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“I was responsible for the car accident.”
“The sheriff said—”
“I know. She ran a red light to come get me. The truth is I was selling drugs, but not because I wanted to be like my old man. It was the complete opposite. I didn’t want to be anything like him, and I knew if we didn’t get away from him, I wouldn’t stand a chance. It’s why I was selling to begin with. I was trying to make enough money for us to disappear, but come to find out, she didn’t run a red light. The bastard tampered with her breaks.”
Their eyes widened in shock.
“He wanted her out of the picture to have control over me and he made me think it was my fault to continue to manipulate me without her protection.”
“Jesus,” Jace rasped.
“If you ask me, Billy got what he deserved. It should have happened years ago. I never understood why she didn’t leave him until my twenty-first birthday. The only reason I owned forty-nine percent of the bar is because she left it to me in her will. If she were still alive, I would have received it in a trust when I turned twenty-one. I don’t what history they had between them. All I know is my grandfather left forty-nine percent of the bar to her in his will. If I had to guess, he was probably trying to fuck over his son. Billy never let her see a dime of that money and she knew if we ran, I’d have nothing. I think in her eyes, she thought she was doing right by me.”
They listened intently to what I was confessing.
“I didn’t want a thing to do with that bar, but again, Billy was able to con me into it. Saying it was my mother’s last wishes and how could I go against what she wanted after I was responsible for her death. I couldn’t say no. The guilt of what I did was too heavy.”
“Do you own the bar now?” Reid asked.
“I do, but I’ve made a lot of changes. Starting with The Outlaws not being welcomed there. I was never part of Billy’s club. I promised my mother I never would be and if there’s one thing you need to know about me, I always keep my word.”
Mr. Beckham nodded.
“I knew who Haven was when she came to my bar the first time. It’s why I kicked her out. I didn’t want her around me given what I thought I caused, but she’s persistent.”
Mr. Beckham chuckled.
“But damn am I glad she is. These last two months without her have been some of the worst times of my life. Your daughter… She’s something else.”
“Yeah,” he agreed. “I knew that the first time I held her in my arms. If it wasn’t for her, I think losing her mother would have been harder on all of us.”
“I know it would have. I haven’t felt like this since my mom was alive. She’s everything I ever wanted and didn’t know I could have.”
“Up until you showed up at my door just now, I didn’t know it was you who Haven was involved with. I know my sons and her have been distant from each other, so when I saw your face, it wasn’t hard to put two and two together.”
“Wise man.”
“Let me start off by saying this to you, Hayes. When the sheriff told us what happened that day with my wife, I never blamed you. Not for one second. You were a kid. I’ve raised six of them. My sons may act like they’re angels, but they’ve been involved in their own stuff I’m not proud of. That’s what kids do. For me, it was always a tragic accident where we all lost someone.”
I swallowed hard, not expecting him to say that.
“If I could go back, I wish I could have granted you some peace of mind knowing you weren’t responsible. It probably would have helped a lot of your guilt for the accident and for that, I apologize. I can’t speak for my sons, but going forward, you have my blessing, and at the end of the day, mine is the only one you need.”
My gaze shifted to her brothers.
“I’m not expecting us to be close or for you to even like me, but I do need you to know I’m in love with your sister and I’ll never hurt her. She’s all that matters to me.”
They looked back and forth at one another before Jace spoke for all of them, “If for whatever reason, you do hurt her, just know, we’re coming for you. Don’t think for one second, we’re going to stop protecting her, but at least we know…. We’re on the same page now. You so much as make her cry, I won’t think twice about making you cry too.”
