Thank you dolls for pointing out the Oops in the original posting of this chapter! Thank you to everyone for your continued support!

Chapter 32

I walked out of the dressing room and looked at Mom and Tara with a scrunched nose. I was trying on dresses for the wedding, even though we were keeping it small and casual. I still wanted to wear something special for Happy, even though I wasn't looking for a bridal gown. Finding a dress was proving difficult thanks to my baby bump and growing boobs. Mom thought I should wear something fitting but Tara and I were thinking more flowing.

"You don't like it." Mom said as I turned around so they could see the rest of the dress. I shrugged, tired of trying on dress after dress. "Do you want to try looking tomorrow?"

"No, I don't have time tomorrow. I have, uh, something I need to do tomorrow." I was planning a surprise wedding gift for Happy and didn't want anyone to ruin the surprise. Mom nodded.

"Getting waxed?" She asked.

"What! No! Jesus, mother." I felt my cheeks go dark red as she laughed.

"Alexis, everybody knows you two have done it. I don't think you're the Virgin Mary." Mom teased. I rolled my eyes and walked back into the dressing room to try on a dress Tara had suggested. When I looked in the mirror, I was relieved to see that I wouldn't have to try on anymore dresses. This one was perfect. It was a floor length chiffon dress that reminded me of something Cleopatra would wear.

"I guess we're done looking." Mom said as I walked out to show them the dress. I felt my bottom lip start to quiver as I smiled and shook my head. Mom sighed and stood up. "Sweetie."

"I don't want him to go away, Mom." I would have liked to blame my breakdown on my hormones but the honest, truth was that I was just sad. My best friend, my partner was leaving. The few days we had left together seemed to be flying by. I didn't know how I was going to get through the years without him. Mom frowned and kissed my forehead as I sobbed.

"Lexie, I know it doesn't make it any easier but you're not alone. We're all in the same boat." Tara said, walking over. I wiped my eyes with the back of my hand, smearing mascara everywhere.

"At least you two aren't going to be on house arrest." I muttered, stepping out of Mom's arms.

"Well, Lohen at least got that pushed back until the boys left. That's good." Mom said, trying to be positive. I shrugged and walked back to the dressing room. I was just reaching for the zipper when there was a soft knock at the door. I cracked it open to see Tara.

"I wanted to get a second alone with you." She whispered, sliding into the dressing room. I nodded and turned my back to her. She got the hint and undid the zipper of the dress. "I'm pregnant."

"What? Congratulations." I said, turning and hugging her quickly. She laughed. "How far along are you?"

"Five weeks. We haven't told anyone else yet. I think we're going to wait until later next week. Maybe some good news will soften the bad?" Tara said. I heard the sadness in her voice and nodded. It was going to be hard for any news to lessen the blow of the guys going away. I took a deep breath and stepped out of the dress.

"It can't hurt." I ran my hand over my stomach and took a deep, shaky breath. "Do you have any plans this afternoon?"

"Nope." Tara said, hanging the dress up as I pulled on my jeans and t-shirt.

"I could use some help. I have this idea to surprise Happy but I don't want him finding out." I started. Tara nodded and gave me a smile.

"Anything you need." She said. I opened the door and we met up with Mom on our way to the front counter. I handed the dress to the woman and started digging in my bag for my debit card.

"I got it, sweetheart." Mom said, handing the woman cash. I opened my mouth to object. "Don't, Alexis. I didn't get to help with your first wedding much. At least let me help with this."

"Okay." I said with a defeated sigh. The woman behind the counter was obviously avoiding our conversation. I rolled my eyes and took dress bag. "My first husband died, judgmental bitch."

"And on that note." Tara said, ushering me toward the doors. I shot the woman the middle finger before she was out of sight. "How's Happy doing with your hormones?"

"He's fine. He said Tig whines more." I said, opening the passenger door to Mom's car. Mom and Tara both laughed. I checked my phone for any missed calls but there was just a message from Happy telling me he'd be a little late. For once I was relieved.

"So, what's the big secret?" Tara asked when we walked inside. Mom had to go deal with some stuff at the garage so we were able to speak openly. I motioned for her to follow me down the hall so I could hang the dress up and show her my plan. I stepped back out of the closet and handed her my camera. She twisted her mouth. "Pictures?"

"I wanted to do a boudoir shoot but I figured he would flip his shit if I had someone take pictures. I was going to just try and use the tripod but,"

"But you remembered I took two photography electives in college and Happy wouldn't care if I took the pictures." Tara finished my thoughts. I shrugged guiltily. She laughed. "Well, I suggest you fix your raccoon eyes from crying first."

"Thank you!" I gave her a hug, careful not to damage my camera. I was an amateur photographer at the best but the camera was fairly professional and expensive. I headed into the bathroom too redo my makeup while Tara listed off some ideas for the shoot.

"Is his other bike in the garage?" Tara asked as I lined my eyes.

"Yeah, he's waiting on a part but doesn't know if it will get here before he leaves. He's taking it to TM tomorrow." I said, moving on to my other eye.

"Is it torn apart?" She asked, sounding deep in thought. I shifted my eyes over to her. "What? There's nothing any of them likes more than their old ladies and their bikes."

"It's whole. I like how you think, Knowles." I laughed. I finished my makeup and headed to the closet to dig out the bag of things I had bought to wear for the pictures. The next few hours flew by. We were having so much fun it felt like nothing bad was coming. It felt like the good times again.

"Shit. Jax said he's about to leave." Tara said, checking her messages. "I better get out of here before your man gets here and I see even more of both of you."

"Oh hush." I said, tying my silk robe closed. She laughed and handed me the camera. "Thanks again, TK."

"My pleasure, Teller. It's the best time I've had in weeks." She said, picking her bag up. I nodded in agreement and then locked the front door behind her. Not five minutes later, I heard Happy's bike coming down the road. I bit my lip a little and moved to the bedroom to wait on him.

"Lexie?" Happy called. I untied my robe and leaned back, feeling awkward but hoping I looked sexy.

"In here, baby." I responded. I heard his boots coming down the hallway and started wondering if he was going to laugh. He appeared in the doorway and froze. I looked up at him with my heart in my throat. "Welcome home."

"Damn, Alexis." He said, taking a slow step towards the bed I was laying on. He ran his tongue over his bottom lip and shook his head. "Fuck."

"That's the idea." I laughed. I was nervous and felt completely exposed in the bra, garter, thong and knee highs. They were all black and lacy, just like I knew he liked. He ran his hand over his mouth and shook his head.

"You're too fucking perfect for me, Alexis." He ran a hand up from my ankle to my thigh and then bit his bottom lip. I relaxed as soon as his skin touched mine. I knew this was where I was supposed to be, no matter what shit came our way. We belonged together, as cliché as that sounded, even in my head. He kicked his boots off and joined me on the bed for the rest of the night.

"Hap?" I woke up with a growling stomach. I looked at the clock and groaned. I hadn't intended on sleeping in that long. It was the big day. We were getting married on Oswald's farm at sunset and I still had a lot to do. I pulled on my robe and headed down the hallway in search of Happy.

"There's my daughter-in-law." I quickly pulled the robe closed and blushed deeply. Happy turned from the stove and I could see an amused smirk on his face.

"Mariah, I'm sorry. I wasn't expecting you until this afternoon." I said, leaning down and giving her a quick hug. She chuckled and patted me on the back.

"Alex and I planned to surprise you two." It took me a minute to even remember Tig's real name. I looked around the kitchen quickly, hoping he wasn't going to see me in my robe. Mariah laughed. "He's not here, sweetheart."

"I'm going to go put something on all the same." I said, giving her a kiss on the cheek. I walked over to Happy and looked around him to see pancakes on the griddle. "These pancakes better be good enough to get you out of trouble. You could have told me she was here."

"Uh-huh." He obviously wasn't too worried about my empty threat. It was a hard day for me to find something to be mad at him for. I hurried down the hall and pulled on sweatpants and a tank top.

"Oh, what a cute belly." Mariah said with a delighted smile. I smiled and ran my hand over my stomach. "May I?"

"Of course." I said, stepping over to her so she wouldn't have to get up. She gently placed her palm on my stomach and I saw her eyes light up.

"I never thought I would live to see my boy settle down and give me a grandbaby. You're a real angel, Alexis." Mariah said. Happy set the plate of pancakes on the table and kissed my cheek. "I can die a happy woman."

"You ain't going anywhere, Ma." Happy grumbled as he sat down an the end of the table. Mariah removed her hand from my stomach and snapped at her son. He shook his head and rose to his feet. I smirked as he pulled my chair out for me. "Happy, Ma?"

"I would be happier if you didn't have to be taught manners like a child." She said. Happy rolled his eyes and sat back down. We enjoyed breakfast together before Tara picked me up to get my hair done. Happy was showing ultrasound pictures to Mariah when I left. I loved to see how proud and excited he was for our daughter.

"Do you need me to do anything?" Tara asked. We were getting back in her car and headed to her and Jax's house so I could get ready. Happy was taking my car to Oswald's so Mariah could ride with him. I almost had a giggle fit at the thought of her riding on the back of his Harley.

"No. I think everything is pretty much taken care of. You've already done so much." I said, smiling over at her. An hour later, we were getting back into her car. I looked back at Abel who was fussing with the little bow-tie Tara had put on him. "Aww, you're okay, buddy."

"I hope he doesn't fuss. I tried to make sure he got a good nap." Tara said, looking back at him in the rearview. I shook my head.

"He's my nephew. He can fuss if he wants to." I said, giving him a wink. He giggled like he always did when I winked at him. Jax met us in the driveway and gave Tara a hand out of the car. I smiled and watched them interact for a minute, overjoyed that they had worked through their problems. I didn't have any doubt that they would make it through this time apart. I could easily say the same for Happy and I.

"Are you ready?" Mom asked as she gave me a hand out of the car. I smiled brightly and nodded.

"One hundred percent." I said, excited to marry my best friend. I was some how lucky enough to have two wonderful men come into my life. Even though I only shared a few years with Hank, they were some of the best of my life. I knew that the years I would have with Happy and our daughter would be just as great. I couldn't be luckier.

"You look beautiful." Happy said as I met him at the end of the makeshift aisle. There were about fifty chairs full of our family and close friends set up in the garden-like area of Oswald's farm. It was beautiful. It was simple. It was everything I wanted our wedding to be. It wasn't about elegant flowers or a five piece band. It was about celebrating our life together with the people that mattered the most.

"Thank you." I whispered as the pastor started his speech. I barely noticed the crowd of people watching us or even the pastor as he talked about marriage and God. All I could see was Happy. I was smiling so much my cheeks started to ache.

"The couple have decided to write their own vows." The pastor said, breaking my concentration on the warm brown of Happy's eyes. I smiled and took a deep breath.

"I feel like everything in my life has led me to you. My choices, my heartbreaks, my regrets. Everything. And when we're together, my past seems worth it. Because if I had done one thing differently, I might not be here with you now. My promise to you is simple, I choose you. And I'll choose you over and over again, without a doubt, without a pause, in a heartbeat I'll keep choosing you. Through thick and thin. Through anything life throws our way. I will always love and choose you." I couldn't stop the happy tears that had started running down my cheeks as I made my promise to him. I could see his own eyes glistening as he smiled. He pulled a folded piece of paper from his kutte and looked up at me.

"I promise to take care of you when you're too busy taking care of everyone else. I promise to be patient. I promise to be strong for you when you're to tired to be strong for yourself. I promise to love you more than the day before for the rest of our lives. I promise to be a husband you deserve and a father our daughter needs. You will always have a partner in me, a best friend." There was a whistle in the crowd when Happy paused. He smirked and shook his head. "I promise to treat you even better than my leather and ride you more than my Harley."

I ignored the pastor starting to say something. I grabbed Happy by the front of his kutte and pulled him to me. Our lips crashed together and everyone cheered and clapped loudly. The pastor even chuckled and pronounced us man and wife while the kiss deepened. It was official in the eyes of the state and maybe even god in that moment but for us, it had always been real.

"Let's get this party over so I can take you home." Happy whispered into my ear. I felt all the hairs on my arms stand up with excitement. We walked down the aisle towards the reception area under a large white tent hand in hand. I was happy, one hundred percent, undeniably happy.