Spark in the Dark

Chapter 106

Shawn arrived at TM the next morning late for Gemma's breakfast. She had changed her mind about going probably half a dozen times before finally getting into her car and driving there. She knew it was childish to skip just because she and Juice has gotten into a fight the night before, but the thought of going to the clubhouse and having Juice practically ignore her all morning sounded heart wrenching.

When she walked in, the bar area was full of club members, their families, and a few of the more important club hang arounds. Tig saw her and made his way though the crowd to give her a hug.

"Hey, Shawnie. Thanks for coming to say good bye to your old man," Tig told her.

Shawn's heart skipped a beat. For a moment, she thought he knew about her and Juice, but she quickly realized he was talking about himself.

"Of course, Dad," Shawn replied.

"Go eat," Gemma told her. "There's still a ton of food."

Shawn nodded and got herself a plate. She sat at a table across from Jax and Tara, who was holding Abel, to eat. She could see Juice was sitting at the bar, but his back was to her. From where he was at, there was no way he could have missed her coming in.

"Glad to see you're okay," Shawn told Tara.

"Nothing a full night's sleep in my own bed couldn't fix," Tara told her.

"I hear a congratulations are in order for you two?"

"Yes, thank you."

"Can my boys swim or what?" Jax asked her.

"That's gross," Shawn said and shook her head.

"Oh, c'mon. You know you're excited to be Aunt Shawn, again," Jax pointed out.

"Again?" Shawn asked and reached for Abel. "I'm Aunt Shawn right now."

Tara handed Shawn the baby and she continued to eat with him in her lap. Abel provided a good destraction for her so she wouldn't be staring at Juice's back the whole time. Once she was done, Abel began to get fussy and Tara took him back.

"Hey everyone!" Opie called out. "Lyla has something she wants to say!"

"We're getting married!" Lyla announced and held up her left hand for everyone to see her ring.

A cheer erupted from the crowd as Shawn stood to hug Lyla and admire her ring.

"That's amazing!" Shawn said, happy for two of her best friends.

"I have a question for you," Lyla told her. "Will you be my maid of honor?"

"Really?" Shawn asked, a little surprised and Lyla nodded.

"Yes! Of course."Lyla hugged Shawn, again, and then began showing off her ring to everyone.

Breakfast began to wind down and most of the people told the guys their good byes and left. Shawn was helping Gemma clean up when she came to Juice's old dorm room and saw him in it, alone. He was at the desk on his laptop, so he didn't see her at first. Shawn closed the door, causing Juice to turn at the sound. He sighed when he saw her and closed his laptop.

"What's up?" He asked.

Shawn shrugged. "You really want to leave things this way after last night?"

"Guess not," he said and stood from his chair.

Juice walked over to her and pulled her to him. As they hugged, he turned to better smell her hair. He was going to miss the smell of her. And the way she rested her foreheard against him when he held her. And the feeling of her soft skin beneath his fingertips.

They started to slowly pull away and Juice made eye contact with Shawn. He saw the longing look in her eye and realized he made a mistake. He shouldn't have looked at her. His resolve to keep his distance from her was gone. He reached up his hand to trace her jawline with his thumb. She closed the small distance between them to kiss him.

Juice eagerly kissed her back for only a moment before bending to pick her up by the back of her knees. She wrapped her legs around his waist and he carried her over to the desk. He knew he couldn't stay away, but another plan to make her mad at him formed in his mind.

Juice wasted no time in removing her clothing from the waist down. Shawn reached for his belt buckle and began to undo it. He pulled his pants down just far enough before pulling her closer to the edge of the desk so he could enter her. He moved fast, he couldn't take his time as much as he wanted to savor the feeling of her against him. Her grip on his back and her heavy breathing only spurred him on anyways. Juice began kissing her neck and one of her hands moved to hold the back of his head. Her breathing turned into moans and Juice kissed her lips to silence her. He could feel his release building and pulled out right before he came, leaving Shawn a little dissatisfied.

He fixed his pants, then picked up her clothing from the floor and tossed them to her. Shawn held them for a moment, a little bewildered. She lowered herself onto the floor and got dressed in silence. She looked up at him, but he was refusing to look at her.

"What's going on?" Juice shrugged and still didn't look at her. "So, you're just not going to talk to me?"

"Look, Shawn, it is what it is. Don't make it harder than it needs to be."

"Are you... Are you breaking up with me?"

"Let's just see what happens, ok?"

"You just had sex with me," Shawn argued.

"I needed to get it out of my system," Juice said coldly.

"So, what? Am I a Cro Eater now?" Shawn asked.

Juice had to try to not wince. This was his plan from the moment he set her on the desk. He knew nothing bothered her more than being considered a Cro Eater, but having his plan work was hurting him just as much as he knew it was hurting her. He knew he shouldn't, but he finally looked up at her and regretted it. She was trying to look angry, but the tears threatening to fall from her eyes gave away the pain.

"You... fucking asshole."Shawn turned to leave.

Suddenly, Juice didn't want to do this. Pushing her away to protect her had been a mistake. He felt desperate to take it all back, to make this right, but she was walking away from him. He rushed to her and grabbed her arm to pull her back. Shawn swung her arm as she turned to slap him. It surprised him just long enough for Shawn to make it to the door and open it.

Shawn stopped short in the hallway as she came face to face with Gemma, who must have heard their fight. Instead of standing there, waiting for Gemma to say something, Shawn took three steps backwards and then turned to leave through the side door to the clubhouse. Once the door closed after her Gemma stepped into the doorway to look at Juice. He looked back at her and waited.

"I know what you're doing," Gemma said.

"Almost every club member has done it at one point or another and it is always a mistake."

"What's that?"

"Pushing away their old lady."

"It's too late now."

"It isn't," Gemma insisted. "Fix it. Or else you risk losing her forever."