Dangerous Thirst

Chapter 19

She pulled up a chair next to him and sat down. Gemma bid the group a good night before turning to Taylor and telling her what a fun day she'd had. Taylor smiled shyly and said how much fun she had had as well. "I'll plan another day out. We can get our hair and nails done then." Gemma told her before walking out to her SUV. Taylor remained quiet as she ate her dinner and the men chatted about random things. Happy's mind was on what Gemma had told her. Did Taylor truly believe she was that ugly he'd never want to be...intimate...with her?

What kind of nonsense had her father been telling her, her whole life? It made him angry to think of someone abusing a child in such a way. Once she'd eaten, she threw her trash away and headed to their room. She noticed the closet door was open and half of it was empty. One of the drawers was open and completely empty. Happy entered a few minutes later as she was taking tags off her new clothes.

"I emptied out that drawer for you and cleaned out half the closet for you to use. You can put all your shoes in the bottom of the closet on your side so they're out of the way and organized." Happy told her.

"Thank you." She quietly stated.

"Taylor, why won't you change in front of me?" He tenderly asked as she was folding her clothes, "And be honest with me."

She stopped what she was doing and tried to think of what to tell him. He wanted the truth but she was scared of how he'd react.

"Well. I've seen the women that come to the clubhouse. You can have any of them you want. Why...why would you want to look at some scarred up thing like me?" She stared at the floor as she spoke, "I'm not worth looking at."

"Taylor, I don't care what your father told you. You're a very beautiful young woman." He made sure to keep his voice as soft as he could as he spoke, "I want you to know that. It's ok to change in front of me. I sleep in my boxers and no shirt. Does that bother you?"

"This is your room. You sleep how you're comfortable." She replied.

"No, Taylor. This is our room. You're my 'ol lady. It's ok to show me skin. I still think you're beautiful no matter what." Happy told her, "Now what scars do you have that you think makes you so ugly?"

She stared at the floor once more not wanting to show off her stomach. He was built and good looking. She was puny, scarred, and ugly. He told her in a much firmer voice to show him her scars. With a heavy sigh, she lifted up her shirt to just under her breasts to show him her stomach. He moved and knelt down in front of her to see what she was showing him. Seeing a few scars across her belly made him growl.

"I'm not angry at you, Taylor. I'm angry with your father for what he put you through." Happy stated as he ran his index finger across one of the scars.

"I told you I was ugly." She whispered.

He stood up and pulled her into his arms, "No you're not. You're my 'ol lady and you're very beautiful to me. That's all you should think about."

"Why are you so nice to me?" She looked up into his dark eyes and questioned.

"Because you're my 'ol lady. Because you deserve respect." He stated, "And because I care about you."

Although he hadn't wanted to admit it, he was beginning to care about her and her well-being. The more he found out about her, the more attached he became. She'd had such a shitty life and he wanted to change her lot in life. To give her a life. For now, she seemed content to cook for the club and work in the garage office. She stared up at him and suddenly he wanted to kiss her. Cupping her face in his large hands, he leaned down and softly pressed his lips to hers. It took her off guard and she stood there in shock. She didn't know why he was kissing her.

"Why did you do that?" She asked when he stood back up.

"I told you care about you. I wanted to show you that. It's time we started acting like a proper couple." He told her as he ran his thumbs over her cheeks, "So don't be so shocked if I show you a little affection here and there."

"I...uh...ok." She stuttered making him smile at her.

He leaned down to kiss her again and this time she kissed him back. It almost surprised him when she did but he was glad she was more receptive to him this time. He rested his left hand on the back of her head and rested his right hand on her hip as they stood there kissing. It made her heart race that he liked her enough to want to kiss her. She didn't think he really did like her, only putting up with her because he had to. How had they gotten to this point? He finally pulled away smiling at her.

She had never had anyone kiss her like he did. Tender and almost loving. He told her to put away her clothes before kissing her forehead and leaving the room. She sighed happily and did as she was told. It had been a long, albeit pretty fun, day and she was ready to get a shower and crawl into bed. He sat back down with Chibs and Tig who just looked over at him. Happy shrugged before taking a swig of his beer. They didn't need to know what happened in their shared room. He cared about her but wasn't sure why he had kissed her. He was getting used to having her around, sure.

He threatened anyone who hit on her or mistreated her, sure. Was he really accepting that she was his 'ol lady and that it was time to start acting like it? Was he finding himself attracted to her after all? Yeah, she didn't look like the whores that hung around the clubhouse. She did, however, have a big heart. That was more than evident as she tried to take care of him as he recuperated from being shot. She brought him breakfast and dinner each night he stayed in bed so he wouldn't have to get up and aggravate his injury. She had stayed up with him several nights as he fought the infection.

Truth be told, she was already a great 'ol lady. He sighed as he stared out into the lot and drank his beer. He did care about her. Nothing he told her was a lie. She may not look like the whores who hung around the clubhouse but she had her own beauty. Albeit shy, she was generous and kind. Maybe it was time they started acting like a true couple. After all, he'd offered to let her snuggle with him after she had a nightmare. He wasn't one for snuggling with a woman yet when she was crying after a nightmare, that's exactly what he had done. It helped calm her down and they were both able to go back to sleep.

He never wanted an 'ol lady and for a while, he harbored some ill feelings towards his Prez for putting him in that position. Now he found it almost odd to not have her around. He knew he'd get a good homecooked meal twice a day. Although he hadn't had sex since the first night she was with them, he had gotten used to her presence in his room. The smell of her showering stuff didn't bother him like it used to. As a matter of fact, it was a nice smell when he came in late ready to go to bed.

"You ok, Hap? You're kind of zoned out there." Tig asked.

"I'm fine." He retorted before downing the rest of his beer.

"Everything ok between you an Taylor?" Chibs questioned.

"Yeah, why wouldn't it?" Happy replied.

"Jus' askin'." Chibs stated, "I know what Gemma 'ad t' say must've gotten into yer 'ead jus' a little bit."

"The poor thing has scars on her stomach. I don't know the incidents that put them there but she's ashamed of them. She truly believes she's ugly because of them." Happy finally confessed.

"Ye told 'er she wasn', right?" Chibs asked.

"Of course. Even told her how beautiful I thought she was. Don't think she believed me, though." Happy explained, "But I want to know what her father did, or thought he was doing, that put those scars on her stomach."

"Glad we didn't know all this when we took her." Tig stated.

"Aye. Would've made 'im pay for the mistreatment 'e put 'er through." Chibs nodded.

"How do you know she's got scars?" Tig suddenly questioned.

"I made her show them to me." Happy answered, "And she is definitely ashamed of them. Wouldn't look me in the eye as I looked her over."

"Poor lass." Chibs shook his head, "She's 'ad such a 'ard life."

"Well hopefully Happy here can give her a better one." Tig laughed as he waved the prospect over for more beers.

A/N: Think Happy can really give Taylor a better life?

Please review and vote below!