Disclaimer-I don't own the Sons of Anarchy, but I do own this story, my original characters, and FINALLY an answer from the Army on where we are headed. Oh and to address the issue that keeps coming up, Ace is not, has never been, and never will be pregnant, my apologies if it read that way to you.
Happy gave up on shooting, the cast on his hand made it too much of a chore, even left handed. He gathered up his shit and holstered his SIG before checking the time. Ace had been up the night before, and she'd been dead to the world when he left, so he figured it was unlikely she'd be up, yet. And since he'd left a wedding band on her nightstand with her drugs, she probably wasn't gonna be happy to see him anyway. He let himself behind the counter with Cat, kicking back in one of the folding chairs.
"That was quick." Cat commented, leaning over the counter, poring through a S&W catalogue. He couldn't figure out how she managed to stay on her feet all day in those fucked up shoes.
"Fuckin' cast fucks everything up." He grunted, flexing his hand as much as he could within the confines of the cast.
"Not too much longer and you'll be back to riding and shooting and kicking ass." Cat smiled at him, closing the catalogue and leaned back against the counter. "Take your cut back."
"Can't wait." Happy grinned, looking forward to the pain he intended to deliver to the Bastardos. He'd already begun figuring out the details of how to accomplish everything he wanted to, and the time was getting close enough to start setting things in motion.
"Where's Ace today?" Cat asked, her voice just a touch too casual, and Happy looked up at her sharply.
"She was still asleep when I left. Crazy insomnia." Happy answered, anyway, though. He was aware that Cat was studying him, and trying to make up her mind about something. "Whatever it is, spit it out."
"What really happened in Charming? None of us could figure out why Shark was there in the first place." Cat didn't mince words, just laid it out to get the answers that she wanted.
"We, uh, had kind of a blowout and then with my mom in the hospital, I took off with Tig. Shark went to the motel to make sure she got back there alright." They'd never really talked about that part of the night, but he sure as fuck wasn't about to out his own bad behavior to Tacoma's queen. She raised a brow at him, and he knew that she wasn't buying his story entirely.
"I was under the impression that he'd patched into Redwood because you didn't trust Shark with Ace." Cat commented, all too casually.
"You can quit that line of reasoning right there. Shark's been a friend to Ace for as long as I've been taking him with me to see her. He was trying to help her, and he got killed in the process." Happy was pointing a finger at Cat, warning her off of the implication he knew she wanted to make.
"OK." Cat held her hands up in surrender. "I wasn't implying anything; I was just trying to figure out what he was doing in your room, that's all, big man."
"You don't get to call me that." Happy was on his feet, ready to put an end to this conversation. "And you don't get to question my old lady's loyalty. You don't know anything about her, or our history, so shut the fuck up."
"Hey, I'm sorry." Cat stepped in front of him, and tried to put a hand on his forearm, but he pulled out of her reach. "I'm just concerned, sugar, she shows up out of nowhere and nails down the one guy who's been most vocal about not having an old lady, then turns the club upside down."
"You're wrong." Happy was backing out of the gun shop, keys in hand. "She's always been there, and she doesn't have to prove shit to you. Leave her alone."
Cat stared at him in openmouthed disbelief as he disappeared out the door. Seconds later, the truck was peeling out of the parking lot. Hard as he was, Happy had never spoken to her like that before, if he didn't want to talk he just, didn't. He'd never raised his voice or ordered her around. The change in him since Ace had appeared made her uneasy, but she wasn't exactly sure why.
No Other Man Alive
Ace stared at the plain titanium band on the nightstand next to the pills that Happy had put out for her. She looked around the empty room, as though someone was going to pop out and tell her what the fuck was up with the sudden bid for one more claim on her. Since that was obviously not going to happen, she rubbed her eyes and checked the nightstand again, but the ring was still sitting there. Ace picked it up between her thumb and forefinger, holding it a little away from her, like it might bite if she let it get too close.
"That sneaky motherfucker." She marveled, looking from the ring to her naked ring finger and back again. She just bet that this ring would fit perfectly, too. Not that she had intention of trying it on. Her luck would be that the second she got it on, he'd come waltzing through the door and she would have lost the fight before it ever got started. Instead, she placed it carefully back on the nightstand.
Eyeing it warily, she scooped her morning pills, which according to the clock she was actually managing to take solidly in the morning today, into her hand, and cracked open the bottled water, which was still relatively cool. All in all, she hadn't failed too hard today at keeping normal human hours. She'd barely been up the night before, only about an hour, and she'd managed to stay in bed, despite how twitchy it made her.
It was a matter of moments for Ace to get herself put together. She slipped the strap of her hobo bag over her head and returned to the nightstand. She drummed her fingers on the wood for a minute, then made up her mind and slid it into her pocket. With more than a little apprehension, Ace opened the drawer that Hap kept a couple hundred dollars in, and grabbed the cash.
No Other Man Alive
Happy had driven around for a while, letting the road soothe him. He was good and goddamn tired of rolling around in this cage, but it was better than sitting static somewhere. Cat's questions about Ace and Shark kept rolling around his head, putting him in a foul mood. He'd never asked Ace to tell him what had happened that night, didn't think that he needed to, but the loose end of how and why Shark had been in their room was suddenly an irritant that he couldn't seem to shake. He knew that he'd damaged her when she'd caught him with that croweater, and then further when he'd backhanded her. For the first time, he was wondering what might have happened if she hadn't been taken that night. Whether his brother had gone there to watch out for her, or to make a bid to be his replacement, and whether Ace would have taken the opportunity to get back at him.
No, that kind of thing wasn't her style. Even the thought of it had him slamming his cast against the steering wheel. Arguably he would have deserved it if she had fucked around. Sure the MC standard was one sided blind fidelity, but Ace had been raised mostly by the same woman he had been, and Delia had strong opinions regarding justice and what kind of shit a woman shouldn't take from her man. Happy really hoped his ma never found out how badly he'd screwed up, he was afraid she'd lead the campaign for Ace to leave him entirely.
He checked the clock, it was just past noon. He could head back to the clubhouse and see if Ace was awake, and find out whether she was pissed or amused by the ring, or he could grab some food and track down Bowie. The plans he had been mulling over for weeks were starting to really meld into coherency, and he needed to get Bowie's take on things and find out what kind of support he'd have when the time came. Of course, Bowie would probably be pissed that Happy had gotten into it with Cat, but all in all, he still thought that Bowie was a safer bet than Ace right now.
No Other Man Alive
It was later than Happy had really intended to get back to the clubhouse; all he really wanted was a highball of whiskey and his pretty little wife. After Bowie's initial blowup about the way Happy had treated his old lady, they'd settled down to the business of retribution. Jax's intelligence from Romero Parada highlighted that even though the Bastardos were small time, they had big connections, and that definitely complicated the complete annihilation that Happy wanted for them. It was going to take a lot of money, maneuvering, and favors to untangle the mess he'd left in Fallbrook.
Happy crossed the clubhouse, nodding at the few brothers who had stopped in for a drink after work. He considered stopping to grab a bottle on his way, but the draw of Ace, who always looked at him like he'd done something right, was stronger than his thirst.
"She's not back there." Tig called, and Happy stopped dead in his tracks. He turned slowly, and headed to where Tig and Kozik were playing darts on the far side of the bar.
"Where is she?" Happy asked quietly, he knew that nothing could be wrong because Tig wouldn't be this casual, but the fact that Ace wasn't where he'd left her made his skin crawl.
"Maryanne took her to the mall or some shit." Tig answered, and Happy retreated behind the bar, pulling down an unopened bottle of Jack, looking at it for a long moment, then trading it for the half-full Jameson. He didn't bother with a glass.
"She didn't call." He muttered, planting his ass on the barstool closest to the darts.
"Dude, she doesn't have a phone." Kozik reminded him, abandoning the game in favor of drinking with his brother. "Chill out, she thought she'd make it back before you, said you usually haven't been back before dinner."
"And you couldn't call me and let me know where the fuck she was?" Happy grumbled, and Kozik gave him a sideways look.
"You are so tightly wound, it ain't even funny." Kozik observed. "Things not going so hot with your old lady?"
"Really? You want to go there? Ok let's talk about how things are going with my old lady." Happy put the bottle on the bar and went for his belt. "Hey Tig, how did you and Juice bond? Dunked your balls in his mouth?"
Kozik pushed Happy off of the barstool, but Happy got an arm around the back of Kozik's head, taking him down with him. It wasn't a serious fight, neither one was throwing any punches. Mostly, it was Happy trying to pin Kozik down with his knees so he could get his fly open, and Kozik doing everything he could to make sure that didn't happen. The pair of them stopped their scuffle, both of them on the floor, arms wrapped around each other, Happy's belt was open, and the button on his jeans, too, and they both stared up at Ace. Tig was drinking from Happy's bottle, laughing maniacally.
"Am I interrupting?" She asked, her face caught somewhere between confusion and amusement. Happy shoved Kozik off of him, and rolled nimbly to his feet.
"Hey, where did you disappear to?" He asked her, awkwardly trying to refasten his jeans. Ace put the bag in her hand down and finished the job for him.
"Maryanne gave me a ride to the mall. I needed some long sleeved shirts, figured you were getting tired of me wearing yours." Ace shrugged and hooked her arm through his, grabbing her bag off the floor. "Where did you disappear to?"
Happy let her steer him into their room, wondering if enough time had passed that they could try to fuck again. Ace wasn't making any overtures, though; she dropped the bag onto the dresser before even turning her attention on him. He took note that she wasn't wearing the ring, and also that it wasn't where he'd left it.
"Went out to shoot, but that shit got old quick, so I tracked down Bowie." He answered, and picked her left hand up to eye level, rubbing his thumb over her ring finger. Ace quirked an eyebrow at him, daring him to comment, but he decided against it, and ducked down for a kiss, instead. He had his hand on her face, putting pressure on her jaw until she opened her mouth for him.
"Hap…" She broke in when he started backing her toward the bed, and he let his head fall back for a second before he looked at her.
"Too soon?" He asked, with an iron grip on his frustration.
"No, we can give it a shot." Ace answered, unzipping his hoodie and sliding it off of his shoulders. She loved the way he felt under her hands, strong and powerful. "You just caught me off guard, that's all."
It was nearly comical how quickly Happy found himself stripping off his holster and boots. He'd gone longer without pussy, but generally it wasn't being dangled right in front of him when he couldn't have it. Ace was still right there every single day, and since the bruises were just the slightest shadows now, it was getting harder to remember why he couldn't just bend her over whatever piece of furniture was handy and fuck her raw. He sat on the edge of the bed and motioned her over with his hand.
"C'mere." Happy watched her with predatory focus, noting little details, like the way Tacoma's wet weather made her curls go wild, and that her jeans weren't skin tight anymore, and that her cheeks were starting to flush. When she reached him, Happy pulled her onto his lap, her knees going to either side of his hips. It put her tits right up in his face, and he stripped the thermal off of her, and put his lips to work on them. He loved that she let her head fall back, trusting his arms to keep her from falling. His cast was across her lower back, and he tried to keep from chafing her with it, but he really couldn't help pushing her down on his dick.
Happy slid his hand into her hair, and pulled her face to his, forcing her mouth wide. Her hands were tugging his shirt up, and he pulled away from her long enough for her to strip it off, then was on her again, sucking on her neck and not caring if he left marks. He wanted to be all over her skin and inside her.
"Hang on." He ordered her, and stood, turning so that he could lay her out on the bed. Her eyes were wide open and watching him, so he took that as a good sign and stripped the jeans from her long, perfect legs, then went to work on his own. Naked, and aching with the need to get inside her, he forced himself to check the pace. He stroked and then licked his way up both her thighs, rubbing her through her panties until he could feel her dampness through the fabric. He could've pulled them off, but he was too impatient, so he just yanked the crotch to the side and put his mouth on her.
The breathy moan she let out was exactly what his pride had been craving and he deliberately stopped to grin at her, cocky and full of nasty promises. He didn't make her wait, though, the taste of her on his face and in his mouth wasn't nearly enough for him. He wanted her soaked and as desperate for this as he was. His intention had been to stop just short of making her cum, but between her squirming and those noises, his will power had bled right out.
He dragged the black panties down her legs while she was still limp and coming down from the orgasm he'd driven her to. The look on her face right after cumming was the one he loved the most, sated and hungry all at the same time, and it drew similarly conflicted feelings of tenderness and absolute savagery from him. It took every single iota of patience he had to his name to wait for her to come all the way down before getting inside of her.
"You good?" He grunted, as close as he could get to actually asking if she was up for this. Ace nodded, her eyes wide, and worried. He reined himself in, taking a couple slow breaths, reminding himself that if he wanted Ace back to her wild in the sack self, he had to do this right. "We'll go as slow as we need to, and we'll stop the second you say the word."
"OK." Ace was visibly trying to relax, and Happy did what he could, running his hand down her side and over the swell of her hip and back again, trying to be gentle with her, but his muscles were so tense that his hand was shaking. When she seemed chill again, he raised his brows and she nodded again.
The heat and wet and tightness of her hit him like a wrecking ball, and that feeling of being impossibly young washed over him. He could swear that being inside her made him 20 years younger. When he was sure that he wouldn't embarrass himself by cumming too soon, he rocked his hips against hers, watching her face closely for discomfort.
"Doing alright?" He asked, and she nodded, but he couldn't stop himself from looking down and checking to make sure she wasn't bleeding on him again. She wasn't, and fuck if the sight of her pussy around his cock wasn't the hottest thing he'd seen in weeks.
"You're sure? No pain?" He asked, a little late, as he was already picking up the pace.
"No, no pain." She answered, and his eyes flew to her face. She wasn't pale the way she'd been the last time, but there was the slightest crease between her brows, like she was concentrating too hard on something. He kept his eyes on her face as long as he could, but eventually lost the battle, distracted by her tits and then closing them entirely to concentrate on how good she felt around him.
"Um, Hap?" Her voice was tentative, and not at all the husky, breathy moan he wanted from her. He stilled immediately, resting his forehead on her shoulder, because the drive to keep moving was painful to resist.
"Yeah?" He finally asked her, nipping at her jaw, praying that she wasn't about to ask him to stop.
"Could we try something else?" That crease between her brows got deeper, like she was trying to solve a riddle.
"Am I hurting you?" He asked, already starting to pull out of her, but she held him still against her.
"Noooo, it's not that, it's just not really doing anything for me." She looked confused, but not nearly as confused as Happy felt. Of all the things he'd prepared himself to hear, that definitely wasn't one of them. He didn't think any woman had ever said that to him, ever.
"Uh, sure." Now it was his brow that furrowed as he tried to figure out what something else to try. Putting her facedown probably wasn't an option, so he slid his arm under her and rolled them so that she was on top.
"Try that." He told her, his hand clamped on her hip, grinding up against her. He watched her face as she started to move, trying to find a rhythm that worked. When she seemed to find her groove, hands braced on his abs, he closed his eyes. His body was already fully engaged, and he felt like he was drowning in the way she felt. Ready to kick it into another gear, he forced his eyes open to gauge where she was at, but if anything, her face was even more scrunched up than before and he became painfully aware of how completely silent she was. Sighing, Happy stilled and scrubbed his face, letting his head drop back on the pillows.
"Nothing?" He asked her, and her face flushed.
"I mean, it doesn't hurt, that's good, right?" Ace protested, sliding on him, making him groan, but he could tell that she was drying out.
"Not nearly good enough." He grumbled, and then sighed again. He dug his heels into the mattress, pushing himself into a semi sitting position.
"Open." He told her, and pushed his thumb into her mouth, trying not to think about shoving his cock into her mouth instead. He dropped his hand to where they were joined, stroking her and then grinding against her.
"Give me your mouth." He ordered her, pissed that his right hand was useless, but glad that she didn't question him. She opened for him immediately, submitting to the desperate kiss. He was increasingly aware that while she continued to work herself against him, she wasn't getting anything out of it. He allowed himself just one more minute to soak in the feeling of her around him, then drew his hand away, putting it on her hip to stop her.
"Stop." He told her, hating the way she looked at him, and hating himself for letting her become like this. "This ain't fun for either one of us."
"But, I'm fine, we can keep going." Ace protested, resisting when he tried to roll her off of him, but he just rolled out from under her, getting up to make certain he wouldn't be tempted.
"Uh-uh, I'd rather jerk off for the rest of my fuckin' like than watch you fuck like you're doing me a favor." He stalked away from the bed, pacing the room, trying to get a handle on his temper.
"I can't believe you just said that to me." She whispered, and the wounded look on her face, the complete distrust in her eyes shattered whatever semblance of control he'd been holding onto.
"Fuck!" He roared, and using the cocksucking useless casted arm, he swept everything off of the top of the dresser, sending half of Ace's shit flying because she never put anything away. Ace had scooted as far back on the bed as she could, pulling the blanket up to cover herself.
"Jesus, Happy, what did I do?" She asked him, and the fact that she immediately jumped to the conclusion that it was her nearly had him seeing red.
"Fuck, I'm doing the best I can here, Ace, but I'm running out of fucking ideas." He snarled at her.
"Ideas for what? Is this because I wasn't all into it?" She asked, incredulous, caught between how hurt she was and the first stirrings of anger.
"No. Yes. Fuck." The longer he stayed in the room with her, the more insanely pissed Happy got. He hated the out of control beast he'd become since taking her on, and part of him was beginning to hate her a little bit, too. Out of nowhere Cat's question came hammering into his mind, and he snatched his jeans off the floor, yanking them on, praying that he could get out before he opened his mouth again.
"Are you shitting me? Is your ego that fucking fragile that you have to make this about you?" Ace was off the bed, dragging the blanket with her, and her cheeks were flaming red as her temper rose.
"If my ego was that fragile, I'd be asking you if you were refusing to wear this-" He grabbed the velvet ring box from the rubble on the floor, "Because you didn't think you deserved it. Because you've never bothered to explain to me exactly what the fuck you thought you were doing alone in a motel room with my brother!"
She recoiled from the accusation he'd just hurled at her as if it were a physical blow, and stared at him, her mouth open in disbelief. Her breath came in ragged heaves, and in the silence Happy regretted so much that he couldn't even begin to pinpoint how far back it went.
"I can't do this." The words fell out of his mouth, and he couldn't even figure out what he meant by them.
"Get out." Her voice was low and harsh, barely more than a whisper, and it was exactly what he wanted to hear since it felt like the room was closing in on him. He grabbed a shirt and his holster, then went to the closet for the bag he kept packed for emergency runs. He shoved the ring box into the backpack and left without even looking back at her.
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