She grinned for the first time since her phone call with Stake earlier in the day. "Don't take it personally. He's jealous of Tiny, too, and I've never had a sexual attraction to Tiny.
Gypsy paused in the process of lifting a fry to his mouth. "Are you telling me you're attracted to me?"
Shocked at what she'd said, she dropped her fork and covered her mouth with her hand. It wasn't that she thought of having sex with Gypsy, but there were times when she looked at him and could convince herself it was Stake at her side. Several times, she'd barely caught herself before reaching for his hand as they walked through town or rode in the truck. When he'd pulled up in front of the motel on his Harley, she'd adamantly refused to ride on the back of his bike because she wasn't sure how the proximity would affect her. They'd ended up walking to the restaurant because she'd told him Stake wouldn't like the thought of her on someone else's bike.
"It's understandable if you are. It doesn't make you a bad person. I know how much Stake and I look alike."
She shook her head. "It's not that I'm attracted to you, it's that I'm attracted to the parts of Stake that I see in you," she said.
"It's the same thing," he argued.
"No, it isn't." She was starting to get angry. "I love Stake."
"Right, but you think he's sexy, therefore, it would only make sense that you think I'm sexy, too."
When she noticed the mischievous smirk on his face, she groaned. "Are you fucking with me again?"
"Yeah," he admitted. "You're fun to tease."
She picked up her fork and began eating. "You can be a real bastard."
He chuckled. "That's what they tell me."
Two and a half weeks later, Santana stared at her packet of birth control pills with dread. Her period was late. At first, she hadn't given it much thought, believing the new prescription had messed with her cycle, but it had been eight days and still nothing.
Stake had made his feelings quite clear on the subject of children, and whether she wanted to admit it or not, their differences of opinion had affected their relationship. She'd been so busy simply trying to survive before Gordon attacked her that she hadn't considered the possibility of a husband and children. It hadn't been until she saw their new house that she'd begun to truly believe in a future with Stake. Naturally, marriage and children were the next step in their relationship. Boy, had she been wrong.
Although she'd tried to broach the subject several times over the phone, he shut down each time she mentioned it until she'd convinced herself that she could have a full life with him regardless of whether or not they had children. She sank to the bed.
She had no idea how long she'd stared at the wall before a knock sounded at the door. Sick at heart, she stood and unlocked the door for Gypsy.
"You ready?" he asked, excitement in his voice.
It was to be their third day to work on her and Stake's newly-purchased home. "Almost," she replied, refusing to look at him. She hadn't cried much, but Gypsy always seemed to pick up on her distress, similar to the way Stake did. She grabbed her purse. "I need to stop by a drug store on the way if you don't mind?"
"Don't mind at all." He blocked her exit before she could get out of the room. "What's going on? You and Stake have another argument?"
She shook her head. "I'm fine."
"No you're not." He crossed his arms over his chest.
Telling Gypsy about her period wasn't an option. "I just wish Stake were here to help us," she lied.
"Soon." Gypsy started to reach for her but dropped his hand. "You sure that's all?"
"I'm sure." She plastered on a fake smile. "I'm ready."
Eying Jack's SUV, Stake parked in front of the club. He'd only spoken to the Texas Ranger twice in the three weeks since Gordon's murder and still couldn't get a read on how the investigation was going. Stepping inside the club, he was surprised when the usual blast of hard rock didn't assault him upon entering. He spotted several brothers sitting around the room with worried expressions.
"What's going on?" he asked the prospect who was tending bar.
"The Ranger's in a meeting with Prez. You want something to drink?"
"Beer's fine." Stake turned on his stool to stare at the closed door of the meeting room. "Any indication of what it's about?"
The prospect sat a bottle in front of Stake and shook his head. "They've only been in there for about ten minutes."
Tiny got up from the table he'd been sitting at and joined Stake at the bar. "How's Santana?"
Stake nodded without taking his eyes off the door. "Good. We got the house, and she's been working on the yard." He didn't tell Tiny that things between him and Santana had been strained since the discussion of children. As hard as he'd tried, the idea of sharing her with anyone else simply couldn't excite him. Tiny was different because Stake could always tell him to take a hike if he wanted to be alone with his woman, but he couldn't do that with kids, especially when they were little.
The door opened and Jack walked out alone. "Be right back," Stake told Tiny as he crossed the room. "Any news on when I'll be cleared to move to Arkansas?"
Jack motioned for Stake to follow him out of the club. Once in the parking lot, Jack headed for his vehicle. "The investigation has officially been put on the back burner. We know someone in this club is guilty, but we don't have a strong enough case against anyone to press formal charges." He opened the door to his SUV. "You have an address in Arkansas, yet?"
Stake nodded. "We just closed on a house outside Fayetteville."
Jack pulled a small pad of paper out of his pocket and handed it to Stake along with a pen. "As long as you let me know if this address changes, you're free to go." He leaned his forearm against the door. "I know why you sent Santana away, but I have to tell you, it looks suspicious."
Stake handed Jack the pen and pad. Staring he straight in the eyes, he answered, "I did not kill Pete Gordon. I'm not sorry he's dead, but I didn't do it."
Jack continued to study Stake for several moments before giving him a sharp nod. "I'm glad to hear that." He glanced at the address and phone number Stake had scribbled down before climbing behind the wheel. "Good luck to ya."
"Thanks." Despite being on opposite sides of the law, Stake respected the Ranger. He went back inside the club and clapped Tiny on the back. "We're good. They're shelving the investigation for now due to lack of evidence."
Tiny let out a long breath. "Thanks for telling me."
"Church!" Cecil yelled from the meeting room doorway.
"You planning to bring up your transfer?" Tiny asked as he finished his beer.
"Hell, yeah. Mad Dog's adored by the whores, so getting the okay from the cops was the last roadblock between Santana and me. Can you get away for a couple of days to help me move?"
"I don't know. I'll have to ask Cecil because I've already scheduled time off for the Bikes, Blue and Barbeque thing next month," Tiny replied. "If I can get both weekends, I will, but otherwise, pussy and barbeque has to win out."
Chuckling, Stake pulled out his phone. "Go on in, I'm gonna give Santana the good news before I have to drop the phone off." He hated the strict no phones in church policy, but it had always been that way. When her voicemail clicked on, he groaned. "Hey, it's me. Thought I'd call before things get busy. I'll try ya again later." He set his phone on the table outside the meeting room along with all the others, excited by the notion he'd be with her within a day or two.
After a hot shower and pulling on one of Stake's old T-shirt, Santana climbed into bed. The combination of a full day of yard work and the positive pregnancy stick on the bedside table left her a snotty, sobbing mess. Although she'd somehow managed to stop crying, she had no doubt her eyes would be swollen in the morning. She picked up her phone and called Gypsy.
"Everything okay?" he answered. It had taken him four rings to pick up and from the sound of the bitching woman in the background, Santana had a pretty good idea what she'd interrupted.
"Sorry to bother you. I'm pretty sore, so if it's okay, I think I'll sleep in tomorrow." She rolled to her side and brought her knees up, curling into a ball.
"It's fine. I can run by and get the floor crew started. No problem." He didn't say anything more, and she was about to hang up when he finally sighed. "You've been crying."
And, just like that, the damn broke again. She'd spent the majority of her life refusing to give into tears, so where had her willpower gone when she needed it the most?
"Santana? What's wrong, hon?" Gypsy asked, sounding incredibly worried.