Arriving at the clubhouse, Avery let Debbie out of the car and ran her hand over the five-year-old's head before slamming the car door shut and pushing her sunglasses from her eyes onto her head.

"Is Abel t-there, mommy?" Debbie asked as she kicked small stones with the toe of her pink sneaker. "I wanna p-play with him!"

"I think so, sweetie, Tara's car is here", Avery told her after taking a quick look around the parking lot.

With Debbie's small backpack slung over her shoulder, she followed her daughter inside and quickly greeted Chibs and Bobby with a hug as the five-year-old ran straight towards Abel and Thomas, who were sitting at a table painting. At least Abel did, Thomas sat in his high chair and nibbled on a carrot.

Tara just came out of the small kitchen with a plate of snacks, which she placed on the table where three children were now sitting. The doctor greeted Debbie with a warm smile before turning to Avery.

"Hey, I didn't know you were coming today." Nevertheless, the doctor was happy to see Avery and greeted her with a quick hug. "Debbie's dance class done for today?"

"Me neither", the redhead replied with a chuckle as she returned Tara's hug and then sat down with her at a table next to the kids. She hung Debbie's backpack over another chair. "Yeah, she now has dance lessons twice a week by the way."

"That's good, it gives her something to do after school. I'm also thinking about putting Abel in a soccer team", Tara said before she noticed Avery's tired look. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine", Avery waved her off with a smile. "I just can't sleep because I'm so excited. And the soccer team thing sounds good. I bet he'd like that."

"I think so too. But I still have to talk to Jax, although I don't think he has a problem with that", the brunette guessed. Leaning back comfortably, she looked at Avery and grinned. "Because of the wedding? After all, it's only a week away."

"I don't think Jax has a problem with it either." A quiet laugh then escaped Avery's lips. "Yeah, I don't think I've ever been so excited and nervous at the same time. I mean, what if something goes wrong this week?"

"What should go wrong?" Tara asked, shaking her head in amusement. "You're thinking too much. Are you afraid that Happy will run away or what?"

Avery's smile now seemed a little more nervous, as if something like this could actually happen. "Well, maybe he's getting cold feet?"

Tara raised both eyebrows in disbelief. "You can't actually believe that. Even if you don't see it on Happy's face, the guy couldn't live without you anymore."

"As corny as that sounds", Chibs chimed in, keeping the two women company at the table. "I have to agree with Tara. But don't tell Happy I said that out loud."

Avery laughed softly as Chibs winked at her with a smirk. "Don't worry, my lips are sealed. But good to know I don't have to worry about that."

"You really don't have to", Tara assured her again before reaching out and reaching for Thomas' cup to refill it. "Oh what I wanted to ask; how will the big day be? You two get married at the registry office and then celebrate in your backyard? Right?"

"Ye', that's how it'll be. Gemma has already planned everything out with Avery's mother", said the Scot, amused.

"Why do you know this but I don't?", the redhead asked curiously, smirking. "But yes, it stays that way. We don't want a huge wedding with an overpriced location."

Her dress had already been expensive enough and even though Lyla, Ima, Celine and Gemma covered the costs, Avery wanted to keep the wedding simple with the remaining money. However, she hadn't skimped on Debbie's dress and Happy also wanted his daughter to get the dress she wanted.

In the end, Debbie chose an ankle-length dress that was roughly the same color as Avery's wedding dress, so it matched perfectly. Although Avery wouldn't have cared whether the color matched or not, as long as Debbie was happy with it.

"No, I get it",Tara agreed with a hum. "Do you need help with anything? I'm sorry I couldn't be there when you picked out the dress. All hell broke loose in the hospital that day."

"No problem. It's probably better that way, you and Ima still don't get along that well. And no, I don't need any help anymore", Avery paused briefly and leaned forward a little, a tender smile on her dull red lips. "Would you like to be my bridesmaid?"

Tara's eyes doubled in size, her mouth dropping open. "Are you sure? Aren't Ima and Lyla already your bridesmaids?"

"Yes, they are", the redhead nodded briefly. "But one more can't hurt, right? You really helped me when you made the appointment and found a really good doctor, with whose help Happy and I really gained more hope."

"Huh?" Chibs raised an eyebrow questioningly. “You finally started planning for another child?”

Not everyone knew about her fertility issues, only Jax, Chibs and Gemma knew, along with Tara. And that was okay with Avery.

"Well, sort of." Avery smiled sheepishly as she pushed a piece of hair behind her ear. "I only started taking the necessary vitamins and nutrients two weeks ago to support the whole thing. So we're still at the beginning."

"Seriously?" Tara's smile reached from ear to ear. "I'm glad to hear that. It's nice that the doctor helped you so much. And on the other topic, it would be an honor to be your bridesmaid."

"Yes...seriously. This is all still new for me", Avery told them with a soft laugh. "I probably won't believe it until it actually works. When it works", she added.

Just because there was a chance didn't mean it had to work and Avery didn't want to get her hopes up just yet. She still wanted to stay positive though.

Chibs placed an encouraging hand on Avery's. "Give it time. It will work out if it's meant t' be, lass."

"I see it like Chibs", Tara agreed eagerly. “Don’t put pressure on yourself and just let it happen.”

"You two are great", she said emotionally, placing a hand on Chibs'. "Has Happy talked to you yet?", she asked as unobtrusively as possible.

“About what?” the Scot asked.

"Uh, about...well..", she stammered.

"I'm just kidding." Chibs let out a laugh and patted Avery's hand with his free one. "I'll be his best man, he asked me this morning."

"Okay, perfect. Then I now have my bridesmaids and Happy his best man. We have Debbie as the flower girl and Abel as the ring bearer", she nodded happily and let out a sigh of relief. "That's good."

"Maybe you'll finally be able to sleep better tonight knowing that everything's going to work out", Tara teased with a grin before slipping into her bridesmaid mode. "Then on the wedding day I'll just come over and help you get dressed and all that? Do you want me to wear anything specific?"

"I'll leave you girls alone." With a smile, Chibs stood up, knocked on the table and went back over to the bar where Bobby was still sitting and talking Rat.

Avery turned back to Tara and thought for a moment. "Yes, that would be good if you could come over early that day. Lyla does my make-up and Ima does my hair. You're welcome to help me with the dress and everything. My mom and Gemma are watching the kids, I'm sure they can also watch Abel and Thomas."

She looked at the brunette a little nervous. "Is it okay for you if Ima is there? I don't want any fights that day", she asked without seeming unfriendly. But she really wanted the day to be peaceful.

"And no, you can wear whatever you want. I wanted to leave it up to you guys", she added with a smile.

The doctor hesitated and weighed her head back and forth, but then shook it. "No, that's not a problem for me. I don't like her, and I never willᅳ but now that she's sort of dating Lyla, I can relax a little."

"I know you guys don't have a great past. But Ima really isn't the person anymore she used to be", Avery promised, her voice soft, and patted Tara's hand. "Okay, perfect. Then that would be settled."

"Yeah, maybe, but there were still things that happened that I just don't want to forgive her for", Tara answered honestly and Avery just shrugged her shoulders.

"That's okay. What happened between you stays between you. I won't tell anyone what to do." As long as the two of them got along for her wedding day, she was happy.

The corners  of Tara's mouth twitched upwards. "Thank you for remaining so neutral and not taking a side."

"Why should I? Ima is my best friend, but you are also my friend", Avery explained, never taking sides unless necessary. "And that's okay for Ima too."

"Okay", Tara nodded slightly, then she reached into her bag that was hanging over the chair and pulled a card out of her wallet, which she slid across the table. "The bakery has really good stuff, I order regularly  from them. I ordered a cake for Abel's birthday last year. If you don't have a cake yet, I could take care of it."

Avery picked up the card and hummed softly. It was sweet of Tara to think about this. "Well, I haven't ordered a cake yet. I don't know if Gemma or the others have already secretly planned something, but you could ask them. If not, I'll give you free hand. Just give us the bill."

Tara snorted in dismay. "If I get you a cake, I don't want any money for it. That would be a gift from Jax and me."

"You're sweet, thank you", Avery smiled reassuringly before glancing at the clock. "Do you know when the guys are coming back? Happy and I wanted to pack tonight before we leave tomorrow."

"Oh right, you wanted to visit his mom and then take her to Charming so she could be at the wedding", Tara remembered. "Uh, actually they should be back soon. Jax said earlier that it shouldn't take longer than three hours."

"Yes, she's really happy and really wants to be there. And if we leave tomorrow we can spend a few more days with her before the wedding", Avery said eagerly, already looking forward to visiting her future mother-in-law.

She had liked Maria from the start. Never once did it occur to the older woman to judge Avery for her past after she decided to tell her the truth about how she met Happy. Instead, Maria was incredibly happy that Debbie finally had a real mother and her son had a girlfriend.

"I'm glad you get along so well with his mom. Not everyone is that lucky", Tara said with a strained smile.

Avery put a hand on Tara's arm, smiling. "Hey, you and Gemma are on the right track. You get along better than you did a year ago."

"That’s true", even the doctor had to admit. "Who knows, maybe one day things will work out just as well between us as between you and Happy's mom."

"I'm sure it will if everything stays the way it is now." By which Avery meant that Tara wouldn't change her mind again.

Wanting to leave Charming and Jax with the boys had hurt Gemma deeply and betrayed her trust. Avery didn't know all the details and she didn't want to poke her nose into anyone else's businessᅳ but she hoped that the two women could build a bond again.

ᚔ

Debbie's laughter echoed throughout the house as Happy chased and caught her to tickle her while Avery packed a large duffel bag for them and listened to the laughter that had become one of her favorite sounds.

Hearing that Debbie was happy and safe was reason enough to make Avery and Happy happy too. After telling the five-year-old about Kim's death, both of them were afraid that Debbie might get upset.

But here they were, six months later and Debbie was happier than ever. No one made fun of her stuttering anymore or was disappointed when her stuttering got worse againᅳ which had gotten a lot better thanks to speech therapy.

Of course there were times, especially when Debbie was nervous or excited, when her stuttering became stronger again. However, she felt safe enough not to be ashamed of it and simply accepted it as it was without becoming sad.

"You need help?" Happy poked his head in the room and smiled to himself as he eyed his fiancée. "You look good, babe."

"Oh yeah?", she asked with a grin as she let her gaze wander to him. "So sweatpants and a messy bun are enough now to make you happy?"

"Yeah, why not?", he asked with a shrug after crossing the room before he wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. "You could walk around in a trash bag and I'd still fuck you anytime."

Biting her bottom lip, the redhead leaned into him and closed her eyes as his lips trailed down her neck, peppering kisses along it. Warmth immediately spread between her legs as the pleasure began to build up in her abdomen.

"Babe, Debbie's still awake. We can't", she mumbled, sounding more like a desperate whine.

"I told her to brush her teeth and to clean her room",  he rasped against her ear, the material of his jeans slowly tightening around his crotch. "We have a few minutes."

"Daddy! I brushed my teeth", came from next door, eliciting a groan from Happy.

"Told you", Avery chuckled in amusement as she turned in his arms and kissed himᅳ a gentle but longing kiss. "I'm  sure we'll have a few minutes to ourselves later."

"We better", he grunted close to her lips, squeezing her hips gently. "Or I'll lose my mind."

"We just had sex yesterday, you won't die if we don't find time tonight, Lowman", she said teasingly, dodging with a laugh as he threw a shirt at her.

"Daddy! I'm hiding, you have to look for me", Debbie shouted through the house again as they could hear her giggling and her little steps padding across the floor.

"I'm on my way", Happy hollered back. "Hide well!"

“Come on, daddy, go look for her", the redhead winked with a smirk while she continued folding the rest of the clothes. "You can take care of me later", she added seductively.

"Oh I will, little girl. After all, we want another  one of those whirlwinds, right?", he chuckled before leaving the bedroom again, leaving Avery shaking her head with a soft laugh.