CHAPTER ONE-HUNDRED AND NINE

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Pulling into the car park at the back of Lumpy's I take a deep breath before we go inside, the ordering and collecting of coffee doesn't take long, the two vanilla latte's seem completely normal when I hear the person behind us order one of those hugely long coffee names that only seems to be in movies.

Settling down in the back corner of the almost empty restaurant I wrap my hands around the cup and look towards Donna. "Well, ask away, I'll answer as much as I can."

Donna nods, "These renovations aren't going to put you into financial trouble are they?"

"Nope." I say, taking a tentative sip of my coffee and purposely not mentioning I could rebuild the houses of all Charming based Sons without making much of a dent in my bank balances.

"Did anyone put you up to this?"

"Who?" I ask, a little stunned. "Opie? God no, it'll take me enough convincing to get him to accept me paying the whole costs. Jax? He has no idea that I was going to suggest a complete rebuild. Gemma? She has no idea that I made the offer."

Donna shrugs, "Had to ask."

"I know D."

"Why were you keeping an eye on Charming businesses? What other ones were you watching?" She sounds the most curious about this and I make a guess that we're getting to the questions she actually wants answers to the most.

"I was keeping an eye on them cause I knew JJ would want to end as many of the local business as he could, the logical ones to start were any that Elliot owned, given he's the biggest employer in Charming. The other ones I was watching. Well, Oswald Lumber, Construction and Beef you already know about. I also had my eyes on Teller-Morrow, which hasn't ever had any troubles. The gym and this place. That's it." I say, ticking off the 6 businesses in Charming that I'd been most concerned about.

"Why?" She asks, peeling the lid of her coffee and taking a drink.

"Like I said at Elliot's, I didn't want this place to lose its charm. Without those small businesses the town would have crumbled. The people who live here wouldn't be able to work in their own businesses; they wouldn't be able to shop in the quiet streets. I came here when I was 12 from Florida, you know that. I hated how commercialised everything was there. New York was a challenge for me in that aspect. Al and Cam used to get driven nuts when I would insist on hunting down independent businesses instead of chain stores." I grin at Donna. "I'm over it a little now, but I still don't want this place to become something it shouldn't be."

"Are you willing to tell me where the money is coming from that's doing this, there's nothing illegal in it is there?" Donna asks, shooting glances around us as she practically whispers the last bit.

Laughing at her I shake my head, "No. Any money that comes through my bank accounts is 100% legal, clean, above board."

"Can you tell me where it's coming from? Or aren't you able to." Donna asks, and I briefly wonder how much to tell her.

I glance around us, but there's no one within hearing distance. Taking a drink from my cup I look over at my best friend. "D, if I tell you I need you to promise that you won't tell anyone."

She nods without hesitating, "I promise. Not even Ope."

I smile. "When my parents died they had life insurance policies. Large ones. Because I was so young when it happened all the money was put into trusts and investments which I didn't find out about till I was 18, and already in New York. Over the last 4 years they've been gathering more interest to add to the 6 years' worth."

Donna waves a hand, "So what's the big secret about it all then?"

"I could very possibly buy this whole town with what is currently sitting in my everyday bank account."

I lean back into the seat and watch as Donna's face cycles through a whole lot of emotions from sadness at the mention of my parent's death finally settling on an open-mouth stunned expression.

"Right. So dinner's on you tonight?" She stutters out.

I grin at her and finish my coffee, "How bout we start with another drink while your brain absorbs?"

Donna nods and I head back over to the counter and order fresh drinks, waiting as they are made.

When I sit back down at pass Donna her drink she looks up at me, "You know that doesn't change a thing aye?"

I grin, "I would hope not."

"Okay, so I think I only have one more question based on the bombshell you just dropped on me."

I nod, "Fire away."

"Are you doing this out of guilt?" She asks, staring straight at me.

I shake my head, "If I brought you a new car that might be out of guilt. Remodelling, or rebuilding, your house is something I want to do because I love you Donna; you, Opie, Kenny and Ellie. Yes, I would have liked to have been here for their birth and first steps, first words and all those other milestones, but I wasn't. No amount of money is going to change that and I wouldn't attempt to anyway. I do want to be here for the next one, nothing is going to drag me away this time."

Donna smiles at me and we switch the subject to tonight's party at the clubhouse and whether Ima would have backed off yet.

"I don't think she would have you know. She'd been trailing around Jax for months before Wendy died. I would say she just thinks that you're someone else she can ignore. Wendy was different, she was always at home, after they got married she never came to the club parties and never bothered to try and stop Jax sleeping with the women that hung around the club. Even though she's been ousted from Jax's bed in favour of you, who still hasn't slept with him, I'm sure she thinks it's just a matter of time. She's not exactly the sharpest tool in the shed."

I laugh at her polite way of saying Ima's intelligence isn't exactly the highest level. "So what would you suggest now oh great one?" I ask, sipping on my coffee slowly.

"Ignore him tonight, just for a while. Give Happy your attention instead, he'll know why and will go along with it, especially if it winds up Jax." Donna grins wickedly at me. "Secondly, what were you planning on wearing?"

I shrug, "Hadn't thought about it yet."

"Something like last night, just enough to drive him insane, but not completely past the point of logic." Donna tells me the smile still tugging at the edges of her mouth.

Thinking quickly through the clothes I have I put together an outfit from memory and wiggle my eyebrows at Donna. "So, are we getting ready at your house or the clubrooms?"

"Clubrooms." Donna tells me.

Nodding I finish the rest of my coffee and move to stand, "Shall we go see how much of your house is left?"

She giggles and stands, "Sure, let's go."

The 10 minute drive to Donna's house doesn't take long, as we pass my driveway I peek between the gap in the trees and smile softly to myself.

Donna driveway is the one crammed with motorbikes this time so I park my truck on the grass out the front beside a rubbish skip that's already half full and hop down. Donna opens the front door and calls out, "We're here."

She steps through the front door and looks around, the broken ornaments, TV, cabinets and furniture are all gone, the floor in the kitchen looks like it's been cleaned as well, but there are still obvious streaks of goo where it has been missed.

Walking down the hall we pass the rooms that have been cleared of the major rubbish. The twins room is almost completely empty, something that makes Donna frown, until Opie steps out of the door to the garage and smiles, "We've put everything salvageable into the garage, we're about to move into our room."

Donna nods and throws open the door, the mess of clothes still on the bed. The furniture in the room seems relatively untouched as it was when we first saw it but as Opie and Chibs step through the door behind her we step backwards so they can start moving the furniture out.

Chibs goes to the wardrobe and opens the door when something falls out and smacks him in the chest causing him to stumble backwards landing on his back on the floor.