her eyes blurred with unshed tears so opted to just nod at him. There was no way the extent of what Jason had done to her could be verbalized.  Dani never talked about her abuse. The brunette squeezed his hand, falling even more for this compassionate and way too caring man. How could Luke love someone like her? “I don’t care about myself, Luke, I care about you. There’s nothing Jason could do to me that he hasn’t done already but I can’t bear the thought of him doing anything to you.” Her nightly prayer was that Jason would never ever find her again. For her sake. For Luke’s sake. 

In silence, the couple ventured to the living room, Dani relishing the touch of Luke’s hand on her and using it to ground herself in reality. She felt dirty now; as if she had just displayed the ugliest parts of herself to the one person she never want to see them. Panic sieged her at his words, pupils widening as she shook her head vehemently. “No.” She stressed, running her hands through her hair. “No, you can’t, Luke. Jason….he is the police. If I raise the slightest flag, he’ll find me. I don’t even think a lawyer could help me. I can’t file charges because it’s his word against mine and  if I try to file for a divorce, he’ll know where I am.” 

Luke could only watch as obviously painful memories came to her mind and he wanted to wrap her up in his arms and never let her go. They hadn’t known each other for long and despite an age difference, he loved her with his entire being. “Well I care about you and he’s not going to hurt you again, not if I can stop it.” He said softly. “Okay...okay no cops but we will figure something out, I promise.” He said as he pressed a kiss to her temple. He slowly pulled her into his lap and rubbed circles into her back, trying his best to be comforting. He let them stay there like that in silence for a little while before he looked at her. 

“I know it’s hard to talk about Dani....but I need to know what happened.” Luke said softly. “At least...tell me what you know about his whereabouts...” He said. “You don’t have to tell me anything, I promise. But... I just worry about you and I need to know how to protect you. And I want you to be free from carrying all of that on your shoulders by yourself. Nobody should have to carry all of that.” He said softly. He reached out and grabbed a picture of his ex wife and a newborn sized baby. “If it helps...I’ll share first. Something I’ve never told you and something I carried on my shoulders on my own before I opened up to someone. This is Erin. She was my ex-wife, the first love of my life. That baby was named  Simon. They were my whole world and then they were taken from me on the way to the hospital. Drunk driver and I never...I never stopped blaming myself. Simon her uh...passed instantly and we thought Erin was okay but a few days passed and she must have been bleeding internally cause she passed a few days after this picture was taken.” He said, a few tears forming behind his eyes.

“Okay, woah wait.” Jessie jumped in front of Luke, blocking his view from where Dani stood a few away in the stables with the horses. “You kissed her?” Jessie adjusted her bag on her shoulder while glancing behind to see Dani. Luke had talked about her often, so much that Jessie felt she knew her and she knew her friend had been falling for this girl. Probably long before Luke even realized it but she hadn’t expected it to progress like this. She was happy for her friend but still shocked. “Luke!” The vet raised her hands up in surrender, trying to show that she wasn’t judging him but she was shocked. “I mean I’m happy for you but how did it happen? Was she happy? Does she feel the same way?”  @lukexxking​

Luke couldn’t help but smile as they sat there doing their normal check ups. “I did, I did kiss her.” He said with a grin. “I mean, it was after a kind of intense moment.” He said honestly. “A glass got dropped after I got angry at one of my customers and then I just....kissed her. It felt right but uh, yeah she does. There is just stuff that complicates it just a bit.” He said and rubbed the back of his head. “I don’t know if I should say though. It’s not my business to say.” He said softly, concern still running through his veins. “I really think I’m in love Jess.” He said. “I mean, you know how long it’s been since I could say that and how hard it is to say that after Erin.”

“You’re not an ass.” Dani said softly, placing a hand without thinking on his chest and shaking her head. Danielle was an expert at knowing asses. She had grown up with an asshole of a father. She had dated assholes growing up and now she was married to biggest ass in the world. “You’re so far from it.” The words were whispered as she squeezed his hand. The kiss, when it came, wasn’t entirely unexpected. It had been building up between them for a while, thought Dani had thought it was all in her head. Even that day that he had caught her painting. And though it shocked her, it was most definitely not unwelcomed.

Her eyes stayed closed for a few seconds after he pulled away, her mind hearing his words but unable to believe that someone like Luke could even remotely feel for her. Squeezing her eyes, Dani shook her head. “It should.” Her hand reached up to cup his cheek, her thumb caressing his skin before she pulled away and took a step back. “It should make you angry because I haven’t been completely truthful.” She crossed her arms over her chest then, a defensive mechanism. “I’m married. I wasn’t on a road trip…I was running away that night I landed here.” Her voice cracked as she looked up at Luke, waiting for him to react. Waiting for him to get angry. He claimed to love her but Luke didn’t know her. “I’m falling for you too; I have been for a while and you… you need to know that because loving me… taking me in how you have… it’s dangerous for you and I never should have put you in this position.”

Luke was happy when Dani didn’t pull away from him but the next statement did take him a bit off guard. Out of all the things that she could have told him, the fact that she was married was not one that he was expecting, but it didn’t scare him away. If she was running, it was probably for a good reason and her next sentence confirmed it. “Did he hurt you? Your husband? Because you deserve to be treated like a princess. Dangerous or not...I won’t let him hurt you again. Not if I can stop him.” He took her hand back slowly, running his thumb over the back of her hand. “This doesn’t make me love you any less Dani.”

There was a lot going on right now, and a lot of things going through his head but he felt even more protective over Dani now. He led her out of the office and towards the living room area. “What can I do to help, Dani? What do you need me to do? Do I need to call the police? A lawyer? Both?” He asked, head tilted slightly. “I’ll do whatever you need me to do, okay?” He said and gave her hand a squeeze.

“No, no, I was stupid. I didn’t think.” It’s your fault. You’re so stupid, Dani! Why don’t you ever think?! Jason’s words rang in her mind on a loop as she picked up the pieces of shattered glass. Danielle flinched momentarily has Luke knelt down beside her and though her conscious mind was well aware that Luke would never lay a hand on her but she couldn’t help her reactions.

She kind of tuned out everything, just focused on picking up the glass. It surprised her to see his hand reaching out to her, calm and soft. It took a few seconds for her to react but she finally let him take her hand and guide her out the mess. “It’s my fault, I didn’t think; it won’t happen again. I’m sorry, Luke.” She wiped under her eyes with her free hand, looking down dejectedly at the soiled floor. “I… I think I’m okay, I’ll clean this up, I promise.” She sighed, finally actually looking up at him for the first time since the accident. “Are…are you okay?”

Luke frowned, tilting his head slightly at her. “You weren’t stupid Dani...that’s me. I’m the stupid one.” He said softly once they were safely out of the room. “It’s just a glass, I don’t care about the glass, I care about you.” He said and offered her a small smile once she looked up at him. “I’m fine. I feel like an ass, but I’m fine.” He said softly, grabbing her hand in his gently. He was trying to figure out how to tell her that he wasn’t mad. He let out a soft sigh as he leaned in slowly, pressing their lips together. 

Once he pulled away, Luke looked at her, hoping he hadn’t just screwed everything up. “I just...since you’ve been here...there’s been so much...life here and I can’t help but feel that I’m falling for you...hard.” He admitted. “You don’t have to say anything back but I just thought you should know. Nothing you do will make me angry with you.”

Dani sighed softly as she waited for Luke to finish up with his call, walking over to where she placed the tray with food and drink and picked up her glass. She took a sip of of her iced tea and walked back towards the bookshelf nearby. Delicate fingertips traced over the leather bound books but the sound of the chair scrapping across the floorboards startled her, causing her to jump. She spun around to face Luke, a gasp tore from her. It made her so mad that this was what a reaction like this caused but whenever Jason got up too fast, whenever his voice began to raise, it was usually followed with a shove. A slap. A punch. 

With every shout, Danielle backed up against the wall, trying to hide the reaction but she was still so scared. Years of deep abuse not being able to easily be ignored. It was the first hitting the desk, the loudness of it that caused Dani to drop her glass, the cup shattering on the floor. “Sorry!” She immediately apologized, throwing herself to the floor to start picking up the broken pieces of glass. “I-I’m s-sorry. I’m so sorry.” The words came out in a frenzy, her hands shaking. She’s unable to look up, remembering how much Jason really hated when she looked at him while he was in rage. She flinches as she hears footsteps, backing up and her voice breaks as she speaks up again. “I’ll clean it u-up, sorry.”

Luke had honestly forgotten that Dani had been in the room, as he would have handled himself differently over the phone. Her position in the room only became known to him once he heard glass break and he immediately snapped out of the anger he had found himself in as he turned to find Dani backing up slightly as he started towards her. “Hey...it’s okay. I’m the one who should be sorry.” He said as he held his hands up in surrender. He made sure to soften his voice as much as he could. “Dani..it’s okay, I promise. I shouldn’t have raised my voice but nothing is your fault, okay?” He said as he knelt down carefully, grabbing a trash can nearby and putting the big pieces of glass that he saw into the can.

Seeing how Dani reacted to his yelling concerned Luke. They hadn’t really talked much about their pasts and he was starting to think she had a rough one. He hated that for her as he was starting to like her a lot and thought she deserved only the best people could offer. He stood from the floor and then slowly reached out, taking her hand slowly in his. “I didn’t mean to scare you, okay? I’m really sorry.” He said again as he walked around where the glass was and carefully led her away from the room so she didn’t cut her feet on it. “Are you okay? Not cut or anything?”

The knife cuts cleanly through the sandwich as Dani throws together the finishing touches of the lunch she had prepared for herself and Luke. The runaway had been now living with Luke for a couple of months, give or take and each day, she felt more and more like home. It was a dangerous thing for her, considering all the baggage she carried. Especially the psycho husband of her. He was no doubt trying to find her and it scared Dani to death; She’d lay alone in bed, and with every unfamiliar sound, dread would fill her. Thinking that maybe now he had found her. It was selfish because she knew that once Jason found her, Luke would be hurt because of her. 

Shaking the dark thoughts off, Dani grabbed the tray of food holding two cut sandwiches and two teas and began to pad her away through the house in the direction of Luke’s office. It was hard to conceal the skip of her heat or the spark of excitement she got at the thought of the older man; her affection and crush for him barely hidden, she was sure. It was embarrassing and she was sure that he probably thought she was a dumb little girl with schoolgirl crush. It was his fault, really, for being so kind and different than any other man she’s known in her life. Using her foot, Dani pushed the door in for his office and gave Luke a smile she reserved solely for him before placing the tray on his desk. “Lunch,” Danielle mouthed at Luke, a shade of pink covering her cheeks. She stayed quiet, having realized that he was on the phone. The twenty-year old began to look around his office, taking in bits and pieces of him as his call carried on, wanting to wait for him to eat together. @lukexxking

Luke had been dealing with some issues with one of the companies that buys his food products, particularly with them not paying their bill and even just one company doing that could cause financial troubles for his farm. He hadn’t heard the door open at first but when Dani set the food in front of him he gave her a smile and mouthed thank you. Finally he found himself off of hold and he started to talk about the bill that he was owed. He could feel his frustration rising in himself and he stood up from the chair. “Look, I need this bill paid. NO! I SENT THE INVOICE THREE WEEKS AGO!” He shouted once the client said he had never received the invoice. “I PUT IT IN YOUR MAILBOX MYSELF.” He yelled once more, slamming his fist angrily on the table. “SO NOW YOU’RE CALLING ME A LIAR?”

Not noticing how Dani was reacting, Luke pinched the bridge of his nose. “You better have the money to me by the end of the day tomorrow or I will have to take you to court over it.” He said before hanging up the phone, already feeling himself calming down. It wasn’t often that he found himself getting angry like that but it was the ranch or this paycheck and he was upset about it.