⚠️ mention of blood, violence.

AS THEY STOOD in the former storage hall that was now the porn studio Tessa was working at, Chibs, as the Gentleman he could be, kept his gaze on something else, trying his best not to make the young woman feel stared at. Tessa felt uncomfortable enough that they showed up with her at work now, which he understood, but it was necessary as long as this Cal guy was still walking around.

Happy on the other hand literally stared her down as his arms crossed over his chest, the toothpick between his lips almost snapping under the pressure of his clenched jaw. The Killer still hated this job for her. Watching her do her job just fueled his jealousy to a level he almost lost his shit when the photographer told her to get rid of her bra.

"Wanna wait outside, brother?" With Chibs' accent thick, he put a hand on Happy's shoulder, squeezing it. "I can stay here, watch 'er for you."

"No", Happy said in a low growl, not once taking his eyes off the scene unfolding on the bed that stood in a corner next to other sets.

Tessa felt a wave of insecurity washing over her when the director demanded she lose her bottoms too. However, what Ima did within a few seconds made the raven-haired woman hesitate. It wasn't the first time she had taken off her clothes for pictures, but it was the first time that the man, for whom she really felt something, was watching her get naked for others. And a quick glance to the side was enough to see that Happy wasn't thrilled, seething actually.

"What's your damn problem?" Ima hissed in a whisper, her fingers already sliding into the straps of Tessa's thong to help her without being asked.

"Don't you fuckin' dare to decide shit for me, you hear me?" Tessa firmly grasped the blonde's wrists, pushing Ima's hands away as she glared at the blonde.

With a huff, Ima backed away a little, only then did her gaze slide past Tessa's, straight to Happy, who looked all ready to intervene at any moment. Letting out a humorless laugh, Ima clicked her tongue as she realized what the actual problem was, studying Tessa.

"Is it because of him?", she asked, sounding almost amused as she pointed her finger at Happy.

"Just save your breath and shut up", Tessa muttered, dismissing that it was definitely because of Happy.

"Girls, what's this about? Lose your clothes", the photographer called over as an annoyed expression crossed his hard, stern features. "I don't have all day."

"Give us a damn moment, would you?" Tessa told the man with a scowl on her face. He was the one in charge, she knew that, but she wasn't one to let others make her feel uncomfortableᅳ not anymore.

"Listen to me." Ima roughly grabbed Tessa's arm, practically forcing the younger one to pay attention to her. Once the blonde had it, she leaned in a little. "You think he's serious about you? Girl, you have no fuckin' idea", a grin took over her face. "One day you'll find him face down in some Croweater's pussy, eating her out like he's a starved man, leaving you heartbroken. So snap the fuck out of your fairytale story, thinking that he's the one, and do your job before you get me in trouble."

Ima's almost devilish grin grew as Tessa's lips parted. She could tell tears were brimming in her eyes, causing her to let out a chuckle. "Please don't tell me you're going to cry now. You won't, right?"

"Fuck you, Ima." The Laney woman shifted, frantically looking around. Looking everywhere so she wouldn't have to look at the blonde making fun of her, humiliating her in front of a camera, and, the man she really cared about. "I'm done here."

"No!" Once again Ima's nails dug into her skin as Tessa was ready to climb out of the bed they were sitting on, giving her a stern glare. "I can tell you something; he's been between my legs more than once alreadyᅳ and definitely not the last time. Because if you ruin this job for me", leaning in again, Ima's lips almost touched Tessa's ear. "I'm gonna make sure I'll be the one riding him the next chance I get."

That was it, Tessa's blood boiled over. Just as she was about to swing her fist into Ima's face, a loud whistle echoed through the room. Her eyes followed the noise and landed on their boss and the man standing next to Gregor.

"I'm sorry for the short interruption, but I would like to have your attention for a moment", he called across the room to gather all of his employees. As soon as everyone had gathered, some only in their underwear, the others in bathrobes that they had quickly put on, Gregor continued.

"This is Caledon", his hand slipped onto the shoulder of the man next to him, showing his teeth as he smiled widely. "My new junior boss. I wanted to take a break so I can spend more time with my family. Until I'm back please talk to Caledon if you have any questions."

Tessa's mouth hung open, her heart beating so hard it was about to burst out of her chest. Cal, whom she was seeing for the first time in almost five years, gave her a confident, utterly devilish grin, a vengeful glint in his eyes. That was exactly his plan, to slowly get close to her, to scare her, to let her know that he had the power.

She had last heard from him two weeks ago, two weeks that were pure hell for Tessa. Not knowing when he would strike again, where he was. Juice had done so much research but found nothing about him except his old address, which Tessa already knewᅳ where Happy, Jax and Tig had even driven by in person a few days ago to see if he was there, if there was any clue that gave away where he was staying.

But they hadn't found anything, and Cal hadn't sent her another text. Instead, he let her flounder in uncertainty until he finally found a way to be close to her.

Her name was called from all sides, but she didn't react, the voices too muffled, as if her head was under water. Her feet carried her to the man for whom she felt nothing but hatred and disgust, unable to control the anger that bubbled up inside her.

Happy, after he immediately understood what was going on and that the exact Cal they were looking for was standing next to Gregor, met her halfway, but Tessa reached her ex faster and pushed him back with full force. Her hands, sometimes flat, sometimes clenched into fists, hit his chest again and again, always sending the man back a little further as his chest heaved violently, his breaths coming in gasps.

"Stay away from Sawyer and me!" She didn't care how hysterical she sounded or looked. Her make-up had long since run down her face, mixed with the tears of anger that rolled down her cheeks and slid from her chin and dribbled down on her chest.

Before she had stormed towards him, she had grabbed the first top that was next to the set in order to at least keep some dignity.

"Stupid whore!" Cal let out a huff, a sneer taking over his face as he studied his ex, standing in front of him in only a tight shirt and her thong, her chest violently rising and falling. With a chuckle, he pushed her back. "I should've kept fingerbanging you, or maybe I should've chosen to fuck your ass more often instead of dipping my cock in that rancid pussy of yours. That would've saved us from the bastard you gave birth to!"

"Don't talk about my son like that", Tessa snarled, more tears gathering in her brown eyes. She hated being unable to control her emotions when she was angryᅳ angry enough to want to wring Cal's neck with her bare hands. Her eyes landed on the marks in the crook of his arm, a bitter laugh escaping her throat. "I really hope that one day you just finally choke on your own vomit from shooting too much dope, you twisted fuck", Tessa spat, glaring up at the man whose body started to tremble with anger. "That would make a lot of people's lives better."

"Got a little too brave, huh?" Cal slapped her across the face before he shoved her into the wall, laughing at her like the bully he was, his forearm held against her throat. But he couldn't enjoy the sight for long as he was dragged away from her before he could utter another word.

Everything else happened pretty fast. Happy wanted to give Tessa the chance to get some shit off her chest, to get rid of her angerᅳ but the moment Cal laid hands on his woman, the SAA saw red. With tunnel vision, he threw himself at the much younger man, ignoring Tessa's pleas and the shocked exclamations of the other actors and producers.

Cal had tried to defend himself for the first few seconds, but Happy was too strong, too angry, too focused on killing the bastard. Blow after blow landed on Cal's face, Happy's other hand wrapped around the collar of Cal's shirt to keep him in place.

Happy's veins stood out on his forehead and temples, pulsating and about to burst. His knuckles were already covered in Cal's blood, some splashes landing on his face and the bright floor as he beat the living shit out of the younger man.

"Get your boyfriend under control!" Gregor angrily glared at the twenty-one year old as she stood frozen in front of the scene, covering her mouth with her hands while another man in a Kutte, Chibs, held her back, his arm wrapped around her waist. "He's scaring my employees, Tessa. Fuckin' do something!"

"Hey, better control your' tone before yer' next", Chibs warned as he let go of Tessa and took slow, menacing steps towards Gregor, scaring the man simply with his demeanour. "Do we understand each other? Ye' should be more careful about t' people ye' hire, friend", the Scot spat the last word at the slightly younger man.

Gregor raised his hands in surrender, not willing to pick a fight with a Son, that could cost him his business. "Okay, I'm sorry. But get your friend out of hereᅳ this isn't the right place for shit like this."

A loud screech erupted as a few splashes of blood landed on Ima's feet, who stood wide-eyed next to the scene. "Get him off him, he's killing him!"

Panic rushed through Tessa's veins as Cal's eyes rolled into the back of his head and he lost consciousness. The scene was violent enough, and, only now, did Tessa truly realize how dangerous Happy could become, how far he would actually go to protect his family. Shocked at her own thinking, that she found this somehow romantic, she swallowed quietly. Maybe she was fucked up, but Cal deserved every single punch. Fuck, he deserved much more than just that.

And yet Tessa didn't want this to bite Happy in the ass one day. When she overheard a conversation between two producers and heard that one was about to call the Cops, Tessa rushed towards Happy, her eyes almost popping out of their sockets when she saw Cal's deformed face, his arms motionlessly falling to the sides.

"Happy, stop!" Desperation evident in her tone, Tessa tugged at the sleeve of Happy's hoodie, but he only yanked his arm out of her grip, too caught up in his own world to snap back to reality. "You're killing him!"

Chibs came to help, grabbing Happy's other arm, but even the Scot, who could normally easily manhandle most people, had trouble dragging the SAA away from Cal. At least Gregor made sure the others disappeared into the changing rooms.

"Fuck! What are we gonna do, Chibs?!" Frustrated and frightened at the same time, Tessa groaned as she tugged at Happy's sleeve again, something she was about to regret in a moment.

In his angry state, Happy accidentally elbowed Tessa, her nose instantly starting to bleed after it had made a cracking sound, only then did Happy snap out of his state. Staring up at her as she covered her bleeding nose, his eyes filled with horror.

"Jesus Christ, Hap!" Chibs ran both hands over his face, helping his friend to his feet.

Stumbling towards her, Happy cupped Tessa's face, his hands completely covered in Cal's blood. Breathing heavily, still in fight mode, he rubbed his thumbs along her cheekbones, a huge lump forming in his throat as new tears formed in Tessa's eyes.

"Fuck, I didn't mean to hurt you", he declared with a rasp, feeling genuine guilt as he realized that he was now the one who physically hurt her. Cradling her face closer, he carefully removed her hand from her nose, which she let him to with a whimper of pain, and swallowed quietly. "Tara needs to look at this, now."

Tessa, the lump in her throat too big to say anything, just nodded. She quickly caught another gush of blood, her hand under her nose again after seemingly jerking her head too quickly.

"Go", Chibs ordered, tilting his head back with a deep sigh before looking around. Grabbing a piece of clothing from the floor, he handed it to Tessa. "Hold it under yer' nose until Tara takes care of it. You'll be okay, lass."

"Thanks, Chibs", Tessa murmured as she took the piece he gave her, not interested in who it belonged to.

"I'm fuckin' sorry, little girl." Running both hands over his bald head, Happy then reached for a bathrobe that Tessa had already worn before the shoot and placed it over her shoulders. "Chibs? Can you take care of that fucker?"

"Aye, now go", the Scot ordered sternly before shoving his forearms under the man's armpits, dragging his body into a quieter corner. Letting out a deep sigh, he called Tig for help.

"Okay, let's go. You ride with me, we'll take my bike", Happy said, his voice thick with concern as he led her outside, his hand gently pressed against her back. He didn't want to waste any more time. "Can you call Tara and tell her to meet us at the clubhouse?"

"Yeah, I think I can do that", Tessa nodded, carefully this time, casting a shy look at Happy as they stood in front of his bike. She gently grabbed his wrist as he frantically searched for his keys in all his pockets. "Hap, it's okay. I know you didn't mean to hurt me."

"That shit should've never happened, Tess", he snarled, angry at himself, letting out a somewhat wheezing sound. "I'm not a bit better than that fucker in there!"

The look he gave her, the vulnerability in it, made her heart ache. Tessa could see how much he hated himself at the moment, which only proved that Happy wasn't a fundamentally bad person. Her features immediately softened even further than they already were, a gleam of understanding in her watery eyes.

"Stop saying shit like that, Happy. You're nothing like him." She shook her head slowly as she removed her fingers from his wrist to place her hand against his cheek. A smile, hidden by the cloth under her nose, played around her lips as he allowed her touch, even nuzzling his cheek into her palm. "I shouldn't have gotten in-between but...", she took a deep breath, her face tense. "I didn't want you to end up in jail or have blood on your hands because of meᅳ it's not worth it."

With his eyebrows furrowed, Happy let out a huff. With his hand now resting on her hip, he brought her body close against his, making sure there was no space left between them.

"You're worth it, little girl", he croaked with such conviction that Tessa couldn't even question his words. "Now get on the bike."

Tessa obeyed immediately, part of her bottom lip tugged between her teeth as she thought about his words. Waiting until he was on his bike, she also climbed onto the bike, using one hand that she had rested on his shoulder for support before she wrapped her free arm around his waist as best as she could.

With a soft sigh, she let her head fall against his back, the clothing item still pressed against her nose as she felt the bike vibrate, roaring to life.

ᚔ

"YOU'LL BE FINE. It might start bleeding now and then the next few days but at least it's not broken", Tara assured her friend with a small smile, taking off her gloves before throwing them in her bag, sending Happy a glare . "How did this even happen?"

"Doesn't matter," Tessa told the brunette, her voice soft, not wanting anyone to get mad at Happy for accidentally hurting her. But Tara had also just saved her an expensive hospital bill. "Shit just happened."

"Nah, come on, what happened?", Jax also wanted to know, too curious not to ask. And he had a right to know what had happened since another woman in his club got hurt.

"I elbowed her", Happy grunted, guilt flashing in his dark orbs as he shot Tessa an apologetic look, for the tenth time since his elbow had met her face. "Still sorry about that, little girl."

Tessa swallowed dryly at the pet name he had called her. It hadn't been the first time, yet she always felt her cheeks heat up. Why the fuck was her heartbeat speeding up so quickly? It felt like a thousand butterflies were flying around in her stomach, sending a warm feeling up her chest.

"You know you don't have to apologize, it was an accident. I told you that alreadyᅳ more than once", she repeated firmly, the smallest smile tugging on her lips. "It's okay."

"Jesus, Hap." Jax exhaled loudly, running a hand over his face. "How did that even happen in the first place?"

"Her sorry excuse of an ex came out of fuckin' nowhere. You think I'm going to watch him lay a hand on her?" A deep growl rattled through Happy's throat as he thought back to the moment Cal had pushed Tessa into the wall after slapping her across the face.

"Your ex showed up?!", Tara's eyes widened with shock while she closed the zipper of her bag.

Tessa nodded weakly, her chest once again filled with fear and unease. "Yes, he applied to be the junior manager at the studio. I guess that means I'll have to quit."

With worry evident in her brown eyes, Tara squeezed her friend's arm in a comforting way, knowing how scary this must be for her. "You'll find something new, Tessa, and the CPS lady will understand that. But you keep working there."

The two men exchanged a knowing look, but decided not to say anything in front of the women for now. They would ensure that Caledon would definitely not stay in Charmingᅳ or alive. After attacking Tara and now Tessa, he had signed his own death warrant.

"I know that." Sighing, Tessa rubbed her temples, hoping to ease the pounding in her head. "This all happened because of me."

"Hey, I told you I don't wanna hear this shit again, woman." The authority in Happy's raspy voice immediately silenced Tessa, causing her to look at him and nod slightly, knowing that she could drive him crazy with those words.

"I'm sorry", she apologized sheepishly, not in the best state to even think about starting a discussion.

Somehow Happy always managed to tame her without suppressing herᅳ and Tessa liked it, she needed that sometimes.

"Come on, let's give them a minute", Jax told his wife as he noticed the look Happy and Tessa shared, a look full of appreciationᅳ both of them definitely pussy whipped and in love.

As soon as the Teller's were gone, giving Happy and Tessa the moment alone that they needed, Tessa slowly got up and nervously fiddled with her hands, sheepishly looking up at the tall biker.

"Why did you do this for me today?", she asked softly, clarifying what she meant after she noticed the confusion crossing Happy's hard features. "Beating the living shit out of Cal, not giving a shit if he died."

Happy hesitated a moment, thinking whether it was a good idea to finally say it out loud why he would go this far for her. Silence fell over them, a long, comfortable silence as he stared down at her beautiful face, taking in every inch of it, studying her like the most interesting book.

They had shared such moments so many times now and every single time they got interrupted or something came in between.

Then, without saying anything, not wasting any time this time, he leaned in, his calloused palm brushing against her cheek before his hand slipped to her neck. Happy noticed how shallow her breathing became, how she tensed up under his touch, yet he still dared to do what he wanted to do for weeks.

Closing the little gap that was still left between them, he captured her lips, cradling her head even closer as her hands immediately gripped the collar of his Kutte as she gave in to the kiss. Their eyes closed as neither of them stopped the kiss from becoming more passionate, both of them craving more, cherished this moment.

For a while their tongues fought for dominance until Tessa finally gave up and gave Happy the upper hand, whimpering into the harsh, yet slow kiss, ignoring the pain her nose caused her.

Happy had to pull away, his jeans already feeling way too tight around his crotch. His hand still resting on her neck, he rubbed his thumb against her soft skin, nothing but sincerity in his eyes as their eyes locked once again.

"Because I really fuckin' like you, that's why", he rasped against her still parted lips, a shaky breath slipping past her's, making Happy grin slightly. "Is that reason good enough?"

"Y-yes," Tessa stuttered, still completely stunned by the kiss that had just taken place. Right now she was glad that Happy's arm was around her waist and holding her close, because without his support she would probably faint, her knees too weak. "I want you, I want all of you, Hap."

As she whispered the words against his lips, her tone seductive and filled with lust, Happy growled against her lips, his fingers closing around a bunch of her hair, drawing a needy whimper from her as he gave them a sharp yet not too painful tug.

"Then we should head home, little girl", he mumbled against her lips before pulling away, a lustful glint in his almost black eyes. Grabbing her hand, he gently dragged her outside to his bike, her soft giggle echoing across the yard.

Knowing that Sawyer was in good hands with Gemma, she wanted to make the most of the next few hours with Happy and finally do what she had been longing for for weeks.

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