Beth woke up at the hotel with her memories of the last few days still floating around in her thoughts.

She glanced over at the clock on the bedside. It read, 6:30 am. Beth calculated in her head, she still had at least 18 hours of drive time ahead of her before she reached her destination so she probably wouldn't make her destination in one haul. She'd probably have to stop somewhere again for the night. There's no way she can drive that much straight she thinks to herself.

Beth checks her phone. Her voicemail inbox was full as of last night but she can see there 5 more missed calls from Rio as well as 2 from Ruby. She checks her texts and there's one from Ruby from 7 hours prior.

'You really need to call Rio back now, we have a slight issue with your plans on staying here with Stan and me.'

Ruby is two hours ahead in the time zones so it's 4:30 am there and she knows Stan will go ballistic if she calls that early in the morning so she texts her back:

'I am really trying to avoid calling him right now. I've been ignoring his calls. The last text I got from him said he's going to try to find me, which is the last thing I need right now. What do you mean there's an issue with staying with you? Why are you being so cryptic?'

Beth puts her phone in her purse and wakes Jane up. She gathers all of her things and checks out of the motel after they had a quick breakfast of bagels with cream cheese and juice.

The next few hours on the road seem to fly by. When they stop at a 7-11 to grab some prepackaged sandwiches for lunch, Beth checks her text messages. There's one from Ruby:

'Girl, you should talk to Rio right now. You can't stay with us anymore but don't worry there's been an arrangement for you to stay somewhere else that's nearby to where Dean is staying with the kids You'll be happy there.'

Beth's eyebrows knit together in confusion. She not sure why Ruby would change the plans for her to stay with her when she was halfway up there. It made no sense. She knew Stan wouldn't be happy about her staying there but he had agreed to it because Ruby begged him and he had agreed because they hadn't seen each other in almost 2 years and Ruby threatened him with a divorce if he said no.

Beth took a shaky deep breath and sent a quick text to Rio. :

'I had to leave, Antonio's guys threatened to kill me in front of my kids. They are terrified that the 'bad men' will come back. I know you said you would take care of it but so long as we are in the same business together, the threat will remain the same. As much as I love you and it hurts my soul to leave you, I have to protect my kids and make a home somewhere where they will feel safe'

She hits send and watches for the confirmation of the text being sent to pop up on the phone.

There, she thinks. It's done. He knows the reason that I left and he will get over it. We weren't married yet, we don't share any assets or children together. It will be a clean break.

Then Beth sent a text to Ruby:

I am not going to make it all of the way there tonight. I should be there tomorrow morning.

Immediately she received a text back from Ruby with an address. Beth googled the address and saw it was a condo building.

Go straight there. There's some furniture already set up and ready for you after you drop off Jane's at Dean's place. You will have a comfortable bed to sleep in and I will there to visit you the next day after I get off from work. I hope that you are happy there.

Beth was able to drive 14 hours but had to stop several times for pee and snack breaks. Jane pretty much slept half the trip and didn't make much of a fuss in the hours she was awake, she excitedly talked to her siblings on Beth's phone for half an hour and then asked Beth a hard question to answer.

"I miss Marcus already. When will I see him again? ".

Beth swallowed hard and looked out the window of the U-Haul van. "I don't know honey", she replied forlornly.

Beth pulled off the road to a motel. She counted her cash left from her wallet to make sure she had enough to cover the cost listed on the sign.

The night went pretty fast and she still didn't get much sleep but she felt better rested in the morning and ready to make the rest of the trip.

The drive to the condo building in Henderson took a little bit longer then Beth expected it to. She didn't get in until 6 pm. She was mostly late because stopping to drop off Jane had led to a 2 hour family dinner at Dean's place. Judith had insisted the kids have a homemade meal.

The condo building was nicer then Beth expected. She wasn't sure how Ruby had swung putting her up in this place. The monthly rent was more then she could afford on a minimal wage job. When she went to the lobby and explained that her friend Ruby Hill had said she had a place reserved in her name the woman smiled at her.

The petite blonde young woman smiled at her. "Yes mam, we are expecting you. Your first month's rent has been fully paid in advance, but it wasn't a woman that paid for it", she stated as she handed her the key. "It was a nice gentleman".

Oh right, Beth thought, Stan really didn't want me to stay there that much that he made sure that I stayed somewhere else even if he had to pay for it. She and Stan hadn't seen eye to eye in a while and she resented that he took Ruby away from her and moved to Nevada. He told her that he could never forgive her for getting his wife into a life of crime and even when she moved out here she had been tempted to get back into crime. He put that sole blame onto Beth and not Ruby.

Beth made her way to the elevator with her bags and suitcases. She had left everything else in the U-Haul She made her way to the third floor.

Beth put the key in the lock and turned the knob. She stepped in to the place. The condo was beyond her expectations of anything she could ever find to rent. There were new appliances. The furniture was simple but elegant. The kitchen had marble countertops and stainless steel appliances. She noticed something that caught her eye sitting on the kitchen counter. It was a glass half filled with a dark liquid that looked suspiciously like bourbon.

Then she made her way to the bedrooms. This was a 3 bedroom condo. There were two smaller rooms that each contained a closet, dresser, desks, chairs and bunk beds. Then there was a larger master suite with a connecting bedroom.

The master had furniture in it that she had only dreamed of owning, a large 4 poster bed, mahogany wood matching bedroom furniture and a large walk in closet. The closet reminded her of the closet that Rio had in his loft apartment that she had broken into but the furniture reminded her of items she had shown Rio that she liked when he gave her an ultimatum of getting rid of her current furniture before he moved in because 'it reminded him too much of Car Man'. She hadn't gotten rid of the furniture though and although Rio practically lived at her house, he never completely moved in. He never gave up his other apartment.

Beth saw a text from Ruby comes through as she was sitting on the bed.

It read:

'We ordered you a pizza. Should be there around 7:30'.

Beth started to hang some of her clothes in the closet and put away the other things from her suitcase.

Almost exactly at 7:30 there was a knock on the door and Beth bound to the door. She wasn't overly hungry as she had eaten a large meal at Dean's. Beth opened the door quickly with a 5 dollar bill in her hand for the tip and then froze, her mouth gaped open and she took a step back.

The man at the door did hold a pizza box in his hands but he definitely wasn't the delivery driver that Beth expected. It was Rio. Rio was standing at her door with a smirk on his face. The same one he had gotten every time he pulled something off and tricked her. Just like the satisfied smirk he had given as he had introduced his grandmother as his 'Boss' to her.

"Surprise", he says as he walks past her, still looking stunned at his appearance.

"How did you find me? ", Beth stutters out.

Rio blinks and looks up at her, smiling. "Ruby gave you up and told me that you were planning on staying with her on her couch. We can't have that now can we? My Princessa deserves her own castle. ".

"Why are you here instead of being home in Detroit, taking care of business there?" she asks.

"I'm not there because you aren't there. My home is wherever I'm with you", he tells her.

He pulls her close to his body. His arms are wrapped tightly around her and her head is tucked into his shoulder. He whispers into her hair. "I'd give everything up to be with you, Elizabeth. I don't think I can live without you by my side. Also I couldn't bear the thought of you staying on your girls couch, away from your kids. You deserve a place with a comfortable bed and space for the kids to stay".

Beth shakes her head and takes a step back from his warm embrace.

"What about Marcus? ", she asks.

"I talked to Rhea about it and we are planning to change the custody agreement so he can spend summers here when school is out".
"Is this place in your name? Did you pay the rent for me?", she asked.

He grinned at her and moved a piece of hair from her forehead, "It's in both of our names, darling. When I found out you left, you took a piece of me with me. I decided that if I had to choose between the businesses and you, I would choose you every time. I had money saved up. I settled my debts and am working on selling the legal businesses", he said.

Beth looked up at him in awe. He sacrificed all that he had built for himself for her and she should be grateful but some other issues were pressing on her. The fact that he kept pushing off the wedding was an issue that brought itself to the top of the surface.

"What about the wedding?" she asked point blank.

"Baby, I am ready anytime you are. You are here with your family and friends to celebrate. Maybe Elvis can officiate", Rio said smirking.", Rio leaned down and softly pressed is lips against hers.

The spark she felt the first time they kissed in her bedroom was again renewed. They had kissed plenty of times over the last 4 years but this kiss was something different. It was as if Beth was starving for Rio. That she needed to consume him in order to feel sated.

"Bedroom", Beth gasped out as she steered him towards the bedroom, their bedroom.

Once they reached the bedroom, Rio guided her towards the bed, which already had bedding a silky Asian inspired black bedspread and blue silk sheets that she would have never picked out herself because she knew the silk sheets alone would cost her a quarter of her salary, but loved them.

Rio softly pushed her down and slipped her jeans down her legs. Beth took of her shirt and threw it to the floor. She unclasped her bra and slipped her black lace panties off.

Rio quickly removed his own clothing and Beth stared at his body in shock for a few minutes. He was lean, tone and muscular but his chest was marred with purple splotches that looked like fresh bruises as well as the healing scars from the bullet wounds, wounds she had caused. She reached out a hand and gently ran her fingers over the bruises and he flinched. "I may have taken a beating while I was in Canada but you should have seen the other guy. At least I am till breathing", he said gently.

Beth looked at Rio and rolled her eyes and then her eyes drifted down his chest and hips to see that his cock was card and pointing towards her chest. Rio crawled over her body as he kissed his way up her body from her belly button to the valley between her breasts and then his mouth landed on her parted lips. Their tounges danced together as the kiss depended. Beth ran her hand through his dark, closely cropped hair.

Beth opened her legs wider and he slipped between them. Rio propped himself up on his elbows, and kissed her neck, slowly moving down to her nipples. He circled his lounge on each one, making her nipples hard. He gave each breast a firm sucking and Beth gasped with pleasure.

"You like that don't you? You missed me touching you like this?" he asked her with a smirk on his face. Beth knew that he already knew the answer.

Beth opened her mouth to speak and he slip two fingers inside her. Beth bucked her hips and she moaned as he started to thrust his fingers in an out of her, going in slightly deeper each time.

Suddenly, Rio moved his body lower and she felt his wet tongue pressing against her slit and then moving harshly and fast on her sensitive numb as his fingers thrust into her. He moaned, "You are so wet". She felt his warm breath on her.

She felt a wave of pleasure wash over and Beth's body stiffened and her hips rocked an orgasm hit her.

Beth took a few deep breaths and then Beth flipped their positions so that she was now on top of his body, feeling his stiff cock brush up against her thighs as she moved her mouth down his body as she pressed kisses into his skin. She kissed the head of his cock and he gasped. She licked him from the bottom to the top. She slowly moved her hand up and down. She started to move her tongue around the top. Rio groaned loudly. Her left hand worked and down close to the base as her mouth moved up and down. Her right hand gently massaged his balls.

"I need you Elizabeth", Rio told her as his hands moved down to her butt as she scooted her body up so that she was sitting on top of his hips.

"You have me", she purred out to him as she lined Rio up against her entrance before lowering herself down on him.

Rio shifted out of her and reached for her hand, interlocking his fingers with hers. Rio's tongue slipped between her lips and Beth felt an utmost relaxing sensation as they kissed. He pulled her body close to his and they held each other like that for what seemed to Beth to be hours although it was only a few minutes.

Beth looks over at him as she lies on the pillow in the aftermath of their lovemaking with an inquisitive look. "Won't you miss your old life in Detroit? She inquired as she drew her fingers over his face, softly.

Rio swept a stray hair from Beth's forehead and tucked it behind her ear. He whispered into her ear, "I am right where I need to be darling, with you".