It's not an easy decision to walk away from the only life you've ever known and away from the only man you've ever loved.

"Damnit!" Tara Knowles screamed in frustration as the lid came off of the ice water and poured down her shirt-the shirt she had picked out specifically for this interview she was now almost late for.

She pulled her suitcase out of her back seat and started looking for a shirt to replace the one the idiot at the drive thru just caused her to get soaked by not putting the lid on the cup all of the way. She pulled out a black Metallica t-shirt. It wasn't something she normally would have worn to an interview but it was probably the only thing in the whole bag that was clean.

She had left her in quite a hurry so none of her "good clothes" had been washed yet. It took all of the money she had been able to save back to make the drive from Chicago to Charming. She was starting to rethink her decision since she just spent her last fifty cents to buy this damn ice water that was now all over her shirt instead of quenching her thirst. She didn't even have money to rent a motel. She had been sleeping in her car for two days. She would have had a lot more money if her stupid-crazy-ex wouldn't have messed with their bank account so she couldn't access the money, her own money.

She pulled up in the parking lot and took a deep breath. She needed this job so she could not screw this up under any circumstances. She had already interviewed at the only other businesses in town who all said they'd let her know. She was getting the distinct impression that this town didn't particularly care to much for newcomers.

She climbed out of her car and looked around nervously. This was so far off from her typical work environment but it was the only thing left here to try to get and she really didn't want to find another town quite so soon. Not that she had the money to leave again anyways until she started working and she really liked the name of this one. "Charming." Almost as if it was out of a fairy tale. The sight in front of her now was far from the storybooks she read as a child. There were bikers and half-dressed women everywhere. It would definitely explain why they picked 7pm for an interview time, Tara had originally thought that was a joke but clearly it was not.

"Can I help you?" She was greeted by a woman in tight-fitting clothes who looked like she could see straight through her.

"I'm looking for Gemma Teller-Morrow?" Tara asked, nervously.

"...and who are you?"

"My name is Tara Knowles. I'm here for the interview at 7:00."

"It's 7:05. Follow me." Gemma led her into the office. "Have a seat."

Tara sat down.

"You're not from around here are you?"

"No-No ma'am." Tara stammered. She could feel the sweat beading up on her forehead.

"What brought you to Charming?" Gemma looked at her pointedly-studying her.

"Well I wanted a fresh start." Tara replied simply, hoping to move past this particular subject quickly.

"Where are you from?"

"Illinois"

"So what brings you half way across the country?" Gemma questioned.

Tara sighed. "As I said, a fresh start."

"Well I don't think this is going to work out, Tara. You see, this here is a family business and whatever you're hiding will no doubt bring unnecessary drama and we don't need any more of that than we already have so it was nice meeting you." Gemma stood and opened the door for Tara to leave.

Tara nodded the tears were streaming down her face. She got up and left the office and hurried off to her car.

No job equaled no money which equaled more time living in her car. She contemplated calling him and asking him to come pick her up since this was not going as she hoped it would, but that wasn't a solution either. He would beat her, maybe worse. She had promised herself that she would not live through that again so she dried her eyes, held her head high, and decided to keep trying tomorrow. Tomorrow was a new day after-all.

She was tired and hungry so she pulled back into the parking spot at the end of the parking lot of the town's grocery store to sleep. The store closed at 8 so by this time most of the people were already gone.

She was almost asleep when she heard a knock at her window. Gemma. She sighed and rolled her window down.

"What are you doing? It's not safe to sleep in your car. Anyone could just come up and mug you." Gemma narrowed her eyes at her.

"Sorry. Yeah, you're right I was just too tired to drive." Tara answered.

She noticed Gemma scoping out her car which was full of her suit-cases and boxes from the rapid move.

"You got somewhere to stay, sweetheart?" Gemma questioned as if she already knew the answer.

"Oh Yeah. I'm fine. Don't worry about me."

Gemma nodded but the look in her eyes told Tara she wasn't convinced. "Where you staying?"

"At the motel across town." Tara answered with a half-hearted smile.

"The one here in town?" Gemma questioned again.

Tara fought the urge to roll her eyes. Of course the one here in town. Where else. She just nodded again.

"Uh huh. How about you stop lying and start telling me what's really going on? There's not a motel in Charming."

Tara closed her eyes and took a breath. She could feel the tears building up again but she held them at bay.

"Okay. You're right. I'm living in my car. I have no job which means I have no money for housing or food. My car is almost out of gas so I just decided to park it here and figure it all out tomorrow." Tara confessed-too tired to keep up the charade any longer.

Gemma thought for a long moment, she never took her eyes off Tara's. "Follow me." Gemma ordered.

"Where are we going?" She asked.

"Back to my place. You can sleep there until you get back on your feet." Gemma answered. "Just so we're clear, I am going to want an explanation. If you decide to take me up on my offer to give you a warm bed, food, and plumbing then you are going to tell me why I'm doing it. No secrets. If you don't want to do that then you can stay here and sleep in your car. If you're going to bring drama into my life-into my family's life, I need to know about it upfront. Oh and as you can see, I'll be able to tell if you're lying so just tell the truth and we'll be good." Gemma stared at her waiting for a response.

"Okay." Tara whispered.

"Good. Follow me." She climbed in her car and led the way to her house.

Tara wasn't sure what to think. This woman didn't know her. Why was she helping her?

Gemma got Tara settled in the guest room, got her dirty clothes in the wash and let Tara shower.

She came back downstairs when she finished her shower just as Gemma had ordered.

"Eat." Gemma motioned toward the table that was full of fried chicken, mashed potatoes, corn, and rolls. "I heated up the left-overs from tonight's supper."

Tara sat and ate. The food was delicious.

"Now tell me. What's going on? Start from the beginning and tell me everything." Gemma sat down across from her.

Tara took a sip of her water. "My parents died in a car wreck when I was 16. We had a fight because they had told me that I was adopted. I ran out of the house like the stupid teenager I was and they were killed in a wreck while out trying to find me." She paused to wipe her eyes. She had never forgiven herself for her parents dying. "I hated myself. It was my fault. If I hadn't been a dumbass teenager, then they wouldn't have been out driving in the rain and wouldn't have slid off of the road into that tree." She paused again and took another deep breath. "Anyways, as I was put into the foster care system I was in and out of differenthomes. Each one worse than the last. One of the men thinking I was a hot young piece of ass and could sneak into my bed and do whatever he wanted to me anytime he wanted. The lady not caring either way as long as she got her check at the end of the month for me. I ran from that home and was finally placed with a nice lady who never hurt me, she let me come and go as I pleased as long as I was back in the house by 11 p.m. she didn't care. That's when I met Alec. He was a nice guy, I thought I loved him. He asked me to marry him after only a few months and I stupidly agreed being the naïve girl that I was. I honestly thought he loved me. Things changed. He became possessive, abusive, and downright scary. I knew I had to get away from him as soon as possible. I refused to be one of those people who stay in an abusive relationship for love or the idea of love." Tara paused taking a sip of water. "I started looking into my biological parents. So far I've been coming up empty handed since the family asked to remain anonymous. All I've been able to find out is that they lived in California. I don't know where in California so I looked at a map of the state and picked a city to move to. I liked the name of this town, it kind of sounded like a fairy tale and since I've been living in a nightmare, a fairytale sounded like a nice change. Here I am. It took more money than I was anticipating in gas to get here and since Alec blocked my account so I couldn't take any money out I was only able to save back a little bit." Tara stopped speaking and waited for Gemma's response.

Gemma stared at her, studying her face, her expressions. She felt a connection with this girl. She could see and hear the truth in Tara's confession. This girl had a hard life over the past few years and was doing everything in her power to better herself and her life. All she needed was a hand, a hand that Gemma was willing to give her. She didn't know what it was about this girl but she felt protective over her just like she did her own kids.

"Well sweetheart you landed yourself right in the middle of a family. A family that will do anything to help you out. We're a big family, as you'll soon see. How old are you? That's one thing you haven't said. You'll start work at TM in a few days. I'll let you get settled. We'll get rid of that car in case your ex decides to track you. We'll get you another one. Here's some money in case you need anything else that we don't have here." Gemma handed her $200.

Tara was stunned. She had never had someone go out of their way to help her especially since this woman didn't even know her. "Why? Why would you help me out like this? You hardly know me." Tara asked.

"I've never had a daughter. I've always wanted one. I can see the struggle you're facing. You shouldn't have to face it alone. As I said you have a family now." Gemma winked. "You didn't say how old you are."

"I'm 18. I'll be 19 in a few months." Tara answered, she stuffed the last piece of chicken in her mouth. She hadn't felt this full in a long time.

"I have a son that just turned 19. Jax. You'll meet him in the morning. You look exhausted, go on up to bed and rest. I'll see you in the morning at breakfast. I've got to run across town back to the office. So you'll have the house to yourself for a while." Gemma hugged her.

"Thank you." Tara whispered. "I'll find a way to repay you for all your kindness. I don't like asking people for help but you will never know how much I appreciate all of your hospitality."

"You didn't ask. I insisted. No need to thank me sweetheart." Gemma hugged her one more time before leaving.

Tara cleaned her dishes and went back upstairs to lay down. Gemma was right she was extremely tired. As soon as she laid down she felt her whole body relax. It didn't take long for her to fall soundly asleep.

She woke to a commotion downstairs a few hours later. She could feel her heart beating heavily against her chest.

She eased her way downstairs to see what the noise was. Her face flushed bright red when she saw a man in the kitchen naked drinking out of the milk jug. His back was to her, she eyed his back side up and down until he turned around and faced her giving her a full-frontal view.

"I'm…I'm…I'm sorry." She stammered, her hand shielding her eyes-fighting the urge to take another peek and turned and scurried back up the stairs to the safety of her room.

She was almost sure she wouldn't forget the sight of his impressive anatomy in the near future. She was also almost certain he was drunk by the way he kept swaying like he was going to tip over at any second so she hoped he would not remember that she had saw him naked. She would certainly remember though. She smiled to herself.

She heard another crash a few minutes later right outside of her door. She opened the door and found him passed out on his stomach.

She rolled her eyes but chuckled to herself. She didn't hesitate to check out what she could see of his muscular body, suddenly wishing he had fallen on his back instead. She internally chastised herself. She should be helping him instead of admiring his nakedness.

"Wake up." She shook him. "Come on, I can't lift you by myself. I need you to help me out a little bit."

After a few failed attempts at shaking him she went to her next option and got a pitcher of cold water. She poured it over his head and stood back waiting for whatever reaction he had-not wanting to be in the line of fire if he got up swinging at his assailant.

He jumped up and she bit back a laugh. "Come on, you passed out. Let me help you to bed.

She wrapped her arm around his waist and tried to lead him to the only other room that could be his. " Get the hell off me, bitch" He pulled away from her and slammed the door in his room.

She was stunned. "You're welcome, asshole. I could've left you laying on the cold hardwood floor." She shouted before covering her mouth in case Gemma was home.

She let the door slam behind her. He was definitely the most-sexy man she had ever laid eyes on but clearly he was a dick. She turned off her bedside lamp and curled back up under the blanket.

She woke up to the bright sun shining through her window and also the smell coming from downstairs was amazing. She threw her hair up in a messy pony-tail and followed the scent to the kitchen.

"Good morning, sweetheart. Sleep okay?" Gemma greeted her with a smile. "Clay, this is Tara. Tara, my husband Clay." Gemma introduced the two and went back to flipping pancakes.

"Nice to meet you sweetheart, want some coffee?" Clay held out a cup to her.

"Sure. Thanks. Nice to meet you too, sir." Tara graciously took the cup from him.

"Just call me Clay." He winked and went back to reading his paper.

"Jackson Teller, get your ass out of that bed." Gemma yelled up the stairs. "Breakfast is ready and you've got shit to do."

A few minutes later Jax came down the stairs. "Ah, there you are. Jax, meet Tara." Gemma stated. "You're going to be showing her the ropes today while I get some shit done at the office."

"I don't have time to babysit your little stray mother, I've got shit to do too." He protested. He didn't even look up at her.

Gemma slapped him in the back of his head.

"Fucking some crow-eater wanna-be gash is not more important than showing our guest around. Now eat your breakfast and do as your told." Gemma growled- shaking her head. Sometimes her son could be a real pain in the ass, but she had never seen him this way with a female especially a female as pretty as Tara.

Tara felt the tears welling up in her eyes. "Stray" He had just referred to her like she was an animal. "It's okay. I've already navigated around the town. I don't wanna intrude on him. Excuse me." She left her almost uneaten plate of food sitting there and ran upstairs to get dressed.

She wasn't sure what she had done to make him dislike her so intensely. She threw on her clothes and snuck back downstairs to the door. She repacked the bag she had unpacked last night. This was obviously not going to work out here as much as she hoped it would.

"Going somewhere." Jax's spoke quietly.

"Yeah. I didn't mean to intrude on your life. I'm just going to go." She stated, not looking up at him.

"Look. I'm sorry. I didn't mean what I said. I've got some shit going on and I didn't mean to take it out on you. Please don't go. You're not intruding, I'd love to show you around."

She finally looked up at him and he looked sincere. "It's okay really. I was in town a few days before I ran into your mom. I already know pretty much everything about the town." She sighed.

He placed his hand over top of hers. "Stay." He whispered.

She felt goosebumps pop up all over her body when he touched her. "Okay, It'll only be a couple of days. I really don't wanna be a bother." She took her packed bag back upstairs to her room opting to leave it packed this time so she could make a quick get-away if she needed. Jax followed her up the stairs.

"You're not a bother. I'm just an asshole sometimes, as you pointed out last night." He smirked at her and her face flushed bright red again. He had heard her and he remembered it.

"In my defense you called me a bitch." She narrowed her eyes biting back a smile.

"Yeah. Asshole remember? Sorry bout that. Really." He shrugged. "So what do ya say? You wanna go get the Jax Teller VIP tour of Charming and the surrounding areas?" He raised his eyebrows waiting on a response.

"If you're sure." She hesitated.

"I said I'm sorry for being an ass, please don't keep making me apologize for it. I'm sure. Let's go. You ever rode on a bike before?" He questioned.

"No, but I've always wanted to." She answered, she could hear the excitement in her voice and she knew he could too since he smirked at her reaction.

"Well let's go darlin." He led her outside to his bike.

She caught a glimpse of Gemma and Clay smiling at them from the corner of her eye. She shook her head, making a mental note to ask Gemma about it later…maybe.

"Here." Jax strapped a helmet to her head.

She was sure the helmet made her look dorky but she would take the dorkiness over a crushed skull any day.

"Okay, you ready?" Jax asked-getting settled in front of her. She nodded. "Hold on tight."

She held on as tight as she could. She relaxed immediately. This felt natural to her although she had never done it before-almost as if riding was in her blood.

"How was it?" He asked. The expression on her face told him everything he needed to know. She loved it.

"It was exhilarating!" She exclaimed. She was excited and ready to go again. She hopped off the back and looked around at all of the beautiful scenery. There was a field full of flowers and a small body of water with baby ducks playing. The shade trees made for a nice spot for a picnic area or a place to just lounge and read. Tara loved it. It was one of the prettiest places she had ever seen.

"That's good." He said. He led her to the shady spot under the big shade tree and they sat down.

"I'm sorry about the way I acted. I can be a jackass sometimes. I shouldn't have taken my shit out on you." He apologized again.

"It's okay, I understand. Trust me." She patted his knee and turned her head to look back out at the ducks playing in the water.

"No, it's not okay. It wasn't right of me to be such a jerk. Mom told me you were going through a lot; she didn't say what though. Care to enlighten me?" He questioned.

"It's a long story." She sighed. "It's not something I want to get into right now."

"I get that. I'm here when you do though." He nodded.

"Thanks, Jax. Maybe you're not a total asshole." She winked, lightening the mood.

"Usually I am. You caught me in a good mood." He smirked.

They laughed together but sat in silence for a while. It was refreshing being here in this spot at this moment. She didn't have to worry about anyone or anything. She could be herself, the carefree 18 year old, she was supposed to be. She was at peace; it was something she hadn't felt in a long time.

"I am too, you know." She stated, breaking the silence.

Jax raised his eyebrows at her in question.

"Here if you need someone to talk to. You said you had a lot going on, so I just wanted you to know I'm a good listener if you ever need an ear." She explained.

"Thank you." He nodded at her. "You wanna go tour some more of the town or you wanna head back to the clubhouse and meet some of the guys?"

"Might as well meet them now. I start work there tomorrow." She stood up and dusted off her jeans.

The ride back ended entirely too soon for Tara.

"Listen up, everyone." Jax whistled, calling everyone's attention. "This is Tara Knowles. She starts working here tomorrow, she's staying at Gemma's for a while. Everyone make her feel welcome!" Jax hopped down off the picnic table.

"Thanks, I think." Tara looked around at all of the eyes on her. Being in the foster system, she learned to blend in. She didn't like all of this attention on her at one time. She would have preferred to meet them all individually instead of in a group.

"No problem, darlin." Jax grinned. "This is my boy, Opie and his girl Donna." He told her.

"Hey." Tara smiled politely.

"Hey." Opie replied. Donna just nodded at her and turned her attention back to Opie, whispering in his ear.

Tara excused herself. She was pretty sure that chic didn't like her hanging around her man. She laughed to herself. She had nothing to worry about, he wasn't her type and she didn't go after taken men anyways.

She was greeted by several of the members and sneered at by the half dressed women that were lurking around. All of the guys seemed nice enough here but the girls, not so much.

She hung out in the office with Gemma, opting to get started learning the job than hang outside dodging hateful glares from these people she didn't even know.

"What do you think?" Gemma asked.

"It seems pretty self-explanatory. I think I can handle it." Tara answered, looking over the list of things to remember that Gemma gave her.

"No, I mean what do you think about it here? The people?" She asked again, lighting up her smoke.

"Oh, all of the guys seemed real nice and welcoming. I must have pissed off some of the girls when I was here the other day. I don't know what I did…." Tara's words trailed off as she was thinking of why they were glaring at her like they were.

"Don't worry about them. They're just worried that one of these men, Jax in particular, is going to make you an old lady and they don't want that to happen." Gemma explained.

"An old lady?" Tara asked.

"When a member settles down with a woman as a girlfriend, wife, she his old lady. He'll brand her with his crow."

"His what?" Tara interrupted, raising her eyebrows, stifling a giggle.

"Crow." Gemma smirked. She knew how bizarre this sounded to an outsider but she didn't want Tara to feel like an outsider any longer so she made sure to explain what she meant. "The club is referred to as SAMCRO so when a member picks someone to be his old lady, she gets a crow tattoo that tells everyone she's taken and no other member can mess with her. Being an old lady means you're there for the man, you love the man and you love the club or you learn to love the club. It means that member is no longer free-dick to these crow-eaters but sometimes you still have to educate." Gemma watched Tara's expression as she took everything in.

"They don't have to worry about me, I'm just an employee." Tara shook her head. This club stuff always fascinated her, although she had only seen it on television.

"Yeah, they should worry though." Gemma winked but didn't say another word. "Okay kid time to hang out somewhere else I've got some shit to take care of. You can worry about this stuff later."

Tara walked around outside looking for Jax, hoping he could take her home. She wasn't feeling all of this attention today especially from the crow-eaters as Gemma called them.

"That the bitch you're fucking around on me with?" She heard a voice growl. Tara stepped to walk away not wanting to intrude on anyone's conversation.

"What? She's just a girl my mom is helping. Chill the fuck out. She's no one." Tara froze when she heard Jax's voice.

"I saw the way you looked at her, Jax. You are either fucking her or you want to." The angry woman hissed.

"Maybe I have, Maybe I do. That's not your concern. All you need to be concerned with is putting my cock in your mouth or getting the fuck out of here and I'll find someone who will." Jax snarled.

She walked away not wanting to hear anymore. She had met guys like him before—the guys who could get anything they wanted from anyone they wanted. Alec was that type of guy and she wasn't one to make the same mistake twice.

There was a party going on at TM and Tara had talked with members and she even talked some with Donna, although she was still certain that she didn't like her. She managed to avoid Jax which was easy since he was hanging out with a different girl every time she saw him.

"Hey, I haven't had a chance to meet you yet. I'm Juice."

"Tara." She smiled, shaking the hand he had offered.

"Can I get you a drink?" He asked.

"Sure. Thank you." She answered, following him to the bar.

They stood at the bar and talked. He was nice, very polite. He seemed almost shy, as if he were nervous. She noticed that Jax stood on the other side of the room staring at them when he wasn't occupied with whatever girl was fighting for his attention. Tara shook her head to clear her thoughts she wasn't going to give him any more of hers.

"Well Juice, tonight has been fun. I should get home though. I need to get some sleep before my first day tomorrow. Maybe I'll see you sometime tomorrow?" She asked.

"Yeah, definitely. You want a ride home?" He offered.

"You sure you don't mind leaving the party? I don't wanna pull you away from anything. I can walk. It's no big deal." She replied, glancing up to see Jax still staring in their direction ignoring the girl his arm was wrapped around.

"Na, I'm probably gonna crash out too. I can give you a lift though." He held out his hand to her.

She took his hand and he led her outside to his bike. He handed her his helmet.

"Where are you two off to?" She heard Jax's voice behind her.

"I'm just giving Tara a ride home." Juice answered, not noticing Jax's nostrils beginning to flare.

"Go ahead back inside bro. I can take her." Jax countered.

"It's no problem. I don't mind taking her." Juice stated.

"I got it bro." Jax growled. "Go back to the party."

"Juice can take me home." Tara intervened. She didn't want this to get any more out of hand.

"You sure?" Juice turned and questioned Tara. "I don't mind if you want him to take you." He looked away. He got his share of girls but nowhere near as many as the heir to the President's throne.

"I'm sure." She smiled sweetly at him and turned her glare to Jax. Who the hell did he think he was-ignore her all night and then want to step up when she finally starts having a good time.

"Juice, give us a minute." Jax ordered. Juice hesitated but did as he was told.

"What's wrong with you? I'm going home anyways, why don't you want me to take you?" He questioned her.

"Just get back to one of the many girls you've been with since we arrived this afternoon." She shook her head, rolling her eyes.

"That's what this is? You're jealous?" He laughed in disbelief.

"Coming from the man who watched me talk to someone else for over an hour and decides to go home the moment I leave with him? On top of that now you're whining that I chose to ride home with him instead of you and give some bullshit excuse that you were going home anyways? I'm not stupid, Jax. If I would have been in there all alone, you would have been balls deep in one of those nasty girls but since I wasn't alone you decided it was time to interrupt my night with your jealousy?" She hissed at him. "If you're going to play this game, be man enough to admit it."

"I'm not playing a game darlin, I have a headache. I've had enough pussy for one night. I was really going home but if you want to be a bitch about it then walk home for all I care." He shouted at her and stormed back inside to Juice.

"Give her a ride home and that's it. Do you understand?" Jax growled in his ear. "Drop her off and leave."

"Got it man." Juice shook his head in anger. "You ready?" He asked her.

"What was all that about?" Opie asked Jax.

"Don't know what you're talking about bro." Jax replied, not taking his eyes off of Tara's back fading in the distance.

"Right." Opie laughed.

"Whatever bro. I'm going home. I'll catch ya later." Jax climbed on his bike and sped off.

Opie laughed harder. Normally Jax would be here in bed with whatever pussy was on the menu that night and that probably would have been the case if Juice wasn't making a move on the new girl.

Jax raced back home but Juice's bike wasn't there. He hurried inside and looked for Tara, but she wasn't there either.

"Damnit." He growled.

Jax heard a bike pull up and ran outside. It was only Opie.

"What are you doing here?" Jax asked, walking past him.

"You alright?" Opie smirked.

"Yeah." Jax growled.

Juice pulled up as Jax had just climbed back on his bike to go search for the two.

"Get lost?" Jax turned his gaze to Juice in question.

"Na man, we just stopped and let her get a milkshake. That's all." Juice explained.

"What's it to you?" Tara hissed. "You're not my father and the last time I checked I was NO ONE to you so why don't you just back the fuck off." She narrowed her eyes at him.

Jax's eyes went wide. She knew that he realized what she meant by that. He had called her a no one earlier that night and he now knew that she heard him.

She turned her back to him. "Thanks for the ride, Juice." She leaned in and kissed his cheek and walked up the stairs leaving the both of them speechless.

Jax eyes were deadly and they were locked on Juice's.

"I…man…she just wanted a milk shake, I…." Juice stammered.

"Go home." Jax growled, his jealousy and frustration getting the best of him. "NOW."

Juice left without another word.

Opie snickered. "That girl's a pistol, I like her."

"Fuck off, bro." Jax glared at him. "See you tomorrow." He said in dismissal.

Opie climbed on his bike still laughing. Things could get a little less boring in Charming.