And HERE'S chapter 14! Hope you enjoy; let me know what you think when it's done. I left you with a cliffhanger...heehee. There was a close guess as to what her dad had on the table (and in hindsight ddn't accidentally set it up to make it seem like that MIGHt have been right haha) but no one got t QUITE right.

Enjoy!

Found Out
Maybe we're too young,
And I don't even know what's real.
But I know I never
Wanted anything so bad
'Adore' by Paramore
_

"You've got a hell of a lot of explaining to do," her forced out, lips tight.

Natalie frowned at her dad; he was typically pretty stern, but he didn't normally talk to her like that, and this was honestly the angriest she could remember seeing him.

"What?…mom?" she appealed, looking for an explanation.

Her mom looked a little startled as well when they shared a look.

"Chris, before you get so angry maybe you should tell us what this is about. Maybe it's a misunderstanding…"

"Oh, I'll tell you what it's all about," her nodded angrily, snatching a manila envelope off of the counter and fishing something out. "I took it upon myself to do some investigating of my own after Detective Wallace's little visit, and hired a PI."

A private investigator? Natalie's heart sunk.

"What?" she sputtered, hoping he was joking.

"Now you know," he nodded. "Now you know how shocked and fucking appalled I was to have these delivered," he threw down a small stack of pictures, which splayed over the counter.

Natalie eyed the pictures with wide eyes, scanning all of these moments of her life that she hadn't even thought anyone of importance would ever witness. Really, part of her felt sick that she'd never even known someone was following her.

"What are these?...Natalie, who is this?" her mom asked, trying to catch up with what was going on around her.

Natalie couldn't even speak; she felt much more like throwing up.

"Tell her, Natalie," her dad barked.

"…that's Billy," she whispered.

"Billy who?" her dad prompted her to continue.

Natalie chewed on the inside of her cheek and fingered through a few pictures. There were a few pictures taken in sequence of her walking out of the Four Roses with Billy, him walking her to her car, and a few of them kissing before she got in to drive away. There were pictures of just Billy by his car, one of him talking to Bodie, a couple of her and Billy walking past the student union on campus.

She turned around to look away and pushed her hands back through her hair trying to think.

"…Natalie?" her mom waited.

She opened her mouth to speak but shut it again when nothing came out.

"It's Billy Darley, Jennifer," her dad finally killed the suspense.

Her mom frowned in confusion, thinking over the name, but comprehension finally seeped into her face and she looked shocked. She looked at the pictures with new eyes, then, slowly thumbing through every single one.

"Do you have anything to say for yourself?" her father demanded to know. "Do you?"

"It's not a big deal…"

His eyes bulged angrily.

"Not a big deal! Do you know who he is and wh-"

"Chris, when did you do this?" her mom interrupted, still wowed as she studied the part of Natalie's life she'd had no inkling of.

"As soon as I realized she was never really going to explain what the cops wanted and…"

Natalie zoned out of his quick, venomous explanation and plucked her phone from her pocket, fingers dancing on the buttons rapidly.

Definitely not. My dad KNOWS and he's losing it. He had a PI.

Mere seconds after Billy must've gotten the text, her phone was ringing.

"I can't talk right now," she breathed shakily into the speaker before hanging up immediately.

"Who was that?" her dad narrowed his eyes at her, looking away from her mom.

"Just Amber," she dismissed; she certainly couldn't tell him it was Billy.

"Now I want to know how the hell you think this is all no big deal. Billy Darley - really?"

"Dad…"

"No. Do you know Alex Matthew Harrison?"

"What?…no," she shook her head.

"Billy Darley was convicted of assault when he was 15 for beating the shit out of him. How about Parker Aarons?"

"…no"

"Billy was suspected in his murder, but the case is still open. Suspected in the murder of Travis Lawrence, too, but witnesses left town. There've been a lot of assault charges thrown his way, but a lot of people withdraw charges - I wonder why. Wanna see how many cases his name's come up in? I made a list," her dad flung a paper at her. "I'm sure there's more…"

"Stop," Natalie shook her head, ignoring the paper.

"Then explain it to me," her dad ordered, slamming his hand on the counter as he circled around the counter in front of her. "Because I can't fathom what the hell has gone through your head on this one…have you thought at all in the past couple, what, months?" he asked when she remained quiet.

"Dad, it's not what you think…"

"Oh? Cuz this…this, is what I think it is," he told her, finding a picture of her and Billy kissing to hold up for her to see. "Am I wrong?"

"No…"

"Who the hell are you?" her dad shook his head slowly. "Going to a party where you get stabbed…you hang out with murderers and gangbangers…"

"Natalie did this have anything to do with you getting attacked?" her mom asked, shocked.

"No…no, I didn't even know him then…"

"Well you certainly know him now, don't you," her dad shook his head in disgust.

Natalie ran her hands through her hair again nervously, overwhelmed by everything…all of the pictures and the meticulous evidence he had to back up his anger. Of course if anyone would layout an argument so clearly, it would be him.

"Dad…I…'

"Spit it out," he waved his hand for her to continue.

"I…I just really feel like I don't have to explain myself to you," she finally told him quietly, watching his eyebrows rise.

"No?"

"…no," she shook her head. "I mean, it's my life and my…relationship," she said this slowly, wondering if he was just going to combust he looked so pissed, "and it's my choice…"

"But you know who he is…and you know my job. How the hell do you think that looks? I paid this guy extra just in case to try and ensure he wouldn't go telling anyone about this…"

"This doesn't have anything to do with your job… …and you shouldn't have hired him in the first place," she added, addressing the disgusting invasion of her privacy.

"Excuse me?"

"That's my privacy and you had no right -"

"No right? You're my daughter. You live in my house, and I have no right to know what you're doing with your life?" he raised his voice.

"But you had someone stalk me; it's sick," she shook her head. "Geeze," she shook her head, glancing at all the candid pictures. "This is disgusting…how dare y-"

Crack.

Her dad's hand had flown through their air before she even realized it moved and he backhanded her across the cheek. She had to catch herself on the counter so she didn't stumble into one of the stools and her neck stung from the force of her head snapping to the side.

"Christopher!" her mom snapped, grabbing his arm to pull him back.

"Don't turn this on me, Natalie! You're the one being stupid…how much of your life are you throwing away, huh? You running drugs? Carrying guns? Huh?"

Natalie shook her head slowly, eyes welling with tears.

"…I'm glad you think so little of me."

She took a deep break and let her hand fall from her throbbing cheek before mustering the nerve to just walk away. She grabbed her purse from the living room and hurried to the front door.

"Natalie!" she heard her mother call after her and light feet were following behind her but she ignored it.

She also ignored that it was chilly and she hadn't grabbed a coat and just got in her car, flinging her purse into the passenger seat. She saw her mom standing in the open front doorway but she didn't care and turned her car on before throwing it in reverse and backing out. Some tears fell freely from her eyes but she didn't care and just let them.

She was maybe halfway to Billy's when she passed a speeding, loud black car. It took her a second but she comprehended it was Billy's car and she looked in the rearview to see if he'd noticed her car. She saw him start to pull a U-Turn but he had to swerve back into his lane when a truck pulled out in his way. At least she knew he'd seen her, so she pulled into a parking lot a few dozen yards away; she parked under a light so he'd hopefully see.

She sat there waiting and wiped furiously at her tears; she didn't want him to see that she was being stupid and crying. She was shaking, too, but that couldn't really be helped at the moment.

After maybe a minute or so she heard the rumbling of his car and looked over to the road in time to hear tires screech just as he started to pass by. He just reversed into the lot and into a wide turn to jerk to a stop right next to her car. She saw him get up out of his car and fumbled with her latch before she was able to shove her door open and slowly stand up.

"…I'd ask how it went, but I'm guessin' not well," he observed, taking her in.

"…no," she shook her head with a short sob, which she tried to hide behind her hand.

She thought over the abrupt conversation and everything her dad had said, everything he'd thrown in her face. Her hands shook as she wiped away her tears. Billy had never seen her truly cry, nothing more than a few silent tears or something, so he didn't know precisely what to say. He tugged her to him instead, wrapping his arms around her shoulders. She caved into her emotions, then, and rested her head on his chest and let herself cry.

Her shoulders shook and Billy just stood there and held her, resting his chin on the top of her head. It bothered him that he wasn't sure what he was supposed to do here. Were her dad anyone else, he probably would've waltzed right in and told him Natalie was his now so he better just suck it up and get the fuck over it, but he'd already decided that he wasn't going to start a mess with Chris Shepherd if he could avoid it. He just didn't need that cluster-fuck, especially not right now.

When she cleared her throat and straightened up properly he cleared away a smudge of make-up with a light finger. He stared down at the area and slowly narrowed his eyes, grabbing her chin to tilt her face towards the street light. The area around both eyes was red from crying but this cheek was puffy and when he touched it she winced.

"Mother fucker…"

She averted her eyes quickly and dropped her head a little.

"So what the hell happened?" he questioned, catching the hem of her shirt and pulling it towards him since she tried to step away.

"He came home and he just had all these pictures…of you, of both of us together, and a couple of the guys were in some of them. And then he just yelled at me and asked me what I was thinking…"

"What made him hit you?"

"I was telling him he didn't have a right to have someone follow me, and he got pissed…" her voice wavered and she stopped with a shrugged. "I don't know what happened," she exhaled shakily, combing her fingers through her hair nervously.

Billy nodded slowly, jaw clenched tightly.

"I'm sorry," she announced.

"What for?"

"That he did that…it was your privacy too and he had someone following you," she explained herself.

"Don't apologize for shit you didn't do; blame your old man"

"…I can't believe he did this…I can't believe someone's been following us…"

The thought still creeped her out, knowing someone had been watching her.

"You're stayin' at my place," he declared, brushing past her to lean in her opened door and take her keys from the ignition. "I'll send one of the boys to get your car and we'll grab some shit from your place tomorrow."

She didn't argue and got into his car, scrubbing her hands over her face and taking a deep breath to try to calm down and get a grip of herself. It helped to be away from her dad, but her hands still shook and her lip quivered.

"You're gonna bite a hole in your lip," Billy sighed, reaching over to pull her lip from between her teeth with his thumb; she was only supposed to do that when she was trying not to scream his name.

She curled into the seat and tried to just calmly watch scenery flicker past the window outside. She slowly mellowed out and by the time they got to Billy's apartment her shaking was basically under control, save for her hands; it was just shock, she was sure, at the way her day had abruptly turned.

"You alright?" Billy asked once they were upstairs and he was shedding his coat, throwing it over the back of the couch.

He eyed her over, silently hoping she wasn't going to start crying again.

"Yes," she nodded, although she didn't look so sure.

"Cuz it's gonna be fine; hear me?"

Natalie nodded; him saying it aloud really did make her feel a little better. Her dad would get over it…..okay, maybe he wouldn't; she wasn't so sure. But even if he didn't, it's not like she had to go back; she was an adult after all. That thought didn't exactly settle her though, either.

"You're thinkin' too much; forget about it for tonight…ya want a drink?"

"No thanks"

He got one for himself then instead and led her to sit with him on the couch. Natalie curled up against him willingly but didn't focus on whatever show he'd settled for. She just sat there replaying the conversation - if you could call it that - with her dad. She thought about everything he'd said, about how he'd tried to make his point…about the list she hadn't wanted to look at.

"Still okay?" Billy checked, shaking her shoulder after a while.

"Mmhmm…just overwhelmed," she rested her head against him tiredly. "Still can't believe he did that…"

Billy wasn't sure if she was talking about him hitting her or him hiring a private investigator…or maybe both. Yeah, probably both. He supposed he understood; he'd long since stopped expecting anything of Bones, but he knew it wasn't the same for her and her family. She was calming down, though; and he realized he liked that's she'd come here to get a grip instead of him always going to her. He knew how much he needed to get away and be with her sometimes; he liked it if he was that for her, too.

Spink came over and Billy grabbed Natalie's keys, throwing them at him. Billy told him where here car was and told him to get one of the guys to drive him over and bring the car to Billy's building. Spink didn't ask questions and just did it and Billy and Natalie went to bed a few minute after he'd left.

When Natalie woke the next morning she was waking to an empty bed. She stretched and groaned when she thought over the previous night, and she rolled out of bed moodily. She could hear the shower running so she started in surprise when she saw someone on the couch.

"Sup girl?"

It was Tommy and she smiled, glad she had clothes on, and joined him on the couch.

"Billy told me 'bout last night…kindda twisted, right? Your old man havin' somebody follow you…"

She nodded uncomfortably.

"He pop you, too? Cuz Billy didn't say anything," Tommy frowned at her.

"Yeah…why?"

Tommy nodded at her and pointed his finger towards her face. Natalie frowned and got back up, letting herself into the bathroom.

"Tommy, what the fuck you want; ge - oh, hey; you're awake…"

Billy peeked his head around the curtain, not sounding so annoyed once he saw who it was. Natalie just nodded while looking in the mirror and traced the line of her cheek with a finger. Her cheek bone under her eye had a brownish yellow bruise covering it now.

"Yeah, I shouldda put some ice on that for ya last night…I didn't know he'd hit ya that hard…."

Natalie swallowed thickly and nodded; she hadn't realized either…or maybe she just hadn't wanted to think about it.

"You wanna hop in here?" he invited.

She smiled playfully but declined.

"Tommy's here"

"I'll kick him out," Billy shrugged.

"You don't have to. I'm hungry, I'm gonna find something to eat"

"Fine…when I get out we'll go to your place and get some stuff so you can lay low here a while…"

"You don't have to do that," Natalie didn't want to impose, pulling her tousled hair up into a ponytail.

"Shut up," he rolled his eyes, pulling the curtain back into place.

She knew she was dismissed so she went back out and into the kitchen to scrounge up some breakfast; if he was going to let her stay then maybe she could buy him some actual food to keep around.

Billy didn't seem as concerned with eating and just grabbed her keys and ushered her out the door once he was done in the shower; she often got the impression he was accustomed to soldiering on though lack of necessities like food and sleep. She wasn't sure how he didn't get sick more often…she'd definitely be stocking the kitchen.

Billy drove her car over to her house as his car would look far too conspicuous pulling up to the house. He circled the block once before pulling up, just to ensure that her parents were gone - they were. Natalie wasn't that surprised; she'd silenced her phone because her mom kept calling the night before, so she hadn't expected anyone to wait around - they probably knew she wanted time.

"Alright, I'll be quick…you should get breakfast," she instructed, running off upstairs to pack up some things.

Natalie threw clothes into a duffle bag and packed-up the school supplies she'd need as well as whatever else she thought she'd need. She stopped in the bathroom and threw on make up as well, skillfully covering up the bruise on her cheek as much as she could.

Once back downstairs, she didn't see Billy anywhere. Not in the living room or kitchen, and she couldn't hear him in the house.

"Billy?"

She scanned the kitchen and saw down the hall that the door to her dad's study was open. She had the vague visual of Billy somehow messing it up but she walked in to simply see him standing behind the large mahogany desk, flipping through the pictures from the PI.

So he'd gone on a little scavenger hunt.

"Hey," he looked up when she walked in. "Your old man happen t' mention a name t' go with these photos?" he asked.

"No…why?"

"Just wonderin'," he shrugged, checking the back of each picture, too. "If I had a name, finding' the guy would be easier…"

"Finding?"

"Yeah…tell him t' leave us the fuck alone and get outta my side of the city."

Natalie would've told him to leave it alone but she knew it wouldn't work on this one. Somebody had been on his "turf," on his streets, messing with his life. He wouldn't just let that pass.

"What?" he frowned when she came to stand next to him and glance at the pictures awkwardly, too.

"…I just feel awkward with you seeing what he did. I feel bad."

Billy snorted.

"Don't worry - Bones has done worse. Plenty worse."

Natalie nodded but that didn't cheer her up; if anything it probably made her feel a little more sad. Billy caught the look and cursed under his breath for just making her feel worse, so he grabbed her in a kiss to make her forget about it. The kiss quickly became heated; Natalie wanted to put the previous night behind her and focus on something good just as much as Billy wanted to give her that something. He began groping her breasts and pulling at her shirt but she suddenly pulled back.

"Billy…we're in my dad's office," she breathed.

"Yeah, I know," he smirked; a rousing idea had been formulating in the last several minutes.

She looked skeptical but he kissed her again before she could say anything.

"Turn around," he whispered slowly in her ear, coaxing her with his hands on her shoulders.

He kissed her neck while he reached down to unbutton her jeans. She could feel his hardness pressed into the small of her back and when he pushed her pants and underwear down her thighs she shivered unconsciously. He straightened back up and stepped her forward to the back of her dad's office chair and carefully guided her to bend over it.

She heard him undoing his belt and zipper and couldn't quite think straight. There was something thrilling about the whole thing but was she really doing to do this? Right there at her dad's desk…

But then he was touching her and she couldn't really think, and he slid into her and she knew she wouldn't even dream of telling him they needed to stop. He tilted her hips up to accommodate his height and her toes left the floor, feet left to hang just above the ground. He started slowly for just a moment but was soon harder and faster, holding her hips in place.

Her breathing was labored but her gasps and moans were too soft for Billy's liking while they had the leisure of her entire house to themselves. He began to pull her hips to meet his, hitting into her harder, and she cried out in pleasure, panting as her heart continued to race. He grinned; her louder vocalizations seemed to be exactly what the moment called for, and he grunted in pleasure and her breathy moans caught for a second at each deep thrust.

When he knew she was close, Billy pulled away completely. He heard her whimper of frustration but quickly pulled her upright to stand on shaky legs once her feet met the floor again. He turned her around to face him again and Natalie looked up at him in confusion, hair a mess, breath uneven, and eyes hazed from pleasure - he knew she had to be aching for him back in her as much as he was.

He kissed her hard and fisted his hands in her hair and she fumbled to match the long step he took to get around the big office chair. He kicked away her jeans, growling in frustration when she laughed as his own foot got caught in them. He sat down in the leather chair heavily and pulled her into his lap. Her smile wasn't lost as he reentered her; they groaned simultaneously in satisfaction before kissing heatedly again.

Natalie recognized this was a great "stick it to the man" gesture towards her dad but maybe that's exactly what she needed - even though he'd likely never know - so she let herself get lost in it.

The notion that they were doing this right there in Chris Shepherd's home office, the figurative throne of the Shepherd castle, wasn't lost on Billy either.

'Whose fuckin' throne now?' Billy vaguely thought to himself.

There he was, where Christopher was always king, and he was deep inside Shepherd's daughter. The good judge thought he was going to lay down the law and tell Natalie what she could do…tried taking her from him, but guess who was taking her right now, right there in Chris Shepherd's room.

Billy tightened his hands on Natalie's waist and pulled her down harder, trying to push her over the edge when he felt her tightening, moaning his name. He watched her lose it in his arms and continued, eyes locked on her face, memorizing it and concentrating on the feel of her around him, of her hands grabbing at his shoulders and arms.

Chris-fucking-Shepherd thought he could touch what was his …Billy cupped Natalie's bruised cheek and pulled her face to his. Billy Darley didn't fucking things so, and he was staking a final claim taking her right there where her dad sat everyday…probably where he'd sat when he hired a private investigator…

'See how well that worked out for ya, fucker?'Billy thought to himself.

Natalie had chosen him.

Not daddy-dearest - him. Billy fucking Darley.

She'd chosen to stay and that was his last coherent thought before a deep groan ripped from his throat and he pulled Natalie down over him a last time.

After they stayed sitting there with each other for a while, Natalie went off upstairs to straighten herself up, and after consideration she grabbed one of her own pillows to bring.

Billy lingered in the office and, deciding he actually hoped Christopher noticed and wondered, he took a picture. It was of Natalie and himself standing next to his car, arms around each other and faces almost touching. It left no doubt what they were just about do to, and there was something about it that hit him …maybe their unguarded faces…the intimacy…he didn't fucking know. The picture was good quality, he noted; zoomed nicely and the black and white was clear, not grainy…too bad he was going to find the mother fucker and break his camera…maybe break more than that.

He grinned and tucked the picture into a coat pocket when he head Natalie coming.

"…ready?" she asked.

"Yeah…you alright?"

She smiled brightly and nodded. She certainly did seem much brighter so he silently congratulated himself for that. He'd also been asking to make sure he hadn't really hurt her; though he was sure he hadn't, she'd said something about being sore but clearly it was the good kind of sore…so he mentally congratulated himself for that too on the way out of the room.

"You didn't eat," Natalie sighed when they got out into the kitchen and she didn't see dishes anywhere for her to clean.

He didn't seem to care but he was hungry…he didn't want to stick around there, though.

"I know you already ate but it was just cereal; I'll take ya out to breakfast," he decided, grabbing a bag off the floor for her.

She was pleased with this idea so she grabbed her school things and followed after him to her car. She didn't feel bad about leaving her house behind for a while; she knew she'd go back and she'd have to face the music and probably discuss Billy with them sooner or later, but she was content to put it off for now. Hopefully the time would calm everyone down.

They drove quietly, each comfortable in the silence as each was caught in their own thoughts.

Natalie turned her head where she sat and watched Billy, just looked at him. Even though she knew there was some logic to what her dad said and that this could all be a mistake…any relationship could be a mistake. It felt good now, it felt right, so she was sticking with it. She knew being with Billy Darley wasn't the smartest choice in many ways, but she felt confident in it.

There was something about him…about who he was and more importantly how he was. He made her nervous but confident at the same time because he was so unbelievably confident. Because he was that way he demanded a certain kind of respect, but she knew that anything went with him…nearly everything was fair game. Maybe he wouldn't tolerate her treating him a certain way, but they could do anything and be anything…and it was opening her up in a lot of different ways - not just sexually, as the guys liked to tease.

It was scary sometimes, sure, but it was also enticing. It a way she'd never have expected, he knew how to live.

He tempted her with life itself.

"What?" he grunted when they sat down at a local diner and she kept looking at him even as he slid into the booth next to her. "I got somethin' on my face?"

"Nothing that shouldn't be there"

He raised an expectant eyebrow at her then, waiting, but she just shook her head and smiled.

"Thanks…"

"For what?' he questioned, still looking at her as he fished out his lighter.

"Everything," her shoulders twitched in a small shrug.

He frowned and puffed his cigarette to life. He turned his head to blow the smoke the other way, which she appreciated even though she'd gotten used to his smoking; she hardly had anything other choice because he smoked more when he was agitated and the past couple weeks had been agitating to say the very least.

"Everything what?" he continued to interrogate.

"Nothing," she laughed, stretching up to kiss him softly.

A warmth filled her a little as she considered their relationship and how much better it was than she could've imagined. There were downs sure, some quite low and frustrating, but there were ups, too. Time when she felt perfectly happy, and she was always content with the relationship…even when he made her want to cry. She felt safe with him, which she recognized was curiously contradictory to everything he was, and free…

The word love floated in her mind, as it had a couple times before, but she couldn't say it. Maybe it was too soon, maybe she thought it was scare him….maybe she was scared to admit she loved him, even to herself.

And that's that =)

Shoot me a review and enjoy your holiday weekend! =D