CHARMING HAD TREATED her fairly over the last year. Tessa's life had turned into the complete opposite of what it once was. Toxic men were definitely no longer a part of her life. Instead, she had a man by her side who might have looked incredibly dangerous, intimidating and scary, but treated her like a queen and loved her sonᅳ their son.

They were currently sitting on the bed, her legs crossed and her body facing him while he leaned against the headboard, laughing at one of the stories he told her about his old days in Tacoma. In the last year, which had been pretty carefree, she had had the chance to get to know every side and piece of Happy's pastᅳ and he now knew every detail of her life too.

"Sounds like you've been close to ending up in jail a few times. But for something stupid like that?", she asked teasingly, bumping his knee with hers, almost knocking over the container of vanilla ice cream. "No!"

Tessa caught the cup just in time, giggling as Happy just rolled his eyes in amusement. "It's just ice cream, you know?"

"Well, for a pregnant woman it's a lot more than just ice cream", she scoffed before a grin broke out on her face again as Happy took a spoon himself. "I thought you didn't like vanilla ice cream?"

"Give me a break, woman", he huffed out, a deep chuckle following as he shook his head. "You eat most of the food in the house anyway."

Which was okay, more than okay. Happy wanted Tessa to eat, to have a healthy relationship with food, especially now during her pregnancy. She wasn't far along, especially now in the beginning she needed all the minerals and vitamins that were importantᅳ at least that's what the gynecologist had explained and Happy had decided to just believe it.

But as if she hadn't been beautiful enough already, the additional glow on her face added to her beautyᅳ if that was even possible. The pregnancy had been a huge surprise for both of them but they were happy about it and hadn't even thought about an abortion. Especially not after what had happened in Tessa's past with Cal.

The Laney woman wasn't showing yet, at least not much. The slightest hint of a bump was visible under her tightest tops, but that was probably just from the constant urge to eatᅳ after all, she was only three months pregnant.

For a long moment, his dark lenses rested on his Old Lady as she told him about different types of ice cream and how great she found each one. Never in his life would he have thought he would listen to a woman for so long, but he enjoyed listening to Tessa's ramblings about the simplest things.

The corners of his mouth twitched upwards in a faint smile as he kept studying her, how her now chin-length hair perfectly framed her face. He still remembered last week when Tessa suddenly stood in front of him with short hair, nervous as ever and unsure if he would like it.

Short version; a few minutes later they ended up in the bedroom, fucking like rabbits. Although that would've happened even without a new haircut.

Over time, both had figured out what the other liked and while both were completely happy with the way the other looked anyway, Happy had let his beard grow a little, just a little, because he knew that Tessa liked it when it rubbed and tickled her skinᅳ and because she had an even harder time to take her eyes off him when he didn't feel like shaving.

So a while ago he had decided to keep his black/greyish beard, neatly trimmed and still short.

What had stayed the same, however, was Tessa's style, which Happy was glad about. The goth style simply suited her best, it was just her and Tessa, no matter how many strange looks she still got, wasn't going to change. He loved it most when her top rolled up or she wore something cropped so that everyone could see his crow that adorned her tailbone, sitting on a banner with his name on it. In return, he also had her and Sawyer's names tattooed above his smiley face tattoos.

"Hey, Earth to Happy!" When Tessa's fingers snapped in front of his face, he slowly came back and cleared his throat. "You okay?"

"Sorry, got lost", he winked with the slightest smirk as he ran his fingertips along the inside of her thigh, not minding the fishnet fabric that covered her legs. "You know how beautiful you are, baby?"

The spoonful of vanilla ice cream was already halfway into Tessa's mouth when one of her perfectly shaped eyebrows shot up, his words causing her to lower the spoon.

"You're telling me that while I'm shoveling ice cream into my mouth like I haven't eaten in three days?" There was some amusement in her tone, but Happy could still see how flattered she was.

Unfazed, Happy shrugged, his hand now resting on her thigh. "And if the ice cream covered half your face, I'd still find you pretty. There's nothing that could make you unattractive."

"Awe, such a charmer", Tessa teased the man in front of her lovingly before setting the tray aside, crawling forward and straddling his lap, her arms wrapped loosely around his neck. "You know..we still have two hours until we have to pick up Sawyer", she whispered sultry, her lips close to his ear so her breath tickled his skin.

"Fuck woman, your sex drive is extreme at the moment", he stated with a low chuckle, but his jeans immediately tightened as a bulge formed in his boxers as Tessa began to grind her pelvis against his while her lips left open-mouthed kisses on his neck.

"Like you have a problem with that", she cooed with that innocent look as she looked at him, her lips glossy from the wet trail she had left on his neck, a teasing spark flashing in her beautiful brown eyes. "Can't you keep up anymore, old man?"

"Excuse me?" Happy huffed in offense, gripping her hips so hard that he elicited a soft whimper from her before he flipped them over. Hovering over her now, he pushed the growing bulge against her core. "You've got a pretty big mouth, little girl."

"Mhm..maybe you should do something about it?" Her eyes shimmered with lust, her heart pounding against her chest as she watched the tip of Happy's lips slowly slide over his lower lip. "Make me shut up, babyᅳ or scream. I'll leave that up to you", she added with a grin as she tugged at his shirt and then pulled it over his head.

"Let's see what happens, huh?" A devilish grin crossed Happy's features before he slammed his lips onto hers and gave the dark-haired girl no chance to answer him.

A soft moan from Tessa flowed into the kiss after he had parted her lips with his tongue and now fought against hers, hearing nothing but the wet sounds of the kiss and her loud breathing as they both, once again, lost themselves in the moment.

ᅳ

HAPPY CLENCHED HIS HAND into a fist, pumping it as an almost inhuman snort came from him. The eyes of all the guys sitting around the table darted back and forth between him and Jax.

"What are we gonna do about him?" Tig asked, ready to get his hands dirty. "We're going to kill him, right?"

"Of course we are", Happy replied sharply, pure menace in his tone and eyes. "He's going to be released tomorrow, right? Do we know what time exactly?"

"Yeah, Unser assured me just an hour ago that Cal will be released tomorrow", Jax repeated, his look similar to Happy's, after all he still had a score to settle with Cal for the attack on Tara back then. Besides, Tessa was family now, so retribution had to be ensured. "We don't have an exact time, but no one is ever released before nine in the morning."

"I'd say two of us wait at t' prison first thing tomorrow morning, away from t' road so no one sees us", Chibs suggested, his accent thickening as always when anger boiled up inside him. "We'll follow himᅳ and only when we're sure he's alone we're gonna kick his door in."

"I could wait outside the prison", Juice offered, holding a cigarette between his fingers. "Maybe take Tig or Bobby with me."

"Yeah man, I'm in", the man with the black curls nodded immediately, leaning back in his chair. "Fucker's gonna die tomorrow."

"You sure this is a good idea?" All eyes landed on a sighing Bobby, glaring at the man as if he had lost his mind. "I mean, shouldn't we be careful?"

"Being cautious is over", Jax spat through gritted teeth, his head tilting to the side as his grip on the gavel tightened. "He hurt Tara, threatened Tessa and a little boy. Do I really have to take a vote, Bobby?"

"Seriously man, we can't let him get away again", Tig chimed in, sharing the same opinion of everyone in the room.

"I know what he did and he deserves to die for it", Bobby said matter-of-factly, his arms spread out on the table, his hands resting on the dark wood. "But is it really worth it if one or more of us ends up behind bars for it? We just need to let some time pass."

"Out of the question." Happy's eyes narrowed as he glared at Bobby. His hand came down on the table, causing some of the members to just scratch their foreheads with a clear of their throat. "I'm happy to spend a few years in prison if it means my Old Lady and my kid are safe. He made Tessa's life a living hell and physically attacked Taraᅳ since when do we accept shit like that?"

"We don't", Jax assured him immediately. In this case, he immediately agreed with their SAA, sharing the slight disappointment at Bobby's words. "And if that's a problem for you", Jax turned to Bobby, seething. "Then only Hap and I will take care of Cal so that no one else gets dragged into this mess."

Chibs shook his head with a stubborn expression, his arms crossed over his chest. "No, ye' have our backs, no matter what. If no one finds Cal's body, no one will know tha' he's dead. And we have Tig and Hap for tha' kind of work."

"I know enough places to bury him. Places where no one will ever find him", the SAA grunted with a sinister grin, excitement bubbling up in the pit of his stomach at the thought of all the things he could do to Cal.

"I don't know that many places, but I'm good at making bodies disappear", Tig said as if it were the most normal thing in the world, a satisfied smile plastered on his face. "So, are we gonna handle that bastard tomorrow or what?"

"I know there are no better people for this job than you twoᅳ it's not for nothing that you have that position", Jax said matter-of-factly and with a shrug of his shoulders, which he straightened and let his gaze wander around the group until it stopped at Bobby who sat to his left. "Again; do I have to take a vote? Or are you with us on this?"

"It's not that I wasn't convinced. I know the fucker has to die", the oldest in the group explained calmly, tapping the table with his palm. "I just thought we should be smarterᅳ brains before bullets, sounds familiar?"

"It is, and normally, I agree, saves us a lot of trouble most of the time", Jax agreed neutrally. Leaning back in his chair, he ran a hand over his beard. "But not in this case. I just need to know if we can rely on you."

"You know you can." Sighing, Bobby glanced back and forth between his Pres and Happy, nodding to himself. "We don't need a vote, I'm in."

"Good, I didn't expect anything else", Jax replied. With his features as hard as stone, he slammed the gavel down on the table, sealing everyone's decision. "Then the decision is made, Cal's gonna die tomorrow. Juice and Tig, you wait in front of the prison first thing tomorrow morning", his blue eyes fell on Happy, who nodded approvingly. "And the two of us will take care of the rest before you and Tig let his body disappear."

"We will, Pres", Happy croaked, earning a sincere expression from the blonde.

"Okay, we're done for today, you can go", Jax announced before the squeaking sound of the chairs dragging across the floor echoed through the room and one by one they left the Chapel.

ᅳ

AFTER TESSA HAD PICKED up Sawyer and dropped him off at Gemma's so she could start her afternoon shift, she leafed through some patient files that she put aside for Tara. She usually came to work after dropping Sawyer off at the daycare, the same one that Abel and Thommy attended, but Tara had given her the morning off.

Which meant that she had more work now, but she could spend time with Happy in the morning.

A few months ago, Tessa had finally quit her job as a model in the porn business after she increasingly noticed the problems Happy was having with it. For a while, he even became more possessive than he already had been, calling her every hour to make sure she was okay, that no guy was touching or looking at her the wrong way.

Was it excessive? Sure. But Tessa hadn't had a problem with it. Before their relationship could crumble, however, she had quit before she even had anything new in sight.

And then, two months later and after a lot of back and forth and a huge pile of paperwork, Tata had been given permission to open up her own doctor's office. The doctor had had enough of constantly running into Margaret, listening to the hospital supervisor whining while she tried to convince Tara how bad Jax and the club were for her.

The Knowles woman also wanted to spend more time with Jax and her kids, which was almost impossible with the different shifts in the hospital. So after much consideration, Tara took the scary step and hasn't regretted it to this day.

Tessa was the first Tara had asked if she wanted to work for her. And the twenty-two-year-old would've been stupid not to accept the offerᅳ so she now worked at the reception and was responsible for dealing with patients' concerns. Lyla and Gemma took turns doing the bookkeeping and thus earned a little extra money each month.

"Hey, how are you today?" Tara rested her arms on the reception desk, smiling down at her friend. "Was the morning sickness a little better today?"

"Ugh, don't even get me started", Tessa replied with a small laugh before waving her hand dismissively and putting her pen aside. "I think it's slowly getting better, but I still hug the toilet at least once every morning."

"Mhm..sounds nice", Tara mumbled while she wrinkled her nose. "You know..", the brunette trailed, her lips curling into the slightest smirk.

"What are you smirking about?" Tessa raised her eyebrow, her arms crossed on the desk she was sitting behind.

"There's a myth that morning sickness can be a sign that it's a girl", Tara explained, followed by a soft hum. "But who knows if that's true."

Tessa snorted a soft laugh. "And since when do you believe in myths?"

"I don't", the brunette replied with a grin and shrugged her shoulders. "But maybe there's something behind it. Do you have a preference?"

"Mhm..maybe. God, she would get so spoiled by Happy and Sawyer", Tessa said with a chuckle. But let's be honest, that baby would be spoiled either way, whether it's a boy or a girl. "No, not at all. I just want him or her to be healthy. Sawyer really wants a sister, though", she added with a smirk.

"Awe, that's kind of sweet", Tara chirped. A sigh left her lips as the desire for another child slowly crept back in. "I can't wait to find out what it will be myself."

"It is, he's totally crazy about the baby even though it's not even born yet. Let's see if it stays that way." Tessa shook her head with a quiet laugh before tilting it to the side and examining her friend, the look on Tara's face pretty obvious. "Are you getting baby fever?"

"No." With flushed cheeks, the doctor glared at the younger woman before letting out a deep sigh, followed by a nervous laugh. "Maybe a little. But Thomas is just out of the worst of it, Abel is going to school soon and I only opened the office half a year ago. I think I want another child, but that will have to wait a little longer."

"Mhm..I understand", Tessa hummed, fully understanding Tara's point. Seeing the brave expression on Tara's face, Tessa sent her a smile. "And until then, you can come over and cuddle your godchild as often as you like."

A soft chuckle rattled through Tessa's throat as Tara's eyes widened, her lips forming a silent O. "Yes, you heard me. I want you to be the godmotherᅳ only if you want."

"Of course I do!" Tara rushed around the reception desk and practically threw herself onto Tessa, no matter what the two waiting patients in the waiting room would think about her now. "Is Happy okay with that too?"

When Tara pulled away to give her best friend a moment to breathe, her hands still resting on Tessa's shoulders, she looked down at the dark-haired woman. "Maybe his mom wants to be godmother too."

"I've already discussed it with Happy", Tessa assured the older one with a smile. "Maria is his grandma, you'll be his or her godmother."

"I promise I'll be the best godmother there is", Tara said with a determined expression, her smile so wide that it caused small wrinkles under Tara's eyes. "Okay, I have to take care of the next patient, we'll talk later. Will you send Mr. Dejan in?"

"I will, I'll just quickly print out a prescription for Mrs. Tanner", Tessa informed the doctor, who nodded gratefully, gently squeezed her shoulder and disappeared back into the room that was directly behind the counter.

Things were going really well at the moment, which got Tessa thinking. Maybe it was finally a good time to ask Juice for help. Her mother should know that she already had a grandchild and that another one was on the way.

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