(Juan's POV)
Slamming the gavel down, Jax brought us all to attention. I had been thinking of all the things I would do to the man who'd tried to rape my wife, and I focused as our president began to speak. "We're going to make this quick. A couple of hours ago, Tara and Krystal were both taken from our clubhouse," he broke off and I knew well the rage he was feeling. We'd both failed our Old Ladies, and we were mad at ourselves as much as we were mad at the Irish pricks who'd planned on assaulting our women. "Two guys, apparently had a message for us, from the Real IRA," he continued, telling the basics of what Krystal and Tara had told us.
A few of the other guys had sat up straighter at hearing that they'd been taken, and now the rest of the guys were hanging on his words, trying to figure out where this was going. "Basically, it was the Irish who killed Opie, because they heard we're planning to get out of guns. They said if we didn't rethink this decision, more people would die, and they could get to any of our Old Ladies and any time. They tried to rape them both, but they really had no idea what they were dealing with when they got those two," he chuckled. He wasn't amused by what could have happened, but his wife's strength made him proud. I felt the same way about Krystal.
Angry murmurs had been uttered when the word rape had been said, but when Jax finished the sentence, there were murmurs of relief. I was staying silent as I waited for him to finish. "They're fine now. One of the guys is dead, and the other one took off as we were arriving. Juice picked up a partial plate as we pulled up, but since the women weren't thrown on the back of the guy's bike, we headed inside. So he'll be using the partial to search for the second guy. We'll take care of him when we can. Right now we need to decide how we're going to proceed with the Irish," he held up his hands as nearly everyone demanded retaliation. "Obviously, it's going to be dangerous. We'll have to be careful and smart about this," he added.
For a while, we bounced ideas back and forth, but we couldn't decide on one right action to take just yet. We didn't know enough. We didn't know if there was one person in particular who was set against us stepping away, or if it was the whole organization. We decided to take some more time to consider, hold off on taking action, and try to find a solution that will get us out of guns without the Irish hating us. For now, we were going to keep our women safe, make sure no one else got killed, and pretend we had no inclination of getting out of guns. When we had a possible solution, Jax would set up the meetings and put things in motion.
Once we were dismissed, I left the chapel and found my wife sitting on one of the couches. She'd showered, so her hair was still damp, and she was swimming in one of my sweatshirts and had a pair of black leggings on. She had been covered in blood when we'd found her, and I still remembered the fear that had gripped me as I'd worried that some of it had been hers. Luckily, she only had a black eye and a lump on her head. I knew emotionally she was going through a hell of a roller coaster though. She had killed a man, even if it was accidentally and in self-defense. It was different than when we'd taken care of Luciano. He'd deserved to die and she knew it. The Irishman hadn't had any personal vendetta against her, so she felt bad for being the reason he was dead.
Studying her, with her knees drawn up to her chest, and her chin resting on them, her green eyes staring intently into space as she was lost in her thoughts, I felt a surge of pride and gratitude for the fact that she was in my life. I was immensely grateful that she hadn't been hurt or attacked again, but I still feel like I failed her because I had let her get taken in the first place. She noticed me quickly, and smiled, more of an automatic reaction than anything. I loved that she smiled just at the sight of me. I felt the same way when I saw her. I sat next to her on the couch, opening my arms so she could crawl into my lap. "How are you doing, angel?" I asked, kissing the top of her head as she rested it against my chest.
Taking a deep breath, she blew some hair off of her forehead as she tried to figure out how to respond. I waited patiently for her to find the right words. She almost never automatically said the first thing to come to mind. She tried to let her mind work through the thoughts and emotions she was experiencing and figure out exactly how she felt before she said anything. "Still kinda in shock, but I'll be okay. I'm sure he deserved it, I just wish it had been someone other than me who had done the deed," she finally said, and I wrapped her up tight in my arms, holding her close. I knew how tough a first kill could be.
Rubbing her back in the way she liked best, I tried to figure out how I could make it better. "I'm so sorry that you had to do that, angel of mine. It's never easy, even if someone deserves it, which he did, just for what he intended to do to you. This is not your fault. It's mine. I didn't keep you safe enough. You got kidnapped, again, on my watch, and I didn't find you quick enough to take care of things myself. I'm so sorry," I repeated, kissing her head again as I continued to rub her back.
Tilting her head back, she looked up at me, her green eyes intently holding mine. She reached up to cup my face in her hands. "You can't control everything that happens to me, Ace. This is not on you. Things are going to happen that are completely out of your control, and that's okay. You know, for one, I hate to be controlled. And two, you're one of the only people who actually care and love me enough to want to protect me from the world, even if that's impossible, which makes everything better for me. It's so rare in my life, and the fact that you love me that much means more to me than I could ever begin to tell you. You did not fail me, Juan," she told me, correctly guessing the reason for my apologies. She knew me better than I knew myself sometimes, and I knew her the same way.
Pulling her into a kiss that quickly deepened, I let her know how much I appreciated her words without saying a thing. I knew she'd understand. "We're going to get through this, Ace, just like we get through everything else: together. We can do anything together," she said when she pulled away to catch her breath. She got a thoughtful look on her face and quirked an eyebrow at me. "How exactly did you find me anyway? That was surprisingly quick, even for my amazing husband," she tilted her head as she waited for my answer.
For a moment, I hesitated, but then I realized I wasn't ashamed, and there was no reason to be. "Ever since Luciano got to you, I've had a tracker on your phone. I'm not taking any chances with you. It's not about being controlling. It's about making sure I can keep you safe," I told her. She considered it. I knew her gut reaction was to be irritated by the intrusion, but I honestly wasn't doing it to control her or because I didn't trust her. I only wanted to be able to keep her safe and find her if I ever needed to find it.
After a few moments of her considering, she nodded slowly. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised. I know you're protective and good with the electronics," she paused reflectively, but then turned serious. "I am only okay with this because I know it's purely about you needing to know I'm safe and you can get to me in the event that I'm not. I would be very much not okay with this if I thought it was because you didn't trust me in any way whatsoever. In any other situation, I'd be pissed. But I love you for wanting to keep me safe," she added.
Giving her another kiss, I began to let my hands wander. She started to run her hands up and down my chest and I knew this could escalate very quickly if we let it. I pulled back after a few minutes. "Not that I want to stop this, but I am the only one allowed to see you naked, so we should probably take this somewhere more private. You wanna go home?" I asked her. I could see the lust in her green eyes as she nodded, standing and taking my hand as I stood up. She laced her fingers through mine and started heading out of the clubhouse. I squeezed her hand, bringing it to my lips for a kiss as I let her walk ahead of me. I loved the way her hand fit in mine, the way we seemed to fit together perfectly, in every way.
Just outside the building, she stopped walking. I waited for a moment, but she didn't say anything. I stepped to the side of her so I could look at her face. She was biting her lip and I could tell she was thinking about sex. I knew that mischievous look anywhere. Things were going to get interesting. "What's going on in that mind of yours, angel?" I prompted, and she turned her head slightly, darting her tongue out to gently caress her bottom lip. She sent me a look and turned back around, leading me inside, and down the hallway, all the way to the ladder leading up to the rooftop.
Watching her ass as she climbed the ladder was a definite motivation to let her go up first. I knew she wanted to fuck on the roof top underneath the stars and I was definitely hard just thinking about it. She called me a fiend, but I really couldn't help it with her. She could make even the simplest things seem sexy. I was lucky that she had the same reaction to me. I was about to head up after her when I heard someone calling my name. I cursed under my breath, but then a figure appeared at the end of the hallway. "Juice!" I froze when I heard the familiar voice, and cursed under my breath for an entirely different reason before I was wrapped in a hug and a cloud of too much perfume.
Somehow, I'd thought my wife would never have to meet the woman I'd almost married, but I should have known that would be too good to be true. She was climbing back down the ladder and standing beside me before Chloe let me go. She cleared her throat loudly as I pushed the blonde away. "Chloe, this is my wife, Krystal. Krystal, this is Chloe," I wrapped my arm around my wife's shoulders, pulling her close in a clear message, as I gestured to the tall, willowy blonde, hoping she would be smart and keep her mouth shut. I had a feeling the promise of sex from moments ago was gonna be off the table if Chloe said the wrong thing.
With a bright smile, she held out her hand, looking Krystal up and down. My angel was eying the blonde, making no pretense at a smile or faked niceties. "It's so nice to meet you, Krystal. I'd heard Juice got married, so I was hoping I'd get to meet the woman who managed to snag him. You must be pretty amazing," she said, and Krystal hesitantly held out her hand to shake Chloe's, but didn't have a chance to speak before turning back to me. "It's so great to see you, too, Juicy. I don't think I've seen you since I moved away after you left me at the altar, so to speak," she smiled at me, but my wife, on the other hand pulled away from me so she could see my face better, the look on her face letting me know I was in deep shit.
A/N: I had an amazing weekend. I hope all you lovely people did, too. Yeah, an ex-fiancée. I didn't plan this one, she really just kinda walked into the fic. I hoped you liked this chapter, and I'll try to remember to update again Wednesday so I can get back to my regular schedule of Wednesday and Sunday updates. Please review! Thanks to everyone who reads and reviews. You're all awesome!
Disclaimer: I don't own anything.
