Chapter Twenty – Diesel
At Aunt Meggie’s announcement, Diesel froze and anger surged into him. He’d warned Jana not to get high or reveal she was an addict after he moved her to the treehouse. He couldn’t believe she hadn’t fucking listened. As he scrambled for an explanation, Aunt Meggie huffed.
“Tabitha visited her and used coke on her—” She did weird hand gestures and combed her fingers through her blonde hair yet again. “Uh, there,” she said, turning beet red.
Diesel hadn’t known Jana was still in contact with Tabitha. What the fuck was wrong with her? Both hers. No, fuck. Scratch that. He knew Tabitha’s problem. She was a miserable cunt and playing fucking mind games with Jana.
“Tabitha put coke on Jana’s pussy?” Diesel asked to be certain, too fucking furious to censor himself.
“Yep,” Aunt Meggie said, popping the ‘p’ for emphasis.
“And Jana told you this?” he demanded in that same hard tone.
Aunt Meggie gave him a curt nod. “Apparently, she hadn’t heard from you and Tabitha called. I’m sure she knew Jana is a recovering addict and brought the coke over to be evil.”
A recovering…? Fuck! She was an addict. Period. She hadn’t recovered because she hadn’t gone to rehab yet. He glowered at Aunt Meggie. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw CJ stiffen and glare at him.
“Where is Jana now?” Diesel spat, ready to shake the fuck out of her.
“In your room,” Aunt Meggie told him.
She was there on the goddamn property, in his fucking orbit and personal space. He’d moved her in, against Rebel’s wishes and she had the fucking gall to get high?
Barely aware of anything, he stormed out of the kitchen, bypassing the side door to the grand staircase and heading to the back one, hoping to calm himself.
It didn’t fucking work. By the time he reached the second floor, he was fucking enraged.
He barely noted Rebel’s opened door where Mattie and Harley stood.
“Diesel,” CJ called.
He ignored him, determined to reach his fucking room and ask Jana had she lost her fucking mind.
Her laughter penetrated his fury and he halted. The moment she spotted him, her amusement fell away and fear entered her eyes. She stood from the hallway bench where he and Rebel had sat a few days ago and hung her head.
It took Diesel a moment to register Kaia fucking Riggs. He’d been with her on the bench, keeping her company. Making her laugh. Encroaching on Diesel’s territory yet again.
Releasing a roar of rage, he punched that fuckhead and would’ve fucking beat him to death if CJ hadn’t hit Diesel’s back. He spun, ready to lay his little brother the fuck out.
Rebel’s fucking fist greeted him. Still in her fucking cast, she somehow managed to keep her balance. “If you ever hit Kaia again, I will fucking break your hands.”
“You fucking hit me over this motherfucker?” Diesel roared, even angrier at the thought that she was defending him.
That little bitch hit him again. “Yes, fuckhead! Yes! My boyfriend.”
“Who was flirting with her,” he snarled, thrusting his chin toward Jana, barely able to look at her. She was supposed to behave, so he could get his fucking life in order.
Rebel hit him again. “Her has a name, you flaming fucking fuckhead. It’s Jana, and I really fucking hate you for making me defend her to you again. She’s your wife-to-be. Act like it, jerk.”
“What’s it to you, you little shrew? You don’t give a fuck about Jana. You just want to make my fucking life miserable.”
“I can’t fucking do what the fuck you’re doing on your fucking own, so fuck you.” She shoved him. “Apparently, I care more about Jana than you!”
“That isn’t fucking true! I care about Jana with everything in me, Rebel. I want the fucking best for her. I want to lay the world at her feet, but she has to fucking cooperate.”
“Look, motherfucker, I’m the wrong person to tell that to. Because I fucking think you’re using Jana.”
He gave her a dark look. “You fucking wish,” he hissed.
“Fuck you. I know.” She cackled, like the evil little witch she was. “You’re a stupid fuckhead. You married that bitch because of whatever. You moved Jana in here because of who the fuck you can’t have, not who the fuck you want.”
“I fucking hate you so much, Rebel.”
“I don’t care,” she responded without missing a beat, scaring him more than anything, even Uncle Christopher’s threats.
“We are brother and sister. I know I’m the fucking gold standard and you wish you could get me, but you can’t.
Deal with it. Jana loves you. Man the fuck up and make her happy.
More than that, leave my boyfriend alone.
I will fucking torture you if you hurt Kaia. ”
He was going to do more than hurt Kaia. He was going to kill that motherfucker. Rebel’s loyalty to him and defense of him enraged Diesel.
“He was making Jana laugh,” he spat.
Rebel snapped her brows together. “You’ve lost your ever-loving mind,” she said after a moment.
“Jana’s mine.”
“Thank you, Diesel,” Jana said, sniffling. “I love you so much.”
Yeah, Diesel would’ve labeled Jana as pathetic had he been an outsider just looking in and thinking they knew what the fuck was going on. But she was sweet and kind, in need of love, and in love with him.
“I don’t know what I’d do without you,” Jana added.
Rebel’s outrage annoyed the fuck out of Diesel.
“Not a fucking word, Rebel.”
She jabbed her finger in the center of his forehead. “You should be fucking ashamed of yourself. She’s not a fucking piece of furniture that you claim ownership of, put somewhere to rot, and then bring her out at your convenience.”
“I don’t do that.” Diesel looked at Jana. “Don’t listen to Rebel, sweetheart. She doesn’t know what the fuck she’s talking about.”
Allowing those words to hang in the air, Rebel made her way to Kaia. Instead of standing up to defend his “girlfriend” against Diesel, emo boy let Rebel do the heavy lifting. Seeing her touch his jaw, cluck in sympathy, whisper to him…
Diesel took a step toward them, but CJ pulled him back.
“Control yourself,” he ordered, low.
Jana sniffled again and his stomach turned.
He started to pull away to strangle Kaia, until he saw Mattie and Harley standing side by side.
They were both bruised, scarred, and Diesel’s show probably didn’t help their mental state.
He heaved in a breath and glanced between them.
He wouldn’t address what was going on now because his emotions were too raw.
“What I said to you yesterday was unworthy of me and the two of you. I’m sorry. ”
“What did you say to them that would make you fix your fucking mouth to apologize?” Rebel demanded, because she could never shut the fuck up.
“We’ll tell you when we get back in the room,” Mattie told her.
Rebel eyed him, her blue eyes inscrutable. “That fucking bad, huh?”
“Just Diesel being Diesel, Reb,” CJ told him, dropping his hand from Diesel’s shoulder.
“What happened to the new and improved you?” she asked.
Diesel almost answered her. They’d had a simple bonding moment in this very hallway. But the way she was looking at him and behaving toward Kaia unsettled him. He wanted a different type of reaction from Rebel to prove he meant more to her than motherfucking Kaia.
“The only woman I answer to is Jana,” Diesel said coldly, and smirked at her flinch.
“Stop it, fuckhead,” CJ warned.
“If I may say so, Reb?” Diesel continued, ignoring CJ. “You put too fucking much worth in yourself. Jana is my gold standard.”
“Nice fucking try, dickface,” Rebel said, down but not out.
“Jana is very pretty. It doesn’t take away from my fucking beauty or my fucking worth.
And, you miserable fucking fuckface, I look in the mirror every fucking day and thank God I have two beautiful parents who created such perfection.
And, if you treated me the way you treat Jana or Tabitha—and I despise that bitch—I would either kill you or put a fucking hit out on you.
You’re so fucking lucky you married a vain, brainless twat and are engaged to an insecure, spineless twit! ”
“Bro,” Mattie chided, shaking her head.
“Did you fucking have to say that, Reb?” CJ nodded to Jana, who looked so fucking mortified that Diesel wished he’d left well enough alone.
Rebel scowled. “Jana, I’m about to lose my fucking mind. I’m not a life coach,” she yelled, lacing her fingers through Kaia’s.
Diesel almost lost his fucking mind.
“Repeat after me,” Rebel said, glaring at Jana, who didn’t respond. She was just lost and pitiful. “Repeat after me.”
Jana shook her head.
Remorse settled into Rebel’s face. “I’m sorry, Jana. I shouldn’t have said that about you.”
“I thought we could be sisters,” Jana sobbed. “But we can’t be if you think I’m a twit.”
As if he put those fucking words in her mouth, Rebel glared at Diesel.
Mattie hurried to Jana and hugged her. “I’m Mattie,” she said. “Your soon-to-be cousin by marriage.”
Fuck. Why was everyone declaring themselves Jana’s family when there hadn’t been a fucking wedding yet?
“Rebel gets ahead of herself sometimes,” Mattie continued. “Either ignore her, tell her to fuck off, or both, until she calms down. Okay?”
Swiping her cheeks, Jana gave an obligatory nod. “What happened to your face?”
“It’s a long story,” Mattie said breezily. “And not important.”
“Fucking Uncle Johnnie,” CJ mumbled.
“Our concern is you.”
“Really?” Jana asked.
Mattie nodded.
“I’ve only ever had Diesel to truly concern himself with me.”
“That explains it then,” Rebel said crossly. “A fucking mutt deserves better than only that motherfucker—”
Kaia clapped his hand over Rebel’s mouth as if he had the fucking right to fucking touch her.
“Diesel is amazing,” Jana said. “He’s kind. Smart. Funny. Protective. He’s everything to me. I adore him.”
“Thank you, sweetheart. I appreciate that,” Diesel said.
All eyes, except Jana’s, turned to him.
“For real, asshole?” CJ said.
Jana’s shoulders slumped. “I know he doesn’t love me.”