“Are you all right?” Eva asked.
Opening his eyes, he saw his wife with her arms folded, leaning against the wall. “Yeah, I’m okay.”
“You don’t look it.” She tilted her head to the side, seeing past his bullshit. No matter what he said, Eva always saw deep inside his soul. She was his other half, his soul mate, and the reason he was shit scared of Gonzalez taking her away from him.
“Shit’s going down all around, and I don’t know what the f**k I’m doing.” He opted for the truth.
She walked into the room, closing the door behind her. They were alone, in private where no one could get them. “You’re not supposed to be doing this alone. This wasn’t our fight, Tiny, but we’ve been dragged in. You’re not alone in this. Devil’s part of it—his crew, our crew, we’re all part of it.”
Rounding the desk, he leaned against it, opening his arms for her. Without a second’s hesitation, she went to his embrace like she always did. He inhaled her feminine scent, finding her softness relaxed him. With Eva in his arms, he could think clearly. She was his reason for getting shit done.
“I love you, baby.”
“I don’t doubt your love. I worry about you. There’s only so much shit you can take. Don’t take it all on board now.” She stared up at him, stroking his chest. “You can come to me. I’m your woman, Tiny. This club is as much as mine as it is yours. My father will also help you.” Her father would help Eva and his grandchildren, and Tiny was just part of the mix. Ned Walker put up with him because Eva loved him, no other reason.
He saw the fear in her eyes. They’d been together for three years, and they had been the best three years of his life. Tiny had been married before to Patricia. His first wife had died of cancer leaving him to raise his daughter all on his own. Though he’d loved Patricia in a way, he’d never been faithful to her. He’d f**ked sweet-butts as if they were going out of fashion. Most of his married life with Patricia had been filled with arguments, and he’d found solace in the arms of other women.
Three years with Eva and he’d not f**ked any other woman but her. He didn’t even look at other women as they didn’t appeal to him. The only woman he wanted was right in front of him. She gave him everything he needed in life and in the bedroom. Eva completed him.
“It’s my club. This is my problem.”
“Your club is filled with men you helped to be something. Nash is straight, and Lash is as protective of the club as he is of Angel. You’ve got men around you who want to help. This is not just your club anymore. It’s so much more than that.”
Cupping her cheek, he stared into her eyes. He was in his fifties getting older by the second, but the love in her eyes kept him going, kept him moving forward. The constant problems the club was facing were making him feel older. Life should be getting easier, not harder, yet in the past couple of years life had become just one more battle at a time.
“Use the guys, Tiny. They’re here for a reason. They all wanted to be part of The Skulls.”
“Gonzalez is not like any other enemy we’ve faced.”
“Why not?” Eva asked. “He’s a man with a dick and a heart. I’m with Devil on this one. He can be hurt like everyone else. There’s no difference between him and the other men. He’s in the same league as Alan, and we took him out. An enemy is an enemy, Tiny. See past the fear to the truth.”
“Prue took Alan out. The club hasn’t dealt with this kind of power before.”
“Are you telling me that you can’t take a man out? You’re Tiny, president and leader of The Skulls. You can do whatever the hell you want. You’ve fought far worse than Gonzalez.” She pressed a hand to his chest. “Don’t let him win.”
“Who have I fought, Eva? I’ve never had someone invade my f**king life, take my kids—”
“Snitch, The Darkness crew, The Lions, Kelsey’s husband, they’ve all been your enemies, the club’s enemies. Gonzalez is no different. He’s no f**king superhero.”
“He took our kids from us and threw us in jail, baby. I’m not going to risk it. I’m not going to risk you.”
The slap to the face he wasn’t expecting.
“Stop being a f**king coward,” she said, yelling the words. Eva tore out of his grip. Anger shot his way, pouring out of her gaze as if it was a physical thing. “This f**ker needs to be hit back. Devil did the right thing. The whole of Chaos Bleeds are fighting. They’ve got exactly the same kind of shit to lose that we have,” she said, throwing her hands in the air and cursing. “You’re more worried about me and the kids. Stop being so damn blind and see what he’s doing to the two clubs. He’s tearing apart you and Devil. The only difference between you and Devil is he’s actually hitting back.”
“I know he’s got the same shit to lose, but I can’t let anything happen to you.”
“And he can’t with Lexie or his three kids, Tiny. You’ve both got the same to lose. You’re no different from him, and he’s no different from you.” She stormed toward the door, refusing to look back. “You need to decide if you’re going to stay and fight or if you’re going to run away like a coward. I don’t think either choice is an option that’s going to be easy.” She opened the door, and he watched her walk away from him.
Going back behind his desk, he dropped his head to the desk and let out a sigh. Shit was really starting to get serious. The last thing he was, was a coward. He wasn’t running from Gonzalez because he was afraid. No, he was running because he had a hell of a lot more to lose.
“Things go bad?” Devil asked, opening the door. Glancing up, he saw Devil entering the room.
“You could say that. I don’t know. I think I’m pissed off more than anything else.” Sitting back in his chair, Tiny stared at his friend. “Why did you do it?”
“I’m not like you, Tiny. I can’t sit on my ass waiting for shit to happen. I’ve been on the road longer than you have. It’s not part of me to simply take shit lying down.”
“You were going to.”
“They killed Ashley, and I promised her my protection. She may have been a club whore, Tiny, but to a point she was family. Everyone loved her, and she never pissed off any of the old ladies. They all liked and respected her. Someone kills your person then it’s time for us to take a stand and get rid of the bad blood going on. I’ve not got the head to sit around talking about what needs to happen and what doesn’t. My boys needed blood, I needed f**king blood, and I gave it to them.” Devil took a seat opposite him. “I’m sorry that I pissed you off.”