Chapter 35 - Beast in Shining Armor

That fateful night when he found her soiled and ripped in her wedding gown—Dane thought that would be the worst of her misfortunes. But he was wrong. Her misfortune shed to light under moon shadows and passing car lights that honked at them to move but he didn't care about them. All he cared about was the fugitive before him

He took in her sweet tears that fell once she saw him, her bruised lips, the dreadful marks on her neck, and how torn her shirt appeared so it revealed her breasts. There was this dangerous fire that burned inside him watching her become so broken in front of him. His breath hitched when she ran into his arms.

Prisana's little petite body trembled as she clutched his chest. She sighed as she sniffed his familiar scent. Dane's hands almost wrapped over her but he stopped when the cab in front honked at them. The window rolled down to an elderly Asian man staring them down.

"Tsk. If you lovebirds finally made up, get in the car and move on. You're causing a hell of a traffic!"

The both of them were standing in the middle of the street, encased in car and city lights. Dane slipped off his suit jacket and draped it over her body so she could cover her breasts. He quietly led her inside his car as his secretary, Cleo drove them in silence to his residence.

Her face was turned away. He kept staring at her from the side. He kept waiting for her to speak first because he didn't want to push her any further than what she deserved. Even from her disheveled appearance, he didn't want to ask her why she was soiled and broken yet again. If he did, he was afraid of the things he would do the very instant he heard the story spilling from her mouth.

Dane knew she would escape, as her eyes told him she had no fear of doing so when he proposed marriage. That's why he hired a man to watch the house at all times until she made her escape. It was wrong of him to do this but he never wanted to lose her again. Not when he finally found her after yearning to see her, for so long.

Was it love? No, it couldn't be. Even if it was, he would never admit it. Leonardo Duval was the devil so he could be raving nonsense to throw Dane's life into further turmoil.

Dane only knew that when he received that call, he dropped everything he was doing at the office to come searching for her. His hired man already taught Giovanni a lesson which was why Prisana's escape was made possible.

He ordered his man not to kill Giovanni because important men like him left a wake of well trained investigators he didn't want at his tail.

Yet looking at Prisana now, Dane regretted his decision. He wanted to kill Giovanni with his own two hands. It frightened even him, that a petite little fugitive drove him mad with emotions he himself couldn't control.

"...Dane. How...Why...What are you doing here?" she finally spoke, as his heart sighed in relief.

"I'm your beast in shining armor. I find you when you need it the most. When you need any saving, I'll always be there at your beck and call," he lightly joked, trying to ease the tension in the air.

She chuckled but only a little.

"...That's actually kind of sweet of you."

Prisana cautiously glanced over to Cleo who kept his eyes on the road.

"That's my secretary. You can trust him."

She bit her lip and Dane could see how hard she was trying to hold back her tears. Under the dim shadows that flashed through her face, she appeared frustrated.

"I don't know how you found me but...thank you. And, I'm sorry for being so weak. I never wanted you to save me, especially like this because it only goes to show how weak I am to rely on a man."

Dane sighed and shook his head. Did she really think she was weak? The way he saw her, she was the strongest woman he's laid eyes on. Even as her tears threatened to keep falling, she held them in. Her body stopped shaking and reflected in her eyes were ones that wished to survive. Ones that held his captive because he found her stubbornness irksome yet praiseworthy.

"Weak?" Dane repeated her words, cupping her chin so he could explore every misfortune detailed on her body. "You're wrong. Every strong woman has their own weaknesses. So does every man. Your whole life, you were a bird in a cage. You are not weak because the way you were raised, stripped you of every ambition you would have been able to take on. Prisana I swear on every word, you are not weak because you ran from an unhappy, forceful marriage. That is what strong women do. They leave before they can further be broken."

The hand that held her chin now brushed away a strand that tumbled over her forehead.

"Do you want me to save you?" he asked, surprising even himself.

He expected her to spout more refusal because she was determined to be strong. But he was proved wrong yet again.

"I'm begging you Dane. Please, save me," she whispered, as she pleaded with her pretty brown eyes.

Dane wanted her to keep her silly notions of strength so he stripped down his own dignity. He stripped down just for her. Something he was afraid of doing but did so anyway.

"Use me. I am but a man that you have ruined and all I want is your body. Use me because I would give you everything I own just so I don't..."

He turned away from her disheveled appearance as he couldn't contain the flurry of emotions rushing over him.

"...have to see you broken like this again," he finished.

"But I can't bare to use you. Not when I—"

Dane didn't want to hear her next words.

"Use me to your heart desires. For now, you can use me then toss me away when you are tired of me."

"What if I never get tired of you?"

God, her words were too sweet. He frustratingly ran his hands through his hair.

"You will. I'm a beast," he growled under his breath.

"A beast wouldn't save a damsel in distress."

Dane gave up.

He gave in to her because when he turned to argue with her, the smile on her face lifted his dark mood. Suddenly, he began to believe in Leo's words that plagued him since morning light.