"You alright, baby?" Vanessa wondered as she looked into the bathroom mirror, seeing Jax leaning against the door behind her with Abel in his arms. She could tell that something was bothering him just by the way his eyes wouldn't leave his son.
At the sound of her voice, he quickly looked up at her, seeing her putting on her signature red lipstick and he gave her a small smile. He loved seeing her with her classic red lipstick on. It always reminded him of the easier times when they were in high school and the only thing they had to worry about was their parents. Now they had to worry about bringing up a child together, the club, their finances, and yet again, their parents. Jax just nodded, trying to convince her that he was fine while he continued staring at her as she ran her fingers through her wavy hair.
Vanessa turned around and leaned on the sink, Abel reached out towards her from Jax's arms and he passed the chubby baby to her. She blew a raspberry on his cheek as the baby giggled and nuzzled his head into her neck. Jax couldn't help his growing smile but when he noticed she was staring at him with a concerned look on her face, the smile fell.
"You don't seem alright. What's going through your head?" He could hear the pure uneasiness in her voice.
"This shit with Opie. Keeping what really happened to Donna away from him." He sighed. "He's my best friend, my brother. I… I need to know if I'm doing the right thing here, babe." Vanessa could hear the strain in his voice as he spoke. She could hear and see all of the guilt, the doubt, and the rage that burdened him. She placed Abel on her hip and moved closer to Jax, wrapping an arm around his waist. Jax gently placed his head against hers and took a deep breath, inhaling the coconut scent that always lingered in her hair.
"You're trying to protect him, baby. You're trying to keep together the only family he has left." She pulled away from him the slightest bit to look into his eyes. "You are a good man, Jax, with the biggest heart and I absolutely love you for it." She pulled him in for a small kiss, feeling him deepen it quickly as he placed his hands on her hips. He squeezed her hips gently and pulled away, ruffling his hands through Abel's blonde tufts of hair causing the baby to squeal with happiness.
"But?"
"There is no but. Fuck what Clay or what anyone else thinks. You do whatever it is you need to. Whatever is best for Opie because he needs you now more than ever." Jax nodded with a grimace on his face. He quickly dropped the subject and stared at her as she pushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear.
"I got lipstick all over me?" He questioned and Vanessa shook her head with a flirty smirk on her face.
"You might later, though." He saw her eyes flick down to his jean-clad groin before quickly looking back to him with a seductive look in her eyes, her bottom lip in between her teeth.
"Shit." He groaned just as a knock on the door rang through the house. "You're gonna kill me darlin'."
"That's probably Neeta." She chuckled lightly. "We better get going if we're ever gonna make it to Clay's party."
The music was echoing down the street as Vanessa and Jax pulled up to the clubhouse on Jax's Dyna. She unclipped her helmet and flattened the top of her hair with her hand, looking around and seeing more people at the clubhouse than ever before. Jax wrapped an arm around her shoulder and began walking towards the crowd near the ring where two guys she had never seen before were throwing punches at each other.
"Beer?" Vanessa asked Jax loudly, trying to be heard over the music. Jax just nodded and walked with her inside where Half Sack was manning the bar. She smiled at Half Sack and Jax rolled his eyes as he watched him check her out. "Hey, Kip."
"Uh, h-hey, Vanessa. How-how are you?" He stumbled over his words as his gaze landed on her cleavage in the skin tight ribbed, lace-up tank top she was wearing.
"Two beers, prospect." Jax ordered him, possessively wrapping an arm around Vanessa's waist.
"Yeah, right, sorry." He mumbled.
"Thanks, Kip." She smiled as he popped open the cap for her, but before he could answer Jax looked over to him with a look that practically said 'get lost', it was a look that he learned fairly early and now knew very well as he continued prospecting for the club. "I hate that you guys treat him like shit sometimes. He's a nice kid. A little awkward, but nice."
"It's all a part of the gig, babe. He'll get over it when he gets patched in." She smiled at the hint of Half Sack getting his top rocker. He was a nice, goofy kid and she appreciated the way he treated her and the other women with the utmost respect. Vanessa looked around at the party, already wanting to leave. "Wanna go watch the fight, darlin'?" Jax already started walking her outside of the clubhouse as she sipped on her beer and smiled at all of the guys who were greeting Jax. They all checked her out but dared not to say anything too vulgar to her, especially not with Jax standing right there.
Vanessa was leaning up against the wall by herself, bored out of her mind waiting for Jax after he had left her side to go talk to his Uncle Jury and a few other guys from other charters. He left her alone just a few minutes ago, but none of the other guys had come up to her, suspecting that her entrance with a possessive Jax was the reason why. She took another sip of her beer when she saw Gemma walking straight towards her.
"What are you doing here?" Gemma asked her. "Who's with the baby?"
"We took your suggestion and hired Neeta, she's with him for another hour or two, then me and Jax gotta head back to him."
"I'm glad you listened to me and hired her." Gemma spoke with authority. "See, I know what I'm talking about sometimes."
"I never said you didn't, Gem." Vanessa rolled her eyes, praying for Jax to come back over to her or for Gemma to walk away from her so she could be alone again, but neither happened.
"Thank you." Gemma murmured.
"For what?" Vanessa questioned, surprised.
"For taking care of my boys." She admitted. "You're doing good with the baby. And Jax seems good. Happy."
"Where are you on this, Gemma? Really?" Vanessa looked at her, once again confused by the constant hot and cold of her and Gemma's relationship. "Me and Jax?"
"What do you care what I think?"
"Jax pretends like he doesn't care, but you're his mother and he loves you. So, I know that he really does care. Which means I care. As volatile as mine and your relationship is, I do respect you. I know that you just want what's best for your family, and I want that too. Plus, I am just so tired of always fighting with you. I just want all of this shit to work out."
"I appreciate you taking care of my family, Vanessa. Do you really want my advice?" She asked, seeing Vanessa nod her head. "Total disclosure. It's the only way it works with you and him. You're too damn smart to be living in the vague. He needs to tell you everything. No truth, no pussy. You draw the line."
"I'm not sure I really want to know everything about the club."
"Then this will never last." Gemma said with a sure tone. "You love the man. You learn to love the club. If you can do that, there's no truth you can't handle. No secrets between you and him, baby." Gemma kissed Vanessa on the cheek before going off to talk with the other guests.
Vanessa couldn't help but question what the hell their relationship was supposed to be like. One second we're on good terms, the next second I'm convinced she's plotting my murder. Vanessa thought to herself as a Mercedes pulled up next to her, only a few feet away.
Vanessa saw several of the guys walking over to the vehicle as two men, one with an expensive looking suit and the other with tattoos all over his arms, stepped out of the vehicle, walking directly towards Clay.
"Garage is closed." Clay announced over the loud music, Tig right by his side.
"We're not here for, uh, car repairs." The man with the suit spoke, a smug smile on his face. Vanessa noticed two more men stepping out of the vehicle, more with tattoos. She got the feeling that this was not a social call, nor was it a welcoming visit. Especially when she noticed the hateful symbols inked onto their skin. "I understand it's your birthday and that you're a Camacho fan." The man tried to hand over a box of cigars, but Clay refused to take it, as a group of Sons made their way over and stood around them, listening intently on the conversation.
"Who are you?" Clay asked, having no patience for the man.
"Just dropping by to give you a little friendly advice." One of the men with the tattoos said, handing over a business card to Clay.
"And what advice would that be?"
"We feel it would be best for all concerned if you stop dealing arms to the One Niners and the Mayans." The man in the suit spoke nonchalantly, causing all of the guys to chuckle and snort with laughter. Vanessa stared on, concerned for where this conversation was about to head.
"I don't even know what you're talking about." Clay laughed. "We're just mechanics and Harley lovers."
"That's one of Darby's guys back there." Tig spoke more quietly, pointing to the man he was referring to.
"Mr. Darby is one of our supporters."
"Mm." Clay nodded and circled around the men. "Expensive car. Hell of a suit. All your teeth. Must be the top of the Aryan food chain, huh?"
"What you do for a living is between you and your maker. I'm not here to adjust your moral compass. This is just a reality check. You're a criminal and you're done selling guns to color." Gemma moved closer to Vanessa and looked over to her. Vanessa jumped up when she heard the cocking of the gun in Tig's hand, looking for any sign of Jax before this situation got out of control. "Are you gonna shoot me, Mr. Trager? With all these witnesses?"
"Look, uh, I don't know what Darby told you, and, uh, I don't know what your angle is, but… let me be real clear. Nobody threatens Sam Crow. And nobody tells us what we can and can't do. Black, brown, or white. So why don't you just climb back into your little German clown car and drive back to Nazi town? 'Cause the next time you piss all over my shoes, he will kill you. I don't give a shit how many witnesses there are."
"My shop opens in a few weeks." Vanessa saw Jax striding over to the group and wanted to rush over to him but knew she couldn't. "Until then…" The man placed the long-forgotten box of cigars on the ground at Clay's feet. "Enjoy."
The men all began walking closer to Vanessa and Gemma as they walked back over to their Mercedes, as one of the men with the tattoos purposefully walked into the path that both of the women were walking in.
"Sorry, ma'am." He nodded to Gemma, then looked straight at Vanessa. "Ms. Hale." Vanessa's face paled as he said her name, not knowing how or why he knew who she was. Gemma noticed too and walked over to her, rubbing her shoulder before moving towards Clay trying to figure of what the hell just happened.
"You alright, Nessa?" Jax asked as he walked towards her, seeing the look on her face.
"Who the hell was that, Jax?"
"Just a friend of Darby's. Nothin' to worry about, babe."
"H-he knew my name, Jax." She whispered, grabbing a hold of his hand.
"What are you talking about?"
"Called me 'Ms. Hale' like he knew who I was." She gripped his hand a little tighter, worried why or how this man might know who she was. Why he might have singled her out.
"He's nothing to worry about, babe. We got this shit under control, alright? Let's get goin'." Vanessa just nodded, feeling slightly uneasy. She looked up at Jax and saw the flirty smirk he had on his face. "Maybe we should get out of here so you can cover me in some of that red lipstick I like so much."