Disclaimer: I do not own Sons of Anarchy.

A/N: Just a special shout out to First Lady Lestat and JTellersOldLady for their concern regarding fanfic's accouncement on their home page about the rating issue. I have read (and re-read) their statement. I think that it's just a warning. I don't get the impression that they are going to actively purge stories so I just intend to fly under the radar until I get caught! I have no intention of voluntarily removing my stories or changing the content. Considering some of the fiction I have read on this site, I'm pretty tame. However, I am actively searching for another site to post my stories on the odd chance that I get busted. Any suggestions on where to go would be great!

As always, the more love hits I get, the better I feel! Enjoy!

Sitting on the bed, Jolene still looked shell-shocked as she examined the double pink lines of the pregnancy test.

Earlier, bubbling with excitement, Donna had used her old lady status to wheedle one of SAMCRO's Prospects into running her into town to find a pharmacy. Grinding his teeth, Half Sack obliged, letting go of the prime piece of ass that had been in the process of leading him to one of the bedrooms by his one-nutted dick. With Donna having purchased several pregnancy tests, they had managed to make it back to the Clubhouse in record time. Unfortunately for Half Sack, his bit of fluff had already been snatched up by Tig. Donna cringed as she saw the young man search the Main Room in vain for the little tart knowing that, if he ever patched in, Kip was going to make her pay for ruining his fun.

Now, leaning against the doorjamb leading into the bathroom, Donna smiled tenderly, seeing the soft warm glow in Jolene's eyes as she laid her hand on her flat stomach and caressed it gently.

At that moment, Jolene was blind to her surroundings, all her thoughts and energies centered on the little being growing inside of her. Although not unexpected as she and Jax had been actively trying to have another baby, it was nonetheless taking Jolene a moment to process the news. Four year ago, as she prayed and hoped for her dying baby to get better, she never would have dared guess that this is what destiny had in store for her. Jolene felt like crying, but after all the crying she had done during her first pregnancy and after Abel's birth, she had come to associate tears with sorrow and hurt. News of the life she was now carrying, the one she had created with the only man she would ever love, didn't deserve tears anymore than Abel had. Even though there was no guarantee that, under different circumstances, Abel would have been born healthy, Jolene was still struggling to forgive herself for leaving Charming when and how she had.

This pregnancy and this baby will be different, Jolene promised herself and the little bit of Jax in her belly.

Smiling a 1,000-watt smile, Jolene burrowed under the covers that Donna had thrown over her just before she had left. Her life was about to change again and she couldn't wait to share the news with the love of her life.

It was a little past midnight by the time Jax was able to extract himself from one discussion after another with his brothers. Each conversation he'd had that night had started the same way, with his brothers slapping him soundly on the back of his cut, telling him they were happy to see the old Jax Teller back. Jax had smiled, each time noticing that the reason he was back and in fighting form had gone AWOL. Sensing his brother's separation anxiety, Opie told Jax that he had last seen Donna, Jolene, and a bottle of Patron heading back to the room he shared with Jo. Jax decided it was his cue to bow out and call it a night when he later saw Donna perched on her old man's lap.

Propositioned first by a leggy blonde and then by a busty redhead as he swaggered across the Clubhouse towards the hallway leading to the bedroom suites on the first floor, Jax smiled to himself, realizing that he wasn't tempted. Not even a little bit, especially since he could find more than just amazing sex in the arms of his old lady.

That woman gives "good lovin'" a whole different meaning, Jax thought to himself as he entered the gaudy as shit bedroom they had been relegated to.

Except for the soft golden glow coming from two sconces on either side of the bed, the room was dim. Jax could barely make out the silhouette of his old lady, who was practically lost in the middle of the bed underneath a pile of dark and heavy bedding. Removing his cut and throwing it on the upholstered bench at the foot of the bed, Jax quickly shed his clothes and soundlessly slipped into bed.

Jax smiled as Jolene, feeling the familiar dip of the bed in her sleep, rolled over. "Hey, baby." Jolene murmured softly as she burrowed her face into his neck, still fast asleep.

Pulling himself back slightly, Jax smiled down at Jolene, now comfortably nestled in his arms. Sweeping her loose curls away from her face, he frowned slightly as he noticed faint shadows underneath her eyes.

My old lady needs a serious vacation.

Although the shit storm the ATF had managed to whip up had happened two weeks ago, Jax was a little glad that the stress may have proved too much, a happy by-product being that he was able to convince Jolene to take the summer off. Jax had been hoping that the run to Reno would get Jolene to relax a bit, and so far it had, but it was clear that something was weighing heavy on her.

Thinking about kissing her, he let his thumb tenderly graze her lips. She looked so peaceful and content in his arms it was almost tempting to just let her sleep.

Almost.

Hearing her moan softly, Jax gave in and decided to give his old lady a reason to keep moaning.

"Hey, darlin'." Jax kissed one of her eyelids, provoking a small smile from Jolene as the whiskers on his chin tickled her nose.

Bringing his lips to hers, he continued giving her soft pecks until she started responding, her bright green eyes fluttering open. With her hand now cupping one side of his face, Jolene returned his kisses as they grew with intensity. Rolling Jolene onto her back, Jax continued kissing her, barely keeping himself from grinning as he realized that his old lady had been naked and waiting for him.

Fully awake now, Jolene was purring softly as Jax moved to her neck and sucked bruises into her tender skin, all the while coaxing her to wrap her legs around his waist. Their breathing quickened as he moved his hips against hers, causing her to groan. Lifting his face to hers, Jax smiled as she whispered her need to feel him inside her.

Taking it slow, knowing that he was the cause of some of her exhaustion, Jax pushed himself into her. Alternating circling his hips and thrusting into her, he felt his balls tighten at the sounds she was making. Bringing his mouth back to hers, Jax swallowed those soft cries as Jolene managed to kick the comforter off of them and onto the floor. Looking up into the mirror above the bed, Jolene was mesmerized by the masculine beauty of his hard body as he made love to her, every muscle on his back and buttocks flexing as they moved in a quiet rhythm.

He's being exceptionally tender, Jolene thought as she held his face in her hands. Almost like he already knows about our precious cargo.

Jax was looking down at his beautiful wife as he continued to move inside her, desperately fighting the need to pound into her. He wanted to love her slow, to prolong this moment in time between them for as long as he could. The way she was looking at him, her expressive eyes wide and brimming with the love she had for him, was almost humbling. How could someone like him—an outlaw, a man of mayhem with blood on his hands—ever deserve to be loved so wholly by someone like her?

Suddenly, her body was vibrating beneath his with tiny shudders. Fighting to hold himself back, Jax watched the woman he loved flush, losing the battle to keep her eyes open as she came for him.

"Oh God. Oh my God." She was panting as she slowly came down. "I love you, Jackson."

Jax smiled, quickening his pace and about to jokingly remind her of their "no-I-love-yous-during-sex" rule, but the sudden tears in her eyes stopped him.

"Don't stop, baby." Lifting herself up to kiss him, Jolene dug her fingernails into the skin on his ass as she bucked against him. Losing control over the animal within seeking release, Jax gripped her hips, his face buried in her vanilla-scented hair, and let himself explode.

Lying half on the bed and half on Jolene, Jax gently nudged her face towards him.

"You okay, babe?"

Jolene swallowed hard. "Never better. That was an awesome way to wake up." She smiled.

"You know me, darlin'. I always aim to please." He replied with a self-satisfied grin.

"I know." Jolene said, her fingers gently caressing his arm draped over her. "Sometimes I think I don't deserve you." Jax quirked an eyebrow at her, slightly taken by surprise that she had just mimicked his own thoughts from earlier. Jax was about to ask her to elaborate when she cut loose with a massive yawn that ended with a squeak. She looked exhausted and he wasn't helping.

"Come here, darlin'." Jax lay back against a pile of pillows and pulled her into his arms, settling her on his chest. "You wanna join the rally tomorrow, you really need to get some sleep. You've been burning the candle at both ends lately with school and then that ATF shit hitting you sideways, it's no wonder you're exhausted."

Re-energized, Jolene rolled onto Jax, straddling him and taking him by surprise. She thought she could wait until they got home, but she was about to burst if she didn't tell him.

"Actually, I think there's another reason why I've been so tired lately." She said a little anxiously, and then bit her bottom lip.

Jax suddenly tensed. "I fuckin' knew it, Jo." Sitting up so that she was on his lap with her legs wrapped around him, he stared intently into her wide, startled eyes. "I knew something was wrong. You're sick, aren't you? Shit! As soon as we get back, I'm taking you to St. Thomas for a check up."

Jolene quickly cupped Jax's face in her hands. "Whoa, relax, baby. I'm okay, really." Jax watched, his brow furrowed as Jolene reached over him. Opening the drawer, she pulled out a plastic purple and white stick. Smiling, she flipped it over to reveal the double-pink lines in the center. "It's nothing that another seven months won't cure."

It took Jax a minute to process what he was seeing and what Jolene had said. But when it finally registered, Jolene knew that if she lived to be a 100, she would never forget the look of stunned wonder on her love's face.

"Shit, baby . . . You're . . ." Jax couldn't even finish the sentence.

Nodding emphatically and with sudden, uncontrollable tears running down her face, Jolene wrapped her arms around his neck. "Yep and I must say, Teller, I'm quite impressed that you managed to knock me up again so quickly."

Sinking his hands into her mass of dark hair, Jax brought his mouth to hers with stunning force. Pulling away from their kiss, Jolene's heart constricted in her chest when she saw the tears in his eyes.

"Oh God, Jax," Jolene started as she ran her hands through his hair. Jax's hands were on her waist, his thumbs grazing her belly. Even though his eyes were now downcast, Jolene could see a hint of a smile on his lips. "I love you so much." She whispered.

Jolene yelped and started giggling as she found herself on her back with Jax trailing soft, tender kisses down her neck, over her torso, until reaching her still-flat stomach. After kissing her taut golden skin, Jax gently laid his head against her belly button, his eyes closed and a smile still playing on his lips.

"I love you so much more, darlin'."

Some time after dawn, Jolene awoke pinned to the bed with Jax's arm possessively draped across her waist and one hairy, muscled leg over one of hers and entwined with the other. Jolene smiled as she quietly struggled to untangle herself from her husband's embrace, only to succeed in waking him up.

"Where you going?" Jax mumbled into her shoulder, not bothering to open his eyes and his arm tightening around her waist.

"Nowhere, I guess." Jolene kissed the tip of his nose. "I have to warn you though, you might feel something warm and wet in this bed real soon."

Jax's eyes flew open. "I've got news for ya, darlin'. There's was plenty of warm and wet in this bed last night." He gave her a sexy smirk that made her insides go squish and kissed her lightly on the lips. "Go take a piss." Jax said, as he unwound himself from her. Jolene sat on the edge of the bed and watched as he pulled her pillow against his chest and snuggled down again. She smiled as in less than a minute she could hear him snoring lightly.

Jolene marveled at how bone tired she felt even after all of the sleep she had managed to get since arriving in Reno the day before. Jolene rubbed her eyes in an effort to keep them from closing, fighting the urge to let herself fall back into bed. An early riser by nature, Jolene was accustomed to being constantly on the go. Fatigue was one pregnancy side effect she could do without, especially with an extremely active toddler and old man to take care of. Yawning, Jolene pushed herself up from the bed, only to suddenly feel her legs give way. Falling onto the bed again, Jolene felt herself flush and break out into a cold sweat. With a shaky hand fluttering over the faint scar on her chest, Jolene took deep breaths as she tried to calm her rapidly beating heart.

"Shit." She mumbled to herself as she turned to make sure she had not disturbed Jax. Finding him still fast asleep, Jolene sat on the bed quietly until she started to feel normal again.

Although every pregnancy was different, Jolene knew her body well enough to know that while nausea and dizziness were normal, especially in the early stages, flop sweat and arrhythmia wasn't. She could kick herself now, but she had been so busy and so eager to move on with her life with Jax and Abel that she had failed to take the advice Dr. Steinman had given her after Abel was born. She probably should have seen a doctor first before taking herself off of birth control and other meds. Jolene pushed herself off the bed again and onto her bare feet, managing to stay upright this time around. Making her way to the bathroom, Jolene promised herself to make an appointment to see Dr. Negron, the heart specialist that had saved her life after the shooting, as soon as she saw an OB/GYN and confirmed that all was right with her baby.

After taking a shower, which she had not meant to do if not for her stomach unexpectedly rebelling against her while brushing her teeth, Jolene sat cross-legged on her side of the bed towel drying her hair. Jax was still sleeping soundly and Jolene loved watching him at moments like this. Although Jax was normally quite easy-going, underneath his laid-back California good looks, Jax was wound tight. He was always prepared to spring into action in a fraction of a second, a by-product of the life he lived. Only when he was asleep did his features soften and relax enough that Jolene caught glimpses of the teenage boy she had fallen in love with when she was ten.

Seeing Jax pout slightly in his sleep reminded Jolene of the look of concentration on fourteen year old Jax's face as he and Ope taught her how to skim rocks across the pond near Piney's cabin. As great as those early days growing up in Charming had been, Jolene wouldn't trade what she had now for the world. Only thing she really missed was the wide-eyed innocence of those days, which she had happily and voluntarily given up the day she became Jax Teller's old lady so many years ago.

Whipping her head up, Jolene's eyes fell on her back patch hanging from the back of the vanity chair across the room. She had made a promise of loyalty and respect not only to her old man, but to the entire Club the day she had accepted Jax's patch. And she reaffirmed that promise last night when Jax gave it back to her. Yet here she was, keeping secrets from Jax and his brothers out of fear of what they might think of her, the SAMCRO Princess, if they knew.

Now, with Stahl and Company hunkering down in Charming indefinitely, Jolene was starting to realize that keeping her secrets hidden may not be the best idea. The events that had unfolded as a result of her time in Seattle, when she was seventeen and as recent as last year, had the potential to blow back and destroy the only family she had ever known.

In spite of her fears, there was no way around it. The fact remained that Jax needed to know the details of what had happened in Seattle, but that could only happen after she spoke to her father first. She didn't know the details about Pretty Ricky's disappearance—she had been smart enough back then to know not to ask questions—but she knew the reactive nut job her father could be. She remembered Clay claiming having gone to Seattle with Scott Rosen in order to finalize the transfer of custody from Valentina back to him.

She may not be a patch, but she knew her father and the men he called brothers extremely well. Family protects their own and, if that failed, then retaliation was the only option. But Jolene had made her father promise to keep her secret and, as a man of honor, she had tied his hands and kept him from asking his brothers for help in dealing with Pretty Ricky. Now, it had the potential to blow back on the Club and they didn't even know about it and Clay was just as clueless about Stahl using it as ammunition. It hurt Jolene to finally realize that her stubborn pride was at the root of SAMCRO's current problems with the ATF, but she couldn't out her father to his own Club without warning him first.

There was also now the new baby to take into consideration. Her first pregnancy had really taken its toll on her. She had never given Jax the extensive and gory details of just how bad it had been and now, with the threat of the ATF hanging over the Club causing her stress, the possibility that this pregnancy could be worse was that much greater.

Looking tenderly at Jax once more, Jolene hurriedly wiped away errant tears from her cheeks. The love of her life, the father of her babies, would die for her. She knew this like she knew she needed air in her lungs to breathe. She trusted him with her life, but now she needed to prove to herself that she trusted him enough to bare her soul to him as well.

Idlewild Park was a beautiful open space just west of downtown Reno. The park hugged a curve along the south bank of the Truckee River and had large expanses of grass with trees and two picnic areas. The park was bordered by a bend in the Truckee River on the north and east, and Idlewild Drive on the south. Marking the west edge was Latimore Drive, which was also an entrance into that end of the park and a prime location for the Sons of Anarchy Reno Bike Rally. Although this was the rally's fifth year, it was the first time that SAMCRO was co-sponsoring the event, with proceeds from the bike race registration fees and the sale of t-shirts, food, and beer going to several families of currently incarcerated Sons.

It was a gorgeous Saturday afternoon and after taking her turn with other old ladies selling hot dogs cooked up by the Prospects, Jolene grabbed an ice cold bottle of water and went in search of some familiar faces. In spite of it being much hotter than she was used to back home, the sun and desert heat felt good on Jolene's bare limbs as she sported a black Harley-Davidson tank top and white shorts.

Even though this wasn't her first time attending an event like this, it was her first one outside of Charming as Jax Teller's old lady, and the difference between this and last night's party couldn't be more glaring. The rally was more family-oriented with old ladies and children outnumbering the bikers at least 5 to 1. Along with SAMCRO and Reno, there were several other friendly MCs in attendance, including the Grim Bastards, who had made the trip out from Lodi to show support for the mother charter. As far as Jolene could tell, there wasn't a croweater, sweetbutt, or hooker in sight.

Spotting a somewhat familiar—and in no way friendly—face, Jolene felt she may have proclaimed the bike rally a ho-free zone too soon as she saw Wendy Case wandering around aimlessly with a beer in hand. With her entourage of croweaters left behind in Charming, Wendy looked sorely out of place sporting an outfit more suitable for a strip club then a park where children were present.

Continuing her search for her family, Jolene was heading towards a cluster of bikers, including Reno's president when she felt a stinging and resounding smack on her ass.

"OWW!" Jolene complained, her hand grabbing onto her aching butt cheek as she prepared to cut a strip off of her old man for being so heavy handed. However, as she spun around, the words died in her mouth of shock as she realized she wasn't facing Jax, but the middle-aged biker she recognized as Huff Kagen.

"Oh shit! I'm sorry, sweetheart. I didn't know it was you." Huff apologized half-heartedly as he knew exactly on whose round, plump ass he had laid a smarting on. "I thought you were one of the Reno charter's working girls." He knowingly smiled.

Jolene's wide eyes doubled in size as the older man added insult to injury. A patch was a patch no matter how big a dick he was, so Jolene bit into her already-numb tongue to keep herself from telling Huff to fuck off on the whore he rode in on.

Huff was fighting the urge to laugh his ass off. He could see the internal struggle play out on the stuck up little bitch's pretty face as she fought to keep herself from chewing him out. Stepping back a little, Huff didn't try to hide the fact that he was openly appraising her body from head to toe. Truth was, the SAMCRO VP had splendid taste in women and, if Wendy was anything to go by, Huff wouldn't mind tapping more than just Jolene Teller's ass.

"Mmm, mmm! You are one tight little package." Huff practically licked his lips. "Too bad I never made it up this way when you first returned to Charming, huh, before your old man got out of Chino. We could have had some fun exercising that prison clause."

Jolene's nostrils flared a little. "Only if you're into fuckin' corpses." She challenged through clenched teeth.

Huff suddenly threw his head back and laughed. "Cold packing? Oh you sweet thing! If you only knew and I have the patch to prove it, too!"

As Huff continued laughing, Jolene stood rooted to the spot. Coiled so tight was her anger and rage that she was virtually shaking. She couldn't recall another time when a patch had ever spoken to her like this asshole she barely knew had.

Huff was tired of his old lady's nagging about her ill treatment by the mother charter since their arrival. Constantly berating him to take a stand for her. Well, while he had to tread carefully with his brothers so as to not jeopardize the gun running deal between charters, he had assured Wendy that he was just as good at these passive-aggressive pissing contests as the SAMCRO VP. Turn around was fair play when it came to disrespecting old ladies. Jax Teller could work his influence within the mother charter to shun Wendy by making her feel unwelcomed in their shitty little town, but he had just reduced the SAMCRO Princess into nothing more than a Club whore.

Unfortunately, Huff had been drinking since their arrival in Reno the night before, taking a small break as he passed out face first into the crotch of a hooker he was sharing with Wendy, only to resume his alcohol consumption as soon as they arrived at the rally this morning. Still buzzed, Huff quickly came down from his liquor-fueled cloud of self-righteousness. He realized just a tad too late that, even though he had not yet aired his grievances regarding Jax Teller's treatment of Wendy to the man himself, there was probably nothing he could say that would keep Jolene from repeating their conversation to her old man.

And judging from the self-satisfied smirk on her face, Huff concluded, the bitch is probably thinking the same thing.

"Listen, Jolene. No harm meant. I was just kidding around—." Huff started by way of an apology, only to have Jolene interrupt.

"Don't apologize." Jolene smiled prettily. No one watching from a distance would be able to detect that there was a dangerous edge to her voice. "Can't really blame you if you lack the experience to know what a real old lady looks like."

Huff's eyes were flashing angrily at the young woman when Jax, finally spotting his old lady from clear across the park, made his way to her side.

"Hey, darlin'," Jax smiled, kissing Jolene on the temple as he slipped an arm around her shoulders. "You've been too busy with work to drop by the Clubhouse that haven't had the chance to introduce you to Huff yet." He said, not quite sure why his old lady would want to talk to Huff.

Jolene shook her head. "No need, baby. Huff and I already met, at our wedding, remember?" She looked up at Jax as he nodded in agreement, even though all he really remembered was how beautiful she looked that day. "I was just reintroducing myself because Huff doesn't seem to remember us meeting before either and he just mistook me for one of the Clubhouse's hookers." She replied, her eyes flashing green sparks right back at the SAMTAZ VP.

Jolene could tell from the look on his face that Huff hadn't expected her to tell Jax, at least not while he was still standing in front of her. Feeling Jax's arm stiffen around her, Jolene looked up at her old man and found him glaring daggers at Huff as he dropped all pretenses of polite conversation.

"Is that right?" Jax said through a clenched jaw, his mind racing through at least half a dozen ways he was going to kill Huff Kagen if he had laid a finger on his wife. "Go on and find Donna, Jo. I have to talk to Huff."

Stroking his chest through the t-shirt underneath his cut, Jolene inched her hand up to Jax's chin. Gently pulling him by his whiskers until he tore his death glare away from Huff, forcing him to make eye contact with her instead, Jolene smiled as she shook her head slightly. "It's okay, baby. I was just telling him that he most definitely had me confused with your first wife."

Jax's mouth twitched at the corners. He would have smiled, but he was still too pissed and feeling the itch to throw a punch burning in his hands.

"Come on," Jolene gently coaxed Jax. "I'm hungry. Lead me to some food that doesn't come in a bun."

Looking down at his old lady as she absently rubbed her belly, Jax finally allowed himself to smile. "Cheater." He almost whispered as he bent low enough for Jolene to jump on his back. With his wife now riding piggy back, Jax turned to Huff and pointed a ringed finger at him. "Later."

To say that Jax Teller treated his old lady like spun glass the morning they left Reno was an understatement. Normally, Jolene would shamelessly wallow in such adoration, but she knew her old man well enough to know that Jax was already toeing the fine line between caring husband and over-protective nutter. She couldn't really blame him, though. Considering that he had been deprived of the right to be there for her when she was pregnant with Abel, it could be worse. She was lucky to have a man that cared so much about her and to whom family meant everything.

The fact was, aside from the buzzkill that was her conversation with Huff at the rally, Jolene had been walking on clouds herself after sharing the news with Jax. The young couple literally glowed as they sat in the Main Room of the Reno Clubhouse eating breakfast. Bobby, sensing a hint of giddiness between the pair, decided that it might be best not to question it. Like Clay, the less Bobby knew about Kit's sex life the better as it didn't take a genius to figure out that the newlyweds had probably spent a major part of the weekend connected at the hips. Sitting across from the pair at one of the tables, Bobby watched his goddaughter wolf down what could only be described as a trucker-sized meal of scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, and pancakes.

"Gawd, Kit. Did you leave anything at the buffet?" Bobby teased as he finished the last of his coffee.

Jolene took a gulp of her orange juice and smiled cheekily. "Hey, first come, first serve." She shrugged her slight shoulders and dug back into her meal.

"Don't tease her, bro. She needs to put a few meals under her belt." Jax replied. Pushing his own wiped clean plate away, Jax was about to light a cigarette, quickly changed his mind and put the pack away.

"Yeah, I'm sure she could use the energy." Bobby smirked. "I'm getting me another cup of coffee. Let me get you one to wash that down with."

As Bobby stood up, both Jax and Jolene almost yelled, "No!"

As Bobby arched an eyebrow, Jolene hastily replied. "I'm good with just the o. j., Uncle Elvis."

"No problem." Bobby headed over to refill his cup. "You better finish up, Kit. Per your Dad, we're leaving in thirty."

Opie looked up as his best friend slapped him on the shoulder. The quiet giant of SAMCRO was the only Son from the mother charter currently packing up his bike for the trip back. Jax had been hoping to find a minute alone to drop the good news on his best friend without anyone overhearing and had finally seen his chance.

"Hey bro, you about ready? Clay wants to hit the road soon." Opie said, accepting one of Jax's proffered cigarettes.

"Yeah, man. I'm good, but I wanna ask a favor of you." Jax said, thoroughly enjoying his first drag from his first cigarette of the day as he refused to smoke around Jolene.

"Sure. What's up?" Opie leaned against his bike and crossed his arms.

"I want Donna to ride back in the cargo van with Jolene and Half Sack." Jax replied unable to keep himself from grinning.

"Oh, come on Jax. Private One Nut has one ball and it's a big one, but he ain't that stupid to try to make a move on your old lady—" Opie started.

"That ain't it, bro. I already put the fear of God into that boy. I have no worries in that department."

"Then what is it?"

"Well, since the newest member of the next SAMCRO generation has taken up residence in her belly, I can't let my old lady ride bitch for over four hours, man." Jax said nonchalantly as he flicked the ashes from his cigarette.

Opie's eyes slowly widened as each word registered. "Are you shitting me?" He roared as he wrapped his arms around Jax and practically lifted him in the air. "You lucky son of a whore!"

"Don't I know it." Jax grinned fiercely.

"Congratulations, bro. Babies are a beautiful thing." Opie said nostalgically, still smiling like a mental patient. "Shit, you ain't been married what two months?"

"We're coming up on three."

"Damn, that's sure some potent shit you got."

"Yeah, well, either that or practice makes perfect." Jax replied cockily. "But here's the thing. It's early days yet and Jolene doesn't want to tell Abel or our parents. At least not until she's got official confirmation and all that happy shit, so I need you to keep this on the down low."

"I don't know, man. How am I not gonna tell Donna?

"She already knows. Jolene swore her to secrecy, too."

"You fuckin' kidding me? My old lady of seven years knew and didn't say shit to me?"

"Don't get too mad at her, bro, after all this is Jolene we're talking about. She can be quite convincing and you know our two old ladies. Best friends forever. One would die for the other, so you can best believe that when one orders the other to keep her mouth shut, she's gonna do it. Unlike some dime dropping motherfuckers I know."

"Hey, as your best friend, I still think I'm entitled to the unedited version of your Oakland hook-up with Jolene." Opie laughed. "So, how do you feel about being a daddy twice over?"

Jax simply looked at his best friend and smiled.

"That good, huh?"

"Yeah, that good. Can you imagine, me with another son?" Jax seemed awestruck by the thought.

"Uh, no brother. Actually, I can't. In fact, I hope it's a girl." Opie snarked as he headed towards the Clubhouse to pick a bone with his wife. "God knows you've had it coming!"

With the convoy of bikes and cargo vans winding its way along the I-80 West, the ride back to Charming had been pretty uneventful for the first three hours of the journey.

Instead of riding back with her old man, Jolene found herself sandwiched between her best friend and Half Sack as Donna goaded the Prospect into telling off-colored stories of his tour in Iraq. Even though Jolene was feeling fine enough to ride, Jax had found an all too willing conspirator in Donna. Although happy for her best friend, Donna knew probably more about Jolene's difficult first pregnancy than Jax and was determined to do her part in helping Jax keep Jolene healthy.

Although Jolene believed that it was best to err on the side of caution and would have happily agreed to the suggestion that she ride back in the cargo van, she was a little twisted at being told, no actually ordered, to ride back in the van. She knew and understood her old man's macho tendencies—just one of the many reasons he made her hot—but Jolene still didn't appreciate being dictated to. Jax's take-no-prisoners attitude when Jolene informed him of that fact all but confirmed that, barring any health issues, the biggest problem she would be faced with during this pregnancy would probably be Jax himself.

Aside from the shit storm that kicked up as a result of her shooting almost five years ago, she and Jax rarely ever butted heads and when they did, Jolene knew his weaknesses and how to exploit them. Because her old man was somewhat penis-centric, Jolene had been able to get away with a lot over the years, but the SAMCRO VP was not accustomed to being questioned and second-guessed, especially on matters of great importance. And once she disclosed everything regarding the first pregnancy, there was no telling how he was going to handle the second one.

No, actually there is, Jolene thought, and for some reason, the words "lock down" come to mind.

Meanwhile, clueless to the fact that his old lady was still a little irked at him, Jax tried to do what he could to keep his joy to himself. The hardened outlaw biker was having trouble containing the urge to shout it for everyone to hear, but his word was his bond and he'd rather shoot himself in the foot than break a promise to Jolene. Besides, he understood her need to know that everything was alright first before sharing the great news. The truth was that the knot in the pit of his stomach would remain there until he heard confirmation from the doctor that everything was alright too.

Jax figured he could probably contain his joyful shit for a couple of days, but he could not have anticipated that sharing the good news would be put off for a good while.

Only twenty minutes away from downtown Charming, all Jax could remember was hearing the chilling squeal of tires as a bike and its rider wavered and then lost control. As the bike ran off the road, it hit a small boulder and tumbled down a steep embankment as the rider was hurled into the air.

Oh shit!

"Clay!" Jax yelled.

Screeching to a complete stop, Jax jumped off of his bike and ran to the edge of the road, the rest of the convoy hot on his heels. Looking over the railing, Jax saw his father-in-law's body, his leg and arm twisted underneath him and a small pool of blood forming at the base of his neck.

"Daddy!"

Jax turned to see his old lady desperately trying to get past her Uncle Elvis to climb down to her father.

"Bobby, keep Jolene up here! Somebody call an ambulance now, damn it!"

Leaping over the short barricade, Jax—followed by Tig, Opie and Chibs—eased himself down into the ravine. Making it to Clay first, Jax took off his leather glove and reached out with an unsteady hand to check his pulse.

Please God. Let him be alive.