Chapter Twenty-Four
Beth
Beth couldn’t believe her father had a mistress. Well, she could because, let’s face it – it was her father. The man cared about nothing but himself and his political career. The entire situation made her sick. To think, the woman that shattered Zander’s heart so many years ago, a woman who was her same age, was now her father’s mistress.
A loud bang sounded from the door, pulling Beth from her own thoughts. Walking to the door, she opened it to come face-to-face with Candy. “Where’s Sledge?” she demanded.
“I’m right here. What are you still doing in my house?” he asked, standing beside Beth, “And where the fuck is Diesel?”
Figuring this had nothing to do with her, Beth stepped away from the door and behind Devin. Again, Candy made her skin crawl. Beth couldn’t figure out why though and that bothered her. She was always a good judge of character and her gut was telling her something was off about this woman. Something more than just an involvement with her father.
Diesel stepped behind Candy, bent over. Beth looked at his face, and she could see a set of nasty claw marks running down his left cheek. “The bitch kicked me in the dick and clawed my face,” he fumed.
“Oh hell no,” Beth spoke to no one in particular. She had had enough of this woman and her bullshit.
Beth moved around Devin, and stepped into Candy’s personal space. Without another word, she swung on her, knocking Candy to the ground. Grabbing a handful of her shirt, she said, “Get the fuck out of my house. And if you dare to touch another member of Devin’s crew, I’ll rip your hair out by the roots. Am I understood?”
“Fuck you, bitch,” Candy replied, “You’ll pay for this. All of you...” Before she could finish, Beth smacked her across the face.
“Out!” she barked.
Turning to Diesel, she saw the smile spread wide across his face. “Get her the hell out of here. If you have any more problems, call Devin and I will handle it myself.” Looking back to Candy, Beth growled, “Give me one good reason to tear you apart, just one.”
Turning to go back into the room, Beth came face-to-face with Devin. He too had a huge smile on his face. “I know this is not the time, but that was sexy as hell,” he told her.
Rolling her eyes, she walked past him and into the bedroom. “I’m going to get a shower,” she called.
Entering the bathroom, Beth turned on the shower. After dealing with Candy, she felt the need to scrub herself. That woman was vile, why she was even allowed here to begin with, Beth would never understand.
Undressing, she stepped under the spray. The hot water felt soothing. After everything that had happened today, she just wanted a hot shower and to crawl into bed and sleep for a week. She was tired - mentally, emotionally, and physically. Honestly, she just wanted to cry, but Beth knew she didn’t have time for that. Life sucked sometimes, but she refused to let it get to her. Steeling her spine, she knew she would get through this one way or another.
Beth washed herself, scrubbing her skin with her favorite Shea Butter body wash, then rinsed it from her skin, only to repeat the process again. Finally deciding she had been in the bathroom long enough, she turned off the water and grabbed a towel from the rack. Wrapping it around herself, she climbed from the tub. Before she finished drying off, the sound of voices met her ears.
“I hear Beth hit Candy.” It was Zander’s voice. “The psycho hollered about it the entire way to the gate.”
“Yep, she sure did. Knocked her flat on her ass. Candy deserved it though,” Devin told him, with what sounded like pride in his voice. Beth shook her head. She had never hit anyone, but Candy had it coming.
“Fuck yeah she did. That bitch kicked me in my junk. I’ll have to ice down Big D and the twins now,” Diesel complained, “Not to mention, look at my pretty face! I’ll probably have to get a rabies shot. Crazy ass bitch.”
Big D and the twins? Beth thought with a giggle, “Good grief,” she sighed aloud.
She was about to pull the door open, but Zander’s next words made her pause.
“What are your plans after this is all over? Are you planning to keep her, or allow her to go back to her old life?”
Good question, Beth thought. She had been wondering the same thing. She wanted a life with Devin, but had no clue if he wanted the same thing. Devin called her ‘his woman’, but Beth still wasn’t sure of the extent of its meaning. How long would that last?
“Beth and I haven’t talked about the future yet. I want the threat against her removed. Then we’ll talk about what comes next,” Devin told him. “Why? Are you trying to protect her virtue?”
That really wasn’t the answer Beth was hoping for, but at least he didn’t outright say he didn’t want her. That would have crushed her. Whatever reply Zander made, it was too low for Beth to hear, but it made Devin laugh. That sound seemed to calm Beth’s tattered nerves.
“I promise sweethearts, as soon as Beth and I talk, you both will be the first to know,” Devin assured the guys, causing a round of laughter to fill the other room.
Deciding it was time to quit eavesdropping, Beth opened the bathroom door and entered the bedroom, still wrapped in her towel. She wasn’t expecting company so didn’t bother to take clothes with her.
Devin turned in her direction and immediately the smile left his face. “Out,” he barked, but the guys ignored him.
“Looking good, slugger,” Diesel complimented, wiggling his eyebrows at her.
“D, if you continue to drool over my woman, I’ll remove your eyeballs,” Devin commented, “Then shove them down your throat.”
“Well, she’s my hero. My shero. Yeah, that’s it - Shero. She saved my life and Dinkers,” Diesel praised. “If something would have happened to the big guy...” he trailed off, shaking his head. “I can’t even think about it,” he said with a shudder.
Beth couldn’t help but laugh. Poor Diesel. The man was obsessed with his dick.
“Okay gentlemen, I need to get dressed,” Beth said, still laughing at the sad look on Diesel’s face. “You don’t have to go to bed, but you can’t stay here.”
“Are you sure?” Diesel asked, “I’ll be quiet.”
Beth watched in amusement as he sat on the edge of the bed and then leaned back against the headboard, reclining.
“Oh hell no,” Devin sighed, rolling his eyes. “Get the hell out of our room.”
“Fine,” Diesel grumbled.
After saying goodnight, Zander and Diesel left the room. Beth, exhausted, found her pajamas and dressed quickly.
“Come here, baby,” Devin said from his place on the bed. He held back the blanket for her, Beth as she walked to the bed and lay down, snuggling in close to his side.
“I know you’re tired but I just want to say,” he started, “Thank you for handling Candy. I wanted to hit her myself, but would never lay a hand on a woman.”
“I’m still shocked by what she did to Diesel,” Beth told him.
“She wasn’t going to leave quietly,” Devin replied. “Even afterwards, it was Zander who finally got her moving when he stepped out of his room with a gun in his hand.”
“She probably thought he would shoot her.”
“Probably,” Devin agreed.
They both lay in bed quietly for a long while each lost in their own thoughts. For Beth, she kept going over everything she had learned about her father and the extent of his evilness. She couldn’t say she was surprised. Maybe shocked at first, but the more she thought about it, the more she realized how truly horrible he was.
“Beth? Are you awake?” Devin whispered.
“Yeah, babe. What’s up?” Beth answered.
“I wasn’t planning to have this conversation until after everything with your father is dealt with, but... I know we haven’t really had a chance to talk about us and our future,” Devin stated. Beth could feel the butterflies taking flight in her stomach.
“But I think we need to make time. Don’t you?” Devin asked, unsure.
“I do,” she replied, just as quiet as he was. Silence followed her agreement.
Beth couldn’t handle the constant unknown anymore. So she started talking, unable to stop the words from pouring out. “What do you want, Devin? Do you want Derek and I to stay here permanently?” she asked, but didn’t give him a chance to reply because the words kept flowing. “And if you do, to what capacity? Are we together? Like a real family? Or do you and I just keep having sex?” Beth finally took a deep breath. She got it all out, everything she wanted to say.
“You’ve been thinking about this a lot, I see,” Devin chuckled. But Beth didn’t find any of this funny. This was her life. Derek’s life. With every other aspect going crazy, she needed something to go right. Something to be her center.
“Honestly, I have Devin. Derek needs stability, and so do I,” she started, then shot up in the bed. “Oh shit!”
Worried, Devin followed her, sitting next to her, grabbing her hand. “What is it?” he demanded, seeing the tears start to fall from her eyes.
“Devin, our son’s birthday is in three days!” she explained. “I am such a horrible mom. How could I have let it slip my mind?”
“Oh honey. You are not a horrible mom. You have been a little preoccupied hiding from a murderer,” he told her. “Tomorrow you and Amber can start planning and preparing for the party. Whatever you want or need, I’ll pay for it.”
“Okay,” she said, falling back on her pillow.
Lying back down with her, Devin pulled her back against his chest. “Now to answer all your questions. You and I have never been just about sex, Beth, and never will be. I would like for you and Derek to live here. Permanently. For us to be a real family.”
“I’d like that, too,” she whispered, hope filling her chest.
Devin wrapped his arms around her tighter, “And maybe one day, after all this is over, you will honor me by becoming my wife.”
Devin had said it as a statement, but Beth was stunned silent. All she could do was turn over and press her lips to his. The one thing she always wanted was right in front of her. For the next few hours, they showed each other the love and passion that they felt for one another.