Author: Kendra

Rating: NC-17

Disclaimer: I do not own Kane or Glen Jacobs, nor am I affiliated with the WWE in any way. This is purely for entertainment purposes.

Chapter 1

Lex walked out of the store, turning to lock the door behind her.

“What a day!” she thought as she made her way around the building to her vehicle.

Her parents owned the large toy store, which was located in the middle of Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. The area was very popular with the tourists and the toy store had been very successful for a number of years. Lex had volunteered to work there in order to help out her parents. They were both getting on in years and both had been sick throughout the past few months and the requirements of running such a large store had taken a toll on them. She knew that they needed her help and she was more than willing to give it. Besides, she felt that she was still a big kid at heart anyway, so what better place to work than a toy store.

She wrapped her arms around herself tighter as she shivered. It was late in the evening and it was very cold. It had started to snow a couple of hours earlier and it was coming down fast. There were already a couple of inches of snow on the ground, with several more inches expected by the following morning.

“I hope I don’t have any trouble getting home.” Lex thought as she fumbled in her purse for the keys to her truck. “I’m glad Dad talked me into getting a 4 wheel drive this time.”

Suddenly, someone grabbed her from behind, pulling her around to the other side of her truck, out of view from the street. Her attacker quickly shoved her to the ground, then jumped on top of her as he began ripping at her shirt.

Lex screamed loudly but a sharp slap across her face quickly silenced her. She fought against the man, pushing against his chest but he was too heavy for her to budge. He grabbed her arms and pinned them above her head with one hand, then he struck her again with his free hand as she continued to struggle. He moved off of her long enough to attempt to remove her jeans. As he did so, Lex managed to get in one good kick that landed squarely in the man’s ribs. She almost smiled to herself when she heard him grunt loudly but her smile quickly faded as the man turned to face her again, raising his hand to hit her once more. Lex closed her eyes and braced herself for the blow, but this time she felt a sharp pain on the top of her head. Her head began to swim and she tried to fight against herself to remain conscious. She felt another sharp pain as her attacker hit her once more and then her whole world went black.

**********************

Lex awoke sometime later very disoriented. As she looked around, she slowly realized that she was lying in several inches of snow. She quickly sat up, wincing in pain as she did so. Her head was throbbing and her whole body ached. Looking down at her torn and disheveled clothes, Lex remembered that she had been raped. As the thought entered her mind, she began to look around frantically to see if her attacker was still nearby. She realized immediately that she was no longer in the city. She had been dumped several yards from the nearest road, in the middle of a group of pine trees. She assumed that her attacker had brought her here to the mountains and left her to die. Lex struggled to her feet, moaning in pain as she did so. Her whole body hurt but she knew she had to get in out of the cold if she was to survive. She realized that she was no longer wearing her coat and her torn shirt offered little protection from the weather. She knew she had to find some help quick.

The snow here was at least six inches deep and it was still coming down strong. Lex made her way to the road and began to follow it back down the mountain, praying that there was a house nearby. She walked slowly, the pain and the deep snow hindering her progress. Finally, exhaustion overtook her and she collapsed against a large tree, sinking to the ground. Lex began to cry in both fear and frustration as she realized that she was going to die.

The sound of snow falling from an overhead branch caught her attention and as she looked toward the sound, her heart leaped in her chest as she spotted a small light a distance away, hidden among the trees. She scrambled to her feet with a renewed burst of energy as she began to move towards it.

“Please let it be a house!” she thought to herself as she made her way slowly through the trees.

Chapter 2

Glen stood at the window of his large log home, smiling to himself as he watched the snow come down. He loved the snow. That’s why he had insisted on building this home so far up in the mountains. That and of course the fact that he enjoyed the privacy this location offered. As a local celebrity of sorts, it was nice to live some place where it was difficult for the fans to find you. He smiled to himself again.

”Nope. You won’t have to worry about any fans tonight. Nobody in their right mind would be out in this storm.”

Glen turned back to the fireplace and added another log. Then he stretched out on the couch to relax. Glen worked as a professional wrestler for the WWE. His job required him to be on the road for several days each week and the job itself was physically demanding on his body. After working so many days on the road, Glen had finally asked for some time off so that his body could recuperate. He was looking forward to spending his time relaxing here in the mountains. He just needed to get away from everybody for a while and spend some time by himself. He picked up a book and began reading but it wasn’t long before his eyes got heavy and he began to doze.

************************* Lex began to cry as she approached the house. She noticed that there was still a light on inside and she prayed that whoever was there would help her. She felt her legs giving way as she tried to make the last few steps to the door.

“I can’t stop now!” she thought, trying to encourage herself. “I’m too close!”

She collapsed against the door frame as a wave of fear overtook her.

”What if this house belongs to the man who attacked me? What if whoever lives here wants to hurt me too?”

Lex looked around and she realized that this was her only hope. She could either die out here in the cold or take her chances with whoever lived inside. She fought back her fears as she raised her hand and knocked weakly on the door.

Glen raised up on the couch as the noise jolted him from his sleep. He sat still for a minute, straining to hear the noise again.

“I must have been dreaming.” he thought, as he laid back down. He had just closed his eyes when he heard the noise again. He looked toward the door as he realized someone was knocking.

“Who in the hell could that be?” he thought, agitated.

“I can’t even get any peace and quiet out here in the middle of nowhere!” he mumbled as he made his way to the door. He jerked the door open just in time to catch Lex in his arms.

Chapter 3

Glen looked down at the woman, as he held her in his arms.

“Where the hell did she come from?” he thought to himself.

Lex grabbed the front of his shirt tightly in her hand.

“Please help me! I’ve been raped!” she said, her voice barely above a whisper. She didn’t even have the strength to look up at his face as she spoke.

Glen tried to steady the woman on her feet. Looking at her he could see that her clothes were wet and torn and that she wasn’t wearing a coat. Realizing how cold she was, he quickly closed the door, then picked her up and carried her to the couch, placing her near the fire. Lex closed her eyes as she collapsed onto the sofa, relieved that she had been saved. As Glen stepped back from the couch, he once again noticed the woman’s torn clothing. Grabbing the blanket from the back of the couch, he stepped closer and wrapped it around her.

Lex gripped the blanket tight as she felt the warmth surrounding her, but her eyes remained closed, partially from exhaustion and partially from fear. She knew it was a man who had helped her and she still feared for her safety. Would she be any better off with him than with the man who attacked her? She prayed that there was a wife close by who would help keep her safe.

Glen stood in front of the woman and watched her for several minutes.

“Could this possibly be for real or is this just some crazed fan trying to worm her way into my house?” he thought.

But as he studied her, he noticed the bruises on her face and upon further inspection he saw the dried blood that had caked around her hairline. Reaching out to touch her knee, he shook her gently.

“Are you OK? Can you hear me?” he asked her cautiously, as he felt her stiffen at his touch.

Lex swallowed hard and forced herself to finally look at him. As she opened her eyes, she at first focused on his waist, then slowly turned her head upward until she finally reached his face. Her eyes grew wide and her fear overwhelmed her as she looked into the eyes of the biggest man she had ever seen.

Chapter 4

Lex quickly began scanning the room, searching for the door.

“There’s no way I’m staying here with this giant!” her mind screamed, as she frantically looked for a way to escape. “He’ll kill me for sure!”

Glen noticed the look of panic on her face and he quickly took a couple of steps back, clearing the path to the door in the process.

Seeing her chance at escape, Lex quickly jumped up from the couch. But as her feet hit the floor, her legs gave way. She stumbled forward, landing squarely against Glen’s chest as he caught her in his arms once again.

“Not so fast.” he said, as he helped her back to the couch. “I think you need to rest for a while before you decide to take another hike through the woods.”

Lex eyed him suspiciously as he spoke. Glen couldn’t help but chuckle to himself. He had seen that look before. His size was very intimidating to most people, so the look of fear she was giving him was one he had seen many times before. But in this case, intimidation was the last thing on his mind, as he tried to think of some way he could ease some of her fear.

He sat down on the couch beside her and he immediately noticed her tense and turn away from him.

“Can you tell me what happened?” he asked her softly. “How did you wind up all the way out here?”

“I told you. I was raped.” Lex responded coldly, trying her best not to reveal all of the fear she was truly feeling. “He knocked me out and I guess he brought me up here to leave me alone to die.”

“Can I get you anything? Something warm to drink maybe?” he asked her, as he stood up and headed toward the kitchen.

Lex nodded her head as she relaxed against the couch again, closing her eyes. Despite her fear, she was completely exhausted from her trek through the snow and her body ached for sleep.

Her eyes jerked open a few minutes later as she felt Glen sit down beside her once again. He handed her a cup of cocoa and Lex hesitantly took it from him.

“What’s your name?” he asked, as she cautiously took a drink.

“My name is Alexis. Most people just call me Lex.” she replied softly.

“Well, Lex. My name is Glen. It’s nice to meet you.” he said smiling, trying to lighten the mood. “It’s not often I have beautiful women throwing themselves at me through my door.”

Lex cringed as he said those words and Glen quickly tried to change the subject as he realized his mistake.

“I’m sure you would like to report this to the police but the snow storm has knocked out the phone lines and my cell phone can’t get a decent signal here. There’s no way anybody could get a vehicle up or down this mountain in this storm anyway. I guess you’ll just have to ride it out here until the storm passes.”

Lex felt the panic beginning to rise within her again. She steadied herself before she spoke. “I can’t stay here. I don’t want to impose on you and your wife.” she said hopefully.

“Oh, I’m not married.” Glen replied. “I live here alone.”

“Oh God!” Lex thought, hearing the answer she dreaded most. “I can’t stay here alone with him! What will he do to me?”

Lex braced herself for the altercation that was about to occur.

Chapter 5

Lex took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. Gathering her strength, she stood up from the couch, letting the blanket fall from her shoulders.

“Really, there’s no way I could impose on you.” she said, as she began to slowly make her way to the door. “I’ll just go and leave you alone.”

She breathed a sigh of relief, when she reached the door and turned the knob. She quickly jerked the door open, as she prepared to make a run for it. But before she could move, Glen’s huge arm came from behind her, slamming the door shut.

“I’m not letting you leave!” he said harshly, grabbing her by the arm. “There’s no way I’m going to let you wander around out there in this storm! Besides, there’s not another house around here for several miles. You would freeze to death before you would get there!”

Lex cringed as she felt his strong grip on her arm and she fought back the tears as he raised his voice at her.

Glen realized he was frightening her again and he quickly removed his hand from her arm.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to frighten you.” he said in a much softer tone. “But I’m not letting you leave. I have a couple of spare bedrooms. You can stay in one of them while you’re here. Come with me. I’ll show you to your room and you can get out of those wet clothes.”

Glen motioned for her to go ahead of him. He wasn’t about to take a chance on her making another mad dash for the door. Exhausted, Lex finally gave up and headed for the hallway.

“I’m too tired to fight anymore.” she thought to herself. “Whatever he plans on doing, I just hope its over with soon.”

Glen followed her down the hall, until they reached one of the spare rooms. He opened the door and Lex hesitantly followed him inside. Her fear was temporarily lost as she stared open mouthed at her room. It was a huge bedroom, beautifully decorated, with a huge king size bed. She grinned as she noticed that even the bed frame was made from logs. Glen smiled as he noticed the expression on her face.

“Will this room be OK?” he asked, already knowing what her answer would be from her expression.

Lex could only nod her head as she continued to scan the room.

Glen motioned to a door in the far corner of the room. ”Through there is your own private bathroom. You should find everything you need in there. Why don’t you get out of those wet clothes and take a hot bath before you go to bed.” he said as he made his way to the door. “Let me know if you need anything.” he added, before leaving the room and shutting the door behind him.

Chapter 6

Lex stared at the closed door for several seconds, surprised that he hadn’t tried to attack her. She quickly locked the door and then headed for the bathroom. She felt as if she were about to collapse from exhaustion, but looking down at herself she knew she needed to clean up before she went to bed.

“A hot bath does sound nice.” she thought to herself, as she began to undress. She froze when she heard a knock on the door. She heard Glen’s muffled voice coming from the other side.

“Lex?” he asked softly. “I almost forgot you didn’t have anything to wear. I’ll leave these clothes for you outside your door.”

Lex remained where she was until she heard him walk away, then she went into the bathroom, locking that door as well. She filled the tub and stepped in, moaning as the hot water burned the cuts and abrasions on her body. She lay back against the tub and closed her eyes, almost drifting off to sleep several times. Finally, she forced herself to sit up and wash off. She began to wet her hair, wincing in pain as the water seeped into the cut on her head.

“I forgot about him hitting me there.” she thought, when she touched the tender spot.

She began to cry as she thought back to what had happened earlier. “Who was he? Where did he come from? Why did he do this to me?” she asked herself, as she continued to wash her body, scrubbing hard to remove any traces of what had happened.

She replayed the day’s events over and over through her head, trying to make sense of it all. She was shaking violently when she finally pulled herself out of the tub. She reached for a towel and dried herself before she turned to look in the mirror. Lex was stunned at what she saw. The bruises on her cheeks had turned a dark blue and there were some faint bruises around her throat. She looked down at her body, which was red from the scrubbing she had just given herself, only to find more bruises on her arms and thighs. Looking in the mirror, she barely recognized herself.

Lex had always considered herself to be a strong person, capable of taking care of herself in any situation. But tonight had proven that this wasn’t the case. She suddenly felt weak and helpless. She began to cry harder as she thought about how easily the man had overpowered her.

“How could I be so weak?” she said softly, as she glanced one more time in the mirror. Then wrapping the towel around her, she opened the bathroom door and stepped into the bedroom. Remembering what Glen had said, she walked to the bedroom door, cautiously opening it and grabbing up the clothes he had left for her.

Shutting the door behind her, she examined the clothes. There was a small black t-shirt and a pair of red and black flannel shorts. There was even clean underwear for her to put on. She looked at the items in confusion before finally putting them on. She was surprised to find they were an almost perfect fit.

Lex shrugged as she looked in the mirror again.

“Maybe he has a girlfriend and she left some of her things here.” she thought to herself, too tired to really care. She finally crawled into the huge bed and quickly drifted off to sleep.

Chapter 7

Glen returned to the living room and sat down on the couch. He felt sorry for Lex after everything that she had been through. But he certainly had to give her credit for being so tough. He wasn’t sure that many women could have made their way through the cold and the snow that way in order to find help, especially after what had happened to her.

But he could also see how afraid she was of him. He saw the fear in her eyes every time he looked at her or touched her. Although it was understandable given the circumstances, he couldn’t explain why it still bothered him so much. He dropped his face to his hands and shook his head.

“How could somebody be so cruel?” he thought, remembering what she had said about her attacker leaving her in the woods to die. “How far did she walk to get to this house? How long had she been left out in the snow?”

Despite the circumstances, Glen couldn’t help but feel slightly annoyed by her intrusion. After all, he had intended to spend a relaxing vacation at home alone. He quickly shook the thoughts from his head. He knew it wasn’t her fault that she was here and if it weren’t for him she would have surely died out in the storm.

“Looks like she’s going to be here a while.” he thought, as he got up and walked to the window once more. He knew that this storm was expected to last for several days and then it would take a couple more days before the roads would be clear enough for her to leave.

Glen got a strange feeling in the pit of his stomach as he thought about having a woman living in his house again. It had been so long since…..

“No!” he said aloud, quickly letting his thoughts trail off and pushing them aside. “I won’t let that happen again!”

He quickly turned away from the window and gathering his things, he headed down the hall to his room. As he made his way down the hall, he stopped in front of the door to Lex’s room. He found himself listening for something, although he wasn't sure exactly what he expected to hear. After several minutes of silence, he gave a deep sigh and went into his room.

Chapter 8

Glen lay on his back, awake, staring at the ceiling. Sleep simply would not come to him on this night. He had done nothing but toss and turn since he had climbed into bed a couple of hours earlier. He assumed that the presence of another person in the house was the source of his restlessness but he couldn’t understand how someone he had only met a few hours earlier could have such an effect on him.

He thought about Lex, asleep in the room across the hall. Once he had gotten over the initial shock of the situation, he had immediately noticed how attractive she was. She appeared to be a young woman, possibly in her mid-20’s. Even through the bruises, he could see that she had a very pretty face with piercing blue eyes. She was fairly tall, he guessed about 5’9” or 5’10”. She was also very slim, with beautiful auburn hair. He couldn’t help but wonder what kind of person she was--what she would be like if they had met under different circumstances.

As he wrestled with his thoughts, he realized that her presence had uncovered the fact that he was lonely. Although he traveled most of the time and his job made it difficult to maintain a long-term relationship, he realized how badly he missed having someone to greet him when he came home and to relax with while he was here.

He thought back to Lex and how afraid she had been earlier when she had seen him for the first time. Those beautiful blue eyes had been filled with so much fear and pain. He wondered what it would feel like to take her in his arms and hold her close--to promise her that no one would ever harm her again.

“Don’t even go there!” he said firmly to himself, as he realized what he was thinking.

Groaning in frustration, he reached for the lamp beside his bed and turned it on.

“It’s going to be a long night.” he mumbled, as he picked up his book and began to read.

Across the hall, Lex was also restless. While she remained asleep, her dreams were haunted by visions of her attacker. She whimpered in fear as she relived the attack, twisting and turning in her bed as she attempted to fight him off once more. The same scene played itself out in her mind over and over again--the man grabbing her, pushing her to the ground, hitting her, leaving her helpless. After several hours, the visions finally began to fade and Lex was able to sleep peacefully for the rest of the night.

Chapter 9

Lex awoke the next morning to the smell of coffee brewing.

“I don’t drink coffee.” she thought to herself in confusion. She remained in bed, her thoughts coming back to her slowly, as she remembered where she was and why she was here.

She opened her eyes and looked cautiously around the room, half expecting to see Glen lurking in one of the corners. She was surprised to find that she was still alone. She couldn’t believe that he hadn’t tried to hurt her yet. She wondered if he really had no intentions of harming her or if he was simply luring her into a sense of false security.

She felt a pang of guilt wash over her as she thought about him. She was normally a very friendly and outgoing person, certainly not one to make snap judgments of other people. She generally liked and got along with everyone. But yesterday somebody had attacked her and hurt her for no apparent reason. The attack had been unprovoked and although she never got a good look at the man’s face, she assumed that it had been someone who didn’t even know her. How would she ever be able to trust anyone again? Who was to say that the next person she met didn’t have some hidden agenda for hurting her as much as possible?

Last night, her only concern had been to stay alive. As long as she found shelter, she thought she would be alright. But this morning, Lex realized that this had the potential to change her whole life. She realized that she didn’t want to become a different person, someone who was distrustful of everyone they met. She had known people like that in her life and she had seen first hand what kind of damage it could do. Determined to fight back, she promised that she wouldn’t allow herself to think badly of Glen unless he gave her a reason.

Her stomach gave a loud rumble bringing her back to the present moment. Realizing how hungry she was, Lex rolled out of bed, prepared to face a new day. Her entire body was sore and she moaned loudly as she stood up. Going into the bathroom, Lex brushed her hair and pulled it back into a pony tail, then she brushed her teeth and straightened her clothes. Looking at herself in the mirror, she tried to summon the courage to face Glen before finally leaving the safety of her room.

She stepped into the hallway and followed the smell of breakfast to the kitchen. She peered cautiously around the corner and saw Glen standing at the sink, with his back toward the door.

She immediately felt her courage leave her as she watched him work, his sheer size overwhelming her.

“This is going to be harder than I thought.” she said to herself, as she stepped back into the hallway. Taking a deep breath, she pulled herself together once more before finally walking into the kitchen.

Chapter 10

Lex stopped just inside the doorway and watched Glen work. Based on the wonderful smells surrounding her, he certainly seemed to know his way around the kitchen. Glen was still working with his back towards her, unaware of her presence. Lex suddenly had a fleeting image of Glen cooking over the stove, wearing a pink frilly apron, looking ridiculous, of course, due to his large size. She couldn’t suppress the huge grin that crossed her face at the thought. Glen turned and noticed her in time to see her smile and it took his breath away. If he had thought she was attractive last night, dressed in her tattered clothes and covered in snow and dirt, then this morning she was down right gorgeous. She had such a natural beauty about her and her smile made her eyes sparkle. The smile quickly left her face when she noticed Glen staring at her.

“Good morning.” he said softly, while taking a couple of steps towards her. “How are you feeling this morning?”

Lex instinctively took a step backwards as he approached her. “I’m a little sore this morning but I think I’ll live.” she replied, forcing a weak smile.

Noticing her apprehension, Glen stopped where he was and motioned towards the table. “I made breakfast this morning. I hope you’re hungry.”

Lex glanced toward the table, eyeing the large display of food that covered it.

“Are you expecting more company?” she said, looking at him with a confused expression. She thought there was no way he could have fixed that much food for just two people.

Glen chuckled softly and patted his stomach. “No. It’s just the two of us. I hope you brought your appetite.”

He motioned toward the table again. “Go ahead and have a seat. Would you like some coffee?”

Lex approached the table and took the seat closest to the door. “I don’t drink coffee.” she replied. “Do you have any juice?”

“Juice it is then.” he said as he turned to the refrigerator.

The table was located in front of a large bay window and Lex gazed outside into the snow, which was still falling heavily. She realized that she was going to be here for several days. She quickly turned her attention back to Glen as he sat a large glass of orange juice on the table and then took a seat across from her.

“Well go ahead and eat!” he said, as he began loading his plate with food.

Lex hesitated, suddenly feeling very self-conscious in front of him. She gathered a small amount of food on her plate and slowly began to eat.

Chapter 11

“So, Lex. Tell me a little about yourself.” Glen said, his curiosity finally getting the better of him. “What do you do for a living?”

Lex looked at him suspiciously for several seconds.

“Why would he want to know that?” she thought to herself, not sure that she wanted to give out that kind of information to him. But then she remembered the promise she had made to herself earlier that morning.

“My parents own a store in Pigeon Forge. It’s too much for them to handle by themselves so I help out as much as I can.” she replied.

“In Pigeon Forge, huh?” Glen answered. “What kind of store is it? A clothing store? A souvenir shop?”

“No. It’s a, uh, toy…store.” Lex felt another smile creeping into her face as she noticed Glen’s reaction.

“Sounds like my kind of store” he replied with a grin of his own. “Do you get to try out everything before you sell it?”

“Sometimes.” Lex answered with another grin. “But only when no one is watching.”

Glen smiled at her again. She was not only beautiful but she had a sense of humor too. He looked at her with concern as her smile faded and she grew quiet once more. After a few minutes, she spoke again.

“This is good.” she said, finishing off her breakfast. “You’re a pretty good cook.”

“Thanks.” he replied. “I guess I know my way around the kitchen pretty well. I have to travel so much for my job, I really enjoy eating a home cooked meal when I get back here. Even if I have to cook it myself.”

“What do you do for a living?” Lex blurted out, surprised at her own forwardness. She half expected him to tell her it wasn’t any of her business.

Glen took a deep breath before he answered her. He knew when he revealed his profession to most people, they fell into one of two extremes; they either laughed at him because they looked down on his profession with disdain, or they were reduced to practically groveling at his feet because they were such big fans. He wondered which extreme Lex would fall into.

“I’m a professional wrestler. I’ve worked for the WWE for several years.” Glen braced himself for either the laugh or scream that usually followed those words, then looked at Lex in surprise when he heard neither.

Lex was looking at him with a confused expression on her face.

“A professional wrestler?” she repeated softly. “Well, I guess that explains your size.” she said a little louder, clamping her hand over her mouth as she realized what she had just said.

“God, could you insult the man any more?” she thought to herself in embarrassment.

Glen smiled at her reaction. “I take it your not a fan.”

Lex looked at him, her face still glowing red. “I used to watch it some years ago with my Dad. But I haven’t watched for a long time. I’m sorry but I don’t know who you are.”

“Maybe that’s a good thing.” he replied, still amused by her response.

Lex’s smile faded and she grew quiet again as she pondered the hidden implications in his words.

“Because if you did…” Glen quickly added with a chuckle, “..you would probably be ashamed to be seen with me, after all of the embarrassing things I’ve done in the ring.”

Lex grinned once again, as she watched Glen rise and walk away from the table.

Chapter 12

Glen refilled his coffee cup, then returned to the table.

“You’re not done eating already?” he said with a grin, while waving his hand across the table. “We still have to finish all this food.”

“I’m afraid I can’t eat another bite.” Lex replied. “But it looks like you don’t need my help anyway.” She couldn’t believe how much this man could eat in one sitting.

“I’ve always figured since I was the size of two men, I should eat enough for both of them!” Glen replied with a laugh.

Lex smiled at him again before turning her attention to the kitchen. It was a very large, open room with several windows located on each wall. The large log beams of the ceiling were exposed and a large rustic chandelier hung from the center beam, above the island. All of the drawers and cabinets were made from pine and the doors of the upper cabinets were all glass. The countertops were covered in a dark red tile, which contrasted nicely with the light wood. The kitchen floor, as well as the rest of the house, had been done in hardwood. There were three chairs positioned around the island and Lex had to smile when she saw that they were made from logs as well. The entire kitchen seemed so warm and cozy, it was hard for her not to be comfortable.

Lex continued to study the room, temporarily forgetting that Glen was still there. He became worried when she remained quiet for several minutes. He watched her gaze travel around the room, curious as to what she was thinking.

“Are you alright?” he asked, noticing her jump when his voice brought her back to reality.

“Yes. I’m fine.” she replied softly. “I was just admiring your kitchen. It’s a beautiful room. I couldn’t image what it would be like to have a kitchen this nice to cook in. This is every woman’s dream.”

“Yeah. Every woman’s dream.” Glen replied sarcastically, before taking a final drink of his coffee and rising from the table.

The tone of his voice was not lost on Lex and she watched him intently for a moment, curious over his change in attitude. Glen began to quietly clear the plates from the table and Lex stood to help him. Lex brought her dishes to the counter, then began to fill the sink with water.

“You don’t have to do that, Lex.” Glen said, sitting more dishes down beside the sink.

“It’s only fair since you cooked breakfast.” Lex answered. “Besides, I really don’t mind.”

Lex busied herself with the dishes, while Glen moved around the kitchen putting some of the leftover food away. The sink was located in front of one of the windows, which offered a breathtaking view of the mountains. She continued to gaze out the window as she worked. She was so wrapped up in the view, she didn’t hear Glen speak to her. He walked up behind her and spoke to her again. This time his voice jolted her back to reality. Lex turned to answer him and instead she ran straight into his large chest. She stumbled and Glen caught her arms so that she wouldn’t fall. She felt herself begin to panic again as she wrenched herself from his grasp. Seeing the look of fear on her face, Glen reached out to her again. Lex quickly pulled away from him and left the room.

Glen watched her leave, all the while berating himself for frightening her again. He stared at the doorway for several minutes before turning back to the sink.

“I’ll give her time to calm down before I go after her.” he thought, as he finished washing the dishes.

Chapter 13

Lex stopped when she reached the hallway and tried to calm herself down. She looked back toward the kitchen to see if Glen had followed her, and was relieved when she didn’t see him. She considered going back to her room but then she changed her mind and headed to the living room instead. She entered the room and took a seat on the couch, in the same place she had been sitting last night. Her gaze traveled slowly around the room, admiring its beauty. She had been so tired the night before, she hadn’t noticed much about it.

This room had large vaulted ceilings, with several skylights positioned on each side. There was a large window located on the wall opposite the couch and she could see that the snow was still falling. Most of the walls and furniture were sparsely decorated but it didn’t detract from the coziness of the room. But the thing that captured most of her attention was the huge stone fireplace that was located on the wall nearest the couch. It ran all the way up the length of the wall to the ceiling and it had a large pine mantle, which was also sparsely decorated. She also noticed the large pile of wood which was stacked neatly beside of it. She assumed that Glen must use it frequently in the winter, as an additional source of heat.

Lex smiled as she studied the fireplace. It reminded her of the fireplace in her parent’s home when she was growing up. She had always loved the smell of the logs burning. She began to cry again as she thought about her parents. “They must be worried sick by now.” she said to herself.

Glen left the kitchen and stopped when he noticed Lex sitting on the couch. He watched her for a few minutes before he approached her. He cleared his throat so that he wouldn’t surprise her again, then he sat down on the opposite end of the couch.

“I’m sorry Lex.” he said softly. “I didn’t mean to frighten you again.”

“It’s not your fault. You didn’t mean any harm. I just overreacted.” Lex replied, turning to face him.

Glen felt even worse when he saw that she was crying.

“I didn’t mean to make you cry.” he said. “I promise I’ll try to be more careful from now on.”

“It’s not that.” Lex said, shaking her head. “I just got to thinking about my parents. They must be worried sick by now. They don’t know where I am or if I’m okay. They probably found my truck sitting behind the store. If it’s still there, I mean. I don’t know. I lost my purse and it had my keys in it. He may have stolen my keys too…” Her voice trailed off as she realized what else she was missing. “If he has my purse, he also has my driver’s license. If he has my license then he knows where I live! Oh God! What am I going to do?”

She was rambling now, her voice filled with fear and she began to cry harder.

Glen wanted desperately to reach out and comfort her but he didn’t want to frighten her again. He hesitated before he reached out and touched her hand lightly.

“It’s going to be okay Lex. All those things are material items. They can all be replaced. The important thing is that you’re alive.”

Lex looked at him through her tear-filled eyes and forced a small smile. She suddenly felt like a fool for being so emotional. Glen was right. They were all material items that could be replaced. She briefly worried about her address again, wondering if her attacker would come after her once more. She wouldn’t worry about that now. Right now she just needed to reach her parents to let them know she was alright.

“Is your phone working yet?” she asked Glen, while drying her eyes.

“No” he answered. “I tried it again this morning and it’s still out.”

Lex shook her head, then wrapped her arms around her as she shivered.

“I am such an idiot. You must be freezing in those clothes.” Glen said, while pointing at the t-shirt and shorts he had given Lex the night before to sleep in. “Let me go see if I can find something a little warmer for you to wear.”

Glen got up and went to his room. A few minutes later he reemerged in the living room, carrying a small pile of clothes.

“Here you go. Try these.” he said, handing them to Lex.

Lex sorted through the clothes. There were a three pair of sweat pants, one pair of jeans, four t-shirts, and a very large sweatshirt.

Glen chuckled when he saw her hold up the sweatshirt and examine it. “I couldn’t find one any smaller than that. That one is mine.”

Lex smiled, then turned her attention to the rest of the clothes. “What about the rest of them? How did you know my size?”

She noticed the smile leave Glen’s face as she spoke. “I didn’t know your size, exactly.” he replied. “I just thought that they might fit.”

“Do you normally keep a supply of women’s clothing to hand out in emergencies?” she asked with a small laugh.

“They belonged to my girlfriend.” he answered.

“Oh. You have a girlfriend?” Lex replied, suddenly feeling a little disappointed. “Why isn’t she here with you now?”

“We aren’t together anymore. She left some of her things behind when she moved out. I just never found any use for them until now.”

Lex noticed the melancholy tone his voice had taken and she suddenly felt very bad for prying.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked you that.” she said, gathering the clothes in her arms. “I’m just going to change clothes.” she added before heading to her room.

When she was gone, Glen let out the deep breath he had been holding. “It’s okay Lex.” he mumbled. “You didn’t know.”

Chapter 14

Lex entered her bedroom and closed the door behind her. Sorting through the clothes once more, she selected a grey pair of sweatpants and tried them on. She found that they were a perfect fit. She then tried on the large sweatshirt that Glen had given her. It was way too big for her but it was very warm. She couldn’t help but giggle as she looked in the mirror. The shirt came down to her knees and the sleeves were a mile too long. She rolled the sleeves up and then headed back to the living room. She stopped when she saw Glen standing in front of the window, gazing out into the snow.

Lex wondered what he was hiding. His attitude had changed so much when he spoke about his girlfriend. She wondered what had happened between them. Glen seemed like a nice enough guy but, then again, appearances could be deceiving. Telling herself that it was none of her business, Lex pushed the thoughts to the back of her mind.

“Glen?” Lex said softly as she entered the room.

He turned toward her and a huge smile crossed his face when he saw her wearing his shirt that was four sizes too big for her small frame.

“Do you feel better?” he asked, walking back to the couch.

“Yes.” Lex replied. “These are a lot warmer.”

Lex stood where she was, her gaze wandering around the room once more.

“You have a beautiful house. I always wondered what it would be like to live in a log home. This is incredible.”

“Thanks.” Glen replied, pleased that she liked it so well. “If you would like to have the grand tour, I’ll be glad to show you around.”

“I’d love to.” Lex answered.

Glen stood up from the couch and motioned Lex down the hall. He showed her the two other spare bedrooms, which were down the hall from her room. Each of the rooms was as tastefully decorated as her own and each had its own private bathroom. There was also a laundry room at the far end of the hall. It had an oversized washer and dryer and plenty of closet space. Lex thought even she wouldn’t mind doing laundry in a room this nice. They walked back down the hall toward the living room and Lex became curious when Glen didn’t show her his room. She wondered why he chose to omit it from his tour.

“Maybe he’s just a private person. Besides you don’t need to be in there anyway.” she thought, scolding herself for being so nosy.

As they approached the living room, Glen stopped in front of the last door. He opened the door, revealing a set of steps.

“This leads downstairs to my gym and my office.” he said as he turned on the switch and started down.

Lex hesitated for a moment before following him down the stairs.

Chapter 15

Lex walked through the door at the bottom of the stairs and entered a large room, whose walls were covered in pictures and framed magazine covers.

“This is my office.” Glen said with a wave of his hand.

Lex walked over to one of the walls and examined the pictures that were hanging there. Glen let her look them over for a minute before he approached her.

“Do you recognize me?” he asked her, as she continued to study the pictures.

“That’s you?” she asked in confusion, pointing to a picture of a man wearing a red and black mask. “Why are you wearing a mask?”

“My character’s name is Kane.” he replied. “He was supposedly burned in a fire set by his own brother. He wears the mask to hide the scars.”

Lex only nodded her head as she moved to the next wall and examined the other items there. Most of the pictures were of Glen dressed as Kane. Others had different people in them that she didn’t recognize. She stopped on a picture of Glen and another man whose arms were covered in tattoos.

“Who is that?” she asked pointing at the man in the picture.

Glen smiled when he saw who she was pointing to.

“That’s Mark Callaway. His character is the Undertaker, who also happens to be Kane’s brother.”

“But I thought you said you were burned by your brother.” Lex replied in confusion. “Why are you with him there?”

“It’s a long story.” Glen replied with a chuckle.

Lex continued her examination of the wall coverings and Glen followed her, answering her occasional questions. When she was finished, Glen motioned her toward another door at the far end of the room.

“This is my gym.” he said, opening the door and stepping to the side to let Lex in.

Lex stood in the doorway, admiring all of the large equipment that filled the room. She had never been to a gym before but she had to admit that the equipment looked very intimidating. No wonder Glen looked like he was in such good shape.

Lex stepped out of the room and back into the office. Glen shut the door to the gym and then motioned her back up the stairs. He shut the door at the bottom of the stairs then started up himself. He glanced upward and he couldn’t help but notice the great view of her backside as Lex walked up the steps. When Lex got to the top of the stairs, she turned to wait for him and she noticed the huge grin on his face. She wondered what he thought was so funny. Looking down, she realized it was probably her and her oversized shirt. If she had only known the real reason for his smile, she would have probably locked herself in her room and stayed there until the spring thaw.

“What do you think about the house?” Glen asked as he shut the door to the stairs and tried to hide the redness that had crept into his cheeks.

“It’s incredible.” Lex replied, oblivious to his embarrassment, as she walked to the couch and took a seat.

“I’m glad you like it.” he said as walked to the fireplace and knelt down in front of it.

Lex watched Glen work, as he attempted to start a fire. She shivered as she watched the muscles in his arms ripple as he moved. He was certainly a huge, powerful man. For a fleeting second, she wondered what it would feel like to be held safe in his arms. But then she also wondered how she would ever fight him off if he decided to hurt her. The thought made her shudder. She knew if he set his mind to it, he would definitely have his way with her. Remembering the promise she had made to herself earlier that morning, Lex quickly pushed those thoughts out of her mind. He seemed like a very kind and gentle man and she was beginning to think that he really wouldn’t do anything to hurt her.

Once Glen finally got the fire going, he stood up and looked toward the couch. He became concerned again when he saw the serious expression that had crossed Lex’s face. He walked to the couch and sat down on the opposite end once more. Lex felt the couch move under his weight and it brought her back to the present moment.

“Is something wrong?” he asked her suspiciously, seeing the way she was looking at him.

“Yes. There is something wrong.” Lex replied, grinning as she noticed the concerned look on Glen’s face. “You’re definitely going to have to explain your job to me a little more because I’m completely confused about your brother.”

“Well, it’s very complicated.” he replied with a grin. “But I’ll do my best.”

Glen spent the next couple of hours talking to Lex about his character and about his profession in general. He explained to her about his character’s relationship with his brother, the Undertaker. He told her a few road stories from his extensive travels. She interrupted him occasionally to ask more questions, but he didn’t mind. He actually found that he was delighted that she seemed to take such an interest in his career.

Lex was still sitting on the couch, but she had turned sideways in order to talk to Glen. After a while, she rested her head on the back of the couch as she listened to his stories. Finally, she felt her eyes getting heavy but she struggled to remain awake. Glen could see how tired she was getting.

“Forgive me.” he said with a small laugh. “I’ve put you to sleep with my incredibly boring stories.”

“I’m so sorry.” Lex replied with a smile of her own. “You must think I’m a horrible person. But I swear it’s not because of your stories. I found them rather interesting and I would like to hear more later. I just feel so tired.”

“It’s okay. You’ve had a pretty rough couple of days. You just lay here and rest awhile. I’ll be down in the gym if you need anything.”

Glen stood up and Lex stretched out on the couch in front of the fire. He pulled the blanket from the back of the couch and stepped forward to drape it across her. Glen moved away from the couch and went to the kitchen to get some bottled water to take downstairs with him. As he crossed the edge of the living room again on his way to the stairs, he stopped and looked toward the back of the couch. He moved quietly across the floor toward it and looked down at Lex, who was already sound asleep. He stood there and watched her for several minutes before he finally pulled himself away. Frustrated, he quickly headed to the gym.

“Not again!” he mumbled to himself as he walked down the stairs. “I won’t let it happen again!”

Chapter 16

Glen quickly headed to the gym and began a fierce workout on the machines, trying to get rid of his frustrations. But he found that even as he worked, his thoughts continued to drift to the beautiful woman who was asleep on his couch upstairs. The more time he spent with her, the more enthralled he became. He had never met anyone like her before. He had never known anyone who could seem so strong and independent in one moment and so innocent and helpless the next. She seemed to be so caring and thoughtful, even after what had happened to her. And she hadn’t laughed at him when he told her about his job. In fact, she had seemed rather interested in it. Glen shook the thoughts from his head, trying to concentrate on what he was doing. Hitting the machines even harder, he continued his strenuous workout.

Lex woke up a while later and stretched lazily on the couch. Looking around, she noticed that the fire had died down. She listened, expecting to hear Glen working somewhere in the house, but everything was silent. She sat up on the couch and looked out the window, noticing that the snow had stopped, at least for the moment. She stood up and wandered into the kitchen, searching for Glen. When she didn’t see him there, she remembered that he was in the gym. Looking at the clock, she realized that she had slept for almost three hours. Had he been in the gym that long?

She left the kitchen and walked across the living room, heading for the stairs. She opened the door, but then hesitated, as she wondered whether or not to go look for him. She finally worked up the courage to descend the stairs and open the door at the bottom. Stepping into the open room once more, she looked around and noticed that the door to the gym was open. Tiptoeing across the floor, she crept up to the door and peered inside.

Her heart fluttered in her chest as her gaze fell on Glen, who was still working out. He had taken his shirt off and she could see the huge muscles in his chest and arms bulge when he lifted the weights. She was completely captivated by his size and strength. Lex felt a strange sensation begin to form in the pit of her stomach and she felt her knees grow weak as she continued to watch him. She didn’t think she had ever seen a sexier man in all her life. She didn’t know how long she stood there watching him before he noticed her, but his deep voice brought her back to earth.

“Hey, Lex!” he said, grinning at her again. “I’m sorry I didn’t notice you sooner. Have you been standing there long?”

Completely flustered, Lex didn’t know how to respond.

“Not long.” She managed to squeak out, as she watched Glen stand up and approach her.

Glen became concerned when he saw how flushed her face looked and how agitated she seemed to be.

“Are you feeling okay?” he asked her.

“Yes….No….I don’t feel so well.” Lex replied, suddenly feeling breathless as he came closer. “I’m just…I’m gonna go back upstairs.” she mumbled, turning and fleeing up the stairs.

Concerned that she was sick, Glen followed her. When Lex reached the top of the stairs, she ran to her room and slammed the door. Reaching down with trembling hands, she turned the lock.

“What’s happening to me?” she thought, trying to get her emotions under control. She was surprised that one person could create such a flurry of sensations within her. She struggled to control her breathing, all the while trying to make sense of her feelings. She jumped when she heard Glen knock on her door.

“Are you alright, Lex?” he asked.

She smiled nervously, as she heard the concern in his voice.

“I’ll be fine.” replied softly. “Just give me a few minutes.”

“Okay. Take your time.” he replied, before walking away.

Lex breathed a sigh of relief when she heard him leave. Rushing to the bathroom, she turned on the sink and splashed cold water on her face. When she was finished, she dried her face while she looked in the mirror. Bringing her fingers up, she lightly traced the pattern of the large bruise on her cheek. Memories from the night before flooded her mind. To her, the mark was a reminder that not everyone could be trusted. How would she know if Glen was one of those she could?

Chapter 17

Finally pulling herself back together, Lex took a deep breath and opened her bedroom door. She walked quietly toward the living room, stopping when she saw Glen down in front of the fireplace, trying to restart the fire. She watched him for a few seconds longer, thankful that he had put his shirt back on. She came closer when she saw him stand up.

“Are you alright?” he asked when he noticed her, obviously concerned about her condition.

“Aren’t you tired of asking me that by now?” she replied with a small laugh.

“Not unless I know that you’re really okay.” he replied. “What happened down there?”

“I just felt sick all of a sudden but I think I’m okay now.” she answered, hoping that he would drop it.

“I think I know what happened.” he said. Lex jerked her head up as he spoke. He couldn’t possibly know…..

“You haven’t eaten anything since breakfast. You probably almost fainted from hunger. Let’s go into the kitchen and I’ll fix us something to eat.”

“You’re probably right.” Lex replied, relieved that he didn’t suspect anything more. “If I had known that you were going to starve me to death, I would have taken my chances out in the snow storm.” she added with a laugh.

Glen could only smile as he shook his finger at her. “It’s not my fault that somebody didn’t finish their breakfast.”

Lex smiled as she watched him turn and walk toward the kitchen, then she followed behind him.

“How about a sandwich?” he asked, as he rummaged through the refrigerator.

“Sounds good.” Lex replied.

Glen gathered several items from the refrigerator and sat them on the counter. Lex tried to jump in and help assemble the food, but Glen shooed her away.

“You go sit down and rest.” he said, pointing toward the table. “I may not be the greatest cook in the world but I know how to put together a sandwich.” he added with a grin.

Lex took a seat at the table and watched him work. Her gaze wandered over his broad shoulders and down his arms. She remembered how muscular his body was underneath his shirt.

“Not now!” she whispered to herself, trying to focus her attention on something else.

She turned her gaze to the window and saw that the snow was falling again. She noticed a handful of small birds that were scattered among the tree branches. She watched them flutter from limb to limb in search of food.

“You should have a birdfeeder.” Lex said to Glen, as he sat her sandwich on the table in front of her.

“A birdfeeder?” he repeated, as he took the seat across from her.

“It’s the perfect place for one. You could hang it from one of the trees so you can see it from the window. Then you could sit here and watch the birds while you eat.”

“I’d rather see another bird eat.” Glen said, while motioning to Lex. “Now eat, before you die on me.”

Lex smiled at him again as she picked up her sandwich and took a bite. They ate in silence for a while, both of them watching the birds fly around in the snow. Glen turned his attention back to Lex, smiling as he watched her concentrate on the small creatures outside.

Lex turned to speak to Glen and her eyes locked with his. She felt the warmth starting to creep into her cheeks as he continued to gaze at her. Realizing that he was making her nervous, Glen quickly turned his attention back to the birds. Lex watched him for a moment longer before looking outside again.

“So, are you going to tell me some more about your work?” Lex finally spoke up, needing to break the silence that had suddenly become unbearable.

“I have a better idea.” Glen replied, noticing that he had captured her interest. “How about if I show you instead. I have a whole collection of tapes. If you want, I can show you some of them.”

“Whew!” Lex giggled, while pretending to wipe her brow. “I thought for a minute there that you were actually going to drag me into the ring with you.”

“I don’t think you’re quite ready for that, yet.” he replied with a laugh. “You should at least learn the names of the moves before you try to do them.”

They finished eating and Lex cleared the table. She was surprised that Glen let her do that much. They went back into the living room and Lex sat down on the couch. She looked around the room again, confused.

“Where’s your TV?” she asked, realizing that she hadn’t noticed one before.

Glen walked over to a large wooden cabinet that stood at an angle in the corner between the window and the fireplace.

“It’s in here.” he said, as he opened the door and bent down to rummage through his tapes. “I always thought that the look of modern electronics took away from the natural feel of the house so I keep it hidden when I’m not watching it.”

Finally deciding on one, he inserted it in the VCR, joined Lex on the couch, and started the tape.

Chapter 18

The first tape consisted of several episodes of RAW. As they watched the tape, Glen pointed out the names of the wrestlers and some of the moves they were using.

Lex sat on the edge of her seat. This was unlike anything she had ever seen before. The pyros, the loud music, the unusual characters--this was nothing like what she had watched growing up. She was thrilled by the highflying moves of RVD and Jeff Hardy. She watched with amusement as Tommy Dreamer approached the ring carrying a trash can and swinging a Singapore cane at anyone who got in his way. She cringed as she watched the Dudley boys put their opponents through a table.

Glen was thoroughly enjoying her reactions to the matches. He could see that she was genuinely excited to watch them. Lex was so caught up in the action, she didn’t notice Glen watching her intently.

Finally, it was Glen’s turn to appear on screen.

“I’m wrestling Chris Jericho for the Intercontinental title.” he told her, as she watched Jericho make his entrance.

Suddenly, Lex heard a loud explosion and the entire screen was filled with bright orange light. She held her breath as she saw Glen emerge from the flames, dressed in his black and red wrestling tights, wearing his trademark mask. She noticed his hair, which she had only seen him wear pulled back in a low ponytail, was now loose and hung down around his face. It appeared to be wet and as he moved closer to the camera, she could see the beads of water dripping from the curly strands onto his huge chest. She felt that strange feeling forming inside of her again as she watched him walk down the ramp. She was captivated by the overwhelming sense of power and confidence that surrounded him as he moved.

“So this is Kane.” she said with a huge smile, never taking her eyes off the screen.

She suddenly became very nervous when the match began, concerned that he might get hurt. The other wrestlers were unfamiliar faces that all merged together, making it hard to distinguish one from the other. But this was the flesh-and-blood man who was sitting next to her. The man who had so tenderly taken care of her for the past 24 hours. She found it strange to compare this man that she knew to the strong powerful machine she saw in the ring.

She watched the match intently, surprised at how easily Glen moved around the ring. He was much bigger than a Jeff Hardy or an RVD, but he moved with the same speed and agility as they did.

Glen watched Lex even closer as she lost herself in his match. He saw her wince every time he was hit and jump every time he punched back.

“It looks so real, so painful!” Lex thought to herself, as she watched Glen take the punches.

She cringed when Jericho attacked his knee and wrapped it around the ring post. She watched as Glen fought back against Jericho, refusing to submit to the smaller man. Then she saw two other men approach the ring. She recognized Ric Flair and Triple H from earlier in the show. She thought for sure that Glen would lose the match since he was greatly outnumbered, but to her surprise he was able to fight them all off and pin Jericho. When the referee made the three-count and Glen was announced as the winner of the match, Lex became so excited she practically jumped into his lap and hugged him. Her sudden movements caught Glen completely by surprise and he instinctively wrapped his arms around her and hugged her back.

Suddenly he felt her whole body tense and she quickly pulled away from him as she realized what she had done. His arms were still wrapped loosely around her and one of her legs was thrown across his so that she was almost straddling his body.

She looked up at Glen, feeling both safe and frightened, as he held her in his arms. Glen met her gaze and he studied the mixture of emotions that played across her face. His eyes traveled slowly over her beautiful features, finally coming to rest on her soft lips.

Chapter 19

Lex and Glen stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity. Finally, Lex realized the predicament she was in and pulled away.

“I’m so sorry.” she said, obviously embarrassed by her actions. “I was just so excited that you won.”

Glen could tell that their closeness had unnerved her and it wasn’t only because she was afraid. He wondered what was really going on in her mind. But he didn’t want to frighten her or make her uncomfortable, so he didn’t push the issue. He turned his attention back to the match instead.

“I take it that you enjoyed the match.” Glen asked her, trying to relieve some of her embarrassment.

“It was incredible!” she replied. “I’m definitely hooked now. You’ve got a new fan.”

“Kanenite.” he said.

Lex looked at him in confusion. “What?”

“That’s what I call my fans. Kanenites.” he said, chuckling at the expression on her face.

“I see.” she replied with a smile. “Well, your newest Kanenite would like to see some more. Do you have any more tapes?”

Glen shook his head as he stood up from the couch. “I think I’ve created a monster.”

Lex watched as he walked over to the TV and looked through his tapes again. She suddenly felt very self-conscious about what had occurred between them earlier. The feel of his arms around her had felt very comfortable but his nearness had frightened her. But to his credit, he had released her when she pulled away. She just hoped that he hadn’t misinterpreted her actions. Looking at him, she wondered what was going through his mind.

Glen slowly searched through his tapes, trying to distance himself from Lex for a few minutes. While her reaction to his match had thrilled him, the feel of her in his arms had awakened feelings that he had tried so hard to suppress. He knew that her intentions had been innocent and that’s what made the situation more complicated. The last thing he wanted to do was to hurt her again.

Finally deciding on a tape, Glen put it in the VCR and walked back to the couch. Lex watched the show with the same interest as she had earlier, but this time her reactions were much calmer. She asked Glen more questions, about this move or that wrestler, and Glen did his best to explain everything to her. When the tape was over, Glen walked to the TV and turned it off.

“I don’t know about you, but watching all that action on TV made me hungry. Do you want something to eat?” he asked.

“Sure. I’m feeling brave again.” she replied sarcastically.

“Good. Since you feel so brave, you can cook tonight.” he shot back, while smiling at her.

Lex shook her head at him. “Fine. It’s your funeral.”

She got up from the couch and followed Glen into the kitchen.

Chapter 20

“What would you like?” she asked, as she went to the pantry and rummaged through the boxes.

“It doesn’t matter to me. Whatever you feel like eating.” he replied, curious as to what she would come up with.

Lex searched through the shelves of food and finally decided on spaghetti. She searched through the cabinets until she found everything she needed and then went to work. Glen took a seat at the table and watched her work for awhile, noticing how comfortable she seemed in his kitchen. He suddenly felt guilty for asking her to make him dinner in his own home. He got up from the table and went to help her. Going to the refrigerator, he gathered the ingredients he needed to make a salad and sat them on the counter behind her.

Once Lex got the sauce and the noodles going, she turned to help him slice the vegetables. Glen looked down at her and smiled again as she worked beside him.

“Do you cook very much at home?” he asked.

“No. Not really.” she replied. “I enjoy cooking, but with the hours I work, I really don’t get much time to do it. Besides, I never thought there was much point in cooking a large meal for just one person.”

“You live by yourself then?” Glen asked. He had never considered the possibility that she might have a boyfriend.

“Yes. I have my own place. It’s small but it’s all I need. My parents really didn’t want me to move out. They were afraid something bad might happen….to me.” she said, her voice trailing off softly. She was quiet for a moment. “Maybe they were right. Maybe I should have stayed at home.”

Glen looked at her. He knew what she was thinking about.

“Don’t let him ruin your life, Lex. If you live the rest of your life in fear, then he wins.”

Lex nodded her head before turning her attention to the pasta boiling on the stove. She knew Glen was right but it was a lot harder than it sounded. She hoped she could find the strength to work through her fears.

Glen finished the salad and set the table, while Lex finished cooking the rest of their meal.

“It looks good!” Glen said as they sat down to eat.

They both filled their plates and Glen quickly dove into his food.

“Wow! This is really great!” he said in between bites. “This is the best spaghetti sauce I’ve ever tasted!”

Lex rolled her eyes at him. “Glen, it came from a jar. It’s not like you’ve never tried it before.”

“Yeah, but I didn’t have to cook it!” he replied with a laugh.

Lex just shook her head as she watched him eat. She tasted the food herself and had to admit that it wasn’t bad considering it had been a long time since she had cooked anything.

They talked quietly while they ate dinner, each of them opening up to the other a little more. When they were finished, Glen helped Lex clear the table. She washed the dishes while Glen dried them and put them away.

Lex smiled to herself when she thought about how they had been in the same position earlier that morning. He had unintentionally scared her when he snuck up behind her. Now after spending the entire day with him, she didn’t feel so frightened of him anymore. She was beginning to feel much more comfortable around him. It still bothered her a little when he got too close to her but she was no longer worried that he would attack her. If that was his intention, he could have easily done it earlier when she threw herself into his arms. But he hadn’t tried anything and he had willingly let her go when she moved away from him. But she had noticed the look in his eyes. It was that look that had unnerved her more than anything. It was as if he was trying to peer into her very soul. She looked up at him again as she wondered what he had been searching for.

Glen saw her look at him and he returned her smile. He was glad she had loosened up around him a little. He didn’t want her to be afraid of him. He had to admit he was really enjoying her company. But then it hit him. She wasn’t here to stay. She would only be around until the snow thawed and then she would be gone. Glen felt an unexpected pang of disappointment wash over him as the thought registered in his mind. He realized that he would greatly miss her company when she was gone. Looking down at her again, he felt a rush of emotion overwhelm him.

Lex looked up at him and noticed his strange expression.

“Glen?” she said, looking at him with concern.

He continued to stare at her as a multitude of thoughts swirled around in his mind.

“I just thought of something I forgot to do. I’ll be back in a few minutes.” he said, as he hurriedly left the room.

Lex watched him leave the room, confused over his sudden change of mood. She shrugged her shoulders, then turned back to the sink full of dishes and finished washing them. When she was done, she headed back to the living room, where she sat down and waited for Glen to return.

*************

Glen rushed to his room and closed the door behind him.

“What the hell just happened out there?” he said to himself, while he paced the room. He was floored by his sudden change in emotion. “I’ve only known her for one day and I’m worried about missing her when she leaves? What the hell is wrong with me?”

Glen stopped in front of his dresser and gripped the edge tightly as he stared into the mirror. “Get over it, Glen.” he told himself. “She’s only here now because she can’t get home. There’s no reason to expect her to stay any longer than she has to.”

Chapter 21

Glen waited until he had calmed down before he left his room. He didn’t want to frighten Lex anymore than he already had. He entered the living room and saw her sitting on the couch.

She looked at him as he approached her and took a seat beside her.

“Sorry about that.” Glen said, hoping she wouldn’t ask any questions. “I remembered something important that I needed to take care of.”

Lex nodded her head and turned her gaze toward the fireplace. She watched the flames flicker in the dark, causing the shadows to dance on the walls around her. She became lost in her thoughts again, concentrating only on the movements of the fire.

This time, Glen didn’t interrupt her. Instead, he watched her intently, curious as to what she was thinking about. He studied every detail of her face, which was softly illuminated by the light of the fire. He suddenly found himself fighting the urge to reach out and touch her soft skin with his fingers.

They sat in silence for a long while before Lex finally drifted back to earth. Feeling Glen’s eyes upon her, she turned to look at him.

“You looked awfully deep in thought just now. Everything okay?” he asked her softly.

Lex hesitated for a moment before she answered him. “Yes. Everything’s fine. I was just thinking about my parents again. I hope their okay.”

Glen nodded his head, wondering if she was telling him the truth. Was she really thinking about her parents, or had she been thinking about him the same way he was thinking about her?

Still feeling Glen’s eyes watching her, Lex began to get nervous. She sensed it was almost like he was trying to read her mind. Finally she couldn’t stand it anymore and she stood up from the couch.

“Well, I’m exhausted. I think I’m going to take a long, hot bath and then go to bed. Good night, Glen.” she said as she walked past him toward her room.

Glen watched Lex cross the room and disappear down the hallway.

“Good night Lex.” he whispered softly, as he watched her walk away.

Glen stared toward the hallway for several minutes, hoping that she would come back. When he realized that she was gone, he turned and looked at the spot on the couch where she had been sitting only seconds earlier. Rubbing his hand across the cushion, he could still feel the warmth from her body. His thoughts drifted back to earlier in the evening, when Lex had jumped into his arms. He closed his eyes as he remembered how good it felt to have her arms around his neck, to feel her body against his. Glen felt the desire begin to stir within him as he remembered the look in her eyes. He had seen something in her eyes that he couldn’t quite put his finger on. Something that had made it impossible for him to tear his eyes away from hers.

Opening his eyes and looking around again, he noticed the blanket on the back of the couch. He removed it and pulled it to his chest. Lowering his face, he swore he could still smell her scent from where she had used it earlier. Clutching the blanket tightly against him, he turned his gaze back to the fireplace. He remained there, alone with his thoughts, until the fire died down, before getting up and going to his room for the night.

Chapter 22

Lex entered her room and closed the door behind her. She sorted through the clothes that Glen had given her and picked out another pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt, before heading to the bathroom. She filled the tub with hot water and got in. Resting her head against the edge of the tub, she closed her eyes and tried to clear her mind. But all she could think about was Glen. He had been so patient and caring with her over the past 24 hours. He had taken her, a complete stranger, into his home and practically waited on her hand and foot. He had given her a nice room, lots of food and even clean clothes to wear, without asking for anything in return.

“A true gentleman and handsome, too.” Lex said to herself, feeling herself blush at the thought.

She thought back to earlier in the day when she had watched him work out in the gym. She remembered how his muscles had flexed when he moved and how strong and powerful he had seemed. She was even more impressed with the way he had moved around in the ring. He was so quick and agile for such a large man. And his Kane character was so intriguing. Kane was dark and mysterious, so different from the man she had gotten to know. Lex was surprised at how easily he seemed to make the transition from one persona to the other. She wondered which one was closer to the real man.

She thought back to the incident that had occurred between them earlier. She remembered the way he had looked at her when she hugged him. Had she really seen something in his eyes or had it simply been her imagination?

Lex sighed loudly. It had to have been her imagination. After all, Glen was a celebrity. He could have practically any woman he wanted. He would never fall for someone like her, especially after what had happened to her. She suddenly felt stupid for even thinking that he might have feelings for her. Why would any man ever want her again?

Lex suddenly felt dirty and worthless. She began to cry again as she washed off, scrubbing hard, as if she were trying to wash her entire being away. When she was done, she pulled herself from the tub and dried off. She got dressed and brushed her hair out before pulling it back in a pony tail. Then she brushed her teeth and headed back into the bedroom.

Lex climbed into bed and turned off the light. She laid there in the dark for a long time before she realized that she was listening for Glen. She wondered if he was still awake.

“Stop it, Lex.” she said to herself, as she tried to put him out of her mind. “The only reason he’s being nice to you is because he feels sorry for you. You’re only fooling yourself if you think he has feelings for you. Once the snow melts and you can leave, you’ll never hear from him again.”

Lex clutched the spare pillow tightly against her chest as she began to cry again. She felt completely alone. She wondered what it would feel like to have somebody love her. Not the kind of love like her parents gave her, but a wondrous and intoxicating love that only a soul mate could provide. Lex wondered if there was someone like that out there for her and if there was, how would she ever find him?

“There’s no one like that for you.” she thought to herself, as she felt her eyes starting to get heavy. “That kind of love only happens to other people. Not to you.”

Lex curled up tight against the pillow and unable to fight her exhaustion any longer, she cried herself to sleep.

Chapter 23

Somebody was in her room. Lex could feel the presence of another person. She opened her eyes and saw Glen sitting on the edge of her bed, watching her. He brought his hand slowly up to her face and she closed her eyes as she felt his thumb gently stroke her cheek. She opened her eyes and looked at him again. He had that look in his eyes-the same look she had noticed earlier. This time there was no mistake. She definitely saw something there.

“Glen?” she whispered softly, before she felt his finger on her lips. Without a word, he leaned down and brushed his lips lightly against hers. She could feel the warmth from his body against hers as he came closer. Stretching out beside her on the bed, he pulled her closer and deepened the kiss.

Lex moaned loudly as she felt his arms embrace her again. She slowly ran her hand up his huge arm, before wrapping it around his neck. Glen pulled her even tighter against him, as his large hand slowly wandered across her back.

“I want you, Lex.” he murmured softly against her lips.

His hands began to caress her body, working their way underneath her t-shirt. Lex stiffened when she felt his hand on her breast.

“I can’t do this Glen. I’m not ready.” she whispered, trying to push his hand away.

“Don’t fight it Lex. You know you want me too.” he replied, still fondling her.

“No Glen. It’s too soon. I can’t.” she said, trying to pull away from him.

Suddenly he was on top of her, his huge hands wrapped around her throat.

“I told you to be still.” he growled in her ear, as she felt his grip begin to tighten, blocking off her air.

Lex stared up into his eyes, which were now dark and cold. She realized it was no longer Glen but someone else. She froze as she realized it was the man who had attacked her before.

Lex clutched at his hands, struggling to breathe as she felt his grip tighten even more.

“I knew I’d find you again.” he breathed, before raising one of his hands to strike her.

************************

Lex bolted upright in the bed, grabbing at her throat. She struggled to breathe as her eyes adjusted to the darkness. She lunged at the table beside the bed and turned the lamp on. Her eyes searched frantically around the room, looking to see if anyone was there. She breathed a sigh of relief when she realized the room was empty.

Sitting back down on the bed, she rubbed her trembling hands across her throat, which now seemed painfully constricted.

“It was only a dream.” she thought to herself, as she tried to calm down. “It seemed so real.”

Looking at the clock, she saw that it was 2:00 in the morning. Leaving the light on, she lay back down in the bed and tried to relax.

She thought of Glen, who was sleeping across the hall from her. She remembered the way she had felt in his arms earlier that evening. She suddenly wished he was there with her now, to hold her like that and chase all her fears away. Clutching the pillow to her again, she stared at the clock, each minute seeming to last an eternity. It was almost 6:00 before she was finally able to drift off to sleep again.

Glen lay awake in his bed, trying to quiet his mind. He had tried to relax by reading for a while, but he hadn’t been able to concentrate. All he could think about was Lex. Looking at the clock for the millionth time that night, he saw that it was 2:00.

He stared at the empty space beside him in the bed, and imagined Lex curled up asleep next to him, her soft body molded into his. He reached out and absently rubbed his hand across the spare pillow, where her face would have been. He closed his eyes and imagined how good it would feel to wake up next to her in the morning. But she had been hurt so bad. He knew that it would take a lot of time and effort on his part before she could ever trust him that well. And time was something he didn’t have a lot of when it came to her. At the most, he only had a few days before she would be able to leave. He wondered if there was anything he could do in that little amount of time to gain her trust.

“Don’t run from me, Lex.” he whispered softly against the pillow, as he grabbed it and held it tight. “I’ll find someway to win your trust.”

Chapter 24

Glen rolled over and looked at the clock, which now showed that it was 7:30 in the morning. The last time he had looked at it, it had been 3:30. He moaned as he sat up in bed, his body feeling the effects from his lack of sleep.

“At least four hours worth is better than none at all.” he said to himself, as he pulled himself from the bed.

He walked into the bathroom and turned on the shower. Stepping underneath the hot water, he let it run over his head and down his body, soothing his aches away. Once he felt some of the tiredness leave him, he quickly washed off and got out. He dried himself off and brushed out his long curly hair, before pulling it back out of his face. He brushed his teeth and then went back into his bedroom.

He looked towards his door as he got dressed. He wondered if Lex was up yet. He was anxious to see her this morning. He knew he needed to find some way to get her to trust him completely. But he didn’t know how to do it without being too pushy. He didn’t want her to distance herself from him anymore than she already had.

Opening his door, he peeked out into the hallway.

“She must still be asleep.” he thought to himself, when he saw that her door was closed. “I hope she slept better than I did.”

Glen tiptoed quietly down the hall, so that he wouldn’t disturb her. He went into the kitchen and poured himself a cup of coffee. Taking a seat at the table, he tried to think of a plan, but his mind was blank. He looked out the window and noticed that it was snowing again. He couldn’t help but smile.

“Let it snow.” he mumbled to himself. “The longer it snows, the more time I’ll have to win her over.”

He sat there, gazing out the window, for several minutes before an idea popped into his head.

“It’s not much. But it’s a good start.” he thought to himself, as he stood up from the table and left the room.

Lex opened her eyes and looked at her clock.

“I can’t believe I slept so late.” she thought, seeing that it was already past 10:00.

She climbed out of bed and removed her t-shirt, replacing it with Glen’s huge sweatshirt that she had worn the day before. Walking to the bathroom, she combed her hair and brushed her teeth before leaving her room.

When she opened her door, she immediately noticed the smell of breakfast coming from the kitchen.

“That man never quits.” she thought to herself with a smile, as she walked toward the source of the wonderful aroma.

She paused in the doorway and watched Glen work for a moment before she approached him.

Chapter 25

“Good morning.” she said, smiling at him when he turned around to look at her.

“Don’t you mean good afternoon?” Glen chuckled, motioning toward the clock. “I was beginning to wonder if I should have made you lunch instead of breakfast.”

“Hey, I was tired.” she replied with a small laugh. “Watching all of that wrestling yesterday really wore me out.”

Glen shook his head at her. “It’s your own fault. You asked for it.” he said with a grin. “Did you sleep well?”

Lex hestitated for a moment before she answered him.

“No. Not really.” she replied.

“There’s nothing wrong with your room, I hope.” Glen asked her, noticing the worried look on her face.

“No. The room is fine. I guess I just have to many things on my mind.” she answered, not wanting to tell him about the dream she had.

Glen watched her carefully for a moment. He could sense that she was hiding something, but he decided not to press the issue any further for now.

“Well, I hope you’re hungry because breakfast is ready.” he said, motioning her towards the table.

“I can’t believe you actually fixed this much food.” Lex said, still amazed that he could eat so much in one sitting.

“Only half of this is mine. The rest of it is yours and I want to see it all gone before you leave this table.” he said, playfully shaking a finger at her. “You remember what happened yesterday when you didn’t eat it all.”

Lex thought back to the incident he was talking about. If he only knew the real reason why she suddenly felt so ill…….

Lex took a small bite of her food and looked out the window. She suddenly froze in place as her gaze traveled outside.

Glen heard her gasp and he looked at her, a huge smile crossing his face.

“Glen!” she squealed, her eyes never leaving the window. “How did you….. When did you have time….”

“You put up a birdfeeder?” she said in wonder, as she finally turned her head to look at him. “Where did you find it? You couldn’t have left the house.”

Glen smiled at her again, enjoying the look of joy on her face. She was such a simple, down-to-earth person. It amazed him that something so small could make her so happy.

“I was sitting here this morning and I remembered you telling me that I should put up a birdfeeder near the window, so we could watch the birds eat. I got to thinking about it and I thought I remembered seeing one in my storage building out back. I went to look for it this morning and I found it hidden in one of corners underneath a bunch of empty boxes. I had completely forgotten about it until then. I also found a bag of seed with it, so I thought I would fill it up and surprise you this morning. I noticed yesterday you seemed to really enjoy watching them.” he explained, still concentrating on her face.

“Thank you!” she said softly, looking at Glen once more. She couldn’t believe he had done this just for her. She was surprised that he had even remembered their conversation.

“I’m glad you like it.” he replied, still pleased with her reaction. “Now eat!” he added, playfully jabbing at her with his fork. “Or I’ll take it down!”

She stared at him for a minute longer before she picked up her fork and resumed eating. For the rest of their meal, she divided her attention between Glen and the birds outside. Everytime she would turn her head to watch them, Glen would study her face, trying to memorize every detail of her beautiful features. A couple of times she looked back at him quickly and almost caught him staring at her, but he didn’t think she had noticed.

After breakfast, Lex helped Glen clean up the kitchen. When the dishes were all done, Glen turned to look at the clock and playfully poked Lex in the arm.

“It’s lunch time now!” he said, still giving her a hard time for sleeping so late. “What do you want to eat?”

Lex moaned and rolled her eyes. “I won’t eat again for a week after that huge breakfast you made me finish.” she replied.

Glen chuckled at her again as they walked to the living room.

Chapter 26

Lex sat down on the couch and watched Glen as he bent down to start another fire in the fireplace. She was still very surprised over the birdfeeder. She wondered why he would go through so much trouble for her, knowing that she would only be there for a few days. She had also noticed him staring at her a couple of times during breakfast, but he had always turned his head when she looked back at him. She wondered what he was up to?

Standing up, Glen turned around and looked at Lex.

“I’m going to go work off some of this breakfast.” he said, while rubbing his stomach. “Do you want to come downstairs to the gym with me?”

Lex blushed as she remembered watching him the day before. “No thanks. I think I’ll just stay up here for a while.”

“Okay. Just make yourself at home.” he said before heading toward the stairs. “I’ll be downstairs if you need anything.”

Lex watched him disappear down the stairs before turning her attention back to the fire. She was tempted for a moment to follow him but she thought better of it. Looking toward the TV, she decided she would watch him wrestle instead. She walked over to the television and sorted through his tapes. She selected one and put it in the VCR. She pulled the blanket from the back of the couch and wrapped it around her before taking her seat on the couch again.

Lex turned on the tape and watched it for a few minutes before hitting the fast forward button. She forwarded the tape until she came to one of Glen’s matches. She watched the match intently, still amazed at how easily he moved around the ring. When the match was over, she forwarded the tape some more until she found another one. When she reached the end of the tape, she selected another one and started the process all over again. She was determined to watch as many of his matches as she possibly could.

******************

Glen continued to work out in the gym, all the while trying to think of some other way to surprise Lex. He was pleased with himself after seeing her reaction to his earlier surprise. But now he needed to think of something bigger and better, without being too crazy or romantic. He didn’t want to scare her away by being to forward, but he also wanted to give her a small hint about how he felt. He also knew that his resources were limited by the fact that they couldn’t leave the house. He would have to make due with with what he had here with him.

“Maybe you should have read a few more romance books in your lifetime.” he chuckled to himself, feeling lousy for having such a pathetic imagination.

He pushed himself even harder on the machines, hoping that something would come to him. Finally, he finished his workout and headed back upstairs, still having no idea what he was going to do.

When he reached the top of the stairs, he was surprised to see Lex still sitting on the couch. He looked closer and realized that she was watching another one of his tapes. Glen realized that she didn’t know he was in the room with her. He stood quietly by the door and watched her. When his match ended, he saw her fast forward the tape until she came to another one. When that match ended, she did the same thing again. He smiled as another idea suddenly popped into his head. He quickly left the living room and headed for his bedroom.

Chapter 27

A few minutes later, Glen reappeared in the living room. He saw that Lex was still watching his tapes, unaware of his presence once more. He quietly came closer and moved until he was just behind the edge of the couch. Then he stopped and waited.

Lex finished watching the last match on the tape before turning it off. Seeing something move out of the corner of her eye, she looked toward the end of the couch. Her eyes grew wide and her mouth dropped open when she saw none other than Kane standing beside of her.

Glen tensed for a moment when he saw her expression. He was worried that he had frightened her again. But he relaxed when he saw the huge smile that crossed her face.

“You’re just full of surprises today!” Lex said as she stood up from the couch and took a step backwards, so she could get a good look at him.

“I certainly hope so!” Glen thought to himself.

Lex stared at him for a long while, taking him all in. His costume made him seen a lot bigger than she was used to. He seemed so different to her, even though she knew it was the same person. His hair was wet and he wore it loose so that it hung down around his mask-just like she had seen on the tapes. She studied his costume, slowly moving her gaze from his head down to his large, black boots. Glen stood still, taking in her reaction to him.

Lex took another step back from him.

“Stay right there for a minute.” she told him, before heading to the kitchen. Glen could hear her in the kitchen, opening and closing the drawers.

“What is she doing?” he thought to himself, as he waited for her to return.

Finally, she came back into the room. He could see that she had something hidden behind her back and she had a very serious look on her face. He became concerned again as he watched her, afraid that he had done something wrong. She walked right up to him and stared up into his face before finally breaking into a smile.

“Can I have your autograph?” she asked, sheepishly as she handed him a pen and some paper.

Completely taken by surprise by her actions, Glen began to laugh.

“Oh please, Mr. Jacobs! I’m such a big fan!” Lex teased in a whiny voice, as she laughed along with him.

Glen swiped the pen and paper from her hand and signed his name. Reaching it back to her, his hand gently brushed against hers.

Lex squealed even louder as she took the paper from him. “Oh, he touched my hand! I’ll never wash it again!” she laughed, jumping playfully around him before she finally collapsed back on the couch.

Glen could only shake his head at her antics.

“I never knew you were such a joker, Lex.” he said as he sat down beside her and removed his mask.

“Me either.” she replied, still giggling at him. “I’m so sorry but I couldn’t help myself.”

“Well I am here to entertain. That’s my job, after all. Although laughter is not normally the response I hope for.” he teased, trying to pretend that she had hurt his feelings. But his laughter gave him away, as he remembered her jumping around him on the floor.

Lex picked up one of the pillows from the couch and swatted him with it before another fit of giggles overtook her. Glen smiled as he watched her laugh, seeing her completely at ease for the first time since she had arrived here. He thought about how easy it was to joke and have fun with her. This felt right to him, to have her so close beside him. He quickly made up his mind.

“I’m going to pull out all the stops, Lex.” he said to himself, as he watched her. “I’m going to make you mine if it’s the last thing I do.”

Chapter 28

When Lex was finally able to get her laughter under control, she realized that Glen was still watching her. He had grown very quiet and she could see that he was thinking about something.

“I’m so sorry, Glen. I didn’t mean to laugh at you.” she said between giggles, afraid that she may have hurt his feelings.

He smiled at her again, as her voice brought him back to the present moment.

“No harm done.” he chuckled. “But I’m going to go change my clothes, just in case there happen to be more autograph seekers around.”

Glen stood up from the couch and Lex watched him walk to the hallway. She continued to look in his direction, even after he disappeared.

Lex wondered what was going on in his mind. This was the second time today that he had surprised her with something. Why did he seem so eager to make her happy? She had also noticed that he seemed a little more quiet and reserved this morning during breakfast, as if he might be preoccupied with something very serious. She hoped nothing bad had happened that he had neglected to tell her about.

“Maybe he’s trying to impress me for some reason.” Lex thought, wondering what that ‘some reason’ might be.

“Forget it, Lex!” she told herself, as she shook her head. “He’s a celebrity. It’s not like he would have to go through any great lengths to impress anybody. Besides, even if he did, why would he want to impress someone like you.”

Lex felt an unexpected sadness rush through her as she thought about Glen being with another woman. She wondered about his ex-girlfriend, the one whose clothes she was trying to fill.

“It’s too bad you can’t fill more than that. She must have really broken his heart.” she thought, remembering how painful it had seemed to be for Glen to talk about her.

Lex wondered what the other woman looked like.

“Probably some gorgeous, petite blond with big boobs.” she thought to herself, wishing that she could look like that too. “Maybe then he would find me attractive.”

She sighed, as she sat back on the couch and waited for Glen.

************

Glen went to his room and changed clothes.

“Well, that was another good surprise!” he told himself, as he removed his costume and placed it on the bed. He smiled as he remembered the way her gaze had traveled over his body. He wanted her to look at him that way again. He glanced down at his bed and imagined them laying there together, snuggled close underneath the covers.

“Stop it!” he berated himself, feeling a surge of desire course through him. “Don’t rush things or you’ll screw it all up. I have to win her trust first.”

He went into the bathroom and pulled his hair back once more. On his way back through the bedroom, he glanced towards the bed again.

“You’ll be mine, Lex.” he said aloud, as he headed to the door. “I’ll find someway to make it happen.”

Chapter 29

Glen entered the living room and sat down on the couch beside Lex. He immediately noticed that she had gotten quiet again. Looking at her, he could see that she looked upset. She had been fine only minutes ago when he left the room. He wondered what could have happened in that small amount of time to change her mood so quickly.

He assumed that she was probably thinking about the rape again. Even though she seemed fine physically, he could tell that mentally, it was starting to take a toll on her. She looked tired, even though she had slept so late that morning. She had told him herself that she hadn’t slept well. He wondered if she had been having nightmares about what had happened to her.

Looking at her, he wished there was some way he could make all of her fears disappear. He wanted so much to put his arms around her and hold her close to him and protect her forever. He couldn’t understand why someone would possibly want to hurt someone as sweet and innocent as Lex. Glen thought that if he ever found out who hurt her, he would make them pay dearly.

“Well, what would you like to do this afternoon?” he said, finally breaking the silence.

Lex looked up at him slowly and shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t know. I don’t want to keep you from anything. I’m sure you’re a busy man. Don’t let me keep you from your business. I can find something to do to pass the time.”

“I’m not going to let you sit here by yourself all afternoon.” he replied.

Glen knew that if he did that, all she would do is worry. He wanted to take her mind off of her problems.

“I’m on vacation and I don’t have any business to take care of. So, what do you want to do?” he added.

Lex looked around the room for a minute before an idea came to her, but then she thought better of it.

Glen saw her face light up for a moment, but then it disappeared again. He could tell she was hesitating about something.

“I can see you’ve got some idea rolling around in that pretty head of yours.” he said. “What is it?”

“It’s nothing.” Lex replied, surprised that he could read her so well.

“Has anybody ever told you that you’re a horrible liar?” he chuckled. “Now tell me what you were thinking about.”

Lex smiled at him. “I was thinking about how long its been since we’ve had a snow this big.” Glen looked at her in confusion, not really sure where she was headed.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve built a snowman.” Lex added with a smile, hoping that Glen would take the hint.

“You want to go outside and play in the snow?” he replied, amused with her idea.

“I don’t know about you, but I could stand to get out of this house for a few minutes.” she answered, hoping that he didn’t think she was crazy.

“Well, you can’t go outside dressed like that. You’ll freeze to death.” he said, pointing at her clothes. “Let’s see if we can find something else for you to wear.”

Glen got up and motioned for Lex to follow him. He headed down the hall and went into his room. Lex hesitated outside the door before she followed him inside. She was immediately impressed with the size of his room. She looked around slowly, studying her surroundings. Her gaze immediately fell on his large, king-size bed that was positioned against the opposite wall. It was covered in a simple hunter green comforter and lots of pillows. She felt a strange feeling run through her as she imagined him stretched out asleep on his bed. Tearing her gaze away, she examined the rest of the room. It definitely had a masculine feel to it. It was more sparsely decorated than the rest of the bedrooms, but it was still very warm and comfortable.

“These should work.” he said, handing her some clothes from his closet. Lex reached out and took the clothes from him. “There’s an extra sweatshirt for you to put on and I found a coat for you to wear. It will be pretty big on you but at least you’ll stay warm. Go put on the jeans I gave you and I’ll see if I can find you some socks and gloves.

Lex went to her room and changed quickly. When she opened her door, she met Glen coming out of his room.

“Here you go.” he said, handing her a couple pair of socks and a pair of gloves.

They went back to the living room and finished bundling themselves up. Then they headed outside.

Chapter 30

Lex stepped out into the snow and took a deep breath of fresh air. She had always loved the snow. The crisp winter air always had an invigorating effect on her. It had stopped snowing earlier that morning, but she didn’t know how much more snow was expected before the storm was finished. Looking down at her feet, she could see that the snow was already about a foot and a half deep. She knew her tennis shoes wouldn’t do much to keep her feet warm or dry, but they would last long enough for her to enjoy the fresh air for a few minutes.

“I’m going to go down to the storage building and get a shovel. I’ll be right back.” Glen said, as he walked past her and headed toward the corner of the house.

Glen had almost reached the corner when he felt something hit him in the back. He stopped in his tracks and turned around slowly to look at Lex. He saw the next snowball coming at him and he ducked to miss it.

“So that’s how you want to play, huh?” he said, bending down and gathering up a handful of snow.

Seeing what he was up to, Lex ran and hid behind the nearest tree, trying to stay out of his range. Lex watched Glen drop the snowball on the ground, then turn back towards the storage building. Looking behind her, she wondered if he might try to sneak up on her. Deciding she would try to sneak up on him first, she followed in the direction he had gone. When she turned the corner, she looked toward the building. Instead of seeing him there, she noticed that his tracks went further around the house. She followed them cautiously, expecting him to jump out at her. She jumped when she felt something hit her in the back. Turning around, she saw Glen standing behind her, laughing. He had gone all the way around the house so he could sneak up behind her.

Seeing that he was armed with another snowball, she stumbled backwards, trying to get out of his range. She tripped over something buried in the snow and fell onto her butt. She scrambled to gather another handfull of snow as Glen came closer, still laughing at her. She threw her snowball at him but he was able to avoid it. He raised his hand as if to throw his snowball at her.

“Okay! Truce!” Lex yelled, holding her hands up in front of her. “You win!”

“Wimp!” Glen replied, extending his hand to help her up.

Lex reached out and took his hand. She immediately noticed his strong grip and she could feel the heat from his touch all the way through both of their gloves. Once she was back on her feet, she quickly released his hand and took a step back.

They stood there and stared at each other for several seconds.

“Weren’t you headed to your storage building?” Lex asked him, still smiling at him.

“I was until somebody stopped me.” Glen replied. “I would have kept you in the house if I had known you were going to make me a moving target.”

He started toward the building again.

“Don’t even think about it.” he called out, looking back at her.

Chapter 31

This time Lex behaved herself and let him go. She turned her attention to the mountains in front of her. It was such an incredible view. She could see the snow-covered peaks, which almost blended perfectly into the grey-colored sky. Looking around, she noticed that Glen’s house was located far away from the main road, hidden nicely behind the thick cover of trees that lined the front of his house. She didn’t know how close his nearest neighbor was, but she couldn’t see anything but trees from where she was standing. Walking further around the house, she noticed a small deck located on the back of the house. She imagined how nice it would be to sit outside on warm summer evenings and look up at the stars. She was willing to bet he had plenty of wildlife too. This area was known for both it’s deer and bear populations.

“It’s so peaceful and quiet out here.” Lex thought to herself, as she admired her surroundings.

She approached the deck, noticing that there was a door leading into the house.

“I wonder where that door goes to?” she thought, as she studied it for a minute, trying to figure out which part of the house that it might lead to.

She heard Glen come up behind her.

“Where does that door go to?” she asked him, as she turned to face him.

“That goes into my room. I thought it would be nice to have my own private deck right outside my room. I spend a lot of nights sitting out here in the summer.” he replied.

“I didn’t notice that door when I was in your room earlier.” she said, shrugging her shoulders. “I guess I just overlooked it.”

Lex felt her toes starting to grow numb from her wet shoes.

“I’m afraid I’ve had enough snow for one day. I’m going to have to go back into the house and warm up. I can’t feel my toes anymore.” she told Glen, as they walked back around to the front of the house.

“You go ahead and go inside.” he told her. “I’m going to shovel some of this snow off of the steps and then I’ll be on in.”

Lex went back into the house and removed her shoes and coat. She carried them to the laundry room to let them dry out. Then she went to her room and changed out of her wet clothes. She put on a clean pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt. She wandered back through the house and into the kitchen. Looking through the cabinets, she found some hot cocoa mix. She quickly heated some water and filled two mugs full. She carried them back to the living room and sat them on the table. Then she went to the fireplace and put another log on the fire. She went back and curled up on the couch with the blanket and her mug of cocoa.

“This is so relaxing.” she thought to herself, as she looked around the living room once more. She remembered the night that she arrived here and how terrified she had been. She would have never believed that she would become so comfortable being in this house alone with Glen. But she knew that it would come to an end soon. She realized that she was actually going to miss this place when she was gone.

Her thoughts were interupted by Glen coming in the door. He took off his coat and his boots and carried them to the laundry room as well, then stopped by his room to change into a pair of sweatpants and a sweatshirt. He came back to the living room and took a seat beside Lex on the couch.

She handed him his mug of cocoa.

“Thanks.” he said, as he took it from her. He also noticed that she had the fire going again.

“Making yourself at home now?” he said, grinning at her.

“I thought I would just be nice and try to make up for hitting you with that snowball.” she said, smiling back at him.

Glen looked at her, noticing that she seemed to look much better since she had gotten some fresh air. Her cheeks were full of color and she seemed a bit more lively than she had earlier. He was glad that she had gotten used to being around him. He could tell that she was much more relaxed around him and she seemed to feel right at home in his cabin. He thought he would gladly given anything he owned to keep her here by his side.

He thought back to the night she had showed up at his door. It had to have been fate. He believed that now. There wasn’t a doubt in his mind that they were meant to be together. He just hoped he could convince Lex to feel the same way.

“Just give me a chance, baby.” he thought, looking at her again. “Just one chance. It’s all I’ll need.”

Chapter 32

Lex and Glen sat and talked for a while, their conversation eventually leading back to his career. He told her about his early days in the business and how he had gotten started in wrestling. He told her tales about some of his old friends and some of the smaller federations he had worked in. He explained to her about some of the different gimmicks he had tried for his characters, trying to get them over with the fans. He was afraid that he would bore her to death with his stories, but no matter how many he told her, it seemed like Lex never tired of asking more questions. She was genuinely interested in everything he had to tell.

After a while, Glen tried to steer the conversation in her direction. He was interested in finding out more about her.

“What about you, Lex.” he said, looking at her intently. “I know you said you worked for your parents. Was it always your dream to work in a big toy store or did you have something else that you wanted to do when you were growing up?”

“Growing up, I always thought I wanted to be a vet. I love animals. I thought it would be great to have a job where I could work with them all the time.” she replied.

“Well, why didn’t you do it?” he asked, pressing for more information.

“A lot of reasons, I guess. When I finished high school, I really had no desire to go to college. I wanted to go out and make it on my own. I went to work in a local restaurant for a couple of years. I found out that the money wasn’t real great, but I had my freedom. I was able to move out and get a small place of my own. I didn’t have all the pressures of school on top of me. I had plenty of free time to do what I wanted.”

Lex paused for a moment. “I guess I was also afraid of failing. I know getting a degree takes a lot of time and effort. Somehow I always figured I wasn’t smart enough to do it.”

Glen looked at her for a moment. “Do you regret it now that your older? Do you wish you had gone on to college?”

Lex nodded her head. “Yeah. I guess I do regret it. I wish I had at least given it a chance. But I didn’t, so I guess I’ll just have to live with my decision.”

“You could always start now. There are lots of people who go back to school everyday. You could be one of them. You could still make your dream come true.”

Lex smiled faintly. “Maybe.”

He watched her as she grew quiet again. “Don’t close me off again.” he thought, seeing that look come back into her face.

“Well, I’m getting hungry again. Feel like eating some supper?” he asked, trying to bring her back out of her mood.

Lex moaned. “I’m not real hungry. I’m still full from breakfast.” she laughed.

“Come on.” he said, standing up and motioning for her to follow him. “We’ve already skipped lunch today. You’ve got to eat a little bite of something.”

“Why are you so determined to take care of me?” she thought as she watched Glen walk to the kitchen.

She sat there for a moment, lost in her thoughts again, before getting up and following him out of the room.

Chapter 33

Lex wasn’t really that hungry but Glen insisted that she eat something, so she helped him make some sandwiches. They sat down at the table and ate their food. As she sat there, Lex looked out the window again. It was completely dark now and she could no longer make out any of the shapes that had become so familiar to her from where she was sitting.

She realized that she hated the darkness. The darkness meant that it was time to sleep, and with the sleep came the loneliness and the nightmares. She felt so happy and alive during the day, when she was with Glen. He helped her to forget about her problems. But at night, the darkness seemed to cause an uneasiness in her that she couldn’t quite shake. It wasn’t really a fear of the dark, more like a fear of the unknown.

“You’ve got that far away look in your eyes again.” Glen said, pulling her from her thoughts.

“I’m sorry.” she replied, smiling at him. “I was just thinking again.”

“Did you check the phones any today?” she added, still wishing she had someway to contact her parents.

“I checked it a couple of times and it’s still out.” he said, wishing there was someway he could help her.

Lex sighed and looked back out the window. She was confused by the mixture of emotions swirling through her mind. Part of her felt relieved that there was no way for her to contact the outside world. Being here in this house was a nice escape from the dull, empty existence she had left behind. She felt at home here and she enjoyed having the companionship of somone besides her parents. But she also felt guilty for not being able to contact them. She knew they had to be worried sick about her by now. They had no idea whether she was alive or dead. She knew she would have to call them as soon as she possibly could, but she also dreaded having to face reality again.

Lex remained quiet throughout most of the meal. Glen could see that something was bothering her. He debated whether or not to question her about it but then he decided against it. He was afraid if he pushed too much, he would upset her. He knew he had to let her open up to him on her own. Then maybe she would let him help her.

After they finished eating, they cleaned up the kitchen and headed back to the living room. Glen sat down on the couch and watched Lex who was circling the room, examining the items that were displayed on the walls and shelves. She seemed restless tonight for some reason, but he assumed it was just cabin fever from being cooped up inside for so long. But a part of him sensed that it was something more than that. He thought that perhaps she was just trying to distract herself from her thoughts.

Lex slowly circled the room, examining the few items that were scattered about. She really wasn’t that interested in them, but her pacing seemed to help still the nervousness she was feeling. She wasn’t sure exactly why she was feeling so jumpy, but she assumed it was due to the dream she had the night before. She hated the thought of having to go back to sleep. She was sure that the nightmares would return and she dreaded having to face another night alone.

“You’re just being childish.” she told herself, trying to calm down.

“You haven’t been scared of the dark since you were a little girl. There’s no reason for you to start now. It was only a dream. There’s nobody here that’s going to hurt you.” she thought, trying to convince herself that it was true, but it wasn’t working.

Finally, she decided she would go take a long, hot bath. That usually relaxed her pretty good. She turned and looked at Glen and caught him staring at her again. He quickly tried to avert his gaze when he saw she was looking at him.

“Why does he keep staring at me like that?” she wondered to herself when she caught him watching her.

“I think I’m going to go take a bath and then go to bed.” she said.

“Are you feeling okay?” he asked her, noticing she looked a little pale.

“I’m fine. I just feel kind of drained tonight. Hopefully a hot bath will help me sleep. Goodnight, Glen.” she said, as she walked past him and headed toward the hall.

Glen sighed when she left the room. Part of him wanted to go after her and tell her how he felt. He was beginning to feel frustrated. He knew he was running out of time. He had to find someway to make his feelings known to her.

He sat there by himself for a long while, fighting the urge to go to her. Finally, he got up and headed down the hall. He stopped when he reached her door. He raised his hand as if to knock, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it. What would he tell her when she opened the door? If he confessed everything to her, he was bound to frighten her and he didn’t want that to happen. He stood there, listening for her, wondering if she was still in the tub. Not hearing anything, he reluctantly pulled himself away and went into his room, closing the door behind him.

He undressed and climbed into bed. He laid there and stared at the ceiling for a few minutes. Finally, he sat up and picked up his book.

“It’s going to be another long night.” he groaned, as he began to read.

Chapter 34

Lex filled the tub and got in. She leaned back against the tub and tried to relax but she just couldn’t shake her uneasiness. She closed her eyes and tried to focus her thoughts on Glen. He had done so much for her today. First he surprised her with the birdfeeder, then he dressed up as Kane and surprised her again. And to top it off, he didn’t even bat an eye when she told him she wanted to go outside for a while. He had gone with her and didn’t even complain about the cold and the snow.

He was such a kind and thoughtful man. She wondered why his ex-girlfriend had ever let him go.

Lex stayed in the tub for a little while longer, until she felt her eyes starting to get heavy. She quickly got out and dried off. She put her sweatpants and t-shirt back on and pulled her hair back. Then she went back into her bedroom and climbed into bed. She pulled the spare pillow to her and hugged it close, as she closed her eyes and went to sleep.

*************

Lex rolled over in bed and realized that she was no longer alone. Stiffening immediately, she looked to see who was beside her. She could make out a form in the bed next to her. She jerked the covers back and moved to get up. She felt the stranger grab her and pin her down on the bed. She opened her mouth to scream but no noise would pass her lips.

“Going somewhere?” she heard a cold voice ask her.

“Let me go!” she pleaded, still trying to get up.

“Where do you think your going?” she heard him say. “Do you actually think you can hide from me?”

“You’ll never be able to escape me again.” the voice continued. “No matter where you go or what you do, I’ll be in the shadows waiting for you to come back. I’ll return to you everynight.”

“No.” Lex breathed, unable to force any other sound from her throat. She struggled harder to get away.

“Don’t tell me you actually think that your precious Glen will protect you.”

Lex stilled herself at the sound of his name.

“Why would he want to protect you? He doesn’t care what happens to you. You’re nothing more than a piece of trash that somebody tossed out on the street. There’s no man on this earth who would ever want you again.”

The voice was taunting her now, hitting her in her most vulnerable spots.

Lex began to cry. He was right. Glen would never love someone like her. He would never be there to protect her and keep her safe. Nobody would. She would never have anybody to help her. She would always be alone.

“It’s just you and me. That’s how it will be from now on.” he continued, enjoying her pain. “Every night.”

*****************

Lex bolted upright in bed, her whole body shaking violently.

“Not again!” her mind screamed, as she remembered her dream.

She began to cry again. She had never felt so helpless or alone in her life. The voice from her dream echoed in her mind. It was right. She had nobody to protect her. Not now. Not ever. Especially not Glen.

“Why did this have to happen to me?” she thought, as she continued to sob. “It’s not fair.”

She sat in the dark for a long time, sobbing her heart out. Afraid of waking Glen, she finally forced herself to calm down. Looking at the clock, she saw that it was only 1:30 in the morning.

Knowing that she wouldn’t be able to sleep again for a while, she climbed out of bed and walked to the door. She opened it and peeked into the hallway, noticing that the door to Glen’s room was closed. She quietly stepped out into the hall and closed her door back, then tiptoed to the living room.

Chapter 35

Waking from his sleep, Glen moved the book from his chest and looked at the clock.

It was almost 2:00. He laid there for awhile, hoping that he would be able to doze off again. But thoughts of Lex invaded his mind again, and he was soon wide awake. After tossing and turning for several minutes, he decided to get up. He couldn’t bear to spend another sleepless night in his bed.

He slipped on his sweatpants and went to the door. He opened it gently and stepped out into the hallway. He looked at the closed door of Lex’s room, remembering why he was awake in the first place. He hoped she was sleeping better tonight. He walked quietly down the hall so he wouldn’t wake her. When he reached the living room, he stopped dead in his tracks.

Lex was sitting on the floor in front of the fireplace. Her knees were drawn up to her chest and her chin rested on top of them. The blanket from the couch was wrapped around her shoulders. The entire room was dark except for the fire blazing in front of her. He stood and watched her for a long time, wondering what she was doing up this late at night.

“She must have had another nightmare.” he thought, as he looked at her.

He slowly approached her, speaking to her softly when he was right behind her. He saw her jump at the sound of his voice.

“Couldn’t sleep?” he asked her softly, as he kneeled down on the floor.

He sat down directly beside her, propping his back up against the couch. He could see that she had been crying again. There were fresh tears still drying on her face.

Lex stiffened a little as she felt him sit down so close to her. She refused to look at him, instead concentrating her gaze on the fire.

“Did you have another nightmare?” he asked her, trying to get her to talk to him.

Lex was surprised. She had never told him about her first dream. How did he know she was having these nightmares?

Lex nodded her head, still not looking in his direction.

“Do you want to tell me about it?” he asked.

Lex shook her head. She couldn’t tell him about what she had dreamed. He would think she was crazy.

“I don’t want to talk about it.” she answered softly, hoping that he would drop it.

Glen sat there and watched her for a long time. He wanted so badly to talk to her and tell her what he was feeling. But everytime he opened his mouth to speak, something held him back. He was afraid if he confessed his feelings, it would be too much for her to deal with and she would close herself off from him completely.

They sat there in the dark together for a long time, each lost in their own thoughts.

Finally, Lex broke the silence.

“Can I ask you a question?” she asked softly, hoping she wouldn’t anger him.

“Of course.” Glen answered. “You can ask me about anything.”

Lex hesitated for a minute before she continued. “What happened between you and your girlfriend? Why aren’t you with her anymore?”

Glen took a deep breath. Lex immediately felt bad for prying.

“I’m sorry.” she said. “I shouldn’t have asked you that. It’s none of my business.”

“It’s okay, Lex. I don’t mind.” he said, trying to gather his thoughts before he continued.

“But I guess I should tell you the whole story. You see, we built this house together. We were both very involved in picking out the location and designing the house. This was our dream home. We had planned to get married not long after we moved in here. The day we moved in this house was one of the happiest days of my life.”

Lex felt a pang of jealousy hit her when she listened to him talk about this other woman.

“It wasn’t long after we moved in that I began to notice things were different. I told you before that my job keeps me on the road for the majority of the year. I started to notice that she seemed more distant when I was home. We seemed to fight a lot more when I was here. At first, I thought it was just wedding jitters. Maybe she was just having typical doubts. I expected everything to eventually work out and we would be fine.”

He paused for a moment, trying to gather his thoughts again.

“A couple of months later, I came home from one of my trips and she was gone. All her things were gone from the house. All she left me was a note, explaining that she couldn’t deal with me being gone all the time. She said she needed a man who could be with her every night. She didn’t even give me the decency of telling me to my face. All I got was her letter. Needless to say, I was very upset. She knew about my job when she met me and it never seemed to bother her before. She knew how important my profession was to me. I found out later the real reason why she left. Apparently, she had met some doctor and fell head over heels for him. I found out that she had been seeing him for almost six months before she left me. I don’t think she ever cared about me. She just fell in love with what I could give her.”

Lex could hear the sadness in his voice as he talked. She couldn’t believe his girlfriend could treat him like that. How could she be so cruel? How could she not see how much Glen had cared for her? She felt horrible for ever bringing it up.

“I’m so sorry, Glen.” she said, looking at him. “I shouldn’t have asked you to talk about it. She obviously hurt you a great deal.”

He smiled faintly at her. “It’s alright, Lex. Really. I wouldn’t have told you if I didn’t want you to know about it.”

They both turned their attention back to the fire and the silence settled around them once more.

Chapter 36

They were silent for a while longer, before Lex spoke again.

“Do you ever think you’ll ever find somebody else? I mean, do you think that there is somebody else out there that you were meant to be with. Or do you believe that we only get one chance at true love?”

Glen looked at her in surprise. Why was she asking him this? Did she feel about him the same way he felt about her?

“I wonder about it myself all the time.” Lex continued without giving him a chance to answer. “I was in love once myself. At least I thought I was. I met Mike my senior year in high school. He completely swept me off my feet. I thought he was the most wonderful man I could ever meet. We had a lot of good times together, but eventually things started to change for us too. When you asked me earlier today about why I didn’t go to college…Well, I guess Mike was the biggest reason. He didn’t want me to go. He was afraid I would meet somebody else. He was an extremely jealous person. He would get so angry if he saw me talking to another man. He never hit me though. He would usually just yell at me for awhile and cause a big scene.”

Glen listened to her intently. He couldn’t believe she was volunteering all of this information to him.

“We dated for almost two years before he asked me to marry him. I said yes and we made plans for our wedding. But as the day got closer, I began to have my doubts. I thought about it for a long time and I finally called off the wedding and broke up with him. He gave me a hard time about it for awhile, telling me that I had made a huge mistake. But I never went back to him. He eventually gave up and moved away. I think about him a lot. I often wonder if he was my one chance at true love and I just threw it away. What if there’s nobody else out there for me?”

Glen stared at her for several seconds before he answered her.

“I believe we all get more than one chance at love, Lex.” he replied. “I know for a fact there is someone out there for you who will make you very happy.”

His meaning was lost on Lex as she dropped her face to her knees and began to cry again. She wanted so badly to believe his words. She needed to know that there was somebody, somewhere, waiting for her.

Glen couldn’t take anymore. He couldn’t stand to see her so upset. Leaning forward, he slowly reached out with one of his huge arms and wrapped it around her waist, then gently pulled her against him. He held his breath as he waited to see what her reaction would be.

It took Lex several seconds before she realized what he was doing. Glen felt her stiffen in his arms.

“Just relax and let me hold you, baby.” he whispered under his breath, hoping she wouldn’t pull away from him.

He remained still for several minutes, talking to her softly. He began to rub his hand gently up and down her back, feeling her slowly relax in his arms. Tightening his arms around her, Glen finally allowed himself to breath again. He pulled her a little closer to him, then lowered his head to rest his chin on her hair. He closed his eyes, completely lost in the moment. This was what he had been waiting for-to hold her in his arms and comfort her. He never wanted to let her go.

They remained in that position for a long time before Glen raised his head and looked down at her. He could tell by the steady rhythm of her breathing that she was asleep. He studied her face, seeing how peaceful she looked now. He knew she was tired and he needed to get her to bed so she could rest. He wondered if he could move her without waking her.

He tightened one of his arms around her waist and slid the other one under her knees. He stood up slowly, still holding her in his arms. She shifted slightly and snuggled deeper into his chest as he carried her toward the hallway. When he reached the door to her room, he hesitated. He looked toward the open door of his room, then looked back down at Lex. He debated on whether or not to take her to his room with him. But then he wondered how she would feel if she woke up in the morning and found herself in his bed. He thought better of the idea and carried her into her own bedroom. He laid her down gently on the bed and pulled the covers up over her. He stood beside the bed and watched her for a few moments before he pulled the covers back and slid in beside her. He wasn’t ready to let her go just yet. Stretching out beside her, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close to him again.

He had intended to only stay with her for a few minutes before heading back to his room. But once he got her in his arms, he couldn’t bear to let her go. This was what he had spent so many sleepless nights dreaming about. And now he was here with her, and it felt so right. Moving even closer to her, he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

Chapter 37

The voice was back. Lex could hear it taunting her again.

“I’m coming back for you.” he said. “I told you I would always be here waiting.”

Lex looked around the room, searching for the source of the sound. Her eyes finally focused on a shadowy figure standing at the foot of her bed. She tried to scream but she found that her voice wouldn’t work. She tried to jump from the bed but she couldn’t get up. She was able to move her arms and legs, but something was preventing her from sitting up. She began to struggle harder, trying to free herself from the invisible force that was holding her captive. The shadow was moving closer now, coming around to the side of the bed. She fought harder, trying to get away.

“I told you there would be nobody here to protect you.” she heard him say, as she continued to fight. “You’re all mine.”

Suddenly, he was on the bed beside of her and his hands were reaching for her throat again. Lex felt her breath leave her as his hands tightened around her once more.

***************

Lex woke from her dream with a jolt, grabbing her throat and trying to sit up. But something was holding her down. Afraid that her dream was becoming a reality, she began to struggle violently, flailing her arms and kicking with her legs, trying to get away.

Her movements quickly woke Glen, whose huge arm was still draped across her stomach, pinning her to the bed. He felt her move and instinctively tightened his grip on her.

Unaware that it was Glen who was holding her, Lex began to fight even harder. She was in a state of absolutely panic, as she struggled to break free.

“Let me go! Get away from me!” she screamed, clawing at the weight she felt holding her down.

Finally coming to his senses, Glen released her and Lex quickly scrambled from the bed, taking most of the covers with her. Glen jumped up and turned on the small bedside lamp. He looked toward Lex and was absolutely horrified when he saw her. He had never seen such a look of fear on anyone’s face before. Her face was drained of all color, and her whole body was shaking violently. He wondered what kind of nightmares she could possible have to cause such a terrible reaction.

“Lex, are you okay?” he asked, reaching out for her again. “It’s just me, Lex. It’s Glen.”

She looked at him and he saw his name register in her mind. Taking another step back, Lex tried to figure out what had just happened.

She tried to remember what Glen was doing in her room. Then she recalled that she had been with him in the living room. She didn’t remember coming to bed but she assumed that he had carried her to her room. But why was he still here?

“Oh, God!” she moaned to herself, realizing what had just happened. “He must think I’m completely crazy!”

Still shaking badly, her hand flew to her mouth as she began to sob. She felt like she was losing her mind. She couldn’t take anymore of these nightmares.

Glen moved across the bed and reached out for her hand. He tugged on it gently, until she collapsed back onto the bed beside him. He pulled her into his arms again and held her tight, while she sobbed her heart out against his huge chest. He rocked with her in gentle movements, while rubbing his hand up and down her back.

“I’m so sorry, Lex.” he whispered softly, as he continued to move with her. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

Lex was still sobbing, unable to hold back her emotions any longer. The fear, the loneliness, her feelings for Glen---everything came crashing down on her at once and she didn’t have the strength to hold back anymore. She cried until she didn’t think she would ever cry again. And all the while, Glen held her in his arms, trying to take away her pain.

Chapter 38

After a while, she felt the wave of emotion finally start to disappear and she became aware of the fact that she was wrapped in Glen’s arms once again. Her first instinct was to pull away from him, but she quickly realized that his embrace was very comforting to her.

Her face rested against his bare chest and she could feel his hardened muscles flex beneath her cheek as he moved. She felt so warm and safe, she didn’t think she ever wanted to leave. Glen was still rubbing her back and she immediately noticed how his touch seemed so strong and comforting and so gentle and loving at the same time.

“Don’t be afraid, Lex. I’ll protect you. I promise nothing will ever hurt you again.” he whispered to her softly, as he held her tighter.

Lex couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Glen was telling her that he wanted to protect her and keep her safe. It couldn’t be! Could he actually have feelings for her? She felt her heart almost burst at the thought.

Lex suddenly felt scared and excited all at once. She couldn’t believe that this huge man who was holding her in his arms might possibly be hers--that he could possibly love her.

“It couldn’t be.” she thought to herself, trying to make sense of it all. “Why would he want me?”

She remained in his embrace, a million questions swirling through her mind. Her eyes traveled to the wall across from her, and Lex realized how familiar this room had become to her during her short stay here. Not just her room, but every part of this house. Everything about this house made her feel as if she had been here for years. It was so warm and comforting and inviting. She felt welcome here.

It was at this moment that Lex knew she was home. This is where she belonged and she intended to stay. There wasn’t a force on this earth that could pull her from this house or from the arms of the man who was holding her.

As she thought about Glen once more, her eyes focused on the smooth skin of his chest. She slowly brought her hand up to touch it, skimming across it lightly with her fingertips before placing her hand over his heart.

Glen closed his eyes and forced back a moan at the feel of her touching him. Her touch felt like a blazing fire burning into his skin, her hesitation only serving to fuel his desire even more.

“Don’t think about that now.” he silently warned himself, trying to still his thoughts. “Give her time to get used to being so close to you first.”

Lex left her hand on his chest for a moment before she realized how she was touching him. She quickly jerked her hand away. Glen caught her hand in his and he raised it to his lips, kissing it gently. Lex closed her eyes as she felt his lips against her skin. They felt so soft and warm. She felt a small shudder course through her body.

Glen pulled her closer to him when he felt her shiver.

Looking up at his face, Lex pulled away from him slightly as she sat up.

“I’m so sorry, Glen.” she said, trying to dry her face. “You must think I’m insane to act like this.”

Glen removed his arms long enough to reach behind him and grab a tissue from the table. He wrapped one arm around her again, as he raised his other hand and wiped the tears from her eyes.

“It’s okay, baby.” he whispered softly. “It was my fault. You weren’t expecting to find me here with you. I didn’t mean to frighten you.”

“It wasn’t just you.” she replied. “It was the dream…..” her voice trailed off as she remembered that voice again.

“I don’t want to think about it right now.” she said, as she rested her head against his chest again.

Glen smiled as he looked down at her. He was so relieved that she hadn’t pushed him away. He wanted to be here to comfort her.

Feeling her shiver again, he released her and reached down to pull the covers back onto the bed. He stretched out on the mattress and patted the space beside him, motioning for her to lie down beside him. He saw her hesitate and he became concerned that he was frightening her again.

“I don’t mean to push you, Lex. I just want to lay here and hold you for awhile. But if you want me to leave, I’ll go back to my room.” he said.

“It’s not that.” Lex replied, looking down at him. “I’m just afraid if I lay down, I’ll go back to sleep. I can’t take anymore of those dreams tonight.”

Glen reached out for her.

“I promise I’ll keep you safe.” he said. “Just lay here with me for a little while.”

Lex slowly stretched out beside him. It took her a minute to relax again when he wrapped his arms around her once more. Rolling onto her side, she snuggled close to him and buried her face into the hollow of his neck, feeling the hair on his chin tickle her when she moved. She closed her eyes and breathed in his warm, masculine scent, feeling herself relax even more. She felt his hand move to her head and begin to gently stroke her hair.

Reaching behind him, Glen turned off the light. They laid there together in the dark, letting the silence surround them again. After a while, Lex felt her eyelids start to get heavy again. She fought against her exhaustion, not wanting to fall asleep. She was afraid that the dreams would return. She fought it off as long as she could, but finally, it overtook her and she closed her eyes. She spent the rest of the night sleeping peacefully in Glen’s arms.

Chapter 39

Glen woke the next morning and looked over at Lex, who was still sleeping peacefully beside him. It was an incredible feeling to open his eyes and wake up next to her--better than he could have ever imagined. Reaching out, he gently brushed a few loose strands of hair from her face. He smiled as he watched her sleep, studying the relaxed features of her face. He recalled how terrified she had been when she had awakened during the night and found him in her bed. Although his unexpected presence was partially to blame for her fear, he also knew that she had been dreaming again. While he had suspected that she had been having nightmares, he had no idea that they were so terrifying for her.

He reached out again and slowly ran his fingers down her cheek.

“You don’t have to be afraid anymore Lex.” he whispered to her softly. “I promise I’ll keep you safe.”

Lex stirred slightly, feeling something brush across her cheek. She raised her hand to knock whatever it was away and her fingers came in contact with Glen’s hand. He felt her jump slightly when she touched him and then she opened her eyes and met his gaze.

It took Lex a few moments before she remembered why Glen was there with her. She suddenly felt embarrassed when she recalled the previous night’s events and realized that he had seen her acting that way. Then she remembered what he had said to her. He had told her that he would protect her and keep her safe. She wondered again if it was possible that he had feelings for her. She was still confused about the exact meaning of his words, but she was anxious to see what the day would bring.

“Good morning.” he said softly, reaching out to touch her face again.

“Are you sure it’s still morning?” Lex replied with a smile, noticing that the room seemed very bright.

Glen raised his head slightly to look across Lex, towards the clock.

“Actually, it’s almost 11:00. But technically, it’s still morning.” he said with a chuckle.

“I can’t believe I slept so late.” Lex said, rolling onto her back.

“Don’t worry.” Glen replied. “We both had a pretty long night.”

“I’m so sorry, Glen.” Lex replied. “I didn’t mean to keep you awake all night.”

She sat up and moaned loudly as her head began to throb.

Glen sat up beside her and wrapped one arm around her shoulders.

“It’s alright.” he said, while giving her a gentle squeeze. “You didn’t bother me. I didn’t mind at all.”

“Ohhhh. I feel like I didn’t get any sleep at all.” she moaned, while still rubbing her aching head. “Please tell me you have something I can take to get rid of this headache.”

“I’ve got some aspirin in my bathroom.” he said, climbing out of bed. “I’ll be right back.”

He left the room and came back a couple of minutes later, bringing Lex some medicine and a small cup of water. She took the pills and washed them down with the water, then she rubbed her temples again.

Glen sat down on the bed behind her. He felt her jump again when he placed his hands lightly on her shoulders. After a moment, he felt her relax a little and he began to massage her neck and shoulders, hoping to distract her from the pain.

Lex closed her eyes as she felt his hands touching her. She could feel the heat of his touch, even through the material of her t-shirt. His actions were distracting her alright, but probably not in the way he had intended. She couldn’t help but wonder what it would feel like to have those hands rubbing across other parts of her body.

“Stop it!” she said to herself, ashamed that she could allow herself to think of him like that so soon. “You don’t even know for sure how he feels about you.”

Glen shifted his body, so that his back was resting against the headboard. He urged her to lean backwards into his chest as he continued to rub her tired muscles. He could feel that she was completely relaxed in his arms now.

Even after berating herself, she couldn’t help but moan softly, as his hands continued to work their magic on her.

“Feel good?” he whispered to her, when he heard her moan. Lex jumped, then shivered when she felt his breath against her ear.

Lex nodded her head as he continued to work his hands. After a few minutes, she forced herself to pull away from him.

“I feel much better now. Thank you.” she said, turning to look at him.

“Good.” he replied, smiling at her. “Now, how about some breakfast. I’m starved.”

“What else is new?” Lex said with a laugh as she climbed out of the bed.

She headed toward her bathroom to brush her teeth and straighten her hair. Glen went into his room and put on a t-shirt. Then he went into his bathroom and brushed his teeth and pulled his hair back.

They met each other in the hallway as they came out of their rooms. They walked to the kitchen together and tried to decide what to eat.

“Do you want breakfast or lunch?” Glen said, as he rummaged through the refrigerator.

Lex looked at the clock and saw that is was now almost 12:00.

“I think I want breakfast.” she said, her head still pounding slightly. “I don’t think I could handle lunch right now.”

“Breakfast it is then.” he replied, gathering some food and setting it on the counter.

They cooked breakfast together, then sat down to eat. Lex smiled when she looked out the window and saw the birdfeeder that Glen had put up for her. It still surprised her that was such a kind and thoughtful man.

She felt a little self-conscious around him this morning, after what had happened last night. She still wasn’t sure how he felt about her and she didn’t know what to expect from him. She was a little on edge, wondering if he would bring it up this morning. She thought about bringing it up herself, but then she thought if she had misunderstood his intentions, she would look like a fool. She decided to just ride it out and see what happened.

Glen smiled as he watched Lex eat. He couldn’t take his eyes off of her this morning. He was still finding it hard to believe that this was happening. Last night had been an incredible breakthrough for him. She had completely let down all of her walls and let him in. Not only had she opened up to him about her past, but she had trusted him enough to let him sleep beside of her and hold her in his arms. He knew now that he had her trust, he would have to work hard to keep it. He knew he would have to move slowly with her, gradually letting her know exactly how he felt. But he was looking forward to it. He wanted to make her completely happy, no matter how long it took.

Chapter 40

They cleaned up the kitchen together, then went into the living room. Glen started another fire in the fireplace, while Lex took a seat on the couch. She laid her head back against the cushion and closed her eyes, wishing that the throbbing pain in her head would disappear.

When he was done at the fireplace, Glen took a seat beside of her. He reached out and gently stroked her hair.

“Is your head still bothering you?” he asked softly.

Lex nodded her head without even opening her eyes. She normally didn’t have too many headaches, but she assumed this one was due to all of the stress and excitement from the previous night.

“Why don’t you go lay down for a while longer?” Glen said, still stroking her hair. “Maybe if you rest for a little bit, it will go away.”

Lex shook her head no. She knew if she laid down, she would go to sleep and the dreams would return. She couldn’t deal with them anymore right now.

Glen sensed her reluctance and he moved closer to her so he could hold her again.

“Well, if you won’t lay down and rest, at least let me see if I can make you feel better.” he replied.

He moved one of his hands to her shoulder, rubbing it again like he had earlier that morning. Lex had gotten used to him being so close to her by now, and she leaned against him and relaxed when he touched her again. Glen shifted their position so that Lex was sitting sideways in his lap. He had one arm wrapped around the front of her waist and his free hand was massaging her neck. Lex laid her head on his shoulder, her hand lightly holding his arm. Her eyes remained closed, as she enjoyed feeling his soft touch again. After he rubbed on her neck and shoulders for a while, he moved his hand to her head. He began to run his fingers lightly through her hair, while massaging her scalp gently.

“It feels so good.” she moaned softly, as she moved closer into him.

Without realizing what she was doing, her hand traveled up his arm and then she wrapped her arm around his, holding it close to her. She clutched it tight against her chest, as if she were afraid that he might disappear from beneath her. Her headache completely forgotten, all she could do was concentrate on his hands, which were stirring a multitude of emotions within her.

Glen held his breath when he felt her caressing his arm, her light touch causing goosebumps on his skin. He felt his desire for her begin to rise again and it took all of his strength to hold it back.

He tried to ignore the thoughts that were running through his mind, but he couldn’t block them out. Her body was incredibly soft and warm, pressed up against him and he wanted to feel more. He imagined reclining her back onto the sofa and running his hands along the rest of her body. He wanted to kiss her, to taste her. He wanted to touch every inch of her and claim her for his own. He felt his pulse start to quicken and he realized he was going to have to distance himself from her before he pushed things to far.

“Do you feel better now?” he asked Lex softly, while bringing his hand to rest on her back.

Lex moaned inwardly as he stopped, wishing that he would continue doing that forever. Reluctantly, she sat up and looked at him.

“Much better. Thank you.” she replied, meeting his gaze.

Needing to get away from her, Glen gently picked her up and sat her on the couch beside of him.

“I’m going to go down to the gym for a while. Do you feel like coming down with me today?” he asked, suddenly feeling the need to work off some of his nervous energy.

Lex considered it for a moment, but then she decided against going with him. She still wasn’t sure she could handle seeing him like that again.

“No. I think I’ll stay up here. Maybe I’ll watch some more of your tapes.” she replied, as Glen got up from the couch.

“Okay. But if you change your mind, you know where to find me.” he said, looking back at her as he walked to the stairs.

He descended the stairs and went into the gym. He was actually a little relieved that Lex hadn’t come down with him. He needed some time alone to think. He paced the room for a few minutes, berating himself for his earlier thoughts.

“Stop being so damned impatient!” he told himself firmly, when he stopped to look in the mirror. “You have to give her time!”

He hadn’t realized how badly he wanted her until this morning. With her sitting in his lap and resting her body against his, she had been too close. It had been too hard for him to control himself. He knew he had to get his emotions under control. He couldn’t take a chance on doing something to push her away again.

He jumped headlong into a furious workout, trying to distract himself from his thoughts. He wanted to be able to spend the rest of the day with her, not force himself to run and hide every time he got near her. Surely if he was able to sleep beside of her all night and behave himself, he could make it through the day with her. But he felt his control getting weaker by the minute.

He smiled as he thought back to the previous night. He remembered how warm she had felt, curled up asleep beside of him. He had slept so well once he had joined her in her room. It was so much better than sleeping all alone in his large, empty bed. He was still overjoyed that Lex seemed to have put all her trust in him. It meant so much to him that she was willing to put herself in his hands like that. He knew it took a great effort on her part to do it and he intended to only make her trust in him even stronger.

As he thought about Lex, he wondered what was going through her mind this morning. She had seemed to be rather accepting of what had occurred between the two of them last night. She certainly didn’t seem frightened or upset when she woke up that morning and found him in bed with her. Although she hadn’t come right out and told him, he suspected that she had feelings for him, too. But he needed to be sure before he pushed her into something she didn’t want to do. Glen decided that he needed to talk to her, at least give her a definite idea of how he felt about her. It didn’t have to be an all out confession of love. After all, he didn’t think she could handle that right now anyway. But she definitely needed to know how he felt.

Glen continued his workout, while trying to figure out what he was going to say to Lex. He finally worked up a decent speech in his head and he practiced it over and over, trying to get the words just right. When he was finally satisfied with the results, he decided that he would tell her. And he knew just how he’d do it.

*************

After Glen left the room, Lex got up and went to the TV to find another tape to watch. She finally found one she hadn’t seen yet and she popped it into the VCR. She went back to the couch and started the tape. She proceeded as she had done before, fast forwarding until she reached one of Glen’s matches. Then once she had finished it, she moved on to another one.

This kept her busy for a little while, but then she started to get restless again. She realized that she missed having Glen beside of her. Even though she knew he was downstairs, she still felt as if he were far away. She smiled when she remembered waking up next to him that morning, and seeing his wonderful smile. He was such a handsome man and she had felt so comfortable laying there with him. She wondered for a moment what their sleeping arrangements would be for tonight. She hoped she could fall asleep in his arms again.

She tried hard to focus her thoughts on the TV screen, but she realized it was futile. After a few more minutes, she finally gave up and she turned off the TV and headed to the stairs.

“Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to sneak a quick peek at him while he’s down there.” she thought to herself with a grin.

She quietly made her way down the stairs and up to the gym door. She hesitated outside for a moment, second guessing her decision, before finally taking a deep breath and rounding the corner. She took two steps forward and walked straight into a wall of muscle.

Looking up in surprise, she saw Glen looking down at her with a huge smile on his face. He had caught her when she ran into him to keep her from hitting the ground. His arms were around her waist and he was holding her to him. Lex became immediately aware that he was shirtless once again, his muscles glistening from the sheen of sweat that covered them. She closed her eyes, trying to regain her senses, as she felt that feeling of breathlessness return.

Glen bent over slightly to speak to her.

“Are you okay?” he asked, concerned because she suddenly seemed so quiet.

Lex jumped when she felt his breath against her ear. Glen smiled when he heard her sharp intake of breath. He pulled her closer to him so that her head rested against his chest, and his heart swelled when he felt her arms wrap around his waist. He bent down and kissed her lightly on the top of her head, as he felt her move closer into him.

He had spent all morning wondering how she felt about him. Now he had his answer.

Chapter 41

Lex and Glen stood there together for a long time in silence. Her arms were still wrapped around his waist, her hands pressed into the small of his back as she hugged him tight. Glen’s hands wandered slowly up and down her back, as he held her close to him.

He looked down and smiled at her again. If he had any doubts before about her feelings for him, they had all disappeared. Her earlier reaction had not been lost on him. He had felt her jump and heard her gasp when he whispered in her ear. And the way she was holding him now, told him all he needed to know.

“Lex?” he said softly, while still rubbing her back. His hands slowly moved to her shoulders and pushed gently, moving her so he could see her face.

The sound of his voice pulled Lex from her daze, and she quickly unwrapped her arms from him.

“I’m so sorry! I don’t know what came over me!” she stuttered, while taking a step back.

Looking up at Glen, she noticed he had a huge smile on his face.

“What?” she asked, her face flushed with embarrassment at what she had done.

Glen could hardly contain his happiness at her show of emotion. He chuckled at her softly, as he moved to cup her face in his hands.

“What’s so funny?” she asked, still not quite understanding his reaction.

Glen shook his head slowly, while caressing her face with his thumbs. It took all of his control not to kiss her right here and now. But as bad as he wanted to, he held back. He had decided before she came downstairs that he was going to tell her how he felt about her over dinner. He wanted it to be special, so that she would know how serious he was about her. He knew that waiting a few more hours wouldn’t hurt him. It was important that he got a chance to talk to her first. He wanted her to know exactly how he felt before he tried anything that might otherwise frighten her.

“Glen?” Lex said, pulling him from his thoughts. “What are you laughing at?”

“I was just thinking how many times I’ve tried to run over you since you’ve been here.” he replied, taking her by the hand. “It’s a good thing I’ve got good reflexes. Otherwise you would have been laid out on the floor more than once.”

Lex swatted him lightly on the arm, as he led her out of the gym. He closed the door behind them, then walked with Lex to the stairs. He motioned for her to go up in front of him, and he followed her up the stairs, watching her backside again as she moved.

“Oh yeah!” he thought as he watched her leave. “I definitely have to tell her tonight.”

When they reached the top of the stairs, Glen went into the kitchen to search for something that he could fix them for dinner. He wasn’t a gourmet chef by any means, but he wanted to cook something nice, something that took a little bit of effort. He finally found some frozen chicken breasts in the freezer and decided that they would work. He laid the package on the counter to thaw, while he looked through the rest of his cabinets, trying to decide what else to fix.

Lex followed him into the kitchen. She saw what he was doing and immediately started to laugh.

“Don’t tell me you’re already hungry again.” she said, while shaking her head.

Glen looked at her with a grin and pointed at the clock. “In case you forgot that we slept half of the day away, it’s almost supper time. I was just trying to decide what to fix.”

Lex saw the package of meat lying on the counter and she headed toward it to see what he had selected.

“Oh no you don’t!” he said, when he saw her.

“You just get out of here. I’m going to fix you supper tonight and it’s going to be a surprise.” he said, while motioning toward the door.

Lex rolled her eyes at him. “Oh please!” “You’ve already tried to kill me once today. Don’t you think that’s enough.”

Glen turned to look at her, pointing toward the door once more. “OUT!”

“Geeez! Some people have no sense of humor!” she laughed as she left the room and headed toward the couch.

Glen shook his head and laughed at her as she walked away. When he was finished, he left the kitchen to go look for her. He found her stretched out on the couch, grinning at him.

“I’m going to go take a shower and change clothes. You stay out of the kitchen while I’m gone!” he said, while shaking a finger at her.

“Okay, Okay!” she said, laughing at him again. “Just don’t come cryin’ to me later when you decide you need my help.”

Glen headed down the hall to his room. Lex sat up and watched him leave. She considered going to the kitchen to sneak a peek while he was gone, but she decided against it. He had obviously put a lot of thought into his surprise and she didn’t want to spoil it for him. She laid back down on the couch and waited for him to come back. After a few minutes, she closed her eyes and started to doze.

********

“I’d make fun of somebody being so hungry! At least I can stay awake for more than two hours at a time.”

Lex was awakened by the sound of Glen’s voice laughing at her again. Opening one eye and peeking at him, she immediately sat upright. He was standing over her, dressed in a pair of tight black jeans and a black long sleeve shirt that highlighted every one of the muscles in his arms and chest. His hair was pulled back in a low pony tail, the way he usually wore it, but tonight he looked so different for some reason.

“He’s the most handsome man I’ve ever seen!” Lex thought to herself, as she stood up from the couch.

“Another part of your surprise?” she asked, admiring him. Glen nodded his head in response.

She looked down at the t-shirt and sweat pants she was still wearing, suddenly feeling out of place.

“I didn’t realize that this would be a formal dinner. I don’t have anything to wear.” she said, feeling a little self-conscious about her appearance.

Glen rolled his eyes. “You’re all just alike. You never have anything to wear.” he said, mocking her. “Go look on your bed. I found a couple of dresses that were left in the back of the closet. Maybe you can wear one of them.”

“There not yours I hope.” she replied, unable to stifle her laugh as the thought crossed her mind.

“Not quite.” he answered, swatting at her with one of the pillows from the couch. “You go get ready. I have work to do.”

“Yes sir!” Lex replied, as she walked past him toward the hallway.

“And stay out of the kitchen! I’ll come and get you when it’s ready!” he added, as she disappeared from the room.

Chapter 42

Lex entered her room and closed the door. She walked to the bed and picked up the dresses that Glen had place there. Both of them were very similar styles, one of them in red, the other in black. They were both fairly short, coming to just above her knees and both were sleeveless, the black one having thin spaghetti straps. Lex looked them over for a few minutes, trying to decide which one she liked the best. She laid them back down on the bed and headed to the bathroom to shower. Turning on the hot water, she undressed and stepped into the tub.

She thought about Glen as she washed herself off. He seemed to be so excited about this surprise dinner he was fixing for her. She wondered again why he would be willing to go through so much trouble just for her. She certainly didn’t feel worthy of all of the energy and attention he was expending on her.

Well, if he was determined to surprise her, she thought she might as well pay him back. She decided that she would look her absolute best for him, despite her limited resources. She hoped she could find what she needed laying around in one of the bathrooms.

She quickly washed off and got out of the tub. Lex dried herself off and applied a thin layer of lotion to her arms and legs. She brushed her teeth, then combed out her damp hair. She rummaged through all of the drawers and cabinets in her bathroom, hoping to find some makeup or some hair-styling products. At the very least, she wanted to do something with her hair. Unable to find anything, she decided to go look in Glen’s bathroom. With his long hair, she felt sure she would find something she could use. She slipped on her sweatpants and t-shirt again and walked to her door. Opening it, she peeked out into the hallway and heard Glen still working in the kitchen. Tiptoeing across the hall, she entered his room and made her way to his bathroom.

She turned on the light and began quietly rummaging through his drawers as well. She assumed that if his ex-girlfriend had left some of her clothes, there was a possibility she may have left some other things too. Lex felt a little funny wearing all of this woman’s things, especially after knowing how she had treated Glen. But it was either this or nothing at all.

Finally, in the very back of the bottom cabinet, she found what she was looking for. There was a small makeup bag with a few items left in it. She noticed that there was also a couple of hair clips left among the makeup. She thought she could make due with this. She turned off the light and snuck back out of his room, relieved when she was safely back inside her own bedroom.

Heading back to her bathroom, she sorted through the makeup and found a few things she thought would look good on her. She applied a little bit of makeup to her face and then tried to decide how to fix her hair. She finally decided to pulled it up in a loose twist and she fastened it in place with the hair clips she had found.

Once she was satisfied, she went back into the bedroom and looked over the two dresses again. She hadn’t been able to decide earlier which one she liked the best, so she thought she would see how well they fit her. After trying both of them, she found that the black one fit her better, so she put it on and zipped it up.

“Not bad.” She said to herself, when she turned and looked in the mirror. She was actually surprised herself when she saw her reflection. She certainly hadn’t ever felt like she was even remotely attractive, but looking at herself now she had to admit she didn’t look half bad. She wondered if Glen would like her new look, too. She made a few last adjustments to her hair and makeup, then headed to the door.

As she crossed the floor, she looked down and realized that something was missing. She didn’t have any shoes to wear. The only shoes she had with her were tennis shoes and they certainly wouldn’t go with her dress.

“Oh well.” She said, looking at herself in the mirror once more. “I don’t like to wear high heels. Besides, he won’t be staring at my feet anyway.”

She left her room and quietly made her way back to the living room. She glanced into the kitchen on her way through and saw Glen working over the sink again. She walked to the couch and took a seat, waiting for Glen to come and get her.

Chapter 43

Glen scrambled around the kitchen, trying to get everything finished. He was starting to get nervous. He wanted everything to be perfect for Lex. He tried practicing the speech he had put together earlier. He was so afraid of saying the wrong thing to her. He didn’t want her to misunderstand what he was trying to tell her. Finally, he got everything finished and put on the table. Taking one last breath to calm his nerves, he went to find Lex.

He stepped into the living room and saw Lex sitting on the couch.

“Are you ready to eat?” he said, as he walked towards her.

He stopped in his tracks when Lex rose from her seat and turned to him. He was unable to speak as he looked at the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. She smiled at him and he felt his heart skip a beat. Her eyes, her hair, everything about her looked incredible. And that dress! Glen moaned inwardly. As if it wasn’t going to be hard enough to make it through dinner already.

He finally realized he was staring and he moved towards her again. Taking her hand, he led her into the kitchen. They sat down at the table, Glen still unable to take his eyes off of her.

“It smells good.” she said. “I can’t wait to try it.”

They both filled their plates and Lex took a bite, noticing that Glen wasn’t eating yet.

“What? Am I the guinea pig tonight? If I fall over, you know not to eat it, right?” she said with a laugh.

Glen realized he was still staring and averted his gaze.

“Well, I told you before I’m not the world’s greatest cook, but I can do alright for myself.” he replied with a small laugh, as he watched Lex take another bite. “But just in case you fall over dead, I’ll be sure to give you a proper burial.”

“I don’t think you’ll have to worry about that. This is really good!” she replied, still smiling at him.

They ate in silence for a while, Glen trying to work up the nerve to talk to her. Every time he looked at her, all of his courage seemed to leave him.

“This is a first.” He thought to himself, with a chuckle. “Of all the times for me to be speechless...”

He went over his lines again in his head, trying to figure out some way to begin. But every time he opened his mouth, something held him back. What if he said the wrong thing? What if she didn’t have the same feelings for him? What if he frightened her again?

“Okay. Just make it through dinner. You can talk to her about it later.” he told himself, noticing that Lex was starting to look concerned.

“You’re being awfully quiet tonight.” Lex finally asked, noticing Glen’s strange silence. “Is something wrong?”

“No. I’m fine. I was just a little worried about dinner turning out alright.” he fibbed, hoping that she would change the subject.

“Well, you can stop worrying.” she replied. “It’s very nice.”

“Thanks.” he said, still smiling at her. “I’m glad you like it.”

They finished their dinner, Glen forcing himself to keep his eyes off of her long enough to eat. He was anxious to be done so they could go back into the living room and talk. When they were finished eating, Lex stood up and began clearing the table.

“You leave those alone. I’ll take care of them later.” he said, reaching out and taking the plates from her hand.

“But you cooked supper. It’s only fair that I wash the dishes.” She argued, picking the plates back up again and walking to the sink. She turned on the water and began rinsing the dishes.

Glen stood up and followed her.

“Put those down!” he said, more forcefully than he had intended, causing her to drop the plate in the sink. He reached around her and turned off the water. Grabbing her upper arms tightly in his hands, he spun her around to face him. He couldn’t wait for her to finish the dishes. He was desperate to talk to her. He had to get this off of his chest now.

Lex immediately tensed when she felt his strong grip on his arms. The combination of his rough touch and his loud voice triggered something inside of her. She began to tremble as she tried to pull away from him. Glen realized immediately that he had made a mistake. He tightened his grip on her, trying to get her to look at him.

“Lex, I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to scare you.” he said, seeing that look of fear in her eyes.

Lex struggled harder against his grip.

“Let me go!” she said firmly, her voice cold but dangerously calm. She took another step back, trying to distance herself from him. “Glen, let me go!” she repeatedly, getting more desperate to be away from him.

He finally loosened his grip and she pulled away from him. She stood and stared at him for several seconds, trying to comprehend what had just happened.

“I’m sorry, Lex!” he said, reaching out for her again.

Lex took several steps backwards before she turned and fled the room. Glen stood still for a moment until he heard the slam of her bedroom door. Looking around the empty kitchen, he sank back down on one of the chairs, as he tried to clear his mind.

“Oh God!” he moaned, burying his face in his hands. “What have I done?”

Chapter 44

Lex ran to her room and slammed the door shut. She collapsed against it, still trembling from her encounter with Glen. She began to cry again, sinking to the floor in a heap as she replayed the scene in her mind. What had happened out there? Why was he acting so strange?

The way he had grabbed her arms reminded her of the way her attacker had grabbed her. And the way he had yelled at her for simply washing a dish. Why would that upset him so much? The look in his eyes had been even more terrifying. They had been full of emotion, something almost wild and desperate, something she couldn’t identify. Lex shook her head. She didn’t understand what was happening. She had trusted Glen with her life, and he had just proven that he was no different than anyone else. All he wanted to do was hurt her too.

Lex forced herself to stand up. Walking towards the mirror, she studied her reflection again. She reached up and ripped the clips from her hair, shaking it loose and letting it fall down around her shoulders. Looking down at her dress, she tore it from her body in disgust, breaking the thin straps and ripping the zipper apart. She threw it onto the floor, then put her sweatpants and t-shirt back on. She headed to the bathroom and washed the makeup from her tear-streaked face. Once her face was clean, she studied herself in the mirror again.

“How could I have ever been stupid enough to trust him?” she thought, tracing the faint bruises that were still visible on her face.

She stumbled from the bathroom and crawled into her bed, pulling the covers tight around her. She felt a cold chill run through her and she rubbed her arms to warm herself, wincing when she touched the places where Glen had grabbed her.

“More bruises.” she thought to herself, as the pain hit her.

She reached over and turned out the light, throwing the room into complete darkness. It was still early in the evening and she wasn’t really tired, but she didn’t know what else to do. She wasn’t about to leave the safety of her room. She didn’t know what Glen would try next.

However, her memories wouldn’t leave her there in peace. She remembered how just that morning he had been in this very bed beside of her, holding her close. She remembered how gentle his touch had been when he massaged her tired muscles. She didn’t understand how he could have changed so fast. But then she thought maybe he hadn’t changed at all. Maybe the Glen she had seen tonight was the real person and he had simply been hiding it from her all along. Lex wondered if that was the reason his girlfriend had left him. Maybe he had hurt her too. Lex shivered at the thought. She knew that even though she was hidden behind a locked door, she wasn’t safe. She wouldn’t be safe until she left this place. She snuggled deeper into the bed, praying that he wouldn’t come after her.

*****************

Glen sat alone in the kitchen, berating himself for what had just happened.

“How could I be so stupid?” he yelled at himself, banging his fist loudly on the table. “I was so close.”

“Well, you’ve done it now.” he thought. “You’ll be lucky if she ever speaks to you again.”

He remembered the look of fear on her face and the coldness in her voice when she had tried to pull away from him. That look alone had been enough to break his heart. He hadn’t seen that look since the night she had arrived at his home. He didn’t want her to ever look at him that way again.

He hadn’t meant to be so rough with her. All he had wanted to do was talk to her. He had been desperate to tell her how he felt. He had honestly not realized he was hurting her until he had seen that look on her face again. By the time he had realized what he had done, it had been too late. In a matter of seconds, he had managed to destroy every ounce of trust she had place in him. She would never agree to listen to him now. Even if she did, she would never believe him.

Frustrated he stood up, and walked out into the hallway. He walked slowly toward her door, noticing that there was no light coming from the other side. Surely she hadn’t gone to bed this early. He leaned against the door, raising his hand and running it along the smooth wood. If only it was the only barrier between them, he wouldn’t have hesitated to rip it from the hinges to get to her. But he knew that there were more obstacles in his path now. He had placed them there himself and they were the ones that would be harder to remove.

Raising his hand again, he knocked softly on the door.

“Lex?” he said softly, straining to hear any movement from inside the room. “Lex, I’m so sorry. I promise I will never hurt you like that again. Please come out and talk to me.”

He held his breath for several minutes, hoping to hear to the sound of movement inside the room, or more importantly, the sound of the door being unlocked. But there was nothing. Only silence.

“Lex? Please open the door.” He was starting to get really desperate. He couldn’t let her slip away from him like this.

Lex tensed when she heard him knock on the door. She remained absolutely still, afraid that he would come bursting into her room at any minute. She was starting to feel panicked again. She knew she couldn’t hide inside this room forever, but she didn’t have the courage to face him. She just prayed that he would go away and leave her alone.

He remained outside her door for a long while, hoping that she would change her mind and come to him. When he finally realized that she wasn’t going to open the door, he turned and walked dejectedly back to the living room. He went to the fireplace and got the fire going again, then he collapsed onto the couch. This couldn’t be happening. He couldn’t lose her like this over some stupid mistake. He fought the urge to run back to her door and beat on it until she let him in.

“Give her some time.” he thought, trying to calm himself down. “Let her sleep on it. Maybe tomorrow she’ll be willing to listen to me.”

He laid back on the couch, and closed his eyes. He thought back to the night before, when they had been sitting together in front of the fire. It had been the first time she had let him hold her and comfort her. He wished he could be with her to comfort her now. He wanted to feel her in his arms again.

“Tomorrow.” he said, feeling himself relax a little at the thought.

“I’ll be waiting for you tomorrow.” he thought again, before he drifted off into a restless sleep.

Chapter 45

Glen woke a few hours later. The fire had completely died down and the room had grown cold. Sitting up, he rubbed his face and tried to pull himself together. Looking at the clock he could see that it was only 12:30.

“Great. It’s going to be another long night.” he mumbled, as he stood up and made his way down the hall. He paused outside of Lex’s room again, wondering if she was asleep. He hoped she wasn’t having any nightmares tonight, although after what had happened between them, he would be surprised if she didn’t.

“I’m so sorry, Lex.” he whispered softly against the door, before heading into his room and closing the door behind him.

He undressed and climbed into bed, turning off his light. He laid there in the dark for several minutes before he felt his eyes start to get heavy again. He drifted off to sleep, praying that tomorrow would come quickly.

******************

“I told you he wouldn’t protect you. You are completely alone. Nobody cares about you.”

“Not again!” Lex moaned, already knowing the source of the sound.

“Go away!” she yelled, not wanting to deal with it anymore.

“I can’t do that Lex. You belong to me.” the voice replied. She could hear it moving closer to her.

“I’ve come for you again. I told you I would be back.”

This time Lex didn’t reply. She didn’t care anymore. Let him take her. Maybe he would finally end her torment. She flinced when she felt a hand grip her tightly on the arm, but this time she didn’t scream or fight.

She heard the voice chuckle, as he moved his hand up her arm toward her throat again. He leaned forward until she could feel his breath against her face.

“I see that you’ve finally decided to stop fighting me. That’s a good girl. Just give me what I want and you won’t get hurt.”

She felt that familiar grip close around her throat once more. Lex closed her eyes and prayed that it would be over with soon.

***************

Her body jerked in response to her dream and Lex opened her eyes. She raised up and looked around the room, although she already knew there was nobody else there. Looking at the clock, she could see that it was barely past 2:00 in the morning. Looking around for a moment, she suddenly had the urge to flee her room. She felt as if the walls were starting to close in on her.

“Oh great.” she mumbled to herself. “That’s all you need to do is go crazy while you’re here.”

She looked toward the door, wondering if Glen had gone to sleep yet. Surely it would be safe for her to leave her room for a little while. She crawled out of bed and tiptoed to the door. She opened it cautiously, almost expecting to see him camped out in the floor in front of her. She saw that the hallway was empty and the door to his room was closed. She could tell that the rest of the house was in complete darkness. She quietly left her room and closed her door. She went back to the living room and turned on one of the small table lamps. Then she worked on getting the fire started again. Once she had the fire blazing, she turned off the lamp and settled onto the couch, wrapping herself in the blanket once again.

She sat there and watched the flames dancing in the fireplace. They had always been a source of comfort to her, even as a little girl. There was just something about the way the fire flickered and the smell of the logs burning that brought her a sense of peace. She guessed that was the reason she had come here the past two nights. The fire helped take her mind off of her problems. She quickly became lost in her thoughts again, wondering how she was going to survive the next few days trapped in this house with Glen.

Chapter 46

Glen tossed and turned in his bed, trying to ease the ache in his heart. What little sleep he had gotten had been very restless, his dreams filled with images of Lex. He looked at the clock again and noticed the time. It was almost 3:00. He sat up in the bed and looked toward his door. This time yesterday, he had been curled up in the living room floor with Lex in his arms. He felt a surge of hope course through him as he looked at the clock again and then back at the door.

“Don’t be stupid.” he said to himself, as he climbed out of his bed. “Just because she was there last night doesn’t mean she’ll be there tonight.”

But even as the thought crossed his mind, he quickly slipped on his sweatpants and headed for the door. He slowly opened it and stepped out of his room. As he made his way down the hall, his heart pounded in his chest when he saw the light from the fireplace reflected on the wall of the living room. He remembered the fire had been out when he went to bed. He stopped when he reached the doorway and saw Lex sitting on the couch again. He felt the desperation begin to creep into his mind once again. He quickly pushed it aside. This was his last chance to get through to her and he wasn’t going to screw it up.

He approached her slowly, stopping when he was a few feet away from the couch. She still didn’t know he was in the room with her. Taking a deep breath, he finally spoke to her.

“Lex?”

Lex immediately jumped up from the couch and backed toward the fireplace. She looked around her desperately, trying to find something she could use for a weapon. She wasn’t about to let him take her without a fight.

Glen could see how afraid she was and he remained where he was standing.

“Lex. Please. I promise I won’t come any closer. Just listen to me for a minute.” he pleaded with her, hoping she would give him a chance to explain.

She eyed him suspiciously, really not wanting to hear what he had to say. She was tired of his lies.

“I’m so sorry about what happened earlier. I never meant to do anything to hurt you. That’s the last thing that I wanted to do.”

He hesitated for a moment, trying to figure out how to continue.

“I just needed to talk to you. I needed to make you understand.”

“Understand what? That you’re a jerk?” Lex thought, looking at him in confusion. What was he talking about?

Glen could see the confusion on her face. He continued, trying to find the right words to say.

“When you showed up at my door, I had no idea how my life was about to change. You brought something into my life that I didn’t even know was missing. You’ve reminded me of how good it feels to make other people happy. You made me realize how lonely I’ve been living out here all by myself. You have no idea how much I’ve grown to enjoy your company since you’ve been here. I couldn’t imagine what my life would be like anymore if you were gone.”

Lex stood still, staring at him in shock as she tried to comprehend what he was saying.

“I’m so sorry for everything you’ve had to go through.” he continued, moving a little closer to her. “But I believe that you were brought here for a reason. I think that we were meant to be together. I believe that it was fate that brought you to me that night.”

Glen took another step closer to her, taking another deep breath before he continued.

“When I grabbed you tonight…..I needed you to know….. What I tried to tell you….”

Lex looked at him, completely floored. Was he trying to say….?

“Dammit, Lex!” he finally sputtered in frustration. “I’ve fallen in love with you!”

Glen had crossed the rest of the distance between them, so that he was standing directly in front of her. Lex could only stare at him, suddenly feeling her knees grow weak again as his words finally registered in her mind.

Love her? He actually loved her? Had that been the look she had seen in his eyes? Is that why he had seemed so desperate, so anxious to make her listen to him. She felt the tears forming in her eyes again as she looked up at him. He loved her?

Glen reached out for her, slowly bringing his hands up to cup her face. Bending down, he kissed her gently on the forehead.

“I’m so sorry for tonight, Lex. I promise I’ll never do anything to hurt you again.”he whispered softly against her skin.

Lex felt all of her walls crumble around her. It was at that moment, she realized how much she had actually grown to care for him too. She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around his waist again, hugging him tight. Glen wrapped his arms around her shoulders, holding her just as tightly to his body. After a few moments, he removed his arms and gently pushed her away from him. Taking her hand, he led her back to the couch, sitting down and pulling her into his lap. She quickly snuggled into the warmth of his chest and he wrapped his arms around her once more, grateful that she was still willing to trust him after what he had done.

Chapter 47

Lex was still crying softly, his words still running through her mind. He loved her? She couldn’t believe that this was happening to her. How did she ever get lucky enough to find a man like him? She thought about what he had said about it being fate. She had to agree with him. Some force greater than the two of them could ever know had decided that they should be together. The morning after the attack, Lex had felt as if her life were already over. Now she realized that it had only just begun. And she was sure if Glen had anything to do about it, he would make it a wonderful one.

She suddenly felt guilty for the way she had treated him earlier. She had doubted his honesty and his motives towards her. She had actually been afraid that he was going to hurt her. How could she have thought that about him? He would never hurt her. She knew that now. She pulled away from him slightly and looked up at him.

“I’m sorry for what happened earlier.” she whispered softly. “I shouldn’t have run away from you like that.”

“It wasn’t your fault Lex. You had every right to be afraid of me. I know I frightened you again.” he replied.

Lex gazed up into his beautiful, blue eyes. Reaching up, she hesitantly touched his face, lightly running her fingertips down his cheek. Glen raised his hand and placed it over hers, pulling it away from his face and kissing it gently. Looking at her, he could still see a mixture of emotions running across her face. But this time there was no fear. She saw him staring at her again and she quickly averted her gaze to her lap.

“Do you trust me, Lex?” he whispered, hooking a finger under her chin and tilting her head up to look at him again. “Do you know that I would never do anything to hurt you?”

Lex hesitated a moment before she could bring herself to respond.

“Yes.” she said weakly, her emotions threatening to overwhelm her. “I do trust you.”

She realized she did trust him with all of her heart. She felt safe and secure when she was in his arms. She knew nothing in the world could harm her there.

Glen couldn’t hold back any longer. Cupping her cheek in his hand, he lowered his face to hers, kissing her lightly. His lips brushed gently across hers, his arms tightening around her body. His tongue lightly traced the outline of her bottom lip, nibbling on it gently before kissing her again. This time he deepened the kiss, urging her to part her lips to let him inside. Lex slowly ran her hands up his chest and wrapped her arms around his neck, overwhelmed by the sensations he was stirring within her. His lips were so soft and warm and his gentle touch was sending chills down her spine. Her lips parted for him and she felt his tongue slid into her mouth, dancing feverously against her own. After several minutes, Glen broke the kiss to study her face. She looked up at him with soft pleading eyes, needing him to kiss her again. Leaning back down he placed tiny feather-light kisses across her forehead and down her cheeks before capturing her lips in another passionate kiss.

Lex squirmed in his lap, trying to move closer to him and Glen helped her shift positions so that she was straddling him. He felt his desire rising within him again, and he struggled to contain it. He wanted her so badly his whole body ached, but he didn’t want to move too fast for fear of scaring her again. He wasn’t sure if she was ready to let things go that far.

Breaking the kiss again he looked down at her and smiled. He stroked her face with the back of his hand, loving the feel of her soft skin against his own. Lex leaned forward and rested her head on his shoulder. Glen hugged her close to him again, rubbing his hand across her back. He knew she had to be exhausted from all of the night’s events.

“Let’s go to bed.” he whispered to her softly, as he leaned down to kiss her on the cheek.

“Hang on.” he said with a chuckle, when he stood up from the couch and he felt her arms tighten around his neck. Her legs wrapped instinctively around his waist and he moaned silently as he felt her brush against his growing erection. He tried not to think about the position they were in as he walked across the room.

He carried her down the hall, this time taking her to his room. He laid her down gently in the bed, and released her long enough to slide in beside of her. Rolling to his side he reached out for her and pulled her close to him again. Running his fingers through her hair, he pulled her head back slightly, leaning over to kiss her again. It started out as a very soft and gentle kiss, but it quickly deepened into a passionate soul-searing kiss that left them both breathless. When Glen finally broke the kiss, Lex snuggled into the crook of his neck and closed her eyes.

“I love you!” he whispered softly to her, before they both drifted off to sleep.

Chapter 48

Lex stirred slightly in the bed, feeling something heavy draped across her legs. Opening her eyes, she slowly looked around her, remembering that Glen had brought her to his room last night. She noticed that there was a small amount of light coming from the direction of the window. She assumed it was still early and the sun hadn’t come up yet, but looking at the clock she noticed it was late in the morning. She smiled as she realized it was probably snowing again. After what had happened last night, she didn’t care if it ever stopped snowing. She would be content to stay here for the rest of her life.

She tried shifting her position again, the weight preventing her from moving very easily. Looking down, she saw one of Glen’s legs lying across both of hers and his arm was still wrapped around her waist, keeping her against him. She moved her head so that she could look up at him and she noticed that he was still asleep.

She studied his face, which seemed so peaceful and relaxed this morning. She didn’t see all the worry and anxiety that had been there last night. She still couldn’t get over how handsome he was. And it was even more incredible that she was laying here with him like this. She smiled when she recalled the previous night’s events. He had told her he loved her. Lex still found it so hard to believe, even though it made her the happiest person on the face of the earth.

Moving slowly, so as not to wake him, she moved out from under his leg and scooted up the bed until she was face to face with him. She stared at him for a moment longer, before leaning over and gently kissing him on the lips. She pressed her lips to his softly, then traced his bottom lip lightly with her tongue. She pulled back and giggled when she heard him moan and felt him move toward her. Slowly opening his eyes, he tightened his grip on her and smiled when he saw her beautiful face.

Quickly, he leaned forward and caught her lips in another kiss, rolling her onto her back. A low growl escaped from the back of his throat as he kissed her passionately, teasing her with his tongue and exploring every inch of her mouth. Her hands slowly caressed his arms before sliding up to the back of his neck. She entangled her fingers in his long hair, moaning softly as he continued his torture on her. Feeling himself on the verge of losing control, Glen reluctantly broke the kiss and pulled away.

Looking down at her, he tried to regain his breath.

“Good morning.” he said softly, leaning down again to nibble on her neck.

Lex squirmed in his arms and giggled again, as she felt his beard tickle her skin.

“Good morning.” she replied, removing her hands from his hair and running them slowly down his arms.

Glen raised his head to look at her. She looked a little tired this morning, her eyes slightly red and puffy from her tears, but she was still a beautiful sight for his eyes to see. He touched her face, stroking her softly with his fingertips. He brushed them slowly down her cheek, then lightly traced the outline of her lips before lowering his face to kiss her again.

He moved his hand to the back of her head, entwining his fingers in her hair and angling her head slightly to give him better access to her mouth. He quickly deepened the kiss, teasing her with his tongue once more.

Pulling away again, he left a soft trail of kisses down her jaw line, moving toward her ear. He gently nibbled the soft skin, feeling her move against him when he hit a sensitive spot right beneath her ear. She whimpered and moved toward him again, when he continued to tease her there. He moaned when he felt her body arch upward against his. His erection was already hard and throbbing between his legs, his desire for her reaching the breaking point. He continued to lick and tease the tender skin of her neck and ear, wondering how far she would be willing to let him go.

Chapter 49

He nibbled a path down her neck, toward the hollow of her throat. He traced it lightly with the tip of his tongue, before raising his head to kiss her again.

Lex moaned softly, her senses reeling from his gentle onslaught of kisses. Her surroundings completely forgotten, she was only aware of his lips and the sweet torment they were inflicting upon her.

She squirmed in his arms again when he broke the kiss once more and moved to the other side of her neck, licking and teasing it in the same way he had treated the other side. He removed his hand from her hair, slowly caressing her face, moving downward toward her shoulder. He ran his fingers lightly up and down her arm, which was still wrapped tightly around his neck. He traced the outline of her ear with his tongue and Lex shivered as she felt his warm breath against her skin.

Glen moved his hand lower, running it slowly up and down the side of her body as she continued to squirm beneath him. Her responses to his touch were driving him insane. He needed more, wanting to explore every inch of her. Running his hand down her side again, he found the hem of her t-shirt. He moved his hand underneath it, pausing for a moment before moving it back up her body. He groaned when his hand came in contact with her smooth skin, feeling her move against him once more. He ran his hand upward across her ribs, stopping when he reached the underside of her breast. He then moved his hand back down to her waist, following the same path he had just taken. He wanted her to get used to him touching her like this before he carried things any further.

He repeated the process several times, each time moving his hand farther up her breast, coming close, but never touching her nipple. After a while, he felt that she was ready for more. Moving his hand up her body again, he ran his hand across her breast, brushing against the soft nub and causing it to harden at his touch. Lex whimpered loudly against his lips as he continued to kiss her, her body arching against his hand. He continued to tease her, stroking her with his thumb and causing more sounds to escape from her lips.

Glen broke the kiss once more, trying desperately to retain his self-control. Removing his hand from her breast, he grabbed the hem of her shirt, urging her to raise up so he could pull it over her head. He pulled it off, then pressed her back down into the bed as he kissed her once more. The feel of skin against skin was almost enough to send him over the edge. Lex moaned as she felt the heat from his body cover hers. She could feel the hardness of his chest as his weight pressed her deeper into the mattress. She returned his kiss passionately, timidly running her hands down his sides and up his back, feeling his muscles jerk in response to her touch.

Pulling his lips away from hers once more, he left another trail of kisses down her throat and chest, stopping when he reached her breast. Sliding his arms beneath her to pull her closer, he flicked his tongue lightly across her nipple before taking it into his mouth. Lex arched upward once more, crying out as the new sensations flooded her body. Her fingers entwined in his hair and she tugged gently as he continued to lick and suck on her swollen nipple. Moving to her other breast, he continued the same torture, nearly losing control again as he felt her body arching and jerking beneath him.

Moving upward again, he captured her lips in another passionate kiss. His hands running slowly over her body, he caressed her breasts again, still teasing her hardened nipples, before moving his fingers downward toward the waist band of her pants. Sliding his hand beneath the material, he moved lower, searching for her soft folds. Dipping his fingers a little lower, he found what he was looking for, groaning to himself when he felt how hot and wet she was. He began to stroke her gently, running his finger lightly across her outer lips and he felt her immediately stiffen in his arms.

Quickly removing his hand, he broke the kiss and brought his hand to her face, urging her to look at him.

“Lex.” he breathed softly against her skin, his voice desperate and filled with need. “Please, darlin’. Don’t push me away now. Just relax and let me show you how much I love you.”

Lex opened her eyes and met his gaze, overwhelmed by the love she saw in his eyes. She hadn’t intended for things to move this fast, but with one kiss he had been able to remove all of her fears and send her senses spiraling out of control. The sensations he was creating were leaving her breathless and she desperately wanted to feel more. But she was still unable to suppress her slight apprehension when she realized exactly where things were going. She looked into his eyes again, her emotions raging inside of her as she tried to decide whether or not to let him continue. Slowly, she raised her head, capturing his lips in a soft kiss. He returned her movements, pressing her against the pillow. Lex willed her body to relax and enjoy his touch. She knew that he wouldn’t do anything to cause her any pain.

After several minutes, Glen broke the kiss and looked down at her, searching for an answer.

“Do you trust me, Lex?” he asked, brushing his lips across hers gently. “Will you let me love you?”

“Yes!” she whispered, nodding her head as she wrapped her arms around him once more.

Chapter 50

He felt his heart nearly leap from his chest, when he realized that she was willing to let him continue. He immediately warned himself to take his time and be easy with her, so as not to frighten her again.

Rising up, he slowly ran his hands down her body, stopping when he reached her sweatpants. Hooking his fingers beneath the material, he slowly pulled them off and tossed them on the floor. He gazed at her hungrily, enjoying the view of her naked body.

He laid down beside her on the bed, pulling her into his arms and holding her close. He gently kissed and nuzzled her neck and throat as his hands slowly caressed her. When he felt that she was completely relaxed again, he began to move his hand lower, reaching for her soft folds once more. He stroked her lightly before he buried his finger within them searching for the hardened nub he knew was there. She bucked against his hand when he found it, burying her face against his neck and crying out softly when he continued to touch her there. His one arm was still wrapped around her and he held her to him tightly as he continued to tease her.

After several minutes, he removed his hand and pulled away from her. Leaning over, he attacked her breasts again, licking and sucking her nipples once more. Then he moved lower, tracing small circles on her stomach with his tongue as he continued his path downward. Still ignoring his own painful arousal that was throbbing incessantly between his legs, he moved even lower, wanting to taste her. He spread her legs apart, leaning forward and running his tongue up and down her wet slit. He pulled her folds apart gently with his fingers, searching again for her hidden spot. Her body arched upward against him violently when he found it, a loud cry escaping from her lips. He continued to lick and tease her, enjoying her response to his touch.

Lex reached out for him, entwining her fingers in his hair as she moved against him. She had never felt anything this intense before in her life and he was driving her insane. She whimpered and pleaded with him as he continued to touch her, needing to feel more.

Bringing his other hand forward, he slide one of his fingers inside of her, moaning when he felt how tight and wet she really was. He withdrew it slowly before pushing inside of her again. Lex bucked her hips against each movement, moaning when she felt him add a second finger. He continued to move his fingers in and out of her wetness, trying to hold her hips still as he continued to lick on her swollen clit. Her cries became louder and more desperate and Glen knew she was close to her release. He increased his pace, wanting to feel her come apart beneath his lips and hands. Finally, he felt her bow up off of the bed, a loud cry escaping her lips as she tugged painfully on his hair.

“YES!” his mind screamed, feeling her release course through her body.

He removed his fingers from her and replaced them with his tongue, needing to taste her. After a few minutes, he pulled himself up and looked at her. Her head was thrown back and her eyes were shut, her breath coming in ragged pants. He didn’t think he had ever seen a sexier sight in his entire life. He moved so he was facing her again and captured her lips in another kiss. When he broke the kiss, Lex opened her eyes to look at him. Glen placed a small kiss on the end of her nose before standing up from the bed.

Lex watched him, wondering where he was going. Her questions disappeared a minute later when she saw him remove his sweatpants. She slowly gazed over his naked body, thinking back to that first day she had seen in working out in the gym. He was every bit as beautiful as she imagined him to be. Her eyes settled on his erection, which was standing upright between his legs. He was huge! Lex couldn’t shake the slight feeling of apprehension that was creeping back into her mind as she watched him. She tried to tell herself that it would be alright, that he wouldn’t hurt her.

Chapter 51

Glen approached the bed again, laying down beside of her. He could see the apprehension in her face and he wanted her to relax again before he continued. He pulled her to him and kissed her again. Lex moaned when she felt his hardness pressing against her thigh. Breaking the kiss, he nipped at her neck softly as his hands teased her breasts again. Once he felt that she was completely at ease, he moved over her, positioning himself between her legs. He pushed forward slowly, feeling her tense slightly when he entered her. He continued on, pausing when he was fully sheathed within her. Fighting to keep himself under control, he gave her time to get used to his size. He leaned down to kiss her again before withdrawing and pushing forward again.

Any remaining doubts that Lex had all disappeared when she felt him moving inside of her. She squirmed helplessly beneath him as he continued to move within her, the sensations nearly driving her insane.

He groaned loudly at the feel of her squirming and writhing beneath him. He tried to keep his pace slow and gentle so as not to hurt her, but her movements were slowly destroying every ounce of his control. He began to move faster, feeling the tension building within him. Lex cried out with every thrust, trying desperately to meet his movements. Finally, he felt her whole body start to tremble before she plunged headlong into an intense orgasm. What little control he had left disappeared, her cries and moans driving him to the edge. He gave a loud shout as he felt his own release course through his body, emptying himself deep within her. He collapsed on top of her, completely spent as he tried to regain his breath.

Finally coming back down to earth, he realized he had to move off of her before he crushed her with his weight. He raised up, intending to roll to his side but Lex quickly grabbed him by the shoulders.

“Please don’t go.” she whispered softly, thinking that he intended to leave the bed.

He smiled as he looked down at her.

“I’m not going anywhere.” he replied with a weak chuckle, bending to kiss her on the forehead. “Just let me move off of you before I hurt you.”

He rolled to his side and immediately pulled her close to him. Lex snuggled into the warmth of his chest again.

“Are you alright?” he asked her softly, concerned that she was so quiet.

“Never been better.” she replied, trying to move closer to him.

He closed his eyes, savoring the feel of her in his arms, reliving in his mind the passion they had just shared. He was so thankful that she had been willing to trust him. He hoped that it made her realize how much he truly loved her. He smiled as the thought crossed his mind. He would have to find out whether or not he got his point across. Otherwise, he would just have to show her again. He chuckled to himself as he hugged her tight. It was definitely going to be a good day!

Chapter 52

Lex and Glen dozed together for awhile, completely relaxed after their passionate bout of lovemaking. When Glen finally opened his eyes, he smiled when he saw Lex still asleep, her naked body pressed close to his. He moved his hand and slowly ran it down her side and across the smooth curve of her hip, enjoying the feel of her smooth skin. His smile grew larger when he remembered how she had responded to him earlier. His encounter with her had been better than he could have ever imagined. She had given herself to him completely, cementing the trust she had place in him. He couldn’t have asked her to give him anything more than she did.

He brought his hand to her arm, running his fingers lightly up and down her soft skin. He noticed a bruise located on her upper arm near her shoulder and he wondered for a moment where it had come from, until he realized it probably came from him. He didn’t think he had grabbed her that hard. He realized now why she had suddenly become so afraid of him in the kitchen last night. He had really hurt her. He traced it lightly with his fingers as he leaned toward her and kissed her on the forehead.

“I’m so sorry, baby. I promise it will never happen again.” he whispered softly against her hair.

Lex felt him touching her and she began to stir in his arms.

He gently cupped her face in his hand and turned her to face him. He kissed her softly on the lips, hugging her close to him. Lex opened her eyes and met his gaze, smiling when she saw his face. She didn’t think she had ever awakened to a more wonderful sight.

“How are you feeling?” he asked her, leaning down to nip at her neck again.

“Tired.” she replied, stretching her arms above her head as her stomach gave a loud rumble. “And hungry.” she added with a laugh.

Glen smiled at her. “Well, we can’t have you going hungry now, can we? You’ve got to keep your strength up. I’ve got big plans for you.”

Lex smiled back at him, blushing slightly. She wondered exactly what his big plans consisted of.

“Let’s go to the kitchen. I’ll make you breakfast.” he said, sitting up in the bed. Lex watched as he pulled the covers back and stood up, once again revealing his magnificent body to her. Lex couldn’t help but stare at him, remembering how wonderful he had been to her earlier. She had never felt anything that incredible in her entire life. She wondered how he could possibly make her feel that good. She was definitely looking forward to their next encounter.

Glen put on his sweatpants and turned to look at Lex. She quickly tried to avert her gaze so that he didn’t catch her staring at him. Seeing her laying there in his bed, covered in nothing but a sheet was almost enough to drive him back over the edge. For a moment, he was almost tempted to forget about breakfast and dive back in bed with her.

“Are you coming with me?” he asked, holding out his hand for her.

Lex hesitated for a moment, knowing that she was completely naked underneath the covers. Slowly, she scooted to the edge of the mattress, then stood up, letting the sheet fall back on the bed. Glen felt his breath catch in his throat as he saw her standing before him completely nude. He reached out for her, pulling her to him again. He leaned down to kiss her and Lex moaned as she felt his warm arms wrap around her waist. Glen deepened the kiss, holding her tight against him, his desire quickly raging out of control again. When they finally broke the kiss, Lex pulled away and looked up at him, her stomach growling again.

“Glen?” she whispered softly, grinning up at him. “Breakfast. Remember?”

He stared down at her for a moment before he spoke. “If you want breakfast then you better hurry and get dressed. Otherwise the only place we’re going is back in that bed.” he replied, reaching for her again.

Lex grinned at him and dodged his hands, as she looked around the floor for her clothes.

“Okay! Okay! Just help me find my clothes.” she giggled, unsure of what he had done with them when he took them off of her.

Glen found her t-shirt and tossed it to her, then walked around to the other side of the bed to get her sweatpants. He actually hated to give them back to her but he didn’t want her to get sick running around his cabin with no clothes on. Besides, he was looking forward to taking them off of her again later.

Lex finished getting dressed and they headed to the kitchen to eat.

Chapter 53

Somehow the couple managed to cook their breakfast. Glen was unable to keep his hands off of her, reaching out to touch her every time he walked past her. But Lex didn’t mind. She was completely at ease around him now. After this morning, she didn’t think she could ever be afraid of him again. He had been so gentle and loving with her, being so careful not to hurt her. She knew now how much he really cared for her.

When the food was ready, they sat down at the table to eat. Lex smiled when she looked out the window and spotted the birdfeeder again. Now she knew why he had gone through so much trouble to surprise her. She wondered how long he had been hiding his true feelings. She still found it so hard to believe that he actually wanted to be with her.

Lex had never believed in love at first sight. She thought that those things only happened in fairy tales. She thought that it took a lot of time to get to know someone enough to fall in love with them. But after being with Glen, she knew that wasn’t the case. Even though she had only known him for a matter of days, she felt like she had known him forever. Now she couldn’t imagine her life without him.

Glen saw her watching him and he returned her smile. He thought she looked amazing this morning. Her face was full of life, and she looked so relaxed for a change. As beautiful as she had been last night, wearing that short black dress, he thought she looked even more beautiful now. To see her in such a natural state, her hair down and tussled and her face clean of makeup, drove him crazy.

“What are you thinking about?” she asked him softly, noticing that he was staring at her.

“I was thinking about how sexy you look right now.” he said with a grin, noticing her blush at his words.

Lex looked down at herself, trying to imagine how she looked from his point of view.

“I look like I just crawled out of bed.” she said, looking back at him.

“Exactly!” he replied with a chuckle as Lex blushed again.

“How did you sleep last night?” Glen asked, relieving some of her embarrassment. “Did you have any more of your dreams?”

Lex nodded her head. “I had one early last night. That’s why I was in the living room when you found me. I couldn’t go back to sleep.”

“I’m sure I didn’t help matters with that stunt I pulled after dinner.” he replied. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t realize that I had physically hurt you until I noticed the bruise on your arm this morning. I guess it’s easy for me to forget my own strength sometimes. I promise I’ll be more careful from now on.”

Lex reached out and placed her hand over his.

“It’s alright. I know you didn’t intentionally mean to hurt me. I probably overreacted anyway. Stop worrying about it. I forgive you.”

“Besides..” she continued. “You more than made up for it this morning.”

Glen smiled at her words. “Oh, I promise you I intend to make it up to you, over and over and over again.”

Lex met his gaze, still grinning at him. She was actually looking forward to him keeping his promise.

Chapter 54

They finished breakfast and Lex insisted on helping Glen clean up the kitchen. The dishes from the night before still hadn’t been washed and with the dirty dishes from breakfast added to them, the countertops were starting to get full. Glen worked beside of her, drying the dishes and putting them away, repeatedly stealing glances at her every chance he got. He was anxious to be done so he could take her back to bed. Lex occasional looked up at him, meeting his gaze. Each time her eyes met his, she felt her heart melt a little more. She could tell by the looks he was giving her what he was thinking about. She wanted to be back in his arms just as bad.

When they were finally done, Glen threw his towel on the counter and grabbed Lex around the waist. He leaned down to kiss her, pressing her back against the sink as he did so. Lex immediately laced her arms around his neck, moaning softly against his lips. Glen bent down to pick her up but she broke the kiss and squirmed free. “Oh no you don’t!” she giggled, as she pulled away from him. “I’m perfectly capable of walking, thank you very much! You don’t have to carry me all over this house!”

“But you need to save your energy for other things!” he chuckled, as he grabbed her wrist and pulled her gently against him.

“I don’t think walking through the house will take that much out of me.” she replied before kissing him quickly on the cheek.

“Maybe not.” Glen replied, a sly smile spreading across his face. “But we better not take any chances!”

He quickly bent down and scooped her up in his arms and headed toward the doorway. Lex laughed out loud as she tightened her grip around his neck. He carried her back down the hall toward his room, gently laying her down in the center of his bed. When he released her, Lex quickly rolled to the edge, scrambling to get away from him. Glen plopped down on the bed beside of her and quickly grabbed her by the waist, pulling her back toward him. Still laughing, Lex rolled over and looked up at him. He cupped her face in his hand, while lowering his head to kiss her again. Lex passionately returned his kiss, slowly running her hands across his back. His hand moved down her body, finding the hem of her shirt before running his hand underneath it and searching for her breast. He brushed his fingertips lightly across the nipple and he groaned loudly when he felt Lex arch against his hand. Finally breaking the kiss, he raised his head to look at her. Lex was looking up at him, grinning madly as she reached up to caress the side of his face.

“I hate to make you stop what you’re doing but I’d really like to go take a shower first.” she said softly as she continued to stroke his face.

“Please.” she gasped when she felt his fingers tug gently on her nipple.

Reluctantly, Glen removed his hand and let her sit up. “I promise I won’t be long.” she said as she placed a quick kiss on his cheek before getting up from the bed. “I’ll be right back.” she added as she left the room.

Glen watched her walk out the door, wondering whether or not he should follow her. He finally decided against it. He didn’t want to push too much on her too soon, although the thought of showering with her was definitely a pleasant one. He decided that he would take one in his own bathroom while she was gone. Getting up, he went into the bathroom and turned on the water. Then stepping under the spray, he washed off quickly, wanting to be finished by the time Lex came back.

*********

Lex finished her shower and quickly dried off. She brushed out her hair, then brushed her teeth. Looking down, she wondered if she should bother putting any clothes back on. She knew Glen was waiting for her in his room. Walking into her room, she grabbed a clean t-shirt and pulled it over her head. She still felt a little self-conscious about walking around the house completely nude. Then she headed back to Glen’s room.

Chapter 55

When she walked through the doorway, Lex saw Glen reclining against the headboard, reading a book. His body from the waist down was hidden beneath the covers, but Lex assumed that he was probably naked underneath. Looking at him, she realized that he must have taken a shower too. His hair was still damp and it hung loose around his face, the water dripping from the loose curls onto the sheets. It was just like the images she had seen on his tapes. Lex felt a surge of desire course through her as she remembered how sexy he had looked in his costume, how strong and powerful he had been in the ring. She suddenly felt out of place. She certainly wasn’t pretty enough to be deserving of a man this handsome.

Glen tossed the book to the floor when he saw Lex enter his room. He smiled when he saw the way she was looking at him. It was the same look he had seen that day in the living room when he had dressed up as Kane to surprise her. He watched her gaze travel slowly over his body again, the awe and wonder evident in her eyes. He raised his arm and reached for her, a silent invitation for her to join him on the bed.

Lex smiled at him again and slowly walked toward the bed. She took his hand as she sat down on the edge of the bed facing him.

“Do you feel better?” he asked her softly, reaching out to touch her face again.

“Much better.” she replied, still watching him.

“Good. Now where were we?” he asked as he leaned forward to kiss her again.

He reached out and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her against him once more. He brushed his lips lightly against her, then nipped gently at her lower lip, teasing her. Lex reached up and entwined her fingers in his hair, trying to pull his head down to hers. Her lips parted beneath his when he intensified the kiss, willingly letting him in as he explored her mouth. She moaned against his lips as she tried to move closer to him. Glen held her tight as he plundered her mouth, thoroughly enjoying her response to him. Finally pulling away from her, he looked down at her and smiled.

Changing positions so he could lay down on the bed, he tugged on her arm gently, wanting her to join him. Lex remained where she was, unable to take her eyes off of him. Glen reached out for her hand, bringing it to his lips and kissing it gently.

Slowly, Lex began to move toward him. But instead of lying down beside of him, she shifted positions so she was straddling his waist. She settled into a comfortable position as she continued to gaze over his gorgeous body. He had made her feel so good earlier that morning and she wanted to return the favor. She was dying to run her hands over his perfect body and please him in the same way he had pleased her.

Reaching out, she slowly ran her hands up his stomach and across his chest, brushing lightly across his nipples as she moved. Glen shuddered beneath her when he felt the tentative way she was touching him. Lex leaned down to kiss him again, her tongue traveling past his lips to explore his mouth, her movements slow and uncertain. Glen moaned silently beneath her as he felt her tongue stroking his. He tried to remain still and let her proceed at her own pace but he was dying to reach out and take control. The way she was touching him was driving him crazy.

Lex broke the kiss and sat up, her hands traveling over his chest again, enjoying the feel of his firm muscles and smooth skin beneath her fingers. Leaning down she kissed him lightly on the stomach, then lightly swirled her tongue in small circles on his skin. She worked her way back up his chest, alternating between gentle kisses and light flicks of her tongue, moving at a torturously slow pace that was driving Glen out of his mind. He gripped the sheets tightly in his hands, trying to will himself to remain still for her.

When she reached his chest again, she moved toward his nipple, running her tongue across it lightly before sucking it into her mouth. Glen let out a loud moan, unable to hold back any longer as he arched toward her touch. Lex felt a wave of arousal wash through her as she watched his reaction. With a renewed sense of confidence she approached his other nipple, teasing it in the same way. She could feel how tense his body was beneath hers, as he tried to keep himself under control. She grinned as she wondered how much it would take to make him lose it.

Moving upward, she kissed him passionately again, deliberately squirming against him as she did so. Breaking the kiss, she moved to his neck and his ears, nibbling and licking his smooth skin as her fingers moved to lightly pinch his sensitive nipples again. She grinned when she felt him buck against her once more.

Finally gaining more courage, she scooted lower down his body, her moist center brushing against his hardened member, which was pulsating strongly beneath the sheets. She leaned down and traced her tongue down his stomach again, paying extra attention to his navel. She placed her hand on his leg just above his knee and began to run it slowly up his leg. When she reached the top of his thigh she moved her hand so that it brushed against his hardness. Glen was unable to stifle the loud groan that escaped from his lips as she caressed him there. She placed her hand over top of him, rubbing him up and down through the thin material of the sheet. Glen moaned again and gripped the sheets even tighter as she continued to tease him.

Thrilled with his reaction, Lex finally removed her hand and pulled the sheet away, exposing his huge erection to her full view. She reached out and touched him again, her fingers lightly caressing the swollen head before wrapping her hand around him again. Glen moaned even louder, his hips bucking involuntarily against her hand as she began to stroke him. Lex looked up at him as she touched him, smiling when she saw him. His head was thrown back, his eyes were tightly shut and he was panting harshly as he moved against her. Looking back down at his hardened shaft, she leaned forward and lapped at him with her tongue before taking him into her mouth completely. She sucked up and down on him, feeling his cock surge with each stroke. Slowly finding a rhythm, she began to increase her pace.

Glen writhed in ecstasy beneath her, unable to hold back any longer. He began to meet her movements, gasping for breath as her mouth continued to caress him. He began to groan louder, reaching out with his hand to grasp the back of her head as she continued to move. He knew he should stop her-he wanted so bad to please her before he allowed himself to cum-but she was driving him out of his mind. All he could do was lay there and feel the intense pleasure she was giving him. He moaned loudly again, feeling his release approaching quickly. He increased his thrusts, trying to match her movements as she drove him closer to the edge. Finally, he was there and he bowed off the bed, crying out for her as the wave of pleasure overtook him. Lex continued to suck on him, wanting to taste everything he could give her. When he finally collapsed back onto the bed, she released him and sat up to look at him.

His head was thrown back and his eyes were still closed as he struggled to catch his breath. Moving off of him, she stretched out beside him on the bed, running her hand lightly back up his body, feeling his heart beating furiously inside his chest. Forcing himself to open his eyes, he met her gaze again. With another moan, he rolled toward her, taking her into his arms and hugging her tight. Lex closed her eyes and snuggled closer to him, feeling rather proud of herself for a job well done. She would definitely have to try that again soon!

Chapter 56

Lex laid there for several minutes, feeling herself start to doze off again. Just as she was about to drift off to sleep, she felt Glen began to stir, running his hands along her body. She pulled back enough to look up at him and she was surprised to see him grinning at her.

“What?” she giggled innocently when she saw him.

“Woman, do you have any idea what you do to me?” he said with a chuckle.

“No. Please tell me.” Lex replied, batting her eyelashes playfully at him.

Glen shook his head. “I’d rather show you.” he said, quickly rolling over and pinning her beneath him. Lex saw the way he was looking at her and realized immediately that she was in trouble, but she found that she was rather looking forward to it.

Glen captured her lips in a passionate kiss, his tongue dueling with hers inside her warm mouth. He kissed her over and over again, until Lex was squirming helplessly beneath him, whimpering with need against his lips. Finally coming up for air, he moved to her neck and throat, kissing, nipping and licking her gently. He then moved to her ear, paying extra attention to the sensitive spot behind it. Lex groaned softly as her body arched against him. Glen continued to lick and kiss her as his hand found its way underneath her shirt once more. He moved to cup her breast, teasing the nipple and making it harden beneath his fingers. He brushed his thumb across it several times before pinching it gently between his fingers. Lex cried out softly and arched against his hand.

Glen removed his hand and pulled away from her long enough to help her remove her shirt. Throwing it to the floor, he leaned down to attack her breasts once more, this time with his lips and tongue. Lex writhed frantically beneath him as he continued his gentle torture, her cries and moans getting continuously getting louder and more desperate. Once he was done teasing her there, he began to move lower down her body, nipping at the soft skin around her belly button before moving lower between her legs. Spreading her thighs apart, he moved closer to her, using his tongue to tease her already drenched center. Spreading her folds, he searched for the small hidden bud that was buried there. He used his tongue to lightly stroke it, and he felt Lex arch and jerk against him with each movement as she continued to cry out in pleasure. He continued to tease her, keeping his pace slow and steady and his touch light and fleeting. Lex groaned in frustration as she felt her need growing stronger. She wound her fingers tightly through his hair, trying to encourage him to increase his pace. He ignored her protests for a long while, but he finally took pity on her and began to move in faster strokes. He felt Lex began to buck against him as she felt her release quickly building inside of her. When he felt her getting really close, he slowed his pace again, much to Lex’s dismay. She squirmed frantically beneath him, desperately trying to get him to continue his torture.

Slowly pulling away from her, he slid back up her body, rubbing his hands across her hardened nipples once more. By this time he was fully erect again, her cries and moans arousing him beyond belief. Positioning himself at her entrance, he pushed forward slowly, feeling her immediately raise her hips to meet his movements. He groaned as he felt her wetness surround him again, her passage almost painfully tight around his shaft. When he was completely inside of her, he began to thrust in and out of her, slowly at first then more rapidly as he felt his control begin to slip away once more. Lex raised her hips to meet each one of his powerful thrusts, crying out with each movement as he continued to push her toward her release. His thrusts became harder and more urgent as he realized how close she was.

Raising up on his knees, he grabbed her hips tightly as he plunged into her over and over again. He kept his eyes focused on her face, wanting to watch her fall apart in his hands. Suddenly, she threw her head back and let out a loud cry as her orgasm overtook her. The sight of her in such ecstasy was more than he could stand and he quickly followed her over the edge. He tried to steady himself on his knees as the waves washed over him, and he forced his eyes open so he could look at Lex once more as he came down from his incredible high. She was still panting hard beneath him, the aftershocks of pleasure still coursing through her body. He withdrew from her and moved to lie down beside of her. He pulled the covers up over them, then pulled Lex against him. She opened her eyes and met his gaze again as he pulled her close.

“Now you know what you do to me.” he said with a weak chuckle as he hugged her tight.

Lex smiled as she snuggled into his chest, closing her eyes and drifting off to sleep once again.

Chapter 57

Lex stirred slightly in the bed, snuggling into the warm body lying next to her. Glen was on his side, with Lex still wrapped in his arms, holding her so tight against his chest she thought he might involuntarily crush her. She smiled as she buried her face into the crook of his neck, breathing in his scent. She didn’t think she had ever felt so peaceful and relaxed in her life. She was determined not to move from this spot until Glen made her.

Lex closed her eyes, perfectly content to lay there and simply enjoy the feeling of him next to her. He was such an incredible man; so kind and thoughtful. And a great lover too! Lex smiled again as she recalled their earlier bouts of lovemaking. Nobody had ever made her feel the way Glen did. She had no idea that such pinnacles of pleasure existed. But as much as she enjoyed being with him, the emotions that he stirred within her frightened her. She had never had feelings this strong for another person before and the intensity of them scared her. She had such a need and desire for him that it was almost overwhelming. She didn’t know how she would ever survive if he were to disappear out of her life.

As the wheels in her mind began to turn, Lex wondered what would happen now, once the snow melted. She hated the thought of having to be away from him for any amount of time. But even if he wanted her to stay with him, he would still have to leave her to return to work. She knew how much he enjoyed what he did. There was no way she could ever let him give that up, even if he wanted to. So what would they do? Lex tried to shake the thoughts from her mind. She wouldn’t let them cloud her happiness right now.

Lex pulled away from Glen’s chest slightly and studied his face. Reaching out, she traced her fingertips across his temple and down his cheek until she reached his lips. She smiled as she remembered how good those lips had made her feel. Glen awakened at her touch, opening his eyes and looking at her. He immediately smiled at the sight before him. He didn’t think he would ever tire of seeing her face. He raised his hand and entwined his fingers through her hair, pulling her to him in a passionate kiss. Lex moaned softly as his lips claimed hers. They continued the kiss for several minutes until they both became breathless and were forced to part. Pulling away from her, Glen gazed at her intently. Lex smiled up at him, blushing as she watched him. She knew what he was thinking about.

Finally, Glen released her and sat up in the bed and stretched.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve slept this much in one day!” he chuckled, looking back down at Lex. “You’ve got to learn to take it easy on me. I’m not so young anymore.”

Lex blushed at his words, as she reached out and touched his arm. Glen grabbed her hand and pulled gently, encouraging her to sit up.

“Guess what?” he said with a grin, as he wrapped one of his arms around her shoulders.

“You’re hungry again.” Lex replied with a small laugh.

“Ah! You know me so well!” he answered, as he pulled back the covers and stood up. He found his sweatpants and put them on before turning back to Lex.

“You’re going to have to pace yourself. If you keep eating at this rate, we’ll run out of food before we can get to the store.” she said, never taking her eyes off of him as he dressed.

“No danger in that. You know how much I love food. I always keep the cabinets well stocked.” he laughed as he moved toward her again. “Come on. Let’s go eat. We both have to keep our strength up!”

Lex leaned over the edge of the bed and grabbed her t-shirt. She slipped it over her head, giving Glen a quick glimpse of her breasts, before she climbed out of the bed. She went back to her room and slipped on a pair of sweatpants before joining him in the hall.

They walked back to the kitchen and Lex watched Glen search through the cabinets as he tried to decide what to fix. Lex walked to the pantry and searched through the boxes and cans that were stacked inside.

“How about some soup and a sandwich?” she asked, holding up a can as she turned to Glen.

“Sounds good to me.” he replied. Lex grabbed another can of soup and headed to the stove. Glen came towards her to help, but Lex shooed him away.

“You just go sit down and rest. You need to save your strength. You’re not such a young thing anymore, remember?” Lex said, teasing him.

Glen laughed at her as he walked to the table and sat down. He watched Lex work, noticing that she had already become very familiar with his kitchen. She knew where most of the items were kept, and she moved around as if she had been here forever.

As he watched her work, he too wondered what was going to happen between them when the snow melted. Not only that, but he would have to return to work soon. Then he would be gone for three or four days at a time. He hated to think about being away from her for that long. He realized that they needed to talk about their future. They needed to decide what they were going to do.

Glen watched Lex as she walked to the refrigerator and gathered the ingredients for the sandwiches. He realized that he wanted her to stay here with him. He didn’t think he would ever let another woman live underneath his roof, but he wanted Lex by his side. He wanted to make this house her home too. But then he thought about her staying here by herself when he was gone. He knew that after the rape, she would probably be reluctant to stay anywhere by herself, especially somewhere this far out of the way. Maybe it wasn’t fair to expect her to give up her home and her life to move somewhere where she didn’t feel safe. He dreaded the night when he wouldn’t be there to hold her in his arms and protect her. He realized that leaving her would be one of the hardest things he would ever have to do in his life. He just hoped that their relationship would stand up to the stress of being apart for several days at a time.

His thoughts were interrupted by Lex, as she placed his food on the table in front of him.

”There you go!” she said, smiling at him. “Now make sure you eat it all. You have to keep your strength up!”

Glen forced himself to smile, trying to hide the feelings of worry and dread that were creeping into his mind. He decided that when dinner was finished, they needed to have a serious talk about their future together.

Chapter 58

Lex sat down at the table with Glen and they ate their meal together. Lex smiled as she looked outside and saw the birds eating out of the feeder, remembering the day that Glen had surprised her with it. She looked back at Glen and caught him staring at her.

“What?” Lex asked, noticing the strange look he had on his face.

Glen smiled as he shook his head and turned his gaze out the window.

“Look’s like its finally stopped snowing.” he said, while looking out at the sky. “I think this storm is finally headed out of here.”

Lex couldn’t suppress the feeling of sadness that came over her as he said those words. She hated the thought of having to go back to her old life. These past few days had seemed like some unbelievable dream and she was afraid that once she left this place, she would find out that’s all it ever was. Just a dream.

Glen couldn’t help but notice her sudden change in mood. He wondered if she was thinking about the same things that he was. They finished eating their meal in silence, both of them afraid to speak the words that each one of them wanted to ask. When they were done, they cleaned up the kitchen, then Glen took Lex by the hand and led her into the living room. Lex took a seat on the couch and watched Glen as he went to the fireplace to start a fire. When he was done, he went back to the couch and took a seat beside Lex, pulling her into his arms and holding her close. They sat there for a while in silence, just enjoying each others company. Finally, Glen worked up enough courage to speak.

“Lex?” he asked softly, afraid for a minute that she might have dozed off again. “I think we need to talk.”

Lex felt her heart stop at his words, fearing the worst. Maybe she had thought right. Maybe it was all a dream. She reluctantly sat up so she could face Glen, afraid of what she might see in his eyes.

Glen sensed her fears and he immediately reached out and pulled her close again. “Not that kind of talk.” he chuckled softly as he hugged her. “But we do need to talk.”

Lex took a deep breath as she looked at him once more. “Alright. What do we need to talk about?”

“About us.” he replied softly, reaching out to stroke her cheek with his fingers. “If this storm has finally ended, it won’t be long until the snow starts to melt and the roads will be cleared. What are we going to do when that happens? As much as I’d like to, we can’t stay hidden away in this cabin forever. We need to figure out what we’re going to do.”

“I’ve been thinking about that too.” Lex replied softly. “What do you think we should do?”

“Honestly?” Glen said with a small grin as he gently played with Lex’s hair. “I want you to stay here with me.”

“Really?” Lex replied, unable to suppress the look of surprise that crossed her face. “You want me to move in here with you?”

“Well, that’s what I would like to happen.” Glen answered. “But I think there are a few things that you should consider before we make any snap decisions.”

“Like what?” Lex asked, as she still tried to comprehend what he was saying.

“Well, for starters, I’m going to have to go back to work in about a week. I’ll usually be gone at least three or four days every week. That means that if you move in here, you’ll be here by yourself at night. I’m sure that after what happened to you, you may not be comfortable staying by yourself for a while. And this place is very secluded. There are no neighbors close by to help you and if it were to come another snow like this while I’m gone, there’s a good chance you would have to stay here by yourself for several days until I could make it home.”

“I guess I really hadn’t thought about all that.” Lex replied as she tried to take in everything he was saying. He had certainly been doing a lot of thinking about things, even things she hadn’t considered.

“I love it here. I certainly have no problem living here with you, but I’ve never really thought about staying here by myself while you’re gone.” she said softly.

“If you think you’ll be more comfortable staying by yourself at your apartment, then you can stay there while I’m gone and then stay here with me when I get back. Maybe once you get used to staying by yourself, then you’ll be more comfortable staying here on your own.” Glen replied.

Lex was silent for a moment before another thought entered her mind.

“But I lost my purse that night. If that man took it, then he has my license and my keys. He knows where I live. What if he comes back?” Lex asked, suddenly frightened of the thought of being left alone, even at her apartment.

“We can change the locks on your doors, or if you’d feel more comfortable, we’ll find you another apartment.” he answered quickly, trying to suppress her fears.

Lex thought about it for a few minutes more before she agreed. She’d let Glen change the locks on her apartment. Other than that, she was determined to tough things out. She knew she had to face her fears in order to conquer them and she figured making herself stay alone in her apartment would be a good a place as any to start. She wasn’t going to let one person ruin her life. She wasn’t going to continue to run and hide. Besides, the sooner she got used to staying by herself, the sooner she would be able to move into the cabin for good.

Lex smiled as she looked back up at Glen. “Are you always this sensible?” she asked playfully as she reached up and touched his face.

“According to most people, no.” he replied with a laugh. “But since its you, I thought I’d better make an exception.”

Lex smacked him playfully on the arm before he grabbed her and hugged her tight. They sat there for a few minutes longer, wrapped in each others arms until Glen picked her up and carried her back to bed.

Chapter 59

Lex sighed as she looked out the window. The sun had finally come out and the snow was beginning to melt. She knew it was only a matter of time now until she had to return to the real world.

Sighing again, she turned away from the window and looked toward the couch where Glen was sitting. He smiled and her and patted the space next to him. She went to him and snuggled into his arms again.

The last few days had passed in such a blur. They had spent every bit of their time together, neither wanting to leave the other’s side not even for a minute. They spent a lot of their time in bed, but they also spent a lot of time working together in the kitchen or just curled up on the couch in front of the fire. Lex even started following Glen down to the gym to keep him company while he worked out. They both knew the day was coming when they would be forced to go their separate ways and neither of them was looking forward to it.

Glen leaned down and kissed Lex passionately, urging her to lie back on the couch. She did so, pulling him down on top of her. Glen broke the kiss and gently nuzzled her neck as Lex slowly rubbed his back.

“I’ll miss you so much while you’re gone.” Lex whispered softly, as he continued to tease her.

Glen raised his head to look at her. “I’ll miss you too but we still have a few days left. We don’t have to think about that right now.” he replied, as he leaned down to kiss her again.

Lex moaned against his lips and wrapped her arms around his neck as he deepened the kiss. He was right. She didn’t need to think about it now. Right now, he was right here with her and God did he feel good! She returned the kiss passionately, wanting more of him. But before they could go any further, they were interrupted by the ringing of the phone.

Glen raised his head and looked toward the sound before looking back down at Lex. “I guess that means they finally fixed the phones.” he said in surprise.

“Welcome back to reality.” he mumbled as he got up and went to answer it.

Lex sat up, her nerves suddenly on edge. Now that the phones were working, she knew she had to call her parents. She wondered how they were doing. She knew they had both been sick before all this had happened and she hoped that the stress and worry of her being missing hadn’t made them any worse. She dreaded having to tell them about what had happened to her. She didn’t want to upset them anymore than they already were. And how was she going to tell them about Glen? How was she going to explain to her parents that she had fallen in love with a man she had only known for a few days? This was not going to be fun. Lex quickly turned her attention back to Glen.

Lex noticed that he was pacing the floor now as if he seemed agitated. Who was he talking to?

“Are you sure?” she heard him ask the person on the other end. “There’s nothing else you can do?”

“Okay. Fine. If that’s what you need. I’ll make the arrangements.”

Lex could see that he was visibly upset when he hung up the phone.

“Shit!” he mumbled as he ran his hand through his hair.

“Is something wrong?” she asked, almost afraid to hear the answer.

Glen looked at her for a long moment. How was he going to tell her about this?

Chapter 60

Glen slowly walked toward Lex and sat down beside her on the couch.

“What is it Glen? What’s wrong?” she repeated. He looked really upset and she was starting to get worried.

“That was Vince McMahon, my boss.” he replied solemnly. “Seems like they’ve had a couple of the guys get injured this week and they need me to come back a little early to take their place.”

“How early?” Lex asked softly, suddenly feeling sick at the thought.

“The day after tomorrow.” he replied, his voice barely audible.

Lex could only stare at him, her heart breaking. They only had one more day together before he had to leave! This couldn’t happen. He couldn’t leave her yet. How would she survive without him here?

Glen looked at her and immediately noticed the look of worry on her face. He reached out and pulled her to him. “It’ll be alright Lex. I’ll only be gone for a few days.”

“I know.” she replied, as she tried to choke back her tears. “But I’ll still miss you.”

Glen looked down at her as he stroked her hair. He hated this as much as she did but he had no choice. It was his job and his boss needed him there. He prayed that they could both find the strength to make it through their separation. The last thing he wanted was for his job to come between them.

After a few minutes of silence, he spoke again.

“Now that the phone is working, don’t you think you should call your parents? I’m sure they’re worried about you.” he asked.

Lex sat up slowly and nodded her head. She stood up from the couch and walked to the phone. Glen stood up as well and went to her, wrapping his arms around her in a tight hug. “I’m going to go into the kitchen and give you some privacy. If you need anything, let me know.”

He gave her a soft kiss on the cheek before heading to the kitchen. Lex watched him disappear before turning her attention back to the phone. With trembling hands, she picked up the receiver and dialed the number.

********

Glen grabbed a bottle of water from the refrigerator before taking a seat at the table. Rubbing his face, he tried to quiet the thoughts that were running through his mind. One day. That was all the time he had left to be with Lex before he returned to work. He hated leaving her behind. He hoped that she would be alright for a few days without him.

He shook his head as he looked out the window. Tomorrow he would have to take her home. Well, back to her apartment. As far as he was concerned, this was her home now and as soon as she was ready, he would move her in with him completely. But he had to give her time. Once she got used to staying by herself again, he hoped she would be willing to make that move.

Looking toward the doorway, he wondered how her phone call was going. He fought the urge to go to her, knowing that she needed some time alone to speak with her parents. But he was ready to be there for her when she was done. He was sure that she would be upset. He turned his gaze back to the window and waited.

********

Lex put the receiver back in place and wiped the tears from her eyes, relieved that she had finally made the call. Her parents had been overjoyed to hear her voice—actually hysterical was more like it. As she had suspected, they were worried sick but she assured them that she was okay. She told her mother everything about her ordeal: the attack, being deserted in the snow storm, the man in the cabin that had saved her life. Of course, she left out the part about falling in love with the man in the cabin. She didn’t want to overwhelm them with too much information at one time. She thought that she would wait and tell them that after they had met Glen. She hoped once they met him and saw what a wonderful person he was, they would take the news a little bit better. As his name crossed her mind, she turned toward the kitchen searching for him. One more day! One more day and then she would be alone again. Even though she knew it would only be temporary, it didn’t make things any easier. Lex struggled to keep her emotions in check. She didn’t want to ruin what little time they had left together. Wiping the tears from her eyes once more, she headed to the kitchen to find Glen.

Chapter 61

Glen looked up when Lex entered the kitchen. He stood up and went to her, noticing that she had been crying again.

“Are you okay?” he asked, as he wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tight.

“I am now.” she whispered softly, as she held him tight.

“I guess your parents were happy to hear from you.” he said, as he rubbed her back.

“Yes. They were very relieved to know that I was alright.” she said, looking up at him. “My mother was very upset when she found out what had happened to me but I told her that you had taken me in and had been very good to me.”

Glen raised his eyebrow as he looked down at Lex. “Oh really?” he said with a small chuckle.

Lex smacked him playfully on the arm. “I didn’t mean it like that.” she said, cracking a smile. She hesitated a moment before she continued. “I didn’t tell her about us. I mean I didn’t tell her that we were actually together. I thought it would be better to wait until after they met you before I spring that on them.”

Glen smiled down at her. “Whatever you think is best, I’ll go along with it.” he said as he reached out and brushed a strand of hair from her face. “But I don’t want to worry about anybody else right now. I want to concentrate on you.”

Lex returned his smile. “And what exactly did you have in mind?” she asked.

“Why don’t you go take a long, hot bath and when you’re done, come and meet me in the living room.” he said.

“What are you up to now?” she asked, trying to figure out what he had planned.

“It’s a surprise. You’ll find out soon enough. Now go on.” he said, shooing her out of the room.

Lex did as he asked and left the kitchen, smiling to herself as she walked down the hall to her room. What could he possibly have planned this time? Shaking her head, she entered her room and closed the door. She quickly undressed and headed to her bathroom to take a bath.

Chapter 62

A long while later, Lex finally pulled herself from the tub. The bath had been so relaxing that she had actually dozed off a couple of times. She shook the sleepiness from her head as she dried off, then quickly brushed out her hair and brushed her teeth before heading back into the bedroom to get dressed. Slipping on a t-shirt and a pair of sweatpants, she left her room and went in search of Glen.

Lex walked down the hall toward the living room, stopping in her tracks when she entered the room. Glen was stretched out on the floor in front of the fireplace, the fire still blazing in front of him. He was wearing only a pair of sweatpants, the light from the fire casting a soft glow over his bare chest. He looked up and saw Lex, motioning for her to join him on the floor. Lex moved towards him, noticing that he had brought the comforter and pillows from one of the spare bedrooms and spread them out in front of the fire. She dropped to her knees beside of him and Glen instantly moved to pull her into his arms again. He leaned down to kiss her and Lex relaxed against him as he touched her. Closing her eyes, she gave in to the wonderful sensations that surrounded her, wanting to only feel him near her. Running her hands up his chest, she wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer. Catching himself before things got too carried away, Glen slowly broke the kiss and pulled away from her. There would be time for that later. Right now he just wanted to spoil her a little first.

“Are you hungry?” he asked, as he smiled down at her. “I made us a little something to eat.”

“It figures.” she said with a laugh as she rolled her eyes.

Glen chuckled as he reached behind him and picked up a large tray, sitting it down between them. Lex gazed over the tray of food, which was piled full with sandwiches, cheese and crackers and a bowl of sliced fruit. She looked back up at Glen, meeting his gaze as he handed her a glass of wine.

“It’s to cold for us to have a picnic outside, so I thought we could have one in here in front of the fire.” he said as he watched her take a drink. “We’ll be more comfortable in here anyway. We’ve got everything we need-food, drinks, blankets, pillows. We’re all set.”

“It sounds like you’re ready for bed instead of a picnic.” Lex laughed as she looked around them.

“That’s not such a bad idea, now that you mention it .” Glen replied with a laugh, as he handed Lex a plate.

They ate their sandwiches and snacked on a few crackers as they talked. When they were done, Glen reclined against the couch and pulled Lex into his arms again. She leaned into his hard chest, closing her eyes and savoring the moment. They sat quietly for a long time, watching the fire and simply enjoying each others company.

After a while, Glen looked around, his eyes coming to rest on the bowl of fruit. Looking back down at Lex, he smiled as an idea popped into his head. Reaching for the bowl, he picked up a piece and brought it to her lips. She opened her mouth and took the fruit from him, drawing his fingers into her mouth to clean the juice from them. Glen groaned as he watched her, the warmth of her mouth on his fingers sending a surge of desire straight through him. When she was finished, he picked up another piece and raised it to her mouth, letting her repeat the process. Each time, she teased his fingers with her lips and tongue, driving him a little closer to the edge. Lex smiled inwardly as she watched his face. She could tell her actions were having a strong effect on him. After doing this several times, Lex stopped him and took the bowl from him.

“My turn.” she whispered, as she changed positions.

She moved beside of Glen so she could recline against the couch, then urged him to lay down with his head in her lap. When he was settled, Lex picked up a piece of the fruit and slowly brought it to his lips, her eyes never wavering from his. Smiling, he imitated her actions, drawing her fingers into his mouth and sucking gently as he took the food from her. It was his turn to tease her now. Lex moaned softly as she felt his tongue on her fingertips. She remembered all to well what it felt like to have his tongue tease other parts of her body. Lex moved her free hand to his hair, running her fingers through it slowly as she fed him. When the bowl was empty, Lex sat it to the side, then turned her attention back to Glen. She was still stroking his hair with one hand and she moved her other hand to his face, caressing his check and running her fingers lightly across the hair on his chin. She ran her eyes over his face, studying ever detail and committing them to her memory. She wanted to remember everything about this moment.

Glen watched her intently, noticing the mixture of love and sadness in her eyes. He knew she was still upset about him having to leave her so soon. Well, he wasn’t going to let her worry tonight. Tonight he was determined to make her forget about everything, except his feelings for her.

Chapter 63

Sitting up, Glen pulled her into another kiss, as he urged her to lie down with him. Without ever breaking the kiss, she stretched out on the comforter and Glen moved over top of her, covering her with his huge frame. As he deepened the kiss, his hand wandered slowly underneath her shirt, seeking out her breast. He teased her gently for several minutes, until Lex was whimpering helplessly beneath him. Sitting up, he pulled away from her only long enough to remove their clothes, then he laid down next to her and pulled her back into his arms. He held her close to him, letting his hands wander slowly across her body as he placed feather-light kisses on her face and lips. He whispered to her softly, as he told her how much he loved her and how much he would miss her while he was gone.

Lex began to tremble in his arms, the emotion is his voice shooting straight to her heart. As she laid there with him, she realized just how much she loved him--how much she needed him. Not just tonight, not for this one moment, but for eternity. And now he was leaving her. How would she ever make it without him there at night? She tried to hide her face as she felt the tears begin to fall. Glen felt her body shake and he grabbed her face and pulled it upward so she was facing him.

“Please don’t cry Lex. I promise I’ll be back before you know it.” he said softly.

Lex raised her hand and slowly caressed his face, her eyes never leaving his.

“Glen?” she whispered softly. “Make love to me. Please.”

Glen smiled down at her. She didn’t have to ask him twice. Lowering his head, he claimed her lips in another passionate kiss. His hands roamed slowly over her body, until she was pleading with him to end his torment. His lips followed the same path his hands had taken, causing her to writhe and squirm beneath him. Finally he decided that he had tortured her enough, he pulled himself over her and positioned himself at her entrance. Thrusting forward, he filled her completely as she wrapped her arms around him and tried to pull him closer. He tried to keep his movements slow and steady, wanting to prolong this moment as long as he could. But their emotions were too great, and soon they were pushed over the edge together, all of their worries temporarily forgotten.

As he caught his breath, Glen rolled to his side, pulling Lex with him. Reaching for the edge of the comforter, he wrapped it around them both as Lex snuggled closer to him.

He laid there and held her, content to just listen to the sound of her breathing until her voice broke the silence.

“Glen?” she said quietly, wondering if he was still awake.

“Yes?” he replied, as he pulled her closer.

“I love you.” she whispered softly.

Glen raised his head to look at her.

“What?” he asked, still not believing what she had just said.

“I said I love you.” Lex repeated, smiling slightly at his reaction.

“I love you too.” he replied, before leaning down to kiss her once more. Their passion quickly raged out of control and before long she was crying out his name again as he took her over the edge once more.

Hours later, Glen was still awake, watching Lex sleeping peacefully beside of him. He stared at her face as the shadows from the dying flames reflected on her skin. He slowly reached out and brushed a strand of hair from her eyes, before trailing his fingers lightly down her cheek

“I love you too.” he whispered to her softly before he finally closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

Chapter 64

Lex woke the next morning to the sunlight streaming in through the window. Rising up, she looked around, realizing that she was still lying on the floor in front of the fireplace. She smiled as she remembered how wonderful last night had been. Glen certainly knew how to make her feel special. She looked around at the dishes and the clothes scattered about on the floor, before wondering where he had gotten off to. Grabbing her clothes, she got dressed and went in search for him. Walking down the hallway, she found him in his room, packing his bags for his trip.

“Good morning, sleepy head!” he said with a grin, when she entered his room. He walked toward her and gave her a soft kiss on the forehead. “You looked so peaceful this morning, I couldn’t bring myself to wake you.”

“You shouldn’t have let me sleep so late.” she replied, not wanting to miss a minute of the time she had left with him. She looked back toward the bed and the open suitcase. “Why are you packing so early? I didn’t think you had to leave until tomorrow morning.”

Glen looked at her and grinned. “If you’re going to stay at your apartment while I’m gone, I thought I would take you there and check it out to make sure everything’s alright before I leave. I thought I would just pack my things and stay there with you tonight. If that’s alright with you, of course.”

Lex nodded her head slightly as she continued to watch him, feeling the tears threatening to drown her again. She had to get out of here. She didn’t want him to see her crying again.

“Just let me go take a shower before we leave.” she said softly, as she quickly turned to leave the room.

“I’ll make us some breakfast while you’re in the shower.” he called, as she walked away.

But Lex barely heard him as she entered her room and closed the door, before finally letting herself go. She struggled to pull herself to the bathroom, as her tears blinded her vision. She was terrified of what the next couple of days would bring. How would she ever get used to staying by herself again? What if her attacker came back? What if Glen went back to work and completely forgot about her? So many things could go wrong. How would she make it on her own?

****************

When Lex finally finished her shower, she dressed and headed to the kitchen. They quickly ate their breakfast, then Lex helped Glen wash the dishes and straighten the house. Glen made one last run through the house, checking to make sure everything was in order, then grabbing his bags, they headed out the door. They headed to the garage and Glen helped her into his large truck, before climbing in with her. Selfishly, Lex silently prayed that it wouldn’t start, or better yet, the snow was too deep to drive in--anything that would allow her to stay here for a little while longer. Her hopes were dashed when she heard the engine of the truck roar to life and pull out of the garage. As they made their way down the driveway, Lex watched through the mirror as the house got smaller and smaller before finally disappearing altogether. When she couldn’t see it any longer, she focused her attention on the road and whatever lay ahead of them.

Chapter 65

When they reached town, their first stop was to the toy store, to visit Lex’s parents. Since her keys had been stolen, she had to get the spare from them so she could get into her apartment. They had a tearful reunion, her parents so very thankful that Glen had saved their daughter’s life. They had been rather unnerved by the first sight of him-he was such a huge man. But they quickly saw the fondness that their daughter had for him. He had apparently taken very good care of her while she was with him and for that they would be eternally grateful. They visited together for a little while, before Lex and Glen headed out again towards her apartment. She felt a little guilty for leaving them again so soon but she would have plenty of time to talk with them later. Right now, she just wanted to be alone with Glen.

When they pulled up in front of the apartment complex, it took every ounce of her strength for Lex to pull herself from the truck. There were four buildings total on the property. Each building was two stories with four apartments on each level. Lex lived on one of the ground floor apartments in the second building. At the time she moved in, she was grateful to live on the bottom floor-it made moving a whole lot easier. Now she wasn’t so sure. Not only did she have to worry about the locks on the door, but she had to worry about the locks on the windows as well. She walked slowly to the door before reluctantly, pulling her key from her pocket and inserting it into the lock. When the door was unlocked, Glen pulled her aside and entered first, to protect her just in case something wasn’t right. He found the light switch and turned on the lights as he made his way through the rooms, and Lex entered cautiously behind him and closed the door. Glen thoroughly searched every room, taking note that nothing appeared to have been ransacked. When he was satisfied that everything was safe, he came back to the front door, where Lex was still standing.

“Everything seems to be fine. Nothing seems to have been disturbed. Maybe you should look around a little bit and see if anything is missing.”

Lex nodded her head, unsure of what to even look for. Finally, she forced herself to move and she headed to her bedroom. She searched through her drawers and her closet, noticing that nothing appeared to be missing. She looked through each of the remaining rooms carefully, finding nothing out of the ordinary. Realizing that her attacker had apparently not been here, she began to feel a little more at ease. Glen could see the relief creeping into her face and it made him feel a little bit better. He was thankful that nothing was wrong.

Glen looked around her apartment again, this time noticing how comfortably decorated it was. “You have a very nice place.” he said, as he continued to admire it.

“Thanks.” Lex replied with a smile. “Like I said, it’s not very big but its all I need. Would you like something to drink?” she asked, heading to the kitchen.

“Sure. What have you got?” he asked, following behind her.

“Uh….water.” Lex replied, staring at her near empty refrigerator. Closing the door, she looked at Glen and chuckled. “I forgot I’ve been gone for a few days. I don’t think it would be safe to drink some of the stuff that’s in there. I guess I need to go to the store.”

“Well, then. Let’s go.” he replied, grabbing her by the hand and pulling her behind him.

Lex couldn’t help but laugh at his enthusiasm.

Glen looked at her and smiled. “You didn’t actually think I am going to pass up an opportunity to buy food, now did you?”

Lex could only shake her head as she followed him out the door.

Chapter 66

The couple spent the rest of the afternoon shopping and running errands. After they had taken the groceries home and put them away, they headed back out again. Lex went to the bank to cancel her checks and her credit cards that had been in her pocket book when it was stolen. She called the insurance company about the theft of her truck but they had insisted on her filing a police report before they would do anything. Lex had refused to go to the police, not wanting to relive her experience. It was in the past and she wanted to leave it there. Glen had tried to persuade her otherwise, but she wouldn’t listen to him. She told him she didn’t want to go through it all over again. Realizing her wasn’t going to change her mind, he dropped the subject.

When they were done with their errands, they decided to go shopping at the mall. Lex wasn’t sure if Glen wanted to appear in public like that but he seemed very willing to go. She didn’t know if his fans would be able to recognize him without his mask on. She noticed a few younger kids whispering and pointing towards them as they walked by, but if they recognized him, none of them approached him for an autograph. Once they were done shopping, Glen insisted on taking Lex out for a nice dinner. She had argued that she would gladly fix him something to eat back at her apartment, but he wouldn’t agree to it.

“You’ve had to eat my horrendous cooking for days now. Let me feed you a real meal for a change.” he said. “Besides, I’ve already lost one argument to you today. I’m not going to lose this one.”

Lex finally agreed and they had a wonderful dinner at a very romantic restaurant located on the outskirts of town. When they were finished there, Glen drove them back to the apartment. Lex remained silent on the ride back, knowing that in a few more hours this dream would end and he would be gone.

Once they got back to her apartment, Glen changed the locks on her doors and checked all the locks on the windows. When he was satisfied that everything was secure, he picked Lex up in his arms and carried her to the bedroom to settle in for the night. Lex smiled up at him as he laid her down in the center of the bed. He sat beside of her and grabbed her hands, bringing them to his lips and kissing them gently. Lex pulled one of her hands free and grabbed the back of his head, pulling him down to her. She kissed him passionately wanting to feel him near her. She wanted him to take her-to make her his once again. Lex deepened the kiss, then groaned in frustration when she felt him pull away from her. She reached out for him, afraid that he was going to leave her.

“I’m not going anywhere.” he said, when he saw her reach for him. “But I’ve got a few things I need to take care of before we get to that.”

“Like what?” Lex replied, not sure what he was talking about.

“Just a few things I need to take care of before I leave.” he said as he stood up and removed some items from the pockets of his jeans. “First of all, here are the keys to my truck. Since your truck was stolen, I’m going to leave mine here for you to use. There’s also a house key on there. You’re welcome at my house anytime you want to go there. Feel free to use it whenever you want.”

“But….” Lex started to reply, but she was cut short.

“I’m not finished.” Glen interrupted, as he removed his wallet and opened it. He pulled out a large sum of cash and laid it on the bed. “Here is some money for you in case you need it. It should tide you over until you get all of your accounts straightened out.”

Lex sat up and shook her head.

“I can’t…”

“I’m not done yet.” Glen replied, cutting her off again. He grabbed some paper and a pen from the nightstand and wrote down his number.

“Here is my cell phone number. I always keep my phone with me and I keep it turned on whenever I can. You can call me any time for any reason and if I don’t answer, you can leave a message. I’ll be sure to check them often.”

Lex watched as he laid the number on top of the money.

“Now, let me see. Did I forget anything?” he asked, as he looked back down at Lex, who was still staring at him with a surprised look on her face. “Oh yeah. I just remembered one more thing.”

“What?” Lex asked softly, not sure if she could handle much more.

“This.” he replied, as he leaned over to kiss her once more. Lex gave in to him and kissed him back for a brief moment before coming to her senses. Bringing her arm up between them, she pushed him away.

“I can’t do this.” She said out loud, the look of confusion still evident on her face.

“You can’t do what?” Glen asked, his voice full of concern.

“This!” Lex replied, motioning her hand across the bed. “Your truck, your house, the money…..I can’t take all of this stuff from you. It’s not right.”

“And why not?” Glen asked. “Do you actually think I’m going to leave you alone for several days without making sure that you’re taken care of? I couldn’t live with myself if I did that.”

“But it’s too much!” Lex replied. “You’ve only known me for a few days. I can’t just take everything that you own and act like its mine.”

Glen paused for a moment, staring at her intently. “You already own my heart, Lex. None of this other stuff matters to me. I just want to know that you’ll be alright while I’m gone.”

Lex looked at him for a moment, before turning her gaze back to the keys and the money laying beside her on the mattress.

Glen hooked a finger under her chin and turned her to face him again.

“Please let me do this for you.” he asked softly, before kissing her again.

This time Lex was helpless to resist. Wrapping her arms around him, she surrendered to him completely. If it meant so much to him for her to have these things, then she would take them, even if she never used them.

Lex clung to him desperately as he kissed her, never wanting him to let her go. And he didn’t for the rest of the night, loving her over and over again, until sleep finally claimed them both.

Chapter 67

The alarm clock woke Glen the next morning. 4:30 already. He turned off the alarm, then looked down at Lex who was still sleeping peacefully beside of him. Reluctantly, he eased his arm from underneath her and climbed out of bed. He went into the bathroom to shower and get ready for his trip.

A little while later, he emerged from the bathroom, dressed and ready to go. He quickly gathered his things and sat them beside the front door, then he went back to the bedroom to wake Lex. He double-checked the pile of things he had given her the night before to ensure that he hadn’t forgotten anything. Then he sat down on the bed beside of Lex and brushed a loose strand of hair from her face. He hated to wake her. He knew this was going to be tough for her. Hell, it was going to be tough on him too. But he would do anything in his power to make sure that things worked out.

He leaned over and kissed her softly, nuzzling her neck in order to wake her. She shifted slightly, then opened her eyes to look at him.

“Is it time for you to go already?” she asked softly, feeling a pit form in her stomach.

Glen nodded his head, then leaned down to kiss her again.

“Please let me drive you to the airport.” Lex pleaded with him, as he broke the kiss.

Glen shook his head. They’d had this conversation the night before and Glen had adamantly refused to let Lex drive him. He didn’t want her out driving around at 4:30 in the morning, unless she absolutely had to.

“I thought we settled this last night.” Glen said with a chuckle. “I’ve already called a cab. It’ll be here any minute. You stay here and get some more sleep. You need to save your energy. I promise you, you’ll need it when I get back.”

Lex smiled up at him and he leaned down to kiss her again. A few more kisses, a few more words of love, then it was time for him to go. The moment they had been dreading for so many days had finally come. With one last kiss, he left her alone in her room. Lex cringed when she heard to front door close, knowing that he was really gone. Clutching his pillow tight, she rolled over and cried herself back to sleep.

******************************

Lex spent the morning walking around her apartment in a daze. She felt so empty and lost without Glen by her side. She hadn’t intended on using any of the things that Glen had left for her, but by early afternoon she felt as if the walls of her apartment were starting to close in on her. She decided to go out for a while, maybe go visit with her parents and have some lunch.

She found her parents at the store and she stayed there with them the rest of the evening. She quickly settled into her old pattern of work. She found that it helped to keep her mind occupied, although it did nothing to ease the ache in her heart. She also realized that she was trying to postpone the inevitable. She was putting off going home as long as she could.

When the store closed that evening, she had dinner with her parents, then reluctantly headed for home. She dreaded the thought of going back to her empty apartment. This would be the first night she had spent alone since before the attack. She pulled into the complex and parked the truck, trying to find enough courage to go inside. She tried to convince herself that everything would be fine, that her attack had simply been a random act and the man was probably long gone by now. Glen had changed the locks on the doors and made sure the locks on the windows were closed tight. She tried to convince herself that she would be safe staying here alone.

Finally talking herself into it, she rushed from the truck and looking nervously around her, she unlocked the door and went inside. She never noticed the man hiding in the shadows, watching her from the other side of the parking lot.

Chapter 68

The man stared in disbelief as he watched Lex disappear into the apartment. How could it be her? He thought he had gotten rid of her. He deserted her in the middle of a snow storm. How could she have survived?

He smiled when he remembered what an easy target she had been. He had enjoyed her very much. And it had been a good payoff too. After he attacked her, he had stolen her truck and headed out of town. He had a good friend up in the neighboring state of Virginia who was willing to pay him good money for a nice stolen vehicle like that. He had also taken the girl’s purse and although she didn’t have much cash on her, he found out where she lived. He made sure to keep her other keys, with the intention of robbing her apartment when he got back to town. But the snow storm had delayed him for a few days and he had only made it back the day before. He had decided to stake out the apartment, to see if anybody else had moved in yet. He didn’t want to run the risk of getting caught.

He had been very surprised to see a girl leave the apartment earlier that day. At first he thought it had been someone who had just resembled the other girl. But now that he had seen her again, he knew it was her. He smiled again as he looked toward the door. This was going to be better than he thought. He’d watch her for a day or two to learn her patterns and see if she had anybody else staying with her that he might have to deal with. Then he decided he’d have to pay her another visit.

*****************

Lex spent the next couple of days in a blur. Glen called her frequently to check on her but it wasn’t the same as having him next to her. She put in a lot of overtime at the store, helping her parents. She found that if she worked herself hard all day, she was so exhausted at night that she had very little problem going to sleep. The first couple of nights had been very hard on her. She had felt very uneasy about something, but she simply chalked it up to nerves. She was beginning to feel a little more comfortable, although she knew it would take some time before she could completely relax again. All she could do was count down the days until Glen would be home again.

*******************

The man continued to watch her apartment, being careful to remain unnoticed. The last thing he wanted to do was arouse anybody’s suspicions and blow the whole thing. He could have easily entered her apartment during the day while she was gone, but he decided he’d wait and pay her a visit while she was home. He was looking forward to seeing her again.

By the third day, he was convinced that she was staying there by herself. As he watched her climb into her truck and pull away, he smiled to himself again. Pulling her keys from his pocket, he left his vehicle and eased up to her door. He tested the keys in the lock and discovered that none of them worked. Discouraged for a moment, he shoved the keys back into his pocket and headed back to his vehicle. So she had been smart enough to change the locks. Well, he wasn’t about to let that stop him. He quickly left the complex and went to gather some tools. He had already made up his mind. Tonight, she would be his again.

*******************

Lex returned to her apartment late that night, after another long day at work. She was exhausted. All she wanted to do was take a quick shower and climb into bed. She entered the apartment and immediate felt that something was wrong. She looked around the apartment carefully, noticing that nothing had been disturbed.

“Just your nerves again.” she thought to herself, as she rushed to the bathroom to shower. Minutes later, she was crawling into bed, ready for a good night’s sleep. She was so tired, she fell asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow, dreams of Glen swirling in her mind.

The man kept his eye on her window, taking note when she turned out the light. After giving her ample time to fall asleep, he left his vehicle and crept up to her door. Pulling a small set of tools from his pocket, he quickly got the door unlocked. Lex never heard him open the door and step inside.

Chapter 69

The man stepped into the apartment and carefully shut the door behind him. He listened carefully for any sound of movement but there was only silence. Smiling to himself, he gazed around the apartment, looking for anything of value that he could take with him later. Then he turned his gaze to the closed door of the bedroom where Lex was sleeping. There would be time to search for valuables later. Right now, he had other things on his mind.

He tiptoed to the door and placed his ear against it, once again listening for any sound of movement. He reached for the doorknob to see whether or not she had locked the door. He smiled to himself when he felt the knob turn in his hand. He carefully eased the door open and peered inside. There was a small stream of moonlight coming in through the blinds and he could see that Lex was still curled up in her bed asleep. He crept into the room and shut the door behind him, making sure to lock it. He didn’t want to take a chance on her getting away from him. Grinning, he pulled a pair of handcuffs from his pocket and approached the bed. It was time for her to wake up.

**********************

“I told you he wouldn’t stay with you. He disappeared and left you all alone.”

“Not again!” Lex moaned, when she heard the voice. She looked frantically around the room, trying to find where the sound was coming from.

“I told you he wouldn’t be here to protect you. You’re mine now. I told you I would be waiting for you. And now you’re here, all by yourself. Who’s going to help you now?”

Lex heard the voice getting closer and she quickly rolled over and tried to scramble from the bed. But the man from the shadows lunged at her and held her down, wrapping his hands around her throat again. Lex looked up into his face and she felt him tighten his grip as he smiled down at her.

“Where’s your precious Glen now?” she heard him ask her, right before she blacked out.

***********************

Lex bolted upright in bed, clutching at her throat. Not again! She hadn’t had one of those dreams for weeks now. So why had they returned tonight? Lex assumed it was just because she was on edge with Glen being out of town.

“It was just a dream. Just a dream” she repeated to herself as she tried to calm herself down.

“I don’t think so darlin’” she heard a voice reply from the shadows.

Lex looked toward the doorway and froze when she saw a man standing there. She realized immediately that it wasn’t Glen. She could only stare in horror as the figure moved closer to her. As he approached the bed, she finally regained her bearings and jumped from the bed, trying to get to the bedroom door. But the man blocked her path and grabbed her, tossing her back onto the bed. He lunged on top of her and held her down as he quickly handcuffed her wrists to the headboard. Lex tried to scream but the man slapped her hard to silence her, before pulling a bandanna from his pocket and shoving it into her mouth. Once he was satisfied he had her subdued, he sat back up so he could admire her.

She flinched and turned her head away as he stroked her face with his fingers.

“You’re so beautiful.” he whispered softly, as he ran his hand down her face and across her hair. “You have no idea how surprised I was to see that you were still alive. I was sure it would be spring before anybody found you. But I have to admit, I’m glad you’re here.”

Lex struggled frantically against her restraints. She couldn’t believe that this was happening again! She had convinced herself that her attacker wouldn’t come back for her and now here he was kneeling over her as she was tied to her bed. She sobbed uncontrollably as she fought to free herself. She had to get away from him. If she didn’t, she was sure he would finish the job this time.

Lex stiffened when she felt his hands move to her breasts and began to massage them.

“I guess you don’t remember much about our first time together, but let’s see if I can refresh your memory.” he growled, as he roughly pinched her nipples, causing Lex to cry out through the gag in her mouth.

“Oh, God, Glen! Where are you?” Lex screamed in her mind. “You promised me everything would be okay! You promised me I would be safe! You have to help me!”

Grabbing her roughly by the hair, he held her head still as he lowered his lips to her neck. Lex struggled against him the best she could and as he moved, she managed to bring her knees up between them to push him away from her. But he quickly knocked her legs out of the way and straddled her waist again.

“I see you still haven’t learned your lesson yet!” he said coldly, as he raised his hand again.

Lex saw him close his hand into a fist and she knew that he intended to really hurt her this time. She closed her eyes and braced herself for the blow. But it never came. Instead she heard a horrendous crash as the bedroom door was caved in. The man jumped off her, prepared to fight whoever had broken through the door. But when he turned around, he found himself facing a nearly seven-foot tall giant...a very angry giant…who was almost twice his size.

Chapter 70

“Glen!” Lex screamed in her mind, thankful that he had come to save her. She watched as Glen grabbed the man by the throat and pulled him into the living room.

Glen was so furious he couldn’t see straight. So this was the bastard who had dared to hurt his Lex. And now he actually had the nerve to come after her again.

“Oh, hell no!” Glen thought as he proceeded to beat the guy to a bloody pulp right there in the middle of the room. He tossed the man against the wall and watched as he fell to the floor.

“Lex!” he thought suddenly, when he realized he had left her alone in the bedroom.

Rushing to her side, he found her still handcuffed to the bed as she struggled to free herself.

He sat down beside of her and carefully removed the gag from her mouth.

“Glen!” she cried, tears streaming down her face. “I’m so glad you’re here!”

“So am I, Lex.” He said, when he realized what could have happened to her if he hadn’t been.

Looking at the handcuffs again, he got up and headed back to the living room. He grabbed the man up off of the floor and searched his pockets until he found the key. He threw the man back down and headed back to the bedroom to free Lex. As soon as she was free, she scrambled onto his lap and wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. Glen held onto her just as tight, thankful that she was okay.

Once he had calmed her down, he picked up the phone and called the police. Then he sat back down on the bed and pulled Lex into his arms.

“I’m so sorry, Lex. I was sure there was no way he would come after you again.”

“You saved me. That’s all that matters.” she whispered softly, as he held her close.

“Well, he won’t bother us anymore. He’ll be locked away for a long time. You don’t have to worry about him now.”

Lex pulled away from him slightly and looked up at him. “What are you doing home so early anyway? I thought that you wouldn’t be home until late tomorrow morning.”

Glen smiled at her. “I couldn’t stand to be away from you any longer. I managed to get myself booked on a different flight so I could get back to you a few hours earlier. I used my key to let myself in. I tried to be really quiet so that I wouldn’t wake you. I figured that you were probably asleep already and I wanted to surprise you. I didn’t realize anything was wrong until I heard a man’s voice coming from behind the bedroom door. I knew you were in trouble. I tried the door and noticed that it was locked, so that’s when I broke it down. I’m so glad I decided to come back early. I don’t know what I would have done if something had happened to you.”

Lex smiled back as she hugged him tight. She was so relieved that he was finally home. She remained in Glen’s embrace until the police arrived. Glen had unlocked the front door and left it partially open so the police could let themselves in. He looked up as one of the detectives entered the bedroom. Glen and Lex explained to the detective what had happened, starting with the first attack and leading up to Glen beating the guy up and leaving him in the middle of the floor. The detective winced as he listened to Glen tell his story. He was sure he wouldn’t want a man of Glen’s size angry at him for any reason. He almost felt sorry for the poor guy Glen had beaten up. He was sure he was really hurting.

When they were finished, the detective made a few last notes and stood to leave.

“Do you know where the man is now?” he asked, causing Glen to look at him in confusion.

“He’s in the living room where I left him.” Glen replied.

The detective returned Glen’s confused look. “There was no one in there when we arrived. I assumed the man ran off after you beat him up.”

Glen and Lex exchanged worried glances before getting up and rushing into the living room. Sure enough, the man was gone.

“Shit!” Glen muttered, as he turned to look at the detective. “Are you sure your men didn’t see him leave?”

“I’m positive, sir. There was nobody in this room when we got here.”

Lex looked up at Glen, before turning her gaze to the door. Her attacker was still free! She felt the panic welling up inside of her again. What if he came back for her again? She was sure he would be angry and want revenge on both of them. Glen saw the look of fear on her face and he pulled her closer to him. That man wouldn’t get near her again. He would make sure of it!

*********************

Lex spent every minute of the next few days with Glen. He refused to let her out of his sight. They had decided to stay at her apartment for a few days, just in case the police needed to come by to talk to them again. Lex was still trying hard to deal with the second attack but the knowledge that her attacker was still free did nothing to ease her anxiety. She hoped the police would find him soon.

One evening as they sat down to dinner, they were interrupted by the doorbell. Glen went to answer the door and was surprised to see the detective standing there.

“I think I may have some information about the man that attacked Lex. Can I come in for a few minutes” the detective asked.

“Of course.” Glen replied, stepping to the side to let him in.

Lex stood and walked to join the two men.

“Hello.” The detective said as he shook Lex’s hand.

He opened the folder he was carrying and handed Lex a picture.

“Is this the man that attacked you?” he asked, as Lex studied it.

She froze as she recognized the face. Even though he was covered in bruises, she knew it was him. He had haunted her dreams for weeks. There was no way she could ever forget a face like that.

“Yes. That’s him.” Lex replied weakly as she returned the picture to the detective.

“Did you find him?” Glen asked, pulling Lex close to him.

“Yes. His name is David Hughes. I just wanted to let you know that he won’t be bothering you anymore. He was shot and killed this morning when he attempted to rob a convenience store. I’m not sure that I would have ever connected him to your case but when I saw the bruises all over his face, I figured this might have been the same guy.”

Lex breathed a sigh of relief as she looked up at Glen. She suddenly felt as if the weight of the world had been lifted from her shoulders. The man was gone and he wouldn’t be back to bother her again. Now maybe she could put everything behind her and get on with her life. They both thanked the detective for his hard work and embraced each other as they watched him leave. Glen smiled as he looked down at Lex.

“Come on. I’m hungry. Let’s go eat!”

Lex rolled her eyes. “Some things never change!” she laughed as she followed Glen back to the kitchen.

Chapter 71

Glen pulled into the driveway and got out of the truck, noticing that things seemed strangely silent. He gathered his bags and entered the cabin, still noticing that there was no sound.

“Lex!” he yelled, wondering if maybe she hadn’t heard him come in. There was still no answer.

He headed to the bedroom and set his bags down, then he searched through the house looking for her. But she was no where to be found. He headed back outside to look for her in the yard. He knew she liked to work in the flowerbeds a lot in the evenings. Maybe that’s where she was at. As he stepped off of the front porch, he heard the sound of laughter coming from behind the house. So that’s where she was hiding!

Glen followed the sounds to the back of the house, smiling to himself along the way. When he rounded the corner, he was met by a chorus of shouts and screams.

“Daddy’s home!” one of the tiny voices shouted when he came into view. The child ran to him and Glen picked the boy up in his arms.

“Daddy!” another voice screamed, as his daughter ran to meet him too.

Glen took her by the hand and let her lead him back to the deck, where Lex was waiting for him.

“Look Mommy! Daddy’s home!” the little girl said, as she pulled the big man along behind her.

“I see that!” Lex replied, as she gave Glen a big hug.

“Guess what Daddy!” the little boy said. “Mommy said we were going to get a puppy.”

“She did?” Glen replied, giving Lex a questioning look.

Lex smiled back at him.

“A man brought his female St. Bernard in to see me today. She’s expecting puppies in a couple of weeks and I told him we might be interested in one.”

Glen rolled his eyes. “A St. Bernard! We can’t afford a St. Bernard. It’ll eat us out of house and home!”

Lex grinned. “Exactly! I think it’ll fit in real good around here. Don’t you?”

Glen chuckled at her. She still loved to tease him about how much he could eat.

“I take it that your business has done well while I’ve been gone.” he said.

“Yes. I’ve been very busy this week. I didn’t realize that so many animals could get sick at the same time. I think I’m going to have to hire some extra help.” Lex replied.

“Well, I’m glad to see that all of you schooling is starting to pay off.”

“Me too.” Lex replied. “It would have been a shame to spend all that money on college and have it go to waste.”

“Thats not what I’m talking about.” Glen replied. “I meant that since your business is doing so well, you can pay to feed the St. Bernard!”

Lex laughed as she watched the kids pull Glen off of the deck and into the grass. She watched them wrestle around on the ground, with Glen letting the kids get the better of him. He was such a good father to them, always paying them extra attention when he was at home to make up for all the time he spent on the road.

Lex smiled as she thought how blessed she really was. She would have never dreamed that her life could have turned out so perfect. She had a wonderful husband and two beautiful children who meant everything in the world to her. And on top of that, she had gone back to school and earned her veterinary medicine degree, graduating in the top ten percent of her class. And now she had her own successful practice, which helped to keep her busy while Glen was traveling out of town.

As she sat there watching them play together, Lex let her gaze travel over the mountains that surrounded them, remembering the night she had first traveled to this place. She had felt so lost and helpless…her entire world had been turned upside down. Things had changed so much since that first night. She hadn’t realized it at the time, but she had saved Glen as much as he had saved her. He showed her the meaning of trust, while she showed him how to love again.

In those first days she was here, she couldn’t have imagined how much they would grow to need each other. They had been through so much in the time they had been together, and now they were joined together forever and they were truly happy. And it was all because they had the two things that mattered most…..Love and Trust.