Cherry and Josie had fun cheering for Half Sack and the few others they had decided to support, collecting their winnings after the preliminaries had finished. Josie had made good money off of Half Sack's bouts, and one of the other men had done quite well. The third man had not done as well, but she was still walking away with enough money in her purse to make Tig nervous.

"Why not just let the money ride?" The bookie frowned as he counted out Josie's money and handed it over before doing the same with Cherry's. "You've got quite a haul going on here."

"I don't bet on my friends in the finals. It's bad luck!"

Snorting, he just shook his head. "Yeah, whatever."

Cherry was called over to Clay on their way back to their seats, so Josie and Tig slid in on their own.

In the ring, Half Sack and the other man were slowly circling each other. The prospect's face was a mask of concentration as he landed a quick jab and then bobbed out of reach. Josie gave a whoop and called for the young man to swing again.

"Kid's gonna lose."

Tig's raspy voice quieted Josie for a moment before she found herself frowning up at him. "Nah, he's got this. The other guy is winded already."

Tig shrugged. "Don't matter."

Just as Josie was about to lob another question at the older man, the crowd gave a great roar. Turning quickly, she just caught the sight of Sack's opponent toppling in the ring. "Looks like you were wrong, Hun!"

Growling, Tig stood and pointed at her. "You just keep your ass right there until I get back."

Knowing when to keep her mouth shut, Josie nodded mutely and busied herself with twisting her fingers in her lap. The Sons had pulled Sack over to the side, leaving Cherry to find her way back up their seats alone.

Josie scooted down to allow Cherry room to sit. "What's that all about?"

The other woman simply shrugged helplessly at her questioning look and plopped down on the bench beside her. "I have no God damned clue."

Snorting, Josie smirked at her new friend. "So your man can throw one hell of a punch."

"I just love watching him fight! Is that messed up?"

"Hell no, Honey! I love watching Happy box, and the way his muscles move around under all that tattooed skin!"

The two women dissolved into fits of laughter until Tig and Sack made their way back over.

Tig lit up a cigarette and quirked a brow at their antics. "The hell's so funny?"

"Just talkin' about how much we love our men." Josie giggled at the face Tig pulled in response before turning to the sweaty young man next to him. "You did great!"

Half Sack's "thank you" nearly drowned out Tig's grumbled "yeah, too well".

Josie frowned up into bright blue eyes. "Wasn't he supposed to do well?"

Half Sack sighed and explained the situation as simply as possible. "I was supposed to win until that last bout."

"Oh," Josie frowned for a moment. "Without going into too much detail, do you need it really badly?"

Tig snorted a laugh. "I'm gonna go with yes."

"Would it be bad for me to talk to Clay about it in public?"

"You're always so damn polite." Shaking his head, Tig chuckled. "C'mon."

The foursome made their way to where the rest of the Sons were standing. "Hey Prez, Pussycat has something she wants to tell ya."

"I made some decent profits tonight, that I'd be happy to loan ya'll."

Clay's chuckle was condescending, but he managed a real smile at her offer. "Oh, did you make a few hundred?"

Tig hid his snort behind a cough.

Opening her purse, she pulled out the night's winnings. "Actually, I have just under $20,000."

Chibs nearly sprayed beer over the group while Jax gave an impressed whistle. Cherry giggled from her spot under Half Sack's arm.

"Well," Clay chuckled. "That's damned impressive."

"I'm good at gambling," Josie shrugged.

"So, you're floating us a loan." Jax winked at her nod. "What's the interest?"

"Let's say . . . 10%?"

Clay shook his head. "How 'bout 2?"

Josie copied the backward tilt of the older man's head. "Five."

"Deal."

Cherry offered up her winnings as well, also agreeing to the five percent interest terms. She would like to rent a house to set up away from the clubhouse, and Clay was feeling magnanimous after their earlier conversation. Josie had smiled and offered to help out once they found a place.

"Am I good to head home on my own, or do I get an escort?"

Tig grinned and nodded. "I'm gonna follow you in the truck and make sure you get in okay."

"You guys do know that I've driven home in the dark all by my lonesome before, right?"

"And you do know that your house gets a ride-by from the club a few times a night whenever Hap's not home, right?"

Josie was silent for a moment before she found her voice. "Whatever for?"

"You're his Old Lady," Tig shrugged as if that explained everything. "We do the same for Luann – that's Otto's wife – every night, and Gemma and Donna get the same when Clay or Opie are gone."

"It's a way for them to keep the women and kids safe," Cherry laughed. "Well, that and to keep us honest."

"Well," Josie grinned before patting Tig's scruffy cheek. "You feel free to come in for a beer and to play with Beast if you're on duty and see the lights on."

"C'mon, Pussycat." Tig rolled his eyes and gestured for her to lead the way. "Let's get you home so you can call Hap before he thinks I ran off with ya."

Josie and Beast spent the next morning playing in the back yard and running errands until Happy called to let her know that he had arrived at the clubhouse. A quick jaunt through the grocery store, and she was on her way to make lunch for the men. She had decided on burgers and fries that day, bringing with her a good supply of bacon to top the beef patties. Beast happily rode in the passenger seat, his head propped out the window and barking happily when he recognized that they were turning into the Teller Morrow lot.

Happy pulled her out of the truck and into a heated kiss. "Hey, little girl."

"Heya Big Guy," Josie chuckled and brought Beast out of the truck cab while Happy retrieved the grocery bags. "Have a nice ride back?"

"Yeah, it wasn't bad. Gonna head out with Clay and Tig after lunch. Gotta see some Irishman for a drink."

Nodding, Josie set about making lunch and calling the men in from the garage. It took nearly an hour to have everything cooked and all the people milling around fed, even with Gemma's help.

Happy pressed a kiss to her pink lips before driving out with the club president and their Sergeant at Arms.

O:O:O:O:O:

Happy was posted up against the dart boards in the back of an Irish bar, his back to a corner, allowing him to see both the front and back doors while Clay was busy brokering his deal. Clay and Tig had brought him along for extra insurance during their weapons deal. Cameron Hayes was not the man they had planned to meet and deal with, but he informed him that his cousin had recently been beaten to death in Oakland.

Happy nodded as the deal with finished, accepting a glass of whiskey to drink to the new Irish leader's dead cousin. He was glad to see that the Sons' relationship with the real IRA hadn't been irreparably damaged by the loss of a weapons shipment. The Sons were able to keep the Nords from taking over much of Charming because of this deal, and the white supremacist group was not as careful as the Sons about who they ended up killing.

Just as he brought the glass of amber liquid to his lips, the front door was thrown open and two men entered. Happy had the single blink of an eye to recognize the guns in their hands before he was moving and gripping Clay to pull him out of harm's way. Gunfire erupted overhead, Tig and the barman returning fire, as Happy flipped a heavy wooden table on its side to cover his Prez.