a/n: Shorter chapter than normal to finish up our time in Atlanta. Thank you, thank you, thank you for all of the continued support! I've also seen some new favs/follows and to you readers I say welcome! Hope everyone enjoys this chapter despite the length. I hope to give you all Chapter 19 soon but it really depends on work assignments. Friday at the latest, promise! Enjoy:::
Chapter 18
"Why do you have so many shoes, child?" Mom asked as I taped up my second box of shoes. I raised my brow at her, wondering if she even realized how hypocritical that question was. She shook her head and pointed at the two boxes. "Don't give me that look. I don't have two larges boxes of shoes. Maybe one and a half at the most."
"I like shoes." I said simply. There was no real need to explain it. She was my mother so I came by it honestly. "We wear the same size. We can go through them when we get home and see if there's any you want."
We had been packing for a better part of the day, only taking a quick break for lunch and to go pick up the moving truck that would be driven out to Charming after we left. Happy still didn't agree with me about paying someone to drive the truck out when we were already going that way, but he didn't argue too much since it meant we would be back in Charming sooner.
"There's some girl asking for you outside." Happy said, walking in and grabbing the two boxes I had just finished packing. I stood up and brushed the back of my shorts off.
"I'm going to start packing these pictures." Mom said as I moved to follow Happy. I turned back for a second to give her a nod. I had been avoiding packing the pictures. I didn't want to go through them and I didn't know what I was going to do with them after the move. I was more than willing to let Mom deal with packing them. Happy was staring at Hailey when I found them outside. I could tell she was trying not to stare at him. It was a little hard not to considering he was shirtless and sweaty. "There's bottled water in the refrigerator."
"Didn't bring me one?" He growled playfully. I smirked as he walked past me and back inside through the garage.
"Is he your boyfriend?" Hailey asked right off the bat. I blinked, wondering where her normal, friendly greeting was. I blinked a couple times, honestly unsure how to answer that question. "Is he making you move and sell the house?"
"What? No. I decided to sell the house before I even went back to California. Hailey, what's wrong?" She had started to cry and her face was getting red.
"Did you even love my brother? There's barely any grass on his grave and you're already with somebody else." Hailey yelled. I scowled and ground my teeth together.
"Don't ever question me when it comes to Hank. Don't you dare." I said, turning to go back inside before I said or did something I regretted. Hailey caught my wrist and pulled me back around to face her. "Have you smiled or laughed or had a good day since he died, Hailey? Even once?"
"You're his widow." She spat. I yanked my wrist away and balled my hand into a tight fist. She scoffed and pointed at the house. "This was his house to."
"It was, Hailey. It was our house and then he died. I understand that you're hurting but you can't take it out on me like this. I haven't done anything against you, your family or Hank." I was giving her one last chance to change her attitude towards me. She scoffed and straightened the bottom hem of her shirt.
"I'm glad my brother isn't here to see you like this. From hero to thug. It would break his heart." She said, stepping up to me. My hand stung like it had been dipped in acid as soon as it hit the side of her face. I had reached my breaking point. She was beyond rude. She was being cruel. I saw her raise her hand but she stopped short of touching me. I saw her eyes widen and turned around to see Mom standing behind me. Her hands were on her hips, but in her right hand she was holding her trusty Beretta Tomcat.
"That's enough. You move to touch my daughter and I'll put one through your bony ass." Mom said. I guess there may have been a basis for everyone's fear of her. "You don't get to talk to Alexis like she's some gash. I suggest you get in that flashy car she gave you and leave before more than just feelings are hurt today."
"I should call the police." Hailey threatened. I knew she never would though. She wouldn't embarrass herself or her family by getting the police involved. She was visibly shaking while she purse her lips and stormed back to the Camaro. I was hurt that Hailey had talked to me like that. What hurt more was the possibility that she really felt that way.
"You didn't listen to anything that little tart said, did you?" Mom asked, still scowling in the direction that Hailey had left in. It took me a moment to process what she'd asked and that was all it took for her to jump full into Momma Bear and Old Lady mode. "Alexis Grace, don't you dare. You were a great wife and no one could ever think you didn't love that man. You're allowed to move on. You're allowed to be happy. He was a good man. He would have wanted you to be happy. You are a Teller first, Lexie. You are a strong woman who should never take shit from anyone."
"Mom, it hasn't even been six months." I said, Hailey's words were really sinking in. Mom scowled and grabbed my shoulders.
"Birth and death, Alexis. Everything in between is your life and you can't try to live on someone else's timeline. You do what's right for you and right for that man inside." She pointed towards the house and I felt my cheeks warm. She was right. It wasn't just about me. I stepped closer to her and wrapped my arms around her in a hug. Sometimes all a girl needs is a hug from her mother, no matter if they're three or eighty-three.
"Thanks." I said before stepping back. She nodded and we walked back inside. I glanced down at her Beretta and had to laugh. "Was the gun necessary?"
"It drove the message home." She said with a nod. I laughed again. I knew if my daughter was in my shoes, I would have done the same thing Mom did. "I'm going to finish the box I started."
"Did you hear all that?" I asked, knowing Mom was giving us some space to talk. Happy finished his bottled water and nodded. My head dropped. It was embarrassing enough to have my mother step in for me.
"You should have closed your fist and just hit her. Slapping is for pussies." He said, offering me a smirk. I chuckled and questioned why I thought he would even care about what she had said. He wasn't really the type to care about other people's opinions. "I probably shouldn't go to that dinner with your in-laws though."
"I'm not going. If Martha has an issue with it, she can talk to her daughter. I just want to get this finished and get back to Charming." I said, stepping closer and rested my head on his shoulder. He put his hands on my back and kissed my temple.
Just as I assumed, Martha wasn't happy to hear that I wasn't coming to dinner. After a quick explanation of what happened with Hailey, she didn't push me on the issue much. Mom, Happy and I just ordered a pizza and ate on the floor. We didn't have much left to pack and all of the furniture that was going to Charming was packed in the moving truck. Everything else, the bedroom furniture and outdoor furniture, was being offered up with the house. If the buyer didn't want it, I was going to have a local church come and pick it up for charity.
"Wake up." I whispered to Happy between kisses to his chest. He grunted and rolled over to get away. I giggled and kissed his neck. He flipped right back over, eyes open and a scowl on his brow. I smiled brightly and kissed his lips quickly. "Wake up. The sooner we get done, the sooner we can go home."
"No, the sooner we get done the sooner we go wait for the flight." He grumbled. I rolled my eyes and dropped down onto my back. "You woke me up. You don't get to pout."
"I'm not pouting." I lied. He nodded and kissed me. It was gentle at first but it quickly deepened and heated up. I didn't even care that I still had morning breath or that my hair was probably all over the place. He made me forget all of that. I rolled over so that our bodies were parallel and snaked my hand around to the back of his head. He growled and hooked an arm around my waist, pulling me on top of him as he rolled onto his back. I don't know how, but I was able to stop myself just before things progressed any further. Happy didn't fight it or move to push me further.
"I'm sorry. I want to." I said, nearly out of breath. Happy nodded and pulled my mouth down onto his for another kiss. It was softer but I could feel the heat and passion hidden behind it.
"Just not here." Happy provided the words I couldn't find. I nodded and he brought a hand up from my hip to push my hair behind my shoulder. "Going to be honest, Alexis. I'm going crazy. Haven't been this much of an alter boy since middle school."
"Middle school? Really, Happy?" I laughed, amused that he reached back that far. He smirked. "I'm going to call bullshit on you being an alter boy but I understand, Hap. You're welcome to grab a sweetbutt any time you want."
"I wasn't born yesterday, Lexie. You'd cut my balls off and keep them on a shelf." Happy knew me too well to think I would be okay with him being with a sweetbutt, on the road or in Charming.
"Probably a shelf. Sorry, babe but balls aren't really something I want to stare at on a bookshelf." He rolled his eyes and squeezed my hips, causing me to jump from the tickling sensation. I slapped his chest playfully. He knew that tickled.
"Let's get dressed before you change your mind." Happy said, patting my outer thigh. I sighed and climbed off the bed with a nod. Mom didn't sleep in much longer than we did, so we were done with the packing three hours before our flight. I locked the house up for the last time and loaded my car onto the car hauler that was attached to the truck.
"You okay, Lexie?" Mom asked, finishing a cigarette before we got on the road. I looked at the house and nodded, finally able to say that I was honestly okay. No matter where I was, the memories I'd made with Hank would still be with me. I didn't have to stay in Atlanta to remember our time together.
"I wish I was leaving on better terms with Hank's family. I know Hailey is still grieving. She never would have lashed out like that if she wasn't hurting." I said, opening the passenger door. Mom nodded and stomped the cigarette butt out. Happy leaned on the roof of the car and looked over at me.
"We ready?" He asked, obviously anxious to get back to California. I nodded and lowered myself down into the car. I had thought that moving would be starting over but I realized it was just turning the page on a new chapter. Just because the previous chapters were behind me didn't mean they weren't a part of my life.
"Yeah, let's go home." I said, closing the door. He nodded and put his right hand on my knee as soon as he backed out of the driveway.
"Everything okay?" I asked, closing the magazine I had been flipping through while we waited for our flight. Happy got a call and stepped away for a few minutes. Happy ran his hand over his face while slowly shaking his head. I swallowed hard, bracing myself for bad news.
"I've got to take care of something when we get back." He said simply. I knew that could possibly mean that he had to make a kill for the club. It made me nervous.
"Is everyone whole?" Mom asked. We both thought she had been sleeping. Happy looked over at her, his expression illegible.
"Yeah, they're whole. If someone doesn't stay quiet a few of us will be inside again." I knew he couldn't say much in our current setting. A busy airport wasn't really the best place to talk about the club's business. Mom and I both understood enough to know that it was serious though. Something was witnessed and that witness could put some of them away for what I assumed was some major time. It wasn't discussed any further. Happy became quieter than normal, no doubt going over strategy and possible outcomes in his head. I flipped through the magazine without really seeing anything and Mom held her coffee, occasionally sipping on it even well after it was cold.
"Flight 113 to San Francisco is now boarding." A flight attendant announced, jolting the three of us out of our respective thoughts. Happy put his hand on my lower back and guided me towards the plane after Mom. I was eager to get home but I had no idea what we would be walking back into. My mouth was dry and the smallest part of me wondered if I'd made the right decision in going home after all. I shook my head to get rid of the doubt. Like Mom said, I was a Teller first. I grew up with the club. We'd seen bad times before and they always ended up on top. I told myself it wasn't any different then than any time before.
