Moving On

By: Breezi

Author's Note: I have to say, I don't really know what to say to the reviews I've gotten from my prologue. I feel like I'm being held to some pretty high standards…I hope I don't let you guys down!

Chapter One: Daniel

It had been two years since what she and her family referred to simply as 'the incident'. Lisa had achieved a lot in that time. She was now in charge of overseeing the entire Lux Atlantic chain and making sure that everything was running as it should be. If there was a branch that was having a problem, she hopped on a plane, she wasn't so happy about that part, and went on out to check them out. Hersalary had increased dramatically, not to mention all the frequent flyer miles she was racking up, which she had every intention of giving away as Christmas presents. And then there was Daniel.

Daniel Davis was a thirty nine year old owner of an oil company. To say that he was loaded would be an understatement. The man could probably rival Bill Gates as the wealthiest man in the world. Not only had his father, whom he inherited the business from, built the company from the ground up, he had also taught his son the art of finance and investments. As a result, Daniel knew pretty much everything that there was to know about the business world. He was tall with sandy blonde hair and brown eyes, a square jaw and broad shoulders that gave off the impression of enormous strength and power. He was the type of guy who always got what he wanted. He always said that the moment he had seen Lisa, he had known that he had had to have her.

Lisa, on the other hand, had not been so certain about Daniel. He had been a guest at the hotel and as a rule, she generally didn't accept invitations from guests. But, his persistence had in the end won him a dinner. One dinner had turned into two, two into the three, and so on and so forth.

He was a good person. He had all this money and he was determined to use it to make the world a better place. So, he was getting into politics with aspirations of making some serious changes in the way the government ran things. Lisa respected that. He was so strong, and so good…sometimes Lisa didn't feel like she was good enough for him but she was determined not to sabotage the relationship.

As for Jackson Rippner, well, he had spent about a week in jail before the authorities contacted her to let her know that he had, I believe the exact term they had used had been 'disappeared'. Just like that, in the middle of the night he had vanished from his prison cell and no one had seen hide nor hair of him since. Lisa had known that they wouldn't be able to hold him. He was far too clever, too cunning, too damned resourceful. They had assured that they wouldn't stop hunting until they found him. It had been two years and apparently they were still looking. Lisa was fairly confident that they would never see him again. Rippner had been on the FBI's most wanted list for the longest time now. He wouldn't be found because he didn't want to be found. He was gone.

The FBI had offered to have Lisa put into the Witness Protection Program. Lisa had responded with laughter. "Do you think that Rippner wouldn't expect that?" she had asked. Then, they had offered her a protective detail at the very least. They were once again met with her laughter. He had slipped past them once without much of a problem and they thought that surrounding her with a few top notch feds was going to keep her safe from him if he decided that he wanted his vengeance. It was the most preposterous assumption she had ever heard any supposed federal agent make. She decided that she would take her chances going back to her normal life.

Lisa had also made a conscious decision not to tell Daniel about either of the events that had scarred her both mentally and physically all those years ago. There was no reason for him to know about the rape or 'the incident'. She didn't want him to treat her like she was a piece of glass that could be easily broken just because she had been through something that not many people had had the misfortune to go through. She wasn't some fragile little thing and she refused to let any guy, her father included in this, use her to fuel their damsel in distress complex. That's what she told herself anyway. In reality, she refused to allow herself ti further investigate the butterflies that always materialized in her stomach when she thought about Jackson Rippner. She attributed it to fear and nothing more. She knew deep down that it wasn't that simple, but to examine it any further would possibly damage her psyche more than she was prepared to do at this time. So, she was afraid of Jackson. That solution seemed to make everybody happy. Her father understood it, Cynthia understood it, the police understood it, and it was perfectly natural for her to fear him so she didn't have to worry about all those costly therapy bills. Terror was something that people could handle. With terror, everybody won.

When Daniel had asked her to marry him, it had been completely cliché and unoriginal and that was something that Lisa had felt that she needed at the time. Something…not scary…at least not in the conventional way. He had taken her to a nice restaurant, hidden the ring in her dessert, and given the long drawn out speech about how he loved her and she was the only one for him with lots of gushy adjectives. Lisa had said yes almost instantly. She had even tried to cry, but it hadn't quite come out right. Her bottom lip quivered, she sniffled, the damn tears just wouldn't come.

So, she was going to be Mrs. Daniel Davis. Cynthia was beyond thrilled for her and her father really just wanted for his daughter to be happy and he didn't particularly care how. He and Daniel didn't really get along, but Joe tolerated him because of the way he treated Lisa. Daniel treated Lisa like a queen.

So, Lisa was sitting there in the hotel lobby going over some files and being entertained by the sight of Cynthia running around crazily in the background. When Lisa had been promoted, so had Cynthia. She was the manager of the fabulous Lux Atlantic Resort now. After everything, Cynthia was now the one who had to deal with all the bullshit that guests could turn into problems and complaints. Lisa chuckled as Cynthia stared at one customer, that Lisa knew to be a picky guest, like he was stupid and kept going over her charts. She let her mind wander back to when she had had to deal with the guest in question, Mr. Thadius Reint. He was about fifty and thought that the sun shined out of his ass. He had come storming down into the hotel lobby wearing gold silken pajama pants and a dark red and black smoking jacket. It had looked like he was trying to pass for Hugh Heffner. He stomped up to her and complained that his mini bar had been short one bottle of vodka. While thinking to herself that he should really start attending some AA meetings, Lisa had agreed to comp the room two bottles, but that hadn't been good enough for Mr. Reint. He had felt the need to continue to yell and shout and make a scene for the next half hour before finally agreeing to the two free bottles she had offered from the get go. Lisa had caught the beginning of his more than likely prepared complaint to Cynthia, which had something to do with only one hand towel in his suite's bathroom. Of course, how was he supposed to survive with only one hand towel for an entire night? The horror! Oh, and tonight he had opted for a black silk knee length robe hanging open over red silk boxers with little black hearts all over them.

"Mr. Reint, I understand that you have a problem, but I have to insist that if you are going to be in the hotel lobby, you need to be properly attired. We are a family establishment." Cynthia was trying to say over her howling.

"Honey, trust me, you don't think that I have better things to be doing than standing here letting some little princess like you ogle my package." Reint snapped.

Cynthia merely quirked her eyebrows in disbelief and said a prayer that a hole would open up suddenly in the middle of the lobby and she would be swallowed up into a very large, very quiet black hole.

Lisa chuckled to herself and said a silent thanks that she didn't have to put up with him or others like him anymore. Suddenly, the sofa shifted and she looked up to see Daniel sitting down beside her, a white toothed grin spread widely across his face from ear to ear.

"Hello, princess." He said.

"Daniel." Lisa acknowledged him because it seemed important to do so, then went back to going over her figures. She also tried to ignore the fact that he had just called her the same pet name that Reint had used on Cynthia.

Daniel, desperate for her attention, snatched the charts away from her and set them on his other side. Lisa frowned but turned to him nonetheless. He looked clean and crisp as always in his perfectly tailored Italian cut suit with sharp creases and flawless press. "I have a surprise for you." He said. Didn't he always?

"And what's that?" Lisa asked, really just wanting him to give her back her papers so that she could get some more work done. It seemed like he was popping up with 'surprises' for her every second of every day since day one. At first, she had thought that it was romantic and spontaneous, but at this point, it was just downright irritating. Didn't he know that in order for a surprise to be considered thoughtful, it had to be just every so often and not every other freaking day? She needed to quit complaining. Wouldn't most women be thrilled to find a guy that would dote on them as much as Daniel saw fit to dote on her?

He grinned like a little boy that was about to open a Christmas present as he handed her an envelope. Frustrated, Lisa opened with a roll of her eyes. Yes, she cared very much for Daniel. Yes, she was going to marry him. Yes, she was going to spend the rest of her life with the man…but to be frank, sometimes he just got on her damn nerves. She tore into the envelope and pulled out what appeared to be two plane tickets. Damn it.

"What's this?" she asked.

"It's a trip to Denver." Daniel beamed, "I thought you were due a vacation and I thought a ski trip would do you some good, so I booked the penthouse suite."

"These are for this weekend. Daniel, I have to work." Lisa said.

Daniel held up his hand as though he would hear none of it. "I already arranged some time off for you. Told the head honchos I was worried about you and they want you at your best, so no worries there."

The fact that he had taken it upon himself to call her employers and schedule her some 'time off' rubbed Lisa the wrong way. But, she knew that he had her best interests at heart, so she let it slide.

"Fine." Lisa said and began to reach for her paperwork.

"Though," Daniel continued, "I do have one tiny confession."

Lisa sighed and dropped her hands to her lap, "There always is."

"There, coincidently, does happen to be a small political rally going on at the same hotel that we're staying in."

"Coincidently, huh?" Lisa mocked, her mouth tipping up at the corner as she let the idea of spending her weekend plus a few days rubbing elbows with politicians, smiling and being the charming fiancé of a prospective senator. She would have to schmooze and mingle and…well, it was basically her old job again. Happily, she wouldn't be the one who had to deal with their complaints, but that was a very small bright side when you factor in the fact that she would have to be the one to hear about how their child or grandchild is attending some hoity-toity ivy league and doing so well there! At the very least, it would be a convention of old bourbon drinkers so it should be an open bar.

"I really do think that it'll be good for you." Daniel said, breaking her from her thoughts.

"I'm sure it'll be very relaxing…and beneficial." Lisa said, trying with all of her might not to sound like the smartass that she was, "Can I get back to work, now?"

"You're mad." Daniel said.

"I'm not mad."

"You're upset."

"I'm not upset."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes!" Lisa exclaimed, "Daniel, honey, I'm not mad or upset or discouraged or anything. What I am is tired and cranky and I need to get some work done."

Daniel began to pout and Lisa felt as though she had just kicked a puppy. She smiled and captured his face between her hands and kissed him ever-so-softly on the lips before giving him a warm smile.

"I'm sorry, Danny," she said, "I wasn't trying to be a bitch and tomorrow, after a long night of sleep, I will be very excited about the political ski trip."

"You promise?"

"I promise."

He seemed satisfied with that. "Good." He chimed and leaned forward and kissed her on the tip of her nose. "I'll see you at home."

With that, he handed her papers to her and trotted off through the lobby, bidding Cynthia goodbye as he passed her. Lisa took a breath and held one hand to her forehead as though she could ward off the ensuing headache that was rapidly forming. It wasn't Daniel. She was just very tired. Really.

Cynthia appeared at her side. "I don't know how you dealt with people like him and managed to smile the entire time. I wanted to choke him!" She quipped referring to the guest she had just broken away from.

"Most of the time in my head I was envisioning very bad things happening to them." Lisa said.

"He was just such an asshole!" Cynthia exclaimed.

"Cynthia," Lisa chided halfheartedly, "There are no guests who are assholes…"

"I know, I know. Just assholes with special needs."

Lisa couldn't help but laugh at the modified mantra.

"Here." Cynthia added, sitting down in the seat that Daniel had vacated just a moment before and placing a cup of coffee on the table in front of Lisa.

"Oh, God bless you, woman." Lisa said, snatching the cup up greedily and taking a large gulp, enjoying the warm sensation of the hot liquid sliding down her throat. It instantly soothed her frazzled nerves.

"So, what was cutie doing here?" Cynthia asked.

"Daniel?" Lisa asked.

Cynthia gave her a sideways look, "Who else?"

"Right." Lisa said, mentally chastising herself, "Uh, he booked a ski trip for me as a surprise."

"Oh my gosh, that is so sweet." Cynthia cooed, "I think I hate you."

Lisa laughed, "Please don't." Cynthia's reaction made her think once again that something must be wrong with her. Women longed for men like Daniel. Why couldn't she seem to feel that way about him?

Then, a flash in the corner of her eyes. Tall. Lean. Dark hair. Sharp suit. She turned and looked in his direction on bated breath. The young man in question threw his arm around his young female companion and the two of them wandered off toward the elevators together. It wasn't him. She should have known that it wouldn't be him, but part of her still hoped. No! Not hoped! Dreaded. Part of her still dreaded that one day he would return.

"Don't you understand what I'm saying, Blondie!" a customer with very big orange red hair practically screamed at Sonja, the young eighteen year old desk clerk, drawing both Lisa and Cynthia's attention. The poor little girl looked near to tears and Cynthia flew off couch toward the front desk to rescue her. Lisa didn't envy Cynthia for what she knew she had to put up with since she took the managerial position. It was a hectic job that required her to kiss ass all day and smile while she did it. Lisa was glad that now all she had to deal with were the corporate aspects of the hotel business. No more dealing with flooded hotel rooms, whiney over-privileged guests, the possibility that a guided missile would fly into one of the suites that she was responsible for…charming strangers with incredibly blue eyes…

Lisa tried to chase away the confusion she was feeling with another sip of coffee and turned her entire attention back to the report in her lap. That had been her strategy in the beginning and it had pretty much never changed. She just threw herself into her work to ignore the turbulent emotions that threatened to engulf her. It was a nice solid philosophy, if you don't see it, it doesn't exist. It worked. It was part of the reason she had earned her promotion. After throwing herself head first and whole body into the job just after 'the incident', her higher ups had noticed her newly acquired vigor. She had become their greatest asset and they wanted all of their managers to be as sharp and as clever as she was. Hence, the promotion. She focused all of her energy on the work. She didn't think about the future. So much for Grandma Henrietta's philosophy. Lisa spent her days looking up, down, sideways, anywhere…but forward.

It was another three hours before Lisa finally left work. Part of her knew that it was because she was hoping that Daniel would already be asleep when she got home, but she didn't acknowledge that part of herself and what it implied about her relationship. It wasn't that she didn't enjoy it when Daniel stayed over, it certainly held its benefits, but she just really wanted to be by herself tonight. She wanted to sprawl out across her queen size bed and slip into oblivion.

She unlocked her door and paused in the doorframe, listening intently for any sound; any sound whatsoever. When she didn't hear anything, she released a breath that she hadn't realized she had been holding and dropped her keys as quietly as she could onto the small hallway table that sat near the door. Daniel was already asleep. That knowledge brought with it more relief than it probably should have, but she didn't let herself examine that too closely. She didn't examine anything too closely these days. It was too dangerous to do so. She wasn't sure what she might discover if she did, and as previously mentioned, fear was easier. She shrugged out of her overcoat and hung it up neatly in the hall closet before toeing off her high heels and padding soundlessly through the carpeted living room to her bedroom. Daniel was there, spread out over more than what he had claimed as his 'side' of the bed. Lisa felt her jaw involuntarily clench up at the sight of him. She grabbed her favorite blue cotton pajama pants with little cartoon moons and stars all over them from off of the fluffy white chair in the corner of the room and went into the bathroom.

Once she was in there, she washed her face. She washed away the residue of the day along with the blush and mascara. It was really amazing how clean she felt just by cleansing that one area of her body. It was the most refreshing part of her evening routine usually. She changed into her pajama pants and a tank top and secured her hair into a loose low ponytail at the side of her neck before clicking the bathroom light off and returning to the bedroom.

When she slipped into bed, Daniel immediately threw an arm over her waist and pulled her closer to his sleeping form. Lisa really needed her space tonight, but what the hell? Let Daniel have his comfort. She lay there for another two hours before drifting into an uneasy sleep. Tomorrow would be better she told herself. Tomorrow would always be better.

Author's Note: Well, that's it for chapter one. I know it's really slow but the first few chapters are mainly going to be expository so just bear with me. Let me know what you think!