Disclaimer: I do not own any characters from "Sons of Anarchy." They are the property of Kurt Sutter and Fox Network. No money is changing hands in the writing, reading or distribution of this story.

Chapter 53

"Hey! Where have you been?" Happy's Lauren rushed towards Joss where she still was on Tig's arm, and very much contented to stay there, the feeling to not be separated from each other tonight seemed mutual, but it was sort of the norm, and so Tig looked down at Joss, then Lauren, and just smiled, leaning over to give Joss a quick kiss, then pinched at one of Lauren's dark curly ringlet locks and pulled it away from her head, watching it snap back into place again and kind of laughed.

"Hey, Slinky-Slinky-bit—" Tig had begun to say, suddenly cutting himself off, shook his head and started over, "I mean, good to see ya, Slink-Slink." And he walked away, over towards Clay, Happy and Bobby.

Joss couldn't help but start laughing as Lauren looked at her kind of confused, her eyes half watching Tig, but then finally landing on Joss again as Lauren took a sip of the beer in her hand. "Was he going to call me 'Slinky-Slinky-bitch?'" Lauren asked, giving her curls a shake, and then laughing.

"Yeah, I'm afraid so," Joss laughed as well, and stole a glance at Tig again, who to her surprise, was doing the same thing to her. Wow, something was really going on between her and her man…he was only a few feet away, but she missed him, and he obviously felt the same. What had started on the bike had ended far too soon, but then, not even Joss was certain where that had even been headed…yeah, sure, sex, but there was going to be something more to it than just that, she could tell…but what? But, it would have to wait…and it wasn't going anywhere, Joss was sure of that. She looked back at Lauren, shrugging her shoulders, but knowing she was going to have to explain this to Lauren for Tig…even though Tig had never discussed "Slinky-Slinky-bitch" with her…but he didn't need to. This was yet another time when Joss not only spoke "Tig," but could decipher its meaning also. "Okay, brace yourself, because this will be a long story that finally makes sense in the end," she began, making sure she had Lauren's attention, because she wasn't going to get into this twice. "You know what a Slinky is, right? The metal or plastic coiled spring toy that walks down steps and shit?" Lauren nodded. "Well, Tig looks at you, at your hair, and he doesn't see ringlets, he sees Slinkies." Joss explained, but then she and Lauren both started to laugh. "And the jingle for the Slinky was, 'It's Slinky, it's Slinky, for fun it's a wonderful toy…'" Joss explained further, knowing she was right about this without even having to verify it with Tig. "And because the name is twice in the jingle, Tig's got it twice in your 'name,' and the rated 'G' version of the name he calls you inside his head is therefore, 'Slink-Slink.'" Joss laughed.

Lauren nodded. "So, does that mean he likes me?"

"Oh yeah," Joss nodded back, thinking of Tara's text that Tig had answered for her…and then he'd even deleted Tara's number from her contacts…ha!…like Joss didn't remember Tara's number! Tig knew that of course, he was just trying to drive home the point that he didn't want Joss speaking to Tara. "Tig likes you, don't worry, you're definitely in."

"That's good!" Lauren sighed. "I know he and Happy are pretty tight, so I want to be in good with Tig, but it's so hard to tell with him. Sometimes he's a little—"

"Yeah, it can be hard to tell, "Joss smiled faintly, looking over at her man again, who once more looked longingly back. She knew Lauren wasn't done speaking, but she wasn't about to stand here and let anyone talk about her man like he was some socially retarded maniac, no matter that it may not have been their intention. "That is, when you don't know him." She smiled then looked back at Lauren again. Why couldn't Tara have been more like her? Why couldn't Tara have been more like Juice's Lauren? How did Joss help her to be as relaxed and confident about herself as either of the Laurens were around the club? "You haven't seen Tara tonight, have you?"

"Tara…" Lauren repeated, tapping her finger to her lips. "She's Jax's old lady, right?"

Joss nodded, and scanned the room, hoping Tara was there…yeah, she knew that Tig had said he didn't want her talking to her anymore…but still, if Tara was here, that meant something! "She sent me a text earlier, I was just wondering if she showed up."

"Nope, I haven't seen her." Answered Lauren, "but everyone has been looking for you! Seems like you're pretty popular tonight, so whatja do to be so in demand?"

Wow, Tig had mentioned that the guys had really wanted to see her tonight, that they all had something to say to her, but Joss hadn't figured that meant there was some buzz about her at the party. "I don't know," she said to Lauren, because she obviously couldn't explain it. "Tig got me a horse, maybe that's it?"

"No way!" Lauren gasped. "You have a horse now?"

Joss smiled proudly. "Yeah, Tig surprised me with him on Thursday. We're boarding him at Lauren's farm."

"That bitch!" Lauren sighed. "I talked to her tonight for about an hour, before Juice whisked her away to one of the dorms, and she never said one word about that to me!" She laughed. "Why is this horse such a secret from me?" She laughed again.

"Well," Joss sighed, and patted Lauren's shoulder. "You do know your code name, at least, now, Slink-Slink!" She laughed then added. "And since you know the connection to the toy now, if you are ever walking down steps with my man, you might want to watch it!" Joss laughed again, harder this time.

Lauren burst out laughing too, nearly choking on her beer. "Good information!" She said to Joss, tilting her bottle towards her. "So really, what's up with you tonight? There were reports of you being mauled in the parking lot by some big, mean beast." She smirked.

Joss for some reason felt herself blush a bit. "Oh, Tig and I were just talking about stuff," she said, knowing Tig may not want everyone to be discussing that they'd seen him necking with her like crazy on his bike. "That's all."

But Lauren's smirk grew more devilish. "Yeah," she said as though she believed Joss, took another drink from her bottle and then pointed it towards Joss one more time. "I can see all the words you two were saying all over you neck and chest!" She laughed, prompting Joss to look down and notice the myriad of little hickies Tig had left on her skin from a combination of his lips, teeth and facial hair. Shit! So much for keeping the parking lot interlude private!

"I don't know," Joss looked for a way out of this, but there really was none, and she couldn't help her smile, which was only giving away more. "He and I just…" what? What did she say next that wouldn't make this into a 'thing' that everyone would be talking about, because if it got back to Tig, he was going to be pissed. "He's just, 'hot-blooded,' is all," she smiled at Lauren. "And it's working for both of us right now." She added, and raised her eyebrows a little, Lauren starting to laugh, but Joss heard her name being called and looked away.

"Joss," It was Tig, and he was pointing towards the chapel. "C'mon." The chapel? He was directing her towards the chapel? Was she supposed to be in there? She never had been before. But Joss excused herself from Lauren and began to try to follow Tig.

It was easier than she'd assume it would be to get through the crowd, everyone seeming like they just smiled and got out of her way when they noticed who she was, and she didn't even know half of them, but they knew her…or by now, knew of her. Eventually though, she'd joined Tig at the chapel door, which was locked, and the lights were off in there, but Tig had a key she'd noticed Clay giving to him earlier, and Tig opened the door and pulled her into the dark room with him, grabbing her against him before the door even shut all the way behind them, but making sure it did with his boot. He wrapped his strong arms tightly around Joss's body and kissed her again, leaning her back against the large redwood table, his mouth encompassing hers as once again their tongues touched and flicked and spiked the need for something even deeper than their kiss. Joss's hands smoothed their way over the front of Tig's cut, one hand lingering on the patch that read "Sergeant at Arms," but eventually her hands found one another between his shoulder blades, but he was quick to stop her this time, but not as abruptly as he used to in the past.

"No," he told her, capturing her hands and bringing them back down to press flat against his chest instead. "Don't, not right now," he said already so out of breath, and began to kiss her again, not deterred in any way. "I want you too fucking much right now; you do that and I either have to fuck you on that table, which can't happen," he explained between kisses, "or suffer the agony of blue balls…which I'm also not doing." He said, and kissed her deeply again, the way his arms held her more than making up for what he wouldn't let Joss do to him.

Joss curled her fingers around the black leather of his collar, making sure her hands didn't wander, her lower lip between both of Tig's, his hands all over her, one grabbing at her ass, the other with a handful of her breast, able to feel her hard nipple through her bra and her shirt, because he was kneading it as he kissed her, making Joss wish he'd suck it into his mouth next…but not in here…not in the chapel…why had he called her back here anyway? "Tig," she gasped as his mouth left hers to kiss at her neck, but his only response was a moan and a little shiver that went through him seconds before he turned her away from the table and sort of leaned against her until they both crashed against the wall behind them, Joss's legs instinctively wrapping around his waist. Tig moved even closer against her, kissing her mouth again with both his hands behind her head, pulling her deeper and deeper into the osculation, but then took his mouth away from hers unexpectedly to rub his prickly, black goatee against her lip, then dove back into their kiss once more. Joss moaned this time, and squeezed her legs around his waist; Tig's body thrusting into hers, even though there were far too many clothes between them to gain any real satisfaction from it…plus, this was the chapel…they had to stop. "Tig," Joss said again, though all she could feel was how deep his big cock would be inside her right now if there was no fabric in the way, and she wanted it, she wanted it so badly…but no, not here. It was like he didn't hear her, just kept kissing her neck, her chest, pulling her closer and closer, their bodies locked together in a beautiful passionate struggle…that needed to end…unfortunately. "Tig," Joss tried again, managed to say it louder this time, but got zero response still, her man was…lost to this. Well, whenever he wanted her attention and wasn't getting it, Tig changed her name, why not try that? "Alex!"

And that did it! Tig stopped kissing her, but stayed close to her, raising his head, breathing still ragged, but looked down at her with a furrowed brow, "What the hell you calling me that for?"

Joss started to laugh, she'd never called him by his first name before and it was like she'd said something insulting, only Tig wasn't upset, just surprised, and it had been the distraction she'd needed. "I think there was maybe some other reason you wanted to see me in here?"

Tig took a deep breath and kind of looked around like he'd forgotten where they were, and the way he was going at it, maybe he had? But he remembered now. "Shit!" He half snarled, and took two steps away from her now, and shook himself like a dog getting out of a pond, making Joss laugh. "Fuck," Tig sighed, looking around at the chapel again and then looking back at her. "I don't know what's with me tonight, baby, but I know it's about you, and I know it's got me, cuz I ain't got it." He tried to complain, but he'd ended up smiling crookedly by the time he was done talking. He leaned over, from a distance this time, caught her under the chin again and kissed her once more; closed mouth this time, but he just couldn't stay away. "What are you doing to me, little girl?" He asked her, like he really did expect an answer, but that in itself made Joss start to laugh, and Tig smiled again too. "C'mon, at least give me a hint so I can get control of this!"

"I don't know," Joss laughed a little more now. "But, I think it means I like you."

"Great," Tig sighed, but laughed a bit himself as he turned away and leaned on the redwood table, but looked over his shoulder at her. "You're ruining my life, you know!" He smirked at her, but Joss knew he was only half kidding. He'd never planned on this, was content to dwell in darkness alone, forever…wanted to, actually, and he'd certainly never been prepared to love anyone.

"Well," Joss sighed; Tig pulling out the chair to the left of the head of the table for her and she took a seat and laughed again. Tig, he'd always fight this, he'd never be friends with it, but he was feeling it, and was holding back a little less each time he did. "I think that's what we do when we like you."