authors note; this is a looong chapter. I'm sorry about that but I couldn't find a good cut, lol. Feel free to leave feedback or even some wishes for the story. I hope y'all have a great day! 🖤

⸺

As Tara walked into the kitchen early in the morning she poured herself a cup of coffee that's already been made by Madison who sat at the table with a huge smile on her face. The doctor sat down, her hands around the hot mug, with an amused look on her face.

“What are you smiling about early in the morning? Why aren't you still sleeping?”, Tara asked curiously.

“Oh, uh”, Madison cleared her throat after she lifted her head, her cheeks blushing at the doctor's question. “Happy just texted me, that's all.”

“The two of you are texting now?” A smirk formed on Tara's face as she watched Madison's cheeks turn even more red. “So, first you hang out with him all the time, then he gets you a viewing for an apartment close to his house and now he's texting you at seven in the morning? You got that man wrapped around your finger.”

“You think?” That was the first question that came to Madison's mind and the beaming smile on her face gave away that this was exactly what the young woman wanted.

“Wait, you really do like him!” Tara's eyes grew wide. Out of everyone Madison decided to fall for the most dangerous, intimidating, menacing man in the club. But Tara also had to admit that Happy acted a lot less intimidatingly towards Madison. “I mean, he's a cool guy I guess. But do you know anything about him?”

Tara wasn't going to talk shit about Happy Lowman. Her start here after she came back from Chicago hadn't been the best, yet she grew to like everyone around here and was finally able to accept Jax's lifestyle. She even liked it. But the guys were still outlaws, criminals, and she thought Madison should know at least a little more about them before she would fall head over heels for a killer.

But then she remembered the concerned expression on his face yesterday when he made sure to get Madison home safe. Of course Tara had checked on the young woman after she heard that the brunette hadn't taken her heart meds. So maybe Happy wasn't as cold as he seemed.

“Well, I do know a few things about him, we've spent a lot of time together since I'm here. I also heard the rumors about him. That's he's cheap and shit like that”, Madison let out a sigh, supporting her head with her hand after she put her phone down on the table.

The Croweaters talked a lot of shit when the day was long, that's something Madison had figured out already. And even if they were right, she had to make her own experience, right?

“That's not what I meant. Those rumors don't mean shit”, Tara shook her head bringing the cup up to her lips to take a sip. A soft sigh slipped over her lips as the warm liquor warmed her from the inside. “I was talking more about his position in the club. Do you know what he does?”

“Tara, don't”, Jax said as he entered the kitchen in only a pair of grey sweatpants. He placed a kiss on top of his wife's head and planted one on Madison's cheek before he got himself a cup of coffee, too.

“But shouldn't she know?”, the doctor questioned with a sigh, looking at her husband who was now leaning casually against the kitchen counters.

“He needs to tell her.” Jax knew exactly who they were talking about. Even a blind person would sense the tension between Happy and Madison. Looking at his little sister, he raised a corner of his mouth. “But I can tell you one thing. Happy cares for you or he wouldn't have escorted you home yesterday, darlin'. Jesus, he even waited until Tara was done checking on you.”

A smile crossed her face, a smile that reached her eyes. Jax' words made her think about Happy's text he sent her only a few moments ago asking her if she had taken her pills already. Maybe her brother was right and Happy did care for her.

“I care for him too”, she admitted, her voice soft as she looked over to where Jax stood. “But what is it that you can't tell me? It can't be that bad.”

“It's not, at least not for us. For us it's normal life”, Jax shrugged slightly. “But for people unfamiliar with that lifestyle, they're shocked by something Happy does. We're no saints, Mads. We aren't simple biker enthusiasts, we are criminals and do some illegal things. And Happy has a somewhat extreme position in the club. But he needs to tell you that himself.”

Madison frowned. She wasn't stupid. From the beginning she was aware that SAMCRO wasn't just a normal biker club. She had never really asked what exactly they were doing, but after only a few weeks being here she didn't have the right to⸺ at least she thought so and it felt wrong to ask about the illegal things they were doing. But now her interest was piqued and she wanted to know what Happy's position was, what Jax and Tara meant. Maybe she would ask Happy about it later or tomorrow.

When Abel ran into the kitchen after they could hear his small, quick footsteps from afar already, she looked down at the four year old, who was holding up a picture with a toothy smile on his face.

“That's for you! Happy Birthday, Auntie Mads”, he beamed, pointing at a person in the picture he drew himself. “This is you with Daddy, Mommy, Thommy, Grandma and me!”

Jax and Tara only exchanged grins as they saw Madison's touched expression as she took the picture and studied every detail. An appreciative smile formed on her lips as she pulled Abel onto her lap and wrapped her arms around him.

“Thanks buddy! This is a really beautiful picture. When I have my own apartment, I promise I'll hang it up on the fridge”, she said eagerly, and she really would. It was the little things that filled her with joy.

“Oh yes, that's cool”, Abel giggled, snuggling up against his aunt who was leaning back against the chair with him.

“Happy Birthday darlin'. You'll get Tara's and my surprise later”, the blonde winked, put his cup down and quickly made Abel a bowl of cereal. “I hope you haven't planned anything tonight.”

“Happy Birthday from me too”, Tara said with a smile, playfully pinching Abel's nose after reaching over the table, making the little boy on Madison's lap laugh.

“Thank you guys. But you shouldn't get me anything”, she sighed quietly, still looking forward to the surprise, no matter what it would be. What really touched her was the fact that she had family here who were seriously thinking about her birthday and what they could do to make her feel special.

“Who says we bought something? But I'm sure you'll like the surprise we have”, Jax said with a convinced nod and sat down with his family after he had put Abel's bowl of cereal on the table in front of his son.

⸺

The party Gemma had organized for her daughter's twenty sixth birthday was in full swing. People were chatting, laughing and dancing. The booze was flowing and the smell of nicotine and weed filled the rooms of the crowded clubhouse.

Madison didn't even know half of the people that were here and yet she enjoyed their company. She had been at a lot of parties in her life, a lot of good parties but this one was by far the best. People were having actual fun without drugs being involved. Well, except for the weed but Madison wouldn't call that drugs.

A few people even brought presents. Even though she didn't want anyone to spend money because of her she still loved getting a few presents and of course thanked everyone.

Gemma got her a delicate gold necklace with a sunflower pendant and a daisy pendant after discovering these were her daughter's favorite flowers and Madison hadn't hesitated to put it on. It went perfectly with her outfit which consisted of a tight, short black dress and black overknee boots. She pushed her long, wavy hair to one side so that the necklace could be seen. She was proud to have now something from her mother and she wanted to show it.

“Hey baby, I've seen you were busy opening presents”, Gemma chimed in with a smirk and a drink in her hand that she gave the brunette. “Thought you might be thirsty.”

“Thanks Gemma!” With a smile she took the drink and let out a pleasant sigh after the first sip. She couldn't remember the last time she had such a good cocktail. “And yeah, I got a few pretty cool presents. Juice gave me a voucher for a bookstore, isn't that sweet?”

“Juice is someone who pays a lot of attention to the little things. I guess he figured you love books even though that's not really hard. You always have a book in your hands when you aren't working”, the matriarch smirked proudly. At least they had one bookworm in the family.

The brunette chuckled softly and tugged a strand of her hair behind her ear before taking another sip of her cocktail. “Well, that's a pretty obvious passion of mine.”

“That's a good thing, baby”, Gemma assured her with a sincere smile before taking a look at the entrance of the clubhouse.

“Hey darlin', our surprise is here”, Jax told her after he joined Madison and his mother with his typical panty dropping grin. “Turn around.”

“Huh?” Madison raised a brow but did as she was told and turned around. Her jaw dropped and within seconds she was at the entrance of the clubhouse and jumped into her brother's arms. She had expected a lot but not that Jesse would be here tonight.

“Yo, don't push me over”, Jesse's laugh filled her ears and almost made her tear up. It had only been a few weeks without him but she had missed him, like a lot. “Happy Birthday, dimples.”

Dimples. If anyone else would call her that she'd probably give them a side eye, yet she loved the nickname Jesse had for her. He once told her that he chose that name many years ago because she has those little dimples every time she's smiling.

“I didn't know you were coming!” She closed her arms even tighter around his neck after he wrapped his arms around her small waist to give her the biggest hug.

“That was the whole point”, he chuckled once they pulled apart and grabbed her shoulders, eyeing her up and down to see if she was doing okay.

Jesse was one overprotective, worried brother, especially because of her heart defect. He might be naive sometimes and had the biggest golden retriever energy. But if anyone would hurt his little sister he'd flip and turn into someone you didn't want to mess with.

“You look great, Mads”, he smiled briefly and pinched her nose before throwing his arm over her shoulder. “You wanna introduce me to your new friends?”

“Thanks Jesse”, she beamed before leading him to the bar where Jax, Tara, Gemma and now also Happy stood. She gave the latter a shy smile, which Jesse noticed as well. However, he wouldn't address that now but definitely later or tomorrow.

“So, this is Gemma, my mom. My brother Jax and his wife Tara and this one's Happy. Uh, he's a friend of mine.” A friend of hers, that's what he was, right? She wanted him to be more but that didn't mean it would happen.

“Ah, so you're the one who called and told me to come down”, Jesse looked at Jax and gave him a fist bump making Madison smirk as she saw Jax' amused look. These biker guys weren't much into fist bumps while her brother literally gave everyone one. 

“Yep, that's me”, Jax retorted smirking and draped an arm over Tara's shoulder. “And that's my lovely wife.”

“Hey, I'm Tara”, the doctor introduced herself with a smile, letting out a soft laugh after Jesse fist bumped her, too.

“And you're Happy? Is that your real name?”, Jesse raised a brow, genuinely curious.

“It is”, the SAA grunted.

Jesse frowned briefly. The guy seemed a bit grumpy, but maybe that was just his type. And his sister was clearly in love so he had to have something great about him.

“Yo, that's cool”, Jesse cleared his throat, rubbing his head over his beanie before his eyes landed on Gemma. “You got one good looking mom, dimples.”

“Ew Jesse, stop!” Madison's face scrunched up. She knew her brother didn't mind dating older women but this was just weird.

“What a charmer”, Gemma shook her head in amusement. “Keep your hands to yourself, I'm taken and too old for you. You couldn't handle me, sweetheart.”

“Don't worry, I'm not some creep trying to hit on my sister's mother”, Jesse winked back at the women and took a seat at one of the bar stools. “So, tell me more about Charming. I wanna hear everything”

After thanking Jax and Tara again with a big hug, she sat down next to Jesse and told him about everything that had happened since she came here. The others gave the siblings a moment to catch up in peace as they thought that's what Madison wanted.

⸺

“Can I have a minute?” Happy rasped into her ear after approaching her from behind, his hand placed on her hip. His touch sent a tingle through her body that she couldn't shake off.

Smiling, she turned around to face him and nodded. “Yeah, of course.”

The SAA nodded curtly and led her outside where they had more privacy to talk. He had watched her the whole evening, never leaving her out of his sight.

The way her dress conformed to her body, the overknee boots and her hair falling in waves over her shoulders⸺ these were all things that kept him from focusing on anything else for the entire evening. When she started to dance earlier that night, his pants became quite tight and he had to constantly make sure that nobody would notice what an effect she had on him.

For a moment he thought about taking a Croweater to his room to relieve some pressure. But he didn't want just anyone under him, he wanted Madison to moan his name. The concern he had felt yesterday when she suddenly felt the pain in her chest had shown him once again how important the brunette already was to him.

But today, on her birthday, he didn't want to bother her with that, yet he still wanted to have a moment alone with her.

Once outside, he gently dragged her towards his bike and leaned against it, resting his hand on her hip and pulling her closer to him. He felt her hold her breath as he ran the fingertips of his other hand down her neck to her scar.

“You gave me a good scare yesterday, little girl”, he grunted honestly, giving her hip a gentle squeeze. “You really took your pills today?”

“Sorry, I didn't want that”, she whispered, still a bit surprised that he was trying to be near her. Yesterday she was the one who approached him and today it was him. “And yes, I really took them because you reminded me. Pinky swear.”

“Well, I don't care if I have to remind you every day from now on. I just don't  want that shit to happen again.” His gaze was so intense that she could only nod silently, while she dared to take the next step and snaked her arms around his neck.

“Thanks again for getting so worried and insisting on escorting me home”, she mumbled softly, her forehead now resting against his.

“I have something for you”, he whispered close to her lips, his hot breath hitting her skin. She watched as he reached into his pocket and shortly after handed her a key. “The apartment is yours, little girl. I have the lease in my room if you wanna sign it. If you changed your mind we have to give the keys back tomorrow.”

Her jaw dropped for the second time that night. To say she was happy was an understatement. She was incredibly grateful and couldn't believe she finally had her own apartment here.

“Holy shit, really?”, she asked, almost too stunned to speak.

Happy grunted in response as he ran the back of his fingers down her cheek. “You do realize you live next door to me now, right? If you need anything, no matter what it is, you come to me.”

She looked into his eyes for a long moment, but instead of answering, she placed her lips on his. Happy didn't hesitate a moment and deepened the kiss, one hand still on her hip, the other he put against the back of her neck after he pushed the keys back in his jeans pocket and pulled her even closer against his body.

This was exactly how he had imagined the feeling of her lips. Soft and delicate⸺ and she tasted fucking amazing. Madison knew exactly what she was doing as she slipped her tongue between his lips. Instead of fighting with his for dominance, she immediately gave him the upper hand and sighed into the kiss as it became more possessive and demanding. Neither of them noticed that a car was pulling up next to them and two men getting out.

“Madison Pinkman?”, one of the two asked after another moment and only then did the brunette break the kiss to look in the direction the voices were coming from. Her heart literally stopped for a second when she recognized the uniform the two men wore.

Happy was immediately on alert as well and straightened up, shoulders broad as he pushed Madison protectively behind him, a scowl on his face.

“What the fuck do you want?”, he spat, earning a warning look from the cops.

“It's none of your business”, the slightly  younger cop said to Happy, looking down at the piece of paper he was holding, which he quickly held up to Madison's face. “That's her, definitely.”

“Miss Pinkman, you are under arrest for manslaughter. Step forward, put your hands against the car and stand still.” The taller cop approached the two and tried to grab Madison's arm, but Happy didn't let him.

Hearing why she was supposedly being arrested surprised even him for a brief moment. He didn't believe it was true and was sure that there had to be a misunderstanding.

“She's not going anywhere”, Happy snarled, shoving Madison behind him again when she tried to take a step forward. He didn't really care if he was about to be arrested as well for not letting go of her.

Madison clutched Happy's kutte as she realized what was happening. Her face lost all color and a bundle of nerves tightened in her stomach, which made her feel pretty nauseous.

“I go with them, Hap. Please let Jesse know and tell the others that I'm sorry”, she told him meekly, her voice cracked in the middle of the sentence. The brunette  slowly stepped forward and did exactly what the cops wanted her to do. Only a few seconds later she was in handcuffs and felt absolutely humiliated.

Happy grabbed her arm before the cop could help her into the car and pulled her towards him.

“We'll get you out of there, don't do anything stupid. You don't say a word, you hear me?”, he growled worriedly and pressed his lips on hers, then she was roughly pulled away from him and pushed into the car.

Tears welled up in her eyes as she looked out the window and met Happy's eyes, which looked at her with concern before his cold expression was back. He didn't waste a moment to let the others know and drive down to the station.