Chapter 25 #2
“Who are you—”
“Whoever it is you’re coming for. We all heard your claim. I don’t know your reasons, or your past, but I have to know you won’t hurt her.”
His jaw worked back and forth as he waited to respond, and I felt Wes move the slightest bit under me. My eyes darted down to inspect him, but he was still asleep.
“I don’t know who you’re talking about, but whoever I decide to claim, no harm would come to them. Not ever. The entire purpose of claiming them would be to protect them.”
That was good enough for me. I nodded, and he grunted and then stood.
“I’ll have cleaners come out here, but I need to leave before Wes wakes up. Until next time, River.” Silas gave me a half salute, along with a flirtatious smirk, and then darted out the back door.
I lightly slapped Wesley’s face again, because I wasn’t keen on being alone in a room with a dead body while the love of my life lay unconscious in my lap.
This time he blinked. My heart soared, when I was able to see those whiskey eyes once more.
“Wes.”
His hand came up, pushing a strand of hair off my face. “River. We in heaven?”
A tear slipped free, and so did a sob. “No, baby, we’re in our house. There’s a dead body on the other side of the island. Silas is going to have someone come clean it.”
Wes started to move. “No. No one else can know where we live.”
I helped him up, but he was unstable, gripping the counter for support.
“Jesus, what the fuck happened?”
“I’ll explain it later, but you better call Silas if you don’t want more Raiders here to clean this up.”
Wes pulled out his cell from the front pocket of his leather jacket and blinked at it.
“Call Killian. He needs to be here; he’ll know what to do.”
I took his phone and did exactly that.
“Where the fuck are you? The ranch was a bust,” Killian launched in right away. I cleared my throat and explained.
“Kill, we need you. We found Dad, and it’s a long story but the—” Wes gently took the phone from me and took over. “Kill, I need my house cleaned. No…” Wesley’s gaze landed on me. “Not that house. Head up the butte, but only bring Giles, Brooks and Rune. No one else.”
Wes hung up then handed me his phone.
“Pull up the Roman and dial.”
I hesitated for a second. “Before you do, you should know that Silas was only playing a part. He killed Dirk. Saved me. He wants an alliance.”
Wes laughed, holding his head. “Fuck that guy.”
“I promised him, Wes.”
Gold-brown eyes landed on me, hard and unyielding. “You promised him?”
I nodded. “He knows Kill will take over; he’s stepping in to take Dirk’s place. He knows you want him dead because he has this location and if you ask Killian to go to war on your behalf, he would. He doesn’t want a war, Wes. He just wants peace.”
A scoff left Wesley’s chest, while he started to pace around the kitchen, slow but steady.
“He wants time to strategize, nothing more. For now, I’ll honor it, only for you, but if he ever gives me reason to question his loyalty again, I’ll put a bullet in his brain.”
I clicked on his contact and shot a text explaining to stay away, we had our own cleaners.
Silas replied with a thumbs up.
“Let’s get out of here, Wes. I can’t even enjoy this house you made me, with that dead body in here.”
Wes froze, staring down at all the contents of my purse poured on the ground. My key was still in the front door. Kneeling, I began to gather it all and tuck it back into my purse.
“You used the key?”
Lifting my shoulder, I explained. “They did, to prove you’d built it for me. They wanted to burn it.”
Wes moved, taking one small step at a time until we’d cleared the door and I pulled the key out, tucking it back into my purse.
“And what did you think when you saw the key unlock that door?”
Telling him what I thought wouldn’t make a difference when he needed to understand what I meant.
“Earlier, when I asked if you wanted me to stay, and you asked if it would matter. I said no because I’d already made up my mind, Wes.”
His eyes found mine, his fingers tracing the palm of my hand as I led him to the truck, and we got inside. Covered in fake blood and bruises, we stared at one another as the sun began to set, and the purple streaking across the sky reflected across the windshield.
“What did you make up your mind about, River?” Wes groaned, shifting to take pressure off his back.
Turning toward him, I smiled. “I’m staying. So, no, it wouldn’t matter if you wanted me to or not. I’ve already made up my mind.”
Wesley’s face snapped from the view in front of us to my face.
“What?”
I reached for his hand and pulled his knuckles to my lips.
“I’m staying, and if you want to take it slow because you think I’ll leave again, then fine.
We can. But I’m not expecting anything, Wes.
I know the club is a part of you, and it’s a part of me too.
Silas said my dad really is short on time, and as angry as I am with him, I want to spend what time he has left near him.
I want to wake up every day with you, and I want babies. ”
He moved, leaning over the console until he was cradling my jaw. His lips moved over mine, then a whisper.
“I want forever. You agree to stay, to be mine, you need to understand it’s for good. I stalked you when you went to DC. You were never really free of me; this time I won’t even let you leave.”
I laughed, stroking his hair. “Then you’ve got my future, Wes. Either way, I think our story deserves another chapter.”
He smiled against my lips.
“Fuck yeah, it does.”
One Week Later
The cabin was immersed in streaks of gold as the sun gently filled the valley.
Shielding my eyes, I looked up to the hill above the ridge line and smiled.
Wes and I had plans to move into the new house starting next week, and I couldn’t be more excited.
Killian had the entire place cleaned, and when Wes and I went back three days later, there wasn’t even a trace that someone had been killed there days prior.
It gave me a chance to explore the whole house properly.
Wes had built us a three-story dream house. Each floor was magnificent with small touches, like the colors he picked out, and the style of the handles and faucets. They were all things I’d dreamed of having one day, back when I’d lay in bed with my Pinterest app open, visualizing a life with Wes.
The property sat on five acres, and while the house sat at the top of the butte, the yard expanding behind it was flat, with verdant foliage and tall trees.
It would be the perfect place to raise a family.
While I still had no ring on my finger, it wasn’t needed.
Forever was stamped on my heart, etched into eternity.
As long as I drew breath, Wes would be mine.
The sound of tires crunching drew my gaze behind me to the older pickup truck rolling to a stop.
I tugged my sweater tighter as I closed the gap and watched as Sasha rounded the vehicle to help my dad out of the passenger side.
His face was pale today, and his frame looked gaunt.
Pain hit me in the sternum as I realized I’d have to go through losing him all over again.
We had no idea how long he had. The doctors had said it could be six months or three years, but people had beaten those odds before with pancreatic cancer and lived longer. Just depended on the body.
My dad smiled as he saw me approach, and his arm came around me in a tight hug.
We’d decided we needed a redo. A fresh start, where he saw me, and we reconnected, without club politics, or using me as bait to draw out Dirk.
So, we settled on having breakfast in the cabin every Saturday morning.
Eventually, once we moved into the new house and Wes approved, we’d do Sunday dinner up there.
I had plans to even include Silas, since my dad had informed us that he was marrying Sasha in the town chapel next week.
The two of them had plans to move into a house about an hour outside of Pyle, on a ranch where Sasha could grow her garden and Dad could live out the rest of his life, married and happy.
With his arm around me, we ventured for the front door, but my dad stopped short.
“You ever wonder about those glass jars we used to bury out here?” His gaze spread slowly over the property behind the cabin.
I nodded, following his gaze.
“I tried to find them when I stayed here at first…I thought I’d remember when we were last out here.”
He started for the side of the house, making a humming sound.
“I’m going to start breakfast, okay?” Sasha called before opening the door to the cabin.
Dad and I walked together as he bent low under one of the smaller trees. With the toe of his boot, he dug at the softer soil there.
“Here. I made sure it followed this line here. See the trees, how they form a U shape around the yard?”
Following the line of trees, I realized he was right. It wasn’t a perfect shape, but it loosely formed a horseshoe. Kneeling down in the dirt, I pushed my fingers into the dirt and began digging, unsure if we needed a shovel or not.
My dad just stood patiently as I dug for the treasure.
I was about to give up when my fingernail touched something hard.
I looked up at him with a wide smile on my face.
He sunk to the ground next to me and began helping me unearth the jar.
Once it was freed, I held it between us, inspecting the clouded glass of the mason jar.
I tried to untwist the cap but couldn’t get it to loosen.
“Here, let me try.” My dad took it and gave it a good twist, and we both smiled when we heard the pop of the seal.
I felt like a little girl again as he began to pour the purple sand out. I held my hands up as he emptied it over my fingers, and I felt a few tears begin to well within my eyes.
“Remember what you used to wish for?” he asked, staring down at me with a gentleness I wasn’t used to seeing again.
Clearing my throat, I nodded. “When I was really little, I’d wish for a horse. I wanted one to ride and to take me on adventures. After I turned nine, I would wish for Peter Pan.”
My dad laughed, likely not understanding but my heart warmed at the memory.
“Wes used to tell me stories when I’d crawl into his treehouse.
My favorite was always Peter Pan and Wendy’s story, and that first fall, after all the extra members went back and you took me out here to camp, I wished for my very own lost boy who’d take me to an island, away from everything I’d ever known. ”
My dad’s gentle voice wove between us as he sat in the dirt with me, staring at the purple sand I used to call treasure. “But Peter Pan wasn’t about Peter and Wendy. It was about the Lost Boys, and Captain Hook.”
“It was to me,” I inclined my head, “I focused on the adventure it must have been for Peter to finally have a Wendy in his life, someone to share different things about his island. The mermaids, and even the crocodile. She was a new adventure for him. The kind he’d never had before or ever again, the kind only a first love can give you. ” I smiled through a clogged throat.
My dad studied me while I dusted the last remaining specks of treasure from my hands.
“You know, I never had anything to give you. I was a poor, single dad with a club to my name, and that was my only means at really making any money. I wanted to leave you something, give you something more than purple sand and imaginary fairy dust. I thought by letting you go, and cutting your ties from this place, I’d given you a gift.
I only brought you back because I had the chance to leave you this place. ”
His eyes misted, the hazel turning gold as the sun invaded our little shady spot. His chin lifted as he continued. “I messed up so much of our relationship, honey. I know I don’t deserve you, but do you think you could give an old man a second chance?”
A sob escaped through a laugh as I got to my knees and threw my arms around my dad.
“I’m already planning family dinners in my mind, Dad. I love you.”
Once he drew back and I helped him up, we made our way back to the cabin, and he muttered softly, “Maybe now that we’re clear of the club, you can finally have that life you dreamed of with Wes.”
Smiling, we rounded the side of the cabin, clearing the front, and I saw a new bike parked next to the truck. My stomach dipped with excitement, knowing Wes was waiting inside.
“I have a feeling we’ll still be linked to it for a while. Besides, Wes helped me realize these roots aren’t all bad.”
A kiss landed on my forehead as he pulled on the screen door.
“It’s good to have you back, sweetheart.”
“It’s good to be back, Dad.”
And for the first time in my life, I meant it.