Saving Dallas 2 Making the Cut (7 page)

“Pussy? Did someone say pussy?” Buck asked,
pushing his small frame past Tiny and entering the room that was
now filling up.

“Quit talking about pussy,” Crash chimed in.
He was now sitting on the arm of the chair, flipping through the
same magazine Luke had earlier, but not really looking at it. “I
haven’t had any in a week.”

“Is that why you had you were holding hands
with my girl?” Luke asked him, his death glare back in place. The
whole room erupted with laughter, except for Crash who looked like
he wanted to jump out of the eight story window. “I mean, if you
think you can compete, then by all means.” I shot a glare at Luke
and he smiled and cocked his head to the side. “Babe. I’m just
kidding.” I rolled my eyes and started adjusting Marty’s pillows.
This was no easy task. Just for him to move a couple inches caused
him enormous pain, although I know he tried to hide it.

“You need to rest,” I said to him quietly, so
no one else could here. From what I had been told, PROSPECTS caught
hell during their first year. I knew he was trying to be hard in
front of the guys, but this was ridiculous and since I was the
reason he was here, I felt it was somewhat my responsibility to
ensure his comfort.

“Okay, guys,” I said to the room. It grew
quiet immediately, and I started to chicken out. “Marty has had a
long day. I think we should let him rest.” Every face in the room,
including Marty’s turned to Luke. Luke was eyeing me, seemingly
impressed by my courageous, outspoken request. I mean, who the hell
was I to announce to a bunch of bad-ass bikers that they needed to
shut the hell up and get the hell out, although I didn’t say it in
those words, they knew the meaning. What seemed like minutes, but
was really only seconds passed when Luke finally spoke.

“Well, y’all heard the lady. Let’s give Marty
some time to rest. Buck, you and Crash stay close. No further than
the lobby.”

Both Crash and Buck nodded in agreement.
Everyone said goodbye to Luke and I, then hugged Marty as gently as
possible. I could tell they cared about him and gave him great
respect for what he had done. No one had mentioned War, and even at
the thought of him, my stomach plunged. I didn’t think it was an
appropriate time to say anything so I kept my mouth shut, but made
a mental note to ask Luke about it later.

“Babe?” Luke said to me, shaking me out of my
thoughts. I looked up at him and smiled. He really was stunning.
You wanna go? Maybe grab something to eat and let PROSPECT get some
sleep?” My stomach growled at the mention of food and I turned to
Marty to say my goodbyes.

“I’ll come visit you tomorrow. Is there
anything you need?”

“No, ma’am. I’m good. Thanks, though,” he
said managing a weak smile. I leaned down and kissed his cheek
again and felt it heat against my lips. Big, bad, biker Marty was
embarrassed. I straightened and Luke approached the bed.

“I love you, brother. I’ll see you later.” My
heart clenched at the sight of the two grown men, exchanging hugs
and expressions of love for one another. I had never seen Luke like
this. You could tell by the look on his face and the sincerity in
his eyes that he meant every word of it, as if it was his blood
brother. My eyes burned as tears threatened to fall. Luke held his
hand out and I walked around the bed, taking it in mine and he led
us out the door. Once in the lobby, he exchanged a few hushed words
with Crash and Buck, then led us onto the elevator to the second
floor parking garage.

We were sitting in Firehouse Subs, Luke
eating a meaty, foot-long sandwich, and me a chicken salad
sandwich, watching the cars pass on Hardy Street. Luke left his
truck at the hospital and we had come in my car. He had insisted on
driving and I handed him the keys as he opened my door and ushered
me in. It was little things like that, and holding my hand all the
way here that had my heart swelling with love for him. Luke was no
ordinary man, running a construction company by day, being a biker
by night, making mad love to me in-between and during. Good thing,
I didn’t like ordinary.

“You sure are in deep thought, babe,” Luke
said, smirking at me from across the table.

“Have y’all heard from War?” Apparently, my
brain had remembered the mental note I made earlier. Luke’s face
tightened and I could see he was trying to control either anger or
heartache.

“Not yet. Regg is looking into it.” I thought
about how I had not seen Regg’s face in a couple of days. Is that
what he had been doing?

“Is he okay?” I asked, my hand covering
Luke’s on the table. Regg had been one of the first to arrive the
night Frankie had gotten to me. I remember him caring for me side
by side with Luke. He had become a very important person in my life
and I would hate for anything bad to happen to him. Especially if
it was on my behalf.

“Who? Regg?” Luke asked, clearly confused. I
nodded my head at him and his face seemed to somewhat soften.
“Yeah, babe, Regg is good.” He lifted my hand to his mouth and
kissed my palm, then sat it back on the table and continued eating.
This was a nice way of saying he didn’t want to talk about it.
Tough shit.

“What happened that night?” Luke halted his
sandwich in mid-air and gave a big sigh.

“You left upset and I didn’t want you doing
anything stupid, so I had War and PROSPECT follow you. They let me
know you were at Our Place Bar and waited in the parking lot beside
it. War called me about ten minutes later, told me you were
swerving all over the road. I told him to make sure you made it
home then head back to the club house. PROSPECT’s orders were to
watch your house. He tried to lure them away, but they caught up to
him and ran him off the road. I’m not sure why they didn’t finish
him off.”

I felt the blood drain from my face when he
said this. Finish him off? My mind drifted back to PROSPECT Marty
lying in a hospital bed. He was so close to death, yet he took it
as an honor that the club thought enough of him to watch over
me.

“What happened to War?” I asked. Luke’s brows
were drawn together and he looked like he was in deep thought. For
a man that was always in control, I knew it was frustrating that he
didn’t have all the answers. He trained his eyes on me and I could
tell he was fighting emotion; I just wasn’t sure which one it
was.

“He never made it back.”

I decided two things in that instant. One-I
would drop the subject, for now. Two-I would do everything in my
power to help Luke figure this shit out.

“Let’s go. We have a lot more talking to do
and I would prefer to not do it in a public place.” Luke’s face
looked serious, but I could tell by the way his eyes shown and his
voice changed that he had a lot more in mind than talking. The
thought excited me so much that I fumbled around for my purse and
managed to knock my cup, full of soda, over in the process, which
bought me a laugh from Luke. It was well worth it.

Luke drove us back to my place. Holding my
hand once again and tuning the radio to our favorite classic
country station. I’m not sure if in that moment it was divine
intervention or a turn of luck, but Alan Jackson was singing his
rendition of “Blues Man.” The lyrics poured out of the speakers as
I looked at Luke and all of his magnificence and thought how
perfectly that song matched my feelings for him. I loved him, I
needed him, and he had nothing to prove to me. The thought of being
with a bad ass biker was thrilling at first, but now, I knew I
would love Luke even if he was a librarian. How had I gotten so
lucky?

“You are my blue’s man,” I said, drinking in
the sight of him in nothing but a plain white t-shirt and jeans,
sitting in my car as if he belonged here and nowhere else. He
turned his head to look at me and smiled. I didn’t even have to
elaborate-he got it. He pulled my hand to his mouth and kissed each
of my fingers.

“Do you know that I love you, babe?” he
asked, against my hand.

“I do, Luke. I’m just confused.”

“I know, baby. I know.”

I wasn’t even sure I wanted to know all the
details anymore. It was confusing enough as it was. If my brain
consumed anymore new information, I was afraid it might explode.
Red had told me so much already.

“I didn’t want to take the job,” Luke said
out of nowhere. I turned in my seat to look at him, but he wouldn’t
meet my eyes. I knew he was talking about me. “I had just become
the Sergeant at Arms of the club and this was my first big job. My
Pops was still acting as President, but from an undisclosed
location. Most people thought I was taking over the club, but I was
just training. This was my opportunity to prove myself. Everyone
knew my plan was to take the club in a new direction. My Pops was
not very happy about my intentions, but he said if I was smart
enough and loyal enough, I would have the gavel one day and I could
do with it what I chose. You were a test. He wanted to make sure I
could keep my dick in my pants and my head in the game. Frankie had
been out bad with the club for five years, but we had kept an eye
on him to make sure he didn’t fuck up. He was in lock-up, doing
time for grand larceny, so we didn’t have to worry about him too
much. About a month before he was released was when I got the job.
You were in college at The University of Tennessee. I still
remember the first time I laid eyes on you.” He paused to turn to
me and smile. I couldn’t help it. I smiled back, even though I was
sure I looked like I was about to lose it.

“My aunt, Lori, lived in Tennessee, and I had
moved up there with her. It was late one afternoon, and I was
riding to the college to get a copy of your schedule. Aunt Lori is
a Tennessee Alumni and had rode with me to show me around the
campus. She thought I was gonna attend the University. I remember
she was talking my head off, pointing out all the buildings and
telling me stories when I saw you walk out of the main building.
You were wearing a yellow dress and looked like you belonged on a
fucking movie set, not on the campus of a college. I wanted to back
out. I wanted to call Pops and tell him I couldn’t do it. From the
very first time I laid eyes on you, Dallas, I knew that you were
mine.”

Well, fuck me. If that wasn’t the most
romantic thing I had ever heard in my life, then I didn’t know what
was. Who gives a shit that he was getting paid? I felt like I had
melted into the passenger seat beside him. I was such a sap.

“Aunt Lori had to call my name a couple of
times to get me to snap outta it. I followed you every day after
that. If I couldn’t be there, I made sure someone I trusted was. I
had to come back to Hattiesburg for a few months over the next
summer and it drove me crazy to think you were there partying and
having fun and wearing skimpy clothes and I couldn’t see you.”

Whoa. I couldn’t help it. It thrilled me to
know Luke was jealous over me.

“After that night in the bar, I knew I
couldn’t let you go. I’m not gonna lie, Dallas, I took you home
with me because I had no choice. Frankie would have done everything
in his power to hurt you. The club didn’t need the heat, but when
you cried for me to lay with you and I wrapped you in my arms, you
had me.” Tears were threatening to pour down my face. There it was.
I had it. The truth had finally came out, and for some reason, it
absolutely thrilled me.

“Everyone told me I was making a mistake.
They thought I had let you go. When I became President, Regg became
your official guardian and it almost killed me. I went two years
without seeing you. I avoided you every chance I had. Then I went
to the bar and there you were.”

The tears were now freely flowing down my
face. We had arrived at my house and was sitting outside the gate.
Luke put the car in park and turned to me, placing both hands on
the side of my face, wiping my tears with his thumbs.

“I love you, Dallas. I have lied to you and
hurt you and allowed others to hurt you. I will devote my whole
life to making you happy, if you will give me that chance.”

My heart was beating hard, my breath was
caught in my throat and my mind was screaming at me, telling me
that this was what I wanted.

“I love you too, Luke. I’m sorry for being
such a bitch. I want to try.” And try I would. I wasn’t sure if I
could be an ol’ Lady. I wasn’t sure that was the life I wanted to
live, but I was happy with Luke. And with Luke came the club. I
owed it to myself to at least try. Luke was staring at me, his eyes
full of love and his smile stretching across his face. I felt like
I should say something, so I did, “I changed the code.”

Luke smirked and planted a light kiss on my
nose, then whispered, “I know.”

Of course, Luke didn’t have any problem
getting in. He didn’t have a problem unlocking my door either. He
simply produced a key from his pocket and unlocked it. I started to
say something, but he quieted me with a wink. Winks were sexy and
made my stomach flutter, in turn allowing me to forget what in the
hell I was even mad about.

Luke grabbed my hand and pulled me to the
overstuffed couch in the library. It was the only piece of
furniture in a room with hundreds of books. He sat down, pulling me
on top of him-the couch swallowing us as we sat.

“You said you would try, but I don’t think
you understand the extent of this. I want you to know that I am not
trying to talk you outta it, but you need to know what you are
getting yourself into.”

I didn’t know the extent of this situation
or
our relationship, but I did know that I wanted to be
wherever Luke was. I can handle the other shit. I think.

“I can’t just make you my ol’ lady. I refuse
to do that. In the position that I’m in and with the shit we have
going on right now in the club, I will not bring someone in who
will complicate shit. This choice is entirely up to you. I will
train you, the girls will help you, but you have to know that this
is my lifestyle. I won’t have you around as just my girlfriend. I
want you as my supporter and I want you to agree to this life and
make it your life, too.”