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Chapter Fourteen

If you ask men when they are happiest, their first rather unimaginative answer would probably be along the lines of, right after I come. And that is a peaceful time. But happiness is different, it's not like peace at all. Happiness is sleeping beside your other half, listening to them breathing, the most important noise on the planet. Knowing they're at ease, resting, comfortable beside you. This was the first time Ryan and Holly had laid beside each other in his bed, and she didn't let go of him for probably an hour after falling asleep. Her head laid close to his neck, feeling her warm breath against his skin. Her hand across his bare chest. He was so happy that he couldn't sleep, not until she turned over and he moved too, shifting to spoon her. His hand found its place on her belly under the covers, keeping both mother and baby safe. Holly smiled in her slumber, pulling his arm tighter around her swollen middle. They couldn't get too close with the bump in the way, but this was all she'd ever wanted with him. She felt safe, she could rest peacefully.

~•~

They both slept soundly until Holly woke to the faint sound of birdsong from outside. It was morning. She awoke to Ryan beside her on his back, half-snoring, arm tucked behind his head. "Oh, god.." Holly exclaimed as she flung the covers off her bare legs, turning so her feet touch the wooden floor below. Her hands grabbed at her phone, it was dead. Shit. Ryan stirred, his muscles flexing as he awoke and moved, raising his bed head from the pillow. "Good morning, gorgeous." He smiled sleepily, the covers ruffled up just over his waist. But Holly was already up, grabbing at her clothes from the end of the bed. "What's wrong? What is it?" Ryan sat to watch her scramble around to get dressed. She flung on her hoodie and rushed for the door. "Where are you going?" He got up too, throwing on some sweatpants but staying shirtless. Holly daren't look back. She had to get home. "I told my mom I was going for a walk. I spent the night here and now they've probably gone insane... I'm in so much trouble." Ryan stepped over to her, his eyes taking in her anxious expression and spastic body language. She was stressing out visibly. "Hey... Calm down. Stress isn't good for you both. It'll be okay. I'll talk to your parents." Holly shook her head, fleeing from his bedroom to rush down the stairs as fast as her petite feet could take her. "No, no, no.. I shouldn't have stayed with you. God! Why did you let me stay here?!" Somehow this was his fault. Again. But she was right, he shouldn't have let her in. He should of sent her back home.

Ryan followed the little blonde whippet downstairs, the couple both stopping abruptly in their steps when someone starts to bang on the front door. Like they were trying to claw their way in. The dogs went mad too, barking at the violent noises. "Holly Anne Grier! I swear to god, if you're in this house, I'll be locking you in your bedroom until that baby is a teenager." Holly's heart seemed to cut out. An angry John Grier and her fate were on the other side of that door. She'd never heard him so angry. "Oh, God.." Her hand rose up to pull her fingers back nervously through her hair, her voice broke. The uncertain tears beginning to fall down her flushed cheeks. "Shh, it's alright. I'm not going to let him near you if you don't want me to." Ryan's thumb attempted to wipe her tears away, and Holly nodded up at him. "Just stay back. I'll try and talk to him." Taking his shaky legs to the front door, Ryan reluctantly opened it, expecting a punch as soon as he did. John Grier was practically red in the face, immediately trying to push past his neighbour to get to his daughter. "Holly, get here now." The words spat from his mouth like daggers, and Holly backed up towards the staircase, her sweaty palms shaking. "Come on, John. Let's talk about this like adults. There's no need to go near her when you're like this." The men squared up to each other, the fuelled testosterone merging between them like a storm ready to hit. Ryan's hand pushed gently against the brash father's chest to stop him in his tracks. "Don't you touch me! Don't YOU tell me what I should do!" Holly moved closer to her guardian, but kept behind her lover for protection, she trusted her dad but not when he was threatening Ryan. "Daddy, stop.." It was like talking to a cinder block wall, all he was seeing was red, and his daughter's tiny voice could not break through his fury. Father Grier grabbed a hold of her wrist in a vice grip when Holly got close enough, attempting to drag her with him. "You're coming home!" She whimpered, instantly trying to pull her arm back but failed miserably. "Ow, daddy.. Please.. Stop.. You're hurting me!" The tears fell quicker than before, staining Holly's cheeks as her skin finally faced the morning sun. "Let go of her. Don't you dare harm her like that. This stress isn't good for the baby." Now it was Ryan's go to play nasty, and his tone turn sterner with each word. Managing to tug Holly back, he held her protectively to his side, she was weeping, holding her wrist where his strength had burnt her skin. Ryan's hand soothingly caressed her back, he wasn't about to let him take her away from him again. "I don't care about that bastard child. I just want my daughter back. You can't keep her locked away. I'll call the cops." John's words were difficult to swallow, his daughter had never seen this side of him before and it terrified her. Holly's body was shaking but Ryan shh'ed her, reassuring her he wasn't letting her go and that she was okay. "What, like you've done to her already? I just want to show you how much I adore her. I'm not keeping her hostage, I'm caring for her, and making sure she's safe. I would never do anything to harm her." Holly glanced up at the man who had showed her so much more love than anyone ever had before. She kept her injured wrist close to her chest, but her other arm crept around Ryan's bare back to rest there. They stood on his porch, his warmth held them together. John couldn't speak, it felt like someone was choking him. "Daddy, please, just hear us out. I love Ryan, he saved my life. He's taken care of me. I want to be with him, he makes me happy. Can you not see that?"

The father and daughter locked eyes, and Holly gave him a soft smile to try and sizzle out his madness. It worked a little, but he didn't return a similar expression. "If you want this, then I can't stop you. But don't come crying to your mom and I when that asshole breaks your heart. I'm so disappointed in you, Holly." She swallowed, seeing her father turn to walk away, and the couple watched until he was back in his house. "You know you can go with him, if you want to. I don't want to make you do anything." Ryan held her wrist to examine it, John hadn't done much but it wasn't the physical damage he was worried about. "Here is the only place I want to be. You're the only person I–We want to be with." They shared a gaze, her baby blue's luring him in until they were close, and Ryan leant down to kiss her lips. "I'll never let anyone take you away or hurt either of you, I promise." His large palm brushed over her belly and Holly smiled, her hand resting down on top of his as her head leant forward on top his chest.

~•~

The next few weeks passed with no problems, much to Ryan's disbelief. Holly and her mother reunited and talked a few times, promising each other they wouldn't lose contact even if John was still adamant she was "no daughter of mine". With all the physical harm she'd been through, her father's words always seemed to cut her the deepest. But, no matter how much she disappointed him, Holly couldn't be sad when she had Ryan. She was at her happiest spending time with him. They walked the dogs, went grocery shopping and cleaned the house together, took turns to cook for each other, and tended to his garden. He tried to make sure she relaxed but they both knew Holly wasn't one to keep still for long. The dogs welcomed her back with open hearts, Baxter especially, who protectively watched over her just like his master.

After finishing some hot cocoa together on the couch, Holly laid her head on Ryan's shoulder, her eyes growing heavier as his warmth soothed her mind. It wasn't late but as her pregnancy came to its end, she was needing to rest and sleep a lot more; like her body was preparing to nest. They didn't talk about the adoption, Ryan wasn't sure whether she'd gone through with it already. It was a touchy subject and he didn't want to ruin the steady good vibe they had going. He finally had his girl back, with or without the baby too, he was happy.

~•~

The early morning sun shone through the blinds when she woke up a hot flush. Abruptly sitting up on the mattress to compose herself, Holly was panting, the beads of sweat from her forehead dropped onto the sheets below. The nightmare seemed so real, so— Wait. Why did the bed feel wet? Throwing the sheets to uncover her legs, she then threw a gentle hit on Ryan's arm. "Ryan.. R-Ryan, wake up! Please!" He was up like a shot, sleepy nonetheless, but his eyes pinged open at the sound of uncertainty in her shaky voice. Holly's hand dipped down onto the inside of her thigh, then he saw it. Dark red lines of blood stained the inside of her legs, and had pooled underneath her on the crisp cotton sheets. Her erratic breathing worsened as she raised her hand, the liquid had covered her slender fingers. There was so much blood. Ryan froze.

Something was wrong.