Lucas

"Lucas!" Emily exclaimed as she ran towards me and wrapped her arms around my torso. Her smile was so contagious that I felt a reciprocal one appear on my face despite my shitty day.

I laughed at the fact that this small woman could be so excited to see a broken soul like my own and hoisted her up, holding her as close to me as I could by placing my hands under her thighs. She wrapped her legs around my mid-section and clung on. Her face was finally at the same level as my own and I took in her perfect features. Her button nose, her wide eyes that could get me to do anything, her beautiful flowing hair. I rebuked myself again for not appreciating her presence when we first met. How could I have known I was meeting an angelic being?

"Hi baby," I murmured kissing the tip of her nose.

"What are you doing here?" She laughed. I tightened my arms around her so I could keep her as close to me as possible. What was I doing here? After a night of the worst chicken parm I had ever made, my legs had a mind of their own. I told Kyle to stay at the condo and that I was going for a drive. I told myself I was just letting out steam, but I think deep down I knew I would end up here. I always ended up with Emily. She was my safe place.

I felt her begin to squirm as she attempted to leave my arms and I clung on tighter, holding her near me, "Where are you going?" I asked as I dipped my head down slightly to brush my lips against her perfectly plush ones, enjoying the tingle it sent down my spine.

"I don't want to hurt your arm," She reasoned as she slid down his body. I loved her compassion. It was the only thing more beautiful than her. I kept my arms securely around her body, needing her addicting presence more than she knew. "Did you drive all the way here?" She inquired.

I nodded, "Everything feels weird without you there." It was true. Daniel was in a mood. I couldn't focus as I thought about what she was doing and how much I wished she was at my side. She made me feel peace. A peace I hadn't felt in a very long time. I had never felt this with anyone and I wasn't exactly sure how to deal with it.

She grinned at me, the very sight dazzling me as with every other thing she did, "I missed you too."

I leaned down and captured her lips against mine as they moved with urgency. Her hands travelled up my arms and I took pleasure in the feeling of her. Suddenly, her fingers began to pat at my arm gently. I laughed against her lips, "Are you checking on my arm?"

She smiled sheepishly, "Just a little." Her hands continued with their examination and I waited patiently, my gaze on her. "You're going to need to rest this if you want to be ready for your next fight." Her heart was more pure than anyone I'd ever met.

I nodded slowly, "I don't care about fighting. I care about wanting to kiss my girlfriend."

Emily grinned at me, wrapping her hands around my neck, "Did you say girlfriend?"

"Mhmm," I murmured as I placed my lips on hers again, moving with fervency, my tongue slipping past her lips to caress hers. My hand slowly trailed from her waist, up her back, through her hair, resting against the nape of her neck.

I pulled back after a few moments and tugged her back into my embrace. I relished in her lavender scent. I tried to communicate to her that I appreciated her. That I needed her.

She tugged on my hand after a moment, "Come inside."

I followed wordlessly and she motioned with her finger to be quiet. We past by two women who were knocked out and tiptoed our way to a room in the back. I loved that her hand fit perfectly in my own. Like we were made for each other. Like we were sculpted for each other.

Emily shut the door behind her and stuffed a pillow at the bottom of her door to ensure no one heard us. I sat on the twin bed with flowery sheets, my body pretty much taking up the entire space. I took in the room that was clearly Emily's. She was gazing at me with amusement in her eyes. I grinned at her, "What is it?"

She shook her head, "I'm just happy you're here." She walked to the bed and sat next to me and I immediately wrapped my arm around her body, pulling her nearer to me. She had no idea how happy it made me that she felt something for me. How could she? I wasn't whole. But I felt the closest to being whole when I was with her so I wasn't in a position to argue.

"Yeah?" I asked as I kissed her temple, feeling peace finally settle within me as she sat near me.

"How long can you stay?" She asked tilting her head to the side to look at me.

"Not long, unfortunately. I have to be back by the time Daniel wakes up or he'll murder me," I chuckled. It was true. If he knew I had gone to see Emily without him, he would probably murder me as well.

"We should make the best of the time we have then," She twisted her body so she was straddling my lap as she clasped her hands behind my neck and kissed me passionately. I returned the gesture immediately, my lips and tongue dancing against her own, my hands slipping down her waist to keep her close.

I felt lit ablaze as Emily's hands explored my body, trailing affectionately from my neck, my wide shoulders, down my back, and rising back up again.

I couldn't get her body close enough. I felt like I was starving and only she could satiate my hunger. My lips wandered from her lips to her jaw and down to her neck, sprinkling kisses with my lips; my tongue, relishing in the feeling of her.

I stopped abruptly, leaning back with my eyes closed, my arms enveloping Emily into an embrace. My chest was heaving, my breathing unsteady, my heart was beating wildly. "We should stop," I whispered huskily. "I didn't come here for this."

Emily smiled at me, her chest still rising and falling heavily, "You didn't come to see me?" She teased. Her lips were puffy and red, her eyes were twinkling and she had never looked more beautiful than in that moment, in my arms.

I chuckled lightly, nipping at her lips gently with my teeth, "You know what I mean." I shuffled my way into my pocket and pulled the box out of it, "Actually, I came here to give you this. Merry Christmas."

She shot me a look of surprise before clutching the box delicately as if the box was the gift. She opened it up with her lean fingers, revealing the fragile silver necklace with the angel wings attached to the ends. "It's... beautiful, Lucas," she whispered as she tugged the piece out of the box. I took it from her hands and closed the clasp at her dainty neck.

"It's for my guardian angel. Someone who found me when I was lost and guided me, someone who encountered me in the depths of despair and offered me a saving hand, to liberate me from that pit. You'll never know how much you've done for us. For me."

Emily didn't know how much tranquility she'd offered us with her presence. There was something about her that made me feel like I could handle things. Like things weren't so dark. That feeling was something I'd do anything to nourish and tonight was a testament to that. Because what do you do when you see the man that paralyzed your brother? You drive for four hours to get any kind of relief from the murderous thoughts stirring within.