Not gonna lie, this one was largely inspired by Taylor Swift's song, "peace". I was listening "folklore" and "evermore"on repeat lately on got some serious Angela/Juice vibes from that song!
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Juice followed Angela into their little house, smiling when she dumped her bag by the door and threw herself on the couch. It'd been a long ass drive from San Diego back to Charming, and they were both exhausted. He chuckled as he put his bag down and threw himself onto the couch beside her. Her skin was a shade or two darker than it'd been when they'd gotten there. She was wearing her jean cut off shorts and one of his loose v-neck t-shirts, her tan lines peeking out by her neck. Her dark hair was in a messy bun. She was absolutely beautiful. Those few days in San Diego had been an amazing getaway, but also ridiculously difficult to keep his hands off of her. The house they were in was small, walls paper thin, and there was no way they could get away with a quickie with the kids right across the hall. They'd managed one in the shower, where he'd let his hands roam all over her tanned body, running his tongue over every single tan line her swimsuit had left behind. Still, it hadn't been enough. He knew nothing was going to happen that night though, he was too tired for it, and she looked like she felt the same way.

She leaned against him, and he moved his arms over her shoulder, tangling his hand into her hair. She covered her mouth as she yawned, and he chuckled. "Tired, baby?"

"Mmm," she murmured, her eyes fluttering closed as he scratched at her scalp. She tilted her head back, looking up at him with the sweetest sleepy eyes. "You?"

"Yeah," he murmured, kissing her nose quickly. "Think it was the zoo yesterday that wore me out."

Angela smiled warmly. They'd had a great time at the San Diego Zoo, walked the entire place on a mission to see each and every animal. "That was fun," she replied, yawning again. "Much better than the Oakland one."

"Better than the New York one too," he agreed on a little nod. "Shower then bed?"

"Just bed?" she asked hopefully.

He wrinkled his nose at her. "Dude, we spent all day in the car. Don't you feel gross?"

"Yeah but showering sounds like a lot of work," she murmured, setting her head back in the crook of his neck.

Juice chuckled, wrapping his arms around her more tightly. "I'll do all the work. You just stand there and look pretty. I'll scrub you down."

Angela smirked, nodding slowly. "That sounds nice."

He stood, taking her hand in his and hauling her to her feet. Once she was standing, he swept her off her feet into a princess carry. She moved her arm around his neck, leaning up to catch his lips in a sweet kiss before he started moving towards their bedroom. Once inside their bathroom, he set her on her feet and turned on the shower, turning the knobs to make sure the water started heating up. He turned around to find she'd already stripped down to her panties. She wasn't wearing anything fancy, just a simple black cotton bra with matching underwear. He drank her in, letting his eyes roam over the curves of her body. "You're beautiful," he murmured, cupping her hips with his hands and leaning in to press a soft kiss on her lips.

Angela smiled into the kiss, nuzzling her nose against his for a moment before pulling away. She took off her underwear and threw them at him before slipping into the hot steam of the shower. He took off his clothes and got in with her. They showered in relative silence only broken by soft happy sighs. As much as he loved their sexually charged showers where they couldn't keep their hands off each other, and he took her right up against the tiled shower wall, he also loved these slower showers. Just the two of them, too tired to do anything but clean each other. He loved the way her hands smoothed over his skin, kneading slightly here and there. Loved the feel of her soapy skin underneath his palms, loved the way she closed her eyes as she tilted her head underneath the shower's spray. Loved just being with her, literally stripped naked. Nowhere to hide. She tilted her head back, her dark eyes meeting his. The love in her gaze made his heart flutter; he'd never had someone who loved him as much as she did. Leaning in, he captured her lips with his, hoping to convey the same feeling to her.

He stepped out of the shower first, toweling off before wrapping the towel around his waist and grabbing hers. She turned off the water, getting out of the shower and smiling when she saw he was waiting for her. They were both so tired, they continued their routine in silence. He wrapped the towel around her, squeezing her tightly for a moment.

Tilting her head back, she kissed him quickly before stepping away to finish drying off. He walked over to their drawers, throwing one of his t-shirts and a pair of simple undies at her. She grinned, putting on the shirt and the undies. She returned to towel drying her hair for an extra few minutes before disappearing in the bathroom to hang up the towel, something he knew she did for him. If she was alone, she would have tossed it on the floor to pick up the next day. He got into the bed with a groan; it felt so good to be back in his own bed. Angela's soft chuckle made him smile, and he reached a hand out towards her. She climbed onto the bed, snuggling into his side, her head on his chest where it was always meant to be. "This weekend was nice. Peaceful," she murmured on a happy sigh. "Felt good to get away. Feels like everything's been so hectic lately."

He nodded slowly in agreement. There was a little doubt tugging at the corner of his mind; was that what she wanted? Peace? He doubted that was something he could ever fully give her. Sure, they'd probably catch glimpses of it here and there, but he didn't think they'd ever find a world with true peace. Not while he was so entrenched with the club. Could she deal with that? Would it be enough for her if he could never give her the  peace she seemed to crave? Would she get tired of the chaos and leave him?

"Juice?" she asked, breaking into his thoughts.

He realized she'd asked him something, and he'd been so deep in his head he didn't hear it. "Huh?"

She narrowed her eyes at him, tilting her head to the side. "What's going on between those tats?"

"I dunno," he murmured, twirling a piece of her hair around his finger. At her doubtful look, he sighed. "I can't...the club life is hectic on its best days. I don't think that's ever gonna change, and I...don't think I could ever give you that peace."

Angela's dark eyes scanned his face for a moment, a small smile on her face that made him feel a hell of a lot more secure. Leaning in, she kissed him softly. "This is just as peaceful, Juice," she told him, laying her head back down on his chest. "All I need are little moments like this...and maybe a getaway or two. Think that'd good for both of us."

He smiled, trailing his fingertips down her back. "Yeah," he agreed on a laugh. He loved the idea of going other places with her. "Maybe next time we'll get a place with thicker walls, so we can have fun without traumatizing' the kids."

He could feel her smile against his chest. "They comin' with us again?"

"I mean, we can do stuff just the two of us too, but it was kinda fun having them around," he admitted, remembering all the good times they'd had together once the kids had warmed up to them. "And it'll be easier to get time away since the club wants to take care of Ope's kids."

"Definitely. Love that," she murmured around a yawn.

He buried his hand in the hair at the back of her head, scratching his short nails over her scalp pleased at the content sigh it elicited. "You work tomorrow?"

"Yeah," she replied on a heavy sigh, her finger tracing patterns over his chest. "You?"

"No club shit so far. Got a shift at TM though," Juice answered, glancing at the little burner phone on his nightstand. It hadn't gone off yet, but he knew eventually word would get around he was back since they dropped the kids off at Piney's earlier.

Angela smirked, leaning up to kiss him quickly. "Rest up then, Ortiz. That way we can have some morning fun 'fore you gotta go play with your little biker buddies."

He chuckled, pulling the covers up over the two of them. "I like that plan," he said, settling in and kissing her forehead. "Night, Angel. Love you."

She snuggled against him, moving her leg over his and tangling herself around him. His absolute favorite way to fall asleep. "Night, goof. Love you too."

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Angela was deep into an embalming when there was a tap at the door. She looked up to see Skeeter standing in the doorway looking a little nervous. She hadn't seen him that nervous since that ATF agent had showed up at the mortuary. She raised her eyebrows at him, lowering the music with the little remote she had. "What's goin' on, Skeet?"

He sighed, looking over his shoulder. "Opie's here. Asked to talk to you."

"Opie?" she repeated, eyebrows raised. She hadn't known he was back from his run yet. She stripped off her gloves and hung up her protective apron. Washing her hands, she glanced back at Skeeter. "He say what he wanted?"

Skeeter approached the decedent on the table, looking over what she was doing as he put on his own gloves. "Not to me. Take your time, I'll finish this off."

Angela patted his shoulder as she walked by. She loved working for Skeeter. He was odd, but he was easygoing and surprisingly passionate about his work; he just didn't know how to go about making improvements to the mortuary. That worked for her, since it meant he was open to whatever she wanted to get to improve the place. Like modernizing the entry way, which now looked warmer, more inviting. Less old fashioned stuff. That's where Opie was standing now, shifting awkwardly. "Hey Opie," she greeted with a little smile. "How are you?"

" 'm fine, thanks," he said with a quick nod of his head. He messed with his beanie for a minute. "Came to see Donna, but I also...Pops told me you took the kids on a trip."

Angela nodded, messing with her ring. Was he upset she took them? She didn't know him all that well, and she knew he wasn't close with Juice. "Yeah. Was really fun. They're great kids."

"Thanks," he muttered, staring down at his shoes for a minute.

"Sorry if I overstepped. Piney asked 'cause Ken had that project, so I just kinda ran with it," she explained, hoping she was reading the situation wrong.

Opie shrugged a shoulder. " 's all good. Jax vouched for you. Said you were trustworthy," he answered shifting awkwardly. "Just glad they could get away."

Angela smiled a little. She was grateful Jax vouched for her because she had a feeling Opie would've been much more against letting his kids go with her otherwise even if Juice was there. "Me too," she agreed on a nod. He was quiet for a long moment, looking down at the pamphlets on the table. His fingers came to rest on the one Chloe had brought by. The grief group for someone who'd lost a partner. "That's a good group. Helped me through a lot of shit."

He lifted his head, his hazel eyes meeting hers. His son had those same eyes, though Opie's were so grief-stricken, they hurt Angela's heart. "You lost someone?"

"A boyfriend. Little over a year ago," she answered on nod. She sighed heavily, raking her hand through her hair. "He was hit by a car right in front of me. I got a little lost in...everything. Made some bad decisions and was somewhat forced to go to the meeting the first time, but it was actually helpful. Not all just chicks, by the way...and they've got an amazing spread of cookies."

The corner of his mouth lifted in the smallest smile. "Good to know," he said, picking it up and tucking it into his cut. "How'd you move on?"

"Badly," she answered on a frown. "Got back together with my ex who, turns out, was the one who indirectly orchestrated the car hitting my boyfriend. That ended terribly. Spent some time alone, going to the meetings, making new friends, and everything. Healed a lot, then got together with Juice, which also helped with the healing process."

He blinked at her in disbelief before shaking his head. "Sorry."

She wasn't sure if he was sorry because of the story or for her reaction. "Thanks," she said on a shrug. There was so much more she could say. She wanted to offer to go with him to a meeting or give him some kind of advice, but she got the feeling he wouldn't be receptive to it, and she didn't want to overstep. She knew there was no advice she could give him that would actually help. "Hey, um...Ellie took these photos while on our trip. She's really excited to show them to you. Told her if you find one you liked, I'd blow it up and frame it for you guys."

Opie looked grateful for the subject change. "Yeah? They any good?"

Angela nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah, actually. They're beautiful. She has quite an eye. And Ken, he loved playin' football with Juice on the beach. Kid can throw. Said he's a Raiders fan, but I think that's me projecting. I'm sure if you had a team, he'd leave the Raiders in the dust."

Again, she saw the corner of his mouth twitch, just a little. "This you tellin' me to play ball with my kid?"

She smirked, shrugging a shoulder. "It's me giving you somethin' to talk to them about in case you needed conversation starters. They also love you. Like a lot," she told him knowing she was pushing the boundary just a little. Still, she wanted him to know for his kids' sakes. She was trying her best for them.

"I know," he muttered, swiping a hand over his face. " 'm gonna head out. Just wanted to say thanks again."

"Anytime," she said, following him to the door. "Happy to babysit."

"Yeah? Don't know how much Juice'll like that."

Angela smirked, leaning against the doorway as he headed towards his bike. "I'm sure I can convince him."

Opie snorted, shaking his head. "Whatever convincing you gotta do, don't do it in front of my kids," he shot back, putting his helmet on. "You going to Bobby's party tonight?"

Juice had called her earlier to let her know Bobby was being released from jail, and they were throwing a huge party at the clubhouse. It wasn't her favorite way to spend an evening, but she was going to go and have fun to the best of her ability. "Yeah, I'll be there."

He smirked at her lack of enthusiasm. He started up his bike, shouting, "See you around, Angie."

She waved back at him, watching him go with a certain sadness in her heart. She hoped he tried to interact with his kids. They needed him now more than ever.

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Little filler but kind of fun to explore a bit of Ang and Opie. Will they be best buddies? Probably not, but I think they'll be a little more familiar with each other in this story because of the kiddos. 😉
Let me know what you think!!
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