Caught In The Middle

by kl4uss

Victoria Miller was just a normal nurse in Santo Padre that worked with children during the daytime and a healer for the motorcycle club; The Mayans, during the night. But what happens when her best friend is released from prison? Is Victoria ready for the war that surrounds the Mayans or will she be caught in the middle? [ANGEL REYES X OC X NESTOR OCETEVA]

8. Sons & Paintings

A bright smile immediately lifted onto the Miller woman's pink lips when she swiftly turned her head to the right at the familiar voice and saw the resident Scottish biker and the president of the Sons Of Anarchy Motorcycle Club. Victoria shook her head with a soft chuckle as she walked up to the older man before she told Chibs, "of course not." The brunette nurse playfully rolled her hazel eyes before she uttered as she knew the Scot knows every little thing that happens in Charming, "but I'm pretty sure you already knew I was coming."

The Telford biker, however, didn't say anything right away. Instead, the president of SAMCRO pulled the short brunette woman, who he has seen as his niece ever since she started coming around when she was a young teenager, into a tight hug. Chibs breathed in Victoria's familiar scent for a moment while he ignored the presence of the tense and unknown man leaning against the black car, who was watching them with a protective gaze.

Finally, after a few minutes of hugging his unofficial niece, the Telford biker slowly pulled away before he told the Miller woman how he knew that she was here in Charming, "Daytona mentioned that he called you this morning about his tattoo." The president of SAMCRO then shot Victoria a smirk before he exclaimed, "speaking of tattoos, you better get your arse over to the clubhouse and go see Happy before you leave town again." Chibs rolled his eyes as he commented, "you know how he'll get if he knows you were here without stopping by and I sure as hell ain't dealin' with a moody Happy today."

The Miller woman couldn't help but roll her hazel eyes like the older man had done as she knew exactly what Chibs meant about how Happy can get when she doesn't visit him. She made that mistake only once and the time she did, the Lowman biker stayed at her house for a solid week and bothered her nonstop. The brunette nurse then suddenly remembered what Daytona had told her, so she looked up at the president of SAMCRO with her brows furrowed before she voiced her confusion, "Tona told me Hap was up in Tacoma for the week."

The Telford biker shook his head and muttered, "nae," as he denied what his newly patched member thought since Daytona hadn't been at the clubhouse in the last three hours. "Happy just got in about an hour ago from a job up North," the president of the Sons explained to the brunette woman that he saw as his unofficial niece.

"I'll head over there now then," the Miller woman told the older man with a nod of her head now that she knew her tattooed friend is back in California instead of still being in Washington state. Victoria then gave Chibs another bright and happy smile as she was glad that Chibs found her before she had the chance to leave Charming. "It was real good to see you again, Chibby," the brunette woman expressed as she pulled the older man into a tight hug before she mumbled, "it's been too long."

Victoria used to spend a lot of her time in Charming when she was in high school. It wasn't as much as she would have wanted at a young age since her father never let her leave most of the time unless Nathan would sneak her out for days on end. Victoria would always catch a beat down from her father when she would get back, though, but it was always worth it to spend time with Opie and Jax along with getting spoiled by Chibs and Tig. Charming had always been like a vacation home for Victoria since home life was hell as a child and the Sons always made her feel welcomed - even Clay had a small soft spot for her.

Chibs gave the short woman a small and aged smile once they pulled away from their tight embrace before the Telford biker placed a loving kiss onto Victoria's forehead like a caring father would. "You better not be a stranger next time," the president of the Sons scolded as he pointed at the brunette woman with a teasing smile before he stated, "you know you're always welcomed in Charming." Chibs then shot a quick glance over to the unknown and tense man before he continued to speak to his unofficial niece, "it doesn't always have to be a business trip or with your Reyes boy. You know you're family, Lassie."

A soft smile immediately pulled onto the Miller woman's face as the Scot biker reminded her that she is family. It's always nice to hear in Victoria's opinion since she didn't exactly have a real and happy family with loving and normal parents. However, she did have components of a real family with Nathan, the Sons, the Mayans, and the Reyes men. Victoria may get put into dangerous situations with both of the motorcycle clubs but the brunette nurse wouldn't have it any other way.

"I'll try to come back soon to see the family," Victoria promised to the Scot biker as she would love to see the whole club of Sons and spend a few days here in Charming. She usually only came with Angel, unless Happy picks her, or when she designing a tattoo, so the Miller woman would love to just hang out and relax with the men and women that she saw as members of her family. However, sadly, it's always hard for Victoria to get away from Santo Padre since she's always working all the time but the brunette nurse made a mental note to talk to her boss about taking a few days off in the near future.

"I love ye and give me a call when ye get home, Lassie," the president of the Sons ordered before he pulled the brunette woman into another tight hug as he wasn't sure how long it would be until Victoria would be back again. Chibs then placed another kiss onto Victoria's forehead as he rubbed the crown of her head before he reluctantly pulled away and released his unofficial niece.

"I will," Victoria promised with a playful eye roll as no matter how old she gets, she always has to give Chibs a call after a trip to Charming. However, the Miller woman understood why, though, since the Nordics kidnapped and roughed her up when she was leaving town a couple years back. Victoria then gave her unofficial uncle one last smile and uttered, "love you too, Chibby," before she gave the biker a small wave and turned around to head back to the Oceteva man, who was leaning against his black Escalade with his serious, cartel face on show.

The Oceteva man immediately relaxed his body from its tense and straightened position when the brunette woman began to walk towards him before Nestor placed his hand onto the middle part of her exposed back and directed Victoria towards the passenger side of the black Escalade. Nestor then opened the door with his unoccupied hand and let Victoria enter the car before the Oceteva man leaned down with his hand on top of the car and inquired with a raised eyebrow about the biker that was currently watching them like a hawk, "another friend of yours?"

Victoria glanced through the front windshield of the black Escalade, where she instantly spotted Chibs keeping an eye on them as he slowly moved to the door of the tattoo shop. The Miller woman shook her head with a chuckle at the protective biker before she looked up at Nestor and stated, "he's more like my uncle." A soft smile lifted onto Victoria's lips as she explained her relationship to Oceteva man, "I've known Chibs since I was thirteen and he's just always taken care of me whenever I would come to Charming with my brother."

Nestor silently nodded his head in understanding before he closed Victoria's door and slid into the drivers seat as he absorbed all this new information about the Miller woman that he would have never guessed would be true. The Oceteva man always thought ever since he met Victoria that the Mayans were the first and only motorcycle club that she was involved with. So it was definitely a surprise to Nestor that the Miller woman had been around motorcycle clubs since she was a teenager.

"Alright," the Miller woman huffed out as she turned her body to the side so she was facing the Oceteva man once Nestor started up the SUV before Victoria stated with an apologetic smile, "I know I said this would be the only thing that I need to do in Charming but I just need to say hi real quick to a friend then we go anywhere you want."

The Oceteva man shot the brunette nurse a small smile as he briefly tapped on her exposed knee with his index and middle finger before he assured Victoria, "It's cool. I don't mind." Nestor honestly didn't mind driving around or just sitting quietly while the Miller woman interacted with the local bikers as Nestor just liked seeing Victoria smile while in her element and absorbing the calmness that seems to surround her. "So, where do you need me to take you?" The Oceteva man inquired after he exited out of the parking lot of the tattoo shop before he came to a short stop as he didn't know where the bikers's clubhouse is located.

"Oh!" The Miller woman yelped as she realized that Nestor was basically lost and wasn't familiar with Charming like she is before the brunette nurse swiftly glanced around them to see where they were. Victoria then silently nodded her head to herself before she directed the Oceteva man to the Sons Of Anarchy clubhouse, "it's just off Main street, so you need to keep driving straight then take a sharp left. It's a place called Scoops and Sweets."

Nestor took a quick glance over at the brunette woman with a raised eyebrow while he continued to drive straight down the long road as soon as he heard the name of the establishment come out of Victoria's mouth. "Their clubhouse is an ice cream place?" The Oceteva man wondered with amusement throughout his voice.

Victoria lightly lifted her left shoulder in a shrugging motion with a chuckle as she knew she would get that reaction before the brunette nurse explained, "it's just a front like how the Mayans have the scrapyard. The clubhouse for the Sons is right above the ice cream store." The Miller woman then glanced out of the window as she looked at the familiar stores while she explained why the bikers were located at a business like that, "the original one was blown up about six or seven years ago and they decided to just keep it at this location instead of rebuilding the old one."

A shiver instantly ran down the Miller woman's spine as she recalled that one memory. Victoria had been in Charming and at the old clubhouse when the IRA blew it up. It was just one of the many dangerous situations that she had been in while being involved with the Sons. It wasn't the first one either but it was still scary for Victoria since she almost didn't get out in time. Thankfully, Juice had pulled her out of the clubhouse just seconds before it blew up.

The Oceteva man silently nodded his head as he could obviously understand why they wouldn't be at the same location anymore. "So, do they actually sell ice cream?" Nestor wondered after a moment of silence with the same amusement in his voice as the cartel assassin found it humorous that a dangerous motorcycle club was located in such a family-friendly place.

"Oh, yeah," the Miller woman answered with a chuckle before she stated with a smirk playing on her pink lips, "you should see the prospects." Victoria remembered the first that that she had walked into Scoops and Sweets after the club was officially moved in and she just couldn't stop laughing when she had seen the annoyed prospects. "They take care of the shop when the Sons don't need them," Victoria explained to Nestor about what the prospects do, "they sell all types of goodies - ice cream, candy, cookies, milkshakes." The brunette woman playfully rolled her hazel eyes as she commented, "it was a joke at first, but they couldn't just use the shop or the community would get suspicious so they run the parlor during the day time and the club's bar after five."

Nestor only got the chance to mumble out an amused, "interesting," at the clubhouse for Charming's local bikers as he pulled in front of the busy ice cream shop before he parked right underneath the bright green and yellow sign that read; Scoops & Sweets. The Oceteva man and the Miller woman then silently exited out of the black Escalade before Victoria lead them through the front door of the family-friendly establishment.

Victoria gave two small brunette children, who were running across the shop with a bag of candy, a polite smile before she looked towards the windowed counter of ice cream flavors and toppings, where she recognized a familiar face. "Hey, JJ," the Miller woman greeted the Sons prospect with a wave of her hand as she and Nestor walked in his direction.

The blonde and blue eyed prospect gave the brunette woman a small smile when he instantly recognized her calm figure. "Hey, Tiger," JJ greeted the nurse back before he nodded his head to the left towards the back of the ice cream shop. "He's up in the bar," the Sons prospect told Victoria as he knew who the brunette woman was looking for since Chibs mentioned that Victoria would be stopping by before he had left the clubhouse.

"Thank you, JJ," the Miller woman praised the prospect with a nod of her head before she told Nestor as she lead him to the back of the ice cream shop while she maneuvered around all of the smiling customers, "it's through here." Victoria walked over to a lone wooden door in the right corner of the busy establishment and opened the secret entrance that led them to the outside of Scoops and Sweets before she lead them up a set of steel stairs. The brunette nurse then opened the door that was on the second story of the old building before she entered the Sons clubhouse with Nestor silently following behind.

Victoria took a glance around the bar area of the clubhouse once she heard the door close behind them, where she noticed a couple of familiar faces drinking beer but they weren't who she was looking for at the moment. However, before the Miller woman could find her tattooed covered friend, a loud and deep voice called from the corner of the clubhouse that was behind her. "Well, look who finally decided to come home," the Lowman biker exclaimed with a wide smirk playing across his lips.

The Miller woman couldn't help but roll her hazel eyes in amusement while she was still facing the bar at the voice of her friend before Victoria turned around and walked passed Nestor until she was in front of the now standing Sons member. "Oh, shut up, Hap. You ain't any better, either, when you just got here," Victoria exclaimed with her own smirk and a small chuckle before she was suddenly pulled into a tight hug.

The Lowman biker and the Miller nurse hugged for a calm minute or two before they pulled away from each other and the Sergeant At Arms finally noticed the unfamiliar man that didn't belong in the clubhouse. Happy shot the man a heavy glare as he didn't know who he was and why he was with his close friend. The Lowman biker then completely ignored the man's presence as he turned back to Victoria before he curiously wondered, "so, what are you doin back in town?"

Victoria couldn't help but take a quick glance back at the Oceteva man with a small and assuring smile as she knew Happy would be the most difficult to be around since he was like Angel with his protectiveness over her. The Miller nurse was pleasantly surprised that the Son didn't immediately pull out a gun, though, so Victoria took that to mean Happy is, thankfully, in a good mood. Victoria, however, decided against jokingly commenting on the brash biker's rudeness like she usually would to keep him in line. Instead, the Miller woman explained why she was in Charming, "oh, I was drawing up Tona's reaper down at the shop."

The Lowman biker nodded his head before he instantly took notice of the large and familiar sketchbook in the brunette woman's arms. Happy then shot Victoria a wide grin before he asked, "you ready for another tattoo lesson?" It was a common occurrence whenever the Miller woman would come back to Charming, that Happy would help her hone her tattooing craft. It was something that they had been doing about two years after Happy had officially joined SAMCRO.

Victoria bit down on her bottom lip as she really did want to stay but she knew that she couldn't this time, so Victoria shook her head. "I can't," the brunette woman mumbled as she knew that she made a promise to Nestor to finally do something fun and normal before she told the Sons biker, "we really should be going." Victoria shot her close friend a small smile before she explained why she had showed up at the clubhouse, "I was just on my way out when Chibs told me you were back from Tacoma, so I just came to say hi before heading back to S'Padre."

"Oh, come on, Tiger," the Lowman biker moaned out before he tossed his arm over Victoria's shoulder and dragged her past the unknown and unimportant man and towards the bar that was occupied with Quinn, Ratboy, and a prospect. The Sergeant At Arms nodded his head at the prospect and held out two fingers before he tried to convince Victoria to stay, "one beer and a tattoo." Happy shot the brunette woman a pointed look as he uttered, "I know damn well your ass ain't busy today or you wouldn't have came out here, so come on and help your good pal out."

Victoria immediately rolled her hazel eyes at Happy's way of trying to convince her to stay before she gave the prospect that she didn't know a small nod when he handed her a bottle of Corona. The Miller woman took a large gulp while she tried to decide if she should go or not before Victoria faced the Lowman biker with a heavy sigh and muttered as she really did want to stay a little bit longer in Charming, "alright, fine."

The Miller woman pointed her finger at the Lowman biker as she squinted her hazel eyes before she commanded, "but only one beer and the tattoo." Victoria then slid her sketchbook across the wooden bar when Happy nodded his head in agreement before the Miller woman told the Sons biker, "pick which one you want me to do."

The Lowman biker shot his close friend a wink when he knew that he had convinced the Miller woman to stay like he usually does before he opened up the large sketchbook and flipped to the back that was reserved for his tattoo designs that Victoria had drawn for this very reason - to practice her craft. Happy then looked at each page for about five minutes until he found the one that he wanted to add to his collection of tattoos. "We're doin the lion," the Sons member told the brunette woman at he tapped his finger against the design before he swiftly stood up and headed to the back of the clubhouse to get his tattoo kit.

Victoria flipped the sketchbook towards her and looked at the page that Happy had stopped on before she noticed the design that the Sons biker had mentioned. The Miller woman took out the image from the sketchbook and put it to the side as she waited for her close friend to get back with the kit. However, while Victoria was waiting on Happy, the Miller woman walked behind the bar and gave Nestor, who was just standing to the side, a small nod to come closer.

"Hey, boys," the brunette nurse greeted the two fully patched members and the prospect of the Sons before she bent down and grabbed another Corona along with two shot glasses. Victoria then poured tequila into the shot glasses and pushed one over to Nestor, who was now standing on the other side of the bar in front of her, along with his beer and a small smile. The Miller woman felt bad that they were staying longer than she had said, so she at least wanted the Oceteva man to be comfortable with alcohol around the bikers while she was tattooing.

Nestor shook his head with an amused grin playing on his lips at the polite hostess inside the brunette woman before he bumped his shot glass against Victoria's and they muttered, "cheers," before they both downed the shot of tequila. The Miller woman then took the shot glasses and dumped them under the bar before she turned her attention back onto the Oceteva man as she apologized, "I'm sorry about Happy. He's not exactly a friendly guy."

Victoria felt a little bad and awkward that everyone they have meant in Charming has basically ignored Nestor's presence - well, except for Daytona, who had briefly talked with the Oceteva man. However, the Miller woman knew it was just because they were all protective of her. Victoria had grown up and around all the Sons, so she understood why they were very standoff-ish with the cartel assassin. She just wished that they were at least little friendly as she didn't want Nestor to think that she was ignoring him or didn't want him around. Victoria just hoped that Nestor didn't find it offensive or get angry.

A heavy laughter broke out from a few feet away from Victoria and Nestor which caused the Miller woman to jump out of her thoughts and caused the Oceteva man to pause before he could jokingly assure Victoria that he could handle a few bikers since he deals with rude people on a daily basis. "He just doesn't like guys around his girl," the man that had laughed, who happened to be Rane Quinn, told the man with the braids as a large smirk lifted onto his lips.

The Miller woman playfully rolled her hazel eyes at the Sons biker while she took a gulp of her Corona as she glanced at the long haired man. Victoria turned her attention back onto Nestor as she reached across the bar and unconsciously touched the top of Nestor's hand before she told him, "he's joking." The brunette nurse then paused for a moment as she glanced towards the ceiling as she thought about Happy and his personality before she quickly added in a mumble, "sort of."

Nestor let out his first sound since they had entered the clubhouse as he deeply chuckled before he rotated his wrist, that was still being lightly touched by the Miller woman, and held her hand as he gave it a slight squeeze. "I'm starting to see why he'd be protective over you," the Oceteva man whispered as he leaned over the bar and stared right into Victoria's hazel eyes.

The Miller woman felt like she was frozen in her spot and everything around them just disappeared after Nestor's simple but meaningful statement. Victoria didn't know why, but she was starting to always feel this way when Nestor would say or do a certain thing that would awaken something inside of her. The brunette nurse knew it probably wasn't good that she got these feelings with the cartel assassin, but Victoria loved and enjoyed it so much as it made her feel so alive.

"Alright, let's get this shit rollin," the loud and deep voice of Happy Lowman exclaimed as he interrupted the Miller woman's thoughts about the cartel assassin in front of her - which instantly caused Victoria to pull her hand out of Nestor's grasp when the Sons biker came back into the bar with his large black bag that held his tattoo kit.

Victoria awkwardly cleared her throat when she realized that she was in some sort of trance before she shot Nestor a small smile and a glare towards the three laughing bikers, who had been silently watching, on the other end of the bar. The Miller woman grabbed her sketch of the lion tattoo and followed after Happy as he walked towards the seating area that he originally had been in when she had arrived. The brunette nurse then grabbed the stencil from Happy's kit and his pen while the Lowman biker began to set up the tattooing station before she began to draw the lion design onto the thin paper.

The bar of the Sons Of Anarchy clubhouse was silent for about fifteen minutes, except for the small murmurs of Quinn and Ratboy talking to each other and the Lowman biker connecting the tattoo gun to the foot pedal, while Victoria concentrated on drawing the lion design for her tattooed friend. However, the silence was soon interrupted when the Oceteva man walked up to Victoria and lightly placed his hand onto her shoulder. Nestor shook his vibrating cell phone in his hand once Victoria looked back at him before he told the brunette woman, "I gotta take this call real quick. I'll be right back."

Victoria nodded her head in understanding as she figured it was Miguel before the brunette nurse pointed her finger towards the front door of the clubhouse. "You can take it outside if you need some privacy," the Miller woman told the Oceteva man before she silently watched as Nestor gave her a small smile as he brought his black touch phone up to his ear. Victoria then waited until Nestor exited out of the clubhouse before she turned her attention back onto her design to add the last few details.

The Lowman biker and the Miller woman ended up finishing at the same time after about ten more minutes of silence as Happy had put the tattoo station altogether just as Victoria placed the drawing pen down onto the table. Happy then began to shed out of his kutte and his grey reaper shirt while Victoria was putting her hair into a low ponytail before the Lowman biker took a seat onto the leather couch. The Sergeant At Arms watched the brunette woman for a moment before he curiously wondered with a raised eyebrow, "so, what happened with Reyes?"

Victoria immediately rolled her hazel eyes at her close friend while she tightened her ponytail by pulling at her brunette hair at the end of the black hair tie. "I'm still involved with Angel," the Miller woman told the Son once she was sure her hair would stay in place before she nodded her head towards the front door and explained her relationship with the man that had just left that way, "Nestor and I are just friends." The brunette nurse then gave Happy a pointed but playful look as she ordered, "so, please be nice."

A deep chuckle rippled throughout the Sergeant At Arms's body before he mumbled with a smirk while he stared across at the brunette woman, who thought he could be nice to some random guy that was hanging around his close friend, "mmhm, sure, little girl." The Lowman biker then silently grabbed one of the cleaning cloths from his tattoo kit and cleaned off the top of his hand, where he wanted his new tattoo, before he placed his palm down onto the stool between him and Victoria.

The Miller woman only shook her head at her close friend with amusement in her hazel irises as she knew Happy was going to continue to be an ass to the Oceteva man. It's just what the Lowman biker always does to someone that's not involved with the club and something that she was used to, so Victoria only let out a quiet sigh before she focused on perfecting her craft as she carefully placed the lion stencil onto Happy's hand. The brunette nurse then slipped on a pair of blue rubber gloves and began to prepare the black ink and the tattoo gun.

However, while the Miller woman was busy with getting ready for their tattoo session, the Lowman biker told the brunette woman as he continued with their previous conversation, "well, whenever you finally get tired of Reyes, make sure you come see me." Happy then waited until Victoria was looking at him before the Sergeant At Arms rubbed the middle of his jean-clad crotch and muttered with a smirk, "I have a spot just for you."

Victoria rolled her hazel eyes, once again, with a small chuckle as she was used to this side of Happy. It was just about every single time that they were together that the Sons biker would tell her this. Angel didn't even get jealous anymore since they were just playing around - well, for the most part. "Oh, shut up, Hap," the Miller woman told her friend as she placed her foot down onto the pedal, which started up the tattoo gun, before she joked, "I don't want your STD ass anywhere near me."

The Lowman biker loudly scoffed throughout the silent bar in the SAMCRO clubhouse before he looked down at the brunette woman and commanded with his thick and rough voice, "keep up the lies, little girl." A wide smirk then pulled onto the Sons biker's lips before he teased, "you know you'll come crawling to me one of these days."

"Only in your dreams, Hap," the Miller woman joked back before she and Happy exchanged a quick laugh at the calmness and relaxing feeling that they always felt around each other because of their close and long friendship. Victoria then took a deep breath once the bar grew silent as she knew that she needed to focus all her attention on the task at hand, so Victoria took a deep breath before she moved her chair closer towards Happy and the stool that the biker's hand was lying on. The tattoo artist in training then began to trace the outline of the lion tattoo with the black ink from the gun as carefully as she could.

"You're doing good," Happy complimented the nervous nurse as he watched how she was working the tattoo gun and how much pressure that she was putting on his skin while she kept her foot down on the pedal. "Now, when you get to the edges, make sure you relax your hand around the tattoo gun and curve your wrist," the Lowman biker instructed when Victoria began to trace the hair of the lion that reached the top part of his knuckles.

The Miller woman silently nodded her head as she took in the advice from the Sons member that happens to be a professional tattoo artist and her close friend while she adjusted her grip on the tattoo gun. Victoria traced the outline of the whole tattoo on Happy's hand for about fifteen minutes before she lifted the needle and dabbed it into the little pod of black ink. The brunette nurse then wiped the extra ink with the napkin that was on her lap before she started back up as she worked on the bottom lip of the wide opened mouth of the lion.

"Now, to shade in the mouth, you're going to have to press down a little harder and swipe the needle like you would when painting with a brush in small and easy strokes," the Lowman biker directed the brunette woman as he didn't want to spook Victoria once he knew that she was finished with the outline of his lion tattoo.

Victoria immediately did exactly like the Lowman biker told her to do as she had done black shading work a few times on Happy's body like the cross on his back along with Angel's Mayans tattoo. The Miller woman then continued the small strokes like she was taught before she would wipe the extra ink off with the folded napkin after she would get more ink for about another fifteen minutes as she shaded in the hair close to Happy's fingers, the lion's forehead, nose, and around his eyes.

The Miller woman pulled the tattoo gun away from the biker's skin and stared down at her art work to make sure that she had the shading down like she had in her drawing from the sketchbook. Victoria then looked up at Happy once she realized that she got all of the right spots down with the black ink before she quizzically inquired, "do you want me to highlight between the shading?"

Happy nodded his head with a small but proud grin and exclaimed, "exactly," as he had been waiting for the Miller woman to realize the next step. "You'll need to highlight the teeth, whiskers, nose, around the eyes, and between the hair," the Lowman biker instructed before he pointed towards the packaged needle on the table and told Victoria, "now, you need to switch needles, so you can use the white ink."

Victoria instantly began to nervously bite down on her bottom lip as the Lowman biker never needed her to change out the needles before since they usually just stick to plain black tattoos or Happy would change the needles for her along with the fact that Happy's gun is different than the one that she has. The Miller woman then glanced down at the tattoo gun as she tried to remember the steps before she looked up at the amused Happy once she realized that she had no idea what she was doing and mumbled, "how exactly do I do that?"

The Lowman biker let out a small chuckle as he knew that he would get that reaction from the brunette woman before he moved his thighs around the stool so he could be closer to the tattoo gun. Happy then pointed to the tiny screw on the back of the needle before he instructed, "you need to unscrew this, the grommet, then you can easily slide the needle out."

The Miller woman nodded her head in understanding as she realized that it wasn't as complicated as she was making it out to be. Victoria held the tattoo gun with her left gloved hand now that she knew how to exchange the needle before she began to unscrew the grommet at the end of the tattoo gun. The brunette nurse then soon realized that the grommet was connected to a bar, so she rotated it to the side before she slowly pulled out the black inked needle.

"Perfect," the rough voice of the Sons biker complimented as he watched the slow actions of the brunette woman replacing the needle for the first time. "Alright, now all you gotta do is take the RS needle out of the package and place it into the same spot before putting the grommet back into place and tighten the screw as tight as it will go," Happy instructed once Victoria placed the used needle onto the table.

The Miller woman momentarily placed the tattoo gun down on her thighs and turned her attention onto the small table beside them before she glanced at the multiple packages of needles. Victoria studied each one for a minute or two before she spotted the package with the letters; 'RS.' The brunette nurse then opened up the package and placed the needle back into the gun before she followed Happy's instructions and tightened the grommet back behind the needle.

"Alright, good," the Sons biker muttered as he could tell the needle was in the right place before he told the tattoo artist in training, "the highlighting is just like shading. You just need to go in slow and easy strokes." Happy then used his free hand and pointed towards the eyes of the lion as he instructed, "let's start here. You'll go around the eyes with the white ink along with the lashes to make them stand out."

Victoria silently nodded her head and muttered, "got it." The Miller woman then dipped the fresh needle into the small pod of white ink before she stepped her foot back onto the pedal and began to work on the bottom part of the dark eyes of the lion. Victoria went even more slowly and carefully as she highlighted the tattoo as she wanted it to be perfect before she moved onto the other eye.

However, just as Victoria was placing the white covered needle onto the right eye of the lion, was the time that the Oceteva man finally walked back through the front door of the clubhouse. The Miller woman paused at the sound of someone entering the bar before she looked up at Nestor with a small smile and wondered as she didn't want to hold Nestor up if Miguel needed him back in Santo Padre, "everything all good?"

The Oceteva man nodded his head and simply uttered, "false alarm," as he didn't trust any of the bikers around him to say anything about Miguel or the cartel. Nestor then took a seat at a table that was a couple of feet away from the tattooing station while he silently watched as Victoria gave him another one of her dazzling smiles that Nestor could look at all day before the brunette woman focused back onto her task.

Victoria finished the last detail of the lion's eyes once she knew that Nestor didn't need to leave as she would have just gotten a ride from Happy instead of getting the Oceteva man in trouble with Miguel. The brunette woman then moved her attention onto the nose of the lion and began to highlight around the black shaded nose for a few minutes so it would stand out against the dark ink before Victoria moved onto the sharp teeth of the fierce animal.

The Miller woman worked on the mouth of the lion for about ten minutes or so before she paused as she could feel this tense awkwardness in the clubhouse. Victoria didn't like it, so she glanced over at Happy, who had his death stare in the direction behind her, while Nestor had his eyes on her and the tattoo that she was doing.

The brunette nurse let out a heavy sigh as she knew that she needed to settle this or she wouldn't be able to concentrate, so Victoria loudly cleared her throat before she pointed at the Sons biker in front of her. "Happy," the Miller woman stated before she pointed her finger towards the man behind her and stated, "Nestor." She shot Happy a slightly glare before she exclaimed, "there, now you know each other so stop with the macho act."

The Lowman biker raised his free hand in the air with a wide smirk on his face before he told the obviously annoyed brunette woman to annoy her even more like he always does, "I'm not causing any problems. I would never do that."

Victoria rolled her hazel eyes as she knew that Happy was just trying to get on her nerves like he does every time they are together before she exclaimed, "like hell you wouldn't." The Miller woman soon realized that she wasn't going to be able to get the Sons biker out of his childish games, so Victoria glanced over her shoulder towards Nestor and told him so he could at least be comfortable until she was finished, "you can go around the bar if you need another beer."

The Oceteva man silently nodded his head before he quietly got up from his seat at the small table and headed towards the bar. Nestor gave the three bikers a small greeting with a nod before he grabbed three beers instead of just one as he decided to make peace for Victoria since she was obviously bothered by the fact that her friend was being an asshole. The Oceteva man then headed back to the tattooing station once he had the caps off of the Corona bottles before he held out a beer towards the tattooed biker as a peace offering.

The Sergeant At Arms glanced between the focused Victoria, the beer, and the man that his close friend was hanging around with a dead stare in his brown irises. Happy then huffed out a silent sigh after a minute or so as he decided to be at least a tiny bit nice for Victoria's sake before he gave Nestor a small nod and quietly muttered his appreciation as he grabbed the beer bottle, "thanks."

Victoria glanced up from the lion tattoo when she heard the surprising words fall out of her close friend's mouth. "Now was that so hard?" The Miller woman tauntingly wondered as she raised her eyebrow at the Sons biker after he finally acted nice towards the Oceteva man.

"Very," the Sergeant At Arms sarcastically muttered to the brunette woman as he held the edge of his Corona against his opened lips before he took a large gulp.

The Miller woman rolled her hazel eyes at the Lowman biker before she suddenly shivered when she felt a cold touch on her bare shoulder. Victoria lightly placed the tattoo gun on her thigh before she glanced behind her, where she noticed Nestor holding up a fresh Corona beer bottle for her. The brunette nurse gave the Oceteva man a small smile before she grabbed the bottle from his hand and murmured, "thank you, Nestor."

The Oceteva man silently nodded his head before he softly murmured, "no problem." Nestor then peaked over Victoria's shoulder and curiously looked down at her work that looked quite amazing in his opinion. "So, how many tattoos have you done?" The Oceteva man curiously wondered as he could tell this was definitely not Victoria's first one.

The brunette nurse bit down on her bottom lip as she thought for a moment of how many tattoos she had done while she highlighted the tongue of the lion. "I've been doing tattoos for Happy for about seven years," Victoria began as she recalled all the times that she has had a tattoo gun in her hand, "and I've done one or two for Angel along with a couple for some of the other Sons and Mayans, so quite a lot."

"You've done them for that long and you still don't think you're any good?" Nestor questioned in disbelief. The Oceteva man had thought that Victoria had only been doing actual tattoos for a couple of months by how shy and nervous she had been while they had talked about her tattooing career last night outside of the hospital.

"You're still on that bullshit, little girl?" The Lowman biker interrogated before the Miller woman even had the chance to answer the Oceteva man's question. Happy rolled his brown eyes at Victoria before he glanced over at the man with the braids and exclaimed, "she does this every damn time." The Sergeant At Arms then looked back over at Victoria, who was looking annoyed, before he told her like he always does, "if I thought you were shit then I wouldn't have spent years helping you nor would I let you tat me all up."

Victoria huffed out a sigh as she knew that Happy was right but she definitely wasn't about to tell him that or she would never hear the end of it. Instead, the Miller woman shot her close friend a glare and told him, "oh, stop ganging up on me before I 'accidentally' stab you." Victoria had just always thoughts her tattoos weren't that good but every time that she did one and someone would compliment her, it just made the brunette nurse that more determined to get better and better.

The biker and the assassin both laughed in Victoria's expense - which caused the Miller woman to immediately roll her hazel eyes. At least there isn't anymore tension, Victoria thought to herself before she focused back onto the lion tattoo and finished the last bit of the white highlighting around the lion's fur. The tattoo artist in training then worked on the rest of the tattoo for about fifteen more minutes with the sound of beer bottles being lifted to lips and the two men chatting together before Victoria let out a tired sigh and exclaimed, "there. It's all finished."

Happy flexed out his hand that had been in one position for a while before he brought his new tattoo towards his face so he could study it more closely. "Looks good, little girl," the Sons biker complimented with a nod of his head after a minute or two of looking at the lion. Happy then glanced up towards the nervous looking Victoria with a small chuckle before he stood up from his seat and slung his arm over the Miller woman's shoulder. "You did good, little girl," the biker promised and placed a quick kiss onto Victoria's temple before he headed over to the bar for a shot of tequila.

"You know, he's not wrong," the Oceteva man told the Miller woman as he stood up from his seat at the small table and stood closely beside the brunette woman, who was taking apart the tattoo gun and placing the supplies back into the black bag as she packed everything away now that she was finished.

Victoria shot the Oceteva man a small but grateful smile as she liked getting compliments on her tattooing work since it builds up her confidence to continue on with the hobby. "Thanks," the Miller woman quietly murmured before a large smirk lifted onto her lips and she pointed at Nestor as she exclaimed when she remembered their conversation from last night, "but I'm still not going to tattoo you."

The Oceteva man took a step closer to the brunette nurse until there was only inches between them before he whispered with a small smirk playing across his lips, "I'll get you there." Nestor still, in fact, wanted Victoria to give him a tattoo like had asked for yesterday - especially now after seeing her drawing and tattooing skills first hand.

The Miller woman let out a chuckle as she pushed her hand against Nestor's hard chest and muttered, "oh, shut up." Victoria then headed back to the bar, where she saw Happy pouring five shots of tequila. The brunette nurse rested herself against the wood of the bar once she reached the three bikers before she told Happy with a sigh, "I think I'm going to have to get going, Hap." Victoria always hated leaving Charming - especially since it has been months since she had seen any of her Charming family. She always felt like she was leaving apart of her life behind when she would leave and Victoria always hated that feeling.

The Lowman biker pouted towards his close friend but he understood that Victoria couldn't stay since it was starting to get late and he didn't want her on the road too late, so Happy nodded his head before he pushed two shot glasses towards her and the man beside her while he kept his and pushed the other two towards Quinn and Ratboy. The Sergeant At Arms then lifted up his shot glass and toasted, "to Tiger finally coming home."

The three bikers, the nurse, and the cartel assassin all downed their shot of tequila before Victoria shot her close friend a small smile at the toast that he did for her. The Miller woman then walked around the bar and pulled Happy into a tight hug before she whispered, "thank you." This was another reason why Victoria always hated leaving Charming. The Sons always made her feel like she belonged here and it has always meant everything to Victoria since they have protected and cared for her like a family should.

The Miller woman and the Lowman biker stayed in that position for a few minutes as they embraced each other before Victoria slowly pulled away and promised the Sergeant At Arms, "I'll try to come back as soon as I can." Victoria did always try to come back to Charming as much as she could but it was hard when she was always working so when she has a day off, the Miller woman always tries to come visit if she doesn't have any plans with Angel.

"You better," the rough voice of the Lowman biker exclaimed as he squinted his brown irises at the brunette woman. Happy then shot Victoria a small smirk before he exclaimed, "or I'mma show up in Santo Padre and drag your ass back home."

"I wouldn't expect anything less from you, Hap," the Miller woman chuckled as she shook her head at her tattooed friend with a wide and happy grin shining across her face. Happy had actually done that a few times when she didn't come to Charming for a few months, so the brunette woman knew he wasn't lying. Victoria then tore her eyes from Happy or she wouldn't leave before she waved her hand towards the other bikers. "It was good to see you guys again," the brunette woman told Quinn and Ratboy before she gave Nestor a nod and headed towards the front door of the clubhouse to leave.

However, before the Oceteva man and the Miller woman could leave and head back to Santo Padre, the loud voice of Quinn shouted as he jogged towards them, "hey, wait up!" The long haired man walked through the door with Victoria and Nestor before he told the brunette woman, "Nate gave me something to give to you." Quinn then dug through his kutte before he pulled out a small envelope and handed it over to Victoria.

The Miller woman furrowed her brows as she slowly grabbed ahold of the envelope and noticed her brother's scratchy handwriting that he has had since they were kids. "W-What's this?" Victoria wondered in a soft whisper as she glanced up at the tall man. The brunette nurse was honestly surprised to have something sent to her by Nathan since he tries to not do anything like this as he doesn't want her to be in danger.

"Nate gave me this letter before I was released from Stockton," Quinn told the brunette woman before he explained why he was the one giving it to her instead of receiving it in the mail, "he didn't want to send it to you encase someone realized your connection to the club or if daddy dearest was keeping tabs on you guys, so I told him I'd get it to you whenever you came through."

"Oh," Victoria mumbled out in shock as she stared down at the envelope in her slightly shaky hands. The Miller woman felt like it was a miracle whenever she would hear anything from her brother since it's been over seven years since she had actually talked to him. She hated that Nathan was so worried about her but she understood since they had no idea where their father is after the day that sent Nathan to prison along with the fact that someone could come after her if they knew her connection to SAMCRO. Victoria then quickly glanced back up at the tall biker once she realized that she was lost in her thoughts before she praised him, "thanks, Quinn. I appreciate this so much."

Quinn shrugged his large shoulders to show that he didn't mind doing that for the Miller siblings before he waved his hand and told the brunette woman, "it's nothing. You know you and your brother are family."

Victoria nodded her head before she swiftly wrapped her arms around the surprised Sons biker's waist. "Thank you for this," the Miller woman praised once more before she whispered, "thank you for keeping Nate safe and I appreciate this so much since I rarely get to talk to my brother." Victoria couldn't even remember the last time that she and Nathan had actually shared words with each other so the brunette woman was eternally grateful for Quinn right now.

The tall and tattooed biker silently nodded his head before he stated as he knew the history of the Miller siblings, "I know how it is, Tiger." Quinn then pulled away from the brunette woman's embrace after a moment and gave Victoria a small grin before the Sons biker told the Miller woman, "give me a call if you need to get a letter back to Nate and I'll make it happen."

The Miller woman gave the Sons biker a small smile as she was very thankful that she would have the opportunity to give her brother a letter back as Victoria knew Quinn nor any of the other SAMCRO members would put her into danger by doing this for her. It meant the world to Victoria, too, as it has been years since she and Nathan have had a back and forth conversation because usually it would be Nathan having the Sons tell her something without having the chance to tell her brother anything back.

The brunette nurse gave the Sons biker one last smile when he headed back towards the SAMCRO clubhouse before she waited until Quinn had closed the door behind him. Victoria then glanced down at the envelope between her hands and bit down on her bottom lip while she thought of all the possibilities of what her brother had to say to her.

However, before Victoria's running thoughts could go wild about what would be in the letter, the surprisingly gentle voice of the Oceteva man called out after a few minutes of them standing by the stairs of the clubhouse and Scoops and Sweets in silence, "hey." Nestor raised one of his thick eyebrows at Victoria once she glanced up at him before Nestor wondered, "you ready to go?"

Victoria gave the Oceteva man a quick smile and murmured, "yeah, sure." The Miller woman tightened her hand around her brother's letter that was resting on her sketchbook before she walked passed the waiting Nestor and headed down the steel stairs. Victoria then walked back through the door of Scoops and Sweets once Nestor opened it for her before they silently walked through the busy establishment.

The Miller woman gave the blonde prospect, JJ, behind the counter a small smile and a quick wave as she silently said goodbye while he was busy scooping out strawberry ice cream for a local teenager before Victoria exited out the front door of Scoops and Sweets with Nestor following closely behind. The nurse and the assassin then headed to the black Escalade, where Nestor opened the door for Victoria and allowed her to enter the car before he also joined her.

The black Escalade was silent for a few minutes as the Oceteva man drove away from Scoops and Sweets and headed down Main street while Victoria watched all of the familiar places past them by before the Miller woman turned her attention over to Nestor and curiously wondered, "do you know your way out of here?"

"I think so," Nestor mumbled as he glanced around the road while he tried to remember the way that they had came from. "I just gotta take a left then head down Interstate 405, right?" The Oceteva man inquired before he took a quick glance over at the Miller woman as he wanted to make sure that he was going the right way.

Victoria nodded her head as she shot the Oceteva man a small smile and uttered, "correct." The black Escalade then grew silent once more as Nestor drove away from the small town of Charming. However, the Miller woman couldn't help but continue to look down at the letter in her lap instead of paying attention to the road. Victoria was going to wait until she was alone to read her brother's letter in private but she knew that would be over an hour and she didn't want to wait any longer, so Victoria took a quick glance over to Nestor to see he wasn't paying attention to her before she quickly opened up the pale envelope.

The Miller woman took a deep breath and closed her hazel eyes as she tried to prepare herself for what she would read when she slowly opened up the folded paper. Victoria gave herself a moment before the brunette woman looked down at her brother's horrible writing skills and began to read the first words of Nathan Miller for the first time in over a year in a half ~

Dear Tori-bug,

How you doing, baby sister? I know it's been awhile since we've had the chance to talk but I just didn't want to take the chance. I didn't want to put you in danger, but Quinn finally convinced me that no one would find out about this. I know you're probably still pissed at me for basically shutting you out since I've been in here but it's for the best, Victoria, and you know that. You've been involved with the club since we were kids and I know the guys will keep you safe but it's hard to protect you when you're still living at home.

Speaking of home, that is another reason why I don't want you to come up here to Stockton. Hank is still out there and we don't know if he'll ever come back for you. You know dad has "business partners" all around the state, so there could be a possibility that he's keeping tabs on me and I don't want him to find you again. I know it's been years since anyone has seen Hank, but we can't take any chances or I will kill that son of a bitch if he does ever come back to Santo Padre like I should have done back then. I just want you to stay safe, Victoria, so I hope you aren't still pissed at me after you read this and understand that I just want what is best for my baby sister.

Alright, now that that's out of the way, let's get to what you have probably been waiting for since Quinn handed this to you; I'm okay, Tori-bug. I've been staying out of trouble this year and keeping my head down. The Sons's connections are keeping me safe from all of the gangs in here, so you stop worrying, alright? Now, I do have some good news for you. I spoke to my lawyer a few weeks ago and he thinks the court might be looking into my case again. I don't want you to get your hopes up but I think we'll be getting some good news in a couple of months. I'll give the guys a call whenever I get an update to tell you.

I have so many things I wish I could finally say to you, Tori-bug, but I just can't seem to put them into words. The one thing that I know I need to say, though, is how sorry I am. I know this is long overdue, but it's time I apologize to you about a lot of things, Victoria. I'm sorry that I couldn't be there for you through these last twelve years and all the things I've missed in your life since you were sixteen. It kills me to know that I couldn't watch you grow into the strong woman you are now. But most importantly, I'm sorry I never realized what was happening when we were kids and for what dad was doing to you.

I still feel absolutely horrible that I didn't even know Hank and his friends were doing that to you since you were thirteen. I should have known, though. I was supposed to be protecting you and I failed to see what was happening right under my nose. It will be my biggest regret in life that I didn't realize you were in pain for those three long years. If I would have known, I would have taken you to Charming with me a long time ago.

I know we never got the chance to talk about what happened before I got locked up, so I have no idea what you had to go through, Tori-bug, and I know it's twelve years too late but I hope and pray that you had someone there for you and talked to someone about those three years. I can't even imagine the pain you had to go through to survive the abuse and move forward with your life (for that I am so sorry for not being able to protect you better), but you wanna know what?

I am so proud of you, Tori-bug. I know I never got the chance to tell you that but you went through hell and came out stronger. You are an absolute warrior. I never did say that enough when we were kids but I really am proud of you and I always have been. Hell, you survived all that abuse for three years and you are now a successful pediatric nurse like you always wanted (Happy told me). I'm not even surprised, Tori-bug, since you've always been this brave, strong, and determined girl.

You've made me a proud brother but I just wish I could have cheered you on by your side through all these milestones. Nonetheless, I am extremely happy of the woman that you have grown to be - despite the fact that I couldn't protect you or save you from all of these hardships that you had to face nor could I be there to support you through all the good things.

You deserve all the happiness in the world, Victoria, and I hope that you are in fact happy. You deserve the sun and the moon, baby sister. I just want you to know that it makes me feel so overjoyed of who you are today. I've missed so much in your life and I can never apologize enough for missing those twelve years but it was all worth it in the end. You became this smart and strong woman, even after all the shit Hank put you through, and that is all I have ever wanted for you. Your happiness is so worth my freedom, Tori-bug, so don't go blaming yourself. It was my duty as your brother to protect you, even though I wished I could have done it sooner, and I don't regret a second of it.

I miss you so damn much, Tori-bug, but this is where this letter ends. I wish I could see your beautiful face and hear your lovable voice but we both know that is not possible right now. I just hope you are happy and staying safe. I love you, baby sister, and remember - you're my strong warrior girl and I am so proud of you.

Love, Nate

Victoria's hazel eyes immediately teared up as she stared at the last word from her brother. Well, actually, they had been watering since the first sentence but warm tears were now slowly and silently streaming down her face. The brunette nurse honestly didn't think Nathan's words were going to affect her so much but they did. It was just all these memories and emotions from their childhood that caused her emotional state.

Victoria really tried to push the event that caused her brother's imprisonment to the very back of her mind but after Nathan mentioning it multiple times, it caused all those horrible memories to come back. The brunette woman didn't blame her brother, though, since he only knew the truth for about thirty minutes until the police showed up, so she knew Nathan was still trying to absorb all the abuse that she went through. It was just hard for Victoria to think about since the only other person that knew the truth about it is Ezekiel.

Victoria honestly didn't even want to tell her best friend when it happened but the whole ordeal was all over the news when it happened twelve years ago, so she couldn't exactly hide it. Santo Padre wasn't known for their secrets, so Nathan's trial was all over the local news shows and radio stations - which was the reason why she had told Ezekiel. However, the case, thankfully, only focused on the murder of their father's friend instead of the sexual assault since Nathan walked in before it happened. The judge didn't add in the abuse into Nathan's case since the police said that there was no proof of their father's friend actually touching her. Victoria only ended up telling Ezekiel about it because of the rumors of the abuse around town. However, no one, except for Nathan, knew that it didn't only happen one time but over a three year period - and even then, Nathan didn't know all what their father made her do. It was just something that Victoria has always kept hidden away.

"Hey," the soft voice of the Oceteva man whispered as he lightly placed his hand onto the Miller woman's bare knee when he noticed that she was shaking like a leaf. "Are you okay?" Nestor questioned with his brows deeply furrowed while he stared over at Victoria when they came to a stop from the traffic as he could feel the sadness and despair rolling off of the brunette nurse.

The Miller woman flinched at the touch as she was basically reliving all the trauma over again before she quickly wiped the tears from her hazel eyes and gave Nestor a small smile. Victoria let out a humorless chuckle and mumbled, "I'm fine," before she carefully folded up the letter and placed it into her leather purse. The brunette nurse then folded her arms over her chest to offer herself some type of comfort before she murmured, "it's just been a long time since I've heard from my brother and it was the first time he actually mentioned what caused him to go to prison from what our father did."

The Oceteva man stared deeply into Victoria's hazel eyes while he waited for the traffic to clear up as he tried to figure the brunette woman out. Nestor knew that her brother was in prison for killing someone and that she isn't close to her parents but he just didn't know how the two were connected. The brown eyed man knew he could cause Victoria to close up on him, but he was too curious to stop, so Nestor gently inquired as he hoped he didn't spook the brunette woman, "what did happen back then? What did your father do to cause your brother to go away for murder?"

Victoria immediately began to bite down on her bottom lip at the question as she hated talking or even thinking about the answer. However, it was already on her mind and Nestor has only been nice and she felt like she could trust him, so Victoria released a small sigh before she clued the cartel assassin about her childhood, "I know I mentioned that my father was a drug dealer around town but he also was involved in some other illegal things." The Miller woman watched as Nestor nodded his head as he remembered what she was talking about before Victoria continued with bitterness in her voice, "let's just say... Hank, my father's, other business was selling his daughter to his buddies."

Nestor clinched his fingers tightly around the leather steering wheel of his black Escalade without even realizing it as a familiar anger instantly began to fill his veins. The Oceteva man honestly didn't know what he had been expecting to what Victoria was going to tell him, but it definitely hadn't been this. Nestor wasn't even sure what it all entailed by Victoria's father 'selling' her. He didn't know if it was a sexual, physical abuse, or something completely different since the brunette nurse didn't give him much information. The one thing the cartel assassin knew at the moment, though, is that he had a strong emotion of finding Victoria's father and torturing him until his death.

Nestor was beginning to care a lot about Victoria from the short time that he has gotten to know her, so he hated even thinking or hearing a tiny bit of what happened to the brunette nurse during her childhood - despite all of the torture and horrible things that he has done himself. The Oceteva man, however, knew the next thing that would come out of his mouth could possibly cause Victoria to close him out or cause him to want to murder her father even more, but Nestor knew that he needed to know everything so the Oceteva man tried to unclench his jaw as best as he could before he gently asked the brunette nurse, "what did they do to you, Victoria?"

The emotional Miller woman stared directly into the Oceteva man's brown eyes for a moment with her brows deeply furrowed as she didn't get why Nestor was getting so invested into her horrible past before she quickly waved her hand. "It's not important anymore," Victoria mumbled, "I shouldn't have said anything. It's all in the past, anyway." The brunette nurse then quickly began to look around the road as she tried to find a way to change the conversation away from her childhood. Thankfully, Victoria spotted a familiar restaurant after a minute or two, so the Miller woman pointed towards the old place and exclaimed, "oh! I love -"

However, before Victoria could finish her sentence about the small and familiar place, the Oceteva man quickly interrupted the rambling woman as he gently placed his large and warm hand back onto the brunette nurse's exposed knee and softly murmured to grab Victoria's attention, "hey."

The Oceteva man waited until Victoria's hazel eyes were locked with his brown ones before he continued in his surprisingly kind and gentle voice as he assured the brunette woman, "I'm not going to pressure you to tell me anything, you know that, right?" Nestor then gave Victoria a tiny smile before he stated, "I won't judge you because of the things that your father made you do." The Oceteva man quietly shook his head before he expressed truthfully, "I know I don't have the whole story or know anything about what you had to go through, but you don't have to be frightened or afraid to talk about it with me." Nestor squeezed the Miller woman's knee for one final time with a small smile as he softly told the brunette nurse, "I'll be here for you, Victoria."

The pediatric nurse felt like she was frozen in her spot after Nestor's kind words while she stared into his now soft, instead of his usual hard, brown eyes. Victoria honestly hadn't been expecting the compassionate words from the cartel assassin - someone who she had met only a week ago. However, it meant the world to the Miller woman since Nestor is the first person since Ezekiel that she had told about her childhood- despite the fact that she didn't really actually tell Nestor what exactly happened. It was still a huge step for Victoria since she has always kept that part of her life in a locked box for the past twelve years.

"Thank you," the brunette nurse softly uttered once she finally got over her shock of the kindness that she was being shown by a very dangerous man. "I appreciate it," Victoria murmured as she placed her hand over Nestor's that was her knee and gave it a slight squeeze to show her gratitude for the fact that she could trust him with her past and the fact that he wasn't pushing her to talk about the trauma that has haunted her dreams for years.

Victoria honestly didn't know if she would ever be ready to talk about what her father made her do with his friends and the physical abuse that she took from both of her parents. She had kept it hidden for so long that Victoria felt like it would ruin everything that she built to have a happy life away from that part of her. Victoria didn't even go to the house that had caused all of those horrible memories. It was just a place that she had boarded up when her father skipped town and her mother was put in jail, so no one could experience what she had to go through for those three long years. Victoria honestly didn't see any reason to open up that old wound, anyway. She is a grown woman now and she knows how to protect herself and isn't afraid of her parents anymore. Victoria just prayed that someone didn't try to open it up anymore than it already is or there would be a floodgate of nightmares that Victoria wanted to keep away for the rest of her life.

The Miller woman took a deep breath as she closed her hazel eyes while she pushed all those memories away and put that wall back up in her mind when she felt tears wanting to leak out. Victoria then glanced over the road when she felt normal again now that she pushed her childhood away before the brunette nurse's brows instantly furrowed. "You know you're heading towards Los Angeles, right?" Victoria inquired after she realized that they were going the complete opposite direction of her hometown.

Nestor let out a quiet chuckle with an amused smile playing on his lips while he drove down the highway before Nestor took a quick glance over to the puzzled woman. "Actually, we're headed towards San Diego," the Oceteva man corrected Victoria as if that would help her understand what was going on any better.

Victoria rose one of her eyebrows at the Oceteva man before she curiously wondered as she decided to humor the cartel assassin for a moment, "and why are we going to San Diego instead of Santo Padre?" The Miller woman honestly thought they were heading back home so she was actually surprised and a little nervous at the fact that wasn't Nestor's plan.

The Oceteva man gave the Miller woman a small and quick smile before he focused back onto the busy highway. Nestor waited until he hit another red light before he turned his attention back onto the puzzled nurse and reminded Victoria what he said earlier today with a lightness in his usual hard voice, "I promised you a fun and normal day." The cartel assassin then shot Victoria a teasing smirk and exclaimed, "and I always stick to my promises."

The black Escalade was silent for a few minutes once the Miller woman and the Oceteva man shared a small smile with each other before they continued to travel down the road in a calm and relaxed silence. However, though, once they merged onto Interstate 405 South and merged onto California-73 South towards San Diego, Nestor decided to finally explain to Victoria about where he was taking her as he secretly uttered, "I found this place a couple of years ago and I've came here ever since."

Victoria turned her body to the side, so she was staring at the side of the Oceteva man's face before she lifted an amused eyebrow at how secretive Nestor was being. "I'm guessing you aren't going to tell me where we're going?" The Miller woman inquired in a form of a question - even though she felt like she already knew the answer.

Nestor let out a deep chuckle at the impatient woman before he took a glance over at Victoria with a playfulness in his brown eyes that the cartel assassin hadn't felt in years. "You would be correct," the Oceteva man uttered as he affirmed what the brunette nurse thought.

The Miller woman couldn't help but roll her hazel eyes as she wasn't the best with surprises. Victoria always hated surprises since she was little and she would try to guess her birthday presents from Nathan. The brunette nurse figured it wouldn't hurt to try to guess like she did as a child, so Victoria twisted her body even further until her back was against the window of the SUV before she began to guess where they were going, "aaaare... we going to a skating rink?"

The Oceteva man shook his head in amusement as he knew Victoria was trying to spoil the surprise. "Nope," Nestor told the extremely curious nurse before he quickly turned his brown irises over to Victoria when he pulled to a stop at an intersection. "Now stop trying to guess," Nestor told the Miller woman as he shot her a playful scolding look. "Just enjoy the view and relax," the Oceteva man instructed as he rolled down the windows when he noticed that they were getting closer.

"I'm not a fan of surprises," Victoria mumbled stubbornly with her bottom lip pouted out before she decided to listen to the Oceteva man as she looked out of the window. The Miller woman figured since Nestor wasn't going to tell her, that she would just figure it out herself by looking at their surroundings. However, Victoria couldn't help, even though she was a little bothered by not knowing where they were going, but to be amazed by the coast of San Diego. The seaside of the city was quite gorgeous. Victoria usually stayed towards the smaller parts of San Diego when she would come for a tattoo consult, so it was definitely a new experience for the Miller woman.

"You will like this surprise," the Oceteva man told the brunette woman, who was memorized by all of the bright water that they were passing, with a small chuckle before he murmured with amusement in his voice, "trust me."

Victoria felt like she was sort of in a trance as they drove by all of the bright and clear blue water of the ocean. It was the first time that she was seeing something so beautiful, so the Miller woman could only tell Nestor in a mumble, "mhmm... We'll see," as she couldn't even be bothered by the fact that she didn't know where they were heading as she was just in love right now.

Nestor glanced over to the Miller woman, who basically had her head hanging out of the window like an excited golden retriever, before he murmured with a chuckle, "patience, mi reina." [my queen] It instantly pulled a smile onto the cartel assassin's lips as he felt proud to be able to cause Victoria to relax and enjoy herself instead of being surrounded by constantly protective and dangerous bikers.

The Miller woman moved her hazel eyes over to the Oceteva man when she heard him softly utter something in Spanish. Victoria wasn't familiar with the word from her lessons with Angel or Pop over the years, so the curious part of Victoria wanted to know what Nestor had said. "What does mi reina mean?" The brunette nurse wondered as she raised up an intrigued eyebrow at the cartel assassin.

Nestor felt his body freeze for half of a second before he quickly got control of himself once he realized what he had said. The Oceteva man mentally scolded himself for that small slip up. Nestor usually was in control of everything and was cautious of what he said but with Victoria, it made Nestor lose all that focus. You are trouble, mi reina, Nestor thought as he could feel that he was going to continue to lose himself around the brunette woman.

Thankfully, for the Oceteva man, he didn't have to explain to Victoria what he had accidentally murmured as he drove through the rough road on the beach and noticed that they were at the location. "Oh, look," Nestor swiftly exclaimed before the Miller woman could question him any further, "we're here."

Victoria couldn't help but furrow her brows as she stared over at Nestor. She didn't understand why he wasn't telling her what two words meant but the Miller woman decided to push that thought away since Nestor had pulled the car to a stop and jumped out of the vehicle. Victoria made a mental note to ask one of the Reyes men or Nestor at a later time before she placed her sketchbook on the dashboard and placed her hand into Nestor's when he opened the passenger door for her.

The Miller woman was in complete awe once she placed her sandals down onto the soft sand and looked around their surroundings. The clear water was even better close up instead of inside of the Escalade, in Victoria's opinion, as her hazel eyes ignored the house in front of her and roamed over the crashing waves with no thought of ever looking away. Victoria felt like she was in a dream or a trance. The ocean was just so calming and relaxing that it made every other thing in her life just wash away when the waves would crash against the sand before being sucked back into the ocean.

The Oceteva man watched the Miller woman for a couple of silent minutes with a small smile playing on his lips as he could tell the place was having a good effect on her before Nestor announced to the brunette nurse, "welcome to La Jolla Cove." Nestor lightly pulled onto Victoria's hand that was still linked with his as he walked her up the long ramp to the baby blue colored beach house. The Oceteva man led Victoria around the large porch until there was nothing blocking the ocean before he continued, "I found this place when I first arrived in California after my second tour in the Navy."

The sound of Nestor's voice finally caused the Miller woman to get out of her trance and to take her hazel eyes off of the water for the first time as she turned her body and stared up at the cartel assassin. "Do you visit here a lot?" Victoria curiously wondered as she grew interested of the place that the Oceteva man brought her to.

Nestor nodded his head a soft smile playing on his lips before he answered the Miller woman's question, "I spent so many years surrounded by water when I was serving in the Military so when I saw this place after I came back to the states, I just knew that I needed to come here. The Navy became my home, so this place always felt like a second home that I could come to when I needed to get away." The Oceteva man paused for a moment as he breathed in the smell of the ocean before he looked down at the short woman and muttered with a grin, "another thing that makes this place so great and perfect was the fact that this house was an art studio when I came."

The Miller woman's hazel eyes widened in surprise before she wondered, "woah, really?" Victoria found it shocking that the one place Nestor stopped at had his hobby located in the same place. It really is a perfect place, the brunette nurse thought as the Oceteva man had his love for water and an art studio for his painting.

Nestor let out a deep chuckle as he nodded his head and muttered, "yeah." The Oceteva man gazed back over to the ocean with another soft smile adoring his lips before he looked back down to Victoria as he stated, "the art studio was in business for over twenty years by the time I stopped here." Nestor then looked towards the large window of the art studio before he uttered with a small shrug, "I didn't know what to do with my life after my second tour with the Navy and I had all this money, so I just ended up buying the place."

Victoria swiftly stood up straight and placed herself in front of the Oceteva man as soon as she heard what came out of the cartel assassin's mouth before she gaped as she pointed back towards the blue colored building behind her, "wait, you own this?"

The Oceteva man couldn't help but let out another chuckle at the shocked brunette woman before he explained in a soft murmur, "yeah, like I said, I had all this money and I didn't have a home in California, so I figured it was a perfect start with the calm ocean in front of me and the opportunity to enjoy my hobby of painting without worrying about anything or anyone bothering me."

Victoria silently nodded her head as she slowly twirled her body around while she took in her surroundings from the calming sound of the clear waves continuously crashing together to the pink and orange tint of the sunset before the Miller woman finally glanced into the baby blue colored building that belongs to the cartel assassin. "It's beautiful," Victoria softly murmured as she could see herself getting lost in this place. The brunette nurse then turned her attention back onto the relaxed Nestor after she got out of her dream-like trance, once again, before she curiously wondered with a raised eyebrow, "so, why did you bring me here?"

Nestor lightly shrugged his shoulders before he crossed his arms over his dark button up shirt and leaned against the white painted railing of the porch. "Well, earlier you mentioned that you have never gotten the chance to see clear water in person," the Oceteva man began with a soft tint to his voice before he concluded, "so I thought this would be the perfect place for you to relax on your day off."

The Miller woman couldn't help the bright smile that immediately worked its way onto her pink painted lips as she felt her heart soar at the kind and selfless act from the dangerous man that works for the Galindo cartel. "Thank you, Nestor," the brunette nurse softly murmured as she had her hazel eyes connected with the man's equally kind brown ones.

Victoria knew that she shouldn't still be that surprised by the way the Oceteva man has been treating her but the Miller woman couldn't help but continue to be shocked by how kind and sweet Nestor, the man she should be afraid of, has treated her. It is just a different experience for Victoria since she always has this strong wall up when it comes to new men in her life, so it's such a breath of fresh air for the Miller woman to see the honesty and kindness from the stereotypical dangerous man.

The Oceteva man nodded his head once as he silently accepted the praise from the brunette nurse before he held out his hand. "Come," Nestor murmured before he told Victoria, "I wanna show you the place." The cartel assassin waited until Victoria slipped her warm fingers through his before Nestor headed around the porch with the Miller woman following closely beside him as he pulled her towards the side entrance of his art studio.

Nestor released the brunette nurse's hand once they reached the clear glass door before he grabbed the keys from his black slacks and unlocked the door. "Ladies first," the Oceteva man murmured as he pushed the door open and waited for Victoria to enter before he silently followed behind her.

Victoria's hazel eyes immediately was drawn towards the different canvases of bright colors hanging and lying all around the spacious area as soon as she had stepped foot onto the grey flooring of the art studio. "Wow," the Miller woman mumbled in astonishment as she slowly walked towards a gorgeous painting of a villa with a meadow filled with the most colorful array of flowers. "T-This is amazing," Victoria voiced her thoughts to the Oceteva man as she was in love with all the details.

Nestor slowly made his way up to the Miller woman with his black leather dress shoes clanking against the hard floors of the art studio until he was standing directly behind the brunette nurse. The Oceteva man lightly placed his large and rough hand onto Victoria's exposed hip as he glanced down at the canvas before he hummed as he recalled, "ah, that one was inspired by my stay off of the coast of Belize in Cayo Espanto."

Victoria twisted her body to the side so she was turned into Nestor's body before she curiously wondered, "you've been to this place and you painted this yourself?" The Miller woman was honestly impressed as she glanced between the Oceteva man and the beautiful painting. It looked like something you could only imagine in your dreams and Victoria was also surprised as she never put much thought in how good Nestor would be at his hobby.

Nestor nodded his head before he explained, "I painted this while I was in Belize after my third tour with the Navy and I've always kept it with me." The Oceteva man then took a step back from the Miller woman and slowly walked around the room before he continued to tell Victoria, "every painting you see in here are the ones I have done over my lifetime."

"You have some serious talent, Nestor," the Miller woman complimented breathlessly as she slowly strolled around the art studio and stared at each piece in awe like she was in a world famous museum as she admired all of the different styles and paintings of array of things like landscapes, buildings, and even people.

The Oceteva man silently watched the Miller woman look at his work with a small grin playing on his lips as Nestor felt a sense of pride of seeing how Victoria was reacting to his personal paintings. Nestor then shook his head after a moment when he realized he was staring too much before he cleared his throat and spoke for the first time in at least five minutes. "So, I know you draw," the cartel assassin commented as he had seen Victoria's artwork in the large sketchbook that she had been carrying today before Nestor curiously wondered, "but have you ever dabbled in painting?"

Victoria kept her hazel eyes locked on a gorgeous piece of Rio de Janeiro that captured her attention as she slowly shook her head to Nestor's question. "Oh, it's been years since I've last picked up a brush," the Miller woman stated with a hint of sadness in her voice before she explained, "I barely even have time when I'm not working at the hospital to draw up a couple of tattoos, so I never have those hours that I'd want to paint."

Nestor silently hummed to himself before he quietly walked to the corner of the room and grabbed a clean and thin paintbrush before he stood a few steps behind the Miller woman as he had an idea. "Well, how about now?" The Oceteva man inquired once he came to a stop and waited until Victoria faced him before he commented and wondered with a small shrug of his shoulders as he lifted the item in his hand into the air, "I don't mind driving back to Santo Padre later tonight, so if you are up for it, what about some painting?"

The Miller woman stared across at the Oceteva man for a silent moment while she bit down on her bottom lip as she really wanted nothing more to paint but she also didn't want to hold Nestor back if he needed to be in Santo Padre. "Are you sure?" Victoria cautiously inquired before she voiced her thoughts as she continued, "Miguel doesn't need you any time soon? I don't want to get you in trouble with the boss if you need to go back."

Nestor let out a deep chuckle at the worried brunette woman before he assured the pediatric nurse, "Miguel can handle things without me for one night." The Oceteva man then took a step closer towards Victoria with a small but playful smirk playing across his lips before he inquired once more, "so, are you in?"

Victoria couldn't help the bright grin that lifted onto her pink painted lips when she knew that they had nowhere to be right now before she swiftly grabbed the paintbrush from Nestor's hand. "Let's do this," the Miller woman exclaimed excitedly as she couldn't wait to be relaxed and engrossed in her own painting for the first time in years while also somehow getting covered in different colored paints like she used to when she was in college.

The Oceteva man gave the brunette woman a small smile as he could tell how excited she was before he murmured, "follow me." Nestor then silently lead Victoria over to a pair of easels by the large double panel window doors that faced the clear water of La Jolla Cove before he pulled out a rolling table and told Victoria, "I have any color imaginable in here." The cartel assassin glanced down at the grinning Miller woman before he told her with another small smile, "this is about taking a break from our real lives, so just relax and go crazy if you really need to."

The Miller woman let out an amused chuckle at the idea of her going crazy before she murmured out, "yes, sir." Victoria then shot Nestor a teasing smirk before she faced the large window doors and took her hair down from its messy do that she had quickly did at the SAMCRO clubhouse. The brunette nurse fixed her brunette hair into a tight bun so it wouldn't bother her while she was painting before she glanced at her reflection to make sure it was perfect.

Victoria headed left towards the rolling table once she was happy with her hair and glanced down at all of the array of colors. The Miller woman already knew what she wanted to paint ever since Nestor offered her the chance, so Victoria instantly sought out the purple paint along with the black and grey pods. The brunette nurse nodded her head to herself once she realized that she had everything that she would need before she turned around to begin to paint.

However, before Victoria could reach her blank canvas, she suddenly stopped when she saw something that had every single bit of her attention. The image of the Oceteva man hanging up his button up shirt along the wall and the sight of Nestor in a tight black tank top that showed off his tattooed covered body and his strong muscles made Victoria forget everything else as she bit down on her bottom lip and secretly enjoyed the show.

The Miller woman, however, though, wasn't as sneaky as she thought she was being since once Nestor hung up his dress shirt and turned around, the cartel assassin immediately noticed he had an audience. The Oceteva man watched Victoria for a few moments with a large smirk across his lips before he decided to tease her, "do you want me to stay like this so you can paint?"

Victoria's face instantly turned bright red with a burning blush once she realized that she didn't see Nestor staring at her which meant that she had been caught red handed. However, the Miller woman was never going to admit that, so she only rolled her hazel eyes and stubbornly mumbled under her breath, "I wasn't staring." Victoria then quickly turned around and headed over to her canvas when she heard Nestor chuckling loudly as she definitely didn't need anymore embarrassment right now.

Victoria, instead, focused on setting up her painting station as she placed the colors on a small table beside her and grabbed a glass of water along with a couple of different sized paintbrushes. The Miller woman was thankful when Nestor copied her and didn't comment on her staring, so Victoria slowly released the tension in her body before she did a quick sketch of a rose with a skull inside of it that she had been thinking about for the last few weeks.

The Miller woman corrected a couple of marks that she didn't like on her quick drawing before Victoria nodded her head in acceptance as she silently placed the pencil down onto the small table. Victoria then picked up a thin paintbrush and dipped it into the light grey pod before she slowly began to paint the outline of the first petal of the rose with her usual steady hand.

Victoria couldn't help the content but small smile that slowly rose onto her lips as she felt so relaxed now that she was finally painting again. The style of artistry was just so calming by the slow and smooth movements of the paintbrush against the canvas. The brunette nurse used to love painting while she was getting her nursing degree as it was a way for her to calm her nerves from worrying about her grades and taking care of the Reyes men, so Victoria was in heaven right now.

The calm and relaxed Miller woman continued to work on her painting as she moved onto the next layer of the rose's petals which consisted of outlining the petal with the light grey paint before coloring it in with the purple and adding some details with the black paint. It was a flowing process that Victoria had missed so much as it was like her heart was in sync with her actions.

However, though, just as Victoria was cleaning the paintbrush covered in purple into the small glass of water to work on the third petal, the Oceteva man decided to break the tranquility of silence as he glanced over to her canvas to see what she was working on. Nestor was impressed, even though he knew he would be, before he curiously wondered as he continued to work on his own piece of the sunset outside of the window doors, "how did you come up with that design so quickly or are you really a secret prodigy artist?"

Victoria let out a small chuckle as she shook her head in amusement before she mumbled as she felt that the thought was absolutely ridiculous, "I'm not some prodigy." The Miller woman then dipped her fresh paintbrush into the light grey ink before she explained how she came up with the idea, "it's a tattoo design that I've recently been trying to perfect these last couple of weeks."

Nestor silently nodded his head in understanding before he took another glance over to the Miller woman's canvas as he complimented, "it's really gorgeous." The Oceteva man then moved his brown eyes up to the relaxed figure of Victoria before he inquired with a small smirk playing on his lips as he knew the reaction he was going to get from his question, "speaking of tattoos, when are you going to take me on?"

The Miller woman immediately rolled her hazel eyes while she shook her head as she knew Nestor would bring this up again after the first two times that he had mentioned it. Victoria then took a glance over to the Oceteva man and shot him a smirk before she exclaimed with a small chuckle, "in your dreams, Nestor."

The Oceteva man let out a throaty groan before he exclaimed, "oh, come on." Nestor paused his painting as he brought his paintbrush from the canvas before he glanced over to Victoria and tried to persuade the brunette woman to give him a tattoo, "we both know how amazing you are. I saw it today and you have extreme talent when it comes to tattoos."

Victoria let out a chuckle at the begging but dangerous assassin for the Galindo cartel before she, once again, rolled her hazel eyes. "Stop kissing my ass," the Miller woman joked with amusement throughout her voice before Victoria stated as she carefully outlined the next rose petal, "it's not gonna happen."

Nestor turned his attention solely onto the Miller woman as he placed his orange colored paintbrush onto the border of the large easel before he crossed his arms over his black tank top and inquired with a hint of teasing and competitiveness in his voice as he continued to try to persuade Victoria, "what? Are you scared?"

The Miller woman furrowed her brows at the accusation before she hurriedly exclaimed, "no! Of course not!" Victoria was anything but scared with everything that she had gone through in her life, so the brunette nurse was definitely not going to let Nestor get away with calling her scared when that wasn't the case at all.

The Oceteva man let out a throaty chuckle before he commented, "I think you are." Nestor then left his position in front of his canvas and slowly but silently walked directly behind the focused Miller woman until he could feel the warmth of her body against his own. "I think you are scared to touch me," the cartel assassin whispered against the shell of Victoria's ear. Nestor decided to tease the brunette nurse as he just felt this sense of calmness when he was around her which made Nestor feel like he could be himself with her instead of the hard assassin that he was back in Santo Padre for the Galindo cartel.

Victoria immediately reacted to Nestor's body and his voice as a shiver ran down her spine when she felt his breath on her skin along with the warming blush that reached her cheeks. The Miller woman hated that her body was reacting this way but she definitely wasn't going to let the assassin know about what he is doing to her, so Victoria rolled her hazel eyes before she mumbled, "I'm not scared. I just don't tattoo a lot of people."

Victoria was honestly telling the truth. She didn't really tattoo that many people except for Happy and Angel along with a couple of other bikers from SAMCRO and the Mayans. Victoria only liked doing tattoos for people that she trusted with her life and Victoria felt like she wasn't that close to Nestor to be doing one of his tattoos right now.

"Mhmm," the Oceteva man mumbled against the back of the Miller woman's warm and exposed neck before he teased and taunted Victoria in a quiet but deep voice, "whatever you say, scaredy cat."

The Miller woman couldn't help the competitive part of her that usually only comes out around her family of bikers spark inside of her as she playfully rolled her hazel eyes and muttered, "I'm not scared, you ass." Victoria knew that Nestor was messing around with her, so the brunette nurse swiftly turned around and took a step into the assassin's personal space as she decided to get him back. "Trust me," the Miller woman whispered as she leaned as close as she could to Nestor without touching him before she continued, "if I wanted to touch you for that long then I would have already agreed."

The Oceteva man and the Miller woman stared directly into each other's eyes as soon as the last letter slipped out of Victoria's lips like they were stuck in a trance. There was this tense silence that followed along with only their breathing and the sound of the waves crashing behind them through the whole art studio. Finally, though, after about three minutes of staring at Nestor, the brunette nurse realized what was happening. Victoria didn't mean for this tension to be built as she just wanted to get back at the assassin.

The Miller woman knew the tension, well sexual tension, wasn't something that she needed with the member of the Galindo cartel because of her connection to the Mayans, so Victoria took a deep breath before she swiftly lifted up her purple covered paintbrush to Nestor's cheek to distract him from the obvious tension and swiped it across his skin with a smirk on her lips as she ignored the emotions between them. "Now, let me focus," Victoria exclaimed with a hint of playfulness in her voice once she noticed Nestor's shocked expression before she murmured, "I thought I was supposed to be relaxing."

The Oceteva man let out a throaty and deep chuckle at the brunette woman that he was so lost in before he uttered, "no, you're right." Nestor shot Victoria a small smirk as he added, "I'll convince you another day about my tattoo." The cartel assassin then squeezed the Miller nurse's exposed waist and rubbed his rough thumb along her skin before he finally released Victoria and made his way back to his painting of the sunset and the ocean from outside.

Victoria let out a loud chuckle and playfully rolled her hazel eyes when she realized that Nestor wasn't going to quit asking her about the tattoo anytime soon before she also turned around and focused back on her painting. The Miller woman couldn't help but find it amusing that Nestor was going to continue to bug her about it but it was also fun to have this back and forth with each other as it made Victoria feel normal away from her crazy life.

Victoria felt like around Nestor that all the things about their lives, motorcycle clubs and the cartel, just disappeared for a while and it was such a great feeling for the brunette nurse. She was used to worrying about the Mayans and Pop on a daily basis, so here right now with Nestor in San Diego was so relaxing for Victoria and she was savoring every second of it.

The Miller woman glanced over to the Oceteva man after a moment while she was dipping the paintbrush into the black ink to work on the skull now that the rose was finished and noticed that he had also glanced over to her. Victoria shot Nestor a small grin which caused the assassin to shot her one as well before she focused back onto her painting with happiness moving through her body. Victoria couldn't help the feeling of calmness that surrounded the art studio as she felt like her old self that didn't have the whole world resting on her shoulders. It was something that Victoria would have never guessed would happen around the dangerous assassin but the Miller woman definitely wasn't going to question it as Nestor made her feel relaxed and normal for once in her life.