Beauty and The Beast (Brock Lesnar)

Chapter Twenty-Three

           We landed in Kentucky just after two in the morning. I showed Brock to our guest room and then turned in for the night. It had been quite the busy day and I was ready for it all to end. I was out cold just as my head hit the pillow...

           The next morning, I woke up around nine. I got myself ready and then started to make breakfast out of habit. I knew my parents had already taken Alanna to school and I was excited to surprise her with Brock when I picked her up. I threw together my quick chocolate chip pancakes and had started a pot of coffee when Brock came wandering into the kitchen. "Pancakes?" I ask as he sits down at the bar.

           "Sure and coffee, black no cream." I nod as I get his plate ready. "Nice place you've got here. I've never been a city person but it seems quiet, nonetheless."

           I chuckled and sat his food down in front of him. "I can't say that I'm much of one either but it's your typical family home. I wanted Alanna to have a normal life and around here, this is normal."

           We ate our breakfast in silence until he started looking at some family photos on the fireplace. "She's always been a cute kid." He adds, looking at each one. "You haven't changed much either."

           I roll my eyes. "Yeah, whatever. Getting old isn't fun and now, I feel bad for all those things I said to my parents on their birthday. I know how they feel now. They weren't kidding when they said that you can't do all the things you used to."

           "Casey, seriously, you're not old. Technically, I'm older than you and I am not old. Or that's when I keep telling myself." I smiled as he continued looking around the living room. "How long have you lived here?"

           I pause, counting up the years. "About nine years, I guess."

           He looked at me curiously. "You lived here with Randy?"

           "Unfortunately."

           He seemed surprised. "Then why stay?"

           "Well, it's the only house Alanna's known and like I said, I wanted her to have a normal life..."

           He walked over to me and looked me straight in the eye. "When you told Randy that you were done letting him rule your life, did you mean it?"

           I was shocked. "Where is this coming from?"

           "Case, he's going to keep doing it until you leave for good. You're living in his house with his kid. Have you ever thought about moving? I mean, you said yourself that you don't like the city life."

           I nodded. "I've thought about it, but then I think about Alanna... This is the only house she's ever known."

           "Have you ever even asked her?"

           "Yes," I lie. "I mean, no..."

           "Then why don't you ask her? See where she wants to live?"

           It was then that I figured out what he was getting at. "Really, Brock? I'm not moving out of state. Her grandparents live here, her friends live here and I won't just take her away from that in the middle of a school year."

           "Minnesota is full of good people. My farmhand's parents would make great sitters, as a matter of fact, his mother runs an in-home daycare. I've met them on numerous occasions and they are wonderful people. Not to mention, the school districts are some of the best in the state. Her education would certainly not be hurt."

           I was taken aback. "You've really thought about this, haven't you?"

           He sighs. "Wouldn't it make sense though? Instead of stopping twice going home, we could stop once. We could leave later since we would always be in the same place and Alanna could see Willow and Surprise whenever she wanted. If you aren't comfortable living with me, I know of a house just down the road that's for sell by owner. It joins my property on the west end and has a completely remolded farmhouse in the center. I know the couple selling it and I can get you a really good deal." My mind was racing. There was a lot of things that I expected to come out of his mouth but that was not one of them. I was confused and slightly overwhelmed. "If you need a little help with your decision, maybe I can help..."

           At this point, I was staring at the floor, unsure of what to say or do. He had really thought about this and I knew he wouldn't put all that time and effort in for just anyone. Not to mention he hated people and he was willing to talk to the seller? But that's when I snapped out of my daydream. Brock had now stepped closer to me and closed all the empty space between us. One arm snaked around my waist while the other held the back of my neck. When I realized what was going on, my heart raced and butterflies filled my stomach unannounced.

           Before I knew it, his mouth was on mine and for a moment, I went limp. The butterflies in my stomach danced around as I kissed him back. Ever since he told me that he had feelings for me, I had tried to deny them. Why love me? I was just a sad, damaged woman trying to raise her daughter alone. But he saw something else in me... Something that I didn't even know was there. The old me had been trapped inside, waiting for someone to come by and set it free.

           When he broke the kiss, he still left the arm around my waist and to be honest, I didn't mind. I had forgotten how all this felt and what a pity it was. "So? Moving to Minnesota?"

           I sighed. "I'll ask Alanna and see how she feels. But if she doesn't want to, then we'll leave it at that, okay?"

           He nods. "Fair enough, but you know she's gonna agree. Which means, that you'd better be looking at that house." His arrogant side took over as he backed away and sat lazily on the couch.

           I rolled my eyes and sat next to him. "Oh, really?"

           "Oh, yes. She loves me and she loves those horses. In her mind, this will bring her one step closer to having a daddy."

           It was then that my mommy instincts kicked in. "Brock, if we do this and it doesn't work, Alanna will be hurt more than anyone. She has it in her mind that we're going to get together and eventually, be the family she never had. I don't want to cause her the pain that I went through with Randy..."

           His arrogance faded as he pulled me closer to him. "Case, I'm not Randy. I'm Brock and if you have any reason to believe that I would stoop so low to be that guy then please, tell me now and I'm gone. I love Alanna and I love you. I would die before I let whatever we have go. I want to be the father figure for Alanna, she deserves one and I'll do my best to fill those shoes but you also need to take care of you. Since you've known that I wanted to be more than friends, you keep bringing up Alanna and I think in a way, she's your safety blanket. But what about you? What do you want?"

           The word slipped out of my mouth before I could stop it. "You."