A/N: Whew! So I'm glad to have gotten a lot of positive feedback on last chapter. Despite having read more than I am willing to admit, this is the first time I have actually written any scenes involving intimacy. Thank you for your feedback to those who have reviewed/messaged me. And to those of you reading along quietly, I would love to hear what you think!

I have gone back through all of the previous chapters and done some editing to clean up some mistakes, so if you're like me and like to read a story more than once, it will be a cleaner read next time. May not be perfect, it's hard to catch all of your own mistakes and I'm still searching for the right beta. So if a mistake jumps out at you, don't be afraid to point it out.

Now to my favorite part of my author notes—shoutouts to those who have reviewed the last chapter so far:

Ghostwriter- Thank you! Again, I'm so glad you loved the last chapter. That was exactly the balance I was striving for, steamy and sweet, so I'm so glad you said that!

Ks- I agree, I definitely think Opie has a tender side, which I wanted to showcase especially with Dani's inexperience with consensual acts. I remember one moment in the show, when he and Lyla were together for the first time but he didn't want to do in in the bed, when he put her on the floor and kissed her he let out a little whimper just before the scene cut out and I melted.

Khyharah- You can get in line for those exposure therapy sessions with Opie, I'll save a place for you right after me, lol. I agree it was a special moment when Opie gave Dani her first orgasm. I wanted him to give her a moment that was all about her when none of her past experiences have ever been about her.

I'm done talking now, so on your marks, get set, read!

Chapter 22

"Are you sure we have to go out today?" Dani called out as she sat on the edge of her bed brushing her hair.

Opie had woken her that morning with a series of kisses placed on her neck and shoulders, telling her they needed to get up and start getting ready for the day because he and Jax had a surprise for her.

She pulled her hair to the side and began to braid it as she inspected herself in the mirror. She was wearing a pair of shorts that stopped just above her knee and a lilac colored shirt with a v neck. Dani tied off her braid with a hair elastic and slipped on some sandals as Opie appeared in her doorway.

"Don't you want your surprise?" he asked her.

"It's not about that. I feel like so much stuff keeps coming up, and it's emotionally draining. I was kind of hoping for a couple days of peace, just hanging out around the house with you." She stood and walked towards him.

"I know it's been a lot lately," Opie replied, wrapping his arms around her. "But trust me, you are really going to like this surprise."

"Ok," Dani nodded, giving him a smile. She moved to step out of his arms so they could go but he stopped her and pulled her in for a kiss.

"Next week, after your court hearing, before you jump into everything you've been waiting to do, we'll pick a day, and we'll sleep in and spend the day however you want, ok?" he offered.

"Promise?" Dani asked.

"Promise." Opie said and kissed her again. Just then his phone started to go off, and he flipped it open to answer it when there was a knock at the door. "Can you get the door? It's probably Jax."

Dani nodded and left Opie to his call and made her way to the door.

"Oh my god!" she exclaimed when she opened the door. It was not her brother that caused her to cry out, though he was standing there too, just behind an older woman with skin tanned from working too much under the sun and wild white curls. "Alice!"

Dani reached out and pulled the woman into the house before launching herself at her in an excited hug.

"Oh, my sweet girl." Alice said as they two women held each other for several minutes. Dani poured all the love and gratitude she felt for Alice into the hug. This was the first time she had ever embraced the older woman and she wanted to make sure Alice knew exactly how much she cared. When they separated a few minutes later both ladies' eyes were misted over with unshed tears. "Let me look at you. I hardly recognize you; you look so happy."

"How did you get here?" Dani asked.

"When we spoke last week, you didn't seem quite yourself, so when I kicked you out of the room to talk with your dear brother, here," Alice said gesturing to Jax, "we concocted this little scheme and he got your other friend here to help. Now be a dear if you don't mind and introduce me."

Dani turned and gave Jax a hug saying, "Thank you," before turning to Opie and doing the same. "Apparently, you've already met Jax, so Alice, this is Opie Winston. Opie this is Alice Martin."

Dani found herself amused that Opie seemed slightly nervous at meeting Alice. Alice on the other hand gave Opie a look like she was sizing him up, reached up to grab him by the shoulders and pressed her cheek to his in a kiss. "It's very nice to meet you, Opie. I've heard some very good things about you."

"It's nice to meet you too ma'am. Thank you for taking care of Dani until she found her way home." Opie replied.

"None of that ma'am business. Call me Alice, and there are no thanks required. She gave me as much as I gave her." Alice looked fondly at Dani.

"Oh Alice, you old softie."

"As glad as I am to see you, I think I am not the only surprise in store for you today," Alice torned to look at Jax for confirmation.

He nodded. "That's right, we should probably head out."

"There's more?" Dani asked. "This is already—"

"Yeah yeah, it's the best surprise ever already but we still have to go." Jax interrupted, guiding everyone to the door. Dani followed as Jax and Alice stepped outside, Opie was the last one out, locking up the house behind him.

"Go with Alice, Jax and I are going to ride, and we'll meet you there," Opie told her.

Dani nodded and followed Alice to a gray rental car. Jax made sure Alice had the directions queued up on the GPS in case they got separated. When Dani asked where they were going Jax just gave her a grin and said, "You'll see."

They took off driving and Alice Glanced over at Dani and said. "You really do look good dear. I was worried after our last chat, but you seem better."

"I am." Dani explained about both of her talks with Gemma, the news article, her fears, as well as the steps she had started to take to feel safer.

"It is so good to see you opening up and facing things head on. You've grown so much in the short time that you've been here. Despite all your concerns, you seem genuinely happy," Alice told her before a sly smile spread across the older woman's face. "I think a young man may have some part to play in that happiness."

Dani's face flushed with embarrassment, but she couldn't help but smile. "Alice you're as bad as Jax, the way you tease me."

"Come now, it's just a little girl talk. What makes Opie so special to you?"

"A lot of things really. From pretty much the first time we met, he just seemed to know what I needed, almost before I did. He knows when I need space, when I need something to occupy myself, when I just need him nearby. He knows without me saying anything. He sees the best in me and helps bring it out. And he's so patient with me when I need to figure out what's going on in my head."

"That's very good to hear. I'm so glad to see you getting the happiness that you deserve."

"How long are you here for?" Dani asked.

"I'm leaving Monday shortly after your court hearing, but I just couldn't miss your legal resurrection," Alice told her.

Dani laughed. "What would I do without you, Alice?"

The two women continued to chat as the drive continued. Dani grew increasingly more curious the longer the drive went on, and by the time she realized they had reached San Francisco she was dying to know what was going on. When they finally pulled into a large parking lot, they were directed to a spot by parking attendants.

Dani stepped out of the car and took in the people around her and the structure they were all walking towards before turning to Jax and Opie. "Are you taking me to a baseball game?" she asked excitedly.

"It was on your list, right?" Opie asked.

Dani gave each of them a hug as they began making their way into the stadium. She couldn't help but notice the number of people in the crowd also headed for the stadium. She doubted she had ever seen that many people in her entire life put together and began to feel a little anxious in the crowd. She moved a bit closer to Opie as they moved through the crowd and grabbed his hand.

"You ok?" Opie asked.

Dani nodded. "Just a lot of people," she said, giving him a nervous smile and changed the subject, asking to stop at the gift shop. She bought herself a Giants jersey in the gift shop and put it on right away before they all stopped to grab a drink and a hot dog on the way to their seats. She hoped her anxiety would ease once seated, but with people shuffling to their seats in the row right behind them, and needing to stand and make room for people to pass by them in their own row, Dani was feeling anxious being in such close contact with so many strangers. Opie wrapped an arm around her shoulder and left it there which allowed her to relax somewhat and pay attention as her friends instructed her on the rules of the game. Dani was enjoying herself, laughing as everyone sang 'Take Me Out to the Ballgame,' the jumbo screen that highlighted some of the more amusing antics of certain crowd members, and the game itself. Every time she would feel herself start to relax completely though someone would need to shuffle past her to get to or from their seat, and her anxiety would flare up again.

When Opie suggested they leave at the start of the seventh inning to avoid the mass off people trying to exit all at once, Dani was relieved when Jax and Alice agreed. As they exited the park she took in a deep breath and exhaled, finally letting the tension leave her body. "I'm sorry guys," she apologized. "I feel bad for making us leave the game early. I was having a good time, I swear, there were just so many people here."

"We should have thought of that," Jax told her with an apology of his own. "There's a lot of minor teams around here that are a lot less crowded, we should have gone to one of those. I just wanted you to have fun."

"I did, I promise." Dani assured him.

When they got to the Car, Opie held the door open for her before getting on his bike. Despite having left early, they had a little bit of a wait to get out of the parking lot due to traffic, but once they were out they found a Chinese restaurant where they stopped for dinner before driving back to Charming.

When they got home, Dani insisted that Alice stay with them instead of checking into a hotel like she had planned. Dani sent Opie to the car for her bag as she told Alice she would take her rom for the weekend and began changing the sheets. The four of them sat around the kitchen table as they talked, laughed, and taught Dani how to play the card game Hearts.

As it got later Jax left and the others went to bed. As Dani crawled into Opie's bed with him and he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close to be his little spoon, he nuzzled his face into her neck and placed a small kiss. "Are you happy, baby?" he asked. Dani hummed and nodded. She was very happy.

The next morning, she woke up and was alone in bed. She made her way into the living room and kitchen to see Alice and Opie sitting at the table. They had been talking, she knew, because she could hear the murmuring of their voices, but they stopped when they saw her.

Dani eyed the two briefly. "Good morning." She said. They each greeted her and began a new conversation as the three of them now sat around the table with their coffee and breakfast.

After breakfast, Dani took Alice outside and showed her the garden, and the two women sat and tended to the growing vegetables and then weeded along the fence line. Opie had disappeared into the garage where he was working on his bike, and Jax had come over and joined him at some point, though Dani wasn't sure when.

After the ladies had finished their yard work, Alice made a batch of lemonade and they sat on the back deck talking the day away. As it started getting later, they moved inside and worked together to make fried chicken, mashed potatoes with gravy, corn on the cob, greens, and flaky, buttery biscuits.

Dani called Jax and Opie in for dinner, and once everyone was washed up and seated around the table, they dug in. Alice and Dani smiled as the guys praised the food, helping themselves to seconds and then thirds.

They cleaned up the dinner mess and settled in the living room for a movie. Once again Jax said goodnight and left as the remaining three started another movie.

That night Dani had trouble sleeping and she kept tossing and turning. Her movements must have woken Opie up because she heard him mumble, "Bad dreams?"

"No," Dani whispered back, "just nervous about tomorrow."

"Everything will turn out fine. Try and sleep," He said rubbing her back.

Dani found herself the next day sitting in a courtroom, surrounded by Jax, Opie and Alice, waiting for her name to be called. Mr. Rosen, their attorney was there as well. She sat there, right leg jittering from nerves, before she could not take it another moment, she had to get up. Making an excuse to go to the restroom, she left the others where they were and exited the courtroom as quietly as she could.

She made her way down the marbled corridor and found the ladies room. She turned on the sink, grabbed a paper towel and wet it with the cool water from the faucet before dabbing the towel across her neck and forehead. 'Deep breaths,' she told herself, willing her nerves to calm. She turned off the faucet and threw away her towels but as she started to open the door she heard a familiar voice and caught a glimpse of Agent Green talking on the phone through the crack in the door as she held it slightly ajar.

She didn't know what made her pause to listen to the conversation but she did, listening as best she could, though she lost parts of his conversation when he turned away "…understand the need for interagency cooperation, but he's intimidated a witness of…." "…formal complaint to the ATF regarding his behavior…" "…leaked information to the press…" "…meeting with her and the attorney today to hand over information vital to the case. He's been instructed to…"

Dani waited, but could not hear any more of the conversation and when she investigated the hallway again it was empty. She hurried back to the courtroom. Dani sat down again between Opie and Jax, and she glanced at them both, trying to convey that she had something to tell them but before she could try her name was being called. She stood with Rosen as they proceeded to the front of the courtroom.

"Ah, a bit of good news to bright up my day. Miss Teller, I have before me a petition to reverse a presumption of death order. I see genetic testing has been done to confirm identity and the proper paperwork has been submitted to reactivate your social security number, is this correct?"

"Yes, Your Honor," Mr. Rosen said.

"Very good. I understand you have been through quite the ordeal Miss Teller, but I congratulate you on being able to return home and wish you the best going forward. I am approving the petition before me and issuing an order to reverse the pre presumptive death certificate. Good luck, Miss teller."

"That's it?" Dani asked astonished.

"That's it," the judge replied with a chuckle.

"Thank you, sir." Dani said and followed Rosen as he collected something from the court clerk and then to the back of the courtroom where they met up with the others and quickly filed out of the courtroom and into the hallway.

Dani was passed around the group as all three of them wanted to give her a hug. When she came to Alice, the woman told her she had to leave or she would miss her flight. "I'm so proud of you, my sweet girl. You stay strong and open to life's possibilities and you can do anything." Alice told her before turning to Jax and Opie. "Now you boys take good care of our girl here, or else you'll answer to me." She said in a faux-stern tone before giving each of them a hug goodbye with a kiss on the cheek. She reached up and gave Jax a pinch on the cheek "If I was 50 years younger…" she warned playfully.

Jax put his hand over his heart. "If I were 50 years older…" he replied with a wink and they both chuckled as Alice made her way out of the courthouse.

"That was disturbing," Dani said. "You really need to stop flirting with my old lady friends." She told her brother.

"She flirted with me first." Jax argued.

Rosen cleared his throat. "We need to hurry if we are going to get to the meeting on time." With that he started walking And Dani rushed to keep up as he continued speaking. "Now this should be relatively short. You don't have to say anything. I'm going to hand over the journal and let them know that you are unavailable to be questioned further regarding the information you provided unless it results in an actionable lead. Any questions?" He asked her and she shook her head no

"Wait." She stopped him before they went in the conference room that had been reserved for them. Pulling them off to the side she spoke quietly. "I overheard Agent Green talking on the phone when I stepped out of the courtroom earlier. It sounded like he was complaining to his superiors about Agent Johnson. Agent Johnsons is not part of the FBI, he is with the ATF. Green doesn't seem to like this or the way he's interfered with the investigation." Dani went over the parts of the conversation she overheard. She could tell both Jax and Opie were not happy with this news. Jax stepped away to make a call and came back a moment later. "Hand off the journal as we discussed but tell them that no one will be participating any further while the ATF is interfering with the FBI properly investigating Dani's kidnapping." He told Rosen before turning to Dani. "Don't say anything in there, we'll handle the ATF and make sure that asshole doesn't interfere again, ok?" he told her, pulling her in for a hug.

Dani nodded. "Let's get this over with already."

They went into the room, and immediately agent Johnson asked Jax and Opie to leave, but Rosen interjected. "That won't be necessary," Rosen took out the journal and handed it to Agent Green as he went on to explain that it had come to his attention that Agent Johnson was not with the FBI and had inserted himself in the investigation to get information on the Sons of Anarchy, and that there would be no further cooperation while that remained the case. Agent Johnson's face was red with anger, though he said nothing.

Agent Green appeared to have a satisfied look on his face, though he tried to hide it. "I apologize for how the case has been handled. While I cannot remove an agent from the case, I will be sure to pass your request on to our supervisors." He told her. "And thank you for sharing what you know. It's a brave thing to do, and I promise we will do everything we can to bring the people responsible for what happened to you to justice."

Dani simply nodded at him, then turned and left, with Jax Opie and Rosen behind her. They all thanked Rose, shaking his hand, and left.

Dani wrapped an arm around Jax and Opie as they exited the courthouse. "I'm alive!" She said dramatically, eliciting a chuckle from them both as they descended the steps and began walking towards their bikes.

"How does if feel Dani girl?" Jax asked her.

"It feels good to have it finally done. I feel like I can finally move forward on so many things that I couldn't before. Is it nerdy that I'm so excited to be able to take the classes I need for my GED? I feel kind of nerdy, but I don't really care." She said.

Opie smiled. "It's not nerdy."

"It is a little nerdy, he just thinks you're cute," teased Jax.

Dani gave him a shove as they approached their motorcycles and took the helmet Opie held out for her. "You're such a jerk," she said with a smile as she snapped the helmet in place.

Dani climbed on behind Opie. "Ready?" He asked her and she nodded. As she turned to rest her head against Opie's back as she usually did she couldn't help but see Agent Johnson come barreling out of the courthouse. She could tell he spotted them and watched as they took off and rode out of sight.