BEAUTY & THE BRUTE

Six

He was kicking her out! Beverly thought as she swung the club, her nostrils flaring. This was her house too. Her home. But he was telling her to leave and never come back. As if she was nothing more than just a stranger. Her own father was throwing her out. She'd thought about it all night and came to the conclusion that he'd been planning it for a long time. That bastard had been waiting for a chance to kick her out and this was the perfect opportunity. Making it look like she left with her mate so people couldn't point fingers at him. She knew he didn't care about her but to blatantly tell her to leave? That was low and downright evil. She would never, ever forgive him.

The glass holding a bunch of pens flew from the table when she took a swing at it. Pieces flying in different directions. She swiped a hand across the desk, not caring if she was destroying important documents or not. The desk was next. Holding the club with both her hands, she swung with all her might. Breaking it into two. The coffee maker followed, then she knocked down the drawer it had been sitting on. She was about to push the shelf then realized there wouldn't be enough space for her to finish what she was doing. So she decided to come back to it later. After smashing the coffee table, she looked for the letter opener she'd seen and worked on the chairs. Sticking the sharp end into the leather material. Ripping them into shreds. It required more strength since they were made from real leather and anger gave her enough adrenaline to finish the chore.

While she was destroying everything, she wondered how he would react. So far, he'd only had one expression on his face. Indifference. No matter what she did, he didn't care. But this was his office. His lair. Dare she expect an outburst? Or that was too much to ask. When it came to her father, anything was too much to ask. He gave her what he thought she needed instead of what she truly needed. All he had to do was ask. Why was she covered in blood? Why was she acting strangely? Granted, she didn't have answers to those questions but still, it would have been nice to know he cared. Since he hadn't, she hoped he would continue feigning indifference for the rest of his life. Done with the couches, she moved to the window. Taking the club with her. Roman chose that moment to show up. Beverly thought about whacking him on the head and finishing him off but then she'd have nowhere to go. Bastard. This was his fault. If he hadn't shown up...

"What?" She snarled, daring him to open his mouth. If he so much as...

"Need a hand?" He asked running his fingers through his hair. She noticed his voice was deeper, his appearance disheveled but there was a devilish spark in his eyes. If she wasn't so angry, she'd think he was sexy.

But she was angry and frustrated. Had been for a long time. Only a heartless person could live what she lived through and not care. Suddenly, anger turned into pity and she couldn't stop the tears streaming down her face. Why did her life suck so much? Why couldn't she be normal like everyone? Even that annoying Mikaela had a better life than she had. At least her parents wanted her. Where would she go if Roman rejected her? The moment she stepped foot outside Blue Moon, she would be homeless. Yet the thought of continuing to stay there made her nauseous. If she'd known earlier her father wanted her gone, she would have left. Even if it meant mating with the first she crossed paths with.

"Are you crying?"

"Leave me alone" she said turning around so he wouldn't see her crying. Goddess, why was she so pathetic?

"Do you hate leaving with me that much? I won't force you if you don't want to"

"The world doesn't revolve around you" asshole. Because it didn't look like he was going to leave, she spun around and hurried past him. Only to remember about the bookshelf that was still standing. Huffing, she went back, kicked it down then left. Roman's chuckle following her up the stairs. As usual, Gail had everything ready. Three suitcases stood beside the door with two duffel bags on top. The shelves and wardrobe had been emptied. Even the bed was bare. No sheets or pillows. And where did the carpet go? Was she planning on taking everything? As if she'd heard her thoughts, she said,

"You won't miss this place"

"When do we leave?"

"Whenever you're ready. The sooner the better"

"Okay" heading to the bathroom, she closed the door and moved in front of the mirror. For the first time in her life, she hated everything about herself. Starting with her smooth, silky hair, tear streaked face, long nose, plump lips. Everything was just awful. If she could, she would get herself a makeover. So that after she'd left, she wouldn't ever remember her life in Blue Moon "I will never come back. Even if I die, I'll never step foot in this place again" she whispered to herself.

Taking a quick shower, she got dressed, let Gail do her makeup then went back downstairs. Roman and his guys were lounging about in the living room, waiting for her. She looked around, trying to see if she could catch a glimpse of her father. He was nowhere to be seen but his scent lingered in the air.

"He left" Roman offered, seeming to know who she was looking for. She was about to give him a snarky reply but the warriors filing in distracted her. She'd never seen so many people enter the pack house at once. They went upstairs then came back down carrying her luggage. And furniture. And mattress. With her mouth wide open, she watched as they practically moved everything. She was sure not even a speck of dust been left behind. Beside her, Gail said,

"Let's go, ma'am. We still have one more thing left" following her, they stopped in front of the office she'd trashed earlier.

"Gail?"

"We have to take the most important thing"

"Which is?"

"Money"

"What?" She couldn't be serious.

"We're clearing out the safe, ma'am" she announced then proceeded to go in. Nodding her head as if she approved of the mess. To Beverly's shock, Gail went straight to her left, where the bookshelf was -had been- and put her hand on the wall. Like magic, a safe door appeared out of the wall "It needs your blood to open" how long had it been there and why didn't she know about it?

"Should I even ask how you know that?"

"We don't have time"

Beverly did as she was told. And even though she knew the safe would open, she was still surprised when it did. Inside, wads of cash held by rubber bands were stacked on top of each other. On the lower cabinet, it was gold and a few envelopes. Gail grabbed them and threw them in the backpack Beverly hadn't realized she was carrying. In went the gold bars and envelopes.

"What are those?"

"The envelopes? Title deeds for a few pieces of land the Alpha bought a while back"

"How do you know that?"

"It's a long story, ma'am. But we'll need them in the future"

"How..."

Gail straightened "I've been where you are. People who I thought were my family kicked me out without a penny. Do you know what I regretted most? Leaving empty handed"

"So? You decided to take everything this time?"

"Exactly. You'll thank me later ma'am. Let's go" she looked at the empty safe as it closed and disappeared then turned around and followed Gail out. Her father was going to be royally pissed when he found out she had taken the pack's money. But Beverly hoped he would continue to feign ignorance.

Adios, Asshole.

It turned out Gail had called a moving truck. The rest of the pack stood to one side, silently watching as things were loaded into the back of the truck. One of Roman's guys whistled before bursting into laughter but he didn't say anything. On their way out, Gail thanked the warriors who'd helped then went on to tell the pack that they were leaving.

"There will come a day when you will all regret not holding onto her. You'll be surprised by how soon that day will arrive"

What had gotten into her? Had she always been this dramatic?

"Let's go" she told Roman, wanting the earth to open up and swallow her. It wasn't as if she'd been an important member who contributed to the growth of Blue Moon. If anything, she'd bet everyone was happy to see her go. Perhaps they felt the same way her father did. She half expected to see Mikaela among the crowd, gloating but the b***h was nowhere to be seen. Had she not heard the news?

They were almost where Roman had parked his car when an old woman approached them. Beverly didn't think she knew her. Then again, most of them did everything they could to steer clear of her so it wasn't a surprise. The woman held up a box

"Take this with you"

"What is it?"

"You'll need it someday" she said pressing the box into her hands then went back. Beverly didn't bother opening it. She got in the car, leaned her head back and closed her eyes. There was no need to get all sentimental about a place that only held bad memories. Now that she was leaving, she would forget about everything. Nothing about her past was worth remembering.

Exactly two hours later, they arrived at Hell Manes.

The guys standing guard at the gate held up a hand to stop them. For a moment, Beverly thought Roman had lied. No one in their right would stop an Alpha from entering his territory.

"Boss, rumor has it you spent the night outside. Nigel had fit when he found out"

"That p***y. Maybe I should just mate with him?" Roman answered making her gasp. Did he have to use such... filthy words?

"Nah, the beauty next you will be a better match. Who is she?"

"Open the gate you nosy bastard"

"Sir yes sir!" He yelled then signaled to no one. Beverly realized he was the only one standing guard. Was Roman that confident that no one would attack them or was his pack territory too small to attract anyone's attention? As the gates opened, she noticed the hidden cameras. Too small that if she hadn't been looking, she wouldn't have seen them.

The inside surprised her too. They followed the narrow road and took three turns before the pack house came into view. It was bigger than Blue Moon's. A large fountain with two wolves and water shooting out of their mouths stood in the middle of the front yard. Cars were parked to the far left and there were two people having the time of their life washing them. Their laughter was infectious.

"Welcome to your new home" Roman said getting out. She waited for him to open the door for her but he went the other way. Gail did it.

"What an uneducated brute" she muttered under her breath, stepping out of the car.

"At least they have a big house"

"Right. That's what's important, of course" Beverly retorted, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Rome, we've talked about this, haven't we? Until you have an heir, you can't be careless. Where did you spend the night? What did you eat? Do you feel okay or did they poison you? Would you even know if you were poisoned? We can't take any chances. I'll have Lennix take your blood just to be on the safe. Prevention is better than cure" the man said, starting to leave. Roman asked,

"I brought my mate. Don't you want to meet her?

He whipped around, scanned the area and when his eyes landed on her, he gave her a once-over. His eyes lingering on her chest a minute longer than was necessary.

"I don't have to. Once Lennix has confirmed that you're alright, you can get started on giving me an heir. I need to sleep soundly for once in my life"

For the second time that day, Beverly's mouth dropped open. Did that man think she'd gone there to bear pups for Roman? And why wasn't that bastard saying? One of his men had just openly disrespected her. Was he going to stand by and watch? As if that wasn't enough, a woman came out of the pack house, ran towards him and threw her hands around his neck. Smashing her lips against his.

To Beverly's horror, he kissed her back. Right in front of her.

Right after he'd introduced her as his mate.

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