The Cut by Carol Lynne: Kings of Bedlam MC Series, Book One (22 page)

“Are you okay?” Gypsy asked.

She nodded and pointed to the decomposing houseguest. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. I wasn’t expecting it.”

“Gypsy?” Stake asked.

“Yeah.” She felt her face flush. “I think I scared him more than I did you.”

“I doubt it,” Stake grumbled.

She was surprised by his reaction. “Is everything okay there?” she asked.

“You’re not here. Of course, everything isn’t okay,” he practically growled.

It was on the tip of her tongue to remind him that he was the one who’d sent her away. Her good mood from earlier began to dissipate. The line was quiet while she watched Gypsy use a piece of cardboard to remove the rat.

“Are you alone?” Stake asked.

“No,” she answered.

“Find the master bedroom,” he instructed. “I’ll wait.”

“Bedrooms?” she asked Gypsy.

“Three up and one down,” he informed her, pointing to a short hallway off the kitchen. “The one down is right through there, but it’s small and doesn’t have an attached bathroom.”

“And the master?” she asked.

Gypsy shook his head. “It doesn’t really have one. The three rooms upstairs are all roughly the same size and share a single bathroom.”

With the phone still pressed to her ear, she followed Gypsy’s directions to the first floor bedroom. She was surprised at its size although the proximity to the kitchen wasn’t ideal. “For now, I think we should use the downstairs bedroom for us. That way, we can shut off the upstairs. Once we have children, we can move up there to be close to them.”

“Kids?” Stake questioned.

She silently cursed herself. Stake had never mentioned getting married or having a family. “Well, you know, if we eventually decide to have them.”

“Maybe,” he answered. “Whatever you decide is fine.”

She wasn’t sure if he was referring to the bedroom situation or the children, but she let it go. She opened the small closet and noticed further evidence of vermin. “I think we’ll need an exterminator.”

“Have Gypsy set it up,” Stake ordered, his voice still gruff.

She finished the rest of the tour with less enthusiasm. “Well, that’s it,” she said as she walked back out to the porch.

“Is it the house you want?” he asked.

“It’s the house of my dreams,” she answered honestly. “But, I’ll be happy anywhere as long as you’re with me.”

“I need to go, but tell Gypsy to call me after he drops you off.”

“I will.” She was still kicking herself for mentioning children. Had she ruined everything?

“I miss you,” he said.

The warmer tone to his voice helped soothe her racing heart. “I miss you, too.”

“Call me before you go to bed tonight,” he ordered.

“I will.” She hung up and clutched the phone to her chest.

“Everything okay?” Gypsy asked.

“I don’t know. I hope so.” She held up her phone. “He wants you to call him after you drop me off.”

Gypsy’s eyes narrowed slightly as he watched her. “Okay.”

* * * *

By the time his phone rang, Stake was in a foul mood. The conversation with Santana earlier had left a bitter taste in his mouth. Gypsy’s overt display of concern for her had really pissed him off which didn’t make sense since he’d been the one to ask Gypsy to care for her. His anger went beyond normal jealousy. It felt like he’d ripped out his heart and had handed it over to another man. Once Gypsy had pulled out of the drive with Santana beside him, it had taken everything Stake had not to get on his bike and chase them down. Santana’s place was beside
him
not Gypsy. Santana’s mention of having children had totally knocked him on his ass.

He had no doubt Santana would make a good mother, but he was a selfish bastard who’d waited too long to have her. Sharing her with rugrats didn’t set well for some reason. He’d heard the stories from his brothers on how their wives had changed after giving birth. He liked having Santana ready and willing to fuck anytime he asked and wasn’t about to give that up without a fight. Besides, he didn’t think he had it in him to be a good father, and he’d lived a life of subpar parenting. How the hell could he willingly take a job like that on, especially knowing how fucked up his own childhood had been? Yeah, he was definitely a selfish prick.

He dug the phone out of his pocket. “Hey,” he answered.

“What’s up?” Gypsy asked.

“See if you can fax the paperwork on the house to the club. Cecil’s called a meeting later, so I’ll swing by the club early and have plenty of time to get the paperwork signed and sent back before church.”

“All right.” Gypsy sighed. “Mind telling me what you said to Santana over the phone that upset her?”

“Don’t fuckin’ worry about what I said to my woman. We’re good.” Once again, Stake was second guessing his decision to send Santana to Arkansas without him. Gypsy was almost as bad as Iggy when it came to sex. How many times had he watched Gypsy pick up a stranger in a bar and fuck her against the wall within five minutes of meeting her? Not that he hadn’t had his share of quick fucks, but Gypsy seemed to need it every motherfucking day whether he had a girlfriend or not.

“I am going to worry about it. She walked into that house with the biggest smile I’ve seen out of her yet and came out looking like she’d been kicked. She didn’t say a goddamn word on the drive back to the motel.”

“I’m not sure I like where this is going. I asked you to watch over her, not crawl up her fuckin’ ass. If you need pussy, get it from somewhere else.” Stake gripped the phone so hard he was surprised the damn glass didn’t shatter in the thing.

“You sonofabitch!” Gypsy growled. “When I came down to Texas to pick her up, I couldn’t fucking believe you’d twisted yourself up so much over a fucking cunt, but after spending hours with her alone in the truck, I got it. Now, I’m wondering why the fuck she’d do the same thing over a bastard like you.”

“Fuck you,” Stake spat. “She’s my fuckin’ life, and I’m not about to lose her to you.” He was seconds away from jumping on his bike and going to Santana when he heard Gypsy’s laughter. “What the fuck’s so funny?”

“You,” Gypsy replied. “You’re so goddamn jealous, you don’t even trust her.”

“I trust her,” Stake argued.

“Evidently not, or you wouldn’t be afraid of me making a move on her, which I would totally do if I didn’t care about you, asshole. But I do care, and I wouldn’t do something like that.”

“Just send the fuckin’ papers.” Stake hung up before he said something else he’d regret.

* * * *

Santana picked at her salad. She was grateful Gypsy had come back into town to take her to dinner, but she wasn’t good company. “Did the realtor say how long it would take?” she asked, searching for something to say.

“Two weeks minimum. You have to have an inspection, and then there’s all the bank paperwork.” He shrugged. “Takes a while.” He ate another bite of his burger. “The repairs to the house will probably take another week, at least. Will you be okay in the motel that long? I’d offer you my spare bedroom, but I think Stake might slit my throat for that.”

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.”