Motorcycle clubs have always been a boys club. It makes sense: the violence, the hierarchy, the fact that they haven't exactly met the women's movement. Now, there's a new club in Northern Cali, looking to make a name for itself. It's already allied...
Happy tried not to look at Tiki, knowing that if he let his eyes meet hers, he would lose his shit right there and then. Gino was crouched behind the chair that she was tied to, holding a gun to her temple as he smirked at Happy and Tig. Instead of the whole club riding to the rescue, Clay had decided that it would be quieter to have Happy and Tig come in the front, and Jax, Opie, and Chibs come through the back, so here they were, in a stand-off with an Italian douchebag. He felt Tig shift beside him.
"Why don't you quit hiding behind T and come out like a man?"
Gino snorted and shook his head. "Her name is Theresa, not T or Tiki, and she's mine."
Happy smirked at that, shaking his head. "Nah, man, she's mine. You lost her, I found her."
He heard Tiki growl and held back the grin that was trying to come out. "I'm not fucking property, you dickheads."
Happy shook his head and shifted his eyes to hers, winking. "Don't interrupt Daddy while he's talking, little girl."
He saw her roll her eyes as Tig choked back a laugh. Gino scoffed. "You think you're cute? Is it going to be cute when I blow her brains out right here in front of you?"
Jax spoke up from directly behind Gino, gun pointed right at the back of his head. "You're not gonna do a fucking thing, prick. Put the fucking gun down, now!"
Gino shook his head before letting the gun drop to the floor. Jax moved in, quickly kicking the gun away before smacking Gino in the back of the head with the handle of his. Happy rushed forward, quickly untying Tiki as Tig checked her side. "Chibs? Wanna come look at this?"
Happy pushed the hair back out of her eyes as Tiki looked at him. "Sunshine, I've had all the fun I want to have for a while. Can we go now, please?"
Happy grinned and nodded. "We can do that. You gonna be able to ride bitch? I really don't want to put you in the van with the asshole."
Tiki nodded, wincing when Chibs placed a clean towel against her side and secured it with a length of rope. "I'll survive."
Happy nodded, smirking. "Yeah, I see that. I'm beginning to think you're fucking immortal or some shit."
Tiki laughed quietly and shook her head. "Nah, not quite, sunshine. There for a minute or two, I was pretty sure that my number was up." She looked over to where Jax and Opie were picking Gino up off the floor. "Hey, wait a second! What are you gonna do with Gino?"
Happy shrugged. "We have a place. He's going to have a few days to think about what he's done before we finish up with him."
Tiki nodded, turning back to look at Happy. "I want in on that."
Happy rolled his eyes as Jax laughed. "Yeah, we figured the unholy threesome would want to handle it. He'll keep until you're feeling better darlin."
Happy drove straight for TM, not stopping until they had pulled onto the lot. He got off his bike before lifting Tiki into his arms and carrying her into the clubhouse. Tony and Alvie followed on his heels as he strode down the hall to his dorm, laying her on the bed so that Chibs could once again stitch her side up. Tony sat down on the bed beside her as Happy rifled through his drawers in search of a shirt for her to put on.
"As soon as Chibs is finished, we'll get you over to the clubhouse so you can rest. We have a room all ready for you."
Happy turned to glare at her as he slammed the drawer shut. "She's staying here where I can keep an eye on her."
Tony lifted a brow at that and turned to stare at the enforcer. "She's not a child, Happy. We can take care of her just as well at our place."
Happy just shook his head and stared her down. "She doesn't need to be jostled any more. Let her rest here."
Tiki made a noise and tried to sit up, only to have Alvie push her back down. "She is right here!" She looked at everyone in the room. "Can Happy and I have a moment?" When Tony, Alvie, and Chibs walked out, she turned to Happy. "I think, under the circumstances, that I should probably go to our clubhouse."
Happy lifted a brow and stared her down. "And what circumstances are those?"
Tiki swallowed hard before averting her eyes from his. "I think... we're getting a little too close. I mean, in our line of work, it doesn't pay to get close to someone and I... "
Happy sat down beside her and grasped her chin in his big hand to make her look him in the eye. "Bullshit, little girl. You're just scared and don't know how to handle it. I'm scared too because this shit between us is real. We're gonna have to figure it out together because I'm not letting you throw it away before we've had a chance to fuck it up."
Tiki grinned and shook her head. "Wow, that was the most romantic thing I've ever heard, sunshine."
Happy smirked and shrugged. "I never claimed to be romantic." He leaned in, placing both hands on either side of her body, caging her in. "What I have been is scared to death." He shook his head. "When I saw your bike laying on the side of the road and the blood... I lost my shit, T. That feeling I had when you were nowhere to be found... that's what makes this real, babe."
Tiki nodded. "So you're not going to let me bow out of this gracefully?"
Happy shook his head and grinned. "Nope. Hey, at least when the two of us do finally fuck this shit up, it'll be epic."
