The Cut(20)

     



 

"I'll never call you Stake again," she whispered into his ear. She'd  always hated Stake's mom, but now she had even more reason to detest the  woman. "I guess I never paid attention to the way it was spelled  because I always thought it was the brothers teasing you because the  ladies thought you were a hot piece of meat." She hugged him tight.  "Which, by the way, I've always agreed with."

He looked up at Santana and couldn't help but chuckle through his pain.  Fuck. "Jakob's a name that I don't identify with, but I like the thought  of you calling me your big, juicy piece of meat."

"Hot piece of meat," she corrected with a slight grin on her gorgeous face.

"Anyway, the reason I told you is because I need you to understand that I  feel about you the same way you feel about me. You're the first person  I've ever let in, and the thought of you going anywhere near Gordon  again makes me sick to my stomach. I'm supposed to protect you. That's  my job." He wanted to tell her he'd killed men for less, but even though  he was dissatisfied with his chapter, he refused to spill details of  club business.

Instead, he decided to change the subject. "You know that trip to Fayetteville I told you about?"

"Yes."

"I want us to make the trip permanent. I've asked to transfer chapters."  He knew it was the best thing for both of them. However, he would also  need to reach out to one of his friends in the Fayetteville chapter of  the Kings to help pave the way because, unfortunately, getting Cecil's  permission was only the first hurdle. The Fayetteville chapter would  have to accept him into their club. "I've already got a good friend  there. His name's Gypsy. You'll like him."

"You want me to move there with you?" she seemed shocked by the idea. "What if I get there and you change your mind about me?"

He cupped her face in his hands. "Not gonna happen. How many times do I  have to tell you, you're it for me?" Hell, he'd tell her every day if he  needed to.

"Take me to bed," she said, pulling her T-shirt off over her head.

Stake stood with Santana still wrapped around him. He'd spend every hour  making love to her until he had to make the trip to San Antonio.



Tiny cut the Harley's engine, and Santana climbed off. She couldn't  believe she'd agreed to go swimming with him. The small lake on his  grandfather's land had been one of their favorite places to go when they  were growing up, but it had been a long time since she'd gone swimming.  "It looks smaller," she noted, setting her helmet on the bike seat.

He snorted. "It's the same size, we're just bigger."

She stared up at the six-foot-seven-inch man and laughed. "Some of us bigger than others."

Tiny picked her up and tossed her over his shoulder. "You'll pay for that."

She laughed and beat her hands against his heavily muscled back. "Let me down!"

"Not gonna happen, squirt. I've waited years to toss you into this  lake." He reached the water's edge and lifted her off his shoulder. As  if she weighed nothing, he began to swing her back and forth over the  water.

"Please, Tiny?" she begged. "I don't want to get my clothes wet."

"Nope." He released her and she flew through the air, her arms and legs  waving wildly until she hit the surface. She sank under the water before  coming up sputtering.

"I can't believe you just did that." She laughed again, splashing him as  she waded back to the shore. It felt good to have her friend back.  "You're an ass."

He kicked off his boots before pulling his shirt over his head.

"Jeez, Tiny." She couldn't believe the man in front of her was the same  dork she'd been friends with for so many years. Not only was every inch  of his torso and arms covered in black tats, but it appeared as though  the man lived in a gym.

He flexed his muscles. "How do you think I get so much pussy? Sure as hell isn't my face."

"I've always liked your face. Well, at least until you started growing  that beard. Seriously, you need to rethink that. You can't even see your  dimples with all that pubic hair hiding how handsome you are." She  decided to leave her shorts on over her swimsuit, but took her T-shirt  off before laying it over a rock to dry.

"I like the beard," he grumbled before executing a shallow dive into the lake.

She dug a ponytail holder out of her pocket and took a few minutes to  pile her hair on top of her head. When she was finished, she noticed him  staring at her with his jaws clenched. The swimsuit she wore was old,  but it wasn't any more revealing than a bra. Uncomfortable, she started  to reach for her shirt.         

     



 

"Don't," Tiny said. He pointed to her torso. "Gordon did that?"

She glanced down at the shallow cuts that had healed but were still  pink. The bruises had turned to that sickly green color that she'd hoped  to cover with a tan. "Yeah," she said, turning her back. She grabbed  the shirt and pulled it on.

"Cannonball!" she yelled, racing toward the water. Her splash was lame,  but she didn't know what else to do. She came up with a fake smile on  her face, hoping to see a similar reaction from Tiny.

Unfortunately, he wasn't amused by her cannonball attempt. "Come on, it was a joke."

He reached out and yanked her into his massive arms, crushing her before she had a chance to fight him off. "I'm sorry."

Santana pushed against his shoulders, trying to break free. "You're squeezing me!"

He loosened his hold but didn't release her. "I'll make this up to you. I'll make everything up to you."

She started to make another joke about him trying to move in on Stake's  territory, but all the pain Tiny had caused when he'd turned his back,  came pouring out of her. She began to hit her fists against his  shoulders and head and he took it. "Damn you!"

Her breath caught at the expression of deep and profound sorrow on his  ruggedly handsome face. Her arms wrapped around his neck when she  realized the forced separation between the two of them had been equally  hard on him. She buried her face against his neck and started to cry.  Within seconds, her tears turned to sobs, wracking full-bodied sobs that  she'd never allowed herself to give into.

Tiny carried her out of the water and sat on the bank with Santana  cradled in his arms. "I should've protected you, but I never have."

"You beat up Robby," she hiccupped as she reminded him.

"Afterward," he mumbled. "But I should've done something about your dad.  I saw him hit you more than once, and all I did was stand there."

"You were a boy." She'd never blamed Tiny for not stepping in only for  walking away. Telling him what she'd figured out about her father  wouldn't do either of them any good, so she kept her mouth shut as she  dried her tears.

He cleared his throat. "The beard makes me look meaner than I really  am," he confessed. "When we were younger, I couldn't wait for the day I  could take Smash on."

She tugged on his beard. He was right. The combination of facial hair  and tattoos made him look like one badass motherfucker. She knew he was  no angel though. He liked to fight and had been kicked out of school  more than once for brawling. "Do you still pick fights?" she asked,  hoping to lighten his expression.

"Only when I know I can win." The corner of his mouth tipped up in a wicked grin.

Santana climbed off his lap and stretched out beside him. The sun felt  good, and she still wanted to work on her tan. Plus, she doubted Stake  would appreciate her sitting in another man's lap. She closed her eyes  and let the warmth of the day envelope her. "I need to tell you a  secret, but you can't tell anyone else." She didn't know if Stake's  plans were a secret, but now that she'd reconnected with Tiny, she  didn't want to leave without telling him.

He laid down next to her. "Okay."

"Stake asked Cecil if he could transfer to the Fayetteville chapter. He  wants to take me as far away from Broken Ridge as we can get." She took a  deep breath. "He said he's going to kill Gordon, but I can't let him do  that because the police will know he's responsible. So, I'm going to do  it," she confessed. "I need you to teach me how to shoot."

"No."

She opened her eyes and looked at Tiny when he said nothing more.  "Please? If something happens to Stake because of me … " She let her words  trail off as she shook her head. "I won't let that happen."

He rubbed his hands over his face. "I would do anything for you, but I  can't teach you how to become someone like me and Stake. I won't."

The statement drove home what she'd often suspected but had never asked.  Growing up in the club, you learn as a child not to ask questions, but  she needed to know. "Have you and Stake killed people?"

"Don't ask me that," he replied.

Closing her eyes again, she thought back to the day the cops had come to  their home and arrested her dad. At the time, she hadn't been upset or  surprised that Smash had killed someone, only that he'd been caught, so  it would make sense that Stake and even Tiny had, as well.