Chapter 2

It has been a few months since I finally came home. The guys were very welcoming and helpful for me to get on my feet. I still stayed in the dorm, but I just didn't want to move out just yet. It wasn't like my brother and father were complaining about it. They kept me close and kept an even closer eye on me.

Opie and I got back into our usual sibling banter. We would go back and forth with insults. Despite getting back to our old sibling ways, Opie could tell that I wasn't telling him everything. He was being very protective lately and made sure that I was always in his line of sight. It was starting to get frustrating, but I just wasn't ready to tell him what had happened just yet.

My father was worse. He insisted that I never leave the lot without a patch. Always in the sight of a patch as well while on the lot. As a result, I had a constant shadow from all the patches. He had never been this protective before, always making sure that I could take care of myself. But I guess that me disappearing for ten years kinda changes things a little bit.

It wasn't all bad though. I had fallen back into old ways with many of the boys. Jax and I had the sibling banter and teasing. Tig was back to being the creepy uncle that he was. Bobby and I would sing together in the clubhouse and in the shop. Clay would praise me as I worked and fell right back into the father figure role.

Gemma and I fell right back into our normal routine. We went shopping so she could catch up with me, and we would have lunch together every weekend. Gemma as well could tell that I wasn't being truthful with my family. She kept trying to get me to talk about it. I would try to deter her, but I could tell that it wasn't going to work for long.

Donna was much the same. She would try to get me to talk about it, but I would change the subject on her every time. Unlike Gemma, Donna could be distracted with the different things that I wanted to catch up on. I finally met my niece, Ellie, a month into being back. She was just so cute.

Gemma had thrown me a home coming dinner at her house a few days after I came home. It was wonderful to be able to be around family again for dinner. It brought back memories from when I was a kid. Hearing all of the playful insults that were passed around the table was amazing to hear again. I love being around family again.

Clay threw me a home coming party the Friday that I came home as well. It was wild to be at the party for the first time. I was always too young that no one would let me go. It was fun to be drinking with some of the guys, who wondered how good I had gotten at drinking. It was fun to be able to drink a few of them under the table.

But the funniest thing was when some of the croweaters thought that I was there for one of the guys. They were quickly put in their places by me and told that I ranked higher than them. It was hilarious to see all of them realize that I was the daughter of one of the starting members of the Sons, as well as the sister of one of the members.

Then there were the ones that I recently met. Chibs was a good man and was very respectful of me. He had told me that he was from Scotland and that he used to be a part of SAMBEL. Chibs also was married with a child in Ireland but told me that he wasn't able to see them due to being barred from Ireland. I thought that it was tragic and let him know that if he ever needed to talk, that I was here.

Then there was Kyle Hobart. Kyle seemed like a nice guy, but for some reason he gave me the creeps. It always felt like he was undressing me with his eyes every time he would talk to me or look at me from across the room. It made me uncomfortable, and I think that Opie or my Pop had talked to him, because he stopped looking at me like that for a while.

And last but not least, there was Happy Lowman. I wasn't sure what to make of him just yet. He would come down to visit from Tacoma sometimes when he would go to visit his mom. There were many that referred to him as Killa, and I had no illusions as to what he did for the club. I have known what the club did for a long time. But, to me, he seemed to have a nice side. He would hang around me when he would come to visit, but I still didn't know what to think about him.

*Coming Home*

"How is the Caddy coming?" a gravelly voice asked to my right. Coming out from beneath the car I was under, I met the dark eyes of Happy leaning against the tan Cadillac. I smiled as I stood up, wiping the grease from my hands.

Happy and I had been getting close the past few months that I've been back home. He was easy to talk to and a very good listener. I noticed that once when we were talking, Juice had looked a little freaked out. Later, I found out that Happy wasn't one to talk to others much, that he was more the silent dangerous type. I didn't find that he was that scary. Sure, he was rather intimidating and intense, but I found that comforting.

"It's coming along," I answered him, then gave him a teasing smirk. "I would be faster if someone would stop distracting me."

"I'm not distracting you," he defended with a smirk and leaned further on the edge of the car.

I narrowed my eyes at him playfully. "You, sir, are very distracting and you know it." Happy chuckled and I smiled at him. "So, how's your Ma?"

Happy usually goes down to Bakersville to visit with his mom when he comes down this way. A fond smile pulled its way onto his lips. "She's doing all right. Still stubborn as shit though."

"Well, she is your mother," I stated with a smirk and a shrug. "I would expect nothing less."

"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked, narrowing his eyes at me.

"You're as stubborn as a mule," I replied as if it was obvious. "You had to get it from someone, and raising you, I would imagine that she had to be stubborn a lot."

Happy cracked an amused smile at me, and we fell into a comfortable silence. I continued to work on the Caddy in front of me and Happy watched me. He seemed to like doing that, watching me. He would flirt with me, and I would flirt back, but I never knew if he was serious about it or not. I found the Tacoma Killer very sexy, equal parts in personality and appearance. He could make me laugh with his dark humor and was very sweet and protective of his family. He was the most loyal Son that I knew, and he would do anything for the club.

Then there was his appearance. His dark tan skin was littered with tattoos that I found unbelievably sexy. I wasn't naïve to what his happy face tattoos meant despite what everyone would believe. His dark eyes were rather expressive if you knew what to look for. I could almost get lost in those dark eyes. I never would have thought that a shaved head would be sexy, but on him it worked.

"I heard an interesting rumor recently," I started breaking our silent bubble. Happy hummed as a signal for me to continue. "I heard that you've been turning away croweaters and sweetbutts, even when you're up in Tacoma."

"What if it's true?" he countered.

"Your brothers are worried about you," I teased as I whipped my hands on a rag. "They think that something's wrong."

"What do you think?" he asked with a smirk, shifting his weight against the Caddy.

"I think that something must have changed. Did the big bad Tacoma Killer find someone to settle down with?" I questioned in a teasing voice, in order to hide my emotions.

"Maybe I did," he said not confirming or denying it. "What would you say?"

I looked at him strangely, wondering why he was asking me that. I tried to ignore the pang in my chest at the thought of him finding someone, someone other than me. Despite me being a grown woman, my brother and Pop were still very overprotective. They wouldn't approve of me being with someone in the club. But Happy was the only one in the club, besides Gemma, who didn't treat me like glass.

My nightmares had come back, keeping me awake most of the night. The lack of sleep combined with everyone watching me so closely, had me pushing everyone away. Gemma kept trying to get me to talk about it, but I shot her down each time.

"I would say that she must be an incredible woman to catch your eye," I told him honestly. Happy was always able to tell if I was lying and had no problem calling me on it. I concentrated on wiping my hands on an oil rag and didn't meet his eyes. But then he said something that made my heart stop.

"You are," he replied in a low tone. My light brown eyes snapped to his dark eyes. They were watching me with a calculating look, but also honesty. "Listen, Sav, I—"

Whatever he was going to say was cut off by the sound of my brother's raised voice and more shouting. Happy turned towards the lot and I moved around the Caddy to see what was going on. There was a crowd around my brother and someone else, but I couldn't see them. But I did see a familiar dark green 1967 Mustang in the lot. My eyes widened as I realized who it was when I heard an Irish voice. "Shit," I muttered as I moved around Happy and toward the crowd.

I could hear Happy follow, but I was more concerned with preventing a fight. I pushed my way through and got in between Opie and the man he was arguing with. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, calm down Opie," I tried, putting my hands on his chest and moved him back a few steps.

"There she is," a man's voice said with an Irish accent. I looked over my shoulder to see a man with short black hair and chocolate brown eyes. Happy was suddenly between us and matched the man's broad build and height. He scoffed as Happy blocked me from his view.

"What happened?" I asked Opie, ignoring the other man.

"This guy started to spout bullshit," Opie spat, stepping forward but was stopped again by me, as well as Jax and Tig grabbing a hold of his arms to hold him back.

"Only because it's true," the Irish voiced snapped back. "You can't protect her. You'll probably cause her to leave again. I wouldn't be surprised if you take a swing at her."

My anger flared and I spun around, moving around Happy and punched the guy straight in the jaw. He stumbled back a few steps and looked at me with wide eyes in shock. I could feel the stares of everyone on my back, but with my anger and lack of sleep, I couldn't care. I stepped up into his space and glared at him.

"Don't you dare even suggest something like that," I growled at him. "If you talk about my brother like that again, I'll knock you on your ass Niall. Do you understand me?" Niall nodded at me with a small frown. "I said, do you understand me?"

"Yeah," he said, rubbing his jaw. "I get it."

"Good," I sighed. "Now, go sit in your car." Niall opened his mouth to argue, but I stood my ground, glaring harder, and pointed to his car. "I won't say it again."

Niall deflated a little before going and getting in his car. Once he closed the door, I took a deep breath and let it out slowly to calm myself down. I turned back around with my hands on my hips. Everyone was staring at me with confusion, but Happy had a small, amused smirk. "Now, what happened?"

"Hold on," Tig stepped up and pointed to the car with a glare. "Who the hell is that guy? And how the hell do you know him?"

I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose, trying to drive off the headache that I knew was coming. "His name is Niall Swan and he's a friend. And before you say anything, I didn't know that he was coming here."

"He's your friend?" Pop questioned with a growl, stepping forward. "And he talks to us like that?"

"Which is why I'm asking all of you and not him," I snapped back at him. "Now, what happened?"

"He wanted to know where you were," Jax supplied. "We wanted to know why, and he started to accuse us of not knowing. Saying that we didn't keep an eye on you even after you come home."

"Damn it Niall," I muttered, rubbing the back of my neck.

"Does he know?" Opie asked out of the blue with narrowed eyes.

"Come on Opie, let's not do this here," Clay tried to pacify.

I just started at my twin brother with a neutral expression as he shook his head at Clay. "No," he snapped. "I wanna know. Why does she tell a friend and not her blood? Why does he know and not us?"

"I'm not doing this now," I told him, and turned around to go to the clubhouse to cool off.

"If you can't tell us, then you can leave with your friend!" Opie yelled after me.

My body froze but I snapped my head to look at him. His face immediately dropped, realizing what he said. I felt my eyes sting and Opie opened his mouth to say something. I just shook my head at him, and stormed into the clubhouse, throwing my work shirt on the picnic table. I went into my room and started to throw some clothes in a bag. I grabbed my bathroom essentials next. I then grabbed my gun and knife from under my pillow, putting my knife in my bag and tucking my gun into the back of my pants.

Walking back out with two bags and locking the door, I nearly ran right into the solid chest of Happy. "What are you doing here?" I snapped at him.

"Are you really leaving?" he shot back with a deep growl.

I scoffed at what he was suggesting. "I've waited ten years to come back here. I'm not about to let a fight with my brother drive me away. I'll be back later when he calms down."

I went to brush past him, but he grabbed my arm to pull me back. I went to tell him to let me go but was cut off by him kissing me. I was shocked to say the least. Slowly, I started to respond to him before pulling back. He looked deep into my eyes with an intensity that I hadn't seen before. "What was that?" I whispered to him.

"Make sure to come back, and I'll tell you," he promised and let go of my arm, caressing my elbow as he did.

I didn't trust my voice, so I just nodded. I turned around to keep walking, some of my anger had dissipating as I thought about what happened. When I got outside, I opened the passenger door and threw my bags in the back. Looking back at my family, I just gave them a sad look. "I'll be back for the rest of my things," I said, getting in the car and turning to Niall. "Drive."

*Coming Home*

Niall drove through the town and pulled up to a two-story house in the better part of Charming. I looked at Niall in confusion and he just shrugged. "Heidi bought it," he stated.

"Of course, she did," I muttered, getting out of the car to follow Niall into the house. In the kitchen, Niall grabbed two beers and handed me one. "Was all that really necessary Niall? Did you have to cause tension?"

The Irishman only shrugged and took a drink of his beer. "You needed the push. You weren't going to talk to them otherwise. And don't pretend that you've already told them. I know that you haven't."

I scoffed, shrugged my shoulders indifferently and took a drink of my beer. "So, why are you really here? It's not just about my nightmares, is it? I didn't ask you to play mediator."

Niall sighed and took another drink of his beer while motioning for me to follow. I followed him to the table that had plans and maps laid out on it. I studied the maps and realized that they were for the streams just outside Charming. "You're here for a job?" I inquired in disbelief.

"We are," he confirmed with a nod.

"We?"

"Heidi, Tank and Emma are here and scouting the area," he explained.

"And you need someone who knows the area better," I finished for him, and he nodded. I sighed while looking at the information on the table and noticed that they had two sniper points already mapped out. Maybe this is what I need to take my mind off of things. "What's the job?"

"Protection," Niall answered. "Jimmy is making a deal, but he's been getting threats from Kriska."

"Damn Russians," I commented with a growl.

Niall chuckled. "Yeah. Jimmy hired us for protection and to make sure that the deal goes down so he can get guns."

"Who's the deal with?" I asked curious, but I had an idea of who it was. There was only one place he would go to in this area.

"SAMCRO," he muttered nervously without looking as me.

I turned to him with a glare. "You picked a fight with them, and you expect them to be professional during the deal? Seriously Niall? What're you thinking man?"

Niall just shrugged as the front door opened. We both turned to see Heidi, Tank and Emma walk in. "Savy!" Emma shouted in excitement and jumped on me in a hug, which I returned.

Emma Florian was a beautiful young woman with bright blonde hair in a pixie cut and big, smokey gray eyes. She was short at 5'5" but had an hourglass figure and plenty of muscle. Her cream-colored skin had a dusting of freckles on her cheeks. Her husband, Tank or Anton, came up behind her with a big smile to hug me next.

Antonello Florian was his real name, but we called him Anton or Tank for his size. Anton stood at 6'3" and had broad shoulders. His muscles were bulging and strained his black t-shirt. His dark brown hair was in a military cut and pale green eyes. His tan skin has scars and tattoos all over.

Heidi Cross came up to give me a hug after Anton. The older woman was still beautiful for her age. She stood at 5'7" with her pitch-black hair falling over her shoulders and her bright ice blue eyes stood out against her peach-colored skin. She was toned, but still had her curvy figure. "It's good to see you Savanah," Heidi greeted with her British accent.

"You too Puma," I replied with a cheeky smile, looking all of them over. "So, what have you got so far?"

Heidi smirked at me. "So, you'll help us?"

"Like you even have to ask," I replied rolling my eyes with a scoff. "This is my town, my people. I have to make sure you all don't do this wrong and cause problems."

They all laughed at my comment, knowing I was only partially serious. They all knew that I was very protective of my town. Spending seven years around me, they knew that I would do anything to protect my hometown and my family. I had to assume that was the reason that Niall came to get me. He knew that I would want to protect my home. The five of us got to work going over the plan for the meeting tonight. Then we all went our separate ways to get ready.