Chapter 5
CHAPTER 5
BETH
I hid inside our new house all weekend. I was afraid I’d run into that guy if I went anywhere and had no excuse for my behavior. I wasn’t drunk when I came onto him. Yet, I made the stupid decision to have sex with a gang leader. Granted, I didn’t know that about him at the time. All I knew was that he was a hot guy.
Nope. Not going there again. I’ve heard enough about gangs to know they think they own you once they’ve had you in their bed and I am not going to be a whore for those guys. If that’s what Judy wants for herself, more power to her, but that’s not me.
I’m not going to be in this town for long anyway. Once this year is over, I’m off to Washington State to attend school with Teigan. It’s been a dream since her parents announced they were moving there. I hate Texas anyway. Everything is always the same. The winters come with snow once every decade, and that’s not enough for my liking. I want to live where the seasons change every few months and where I can actually build a snowman every winter, drinking hot chocolate by the fire.
Grove Hill is not my destination, only a pit stop, and I’m not going to let some Bastard force me to stay.
I’m a Mercer, goddamn it, and I will not yield to anything I don’t want.
When I set out to become the new and improved Bethany Mercer, this whole thing with the Bastards was not what I had in mind.
“Time to go!” my mom calls as she slips her blazer on over her turquoise blouse, looking more like a showstopper than a bible thumper.
“I’m going to stay home.” I open my English textbook on the island as I shovel cereal into my mouth. “I need to make sure I’m caught up before I start school tomorrow,” I insist, and the look she gives me is deadly.
“Your worship is more important than your studies.” If it was any other woman saying that, I’d assumed she’d lost her mind, but my mom lost hers a while ago.
Being the daughter of a preacher is exhausting.
“My worship won’t get me into a good college.” She would probably perform an exorcism on me if she knew I identify as an atheist and yet go to these things to appease her. I see the bible as a metaphorical storybook. It’s entertaining and full of great life lessons, but beyond that, it’s a paperweight. She’ll probably disown me the day I tell her.
“I’ll go to the Wednesday service instead and pray over my textbook.”
She concedes with that and presses a kiss to my cheek before dashing out the door. I bet she still thinks I’m a virgin, too.
She’s so fucking delusional. How can she preach to a room full of people about abstaining from all temptations when she drinks herself into a stupor every night? She’s the true hypocrite of this town.
* * *
Judy drives us to school in her bright green Beetle with yellow flower decals all over the outside. The upholstery is torn and aged, but it's cozy. It's a comfy, ugly car and I love it.
“Are you nervous?” Judy asks as we pull up to the school.
“Um, no.” I almost laugh at the ridiculousness.
“Well, you’ve been weird since we left the party. I figured you might be nervous to see?—“
“To see who? Him?” I should’ve known he goes to school here because why wouldn’t he? The universe just wants to fuck me over in any way she can. “I’m not nervous. I made a stupid mistake, and I am perfectly fine.” My voice raises an octave and it gives away my mild distress.
“Mistake? Even Casey could tell you guys had crazy chemistry. Why do you think her claws came out so hardcore?”
I shrug. “Because she’s a jealous, possessive bitch.”
Judy gives me an incredulous glare as she pulls into the school parking lot and parks the car. “Are you that naive or just trying to convince yourself?” she asks, but doesn’t look angry. “Look, I was out of it that night. I had too much to drink and I don’t get my words across right when I do that. Did I say something that freaked you out about him?”
My eyes widened. Wow. Why did she automatically assume it was her? “Um, you said they’re a gang, Judy.” Even if she didn’t, I had no intention of continuing that night with him. It was just sex. It just means I’m going to keep my distance even moreso now than I originally intended.
“Yeah. They’re the Bastards of Grove Hill. They are a gang…of vigilantes.”
Vigilantes? “What, like Batman?”
Judy throws her head back, laughing, gripping her stomach for support. “Sure, let’s go with Batman.”
I roll my eyes. “Sure, make fun of me all you want. The rest of the world doesn’t deal with vigilantes daily.” I run my fingers through my hair, agitation leaking from me. “What is even the fucking point of being a damn vigilante? It’s a small-ish town and nothing bad happens in small towns. Plus, there are cops who can take care of all the less-desirables.”
“Actually, the cops in Grove Hill are owned by the Gray family. They are the most corrupt of the hoity-toity bunch. They think the rest of us are small-town scum and that we should follow whatever they say. They and all their buddies get away with everything, but Ronan and his friends fight back against that. They have their rules and everyone knows if they break them…well, it's not pretty. No one knows exactly what happens, just that the people who break the rules are never heard from again.”
Wow. I was not expecting that. Hempstead wasn’t corrupt. How can someone just own the cops? Maybe that makes me naive or ignorant, but I’m curious.
“What are the rules?” I’d hate to be run out of town like all those other people. I doubt they could run me out, but their attempts aren’t pretty, like Judy said, and I trust her. She has no reason to lie.
“Don’t steal, don’t hurt others unprovoked and don’t kill people. It's easy to follow those rules and most people do. It’s only the bad apples that break them. You might disagree with what they do, but they’re the good guys, and they protect the people of this town.”
I believe that. That stranger didn’t give me any dangerous vibes; if anything, he seemed like he wanted to protect me from pricks like “Jordan and his crew.”
“Look, it doesn’t matter how you plead his case. It was just an item off my bucket list. I’m not going to date him or anything like that. Sure, we had chemistry, but that’s it. I’m not in the right place for the complications of a relationship, okay? I just moved to a new place. You’re the only person I know and apparently, I already made an enemy just because my libido latched onto the first guy to give me goo-goo eyes.”
“I get it, Beth. I really do. You have to be ready, but I’m just making sure you have all the facts and aren’t under the disillusion that it was “just sex.” She uses her fingers to accentuate the air quotes and I groan.
“I really don’t like you right now.”
“I told you the same thing at the party, but here we are. I’m all you got, babe, even if you just need a buffer.”
“I just might take you up on that,” I joke as we climb out of the car and head through the crowd. When I say crowd, I mean there has to be hundreds of students gathering and so much shouting that I would’ve thought I was at a concert if I didn’t know better. “What is going on?”
“No clue,” Judy whisper-shouts over the screams. I grab her hand, pulling her through the crowd, but when we break through, my eyes widen in shock.
Really, I shouldn’t be surprised by this, but I thought I had more time to mentally prepare myself to see him again.
The sex god of a stranger stands in the middle. His arms crossed over his chest, an amused smirk across his full lips, as one of the douchebags who wouldn’t leave me alone at the party charges at him. I almost scream for him to get out of the way, but at the last second, he sidesteps the idiot and said douchebag ends up falling on his face.
“I’m going to fucking kill you, O’Reilly!” the dumbass says as he wipes at the blood dripping from his nose and stands to his feet.
“You have to catch me first, Devon,” the stranger teases but doesn’t run or even lift his fists. “And you’re not doing so well right now. I haven’t even touched you and you’re all bloody. Did you pop a blood vessel?”
Devon’s face tenses with rage as he charges straight for him, but the stranger is faster. Jumping up onto the tailgate behind him, he proceeds to do a flip over Devon’s head and lands on his feet, using his hand to keep from falling on his face.
Holy shit.
Devon’s gut slams into the tailgate and he gaffs with agony.
“You’re a good-for-nothing prick,” Devon yells, but “O’Reilly” smirks triumphantly.
“And you’re an entitled trust fund baby. How about you save yourself some dignity before the whole school witnesses you kicking your own ass?”
I can’t help laughing at that, but it's true. He hasn’t touched him, but Devon is covered in cuts and bruises.
Others in the crowd laugh as well. Devon’s eyes flash around him before landing on me at the same time my stranger sees me.
His smile widens as I drop all amusement from my expression, but then Devon approaches me with malice on his face.
“Hey, new girl!” He has just changed his target from my stranger to me, and I’ll be even harder to crumble.
“Back off, Jordan!” the stranger yells, anger on his face, and that’s when it clicks.
Devon Jordan.
Not only is he the one Judy told my stranger was harassing me at his party, but he’s also the guy my mom told me about this morning whose family invited me and my mom to dinner.
Over my dead body.
I’d rather pet a piranha than be alone with this douche. He’s the exact kind of guy that tickles my gag reflex, and not in a fun, sexy way.
I don’t respond. I just lift my chin in acknowledgment.
“Back off!” Judy snaps at him, but with one evil look from him, she caves, standing beside me. I don’t blame her. She’s naturally timid and it's hard to stand your ground when someone who could easily crush you like a bug looks at you like that.
However, I know how this goes. I’m the new girl in town. No matter how I react or what I say, it will stick with me. If I back down, I’ll be seen as a target, and being bullied is not on my bucket list.
“Tell me, new girl. Are you a prude or are you a slut?” he sneers at me as I meet his glare unflinchingly. “I thought you were a prude, but then I overheard you at the party. You were telling Gunderson how you lost your panties at the Bastard house.”
A round of gasps and laughs echo through the parking lot, but I don’t let him see how it affects me. Just fucking great. My bucket list was meant as a way to reinvent myself, not to gain a target on my back.
“Either you were lying to prove you aren’t a prude or you’re just a massive slut. So which is it, sweetheart?”
Rage fills my chest from the pet name he used. No one calls me sweetheart. It has always made me mad when anyone would try to call me that, except for my dad because that was his nickname for me. If he seriously thinks he will get away with this, he’s mistaken.
I tilt my head, feigning a pensive attitude before I knee him straight in the groin hard. The crowd erupts in shock as Devon drops to his knees and I grip his hair tight in my fist before taking the same knee and ramming it into his nose. Pain shoots through my knee, but I don’t let it show as I glare daggers down at the prick.
“Don’t ever call me sweetheart .” He tries to stand, but I kick him in the leg to keep him down and he spews curses at me. “Just because I refused your advances doesn’t make me a prude and giving in to someone else doesn’t make me a slut. It makes you a misogynistic dickwad who isn’t worth the air you breathe. Feel lucky I’m not cutting off your dick for talking to me like that and scurry back to whatever hole you came from and stay the fuck away from me.” I push him back, releasing his hair. He falls flat on his ass, cradling his nuts and I swear he’s crying.
My gaze connects to the icy blues of the stranger, his eyes begging for me to come to him.
No, thank you. I choose life.
“Come on,” I say to Judy as the crowd makes a path for us, and I swear most of them look at me with fear. It’s not that big of a deal. Devon was a jerk and deserved to get his ass kicked, but the big question is: why the hell didn’t my stranger kick his ass? He just jumped around and got out of his way. He didn’t even hold up his arms to defend himself. What kind of vigilante doesn’t even protect himself when he is attacked?
I try to make it inside without any more confrontations, but the universe wants to throw curveballs today.
“Hey.” My stranger hurries after us and catches up as we walk inside the school.
“Hi,” I mutter, not really sure what to say. I can’t say I’m sorry for ditching him on Friday. It was very intentional, and we both know it.
“Oh, crap. I got this thing I gotta do. Catch you later.” Judy dashes into the crowd, leaving me alone with this man. I know without a doubt that was exactly her intention. She wanted to put me in this position, and it's not malicious. It’s simply forcing me to face the music.
“Devon is always a douche,” he says as he walks beside me. Luckily, I printed the school map on Saturday and took half the day memorizing where all my classes and my locker were so I wouldn’t have to ask for assistance.
“I figured as much.” Can we just end this conversation right here? This is getting awkward as hell, and I fucking hate it. We had sex. So what? I make it to my locker, and he’s still hovering, so I break the silence. “Why didn’t you hit him?”
His eyebrow raises in challenge as I stare right back at him.
He chuckles softly. “Because of these.” He lifts his hands in a “need I say more” motion, flashing his fingers. His hands are tan but not as dark as the callouses covering his knuckles. I’m not sure if that’s a sign that he’s spent a lot of time punching walls or people, but my hackles rise.
Red. Fucking. Flag.
“Meaning?” I ask, keeping my voice level.
“They’re classified as a deadly weapon. I can’t hit anyone unless it’s inside the ring, even in self-defense. One punch, and it’s attempted murder.” He shoves them in his pockets, and my suspicions lessen.
Boxing.
He’s a boxer.
Of course he can’t hit someone. A jerk like Devon Jordan isn’t worth his time or the prison sentence.
“Wow. That’s actually a thing? I thought that was just a fictional plot device.”
He smirks. “I wish that were the case. I haven’t kicked his ass since freshman year and he was due another ass-whooping.”
I laugh as I open my locker and throw in my bag, pulling out my things for my first class of the day.
“Aw. Did I steal your thunder?”
“Nah. You can have it.”
What the hell am I doing? I shouldn’t be standing here talking to him like we’re old friends. I should be running as far away from him as I can.
“Are you going to tell me your name?” he asks, and like that, my thoughts of running fly out the window.
I smirk playfully. “Are you going to tell me yours ?” I tease, but he just grins.
“Nigel.”
I think I just had a seizure. Nigel? That doesn’t fit him at all. “Like the Thornberries?”
A comical expression covers his features. “Well, not unlike the Thornberries.”
“Don’t you dare make fun of me. I’m not the one with a weird name.”
“How would I know? You haven’t told me yours yet.”
“Touché.” I close my locker as I roll my eyes. “Bethany is my name, but my friends call me Beth. I use word association so I can remember people’s names easier. If I don’t, I forget them quickly.” His eyes brighten as he listens to me talk. I was probably rambling, but he didn’t seem irritated by it, not like Shawn would get any time I did that.
“So Nigel Thornberry is what you have to tell yourself to remember my name?” he asks, not offended at all. His shoulders are relaxed, and there’s no tension in his features.
“Pretty much. Go ahead. Tell me how weird I am.”
He laughs under his breath before sending me a smile. He takes a step forward until he’s almost touching me. “No, you’re not weird. It’s better that you have a way to remember my name than to scream someone else’s when I’m fucking you, Beth.”
My heart races as the memories flash through my mind. My stomach tenses with desire and my thighs clamp together from the way he poured gasoline on the fire in my cunt. All it took was that one sentence, and my body begged for his touch.
This is so dangerous.
His fingers run over my jaw as he strokes my bottom lip with his thumb. I can’t yell at my body loud enough to get the fuck out of here, to run away from Nigel O’Reilly.
“I…” I take a breath as he leans into me, preparing to steal a kiss from me, but I won’t fall into that trap. “I need to get to class.” I step away from him and turn to flee, but he grabs my hair, stopping my departure. There’s no point in fighting his hold. He’s stronger than me and we both know it. If he wants to hold me in place, he will, and I won’t be able to stop him.
“Why do you keep running from me, butterfly?” he whispers in my ear, holding me back into his body.
Butterfly?
Why is he calling me that?
The memory of the dream that plagued me over and over every night for weeks hits me like a tsunami. The medium gray figure said butterfly too. It's probably just a coincidence though.
My breath comes out sharp as he breathes in my ear, kissing the side of my neck.
“You ran from me after I fucked your tight pussy, just like you’re trying to run now. The only difference is you’re not leaving me your wet panties this time.”
It would be so easy to let him do that again, but once was bad enough I would’ve been better off with the psychopath. He probably wouldn’t have thought to chase me afterward.
“I think you’re putting more stock into it than what it was, Nigel,” I say, barely keeping my words straight.
“Is that so?”
“Absolutely. It was just sex.”
“Think that all you want,” he growls against my neck. “But… I don’t share, period, and I’ve already had you in my bed. You know what they say about that, butterfly? If I lick it, it’s mine, but if I bite you…” Then, his fucking teeth bite into the juncture of my shoulder and neck. Not enough to draw blood, but enough to leave a mark, and my body almost crumbles to the floor. “You’re mine. Keep on running, but you won’t get far.”
He releases me as my legs shake and I want to scream. How can I stay away from him if he won’t let me? And the things he said.
He may not have said it, but I felt the threat in his words. He’s not against hurting anyone who touches me. If I were to hook up with some rando, he would have something to say about it.
I really should’ve just gone with the psychopath.
I snap around to give him a piece of my mind, but he’s gone.