A/N - A two-parter, one Chibs/Nina and one Jax/Gemma... Jax is about this close to leaving it, and you're not going to believe what's going to happen in the next couple of chapters ;)

Chibs scooped up the melting ice cream with his spoon and leaned across the table to feed it to Nina. She ate gently from his spoon, like a little animal, her eyes never leaving his as she licked off a droplet that spilled onto her lip. Chibs smiled proudly, caressing her tenderly.

"So, how's your stitching?" he asked with a playful smile. Nina shrugged shyly.

"It's okay. Do I darn your socks or something now?" she asked, poking her tongue out between her lips. Chibs bit his lip, she was just too damn tempting when she looked at him with those eyes. He leaned across, catching the tip with his own lips and kissing her softly.

"I just wondered if my old lady could put these on for me," he said as he pulled the dusty President patch out of his top pocket and laid it on the table in front of her. Nina stared at it in surprise but smiled, excited for him. She picked it up and brought it close to have a good look before nodding and holding it in place where it would go on his cut.

"I'm sure I could do that," she said. "I'm pretty awesome with a needle." She tapped the mark on her inner elbow, it was a dark joke but it still made Chibs smile. He was proud of her for rising above everything she was going through, he was impressed that she was feeling so strong already. His thumb rubbed over the track mark, wishing she'd never had to suffer like that.

"What happened to you in that place," he murmured. "You were okay, right? Once Tig got there, he took care of you?"

She nodded gingerly, her fingers interlacing with his as she held his hand. "I think so. I don't really remember." She gave him a tired smile, not really wanting to talk about it. She didn't really want to tell him what had happened, Chibs hadn't questioned her for a second when he had found her, probably because he had been so relieved to get hold of her again. "I forgive him. For what happened, at the club. I think we should forget it."

Chibs nodded slowly. Being President meant rising above it, it was that which Jax had really struggled with and he wasn't going to repeat those mistakes. "Aye, I agree. That little... souvenir, on your back. That won't go anywhere, but if you're happy, I will be."

Nina clambered out of her side of the booth and slid in beside him, squashing close to him on the leathery seat. Chibs grinned and folded her beneath his arm, holding her close. She nuzzled him, her nose rubbing softly against his ear, as she closed her eyes.

"Thank you for looking out for me, Prez," she whispered. "You sure I'm not going to be a problem? I don't want to mess up your white boy charter."

Chibs laughed, he hadn't even thought of that. "You won't, I'll be doing some patching up with your Da soon enough. We're going to need the support with those pissed off Irishmen." He pulled at her hair gently, twirling it between his fingers thoughtfully. Nina looked up at him.

"Is that because of me? And your wife?"

Chibs chuckled. Fiona would be pissed off whatever happened, if she didn't get her way, she was a little madam. The second she found out what had happened - and, more importantly, that Chibs now had the SAMCRO original charter President's patch - she would be more determined than ever to sink her claws into him.

"The latter, maybe," he said, picking up the cherry from the side of the sundae dish and feeding it to Nina. She giggled a little as she bit half and motioned for him to have the rest. "I've got paperwork already being drawn up. She'll hate it, mind. She probably doesn't even legally exist any more, third generation IRA, might have to divorce her in absence."

It all sounded very real when he said it like that. Nina had her fair share of understanding about club life, but a terrorist group like the IRA was something out of her knowledge. She wrinkled her nose.

"She sounds dangerous."

Chibs smiled. "Women around this club always are," he teased, pinching her chin between his thumb and forefinger and leading her to his lips for another embrace. She tasted like cinnamon and it made him shiver with delight to feel her tongue slip against his. "I bet you can be, too. I saw you choke that guy."

"I barely remember." She gave him a forlorn smile. "Anyone I should watch out for?"

"Your Da's new girlfriend," Chibs said with a smirk. "Gemma Teller-Morrow is one of the scariest women on the goddamn planet. Just... whatever she needs, you stay on the right side of her, okay?" Nina nodded obediently. "It's not worth the risk, you understand? Anything she tells you to do, you do it. Don't question her, we can always talk about it afterwards."

"Yes sir," Nina nodded. She ran her finger along the edge of the ice cream glass and licked off a spot of chocolate sauce. "Guess I won't be her favourite person right now."

Chibs shrugged. "She knows that things change, she used to be the Prez's old lady, she knows what comes with that. Just play nice, that's all. You're kind of her daughter-in-law, after all."

Nina laughed outright at that. The thought of her father shacking up with Gemma was alien, the idea he might actually want a proper, functioning relationship seemed strange enough. "She's doing something right, I guess," she mused. "Daddy's never been the 'settling' type. Must come with age," she added with a cheeky wink as she pulled at Chibs' grey hair. Chibs grinned, catching her wrist and pulling her even closer to him.

"Aye, old, old age," he whispered, his lips brushing her skin. "Little mare. Let's get you home."

"Do you think we should just tell him?" Nero asked as he pushed his shirt back into his pants. Gemma clicked her tongue and shook her head, Jax would be furious if he ever found out what was going on between them.

"I think he's got enough problems," she said, shaking her shirt the right way up and pulling it back on. She scrunched her hair beneath her hand. Nero chuckled.

"He's got a... unique way of winning friends and influencing people," he laughed. "Probably needs to work on something other than that boyband smile, mama, you should give him some advice."

Gemma laughed and leaned across to kiss Nero's lips. He made her happy, she had no idea how, but they were finally finding their rhythm. "Maybe I should talk to him," she mused. "About us. Clear it from his mind so he can start getting over it. Not like he listens to me much anyway any more."

Nero was about to return with a quick quip when there was a sharp rap on the door. Gemma motioned for him to keep back as she snuck a look and she panicked.

"Shit, it's Jax." She clearly wasn't that ready. "Go, out the back." She gave Nero an anxious shove and kissed him hurriedly as he slipped out. Trying to make herself look as normal as possible, she smoothed her hair beneath her hand and took a breath before opening the door. "Hey baby."

Jax burst into tears the second she spoke. Gemma could do nothing but accept him into her arms as he barrelled into her, sobbing. She could feel him shaking, each breath making him heave.

"Jesus, what the hell's happened?" she asked. "Are the boys okay?"

Jax could barely string two words together as he almost hyperventilated into her shoulder. Gemma rubbed his back comfortingly and helped him sit down. She dragged her own chair closer to him, holding on to him, fearful for what was going on.

"They voted me out of my seat," Jax moaned mournfully, looking at the missing badge on his cut. "That shit with Nero's girl."

"Nina?" Gemma looked confused. "Over that? Why?"

Jax looked at his mother, his only confidant now Opie was gone. "I got her to leave. She owed some guy money, I sent her out of town with him." Gemma swallowed down her anger, unable to express it in the circumstances. "Chibs, he found out and lost it, turned the whole goddamn club against me. Challenged my patch and won."

Gemma could hardly believe things had turned around so quickly. Nero was right, Jax was upsetting too many people. "Jesus." She looked down at the table, trying to parse the whole situation. "Clay back at the head?"

Jax shook his head. "No, Chibs." As if that wasn't mortifying enough to admit, he felt his eyes welling up again as he thought about Tara. "Shit, Mom, I made a bad play." Gemma knew better than to speak, she kept her mouth shut and waited for him to continue. Admitting mistakes was cathartic and much needed. "I tried to take the escort business from Nero. When he bought out our half of Diosa, I invested it into another place. Poached the Cara Cara girls back."

Now Gemma was finding it harder to control her emotions, Jax was screwing around with Nero's future and her two worlds were colliding uncomfortably. "What?"

"I screwed one of those damn porn pussies," Jax admitted guiltily. "And Tara found out." He started to cry again, rocking in his seat. "She's going to take the boys."

Gemma clenched her jaw tight. "No she's not," she said staunchly. "No goddamn way."

"She's already planning it," Jax said. "She's got a job offer lined up, starts next week. Philadelphia." Gemma growled.

"That's the other side of the goddamn country," she snapped, as if Jax didn't already know. Jax moaned sadly at her, whimpering in a moment of pure distress. He had gone too far, he could see it now, but there was no way back.

"How do I fix this?" he pleaded. "I need her back, I need this fixed."

Gemma thought on it for a moment. To her, her grandsons were the only priority. "You leave it with me, baby," she said with a smile, caressing Jax's stubbly cheek with her thumb. "You need to patch up this shit with Nero. Go, apologise, fix that. Shut the other place down, last thing you want is competition, he's already talking about setting up a second location."

Jax nodded, Gemma was good at logistics and he trusted her advice implicitly. "What about Tara?"

Gemma smiled and kissed his lips lovingly. "You leave that bitch to me," she said softly. "I'll take care of her, the boys'll be home by dinner tomorrow, with or without her."