Tuck

by Chelsea Handcock

  Tuck wanted to say he wasn’t right, but he knew it would be a lie, so he kept his mouth shut.

  “Crank and Cathy are getting a call from Cin in a couple of weeks. You need to let that play out and stay out of it. Cathy and Crank are going to get handed to them what they always wanted, no questions asked, no strings either.”

  Tuck wanted to ask what he was talking about, but Talon shook his head.

  “Know that neither of us would hurt a member of the RBMC, our loyalties are solid. Tuck, you need to trust me and know what I’m doing is for the best for everyone.” Talon turned around and opened the door. Right before he left, he said, “There are food and water in the fridge.”

  When the door closed, Tuck heard the beeps of the locks engaging again, thought back to Tal’s last words, and yelled, “SON OF A BITCH!” Racing toward the door, he put in his code, and nothing happened. Putting in the override codes again nothing.

  Kit made himself comfortable on one of the tables. “I guess the kid is a Ruthless Bastard after all.”

  “This, all of it stays between you and me. Tal is on a mission nothing else. I need some time to pull his ass out before I beat it into a bloody mess!”

  “My lips are sealed, Sargent Major, at least until you finish with that ass beating. After that, all bets are off.”

  “Fuck you, Kit.”

  Chapter Twenty

  Katie and Tuck had been staying at the clubhouse for a couple weeks now, but it was a test in patience, mainly hers because it was always no-holds-barred at the RBMC. If they wanted Tuck, they got him; if a phone call didn’t work, they were pounding on their door. This morning alone, Tuck was giving her one of his ‘lessons,’ and Link called four times, then pounded on the door for ten minutes straight. Needless to say, even though she got her happy ending, it wasn’t as good as it could have been, and all the fucker wanted was to tell Tuck they had to call a plumber. It was ridiculous.

  For a while, she thought it was a joke, but when the same stuff kept on happening, she realized her man was a micromanager, to the EXTREME! His guys knew it, so they made his life hell for having to tell him every little thing going on with the Clubhouse, doing it while he was otherwise occupied with her. Once the coffee was done, she poured a cup and sat down at the table, blissfully alone for the first time in she didn’t know how long, savoring the moment because it wouldn’t last.

  Tuck himself was mainly pretty great, but he had been preoccupied or extremely focused, depending on what he was doing. Katie knew something big had gone down with Talon, and it was still bothering him and his brothers, but everyone was tight-lipped about it, and Katie decided to let to go for now. That was the part of club business she wasn’t supposed to know about, and she respected that.

  She eyed the refrigerator and considered making some breakfast for everyone, but quickly changed her mind when her stomach rebelled against the thought of smelling grease or eggs. Looked like the boys were getting cereal today unless they could con one of the puppets into fixing them something else, and if that happened Katie planned to be far away. The Puppets were another thing; she got they served a purpose—mainly servicing the brothers. Every chapter had them, and Defiance was no different. Katie generally kept a wide berth from any of them; they were spiteful, mean, and jealous as all hell of the Old Ladies. But they did know their place, Tuck made sure of it. Basically, if they got out of hand, she and the girls could handle it themselves—each of them having to pull one of them off their men at some time or another.

  Katie’s turn happened not two days after the attack on the clubhouse. Veronica, or Ronnie as they called her, decided Tuck was free game, and she was going to give him a go. Katie had been sitting right next to him when the skank came up, brushing her fake boobs on his arm, whispering less than sweet nothings in his ear. At first, Katie was dumbfounded and couldn’t figure out why the hell Tuck wasn’t doing anything more than saying no. Cathy had been sitting across the table from them with Crank, and Katie looked to her for help. When Cathy tilted her head to the side and raised her eyebrows, Katie knew if she wanted to be the President’s Old Lady, she needed to act like it.

  It wasn’t much of a fight—Katie pulled the chicks hair until she was away from Tuck, then got in her face and told her about all the things she had at her disposal at the ER and what she would do to her if she ever laid hands or boobs on Tuck again. She might have gone a little too far when she mentioned she knew just where to hit her to make the silicon balloons in her chest explode or her ability to get her hands on biohazard materials she could bring back and put places to be sure Ronnie got some god-awful disease, but the chick got the point, and the others had stayed far away, each of them looking at her like she was a little bit crazy. It was all good as far as Katie was concerned.

  That was another thing that had changed. Katie took a position in the ER at Defiance General. Doc had told her Daniel had tried to give her a shitty recommendation, but Tuck took a trip a few days later, and when he came back, he had a handwritten letter of recommendation from not only Daniel but several other staff members. Katie was just glad that part of her life was over with. Daniel Fitzgerald was long forgotten. Now, at least, he knew Katie would never be coming back to him or St. Vincent’s.

  After her third cup of coffee, Katie started scrolling through the houses Tuck had forwarded her from their realtor. Her man didn’t only micromanage the club, no, that went with all aspects of his life. She had gone out and found one little house she had absolutely adored—quaint with a little creek running through it and trees all over the place. Tuck hated it on sight even complained the tile in the bathroom was 1/16 of an inch off in some places, making the room itself unbalanced. She knew they were going to have to build because he would never find anything, but she humored him and looked at each individual listing. It wasn’t always easy, but it was getting better. She loved him and was starting to learn not to sweat the small stuff.

  They also had been getting to know Maddie. She was still a little standoffish with Tuck, but she was coming around. That was another reason Katie wanted to get a house soon. Maddie had asked when she could come and spend the night with them. Neither she nor Tuck thought the clubhouse was the best place for her to stay except for extreme circumstances like a lockdown, and Katie wanted to make that sleepover happen for all of them.

  Katie heard the scrape of a chair and looked up to see Kit’s big smiling face; this man was trouble. Gorgeous, tall, dark drink of water, he also had a mouth on him that rivaled Brass. He was constantly giving Tuck a hard time. Katie had been surprised when he hadn’t left like the rest of his crew. Still smiling, she raised her eyebrow, trying her damnedest to look like he was putting her out when all she really wanted to do was smile back at him. Waiting to see what he would come up with it didn’t take long.

  “Whatcha up to, KatieKat?”

  “You know he’s going to kick your ass if you keep calling me that.”

  “Nah, that old fart would have to catch me first. He’s too slow. Even with one bad leg and the other one tied to a pole, I would still beat him.”

  This time Katie did laugh. “Really, you think so?”

  “Yeah, piece of cake.” This guy was full of it, and from what Tuck told her, back in the day before his caravan got hit by a suicide bomber and he lost part of his leg, he would have totally kept every one of those words. Not that he couldn’t do some damage now; Katie had seen him sparring with Crank, and the man was impressive. Katie did have a question for him, figuring he would either blow her off or answer.

  “What’s got a fine man like you sticking around a dump like this? Doesn’t really seem like your speed. I picture you laying back in a comfy lounge chair on a beach, having hot little waitresses bringing you cocktails.”

  “Nah, the sun turns this fine specimen into dark chocolate, and that shit is bitter. I like keeping all this lusciousness a soft milk chocolate, all sweet and makes all the girls want to take a little taste if you know what I mean
.” He said all that while bobbing his eyebrows up and down like a demented pervert.

  Katie got his game—the jokes and gestures were all a ruse, allowing him to figure out whoever he was talking to—he had different tactics for each of them. For Katie, it was talking about sex—she usually blushed and walked away. For Tuck, it was being an old man and hitting on Katie. Brass, those two were hilarious together, but Creed and Kit really took the cake. Those two could go for hours, insulting each other using song lyrics. Now with Crank, he was an entirely different person altogether—completely serious and down to business. With each of the girls, he was the same—sometimes sweet, kind, and caring; other times, over the top flirtatious.

  “I know your game, Tom,” she said, wanting him to know without coming out and saying it.

  “Ah, so the kitty has more than just book smarts.”

  “Yep, and I’m on to you. What are you looking for?”

  “No looking, KatieKat, waiting.”

  “Waiting for what?” Damn, now she was really interested and wanted to know what Kit was up to. Tuck had said he was the best intel guy he knew other than Talon, and that was saying a lot. If there was going to be another attack on the Club, she wanted to know yesterday. Not that she could do anything about it, but at least she could brace herself.

  “Don’t you dare say another word Kit,” Tuck said, walking into the room. When he got closer, he punched Kit in the arm and bellowed “And quit calling my woman by that name.”

  Kit rubbed his shoulder, but the man was built like a brick house, so she doubted he even felt the punch. She was disappointed Tuck had stopped him from saying anything else, something they would be talking about later. Tuck came to her, bent over her chair, and kissed her quickly on the lips.

  “Hey, babe, you get a chance to look at those houses I sent you?” Katie mindlessly answered that any of them would be good, but Tuck was really the one who needed to decide what he wanted. So, each time he sent her some, she would count them and pick a number for occasions just like this.

  “Yeah, I really liked the third one. Maybe we should call and make an appointment to go see it.”

  “Really,” Tuck said, scrunching his nose. “I liked the first one, you know the one with the pool and hot tub on twelve acres on the Lake.”

  Shit, she hadn’t seen anything like he was talking about. Picking up her phone, she scrolled through the pictures again, but there wasn’t anything like he was talking about, they were all standard ranches in residential neighborhoods. Something else she couldn’t figure out about Tuck—why the hell he wanted to live in the suburbs.

  “Looks like you’ve been caught KatieKat,” Kit laughed and got up leaving the room before Tuck could get around the table. The man was pretty damn fast when he wanted to be. Tuck turned back to her.

  “He’s right, you know, I’ve been waiting for you to ask what the hell I was thinking sending you those houses for a week now, but you just kept picking a number. What’s up, Kate?”

  Katie let out a breath and leaned back in her chair.

  “Listen, I’m sorry you’re right, but Tuck, you’re not happy with anything I pick, hell you’re not happy with anything you pick. I just want a place we can be alone in, to build a life in. If that’s a cookie cutter house in the suburbs for you, then cool, I’m all for it, let’s go. But babe, I want it like yesterday. We can’t keep staying here. I love the guys and the club, but I want my man to myself!”

  “Well then, it’s a good thing I signed the papers for this baby just this morning, closing is Friday.”

  Katie took his phone and scrolled through the pictures of one of the most beautiful houses she’d ever seen. It had everything they had both wanted—full basement, four bedrooms, a gorgeous massive master suite, huge chef's kitchen, and the back patio with built-in pool and hot tub made her want to go upstairs and pack her bags right now. She wanted to jump for joy and shout to the heavens halleluiah, but like every other time, something was happening. Tuck's phone started to vibrate and buzz. The pictures of the house disappeared, and Tal’s name came up on the phone. Katie handed the phone back, Tuck said a few clipped words, then sat down at the table. He wasn’t rushing out of the room to handle shit, it almost looked like he was settling in.

  “Babe, your brother is here.”

  “What? Why?” Katie couldn’t wrap her head around that one. She had made two phone calls, one to Sky letting her know her plans had changed and she would be staying in Defiance, instead of coming to visit and one to her brother. That conversation was short—she told him she was in Defiance and staying, he said fine and hung up. Why the hell would he be there now? It didn’t make any sense.

  Kit came back into the room, another cheesy smile on his face, and sat down.

  “Looks like my waiting is over,”

  “Let it be Kate,” Tuck said, squeezing her hard. “That’s between them and doesn’t concern either of us. But what we found out a couple of weeks ago, all that shit from being at the Vultures, that doesn’t concern your brother either. Do you get what I’m saying?”

  She got it. Tuck was telling her to keep her mouth shut. The question was why; they were all part of the same club.

  Colt came into the kitchen, and Katie didn’t move from her spot. They hadn’t been close in a long time so there wouldn’t be hugs and kisses or anything like that. Colt was just a man she happened to be related to; she wasn’t even sure if she liked the man he turned into all that much. When no one, including her brother, decided to speak, Katie asked, “What are you doing here Colt?”

  He looked flustered, not his normal steady self. “Can’t a brother come and check up on his little sister to make sure she’s okay?” That was bullshit if he had been worried about her, he would have come weeks ago not now.

  “I guess so.” Katie opened her arms and spread them wide. “As you can see, I’m just fine and dandy. I guess you can leave now.”

  “I need to talk to Tuck, in private,” he blurted out. Tuck got up and directed Colt out of the room.

  “That was just weird.”

  “No, KatieKat, that was a desperate man looking for something. Too bad he isn’t going to find it here.” With that, he got up and left, just like Tuck and Colt.

  Katie picked up Tuck’s phone went back to looking at the picture of the house.

  “Yep, definitely need to get out of here.”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Tuck was sitting in his office, his meeting with Colt had gone as expected. The Mother Chapter was involved in some heavy shit Tuck damn sure didn’t want to be a part of. Colt was their desperation move, sending him in to see if Tuck and the rest of the guys knew anything about it. Apparently, the Vultures weren’t the only people looking for the information Jamison Sinclair had, his own fucking club, the founding member needed that shit too. Not to do what was right, but to hide the shit they had been doing wrong.

  Tuck didn’t like it, but he would take them down just like all the other bad seeds, brothers or not. The Defiance chapter lived by a code, and he planned on keeping it that way. He heard a light knock on his door and for a second, he thought he was mistaken until it happened again. Normally, if someone wanted in, they pounded on the damn thing. Getting up, he opened the door and found his sister standing there, looking a little scared or nervous. He was instantly concerned.

  “Tess, what’s going on?” He ushered her into the room and guided her to the couch, sitting down next to her.

  “Shit, Tuck, I feel so stupid. I just thought that you’ve been back for a while, and I’ve seen you, but we really haven’t spoken, and I just wanted to make sure you were okay. You know, with everything.”

  Damn, it looked like he still had some major lessons to learn. It had been weeks, and she was right, besides a head nod or a hello, he hadn’t said a single word to his sister after promising to get things back on track between them.

  “Shit, Tess, I’m sorry, I just got caught up in stuff. I should have called you or da
mn, asked you to dinner or something. Still not all that great of a big brother, am I?”

  “No, it’s okay, I understand. I just thought, you know, if you didn’t come to me, I would just come to you. Kind of like a see what happens type of thing.”

  “What did you think was going to happen?” Tuck laughed,

  “Oh, I don’t know, in my mind, chances were pretty high you wouldn’t answer the door or would say you were too busy, something like that.”

  “Ah, I see. I meant what I told you, Tess, I want to work this out between the two of us. I just kind of suck at it right now, but I promise if you give me some time, it will all work out. And you can always come and see me, never think you won’t be welcome. You’re my sister, and I do love you. You will always have a place here or wherever I am.”

  “Thank you, I think I just needed to hear that from you,” Tess said, tearing up a little, making Tuck feel even worse. They talked for a while, and he was feeling pretty good by the time he walked with her out of the office and into the common room. He had just told her about the house and how they would be living close to her and Creed, and she seemed genuinely happy for him. He was happy she and Creed were doing well together, and she was finally in a place in her life she felt whole. It was all good.

  When he walked her to the door, he noticed a woman sitting by herself at the bar. He said his goodbyes to Tessa and went and sat down next to the woman, knowing full well this was his next big thing today. She wouldn’t be here alone if it weren’t important, or she wanted to say something she didn’t want Brass and Maddie to overhear.

  “Hey, Jada, what brings you out here this time of day?” Tuck asked, approaching whatever was to come in a nice and friendly manner. He had gotten to know Jada a little, and after hearing about all she’d done for his daughter, he respected her and hoped they would become friends one day—they weren’t there yet, not even close, but it would happen.