“I want a word, Tate,” he said.
“I’m working. I can’t have a word.” Tate ruffled some paper trying to make out how busy she was.
“Hi, Tiny,” one of the nurses said, thrusting out her chest.
Rolling her eyes, she stared at her father.
“You can go with him, Tate,” Dr. Brixton said, leaving his office.
Letting out a sigh, she followed her father out of the building.
“You’ve got the nurses chasing after you as well, great,” she said.
He grabbed her arm, tugging her toward the alleyway so they could have some privacy. Walking out she noticed several of the other club members waiting for her father.
“Why are you being so difficult?” he asked. It was only them, and there was no angry father staring back at her. She hated this part of him. The part she got to see when they were alone and the guy he showed Eva when he felt like it.
“I’m taking control of my life, Dad. Why can’t you see that?”
“The club is your life.” He pulled out the necklace she’d sent back to him last night with Murphy. The necklace held her name in the center. At the time she’d loved it. Now it just hurt her too much to wear it. It was the necklace he’d given her when she turned sixteen and had once meant so much to her. “Why are you giving me this?”
She refused to take it. “Do you remember what you told me when you gave me that necklace?”
Tiny frowned at her, letting her know he’d forgotten.
“Forget it. I love you, Dad but I can’t handle this.”
“Is this about Murphy?” Tiny asked.
Closing her eyes, Tate counted to ten. “It’s about so much more than Murphy.”
“I know you’ve got feelings for him.”
Shaking her head, Tate went to leave. He grabbed her arm stopping her retreat. “Don’t walk away from me, Tate.”
“Did Mom really accept coming second best to your club?”
Tiny reeled back as if her words had smacked him. “What’s your f**king point?”
“I’m just wondering if you realized how much pain you were causing her.” Tate put her hands on h*ps and glared at him.
“I’ve given you some room and allowed you to get away with shit because you’re my daughter. My patience is running out.”
“Fine. Let it run out. You know, one of my only memories of Mom is her on the couch, crying. She was staring at the phone, holding one of your cuts. In fact, I found her a lot of the time lying out on the sofa holding one of your cuts. The club comes first. I don’t think Mom accepted it. She didn’t have a choice, but I do.”
Storming back inside Tate realized she’d not resolved anything with her father. She thought her problems came from her hurt with Murphy. Blanking out everyone else she focused on her own feelings while thinking about her father. Tiny had been a great father to her, but the club really did come first. Pushing the hair out of her eyes, she tried to put some reasoning to her problems. She loved her father. He was the one person she could count on.
After work she walked home with Kelsey, making sure she got home safely and then made her way toward her father’s house. The house was large, and she’d gotten over the fear of The Lions bursting through the door. Seeing all of the men killed helped to ease her thoughts. For a few weeks she’d been shaken whenever the door rang, but nothing else came from it.
Eva answered the door at her knock.
“Honey, I’ve been waiting for you to get back in touch.” Eva invited her into the house with open arms.
“I didn’t know if he’d ban me from the house,” Tate said, smiling.
“I wouldn’t care if he did. Tiny’s insensitive at times, and he does my head in. I wonder what he’ll think if I just shoot him,” Eva said.
“Does he know you own a gun?”
“Nope, I doubt he’ll treat me any better. So, what brings you here tonight?” Eva pushed her into the nearest chair. The woman was only a couple of years older than she was, but Tate had bonded to the woman the moment she walked through the door.
Given half the chance, Eva would be an amazing mother.
“I’m going to Vegas with a girl from work. I was hoping you’d come with us.”
Eva stared at her. “Tiny doesn’t know about this?”
“No.”
“You’re not going to invite Angel?” Eva asked.
“No, I don’t want anyone to know.”
A glass of juice was placed in front of her as Eva stared at her. The other woman was beautiful. Her hair was dark and glossy, and she had the bluest eyes Tate had ever seen. “You want me to lie to your father?”
“Yesterday I caught him f**king one of the sweet-butts in his office.”
Her words hurt. Eva flinched away, turning toward the stove. There was nothing for the other woman to do. “What he does is his own business.”
“You’re in love with him, and you’re not going to fight for your man.”
“Tiny is not mine. I’m your nanny. Nothing else.”
“Good, then come to Vegas with me. Get away from all this shit.”
“Language, Tate.”
“Come with me.”
“Are you doing this to upset your father? To get back at him over the Murphy thing?”
“No, I’m doing this to get away from everything else.”
Eva stared at her, clearly considering the options. “Fine, I’ll come with you.”
Great, a weekend away with no club members and only the girls. Tate couldn’t wait for the fun to begin.
Chapter Three
Murphy glanced around the abandoned warehouse as the rest of The Lions considered what they were going to do. There were so many pictures of The Skulls that he’d lost count. Pictures of Tiny, Lash, and Nash along with the rest of the club. There were also several picture of Tate. The ones of his girl caught his eye. They must have been taken recently because she looked ill. He knew how she felt as he felt the same whenever he was away from her.
Suddenly the image changed, and he was standing in Tiny’s house staring at a scared Tate. A shot rang out, and then only he and Tate stood. One single shot to the stomach, and she looked at him with tears running down her eyes.
“You broke your promise, Dillon.”
Gasping for breath Murphy shot awake in bed. The dreams were always the same and always a pain in the ass. Tate was always hurt, and he was always the failure. He hated the dreams more than anything else. Tate hadn’t been shot. Eva, Angel, Steven, and Blaine had been shot. She was okay, and nothing was going to happen to her.