Back in Los Angeles where the sun was high and so were her spirits, Beyoncé finally felt herself at ease. Every morning, she found herself thanking God a little extra that the terrible situation with Lance did not escalate any further; she knew for sure that her psyche would have been all of out wack if she found out this man laid more than hands on her body. In terms of legal actions, Lance was served with a restraining order and also sentenced to prison once the cops found him hysterically drunk in his apartment, covered in wounds done by none other than Carter himself. Beyoncé scolded him for beating Lance to a pulp, but experienced a bit of relief when Carter mentioned that others had handled it for him. Yet for the two estranged lovers, Beyoncé going back to Los Angeles had put in dent in Carter's heart. He wanted nothing more than to be in her presence, love her, and cater to her every need, but Beyoncé was a strong advocate for Carter working on himself before a relationship could aspire between the two. With the help of Dr. Isaacson, Carter went to counseling faithfully every other week, and even did conference videos with Beyoncé present.
"Do you like my new bathtub?" Beyoncé asked Carter over video chat. He became bored sitting in Dr. Isaacson's waiting room, so he decided to give her a call
A hearty laugh escaped his throat, "All I is a beautiful face. Care to get up and show me this tub you speak of?"
"Nope, I've gotten comfortable. I'll just send you a picture later." said Beyoncé before sitting up inside of the tub. Her curly hair fell gently onto her shoulders and Carter did nothing but smile at her beauty.
"What are your plans today?" He asked; it was 11pm PCT, so he figured she would at least be up and ready for her day.
"Remodeling last minute, and then Nicki and Kim are coming over for a day of fun."
"Day of fun?"
"Yeah. We'll do some swimming, order takeout, listen to some good music, and have some drinks.. I'm excited!" Beyoncé exclaimed.
"Well don't party too hard, remember our upcoming trip?"
Beyoncé smiled hard at his statement. Carter had offered her a chance to join him for his second upcoming business trip to Paris, being that he was officially sealing his 40/40 Club deal and had huge surprise planned for his lady. "I can't wait, I've missed Paris."
When Carter did not respond to her comment, she noticed that he was now speaking to someone else. "B, the Doc is here. I'll call you back." He ended the call and Beyoncé decided to continue on with her day.
Hours later, she was faced to faced with two of the greatest women in her life. Kim, who was currently carrying baby number two, hugged her best friend tightly. One would think that with Beyoncé's move to LA, her and Kim would spend more time together, but it happen to be the complete opposite. Nicki was next to get a good hug in, and together the trio journeyed to the luxurious backyard. Beyoncé made sure to have her pool filled with large and colorful inflatables and various cute objects scattered around.
"You two are so silly," Kim said with laughter as she snapped the photo. The girls spent time cracking jokes and enjoying their drinks until dinner was served. The catering manager from their guilty pleasure, In & Out, laid out the food nicely before packing up and leaving the premises.
"Did I do good??" Beyoncé questioned as Kim and Nicki scanned the food as their mouths began to water.
"Hell yes, I'm going in." said Nicki. She grabbed a plate and began to help herself as Kim and Beyoncé followed her lead.
"So do you know what you're having?" Beyoncé asked Kim, making light conversation amongst the table.
Kim sighed, "I have no clue. We're hoping for a boy, but.. it's so much with trying to get North to acknowledge that I am pregnant and of course, we don't want her to get jealous."
"I would say I understand but I don't." Nicki said before biting into her burger.
"Have some kids, then."
"By who!?" yelled Nicki
"Your boy Drake.." Beyoncé snickered. Nicki rolled her eyes and paid her friends no mind.
"Beyoncé and Carter are just one more fuck away from a baby." Kim added
"Please don't curse me like that!" cried Beyoncé "Carter and his fuck boy tendencies makes him unfit to be a parent right now."
Kim shook her head, "Still can't believe you two are back together, I knew it was coming. I knew it." Beyoncé had kept Kim in the loop about her rocky stage with Carter since the night of Coachella, but she was indeed holding back the information about Lance. After the girls ate in silence for a few more minutes, cleared their mess, and moved to the living room, Beyoncé decided to break her silence.
"I have to tell y'all something." she said quietly.
"Let me put my drink down." said Nicki before she gave Beyoncé her undivided attention.
She took a deep breathe and began to tell them about her traumatizing experience. When she was done, there was not a dry eye in the room. Kim and Nicki sat on each side of Beyoncé and laid their heads on her shoulders as she continued to wipe the river a tears coming down her eyes.
"I swear if it wasn't for Carter, I don't know how much longer I'd be unconscious or close to death .. it just makes me cry even more thinking about it."
"Shhh, B. It's over, you're safe, and you have all of us here to support you." Nicki mumbled before wiping tears of her own. Of course Beyoncé did not expect their evening to turn out this way, but this event reminded her that at the end of the day, her girls would always be there for her, no matter what.
***
Jet lagged & agitated, Carter and Beyoncé made it safety to Paris. After going through security and leaving the airport, they decided to grab some dinner at the restaurant down the road from their hotel.
"You good? Sleepy?" Carter rambled as Beyoncé sat beside him quietly checking her phone.
"Very sleepy, but food is more important." The two shared a laugh and the waiter made their way over to their table.
"So, what's the plan for tomorrow?" Beyoncé asked as she cut a piece of her chicken.
"Our day starts at ten and we have just two meetings to attend."
"The club meeting will be split in two?" she asked in a curious tone.
"Something like that." He lied clean through his teeth. The second meeting of the day would consist of Beyoncé placing pen to paper to accept her surprise, so he just hoped everything would go as planned.
The next morning, bright and early, they were en route to the first meeting. When they arrived, various businessmen stood up to greet Carter with a handshake.
"Before we get this meeting started, I'd like you all to meet my girlfriend, Beyoncé." said Carter
Stunned, Beyoncé gave a light smile and shook hands with the men around her. Did he really just introduce me as his girlfriend? She thought to herself as she took a seat.
"Are you sure we should be mixing pleasure with business?" A colleague mentioned to Carter.
"Of course not, but my lady has a say in everything that I do and business that I conduct. It's only right that she be my right hand."
The men collectively nodded their heads in agreement while Beyoncé sat back with flushed, rosy, cheeks. Thankfully, the meeting was straight to the point and Carter walked away a million dollars richer and now the new owner of The 40/40 Club Paris.
"I'm so proud of you!" Beyoncé cooed as Carter wrapped her up in his arms. They now had the whole meeting room to themselves, so instead of responding with words, Carter hoisted her up on the brass meeting table and placed a long kiss on her lips. Beyoncé moaned in his mouth and the two began to caress each other softly.
"Is it wrong that I want you .. right here .. right now?" Carter mumbled against her lips.
"Absolutely not, but I don't want to have sex." Carter sighed in the crook on her neck and respected her wishes. When they pulled apart, Beyoncé couldn't help but laugh at how hard she had gotten him. They left quickly out of the office and hurried to the car. Once on the road, Beyoncé had other plans in mind. She shielded herself from the driver's view and sunk down to her knees to treat Carter to celebratory head as they traveled to the next destination. When they arrived, Carter tried his hardest to compose himself and properly reveal this gift; Beyoncé had sucked the soul of him, and he wanted nothing more than to take her back to their hotel and finish what she started.
"What and who are we waiting for?" Beyoncé asked Carter in a rushed tone. They were now standing in front of a store with a large white vail covering what appeared to be the entrance. "Shawn!" Beyoncé cried out again
"Patience, please."
"This isn't a meeting. You lied about where we were going!?"
"Beyoncé once we're inside it will all make sense, I promise." Just in time, a gentleman appeared from behind the cover and welcomed Beyoncé and Carter into the space. She looked around in awe as the clothing store was fully stocked and beautifully decorated. "Take a look around." Carter pushed, and Beyoncé did as he told. While she rummaged through the racks, her face began to scrunch up in confusion.
"Is someone stealing my pieces!? I swear these are my clothes, Carter." said Beyoncé. When she found her legendary Ivy Park pullover hoodie, she pulled it out from the rack and held it up to Carter's face. "Explain. Now." She demanded.
"Remember when we first met and you told me about how you and Kim attended fashion week here in Paris?"
"Yes.."
"And how you dreamed of opening a boutique of your own one day?"
"Yes, yes!" She answered with laughter.
"Well, I know you've accomplished this goal over in the states, but, not here in the city you love so much. So I decided to do something for you and that was purchase this space, fill it with your clothing, and now make you the official owner. Do you accept?" Carter finished with a smile and grabbed the packet of papers and a pen from behind his back.
"Y-you did this for me? Baby-I, .. Carter oh my goodness!" said Beyoncé as she stumbled over her words. She ran into Carter's arm and thanked him a thousand times before letting go. The gentleman that they encounter earlier came over and addressed the business portion of this deal, and without hesitation, Beyoncé sighed her name on the dotted line.
"Congratulations, my love."
***
Suffered major writes block with this chapter, so I guess that is a sign that I have no more to add to this story, unless you would like to know something? What would you like to read next? Let me know!
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Much love, Rae ❤️