Taken, Kissed, and Loved [FREE and COMPLETED]

Chapter 14

David tipped the delivery boy just enough so he would be forgotten as a regular customer, not remembered as a money-grubber who doesn’t tip at all or an eccentric weirdo who tips way too much. He wasn’t sure what Christina liked so he ordered enough food to feed a family of six. Or a small weed-smoking party. He felt strangely light-hearted. Talking about Laura was hard, especially with Christina, but, for the first time, he felt it actually helped to take some of the weight off.

Right now he was dangerously close to being happy, something he hasn't felt for a very long time. This is only temporary, you know that, right? This situation does not have a happily ever after ending. He knew that. Of course he knew that. It was hard to think about Christina without also remembering her father. But when he did try and look past that, she actually seemed like an amazing person. And for some reason, even after everything he did to her, she came back to him. Maybe they could eat and then have very normal, gentle s*x, forget about everything for a couple of hours.

Keep dreaming, Parker. She is terrified of you, and for a good reason. David sighed. Yes, that night when he lost control and succumbed to his anger she saw the monster he kept hidden inside. It was the part of his personality he only let out in combat and other situations where he needed to harden up and forget about feelings. That part of him didn’t hesitate to pull the trigger, no matter who was standing on the other side. To take out a knife and cut deep, oblivious to the begging and screams of pain. Part of him was capable of anything, and even though he didn’t hurt Christina that night, she saw him as a heartless emotionless bastard from hell and nothing he could do now would completely erase that image from her mind. He was still going to try and hope for the best though.

He grabbed the pizza boxes and used his elbow to open the door. “How do you feel about pineapple on… pizza?” He hesitated, noticing the room was empty. His first thought was he was f****d up. She called them and ran off and he was standing there smiling like an i***t, his gun safely hidden in his jacket in the front hall, so far it might as well be on Mars. But no grenades came flying through windows, no masked men with rifles kicking the doors in. Plus… she wouldn’t do that, would she? Why the hell not? Well, if she was going to do it, she would have done it earlier.

When his heart slowed down a bit he heard a quiet noise from the bathroom. So that’s where she was. The door was opened so he peeked inside only to see her curled up in a corner, sitting on the cold tile floor hugging her knees, her shoulders shaking as she was sobbing inconsolably.

Crap. He stood there having absolutely no idea what to do. It was heartbreaking to see her like that and his first instinct was to run over and hug her. But what if that would only make it worse? If she was crying because she was scared of him, she would hardly appreciate him coming anywhere near her. Yes, Parker, first good thought of the day. You should stay away from her. FOREVER. On the other hand, he left her alone for a few minutes and found her like this, which was hardly an improvement. Screw it. He slowly walked over and sat down next to her. She didn’t pull away, which he took as a good sign, and put one arm around her shoulders.

“I hate it,” she sniffled and he froze, about to pull his arm back and get up to give her some space. “The pineapple,” she continued and moved closer to him. “Not just on pizza. It makes my mouth itch.” David barely understood her as she talked between the sobs, but what he did understand was when she curled up under his arm, resting her head on his chest. It was not about him, which was relieving. He hugged her tight and waited for her to calm down.

“It sucks.” Her shoulders stopped shaking but he still felt tears soaking into his shirt. “My whole life is a lie. Fake.”

“That’s not true.” David stroked her hair, enjoying the velvet softness as they ran through his fingers. “His life is. Not yours.”

Christina raised her head to frown at him. “He is my father. He is my life.”

“Nonsense. You are your own person with your own life. Not a fake.” They stared at each other and he had to use all the strength he had not to start kissing her. His d**k decided that it had been too long since they had s*x and started to bulge the pants. Plus Christina didn’t put her jeans back on and her naked legs folded up next to him were so long… Crap. He had to close his eyes and tilt his head back, leaning against the cold bathroom wall. Control yourself. She is crying out her heart here and all you can think about is f*****g her. Bravo.

“What are you thinking about?” Her brows came together and formed a small wrinkle in the middle of her forehead.

“Nothing,” he mumbled.

“You said you weren’t going to lie to me.”

“I don’t think I did. But alright, if you really want to know, I’m thinking about kissing you and then maybe having s*x with you right here on the floor. And I’m not an expert in women’s desires, but I really don’t think you want that right now.” There. He said it.

She stared at him for a moment, looking really surprised. “Right. The floor does not look very comfortable to have s*x on,” she laughed nervously. “And… I’m actually starving so… maybe we could eat first? If that’s okay with you?” She added quickly, apparently afraid of how he would react to her refusing to have s*x with him.

Of course she was afraid based on her experience with him. “Christina, I know it doesn’t seem like it, but I’m not really a rapist by nature. Yes, I like rough s*x, but it’s always been consensual. With everyone, except...”

“Except me,” she finished his sentence. “Right. Then you won’t have my consent until I have some food in my stomach. After that you can do whatever you want with me,” she smirked and got up, providing him with a beautiful view of her round firm butt covered only by the thin fabric of her panties. He followed her a few moments later, surprised by the sudden mood change. She hesitated at the door, looking at the files spread on the floor. “Could you… put that away, please? I can’t deal with that right now.”

David quickly gathered everything and put it back in the bag. He didn’t want to deal with that right now either. Incriminating evidence was replaced by pizza boxes and soda cans and they sat on the ground together. David realized that Christina wasn’t the only one starving and grabbed the box with the pineapple pizza. “So,” he said between the bites, “you are allergic to pineapple?” That was useful to know.

“Mo, mot weally,” she tried to answer with her mouth full, chuckled, and swallowed the bite. “Sorry. I’m normally much more well-mannered. It’s just that my mouth gets all itchy and sore when I eat a piece of it. I don’t know if that counts as an allergy. Certainly not the kind where people see a peanut and start dying.”

“We’re sitting on the floor eating cold pizza and drinking this teeth-dissolving liquid straight from the can. I don’t think manners really matter right now,” he smiled at her, watching her devour another slice of pizza. This felt so normal it was almost absurd given the grand scheme of things. If only this day didn’t have to end. “When will they start missing you?” he asked quietly, unsure if he wanted to know the answer.

“I have to be back at the wellness center before noon tomorrow,” she sighed. “If they haven’t noticed I’m gone already. I wouldn’t really know, I left my phone there.”

“I would know.” His people were watching the cameras and listening to Anderson’s security radio channels but so far they haven’t noticed anything out of the ordinary, otherwise they would have let David know. “Wait, didn’t you have a phone when Shannon picked you up?”

“Mhm.” Christina took a huge bite and chewed it with visible pleasure. “A new one nobody knows about. Didn’t want anyone to trace me just in case I did find you.”

David raised an eyebrow, surprised by her ingenuity. “Smart.”

“You sound surprised. Did you think I was just a dumb spoiled rich girl?”

“Uhh…” Yes, he did. “I’m not going to answer that.”

She laughed. “Scoundrel.”

How was talking to her so easy? He felt like they’d known each other for years, not just met a week ago under very dubious circumstances. “You don’t have to go back.” The words came out of his mouth unfiltered by the brain. Classy, Parker. What happened to going slow with her?