WITH HER ARMS CROSSED, Tessa leaned in the doorway of their bedroom and watched the scene in awe. Summer was lying on Happy's chest, her soft snoring mixed with that of Sawyer's, who was lying in Happy's arm, cuddled into his father's side, while Happy's other arm was always around the small bundle on his chest so that Summer couldn't roll off. Sawyer held on tightly to his little sister's hand, not even letting go in his sleep, while Baxter slept at the foot of the bed, always keeping them company.

The idea that she would ever have a family of her own with the man she only knew as her stepmother's son a few years ago and had hardly any contact with him was still sometimes baffling to her today. But her happiness was all she needed to know that she had made the right decision back then.

If she hadn't stormed into the clubhouse that Friday night completely off track to look for none other than Happy Lowman, she probably wouldn't have his last name in less than two months. So, as terrible as the reason for her visit to the clubhouse had been, it had also been the path to her happiness.

"Why are you still standing there?" When Happy's gruff words pulled her out of her thoughts, Tessa cleared her throat just before letting out a soft laugh.

With a click of her tongue, she returned his cheeky grin. "Maybe because I like watching my fiancé being the best father in the world?"

"You know exactly what to say", he countered with a proud grin as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes with his thumb and forefinger and checked to see if Summer's head was turned sideways so she could breathe. Then he patted the mattress next to him. "Come here, baby."

Bending backwards a little, Tessa glanced into the hallway, grimacing at the mess of laundry she had sorted on the floor earlier to wash. "I still have to do the laundry."

"Woman, get your stubborn, pretty ass over here right now", Happy demanded as he beckoned her towards him with his fingers. "Laundry can wait."

He couldn't care less about the laundry, he preferred to collect memories with his family that he himself never had as a child. Maybe that's why it was so important to him to spend as much time as possible with Sawyer and Summerᅳ because he never had a father figure. Just a drunken deadbeat and that only until he was ten years old.

His family was so important to him that he had even put the club on the back burner, but that didn't mean that he was absentᅳ he was just at home most of the time and only available when he was needed. Especially in the first few weeks, he wanted to support Tessa as much as possible.

"Because of you, I'm letting the whole housework slide", she said, giggling softly as she sought comfort in his arm and laid her head on his chest after stealing a gentle kiss from his lips. Without waking Summer, she ran her hand over the girl's tiny head, humming contentedly. "I could look at them both all day."

"And? I can help you later", Happy said with a slight, barely noticeable shrug. His fingers danced up Tessa's arm, tracing her tattoos. "Yeah, it's pretty hard not to stare at them all the time."

"You're the best", the raven-haired woman whispered with a small smile, knowing that she definitely had the best man. Not everyone was ready to support their woman like that.

She lovingly brushed a few blonde strands from Sawyer's forehead. "And why shouldn't we? I think it's good for both of them to have their parents around so much."

Precisely because Tessa had never received the love and affection, she showered her own children with it all the moreᅳ but without constraining them or raising them to be spoiled brats. But you could never give too much love to a partner or a child.

Happy nodded in agreement, followed by a grunt. "When are Gemma, Tara and Lyla picking you up?"

"About two hours", Tessa replied, her brown eyes meeting his. "Is it really okay if I go? I can stay here, I don't mind."

"Why? I have the kids under control, and Jax wanted to come over later anyway." And who was he to deny his Old Lady an afternoon with the girls? A grin formed on his lips. "Besides, I want you to find your dress so we can finally get married."

"Sure, don't put any extra pressure on me." Tessa let out an amused snort through her nose, sometimes hating how hard it actually was to find the dress. "I hope I'll finally find one."

"You will, and you'll look perfect in it, little girl", he croaked close to her lips, only to entangle them in a searing kiss that left them both breathless the next moment.

Happy's hunger had only grown after the pregnancy. The fact that the woman next to him had given birth to his daughter had only made him fall harder for her and he was almost unable to keep his hands off her. Of course, they had waited two months before having sex again, after all, he wanted to give Tessa's body enough time to recover.

It was Summer's whining and then her soft cries that interrupted the moment, drawing a laugh from both of them.

"Either we have bad timing, or she can practically taste when we don't have our attention on her", Tessa noted as she sat up and scooped their daughter from Happy's chest into her arms. "Are you hungry, baby? It's okay, mommy's here."

"At least one of us is still sleeping", Happy grinned as he glanced down at Sawyer. Surprisingly, the boy never woke up when Summer cried at night or even early in the morningᅳ which was good.

Tessa only waved her hand after exposing a breast so she could feed Summer. "I'm telling you, that boy can sleep like a rock."

"I mean, better than if he were constantly waking up", the SAA stated, gently rolling Sawyer to the side so he could sit up and lean against the headboard as he watched his Old Lady breastfeed their daughter, the tiniest of smiles gracing his lips. "You're beautiful, you know that?"

Tessa, sitting on the bed cross-legged with a messy bun on top of her head and still in her pajamas, raised a skeptical eyebrow. "You know what I look like right now. Or do you need glasses now?"

The SAA sucked on his teeth before a gruff laugh vibrated through his chest as Tessa's lips rolled into a cheeky grin. "You better watch your words, woman."

"Or what?", Tessa provoked playfully, biting her lip. "You gonna punish me?"

"Don't start this", Happy warned with a grunt, almost frustrated, trying not to imagine how he could 'punish' the woman next to him. He knew exactly what she was getting at and damn it, he definitely needed another hour or two alone with Tessa in the house soon. "You can't make insinuations and then leave me here alone."

"Aww, poor thing", Tessa giggled before flashing him a sweet, innocent smile. "Maybe I have a surprise for you tonight."

"Oh yeah?" Happy's eyebrow shot up in curiosity. "What kind?"

"It wouldn't be a surprise if I told you about it", the Laney woman replied in a 'duh' tone, shaking her head with a grin as Happy just looked at her grimly. "Be patient, you won't regret it", she added chirping.

"It better be something really good, woman." He grumbled and ran a hand over his face before he leaned forward to place a kiss on Tessa's forehead and then on Summer's. "I'm taking a shower, then I'll make us breakfast."

"Okay, thanks", Tessa nodded, knowing he wouldn't let her argue with him about this anyway. It was also nice to have someone who took care of breakfast now and then. "I love you."

"I love you too", Happy rasped with a grin before he slid out of bed, disappearing into the adjoining bathroom only a moment later.

When Tessa heard the water running, she slid back, leaned against the headboard and hummed a song to Summer while she gently ran her hand up and down Sawyer's back to slowly wake him up.

While many said that they found the newborn phase the hardest, Tessa couldn't get enough of itᅳ but she was also really lucky to have such a support system.

ᅳ

THE STORE BUZZED with people coming and going while the four women calmly looked for a perfect dress for Tessa. Since she knew that Jax and Chibs were with Happy and could help him out with the kids, Tessa didn't feel quite so guilty about leaving her fiancé alone with a five-year-old and a three-month-old baby.

"Tess, over here!" Lyla excitedly waved her friend over. "I think this could be the one for you."

"It's really nice", Tara agreed, immediately glancing over Gemma's shoulder to catch a glimpse of the dress. "You definitely have to try that on!"

"Mhm..I think so too." Gemma's heels clicked against the light floor as she walked over to the clothes rack to look at the dress, another one already neatly draped over her arm. "I think that's enough for now. I finally wanna see some dresses", the matriarch said impatiently and hurried Tessa resolutely towards the changing cabins.

Shaking her head, the young woman almost tripped over her own feet. "Let me see the dress first, Gem!"

"You will as soon as you try it on, baby", Gemma winked, shooing the young woman the last bit into the spacious changing cabin. "Come on, take off your clothes so we can finally get started."

"Jeez, give the poor woman some room to breathe", Tara said with a chuckle as she hung two dresses next to the changing cabin. "Okay, we have five dresses now."

At the sight of the dresses, even though they were all black and not really Tara's style, the woman herself became quite emotional and would love to marry Jax again and this time properly, with everything that screams wedding.

Lyla, on the other hand, just sank into one of the upholstered armchairs and smiled wistfully at the sight of all the bridal things, a small reminder of her big day with Opie back then. No matter how ugly their marriage had ended, she had genuinely loved the manᅳ even if he could never quite return that love because his heart still belonged to Donna.

"Okay, you can give me the first dress", Tessa called before sticking her head out of the curtain around the cabin. "Maybe the simpler dresses first."

"On the way." Completely in her element, Gemma grabbed the first dress, a black A-line with lace appliqués. "Let me in, I'll help you."

"I think that would be good", Tessa nodded thoughtfully before letting the matriarch slip through the curtain, smiling to herself when she only heard the other two giggling from outside.

That could definitely take a few hours and be nerve-wracking. But it was worth it for their big day.

ᅳ

MEANWHILE, JAX SAT ON the couch, his goddaughter in his arms, pulling faces to make the little girl laugh, which was more of a big smile and a few noiseless laughs.

"So, how's family life, brother?", Chibs asked while he and the three boys were building a castle for the dragon figures on the floor. "Is it the way ye' imagined it?"

"Better than imagined", Happy answered honestly and straight forward as he nursed his beer, raising a corner of his mouth. "Never thought I'd need a wife and kids to be happy, but I couldn't imagine life without them anymore."

"Aye, that's how it should be", Chibs replied with a wink, his accent thick with sincerity. "Yer' lucky t' have yer' family with ye', enjoy every minute of it."

"I do, man, I really do." Happy nodded appreciatively at the Scotsman. Only since he himself was a father and had an Old Lady could he imagine how horrible it must've been for Chibs to lose his family back then. "What about your family? Jimmy O's been gone for a while. Why don't you bring Fiona and Kerrianne here?"

"Yeah, that would be the perfect opportunity", Jax chimed in, his forehead wrinkled as he glanced at his VP. "Didn't Fi want you to spend more time with Kerrianne anyway?"

"Aye, but Ireland is Kerrianne's home, I don't want t' be the one t' take tha' away from her. And of course Fi wants t' stay with her", Chibs explained with a deep sigh and a shrug. "We talk regularly and maybe she'll come here soon, but only for a few weeks."

Sighing, Jax shook his head. He absolutely couldn't imagine a life without Tara, Abel and Thomas. "I'm sorry, man."

With a slight nod of his head, Chibs just waved it off. "It's okay, better than having no contact with them at all."

"That's right", Happy grunted in agreement, noticing that Chibs wasn't the biggest fan of this topic, which is why he changed it. "Are you still going to walk Tessa down the aisle?"

Almost feeling insulted, Chibs lifted an eyebrow, the corners of his mouth twitching slightly. "Why should anything change? The girl is like a daughter t' me, of course I'll walk her down the aisle."

"Okay, I just wanted to ask", Happy grumbled with a small smirk, earning a chuckle from Jax, who stood up with Summer in his arms when the girl started fussing.

"Maybe Tara and I should get another one, too", the blonde pondered with his famous Teller smirk, yet there was a certain seriousness in his words.

"Do it, Jacky boy, yer' still young." Chibs ruffled the boys' hair before he got up, stretching his back. "It can't hurt t' bring more kids into the club."

Happy nodded curtly. "I agree with that. Can't hurt to have more around."

"Trueᅳ and they have enough people to spoil them", the blonde nodded, the leather of his kutte squeaking with each rocking motion. "At least they show us what's really important."

At this point, everyone in the room could only agree. Samcro might be a bunch of scary-looking bikers, but their priority had always been family. Family was something that made almost every single member of the Sons soft. And no one would have it any other way.

word count; 2432

ᅳ

authors note; only one more chapter left! 🖤🥀