For Every Sunset The Light Has To Fade

I let out an unhappy groan as I rolled over and cuddled into Happy's side in an effort to try to fall back asleep. He hugged me into his side and I thought we were going to ignore the shrill screams of the phone to continue sleeping. That was until I felt him ease me off his chest so that he could slip out of bed.

I let out another groan before quietly calling out, "Grumpy? Who's calling?"

"I won't know until I answer the phone, Princess."

I rolled over again but I knew there was no chance that I was going back to sleep. After I opened my eyes and saw the time, I growled and punch my pillow. It was early enough in the night that a phone call on the house phone didn't necessarily mean something bad had happened. But Happy was supposed to have the night off so I forced myself out of bed to find out what shit had hit the fan his time.

I grabbed my robe off the back of the door as I exited the bedroom. Happy was in the living room on the couch talking quietly to someone. When he came into view, I had to stifle a gasp because he was sitting there, deep in conversation, completely naked. I assumed that he would have pulled on his boxers at the very least.

"Yes, of course I can head there right away. Are you sure you don't…? Okay. Yes, I'll go there right now. Of course. Yes, absolutely."

He put the phone on the cradle and then just sat there motionless. I sat down on the couch beside him and wrapped myself around his left arm. He seemed to tense in my embrace, so I shifted my hold on him so that I was hugging his whole torso.

"Who's dead?" I asked just over a whisper as I nuzzled my cheek against his shoulder.

"Nobody."

"What? Then…? Umm… Where do you have to go?"

"To the cabin."

"But I thought you said…"

"Jax and Chibs aren't dead, but it isn't for lack of trying."

Now I went rigid against him. "But who…? How…? What happened?"

He eased himself out of my hold so that he could kiss me into silence. I felt myself relax ever so slightly with every second that our lips touched. He must have noticed it because he kept his hands on my cheeks as he leaned back and away from my lips.

"It was a botched drive by. The one they got died before they could interrogate him. I'm going to meet Chibs to see if I can help figure out who they are or who hired them."

"But Chibs and Jax…? Did they get hurt at all?"

"Hurt? Yes. But they weren't injured."

"That's… that's good. But… uhh… what can I do to help?"

He smiled then answered, "You can head back to bed. There's no sense in you missing out on sleep. And you need it to heal. Okay, Princess?"

"Okay. Are…? Are you sure I'll be safe here? Should…? Should I go to the clubhouse instead?"

He smiled brightly then kissed me deeply. "I would feel much better if you did, but only if you want to go."

"Of course, I will. I want you to focus on finding whoever tried to hurt our family. I don't want you worrying about me."

"I always worry about you. But knowing you're safe at the clubhouse will help me to keep my focus."

"Alright, so we'll get dressed and I'll head to the clubhouse while you head to the cabin."

"Andie…" He pulled my face forward to kiss me again. I chuckled into the kiss because of how relieved he sounded. After he released my lips again, he rested his forehead against mine and let out a sigh. "Thank you for not fighting me on this."

"You don't have to sound so surprised, I don't always…"

He started to laugh, but we were both cut off by the phone ringing again. Fuck. Now what? The look on Happy's face as he reached over to answer it told me he was thinking the same thing.

"What?" He barked out into the receiver. I stifled an ill-timed laugh into his shoulder. "Shit. Are they okay? What about the little one? Okay… Yeah… See you there."

Before he had the phone back on the cradle, I was asking, "What little one? Who's the little one? What happened? Who got hurt? Who was that on the phone? Happy! Why aren't you answering me?"

Everything came out as one long, run-on sentence, so I was out of breath at the end of it. While I panted in a couple of breaths while Happy shook his head.

"Princess, I'm happy to answer all of your questions if you would let me get a word in." I frowned but he placed to fingers on my lips to keep me silent. "There's been a change of plans. I'm heading to the hospital because Gemma was in an accident with Jax's boys. From what Juice was told, little Thomas is fine but Abel and Gemma are harder to get updates about because he isn't immediate family."

"Gemma and the boys…? You don't…? Could it be the same people that went after Jax?"

"I don't know. Hopefully we can get more answers when we get to the hospital."

"We? You want me to go with you?"

"Of course, I do. I figured you'd want to be there. You do, don't you?"

"Yes, yes I do. Let's get dressed."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It took us a little while to find everyone. Every time we came here to visit someone at the hospital it amazed me how difficult it was for us to get to where we needed to be. We had had to come to the hospital more times than I could count on one hand, but every visit felt like the blind leading the blind.

Then we met up with Juice and Phil and I almost let out an ill-timed laugh. Don't get me wrong, they were both sweet. But sweet only got you so far in the MC. I had learned that at a young age and worked hard at cultivating my 'tough guy' persona so that I could survive before I left town. I think that's why I had become friends with Phil. I wanted to help him avoid some of the mistakes I made or saw others fall victim to in the past. I was hoping to help him develop a hard shell before he got hurt or worse.

That's if luck was on our side.

While the four of us road up in an elevator together I suddenly turned to hug Phil then Juice. They both looked completely stunned at that action so I finally allowed myself to chuckle softly. I kissed Juice's cheek and then turned to Happy to kiss him on the lips.

"I'm so relieved everyone is whole," I said as I tucked myself under Happy's arm.

He kissed my head but it was Juice who replied, "Us too."

"You said it, Miss Andie."

I smile at Phil as Juice gave us both a questioning look. "Why don't you bitch at him about using formalities like that?"

I glared at Juice but felt my facial expression soften when my gaze landed on Phil. I smiled then answered, "The big guy and I have reached an understanding. It's our compromise, right Biggy?"

"Yeah, but…?"

The doors opened before Juice could finish that question. Instead of hearing it, the five of us marched down the hall to find the rest of the club. (We met Chucky at the elevator and he silently fell into step with us.)

When Chibs, Tig and Bobby came into view, I hurried my steps towards them. Alright, I nearly sprinted over to them so I could hug each of them.

First, I hugged Bobby then moved to where Chibs was standing. While I hugged him, I had the uncontrollable urge to cry. He heard me sniffle in a breath because he kissed the side of my head and then quietly said, "We're alright, Luv. Just a few scratches, nothing serious."

"I know," I replied with a sob. "I know… But still… A drive-by? What the fuck is that all about?"

"We'll find out. I promise, Luv."

I didn't say anything to that because I knew they would do their best to get to the bottom of it, but he couldn't promise they would succeed. I didn't want to hear empty promises right now. But in the next breath, I didn't want to get into an argument either so I just let it slide.

Last but not least, I hugged Tig. Yeah, I'd pretty much decided I would forgive him for what he had done to my family. In my mind he was too loyal and it was Clay who was the real villain. Tig wouldn't hurt anyone, especially a woman, without being injured by them first unless it was an order Clay had given the orders. Tig had followed them like an obedient soldier. It was a misguided loyalty that he was finally starting to question.

I hugged him tightly and he returned the gesture with the same ferocity. When I tried to step out of his embrace, he tightened his hold on me. I nearly started to panic because he hadn't said a word as his hold got uncomfortably tight. Luckily, my eyes found Happy and his reassuring smile help to calm me down while Tig half-carried me over to his chair. He sat down and then helped me to settle on his lap.

After the other four arrived at the waiting area, Bobby stood up again saying, "Alright. Abel's heartbeat went irregular. They gotta do a thing to reverse it."

"Oh, shit man," Juiced sighed out in a chagrinned tone.

Chucky took a step forward asking, "What about the baby?"

"Tommy Boy…" Chibs smiled softly and shook his head. "He's golden. He didn't get a scratch."

"Gemma… She's banged up," Tig offered knowing that would be the next question one of us would ask.

"What about you guys?" Phil asked Chibs.

"We're fine," Chibs answered in a one that made it sound like that was the end of that discussion.

"Do we know who the shooter is?" Happy asked in an effort to get everyone back on topic.

Tig's hold had slackened around me until Happy asked that question causing him to crush me in another hug. His sudden movement took me by surprise and I let out a squeak of a noise. Honestly, it was involuntary and sounded more like he had squeezed it out of me than a conscious sound that I had uttered. I know he hadn't meant to hurt me, even by accident because it felt like he had forgotten that he was holding me.

In fact, by the look on the guys' faces, it looked like most of them had forgotten I was there. Great, now they were all going to be more guarded while they spoke because there were a few topics, like the identity of the suspect in a drive-by shooting, that were never to be discussed in front of an Old Lady.

I kissed Tig's cheek and then started to ease myself off his lap saying, "I'll go check n Gemma so you guys can talk."

Tig's arms tightened around my waist and Bobby placed a firm, comforting hand on my legs. That got me to turn my eyes up to Bobby's face. He smiled then replied, "There's nothing more to talk about now. At least not until some people get back to us, so you stay right where you are, Beautiful."

Happy walked over and sat down at Tig's right side. He kissed the back of my head and that's when I finally felt myself relax. Yes, we were at a hospital, but for the most part we were whole. No one's life was in danger here, but for some reason I couldn't shake the sinking feeling in the it of my stomach.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

I don't know when it happened, but somehow, I ended up in Happy's lap with my legs over Tig's thighs. After I tucked my head under his chin, I fell asleep again. It was a wonderfully deep sleep where I didn't dream at all. It also meant I didn't notice when Tig had gotten up to walk away and meet up with Chief Unser.

"Princess," Happy whispered into my ear to coax me awake.

I slowly opened my eyes and groaned at how bright the waiting room was right now. Well, I guess it was always bright there but I was too sleepy to deal with it.

"Five more minutes," I whined as I tried to cuddle into him again.

Shockingly, he hugged me into his chest. Yes, I totally won this… Shit, no he was standing up. I then felt him pass me onto someone else. Don't ask me how I knew, but it felt like I was higher off the ground so I must be in Phil's arms now.

That's fine. I was more than okay with snuggling against him to fall back asleep. What I hadn't expected was that Happy had anticipated that I was going to do just that.

Happy kissed my head and said quietly against it, "Sweet dreams, Princess." He then looked up at Phil and stated in a grave, intimidating tone, "Keep her safe."

"Y-y-yes Sir, of course," Phil stuttered out in reply.

Poor Filthy. I hugged his neck and then cracked open one of my eyes. "I'll be fine, Grumpy." When I heard Happy chuckle, I turned my head to look at him and stated in my own ominous tone, "YOU be safe and watch each other's backs."

"Always, Princess."

We watched as Happy and Chibs met up with Jax. While they waited for the elevator, Jax turned and gave me a cheeky smile. He actually looked like he was trying not to laugh. No, it was more than that. Good, he was able to be amused by something right now. When I heard that Abel had to have surgery to fix his heart, I thought he would be a surly dick to everyone.

But there he was trying not to bust a gut. He nudged Chibs with his elbow and said something that made the Scot chuckle. That got Happy's attention and he too started to smirk. What the hell did they…? OH!

"Phil?"

"Yes, Miss Andie?" He asked as he hoisted me in his arms so it was more comfortable to hold me.

"You need to put me down."

"What?"

I squirmed in his arms saying, "You need to put me down before they all…" That's when I heard Jax and Chibs start laughing… loudly. "DOWN! NOW!"

Phil complied so suddenly that he nearly dropped me to the floor. That made the guys laugh even harder. GREAT! So glad I could be their comic relief for the day.

Once I found my footing, I straightened up and gave them the one finger salute. Jax and Chibs blew me a kiss while they continued to laugh. Happy… he was staring at his phone and looked like he was ignoring us. What the hell?

Just as the doors stated to close, Happy looked up and caught my eye. At the same time, I felt my phone start to vibrate.

YOU STILL LOOK BEAUTIFUL EVEN WHEN YOU'RE FLIPPING US OFF.

I felt my cheeks heat up because I didn't think he had witnessed that at all. Then another message came through.

I'LL KEEP THEM SAFE SO YOU CAN CUT THEIR BALLS OFF LATER.

Now it was my turn to laugh.

THANKS, GRUMPY. RIDE SAFE.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

There wasn't much for us to do but sit around and talk in the waiting room. Chucky disappeared to get an update and check on Gemma, so that left me alone with Juice and Phil. Juice and I knew each other well enough that we could just bullshit together with ease. Phil would chime in here or there which made me smile because this actually felt comfortable.

"So, Phil?" I started with a cheeky smile. "What…?"

I lost my words when I heard voices approaching us. Okay, full disclosure? It was Clay's voice that gave me a moment of pause. Ever since I made it home, I had been able to keep a lot of distance between him and I without making it look obvious. FUCK. I had to get out of here… NOW.

I turned towards the route to the elevator and mumbled out, "I… uhh… I'm…"

Juice caught my arm when I tripped over my own feet to keep me upright and asked, "Hey… Where are you running off to?"

"I… uhh… Since Gemma's awake, I thought I'd go get her some flowers or something."

"Alright. I'll go with you."

"Juice, I…"

"Miss Andie? Happy gave us orders that you aren't to go anywhere alone."

I felt my neck get hot, but I swallowed my anger. They were just following orders. Plus, the longer we argued, the more likely I'd be running into Clay soon.

"Alright, fine," I conceded. "Let's go."

"Actually," Chucky called out in a careful, cautious tone after he had returned. "I'd like to get her something too." He shared a look with Juice and Phil then said, "She… You wouldn't be alone if I went with you."

"True, but…"

Juice trailed off when he saw me undo my jacket and pull the .22 I carried in my inner jacket pocket out just far enough that he could see the butt of it. "I have protection. Come on Chucky, let's go."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The best part of taking Chucky with me was that he didn't expect me to chat much with him. Plus, he followed my orders about as well as everyone else's too. It took zero effort to convince him to walk down the street to a proper florist instead of just buying a bouquet at the gift shop.

I found what I was looking for quite quickly. But Chucky took a bit longer. He seemed to have an idea of what he wanted but finding it took a bit longer. I stood by the till watching him with a huge smile on my face. Sure, Chucky was weird, but he had a childlike enthusiasm to him that was so endearing. Like right now, he looked like a kid in a candy store.

"What do you think, Andie?" He asked as he showed me the arrangement he and the florist had put together.

"It's beautiful, Chucky."

"Do you think she'll like it?"

"She'll love it. Are you ready to get going?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

When we got back to the hospital, he let me go into Gemma's room alone. He said I should have some one on one time together with her. Yeah… Chucky was fucking weird, but he was insightful as hell. He spent most of his time on the periphery and that gave him a perfect seat to watch and witness our lives. He kept quiet about it all so none of us paid much attention to what we said or did in front of him.

I'd have to keep that in min in the future for sure."

I knocked lightly on the door as I eased it open. As soon as she saw it was me, Gemma smiled and said, "Andie! Sweetheart, it's good to see you."

"You too, Mom. You're… you're looking good."

"That's a lie. But you're sweet for telling it."

I ran my free hand over my two-inch-long hair replying, "Not really. You look much better than I did after my last run-in with a tree in a car."

"Oh! Sweetheart…"

"I was trying to be funny," I interrupted with a smile. "But enough about hat. I got you this to brighten up your room. Hope you heel fast."

She took the potted plant from me as I unnecessarily explained, "It's a Casa Blanca Lily. The florist said you can transplant it if you want or you can leave it in the pot. It's totally up to you."

"Baby… that's… very thoughtful. Thank you."

I kissed her cheek and hugged her saying, "I love you so much, Mom."

"I love you to, Sweetheart."

We held each other in an awkward hug until it became too uncomfortable for me to maintain. I really didn't want to let her go, but I had to or I would be paying for it later. Plus, I wasn't the only person who wanted to visit her, so it would be selfish of me to occupy all of her time.

After another round of 'I love you', I slowly made my way to her door. As soon as I got to it, the first thing I saw was Chucky. He looked antsy… well more antsy than usual and that help me to continue on without looking back.

The guys had returned and were in the waiting room by the time I got there. I bee-lined myself into Happy's arms and took in a deep breath. Now my clinging to Gemma made more sense. Deep down I was worried the guys wouldn't make it back I know I shouldn't underestimate them. But we were all human and the Reaper would come for all of us… one day.

Happy felt me shudder against his chest. He hugged me tighter so it would be easier to say in my ear, "Did something happen, Princess? Are you okay?"

I nodded and took a step back to look up and answer, "Just thinking too much."

He stroked the side of my head with an amused smirk. "Ahh… That dark imagination of yours running wild?"

"Something like that. Plus, I'm starving. Wanna grab a bit to eat?" I turned to address the whole room. I can't ell you how relieved I was when I noticed Clay was gone again. "My treat?"

I don't know what Happy did behind my back, but Juice and Phil quickly shook their heads. Then Juice quickly added, "Thanks anyways but you… you two enjoy some time alone together."

I gave him a skeptic look to which Juice waggled his eyebrows. What was he playing at? I whipped around to look at Happy… Happy who was quickly schooling his face to be carefully neutral.

Huh. So, he was conspiring with them? Well… Fine by me. It meant I got to have my boyfriend to myself. Even if it was just for lunch, it was one of the best things to happen to me today.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

My restaurant was within walking distance of the hospital, so we made our way there hand in hand. It honestly felt like I was having an out of body experience because I had never done this. I had never gone out to dinner in Charming with a guy I was dating. Hell, I'd never gone out in public in San Joaquin County with any of them because it might get back to my brother or dad or… heaven forbid, the MC and Gemma.

But here we were… The picture of domestic bliss as far as any outsiders could tell. If they could hear the conversation we were having, they would probably be horrified. He was explaining that they found the second shooter and he confessed to everything. Frankie Diamonds had paid them to hill Jax. Frankie was still in hiding, so job number one was to find him.

"I'm so glad you guys didn't get hurt."

He pat my back as I hugged his arm replying, "Me too, Princess."

"Hi! Welcome to… Oh! ANDIE! It's good to see you. Did you want your usual table?"

"No," I answered as I wrapped myself around Happy's arm again. "I'd prefer the private booth by the kitchen."

"Oh…? OH!" She smiled brightly then said, "Of course… Right this way."

Happy gave me a questioning look so I quietly explained, "You can see the whole dining room, but we can easily conceal ourselves at the same time. If, God forbid, something happens, we can easily slip out the back through the kitchen.

His eyes widened slightly at the end of my explanation. Good. So, I could still surprise him once in a while. I pecked his cheek then whispered, "I like to be prepared."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

We made it through ordering and our starters with no issues at all. A few of my employees made a point to stop by and say hello as they passed by. That was it. They just wanted to say they missed having me around but understood why I had been away. There were no questions about Happy nor any words of condolences.

"Why do you look so surprised?" Happy asked after Cody stepped way with our empty plates in hand.

I watched Cody step into the kitchen before I turned to look at Happy. I forced myself not to laugh but I did smile brightly as I answered, "Because I am. I expected Cody to tease us a lot more than that."

"Him not teasing…? Does that mean something's wrong?"

I shook my head and slid closer to him in the booth to kiss his cheek. "It means something is really right. I think his new role is helping him to mature into the man I knew he could be. He really stepped up and kept my places running smoothly while I had to step away."

"That's good to hear."

"Yeah. Plus… I think your reputation preceded you and he knew to keep his smartass comments to himself."

"You think so?"

"I hope so."

That got a soft chuckle out of Happy. I felt myself relax against Happy's side and he felt like he was more at ease as well. There was still a lot of work the club had to do, but it was nice we could have this time together, even if it was just a brief moment of reprieve.

Not long after our entrees were delivered, Cody was back at our table. At first, all I could do was stare at him because he looked so uneasy that I almost didn't recognize him. Plus, he was just standing there. Why wasn't he speaking?

"Cody? Did you need something?"

He startled out of his daze then gave me a familiar, brilliant smile. "Sorry, Boss. You have a call on your office line."

There weren't many people, outside of anything work related, who had that number, so I asked, "Did they say who it was?"

He shook his head. "And I didn't recognize their voice. But they said it as an emergency. I think it might have something to do with your niece and nephew."

"Ellie and Kenny? How…?"

"Just a gut instinct, Boss. They won't leave a message and stressed… many times… how urgent it was to speak with you, immediately."

"Okay." I started to slide out of the booth but stopped when I felt Happy grab my hand. We shared a look and then I followed him out of the booth.

"I'll… I'll pack up your food and add it to your other order."

"Thanks Cody."

At the office, Happy stayed by the door like he was a guard or something. In the past that would have bothered me because I didn't need a bodyguard or a watch dog. At least that's what I used to think. But now I knew different. Now I would take all the protection I could get in any way, shape or form.

"Hello?" I said into the phone as I sat down behind the desk. When they started talking, I felt all of the tension in my shoulders start to disappear. "Oh… Hey… What…? What can I help you with?"

"ANDIE!" Happy called out when he saw the receiver fall out of my hand to the floor. "Princess! What's wrong?"

I finally turned my eyes up to his face when he cupped my cheeks in both hands. "I… I… I need… I need to get home."

"Okay. Why? What's happened?"

"I… I uhh… I… I need to get my truck."

"And I'll help you do that. But you won't be able to drive anywhere until you're able to tell me why. Please, Andie? It won't be safe otherwise."

SAFE?! HA! What does that word even mean anymore?

"I… uhh… I need to go to Diosa and pick up Layla because she… she… she was shot."

"She was shot? By who?"

"By… By Frankie Diamonds…" I finally felt myself come out of a fog as I added, "You'll need to start making some more calls to find that piece of shit."