Page 25 of Devil's Den

She truly was one of a kind.

Chapter Eight

The following night, Beth tried to trust Rome as he pressed his fingers over her eyes and began to lead her downstairs. This was a little terrifying. She didn’t know if he was going to make her pay for the crap her brother had done, but alas, he surprised her by walking her gently down the stairs, then moving them both across his corridor. She felt like they were going to the dining room, but she didn’t have any sense of direction with her eyes completely covered.

“Rome, what is going on?” Beth asked.

“A surprise.”

Rome suddenly stopped and his body surrounded her back. The musky scent of his cologne filled her senses, and then he let go of her face and she looked around. The dining room table had vanished, there had been some carpet set up, and music played.

“I’m a little confused.”

“You didn’t get to enjoy the nightclub last night, and you were a little distracted, so it was simple, I brought the nightclub to you.”

“Oh,” she said. “There are no people.”

“All you’ve got to do is say the words, and with the snap of my fingers, there could be people here, couples dancing and getting in our way.”

She giggled. “Rome, you paint an awful picture.”

He winked at her. “Come on, dance with me.”

Last night, Beth hadn’t wanted to return to the nightclub, it had already gone so very wrong, and it sucked, so she asked Rome if they could take a rain check. She had every intention of going with him again, but this felt much better for some reason.

She stepped into his arms, and he pulled her in close. The song was a slow one.

“How come no one knows you can be so sweet?” she asked.

“I’m not sweet, Beth, and I wouldn’t fool yourself into thinking I am.”

She could argue with him about many of those points. The first one being that he had brought her a nightclub. Admittedly, this one wasn’t quite as loud, and the music was better, but it was perfect. Also, she could go barefoot. There was no reason to wear those horrible heels some women seemed to love but made her feet hurt.

“You’re right, Rome, you’re a horrible person.”

“A lot of people would agree with you.”

“Is there anyone who would think you’re a good person?” she asked.

“No, because I am not, and don’t make yourself think I am. I’ve done a lot of bad things.”

She was aware of that. Beth had already told him that her offer of listening was still there. So far, he hadn’t talked about anything. Beth did talk a lot about her life with Ben and her parents. There was no room for silence between her and Rome.

“Afterward, I … stayed home,” Rome said.

Beth looked up at him. “After you killed your father?”

“Yes, I disposed of the body.”

This made her mouth fall open. “How?”

“We had a septic tank, and I dropped his body in it and left. I cleaned up the mess, took care of everything. I recuperated, got well, and when the time came for me to move on, I burned the whole house to the ground. Then I was on my own.”

“What about school?”

He snorted. “I was being homeschooled. My dad didn’t want any child of his being manipulated by the government. His words, not mine. My mom taught me what she could, and Ilearned everything else along the way. That was when I took to the streets and got a crash course in survival.”

“How old were you at this point?” she asked.

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