Chibs was bent under the hood of a car when he heard Tig and Juice speaking to a woman with an Irish lilt to her voice. He smiled to himself - he had always loved the sweet accents of Irish ladies - they reminded him of his time on the Emerald Isle before Jimmy O'Phelan. He listened for a moment, not so much at the words, but to the sounds of her voice. "From Galway," he murmured to himself. He poked his head out from under the car and saw her glossy black hair and pale freckled skin. He would bet cash money that her eyes were blue. "Aye. Galway," he repeated, pleased at his ability to still distinguish between the accents of Ireland after his years of exile.

He must have been louder than he thought, because the woman turned her full attention to him and nodded. "Aye. Galway. Good ear." Her eyes were a deeper blue than he had predicted, and flirty little smile she gave him was particularly unexpected. Young women like her didn't usually grin that way at aging bikers with stringy graying hair and a Glasgow smile. Damn, she was pretty – in addition to the eyes and curls, she was plump and curvy.

Chibs felt his own mouth curl up in a smile as he nodded quickly at her and went back to his work. He found that he couldn't help listening to the conversation between her and Juice now that he'd seen her. Juice had come upon her, stranded by the side of the road, with a flat tire and a flat spare. They were waiting for Piney to return with the tow truck, and the woman - Aoife, it seemed – had come back with Juice rather than stay alone by the side of the road. As Chibs finished his work and let the hood of the car slam shut, Half-Sack was dashing up in the other direction. "Juice, Clay needs you."

"Sorry," Juice smiled at the woman. "Duty calls. Tig here'll take care of you." Tigs gave a wide, lecherous grin, and Aoife turned a shade paler. The smile was gone from her face.

"Clay wanted you to go help Gemma in the office." Half-Sack informed Tig, hiding a smirk. Chibs didn't bother hiding the smirk, especially with the nasty glare that Tig shot the prospect as the stalked away. Half-Sack glanced between Chibs and Aoife. "Do you need me to help the lady?" Half-Sack asked. Chibs made eye contact with Aoife, and he noticed the agitation in her eyes. She shook her head - no, she would not prefer if Half-Sack helped her. Her eyes seemed to plead with Chibs to stay with her.

"No." Chibs said in a growl, and Aoife's body visibly relaxed. "If you can let Gemma know this car is all set, I'll keep the lass company until Piney comes back with the truck." He wiped his hands on the rag from his back pocket, and then turned to Aoife. His voice became lower and gentler. "Ya don't have to stand in the sun. Come on, lass, we've got some picnic benches over this way. Would ya like a drink of something?"

"A cold drink would be lovely." He fumbled with the change in his pockets and got them two cans from the soda machine. He put them both in front of her and let her choose. "Thank you. So, we haven't really been introduced. I'm Aoife."

"You can call me Chibs," he responded, and he saw her examining his scars. "Appropriate, ain't it?" He commented with a wry smile, using his middle finger to trace the Glasgow smile he permanently wore.

She nodded, confirming that she knew at least that bit of Scottish slang. She seemed uncertain what to say, and Chibs regretted bringing up his scarred cheeks. Aoife studied him silently for a moment, and then spoke up again. "Your accent - Glasgow?"

"I'm not the only one with a good ear." He gave her his little smile again. "Aye, Glasgow born. Surprised it's still so obvious. I moved around a lot - I lived for a while in Ireland before coming here."

"Another connection - I lived in Scotland for a while myself - Edinburgh." He watched her relax even further, but that didn't erase the worry lines around her eyes.

"Are you all right, lass?"

"Of course," she assured him. "Well, I might have panicked a little out in the desert with a flat tire. I'm new to the area and wasn't even sure who to call for help. I appreciate you taking the time to talk to me. Your presence makes me feel...comfortable."

Chibs nodded, trying to ignore the way those words made his heart beat a little faster. "Ain't been told that in a long time. But it makes no never mind to me if it makes you happy."

"Your voice reminds me of someone I knew," she offered as a way of explanation. "I didn't mean to be rude to that Tig guy or the other guy who offered to help but I don't deal very well with new people." They studied one another for a moment. Chibs was sure there was more than what she was saying, but there wasn't a polite way to push the issue. "Can I ask your real name, Chibs?" she leaned forward a little.

The rumble of Piney's tow truck pulling back in saved him from that question. He pretended he hadn't heard her. At the same time, he pretended that he hadn't been a breath away from telling her. He didn't share his name with most women. Gemma knew it, of course, and Donna might, but he didn't tell the crow eaters who flocked to their parties. He felt like giving them his real name was wrong. Your old lady called you by your real name, your kids called you by your real name, but crow eaters got your nickname - if you bothered with conversation at all. And the fact that this woman had almost gotten his real name from him in the first 20 minutes he'd known her troubled Chibs. He didn't need complications. The club didn't need complications. "I'm going to go help Piney unload, and then we can get your car and bring it back." Aoife nodded and smiled at him. As Chibs walked, he could feel her eyes follow him. She had a placid gaze that seemed to peer into your soul, and Chibs felt self-conscious – something in him cared what she thought about him. Chibs had worked hard through the years to bring his emotions in check as much as possible, and the feelings that Aoife was stirring in him were simultaneously enticing and frustrating.

He felt those eyes on him with every move. "Mother of Christ, that woman's intense," he murmured to himself, hoping that vocalizing it would relieve some of the tension that was making his head swirl and his pants a little too tight. When the tow truck was empty again, Chibs walked Piney back to Aoife, back to those azure blue eyes. "Piney, this is Aoife. We're going to need you to go get her car."

"Like hell I will," Piney said with a smile. "I gotta doctor's appointment. Opie's taking me. Keys are yours, though."

Aoife insisted on accompanying Chibs back to the car. They made small talk, mostly her asking him questions about Charming. She hadn't been there long, he found out, maybe a month. She was here, she said, to take over her aunt's business, a coffee shop on Main, while her aunt was dying of cancer. She kept up a steady patter of commentary, and with every word, Chibs found himself relaxing. Her eyes were easier to handle when they were smiling. They loaded up her car and brought it back to the shop. She sat back out at the picnic benches while Chibs searched the rack. He returned to her a few moments later. "Lass, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but we don't have the tires you need in stock. I called around, and they can get them here by tomorrow afternoon. Hope that'll be alright."

Aoife shrugged. "I live above the coffee shop. If you can get me home, I'll be fine until I need the car."

"You ever ridden on a bike before?" Chibs asked.

"Once or twice. You got a helmet for me?"

Chibs leaned into the office. "Hey, Gemma, you got a spare helmet we can borrow? We're going to have to keep this lass' car overnight so I was going to give her a lift."

Gemma stepped into the doorway and gave Chibs and Aoife both a once-over. "Yeah," she crooked her finger at Aoife. "Come here, let's see what we can come up with." While trying on the helmets, Gemma asked Aoife a few questions about herself – where she was from, what she did. "Alright, there you go," Gemma said brightly as she shooed the woman back to Chibs.

Chibs felt his heart beat double-time when Aoife climbed on the back of his bike and put her arms around his waist. What the hell was going on with him? He heard her laughing or giggling a few times, and he felt a dopey grin cross his features. When he finally rolled the bike to a stop in front of the coffee shop, his heart was lighter than it had been in a long time. "What were ya giggling about there, lass?" He asked as he took her helmet and hung it on the handlebars.

"I felt so free. I couldn't help it." She gave him another bright smile. Damn, his cheek muscles were going to hurt from the workout they were getting from her. "Well, thank you for the ride, Chibs." She leaned over and gave him a kiss on the cheek, brushing his scar as she did, and Chibs was simultaneously surprised that she showed no aversion to the scar and that that fact made him so happy. She started to walk away when he reached out a hand and caught her wrist, pulling her back to him.

"Filip," he whispered hoarsely.

"Pardon?" Aoife was inches away.

"You asked before. My real name is Filip. If you need me, call the garage, but of course you'd better ask for Chibs there." He trailed off, not sure what else he was planning to say.

"Filip," Aoife repeated, like she was rolling his name around on her tongue to see how it felt. "Well, in that case," she said as she leaned over and kissed his other cheek, again brushing her lips on the scar, "thank you, Filip."

Chibs watched her until the side door to the building had closed behind her and the lights upstairs in her apartment came on. He ran his fingers through his hair and shook his head as if he was trying to clear the cobwebs. Fastening his helmet, he rode away into the dusk. His back felt a lot colder without her warmth pressed up against it, but if he pictured her, he could hear her chuckling behind him.