Chapter 18
APRIL
The day seems to pass in a blur, mostly because it won’t leave my head, no matter how much I try.
I keep rolling the thoughts around about what my dad shared.
How my mom threatened to kill me in front of him.
For as long as I can remember, I’ve known she wasn’t a great mom.
I’ve always been an inconvenience to her, one she despised and put up with.
There are times I remember her calling me her funding because she received checks from the state for me.
But now I’m wondering if my dad was also giving her money.
I didn’t ask him outright in front of everyone.
It’s not their business. That’s between him and me. Well, it’s really between him and her.
I try my best to shake off all the feelings and enjoy the day, but all I want to do is go back to Fool’s house, where there’s no furniture, and bury myself beneath the blankets we’d slept on in his living room.
I want to go back to the special moment when it’s just him and me, and no negativity can enter my thoughts. Only that’s not possible. Sure, we could go back there, but what’s to stop the thoughts from swirling?
“You okay, sweets?” Fool asks, coming up from behind, his arms engulfing me.
“Yeah,” I lie.
“Bullshit.” Fool loosens his grip and turns me around to face him.
He tightens one arm around my waist while the other glides up my back and into my hair.
“You’re not okay, and we both know it. Don’t bullshit me about it.
The shit your dad shared is fucked up, and I know it’s gotta be fucking with you. ”
How does this man know me so well? We’ve been married barely over twenty-four hours. We’ve barely known each other for more than a week. Yet I feel like I’ve known him my whole life. That I can look into his eyes and read him in a way I can’t with anyone else. He sees what I hide from the world.
“I just need time to come to terms with it all,” I admit.
“You can have all the time in the world, baby.” Fool dips his head and brushes his lips against mine.
“Thank you,” I whisper as he pulls back.
“Nothing to thank me for,” he grunts, though a grin tugs at his lips. “You ready to get out of here, or do you want to hang around?”
“Do you have to be here today?” I ask, hoping he doesn’t.
“Naw, but Monday, while you’re at school, the prospect is gonna hang out there while I’m in church,” he tells me, massaging my scalp.
“You know I don’t need a babysitter during class, right?”
“You might not think so, but I’m not about to let you face those dickheads alone.” The way his eyes flash with anger when he mentions the men who’ve made my life hell for the past year sends a tingle between my thighs. I like that he wants to protect me, but he also needs to know I’m not fragile.
“I can handle them. I’ve dealt with it this long.”
Fool’s grip in my hair tightens, drawing me flush against him.
“That’s what you gotta understand now. You’re not in this by yourself.
You never were to begin with. All you had to do was speak up.
That doesn’t matter, though. You’re mine, April, fully and completely, all mine, and I’m not about to sit back while some pencil-dick polo-wearing douchebag torments you.
Not going to happen. So the prospect will be on you until I finish in church. ”
My heart races in my chest as I look up at this man, my man, my husband, desire flowing through me. Feeling brazen, I lift onto my tiptoes and kiss him right there in front of anyone who might be watching us.
Sure enough, people are watching us, what with the catcalls and whistling.
Fool doesn’t pay them any mind as he deepens the kiss, his tongue dueling with mine and taking command of the moment. As sore as I might be from what we’ve shared so far, my body flares to life with the need for him, a need I think will only ever be for this man holding me in his arms.
Only when Fool breaks away and rests his forehead against mine, as he so often does, do I allow myself to think about what others might see as they watch us. For once, I honestly don’t care.
I’ve always been the cautious one. The shy, timid girl. The good girl who doesn’t break rules. Who doesn’t give anyone a reason to talk about her. But with Fool, I feel as if I can be myself. The rest be damned.
“You ready to get out of here?” he asks.
“Yes,” I tell him, leaning my head against his chest. “I want to go back to the house.”
“Then let’s get the fuck out of here,” he says, chuckling.
“I need to give Kayla a key to my place first,” I mutter, remembering I still need to do it. I just haven’t had the chance with all the parents around.
Kayla and Mercy both made appearances about thirty minutes after we’d all had our ‘talk’ about how I’m related to Cannon and his brother. I haven’t really talked to Steel much, other than a few words here and there, but he doesn’t seem like a big talker, not that Cannon is.
When both my best friends stumbled into the room, looking disheveled, they got a look from several of Fool’s brothers, but Kenny waved it off, saying to leave them to get coffee and that they’d look alive after their caffeine.
This is true; both of them are the same in that regard. They don’t do mornings without coffee.
I laughed when Mercy nearly bit Rimfire’s head off to get him to move out of the coffeemaker’s way.
Fool loosens his grip around my waist, lets go of my hair, and tucks me into his side, as he constantly does, then guides me over to where Kayla is sitting at the bar, staring at her phone.
“Hey,” I call out, getting her attention.
Kayla jerks upright and glances up at me sheepishly, tucking her phone back into her pocket. “Hey.”
“We’re heading out, but I wanted to give you the apartment key. That way, you don’t have to wait for us.” I pull a key I’d taken off my key ring earlier out of my pocket and hand it to her.
Fortunately, Fool’s positioning blocks anyone from seeing her take my key.
“You’re the best for this.” Kayla smiles. It’s not as bright as usual, but it’s something, at least.
“Of course,” I tell her, hugging her. “I don’t know where Mercy is, but tell her I’ll catch up with her later.”
“She went back to bed. We both drank too much last night.”
“Aw, that explains the zombie look you both had this morning.” I laugh and shake my head.
“Yeah, I should blame you for us getting shit-faced, but all we did was take a bottle of Tito’s back to the room we crashed in and drink ourselves stupid while watching reruns of Criminal Minds.”
I grin at her because that’s exactly what all of us would do. Just like with the Transformer movies, it didn’t matter whether they were the ones with Shia LaBeouf or the later ones with Mark Wahlburg. We’d watch them all while going through a bottle of Tito’s together.
“Can’t blame me. I had no part in it. I was busy doing other things.”
Kayla snorts at my response and shakes her head. “Good for you.” She grins at me, then looks to Fool. “Glad she has you. Don’t take for granted what she gives you.”
Fool doesn’t use words, but I can see he takes in what Kayla tells him, nodding curtly.
“Text me when you get to the apartment,” I tell her, stepping back.
“I will,” she agrees. “Get out of here and have some fun.”
I grin as she winks.
Fool guides me the rest of the way to the doors, and we step out into the bright sunlight together.
I take a deep breath of the fresh pine in the air.
I love being in this part of Virginia. As much as I love being back home, the scents aren’t the same.
Sure, it’s a small town, woods everywhere, but they’ve been doing a lot of developing over the years, changing things up. Here, you have the view and the smell.
“You ready?” Fool asks as we make our way to his bike.
“Yeah.” I’m more than ready.
“Beckham.”
I twist at the sound of someone calling Fool by his real name and spot a beautiful blonde woman walking our way, eyes on my husband.
Fool tenses and curses under his breath.
“Beck?” I whisper, looking at him.
“Beckham,” the woman calls again as she gets closer.
“What do you want, Stacy?” he growls, glaring at her while keeping me tucked to his side.
“I texted you,” she murmurs.
“Yeah, I know, and then I blocked your ass,” Fool says harshly. “Got nothing to say to you.”
“But . . .”
“Get out of here, Stacy, and don’t come back. I want nothing to do with you, and I sure as fuck don’t want to see you.”
“We need to talk about things. I’ve got things to share with you, including why I sent that letter—”
“Woman, just go,” Fool snaps.
From the exchange, even with little knowledge of it, I’m guessing this is his ex. Her being anywhere near him agitates him, and I don’t like it. So to ease him, I step in front of him, blocking her from coming any closer.
“My husband has asked you to leave. He wants nothing to do with you. I might not know the history between you, but I suggest you comply with his request.”
Stacy finally looks at me, and her face pales. “Husband?” she whispers, looking as if I’ve slapped her. Her eyes shift to Fool, and she says, “You said you’d never marry anyone but me.”
“I was fuckin’ eighteen when I said that to you,” he snarls, his hands coming to my waist, gripping tightly. “I said a lot of shit then. But things changed. You sent me a fuckin’ ‘Dear John’ letter, for fuck’s sake.”
“But I didn’t mean it. I wanted to talk to you so many times. I only just found out you were back.”
“Stacy, I suggest you leave,” I snap, not wanting to hear any more of her BS.
From the look on her face, that’s exactly what it is.
I step away from Fool and toward her. “You need to stay gone when you leave. Beckham isn’t Beckham to you.
Not anymore. He has a life. A wife. Brothers.
All of whom will protect him and refuse to see him hurt.
Not by you or whatever bullshit you want to bring to his door.
I refuse to stand here and listen to it because I know it’s pure bullshit. ”
“You don’t know that,” she snaps.
“It’s written all over you,” I declare, taking in all the expensive clothing she’s wearing.
“I’m guessing Daddy didn’t want his little girl marrying her high school sweetheart, so he made you break it off.
” I scoff and lift her hand. “I take it you found out he was home around the time you took the ring off this hand, and I’m guessing it wasn’t his. ”
Stacy snatches her hand back. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Don’t I?” I’m fuming now. “You thought your life wasn’t what you wanted, so you’d look back at the one you dumped to see if you could get back with him, now thinking he’d still be single, that no one would want him because he was gone serving his country.
Well, fuck you. He’s got me, his wife. So what if I didn’t know him until he got out?
It doesn’t change the fact that I’m proud of him for it.
I would’ve stood behind him while he was doing what he needed to do. ”
Fool spins me around, his hands in my hair, and claims my mouth in a soul-stealing kiss that binds me to him in a way our vows never could.
He makes me forget Stacy in the moment as he shares his appreciation. By the time he breaks away, I’m panting, wanting more of what he’s giving me.
Fool cocks his head slightly and growls, “Get the fuck out of here. Listen to my wife and stay the fuck away. No one wants you here, especially me.”
Stacy winces, bites her lip, but nods anyway, though I can tell she didn’t want to.
As she backs away, he shifts his gaze back to me.
“Hot as fuck seeing you defend me, staking your claim.”
“I spoke nothing but the truth.” I smile at him. “I hope I didn’t overstep, but I didn’t want you dealing with her.”
“Yeah, baby, you told the truth. You also didn’t overstep. I want you to always speak up and say what you want. Never hold back.”
I nod and draw a breath. “Will you tell me what happened?”
Fool grimaces but nods. “I’ll tell you, but first,” he tugs me into him, “we’re gonna do a few other things. After that, we’ll eat, and I’ll tell you, and you can tell me what I’m missing.”
He doesn’t have to say it exactly, but I know what he’s talking about.
“Okay,” I agree, lifting onto my toes to kiss him once more.
“Get on the bike, sweets,” he orders.
Grinning at him, I obey, only because I’m more than eager to see what else we have to do first. As I straddle my man’s bike, Stacy is already fading from my mind, just like that. Sure, I want to know their past, but she’s not someone I need to worry about. Not when I have Fool for myself.