EVE

THE FIRST RAYS OF SUNLIGHT cast a warm glow through the bedroom window; it was a cold but sunny day. Inside, however, there was no sign of cold. Quite the opposite, as Winter sat on Happy's lap, sensually moving her hips and sliding down his throbbing dick with every movement.

With her forehead pressed firmly against his and their lips sealed in a sloppy but tender kiss, her fingernails left crescent shapes on Happy's back, eliciting a low groan from him each time her fingernails scratched across his skin, leaving further marks.

After Tig and Barbara had left yesterday, and Happy had eerily calmly explained everything, including that she no longer needed to worry about what would happen to her studio, it had been impossible for her to keep her hands to herself. The weight lifted from her shoulders, the fact that she no longer had to endure Pete's abuse and could now fully focus on her future with Happy, was an indescribable feeling.

And this was her way of showing her gratitude, letting all her emotions flow into the act they no longer had to keep secretᅳ or rather, no longer had to fear being seen together.

"Fuck, I'm close," she breathed, her lips still on his as she lowered her hips again, letting out a whimper as the thick veins of his cock brushed against all the right spots, caressing her walls in a way that had her tense, in the best way possible, all the time. "So..close."

"Go on, take what you need," the former SAA demanded with a low growl, one hand grabbing her ass and kneading it firmly, the other disappearing into her hair to give it a sharp tug as he bucked his hips.

Her squelching cunt gripped him, tightening with every movement, her clit throbbing against his trimmed pubes. A hard slap landed on her ass, making her whimper and arch into him even more while she held her breath for a second.

"Fuck, Hap..I—" her voice died, replaced by a breathless moan as the knot in her lower abdomen loosened and the feeling of pure ecstasy washed over her.

Breathing heavily, she clung to Happy, their sweaty bodies stuck together as she refused to let go of him while her orgasm tore through her. Her lips desperately searched for his, her breath quick and heavy as she parted her lips to allow his tongue entry. It was messy, wet, and dirty; but she loved it.

And so did Happy. His grip on her hair tightened, dangerously possessive as he held her head close by her hair, thrusting relentlessly upwards, his grip getting more possessive and stronger with each hard thrust. His hand was resting against her back, pressing her against him until there was no space between them left.

"Fuck," he groaned as Winter came all over him with a broken moan, soaking him with her juices. Their eyes were squeezed shut, molars clenched as her cunt milked him like there was no tomorrow. "That's it, woman, just like that."

From the way he held her, Winter could tell he was close to reach his own release as his thrusts became sloppy, but with a desperate, relentless intensity that made her see stars. His mouth attacked her neck, a mixture of sucking and love biting as he pulled her head aside by her hair, giving him perfect access.

Her mewls and whimpers only helped him reach his goal, and with one last, hard thrust of his hips, he shot his load deep inside her, coating her walls with the warm, salty beads. The good thing was, she didn't have to worry about getting pregnant anymore; she already was.

As he tried to catch his breath, his grip on her loosened. Letting his hand slip from her hair, it landed softly against her cheek, his thumb gently rubbing her soft skin. His other hand slid slowly up and down her back, leaving a pleasant shiver on her slightly sticky skin. A sigh slipped past her lips and directly into the kiss Happy had drawn her into, taking their breath away once more.

"I love you," she murmured as he momentarily had to catch his breath, his lips still hovering over hers. "I'm so grateful that you guys moved to Tacoma and not somewhere else."

She rubbed the tip of her nose against his, a soft smile playing on her lips as she slowly opened her eyes and gazed directly into the depths of his, her smile only growing as she realized how intently he was watching her, seemingly taking in every tiny detail of her face.

"What?" she asked, snuggling closer to him as his arms loosely wrapped around her waist. "You look thoughtful."

Happy shook his head, pressing a kiss against her jawline while his tattooed arms tightened around her. "Just thinkin' about what a lucky bastard I am. Never thought I'd ever find someone perfect like you."

Let alone deserve someone like Winter. Compared to him, she was innocence in person, someone who should've been protected, not dragged into this life. But it was impossible to stay away from her, he'd tried. Her whole manner and the love she gave him every single day were too intoxicating not to be tempted. She was almost like a siren who had lured him in with her voiceᅳ only in the form of an irresistible smile.

"I feel the same way." She shifted on his lap, biting her lips as his cock twitched inside her once more, still buried inside her. With a serious expression, she cupped his face in her hands. "Who knows how my life would've turned out without you, what would've happened with Pete," she said through a humorless laugh, swallowing softly. "I'm just grateful to be here now, with you, pregnant and in our own home."

She swallowed again with a wistful smile as she realized once again how lucky she was. So lucky, in fact, that she was momentarily speechless, a lump forming in her throat as a film of tears formed around her piercing blue eyes.

"I can't lose this..like my mom lost Tig back then," she added in a whisper, her breath trembling.

"Hey," Happy sat up straight, slipping his hand to the back of her neck, his grip firm and his thumb resting against her chin, gently forcing her to look at him. "You won't. That shit ain't goin' to happen to us, little girl."

He quickly caught the first tear that rolled down her cheek with the pad of his thumb, then pressed his lips to hers as she nodded weakly, unable to speak or she would burst into tears. Perhaps it was already the pregnancy hormones kicking in, or perhaps it was simply the fear that they would make the same mistake as their parents. On top of everything else, there had been all the events of the past few weeks. Pete, Sloane, the constant hiding and abuseᅳ it was no wonder she was emotional; he was just better at hiding it than she was.

"You promise?" Her voice threatened to crack, fragile, but with a hint of hope lingering in her gaze as she looked at him.

"With my fuckin' life, babe," he croaked, her face now resting in both his hands. "Are we gonna see a doctor? I wanna see our baby."

Winter chuckled softly through a sniffle before nodding eagerly, rubbing the tip of her nose. "Yes, of course. I'll call my gyn right away and ask if we can come over."

"But first, we'll take a shower," he insisted with the slightest grin as he stole another kiss from her lips. "And after the gyn, we'll head to my mom's; she needs to know, all of this."

Taking a deep breath, the blonde nodded slightly. "Still nervous about that. I hope she likes me."

"She'll love you, trust me," Happy replied with a rather confident shrug before getting up with her, making sure her legs were wrapped securely around his waist. "Just be yourself, that's all it takes."

"You make it sound so easy," Winter snorted, clinging to him as he headed for the bathroom. "Do you think I should get her flowers? Or chocolates? Maybe both?"

Happy could only breathe a laugh as he walked down the hall, listening to his Old Lady make further suggestions. He, on the other hand, was fairly certain that once his mother knew the whole truth, she would be quite thrilled about the positive change in his lifeᅳ and especially about Winter, pregnant with her grandchild.

ABOUT A YEAR LATER

THE SCENT OF VANILLA and cinnamon filled the house, soft Christmas music played in the background, and the fireplace crackled as Happy kept glancing over at Winter, their son nestled safely in her lap while she was wrapping presents with that smile that made him fall in love with her in the first place.

As if she'd never done anything else, she added one perfectly wrapped gift after another to the pile between them, while Happy struggled to wrap even one present halfway decently. He had insisted on helping her with anything today, and for a moment he'd regretted that when she'd mentioned earlier that she still had presents to wrap.

"I got no idea how you do that shit so perfectly," he grumbled, deep lines etched on his forehead as he examined his half-wrapped present; a small beauty set for Barbara. "It looks fine unwrapped, we don't need all that shit."

"Oh, come on. It looks much better wrapped, grumpy." Winter rolled her eyes in amusement as she shifted the little boy slightly in her lap and then reached for the gift in Happy's hand. "It doesn't look too bad, you just need some more practice."

Happy arched an eyebrow, letting out a huff-like sound. "You need glasses, woman?"

"Hey, don't be rude now." With a pout, she gently slapped his arm with the gift before carefully placing it on the floor in front of her. "Maybe you should learn to accept compliments from your Old Lady."

"You think so?" Happy grinned, gently pushing his son's hand away as he reached for the scissors. Of course, Aiden protested loudly, shocked about the fact that he wasn't allowed to play with sharp objects. "Don't look at me like that, you only gonna hurt yourself, boy."

The six-month-old fussed softly and dramatically threw his head against Winter's stomach, but his face lit up immediately when Happy gave him the soft ribbon that couldn't hurt him. A delighted squeal followed by a soft coo echoed through the living room as Aiden enthusiastically inspected the ribbon.

Winter shook her head, chuckling softly as she looked down at her son. "Great, now what do I use to decorate the presents?"

"They're already perfect, woman, they don't need any more decoration," Happy remarked stubbornly, definitely done with gift-wrapping for todayᅳ or ever. "Besides, I have something else planned for you," he added with a sly grin. "I'll take care of Aiden, you get changed."

Winter raised an eyebrow, a mixture of skepticism and curiosity flashing in her eyes. "What are you planning, Lowman?"

"You'll see, I'm not tellin' you." Casually, he scooped Aiden from Winter's lap and sat the boy between his legs, shooting his Old Lady a loving yet demanding look. "Go, we gotta leave in an hour. That doable?"

"That's not fair," the blonde murmured with a pout, but her expression betrayed her secret delight. With a grin, she leaned forward, pressed a kiss to Aiden's dark hair, and then kissed Happy quickly. "An hour? I can do that. Are you sure you two are okay here?"

"Sure, we'll clean up this whole mess while you're gettin' ready," he told her after stealing another quick kiss before watching her disappear down the hall with a laugh, of course with his eyes lingering on that perfect ass of hers.

WINTER HAD NO IDEA where Happy had disappeared to after they entered the restaurant, where her parents, Lee and his wife, and Jax and Tara with their kids, were already waiting. The small group was already seated at a large table in a private section, giving them more privacy.

She hadn't known anything about any of this, Happy must've planned all this behind her back. Now she sat nervously at the table, with Tara to her left holding Thomas on her lap. Aiden sat on her mother's lap, receiving the undivided attention of both her parents, who were completely smitten with their grandson and spoiled him so much that she and Happy sometimes didn't even know what to say.

Lee and his wife also spared no expense in pampering Aiden. All in all, their son had a lot of people around him who loved him, and that was all that mattered.

"Are you nervous?" Tara's lowered voice pulled her from her thoughts, a slight grin tugging at the brunette's lips. "Because you look like you're about to go crazy."

"Well, apparently there's a reason for being as mysterious as you all are," Winter countered with a nervous smirk as she brought the wine glass to her lips. "Can you tell me at least something? Are we here for a special occasion?"

Tara tilted her head slightly, smiling as she shrugged her shoulders. "Let's just say you're here for no reason, all of us are. And it's not just because of Christmas Eve."

"Tara! You can't tease me and then not tell me anything," the blonde wailed as she put down her glass and nervously crossed one leg over the other. Then, after another second, her eyes widened. "Wait, is it what I think it is?"

Snorting a laugh, Tara bumped her shoulder against Winter's. "You'll see, Happy should be here soon."

And Tara was right. As if she'd summoned him, Happy came around the corner, and something about him was different. Apart from the black button up shirt he never usually wore, he seemed nervous. Beads of sweat formed on his forehead, and he rubbed his hands together as he approached her. Suddenly, the whole table fell silent, except for the children's cheerful squeals.

"Hey, there you are," Winter remarked gently as she stood up and slowly walked toward him, taking him in while adjusting her dark red dress. "Are you okay?"

Happy grunted, followed by a small nod as he took her hand and gently pulled her a little further aside. He swallowed, visibly, but then seemed to push all his nervousness aside as he reached into the back pocket of his jeans and pulled out a small, black box.

"Happy.." Winter gasped before he could even speak. It was pretty obvious what this was going to be. Especially when she glanced at her parents, who were already grinning from ear to ear, there was no doubt left.

When her gaze fell back on Happy, he was already on one knee, the now-opened box revealing a silver ring with a small diamond in its center. It was absolutely beautiful, breathtaking to be honest, and exactly her style.

"We haven't always had it easy, and I'm not good at choosing the right words," he began, all traces of nervousness gone. Instead, he seemed confident, sincere, and completely at peace with himself. "But I want you to know that I wanna spend the rest of my life with you. It's you or no one," he croaked with the slightest smile, watching as tears welled up in her eyes and her hands closed around her mouth. "Will you marry me, little girl?"

The whispers of the others faded into the background, the soft music from the speakers just a background noise at this point that Winter no longer even noticed. Instead, her vision blurred, a sob caught in her throat, and tears of joy burned in her eyes as she replayed the touching words in her mind.

Her answer was clear, without a doubt. Never before had she been so certain that she wanted something as much as this. Taking a step closer, she slowly lowered her hands and cleared her throat to loosen the lump.

"Of course I want to marry you, Hap," she croaked with an eager nod and reached for his hand to help him back to his feet. "I was just waiting for this moment, to be honest."

Happy let out a long breath he had been holding back. No matter how confident he was, her answer could still have been different than expected. He was all the more relieved now that she had said 'yes', so he wasted no more time, slipped the ring onto her left ring finger with the proudest smile, and pulled her flush against him before claiming her lips.

With her arms wrapped especially tightly around his neck today, she returned the kiss, pouring all the passion she possessed for her fiancé into it, whose hands rested firmly on her hips, squeezing softly. They both ignored the cheering in the background, instead they let the moment belong to them, just as it should be.

After Pete's death, everything had gotten better. Happy's mom had taken the news better than expected and immediately welcomed Winter with open arms, even though it pained her to hear what her son had to endure simply because he wanted to see his sick mother happy. Her parents had reconciled, both happy as ever. The tattoo studio was now hers and Happy's, both working there part time so they still had enough time for their son, and after a brief, messy court battle, Sloane had finally agreed to the divorce.

But the best thing of all had been the birth of their son, and now this. Two years ago, she had believed she would spend the rest of her life in misery, and now here she was; a mother, engaged, and simply happy.

"I love you," Happy croaked, giving her hips another squeeze as he held her close. "I won't disappoint you or Aiden ever, I promise, little girl."

"I have no doubt about that, baby," Winter whispered, her lips trembling slightly as she tried to hide her tears. "I love you too, more than you know."

Her words drew a genuine smile from him, small but present as he closed the gap between their lips once more, simply savoring the moment.

Even though he had never imagined his life would be like this, it was exactly what he wanted.

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