For the second morning in a row, Angela was awoken by the awful ringing of her cell phone. She decided then and there to have Juice make those personalized ringtones for her that he was always going on about. The tricky thing was the people who called her the most always had different numbers so a ringtone wouldn't stay personal for long. Rubbing at her tired eyes, she untangled herself from Juice who was still snoring away, stretching out a hand to pick up the phone. "Angela Ruiz."

"Hey kiddo," Kozik's voice replied, bright and happy as always. "Hap and I are outside. Want to grab some breakfast?"

She glanced at the clock, noticing that it was five in the morning. "Jesus, Kozi. It's five AM! The sun's not even out yet."

"Aww c'mon, kid. I'm only here for the day. I wanted to see ya before we got busy," he said on a laugh. He knew Angela wasn't a morning person and found a sick sort of pleasure in waking her up early. "I even nicked the truck from Tacoma so you wouldn't have to ride bitch. C'mon."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," she grumbled getting out of bed. She pulled on a pair of yoga pants and a t-shirt, grabbing Juice's sweatshirt and tugging the hood up over her head. "I'll be right there."

After jotting a quick note to Juice, she tugged on a pair of slipper boots and headed out the door. Just as he promised, Kozik was standing in front of one of the large delivery trucks with Happy sitting on his Dyna nearby. Despite the early hour, she had to admit, she was happy to see them. It felt like forever since they'd last been all together. Walking quickly across the lawn, she hugged Happy briefly before throwing her arms around Kozik.

The blonde biker squeezed her tightly, arching his back and lifting her off her feet. "There's my favorite girl," he exclaimed setting her back on her feet. "Ready to go? Hap and I found a diner that's open early."

"Sounds good," she replied climbing into the truck.

She let out a yawn as Kozik started it up, making him chuckle. "Still not a morning person, huh?"

"Its 5 AM, Koz. Even morning people don't like to be up this early."

"I do."

She rolled her eyes at him. "Of course you do, weirdo."

He grinned at her, pulling away from the curb and following carefully after Happy's Dyna. "So, my defective typewriter, how's the little thing growin' inside ya?" he asked, reaching out a hand to poke her stomach.

Angela slapped his hand away, scowling at him. "Fine. Saw its heartbeat again yesterday. It's a strong one," she mused, rubbing a hand over her stomach.

"You tell the idiot about it yet?"

"I did, actually," she replied. At his surprised look, she smiled. "What? It's still early. I wanted to give him the chance to opt out."

Kozik looked disappointed as he shook his head. "C'mon, Ang. We both know you wouldn't have given the kid up. I wouldn't have let you."

She rolled her eyes at him, sliding down in her seat and kicking her booted feet up onto the dash. "He's really excited about it, Kozi. Past couple of weeks have been hard but...his whole face just lit up with that smile when I told him and I...I can see us being a family, y'know?"

He nodded in agreement; he could see it too. Angela with a bunch of rugrats running around her feet while Juice tried to teach them some stupid thing on the computer. "That kid is gonna be gorgeous. No lie. I mean, hopefully he doesn't get Juicer's big nose, but between the two of ya, he'll be a heartbreaker."

"There is nothing wrong with Juice's nose," Angela stated on a scowl. She loved every feature of her man's handsome face. "What makes you think it's a boy anyways?"

"Has to be one if you're going to name it after me. No girl should ever have the name Herman."

She laughed, shaking her head at him. "You really want to inflict the name Herman on another boy, Kozik?" she asked. Kozik hated his name, that's why he made everyone call him by his last name. "You don't even like that name."

"Better than Melville," he said on a shrug. His parents had a thing for the writer Herman Melville so they'd named their children accordingly. Neither of the boys went by their full names though; Herman preferring Kozik and Melville preferring just plain Mel or Melly, as Angela called him.

"You two are just lucky they didn't decide to name one of you Moby and the other Dick," she teased with a grin. " 'course you'd be the dick."

He reached over and pinched her cheek. "Aw you're hilarious, Angie-pie," he said, chuckling as she tried to move away from him. "My middle name's Evan. That's normal enough."

"I'll keep that in mind," she said, though she knew when the time came it'd be a hell of a lot more difficult. She couldn't name her kid after Kozik and not Happy or her father or aunt or mom or some other estranged relative. Hell, Juice might have a name he wanted too. "You tell Hap?"

Kozik shook his head. "Nah, I told you I wouldn't."

"Wouldn't be the first time you lied to me."

"Wouldn't be the first time you tried to keep somethin' from him you knew you shouldn't," he shot back, a serious look on his face. "But I figured, this time you're all grown up and can do it yourself. Right now. Over breakfast."

Angela's eyebrows shot up in surprise. Of course Kozik had an ulterior motive. They couldn't just have a normal breakfast. "Seriously, Koz?"

"Yep. You two need someone to run interference and need for the idiot not to be there makin' shit worse," he explained, watching as Angela scowled.

It reminded him of the day they took her out of Oakland. Hap had tossed her into the cabin of the moving van and handcuffed her to the door making Kozik drive so he wouldn't kill her. He'd talked at her the whole way there, trying to convince her what they were doing was for her own good. She'd responded with one worded answers and scowls, but, by the time they got to Tacoma, she'd gotten out of the truck and hugged Happy before whispering a thank you and heading up to her new apartment. Both men had been stunned. Kozik hadn't thought she'd listened to a word he'd said, but it turned out she had. He learned then she always listened, it was the following through on advice she didn't do so well.

She glared at him, her jaw clenching tightly when she realized he was right. "You're not gonna make me tell my mom too, are ya?"

He laughed, shaking his head exaggeratedly from side to side. "Hell no. I do not want to be there for that one. She's going to flip."

"She doesn't even know we're together," Angela said on a frown.

Kozik rolled his eyes. "Yeah, she does. She talks about it all the time."

Her eyes widened slightly. Kozik hadn't been the first person to mention her mom knew about her relationship; Happy insisted she did too. "What?"

"Yeah, dude. When we were stayin' over there, she wouldn't shut up about it," he said, chuckling at the shocked look on her face as he pulled into a parking spot. "C'mon, you had to have known."

"No! She hasn't said anything!"

" 'cause she's waiting on you, dumbass," he said, hopping down from the truck.

Angela quickly followed suit, walking quickly to catch up with Kozik and Happy's long gaits. "Happy, does my mom know about me and Juice?"

Happy nodded. "Yeah," he answered, holding the door of the diner open for her.

"Shit."

"Thought I told you," he muttered, sliding into the nearest booth. His stomach was grumbling with hunger.

"You did, but I didn't believe you," she said, glaring at Kozik when he pushed her into the booth seat opposite Happy.

Kozik shook his head at her, draping his arm over the back of the booth behind her. "You'd think after all these years, she'd start listenin' to us," he mused, flipping through the menu.

The waitress, a pretty little redhead, came sauntering up. Her eyes flitted over the two very attractive men and a smooth smile spread across her red painted lips. "How can I help you, gentleman?"

Happy grunted his order of bacon, hashbrowns, and eggs while Kozik took a smoother approach. "I'll have the special, darlin', and what do you want, kid?"

"Just a fruit bowl, thanks," Angela answered, not at all bothered by the jealous look the waitress was giving her. Spending most of her adult life hanging out with Hap, Koz, and now, Juice, she was used to women finding her company attractive. The only time it really bugged her was when she was with Juice, other times, she was happy to receive the little things that Koz and Hap got for free because of their good looks and "bad boy" appearances, not to mention Koz usually charmed his way out of paying for meals. Girls loved him.

Kozik shook his head, flipping through the menu again. "Nah, give her the Lumberjack special. She's eatin' for two now."

Angela froze, her eyes widening as she looked at Happy, praying he'd missed what Kozik had said. His dark eyes stared her down, ringed fingers wrapping tightly around the handle of the knife he'd been toying with before. The waitress seemed to sense the tension and quickly moved away, heading back to the kitchen to place their order. "Thank you, Kozik," she muttered under her breath, elbowing the blonde biker at her side.

"Ain't it great? The kid's having a kid," Kozik chimed in, trying to make light of the situation.

She watched as Happy clenched his jaw in response, obviously not at all happy with the news. "You're not helping," she said, narrowing her eyes at him.

Happy shook his head before looking at Kozik. "Give us a minute."

It wasn't a question or a suggestion, Happy was quite literally telling the blonde to get the fuck out of there. Kozik hesitated for a moment wondering if leaving them together was a good idea. Happy had never laid a finger on Angela before, but there was no predicting what the Tacoma killer would do if he was angry enough. His gut told him Happy wouldn't hurt her, so he went with that feeling. "Good luck, kid," he muttered to her before standing up. "I'm gonna go try my hand at that claw machine."

Angela glared at his back, wishing she had some kind of heat vision so she could burn a hole right through the stupid Reaper on his cut. "You gonna explain?" Happy's rough voice drew her from her attempt.

She swallowed hard and sighed, picking up her napkin and carefully starting to pull it apart as she thought of what to say. "It was an accident. I was on the patch and I got lazy with it while you guys were away and then when he came home we...fooled around quite a bit and didn't really stop to...protect ourselves and since the patch didn't work...one thing led to another."

"No shit," he replied on a frown. "You keepin' it?"

"Yeah."

"The idiot know?"

"Yeah. Told him last night."

Happy nodded slowly, his face blank as he took in the information. He watched as she ripped another piece off the napkin, twisting the little shred between her pointer finger and thumb while she waited for his response. She was fidgety when she was nervous or worried, always had her hands moving, messing with something or other. Usually it was her rings, this time it was the poor napkin. He honestly didn't know how he felt about her pregnancy. It couldn't have come at a worse time, that was for damn sure. Her man was a rat, Happy was sure of it, and by the looks of it, a rat who had tried to hang himself. He wasn't fooled by the "clothes-lined" story Juice had fed the club. He'd hung a man with a chain before; he knew what kind of bruises it left behind. "And?"

"He's happy," she answered, a small smile turning up the corners of her lips, her eyes staring at the table instead of Happy's face. "Wants to start a family."

"That what you want?" he asked, though he already knew the answer. She nodded, though she didn't say anything more. Happy frowned. "Tried to kill himself, you know."

Angela's dark eyes met his. She wasn't surprised he knew. Happy knew more than his fair share about wounds, and she knew he, of all people, wouldn't be fooled by Juice's story. "He was having trouble dealing with killing one of his brothers. Sunk down a little too deep."

" 'cause he's a rat."

Her breath caught in her throat at the accusation. She knew Happy was right, and that if she told him so, the Tacoma killer would kill the future father of her child. "You don't know that," she stated softly.

Happy studied her face, picking up on the guilt etched in her eyes. She knew what Juice was, that's why she was so worried all the damn time. "You do," he accused on a nod. "They're gonna find out, kid. One way or another. Shit like this doesn't stay secret for long. You prepared to deal with that?"

A soft gasp left Angela's lips as the realization that her cousin was right hit her. It was something she'd been working hard not to think about. If what Juice had done ever came to light, they'd kill him. Easy as that. There was no mercy for a rat. She felt a tear slipped down her cheek and wiped it away. "No," she choked out, angry at herself for crying when there was nothing she could do to change it.

He had no sympathy for her. She was the one who put herself in this position, and she had to deal with it. As much as he cared about her, there was nothing he could do to help. A rat was a rat. End of story. "Gotta be strong, kid. You picked this life. I told you it wasn't gonna be easy."

She nodded in agreement. There'd been a brief time when she'd first moved to Tacoma that she had wanted to be included in the SAMTAC family. She was a new girl in a strange town and just wanted some friends before her classes started up. Happy had flat out told her what it was like to be an Old Lady. How difficult it was having a man that was only truly faithful to the club and how the club took away just as much as it gave. She was young then and had seen the way the Mayan MC worked first hand; seen fathers and brothers get taken out for one simple mistake. It was then she decided it was better for her to stay away from any MC and its members. It wasn't the life she wanted nor would it ever be. But meeting Juice had been a total accident. She'd never seen him coming and never planned to fall as hard as she had.

"I know," she said on a shaky breath as more tears escaped her hold. "Shit, Hap. What am I gonna do?"

That awful squeezing feeling clutched at his heart as he watched her cry. He hated that feeling. "Don't worry about it yet. Handle your shit, take care of the kid and the idiot. That's all you can do," he said simply. He watched her take in a shaky breath and sighed. He may not like the idea of her having a baby with the idiot, but if anything happened to Juice, he'd be right there helping Angela with anything she needed. "Anythin' happens, I'ma be here for you, kid. Aight? Ain't gonna let you do this alone."

"Me too," Koz said, catching the end of the conversation as he threw himself into the booth. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her into his side, and kissing her temple. "No matter what."

Angela nodded, wiping at her eyes desperately trying to turn off the water works. She'd been finding it harder than usual to swallow her emotions. The pregnancy hormones were making her crazy. "I know," she said on a smile. "Thank you."

Both men waved away her thanks. Neither of them needed it. She was a part of their messed up little family, and they'd do anything for her. Kozik held out a mean looking stuffed bulldog complete with a camouflage hat and a USMC t-shirt, waving it this way and that in front of her face. "Stop the tears, Mama Bear. Check out what I won," he stated, effectively lightening the mood.

Happy wrinkled his nose as he looked at the ugly thing. "What the hell?" he drawled out, his eyes on the stuffed animal.

"Got it out of the claw machine," Kozik explained, grinning at the waitress as she set their plates in front of them. "Thought I'd give the baby his first present."

"It's a boy?" Happy questioned, eyebrows raised. He'd been thirteen when Angela was born and had watched many sonogram pictures get passed around by his Aunt and Uncle. It had taken a few months before they could figure out the sex. Even then, his aunt and uncle had decided against it. Was Angela that far along? She certainly didn't look it.

"It's a heartbeat," Angela corrected flatly, picking at her bacon. "Lemonhead here thinks it's a boy."

Kozik grinned from ear to ear as he nodded. "She's gonna name him Herman Happy or maybe Happy Herman. Whatdya think, Hap?"

"I like it," Happy answered, bobbing his head in agreement.

She rolled her eyes at the two of them. "You're both ridiculous."

Kozik gave her that charming grin of his and a wink. "Love ya, Angie-pie."

"Still not gonna name him after you," she stated, buttering her toast. "Either of you."

Kozik frowned in disappointment, reaching over and grabbing a piece of Angela's toast. "What is your real name anyways, Hap?"

He watched as the cousins shared a knowing look from across the table. "Don't worry about it," Hap said the smallest hint of a smile turning up the corners of his lips as Angela grinned at him. It was one of the few things that was completely secret between them. She had a feeling many people would be shocked to know Happy's real name was exactly that...Happy. Her Aunt had been a hippie once upon a time, and when she'd had her son, he made her happy, so she named him after that feeling.

"Goddamn. I hate when you two do that secret 'Lowman' thing. It's total bullshit y'know," Kozik said on a scowl. "I'm your brother, I should know too."

"Blood is thicker than leather, Kozi," Angela stated, pushing her eggs around the plate, not at all interested in actually eating them. It was way too early to be eating such a heavy breakfast. She knew the food would get eaten eventually though, Kozik and Happy had already begun stealing things from her plate.

The blonde scoffed at her. "No, it's not. 'less you have really shitty leather."

"Shut up," both Angela and Happy said at the same time.

Happy smirked at her. "She ain't a 'Lowman' either," he corrected. Angela had her father's last name and that was one thing Happy would never want to take away from her. Her father had been a great man and the last name was one she should be proud of. His father, on the other hand, was a piece of shit who hadn't stuck around long enough to even see his son walk. He hated the fact that his mother gave him his old man's last name. "She's a Ruiz."

Angela grinned at him proudly. "Damn straight."

"Whatever. I don't know your Ma's maiden name," Kozik said with a roll of his eyes. "Maybe she'll be an Ortiz soon," he added as an after thought.

"Let's not go there," she said, looking down at her plate to ignore the annoyed look on Happy's face. "He hasn't said anything about getting married."

"Not yet," the blonde pointed out. "Would you even take his name? Or would you do that dash thing? Angela Ines Ruiz-Ortiz. Fuck, that's a mouthful."

She shrugged a shoulder. "I'll cross that bridge when we get there. If we get there."

"You don't think he'll want to get hitched? You're havin' his kid."

Happy nodded in agreement. "Right thing to do."

"Yeah, we could walk you down the aisle," Kozik suggested.

"Or drag ya," Happy put in darkly. He knew his cousin was hesitant to take the next step in her relationship, but he also knew his aunt was going to have a cow if she had a baby before she got married. His mom and aunt were old school ladies; they liked things done the proper way. If he had to drag Juice and Angela to the chapel and force her down the aisle to make them happy, he would.

"Would you drop it? Please?" she asked looking between the two in shock. She'd never thought Happy of all people would be okay with her getting married. She decided a change of subject was needed, fast. "So how's Tacoma, Kozi?"

"Wet," Kozik answered on a frown. "And boring as fuck. I swear, Charming sees more action. Must follow her."

Happy let out a lengthy sigh, a tired look on his face as he glanced at his cousin. "Like a fuckin' magnet."

Angela scowled at the two of them. "It does not," she defended, stabbing viciously at her eggs. "I just like to live dangerously."

"Well stop," her cousin said, giving her a half-hearted glare. He knew Angela didn't bring this stuff on herself but sometimes it sure felt like it.

The rest of the time was spent talking about the past and making fun of Angela. She loved both men dearly, but the two of them together usually meant they were protecting her or teasing her. Happy didn't tease much, but his one-liners always had everyone laughing.

Once in the truck and on the road, Kozik reached over and set a hand on her knee, patting it lovingly. "Wasn't so bad. Was it?"

Angela shook her head slowly, a content smile on her face. "It could've gone a lot worse."

"Nah. Hap just wants ya to be happy. We both do."

"My two dads," she teased, squirming as Kozik squeezed her knee cap, tickling her. She leaned over and pecked his cheek as he pulled up in front of the house. "Love you, Koz."

"Love you too, kiddo," he said, giving her a warm smile. "You and the little squirt."

Angela smiled back at him, ruffling his hair before hopping down from the truck and heading inside. It was just about seven in the morning, and she could hear the sound of gunshots and bombs coming from her room, joined every now and then by Juice's cursing. She headed towards the sound, throwing herself on the bed next to him. He paused the game, tossing his controller onto the bed and lifting his arm so she could cuddle up against him. He wrapped his arm around her back, his hand splayed across the koi fish on her hip as he pressed a kiss to her forehead. "How was breakfast?" he asked.

"Good," she said on a sigh, her fingers traced over the tattoo of her name over his heart. "Told Hap about the kid. Well...Koz did 'cause he's an asshole."

Juice tensed slightly. He didn't mind her telling people. Hell, he wanted to shout to the world that he'd not only knocked her up, but she was willingly going to have his kid. But the fact Happy knew scared the crap out of him, mostly because he didn't know how the Tacoma Killer would react to someone knocking up his baby cousin."What'd Hap say?"

"He...thought it was interesting," she answered on a sigh. "There's not much he can say, Juice. This isn't his call. Just...if he and Koz try and convince you to do something that you don't...don't want to do. Don't do it."

His brows furrowed together in confusion. "Something like..."

"Don't even ask. They're ridiculous," she said, rolling her eyes before staring at the screen. "What game is this?"

"Angel, you gotta give me more than that. Let me know what I'm walkin' into here," he said on a light laugh. She only changed subjects like that when it was something that made her nervous. If something the Tacoma Killer was going to say to him was making her nervous, it probably didn't bode well for him.

She frowned and shrugged a shoulder. "It's stupid. Don't worry about it."

He didn't look convinced. His brain worked over previous conversations he'd had with Kozik and Happy about her before it came to him. "This about gettin' a crow or getting hitched?"

With a groan, she buried her face into his chest. "The second one," she replied, her voice muffled slightly by his skin.

He chuckled, running a hand over her soft hair. "Baby, you don't want to marry me?" he asked, though he knew that wasn't the case. She wouldn't have stuck around as long as she had if she didn't plan on spending the rest of her life with him.

"No, no, it's not that," she replied, lifting her head. "It's just...I don't want you to be forced into it. Marriage is serious, Juice. There's no fuckin' around."

"Fuckin' around? Angel, you're the only girl I been with for years. Who's fuckin' around? You?"

Angela scowled at him, shaking her head exaggeratedly. "Of course not."

"Well then?"

"This isn't you proposing is it?" she asked, a confused look on her face.

Juice laughed and shook his head. "Nah, 'cause I don't want you to think I'm doin' it for the kid or for Koz and Hap," he said, taking her hand and working off the claddagh ring he'd given her. He grinned at the obvious tan line the ring had left behind before he grabbed her left hand and slid it on her ring finger. "This is me sayin' it'll happen just...not yet."

"You're giving me a promise ring," she said flatly, looking at the old ring's new placement.

"Re-giving," he corrected as though it was no big deal. "You'll know when I'm proposin'. The rock'll be so big, even aliens will see it from space and know to stay away from my girl."

Angela laughed as he pressed a kiss to her cheek. "Oh, it's the aliens you're worried about?"

"Yeah. Got to be out of this world to top me," he replied cockily.

"That is true." She slid her leg across his torso, moving on top of him as she captured his lips with her own. His hands moved down her sides before grabbing a handful of her ass, using his grip to push her closer to him. She moved her lips across his jaw and down his neck, gently kissing the dark bruise that marred his skin. "Love you, Juicy."

His hand smacked her ass lovingly. "Show me," he said, throwing her words back at her.

Angela smiled as she began to trail kisses down his neck, nipping gently at his collar bone. "Oh yes, I will."

-----------------

Angela walked into St. Thomas with a skip in her step. She'd had spent a great morning with her three favorite guys; life didn't get much better than that. There was no one to prep at the funeral home that morning, so she'd decided to go visit Tara. "Hey T," Angela greeted as she walked into Tara's hospital room. "Brought you somethin'."

"Can't imagine what," Tara replied on a tired sigh. She waited for Angela to pull out flowers or a sympathy card, like everyone else had been giving her. If she saw one more "I'm sorry" card, she'd smash someone's face in, but the undertaker didn't seem to have any of those. Instead, Angela seemed to be studying the television and the DVD/VCR underneath it. "What are you looking for?"

Angela pressed the open button on the DVD player. "Asked Margaret for some neonatal surgery videos," she explained, pushing the DVD in, something that would've made Juice cringe. He always got on her case about not pushing the button to put the disc in.

Tara perked up at the explanation, sitting up just a little bit straighter. "Seriously?"

She nodded, grabbing the remote that was velcroed to the side and handing it to Tara. "Yeah. I know how it is to not be able to do what you love. Koz broke my wrist one time, and I couldn't work. So I made him go get me files from the most gruesome cases, and I sat and worked each one out, thinking of better ways to fix 'em. Called a few people, bent their ear a bit. I'm sure I was obnoxious, but I was young and bored and had Kozik to guilt trip into things."

Tara stared at her in shock; she didn't know whether to be grossed out or impressed by the story. "Kozik broke your wrist? The same one you sprained?"

"Yeah, but it was an accident. It still clicks some times, but it's mostly fine," Angela explained on a shrug. "You want to watch this or not?"

"Yes, definitely," she answered enthusiastically. Watching old surgeries was exactly what she needed, and she was touched by the fact that Angela had cared enough to seek out the videos for her. "Thanks, Ang."

Angela shrugged again. "Figured it was better than flowers."

"Much better. Want to watch?" she asked, patting the bed next to her.

"Sure," she replied, climbing onto the bed.

Halfway through the surgery video, Tara looked over at Angela who had her nose wrinkled in what she assumed was disgust. "It's a heart, Angie. Don't you see those all the time?" Tara questioned, slightly amused by her friend's reaction.

"Yeah but...they don't move like that. That's disgusting," Angela replied, sticking out her tongue. "You can see it beating and the blood...it just keeps coming out."

Tara just laughed in response, shaking her head at her friend. "That's what happens when the heart beats, blood gets pumped in and out."

"No shit," she said with a smirk. The heart on the screen was tiny too, unlike anything she'd ever seen. "It's amazing how small it is."

"I know," Tara replied reverently. "It's the first thing to develop too."

"I actually knew that," Angela replied with a secretive smile. Her fingers trailed absentmindedly over her stomach as she thought of the fluttering heartbeat she'd see on the ultrasound.

Tara's eyes fell on Angela's fidgeting hand, noticing the bright tan line on her right ring finger and the newly placed ring on her left. "That's different," she said, pointing at the simple ring. She wished she could be excited for her friend but all she wanted to do was scream at her to run fast and run far away from this life. "Are you two..."

"No," she cut her off quickly. "No, no, it's just a...promise of sorts, I guess. Someday but not today."

"Are you sure that's what you want?" Tara asked softly. At Angela's questioning gaze, she continued, "This life? This craziness? Look what it's done to my hand, to my family. We're not safe."

Angela knew where it was coming from, had known Tara wanted to get out for awhile now. "I'm pregnant," she said as if that would explain. "And Juice is...he's what I want, T. This life, the club...it's all he has. It's a part of him, and I can't take that away from him. I don't want to."

"Just be careful, Ang. I don't want you to get hurt too," she replied before trying to put on a smile for her friend's sake. "Congrats, by the way. I'm really...happy for you."

The words came out awkwardly, but Angela could understand that. After all Tara had gone through with Abel being kidnapped and Thomas being born without Jax there, she could see why she wasn't exactly gung-ho about another club baby. It seemed the ones who stayed around were always screwed over in one way or another. Even Kenny and Ellie had lost their mother because of club business. Those little facts had not gone unnoticed by Angela. She knew raising a kid in this environment was dangerous, but she was going to do the best she could with what she was given. "Thanks," she said, deciding to leave it there to keep things a superficial as possible. The less she had to think about it, the better.

There was a knock on the door before Phil stepped in. "Tara? She said she was family," he said softly, looking behind him where none other than Wendy Chase was standing.

Angela's eyebrows shot up in surprise while Tara stared at Abel's birth mother in pure shock. "It's okay," Tara murmured after a moment.

"He's a big one," Wendy said on a chuckle. Her eyes followed Angela as she got out of bed. "Angela! Hey! Didn't know you were still around."

Angela gave her a friendly smile. She didn't have anything against Wendy, she didn't know her well enough to form an opinion about her. "Yeah, just...hanging out, I guess," she said, casting a quick glance at Tara as she wondered whether to stay or go. Tara briefly glanced at the door, giving her an answer.

"You still with Juice? He's a real sweetheart."

"That's my man," she replied, heading to the door. "Good to see you, Wendy. I'll let you two catch up."

Once out the door, she let out a long breath. The tension in that room had been so thick, she could practically cut it with a knife. Her phone buzzed in her pocket, a call from the funeral home. She grimaced, briefly contemplating telling Skeeter she couldn't come in today because she had to make sure Tara didn't kill Wendy but decided against it. She had skipped out on Skeeter one too many times in the past couple of weeks. "Hey Phil," she said, catching the gentle giant's attention. "I got to go to work. Keep an eye on that. Things can get real ugly, real fast."

Phil nodded in agreement. "Okay. Take care, Ang. Watch out for zombies," he said, flashing her the cover of his comic.

She laughed when she saw it was The Walking Dead. "Any good?"

"Real good," he replied on an enthusiastic nod. "Want to borrow it?"

"Thanks, but no thanks. I try to stay away from zombie literature," she said giving him a wink as she headed by. "Keep an ear out for Tara, Phil. I'm not kidding."

"Got it," he said, giving her a wave. "See ya later."

After placing the order Skeeter needed at the flower shop, Angela headed home for a bit knowing that she had time to kill until the order was actually filled. She was surprised to see three bikes lined up nicely outside the house. Grimacing, she parked her car and headed in, hoping and pleading that Kozik and Happy weren't in the process of killing Juice when she walked in.

They weren't. In fact, they were all in the kitchen talking when she walked in. Their voices all quieted once they saw her; obviously, they'd been talking about her. "Seriously? You guys are like high school girls," she murmured, rolling her eyes and nudging Kozik out of the way so she could get to her coffee maker.

Juice stepped in her way, stopping her before she could get started.. "How many have you had?"

"Seriously?" she repeated, her eyebrows shooting up.

"Didn't have any at breakfast today," Happy put in from where he was leaning against the counter.

Kozik nodded in agreement. "I thought it was weird she was drinking juice, and then I thought it was probably a new habit. Just likes Juice inside her, I guess."

"Jesus, Koz!" Angela exclaimed, her jaw dropping while the guys just laughed around her.

"I'm kiddin', I'm kiddin'," he said, draping an arm around her shoulders and pulling her into his side. "We're just lookin' out for ya, kid."

Juice nodded in agreement as he started to make her coffee for her. He decided to go with the decaffeinated one to see if she noticed. They'd slept well the night before and despite her early wake up call, they had eventually gone back to sleep after meaning she didn't necessarily need the caffeine to stay awake. He was thankful Kozik and Hap were distracting her as he put the little package in and pressed start. When it was done, he fixed it the way she liked it and handed it over to her. The bright smile she gave him almost made him feel guilty for tricking her.

"Thanks, baby," she said giving him a sweet kiss in return. She wasn't an idiot. She knew what kind of coffee he was handing her, but she also knew he was doing his best to take care of her, and for that, she was going to let it slide. Just this once.

Juice's phone buzzed and the room fell silent as he answered it. It was a two sentence conversation before he snapped it shut. "Chibs," he explained.

"Go time?" Happy asked, his dark eyes lit up with excitement. Angela shivered, that look in her cousin's eyes never amounted to anything good. At Juice's nod, the Tacoma killer pressed a quick kiss to his cousin's forehead before turning to head out the door.

Angela's cast a worried glance at his back before Kozik stepped in front of her. His large hand patted her cheek lovingly. "Stop that. We'll be back," he said, pulling her into a tight hug and dropping a kiss to the crown of her head. He ruffled her hair as he pulled away. "Love ya, kiddo."

She smiled up at him. "Love you, too, Kozi," she said, standing on her toes to kiss his cheek. He gave her one last smile before chasing Happy out the door leaving her alone with Juice. "On a scale of one to ten, how dangerous is what you're about to do?" she asked him.

"Eight...maybe nine. Retaliation for Tara," he explained, pushing a stray hair behind her ear as he stepped in front of her. He let his hand rest on her warm cheek. "We'll be okay, though. Got some pretty heavy artillery."

"Okay," she said softly. There wasn't much more she could say. "Stay safe, Juice."

He nodded, dipping his head to catch her lips in a kiss. "I love you, Angel. Don't forget that."

Her eyes filled with tears. The last time he'd said that to her was the same night he'd tried to kill himself. She grabbed his wrist to keep him from moving his hand. "Come back to me, Juice. Please."

Juice felt his heart break at the fear in her eyes. He kissed her once more, enveloping her in his arms. "I'm not going anywhere, Angel. I'll see you in a little bit."

Angela nodded, hating the tears that leaked out of her eyes. "Damn hormones," she cursed, making Juice smile as his thumbs wiped away her tears.

"Coffee was decaf. You can have another one. Just...relax," he said, hoping the coffee might give her some comfort while he was away. "Stress isn't good for the kid, right?"

"Right," she said on a nod. "Love you, Juice. See you soon."

Juice nodded, kissing her forehead and giving her the best smile he could muster. "Give me three, four hours. Tops."

"Okay," she repeated, her stomach already in knots as she watched him walk out the door. Sighing, she took a seat on the couch to wait.

After an hour of waiting, Angela picked up the flowers at Rita's shop. She was glad the owner hadn't been in that day. Truth be told, she was avoiding her. Not because she didn't like the woman, to the contrary, she did. But she knew if she saw Rita, the anger she felt towards her husband might find its way into her veins and would probably get misdirected, and that was something she didn't want to risk.

Sighing, she lifted the first vase out of the front seat, perching it on her hip and heading inside to look for Bones to help her with the rest. "Bones! Hey Boner!" she shouted, kicking the door closed behind her. She was met with silence. She knew her apprentice was there because his shitty little Volkswagen was parked in the lot. "Bones?"

She walked down to the workroom, surprised to find Filthy Phil standing there, arms crossed over his chest as if guarding the entrance to the room. "Phil? What are you doing here?" she asked, a confused look on her face. "Shouldn't you be with Tara?"

Phil looked down at the floor, embarrassed; he'd gotten that duty revoked after the whole Wendy incident. As soon as the brothers had gotten back from the retaliation run with a body in tow, they'd sent him to the funeral home with an order to keep Angela away from the work room at all costs. "Uh...I'm just...watching out for you, I guess," he said nervously.

"Oh. Okay. Bones in there?"

"Yeah, he's...working."

"Awesome," she said on a proud smile as she tried to move around him to get to the door. He stepped in her way. "Really Phil? You want to play this game?"

He stood firm. "You can't go in there."

"Why not? Skeet said I had two cases to do."

"Bones is already in there though, so you're good to go," Phil explained, hoping she'd relent and do something else.

She raised her eyebrows at him. "Um...Bones isn't fully trained. He shouldn't be doing things alone. And why is my shade drawn? He definitely shouldn't be there alone with the shade drawn."

"Angie..."

"What's going on, Phil? Is one of your brothers in there or something?" she asked, not at all expecting that to be the case. At Phil's hesitance, her eyes widened, her heart hammering in her chest as panic slowly set in. A Son was in there, dead on the table. Just like Donna, just like Half Sack. "Is one of my guys in there?"

His silence, once again told her, she was correct. She tried to move around him, but he easily kept her back. "Angela, you can't go in there," Phil repeated, his voice pleading with her to listen.

"Who's in there, Phil? Is it Juice? Hap?" she asked, her eyes wild. He shook his head at each one and her breath caught in her throat when she realized there was just one left. "Koz?"

Phil hesitated again, giving himself away. "Angela..."

"It's Kozik? Kozi is...he's..." Tears clouded her eyes. No, there was no way. It wasn't Kozik. She'd just seen him only hours before. He was alive. He'd been breathing and smiling and laughing. No. No, this wasn't right, this wasn't okay. She tried to move around him to get to the door.

"Angela, stop," he repeated, a sad look in his dark eyes.

She tried desperately to get around Phil, but he caught her around the waist, holding her back. "No, Phil! Let me go! Let me go!" she screamed, struggling against him. "I need to see him! Please!"

Juice could hear her screaming from outside the home. He threw his helmet to the floor and sprinted towards the doors. "Angel!" he shouted, his heart pounding with every step as he ran towards the workroom. Phil dropped his arms from Angela's waist when he saw Juice giving her the opportunity to sprint to the workroom door. It opened easily, the door hitting the other wall with a loud bang.

Phil had been lying. Bones wasn't in the room. There was only one thing in there, a big cardboard box, blood soaking through the corner of it. Her heart hammered in her chest as she stepped towards it, hand reaching out to lift just one flap.

"Angel, don't," Juice called out, rushing over to her. He knew what was in that box. Kozik's arm. The only piece of him they could recover from the mine field because it'd fallen just close enough for one of them to pick up.

She didn't listen to him though. Carefully, she opened the box, her stomach churning when she saw its content. It was just an arm. That was it. There was no way they could say it was Kozik. It could've been anyone's arm. She took out the appendage and studied it, turning it in her hands totally unaware of the blood that was quickly covering her fingertips. Then she saw it. The ugly tribal tattoo she hated that was inked into his forearm. A soft gasp left her lips as she let the arm fall to the table, the metallic thud it made resonating through the room. "No," she breathed, clutching the sides of the table as her vision began to blur with tears.

It was Kozik. There was no doubt in her mind that it was him...or at least a piece of him. This was the same arm that had only hours before been a part of one of his infamous bear hugs, the kind of hug that made you feel safe no matter what the circumstance.

Angela felt sick to her stomach as she looked at the remaining piece of the man she thought of as a brother. He'd been her best friend, the one she ran to when things got hard. The one who always knew what to say even if it was a corny line. She'd never get another one of those hugs or hear another pep talk. He was gone forever.

They'd talked about this moment. The moment he'd be lying on her table because he was sure he'd die before his time. He'd told her he didn't want her to cry. That he wanted her to make him pretty, burn him, and then bury him under a fancy white veteran headstone like all of his other fallen comrades. She'd explained how they didn't bury cremated people there, but he'd insisted that's what he wanted and he was sure she could pull some strings to get it for him.

But now she couldn't even do that. How was she supposed to make him pretty when there was only one piece of him left? The last thing he wanted from her, the only thing he'd ever asked her for, and she couldn't even do it. She bit her lip, trying to keep back the sobs that were clawing their way up her throat. "Damn it, Kozik," she said on a soft sob as the tears spilled down her cheeks.

Juice watched as she tried her best to keep it all in. Turning, he glared at Phil. "Get out of here. Now," he ordered, waiting until he was out of the room to close the door. Slowly he approached her, running a finger down the length of her arm. "Angel?"

"Give me a minute," she asked softly. "Please."

He swallowed hard, leaning over to press a kiss to her temple before he walked out of the room. As he closed the door behind him, he could hear her start to cry. Slowly, he slunk down against the wall, tilting his head back against the doorjamb as his own tears fell down his face. He hated that she was shutting him out, hated that there was nothing he could do to help her.

-----------------

Happy stormed through the funeral house like a bat out of hell. He needed to find his cousin, to make sure she was okay. The white look on Phil's face when he'd arrived back at the clubhouse and his description of Angela's screaming had him practically running to his Dyna to get to her. Now as he approached the workroom, he was shocked to find Juice sitting outside the door. "The fuck ya doin'?"

"She told me to go," he said softly, his voice coming out slightly choked as he scrambled to his feet.

"And you listened?" Happy asked, his eyebrows raised in surprise. At Juice's nod, he sneered, a disappointed look crossing over his features. "The fuck is wrong with you?"

Juice just stared at him open mouthed as Happy opened the door and strode in, not bothering to close it behind him. What was he supposed to do? Angela wanted space, had asked for space, so he had given it to her. He didn't see the problem in it. She so rarely asked him for things, that he just did as she wanted.

Angela was still crying softly when Happy entered. Her head was hanging down, blood covered her hands and fingers that had a white knuckled grasp on the raised edge of the work table. "Stop cryin'," Happy stated, catching her attention.

"Leave me alone," she shot back, glaring at him over her shoulder.

"No," he said, grabbing hold of her arm and turning her to face him. "Ain't gonna leave you alone, kid. Ain't ever gonna leave you alone."

Angela shook her head slowly, more tears slipping down her cheeks. "That's what he said too."

"I know, kid, I know. But...Koz woulda wanted you to be strong now. He wouldn'ta liked you cryin' over him. Not even him, his fuckin' arm. This ain't good for you. Ain't good for the brat inside ya," he pointed out, taking her face in his hands. "So cut it out, kid. 'fore you hurt yourself and the brat. Breathe."

Her breath caught in her throat as she tried to breathe and she shook her head. It wasn't working. She couldn't breathe. "Hap...I can't...I can't fix him," she gasped out, her chest rising and falling heavily as she tried her best to breathe. "I can't... do anything."

Happy understood what she was saying. It was hard enough that Kozik had died, but she couldn't even give him the proper send off she'd promised him. There wasn't enough of him left. She couldn't get the closure that would've come with following Kozik's last wishes. Happy didn't want to baby her, didn't want to be the sop that took the crying girl into his arms to comfort her, but he knew that was what she needed. That's what Kozik would've done. Sighing, he pulled her into a hard hug. "It's okay, kid," he murmured. "You're okay. Stop cryin'. Be strong."

Juice hated to hear him talk to her like that. Hated how Happy had the good sense to walk in on her while he'd literally sat around. Why hadn't he tried that? This was his girl. He should be the one there trying to calm her down.

Happy glared at the idiot from over his cousin's head. Her shoulders were still shaking as she clung to the back of his cut. He ran a hand over her soft hair, remembering the only other time he'd ever heard her cry like this, one of the rare times when she'd broken down in his arms. She'd been three and her dad had just passed away. He'd been the one to tell her then, had to break her little heart. It was hard to explain to a three year old that her father wasn't going to be coming home, but Angela understood fairly quickly. She'd climbed into his lap and wrapped her little arms around his neck, pressing her face to his throat, and just cried. This time wasn't so different.

Juice shrugged off Happy's heated glare as he closed the distance between them. He reached out a hand, rubbing it across her shoulders. "Angel," he murmured, getting her attention. She turned her head, looking at him with red rimmed eyes.

Happy pushed her away from his chest gently, holding her out at arm's length. He lifted a hand and brushed away her tears. "You're okay. Breathe."

She nodded, taking a quick breath in and out. "Okay."

"Wash your hands and get your boss. Need to figure out a stone," he instructed, knowing that given clear directions, Angela would follow them. "Mel's on his way."

Her eyes filled with tears once again. "Oh God Mel. Does he know?"

Happy nodded slowly. "Chibs called him."

"Shit," she said, moving her hand to wipe at her face. Juice caught her wrist before she could do it. She glanced quickly at him then at her bloody hand, a surprised look coming over her face as if she just realized her hand was covered in blood. "Oh. It's not...it's not mine. It's..."

"I know, baby. C'mon, let's go," he said, taking her hand in his. "I'm sure Bones'll let you use his bathroom."

-----------------

Juice could hear the shower running from where he was sitting on the bed. The same bed where they'd first made love. He ran his hands over the unfamiliar comforter thinking of how much things had changed since that first time. He'd broken down in front of Chibs. Had confessed everything and cried like a baby all for nothing because he was an idiot. He'd sold out his brothers for no damn reason. Who his dad was didn't matter. Chibs had made that perfectly clear. And now he was stuck helping the feds. All because he'd bought into the idea his brothers would turn on him for something as simple as his father's race. He lay back down on the bed, running a hand over his face as he listened hard for any sound coming from the bathroom. She'd been in there for almost an hour, and he knew the hot water was going to run out soon; it always did in that shitty apartment. He had to suck it up now. Now it was his turn to be strong for her.

He sat up with a grunt, easily opening the bathroom door and letting himself into the steamed filled room. He heard her sniffle a bit and felt another piece of his heart break. Happy may have gotten her to stop crying briefly, but Juice had known it wouldn't last. He knew Kozik's death had cut her pretty deep, and she wasn't going to recover anytime soon. "Angel?"

"I'm fine," she called back, her voice shaking slightly.

He shook his head to himself. No, she wasn't, and he wasn't going to be fooled again. No, this time he was going to be the one to step in. He shrugged off his cut and the rest of his clothes, sliding open the door and stepping in under the spray of warm water. She turned around, stepping into his embrace, her face pressed against his neck as he held her tightly. "I'm here, Angel," he whispered into her ear, rubbing his warm hands up and down her bareback. He felt her move her head in a nod against his neck and tightened his grip on her. "I got you, baby. You're gonna be okay."

Wrapped in his arms, Angela found it just a little easier to breathe. He pressed a soft kiss to her temple. Tilting her head back, she caught his lips with her own. He'd never know how much she appreciated the space he'd given her earlier. She'd needed that time alone to cry without someone telling her it was going to be okay or to stop. And now, just as the water was starting to lose its heat, he'd stepped in to provide her with the warmth and strength she needed and found within the circle of his arms. This was why she loved this man. Why she would stick with this life despite its ups and downs. The dangers of the MC lifestyle were worth risking if it meant she got to be with him.