A/N - This story takes place a couple of years before the start of season 1, though I took some liberties on the time frame of when Opie went to jail because it worked better for the story.

Thanks so much to everyone for reading, and I hope you like it!

a BIG thank you to Brianuts for giving me the basic idea for this story!

Opie Winston sat at the bar at the clubhouse of the Sons of Anarchy with Jax Teller, downing yet another shot in an effort to steady his nerves. He couldn't remember ever being nervous in his life, least of all because of a girl, but he couldn't deny the rapid beat of his heart and his left leg that wouldn't stop shaking. He glanced at his watch. She'd been gone five long months and there was less than an hour before she'd be back.

"You alright there, Ope?" Jax asked, watching his friend curiously. Opie jerked himself out of his trance.

"What? Oh, yeah, I'm fine," he mumbled quickly, hoping Jax hadn't caught on.

"Are you boys gonna sit at the bar all night or are you gonna help get this place ready?" Gemma yelled from across the clubhouse, standing on a chair while she tried to hang a 'Welcome Home' banner from the ceiling. Opie hopped up quickly from his stool, welcoming anything that would take his attention away from his watch, while Jax followed him.

"Here, ma, we can do that," Jax said as Gemma climbed off the chair and let Jax and Opie affix the banner while she ran to the kitchen to make sure the food was ready.

"And get the prospect to give this place another sweep – it's disgusting," Gemma called to them from the kitchen. Opie looked around the spotless clubhouse and glanced over at Jax who rolled his eyes.

"Better do what she says," he said with a smirk, looking around for the prospect, "Hey, Juice!" Jax called, finally spotting him coming down the hall from the dorms. Juice looked over at Jax.

"Yeah?" he asked.

"I need you to sweep the floors again," he said. Juice looked around the clubhouse in surprise, but nodded.

"Yeah, okay," he said, walking over to grab the broom. Jax and Opie went to help Gemma grab the food from the kitchen as people started pouring in through the door.

"Where the hell have you been?" Gemma stormed at her husband, Clay Morrow, as he led the group coming inside, "This place is a wreck and she'll be here soon!" Clay looked around, not seeing what Gemma saw, but threw his arm around his wife's shoulder, kissing her cheek.

"The place looks great," he said, "Everything's gonna be just fine for her." Gemma scowled, unconvinced, as she began barking orders at the rest of the club members, who quickly got to work. Fairly soon the party was under way with the music blaring, drinks pouring, and the usual half naked croweaters bouncing around hoping for a good time.

"She's almost here!" Gemma announced, glancing down at a text message on her phone. Opie felt his heart start beating rapidly and thought back to when Stacey Teller had become someone other than just his best friend's sister.

-10 MONTHS PRIOR-

The guard buzzed Opie through the security gate at the front of Chino State Penitentiary and Opie breathed a sigh of relief, looking around at his surroundings as a free man for the first time in five years. He'd done his time quietly and was ready to be back where he belonged – with his brothers. His father, Piney, as well as Jax, Clay, and Chibs had come to pick him up from the prison and he jumped into the van as soon as he saw it pull up, engulfed in pats on the back and cheers of welcome.

Opie settled into the front seat, catching up with the boys as they set out on the long drive back to Charming, CA and several hours later they were pulling into the drive of Teller-Morrow Automotive where the Sons of Anarchy clubhouse was also located. As he stepped out of the van he saw the rest of his brothers – Bobby and Tig, the new prospect he hadn't met but had heard about - Juice, and Clay's wife and Jax's mother Gemma.

There was another woman standing next to Gemma that Opie didn't immediately recognize. She was of average height but that was about the only average thing about her. He thought briefly that it might just be the five years of not laying eyes on another woman that made this one stand out so much, but shook the thought away as his eyes quickly scanned her tight body, covered by a tank top and jeans stuck inside a pair of knee high boots. Her hair was dark and wavy, hanging well past her shoulders and she had a huge smile on her face.

She looked vaguely familiar but he couldn't place where he knew her from until she ran up to him, engulfing him in a bear hug.

"Opes, you're back!" she exclaimed, and his eyebrows shot up as he heard the nickname.

"Stacey?" he asked in surprise as she took a step back from him, grinning broadly as she tilted her head up to look at him.

"Who else, silly?" she asked playfully. He stared at her for a second before recovering.

"You look… different," he said, trying to figure out when the girl he'd known since he was 4 – the day she was born, his best friend's sister, the girl that had followed him and Jax around everywhere as they grew up together, had gotten so hot.

"Well I haven't seen you since I was 16, now have I?" she asked, and Opie shook his head.

"Yeah, speaking of – I really loved all the visits I got from you while I was inside," he said, only halfway joking. She frowned.

"Hey, that's not fair – they wouldn't let me go," she said. Opie knew 'they' to mean her mother, Gemma, and her step dad Clay, "At least I wrote to you. All those letters you sent must have gone astray, eh?"

"Hey, I wrote to you!" he said, thinking back, "A few times," he amended, and she grinned, giving him another hug.

"Well you're back now," she said, "We've all missed you." He grinned at her as he was pulled away by the boys and into the clubhouse to start the celebration of his return.

Opie couldn't keep his eyes off of her all night, no matter how many tits and pussy shoved themselves against him. He couldn't believe what 5 years could do to a girl. This was the same girl he'd known since the day she was born, who after the death of her younger brother had latched onto him and Jax, following them everywhere, who had had such an obvious crush on him that he'd always ignored. He'd enjoyed the attention, but had never thought of her as anything other than Jax's kid sister.

Not anymore. He caught her eye from across the room, where she was sitting with the prospect. She smiled at him, a slight blush creeping up her cheeks as he grinned back at her. He found himself annoyingly jealous of the new prospect as he said something to her, bringing her attention back to him as she laughed at his comment. Opie stood up, making his way over to the bar where she sat, brushing off the whores as they clambered for his attention. She smiled as he approached, jumping up to walk behind the bar.

"You want a beer?" she asked. Opie glanced at the prospect, who immediately looked fearful.

"The prospect can get it, come over here," he said, as Juice hurriedly scrambled from his seat to run behind the bar. He handed Opie a beer as Stacey took her seat next to Opie.

"So you having fun on your first night as a free man?" she asked, leaning forward slightly and crossing her legs towards him. Opie looked at her, unable to stop his eyes from doing a quick roam of her body, lingering on the cleavage her tank top was doing nothing to conceal. Those tits had definitely not been there when he left. He reminded himself furtively that this was his best friend's sister, his president's step-daughter who, since her dad had died when she was 11, had practically raised her.

"I am now," he said, leaning towards her. Her breath caught in her throat for a moment before she released it, smiling at him.

"Good," she said.

"So tell me about the last five years," he said, taking a sip of his beer. The thought occurred to him as she shrugged that she was way too hot to still be single. He thought of some unnamed, faceless asshole getting to touch her, kiss her… his hand started shaking and he instinctively grabbed his beer to steady it as she started going into all that had happened while he'd been locked up. Graduated high school, going to be starting her final year of college at Pacific in Stockton in a few days, studying animal science, thinking about going to vet school, that she was thinking about studying abroad during the spring semester. So far, no mention of a boyfriend.

"Most everything else I wrote to you in the letters," she said as she wound down her succinct saga.

"I kept them all, you know," he told her, waiting for her reaction. Her features slowly softened as her eyebrows rose slightly in surprise.

"My letters?" she said. He nodded.

"You were one of the few who really wrote to me," he said as he watched a blush creep over her tanned skin. She bit her lip nervously, drawing attention to her mouth, causing Opie to think of all the things he'd like to do to that mouth. 'She's Jax's sister,' he reminded himself as he looked away.

"Well… I missed you," she admitted. Opie grinned. It was true that he still had every letter she'd ever written him. They'd started off as the ramblings of a 16 year old girl in her junior year of high school and had matured into thoughtful insights on the world around her. The letters showed how well spoken and funny she'd become over the last 5 years and he might have been bad at writing back, but he'd always looked forward to them. After all, they were some of the few letters he'd received inside; even his own mother refused to write to him. The guys would all come down to visit him regularly, but few of them were letter writers. He had to admit, her letters had made him look forward to seeing her again, but he'd had no idea what exactly he'd be seeing.

"So… are you dating anybody?" he asked, hoping the question would come off as mildly curious instead of the desperate need-to-know that he felt. She smiled knowingly at him, slowly shaking her head.

"No one special," she responded and his eyebrows creased briefly before he tried to force his expression into one of slight indifference. What the hell does 'no one special' mean?

Jax chose that moment to walk up, snapping at Juice to get him a beer before turning to Opie.

"Pool?" he asked, his head jerking at the table where a couple of hang-arounds were in the middle of a game. Opie glanced back at Stacey, his immediate reaction to Jax being a resounding no, but quickly reminded himself once again she was off limits and Jax was probably doing him a favor by pulling him away.

"Yeah, sounds good," he replied, not missing the briefest hint of disappointment that crossed Stacey's face before she covered it with a grin.

"You sure you wanna take on my brother? He's got five years' experience on you," she said, teasing. Opie grinned.

"I think I can take him," he said, grabbing his beer and reluctantly following Jax over to the table.

Stacey watched as Jax barked at the two hang-arounds in the middle of their game to bolt and Opie started re-racking the balls. Her eyes rested on Opie as he removed the triangle and grabbed a cue stick a croweater was enthusiastically holding out to him. She sighed as she watched him smile at the stupid slut, stepping back to line up his shot. She turned around to grab her beer and chat with Juice; anything to get her mind off of Opie.

She'd had a crush on Opie since she was 8 years old. Ever since her brother, Thomas, had died at the age of 6. Her family had grieved hard for her baby brother, but it was Opie that had turned out to be her rock. At 12 years old, he'd been the shoulder she'd cried on, her brother being too far into his own grief that he couldn't find room for anyone else's. And then 3 years later, when her father too had gone with the grim reaper he so proudly wore on his back, Opie had been there again. She couldn't understand how her mother had moved on so quickly, one day in her father's bed, the next in Clay's. She'd resented it; resented Clay. She wanted her own father back, not a new one. Clay and her had gotten off to a rocky start, but with Opie's help, she'd finally been able to accept Clay into her family and into her heart, and grew to love him. She still knew who her dad was, and Clay wouldn't ever be able to take that place, but he made her mother happier than she'd ever seen her with her dad, and with Opie's guidance she began to realize that was what was important.

Jax had been older when their father died – nearly 16. He'd never see Clay as anything but his president and his mom's husband. But Stacey saw him as a father figure. He'd been there during her formative teen years – scolding her when she dressed too provocatively and holding her when she cried over a boy.

She knew she'd never have been able to get past all of that tragedy without Opie, who probably didn't even realize what he'd done for her just by being there for her, talking to her. She knew he knew about the crush he'd harbored for him, and she knew he had only ever thought of her as a kid. Their age difference had seemed worlds away when she was in middle school and he was in high school, but now that she was 21, it was nothing. Or at least, she hoped he'd realize it was nothing and know she wasn't a kid anymore.

She'd dated frequently, throughout high school and then while Opie was in prison, but she'd never grown serious with anybody. She always held that hope that one day Opie would come around. She compared every boy she dated with him, and none so far even held a candle. She knew he was her older brother's best friend and brother-by-club, knew that her step-dad was his president, knew that there was only the slightest chance he'd risk their wrath to be with her. But still she hoped.

She shook the thoughts away as she looked up at Juice, standing behind the bar and pulling several drinks for people hovering around. They'd grown to be good friends over the past month since he'd become a prospect for SAMCRO, though they both felt the friendship was completely platonic. She thought he was sweet and fun to hang out with, especially being closer to her age than anyone else around the clubhouse besides her brother, but there was nothing more there. He knew she was Clay's step daughter and he was too terrified of Clay to even consider crossing that line, but she was one of the few people that thought of him as 'Juice' instead of as 'the prospect', and it was a nice change of pace every now and then.

"I think I'm gonna head out," she said, as she turned her head slightly to glance at the pool table where Jax and Opie were playing, surrounded by croweaters just chomping at the bit for their chance with either of them. She resisted the urge to punch all of them in the face.

"What? You're leaving?" Juice asked, the disappointment written all over his face. Stacey shrugged.

"Yeah, I'll see you tomorrow. I'll help you clean up this place in the morning," she said and he grinned, knowing he'd be the sole person on clean up duty after the party.

"Alright, well, you okay to drive?" he asked, glancing at her half empty beer. She smirked.

"Yeah, I think I'll be okay," she said sarcastically, hopping off her seat and heading towards the door.

"Stace!" she heard someone yell, and jerked her head automatically at the sound of her name to see Opie shoving a cue stick at some croweater and walking over to the railing by the doorway. Her heartbeat increased and her breathing shallowed as she watched him make his way over to her.

"You taking off?" Opie asked and Stacey glanced over his shoulder to see Jax watching them curiously.

"Yeah…" she said, her voice trailing off. There were so many unspoken words in that 'yeah' that she didn't quite know how to express them all. 'yeah, I only came to see you and now you're preoccupied' would have been the best one. But she just lowered her eye lids, flicking them up hesitantly to look into Opie's face.

"Okay, well, I'll see you around, right?" he asked and Stacey nodded.

"Definitely," she said, beaming at him. Opie paused as if he was about to say something, but thought better of it and just nodded back at her.

"Okay, well, have a good night. Drive safe," he said, lamely. Stacey nodded.

"Yeah, I'll do that," she said before making her way out the door.

The next time Opie saw Stacey was a little over a week later. She'd started back at Pacific College in Stockton and was extremely busy with school. It wasn't until the next Friday night after church party that he saw her again. Once again, she was in the close company of the new prospect and he felt himself irrationally annoyed at their relationship. They were in the middle of a game of darts when Opie walked up to them.

"Closed 16!" Stacey shouted. She stood to line up her next shot, the dart held in her hand, as Opie moved to stand next to her. Her body jerked as she released the dart the moment she realized Opie was next to her. She watched as the dart bounced off the wall next to the board, nearly taking a hang-around's eye out.

"That doesn't count!" Stacey said as Juice laughed, walking over to pick up the fallen dart. She turned to Opie, "You messed me up." Opie grinned.

"Was I a distraction?" he asked softly, leaning closer to her. Opie's heart raced as he watched that now familiar blush creep across her cheeks as she smiled at him.

"Maybe," she said flirtatiously as Juice stood with dart in his hand. Opie glanced over at him, his eyes reading 'go away or I'll punch you in the face.' Clearly the new prospect wasn't too quick on the uptake as he handed the dart back to Stacey and remained hovering beside her.

"Beer," he barked at Juice, more to state his dominance than his actual need for a drink. Juice quickly ran to the bar to pull the drinks and Opie turned back to Stacey after Juice made himself scarce, noticing her lips pulled into an amused smirk.

"So how's it going," she asked, fingering the dart in her hand.

"Better, now I'm talking to you," he said and her blush deepened, "So what's with you and the prospect?" he asked, not quite able to keep the irritation out of his voice.

"Who? Juice?" she asked in surprise, "Nothing! He's just the only person around here to hang out with besides my brother." Opie winced slightly at another reminder that she was Jax's sister, but was mollified to hear there wasn't anything between her and the prospect, at least.

"And don't be too hard on him. He's a great guy –really loyal. Like, lapdog loyal," she told him, "He's a good prospect."

"It's not really your business how we treat the prospects," he told her as she maintained eye contact with him.

"Yeah, this ain't my first rodeo," she said, reminding him of all the time he'd missed being in jail, all the prospects he hadn't seen come and go in his absence, "I'm just saying – don't be more hard on him just because we're friends." Opie shrugged noncommittally.

"Yeah, okay," he said stiffly. She looked at him, a confused expression on her face as she bit her lip in that way that drove him crazy.

"What's in your head right now?" she asked. Opie looked at her, trying not to pay too close attention to her mouth.

"Nothing that should be," he responded, looking away from her, around the clubhouse, trying to get eyes on Jax and Clay. He found them, each not paying him the slightest bit of attention. He looked back at Stacey who was grinning at him.

"Me either," she whispered, leaning dangerously close to him. Opie stood inches away from her, his eyes raking over her hopeful expression. A second later, he came to his senses and stood up straighter, turning slightly away from her, breaking away from whatever moment they were about to have. She followed his lead, a disappointed look flashing across her face. Opie cleared his throat.

"I should… go," he said, standing up. Stacey raised her eyebrows.

"You want to, or you should?" she asked. Opie looked at her for a beat, his eyes studying her, before finally replying, "I should." He sure as hell didn't want to.

They'd gone the next couple of weeks dancing around the tension that constantly existed between them. Opie tried to ignore it, but the way her cheeks flushed and she chewed on her bottom lip every time she looked at him drove him crazy.

A few days before Halloween, Stacey ran into the clubhouse with the news that she'd been accepted into the Study Abroad program Pacific offered and was trying to figure out where she wanted to go.

"I'm thinking Prague," she said, laying the brochures out on the table that Gemma and Clay were seated at as Opie and Jax watched mindfully by the bar.

"Hell no," Clay had stated, Gemma nodding next to him.

"What?" she asked, "Why!"

"If you're gonna do this shit, it needs to be within 100 miles of a chapter," Clay responded firmly. Stacey's face fell.

"Seriously? That leaves me what - Canada, the UK, and Sweden?" she asked. Clay nodded.

"Yup. Pick one of those," he said, and he'd risen from the table.

"Mom!" Stacey whined after he walked off. Gemma shook her head.

"That's how it's gonna be, baby," she said, rising and following Clay. Stacey frowned, gathering up the brochures scattered on the table and sticking them back in her bag. She looked over at Jax and Opie sitting at the bar and walked over to grab a beer and join them.

"Study abroad?" Opie asked as soon as she took a seat. She nodded.

"Yup, looks like it's gonna be Northern Ireland," she said, a touch of resentment in her voice.

"Good," Jax stated, and Stacey frowned at him. He shrugged.

"Look, we'll all feel better knowing SAMBEL can keep tabs on you, be close if something goes wrong," he said. Stacey sighed, annoyed.

"I don't need a babysitter," she grumbled.

"We just want to know you're safe," Opie told her softly, and she flicked her eyes at him, smiling slightly and nodding.

"Yeah? Okay…I guess it wouldn't be so bad having them close," she agreed. Jax frowned.

"What? I just said the exact same thing. He says it and it's suddenly okay?" he asked. Stacey looked over at her brother, startled, before turning back to Opie and winking.

"Pretty much," she said, hopping off her barstool and walking off to find Juice before she got herself in more trouble with her brother. Jax eyed Opie warily but didn't say anything.

The next month passed by in a blur. Opie had been determined to get back into the club after being gone for so long and had flung himself into that full force. It kept him busy and often times away from the clubhouse, which meant away from Stacey. He was thankful for that, hoping it'd be easier to get her out of his head if she wasn't around all the time. He'd been wrong, however. Stacey Teller had maintained a constant presence in his thoughts.

He knew he just needed to make it four more weeks. Then she'd be heading off to Ireland for five months and that would be plenty of time to forget about her and everything she was doing – maybe find another girl that wasn't his president's step-daughter or his best friend's sister. But it didn't quite work out the way he'd planned.

A few days before Stacey was set to leave for Ireland, Gemma and Clay held a pool party at their house as a going away party for her. She had moved back in with them for the few short weeks before she left, opting to do that instead of pay rent on an apartment she wouldn't be living in. This party was much more laid back than the usual parties at the clubhouse and Stacey was probably the only one there glad of the absence of the stupid sluts roaming around.

She swam to the side of the pool where her two friends from college, Kara and Leslie, were laying out in chairs and pulled herself out of the pool, quickly grabbing her bathing suit cover up and throwing it on before joining them. She knew she didn't have a perfect body and hadn't really been looking forward to being around Opie in her bikini, but either luckily or unluckily – whichever way you looked at it – he hadn't seemed to be paying her much attention all day. She glanced over at where Opie was sitting with some of the Sons on the deck that led to the back door. He'd come up to say hi when he first arrived, but after that she hadn't gotten a chance to talk to him.

After a couple of hours, Kara and Leslie had to head back to Stockton and Stacey walked them out. She headed into the kitchen to pour herself a generous glass of wine and turned to walk out, running right into Opie and spilling her wine all over his shirt and all over her bathing suit cover.

"Oh my God, Opes, I'm so sorry!" Stacey said, her face red with embarrassment and her hand flying to her mouth. Opie shook his head as Stacey grabbed a rag and tried to get as much of the wine out as she could from his shirt.

"It's okay, really," Opie said, taking the rag from her hand and taking over.

"No, it's not, I can't believe I did that," she moaned, "I think Jax still has some clothes up in his old room. Come upstairs, we can see if there's any that fit you." Opie looked hesitantly up the stairs and then back at Stacey.

"Nah, it's okay," he said. Stacey shook her head.

"No come on, it'll just take a second," she said, walking towards the stairs. Opie hesitated and she turned to look at him, "Come on. We've got to throw that shirt in the wash or the stains will set." Opie nodded and followed her upstairs to Jax's room. She dug through a few drawers in his dresser before coming up with a few shirts and tossing them on the bed.

"Give me your shirt and try those on, I'll throw it in the wash," she said, holding out her hand as Opie slid his shirt over his head and handed it to her. She paused for a second, allowing her eyes to quickly roam across his broad shoulders and down his strong chest, her eyes lingering on the many tattoos inked on his body. Opie smirked as he caught her staring and she jerked herself out of the trance.

"Okay, um try those on. I'm going to change out of this so I can wash it too," she said, motioning to her cover up and turning to head out of the door. Opie glanced back at the t-shirts on the bed and grabbed one that looked to be the right size, throwing it on before walking out the door. The door to Stacey's room had been left open and he paused outside, watching as she slid out of her bathing suit cover up, her back to him. He'd tried his hardest to stay away from her today, knowing he just had to make it a few more days, but as his eyes roamed her body in her bikini, the gentle slope of her back that ended in a nicely rounded ass, he knew he'd just been delaying the inevitable. His raised his eyebrows in surprise as he noticed her tattoo that looked like a poem written across her rib cage – a tattoo she hadn't had before he went to jail.

He knocked softly on the door and she jumped, turning around to look at him as he leaned against the door frame. She hugged her stomach self-consciously and he smiled softly at her.

"I can't believe you're really leaving," he said, moving farther into the room. She didn't say anything; she was struggling to breath much less talk as she watched him walk towards her, his dark and hooded eyes never leaving her face. Her breath stuck in her throat as he ran his hands down her arms.

"Guess it'll be my turn to miss you," he said, his voice low. She was pretty sure her heart actually skipped a beat as she struggled to regain her breath, heat rushing through her body.

"You're gonna miss me?" she asked, biting her lip. He cupped her chin in his hand, causing her to release her lip.

"You have no idea," he responded, bending down to kiss her forehead before releasing her chin from his grasp. She reached out, grasping his tshirt in her hands, bringing him closer to her. She paused for a moment as his eyes searched hers, his face so close. She thought briefly of the party going on downstairs, of her step dad and her brother and what they would think if they walked in right now. She shoved the thought away as she tipped her chin up, inviting him to meet her before he lowered his head and pressed his lips against hers, his arms holding her tight to him. Stacey felt her heart race, butterflies tumbling inside of her as she kept him close to her, restraining herself from wrapping her arms around his neck.

As their kiss deepened, all thoughts of the party downstairs erased themselves from her memory and she flung her arms around him, melting into his body. An involuntary moan escaped her lips as his hands moved down her back, cupping her ass. He lifted her up in one motioned and she wrapped her legs around his waist as he pressed her up against the wall. His lips moved from hers to her collarbone, trailing kisses along it as she arched her neck up, running her hands through his hair, completely lost in a moment she'd waited so long for.

His hands cupped her breasts through her bikini top as he lowered his head, laying kisses on the top of her mounds. She arched her back against the wall, her legs still wrapped firmly around his waist, the movement causing her to rub against his groin, feeling him grow beneath her.

"Opie…" she moaned as he moved from her breasts back to her neck. He growled into her at the sound of his name, looking into her pleading eyes. He cupped her ass again, kissing her deeply as he moved her to the bed. He set her down and she lay back, propped up on her elbows, looking up at him. He reluctantly tore his eyes from her body as he walked over to the door, shutting it gently. The point of no return.

He turned back to look at her, her expression full of excitement and need. He moved back to the bed as she parted her legs, allowing him to lie between them. She tugged on the bottom of his t-shirt and he finished the job, tugging it over his head and tossing it to the ground before settling back against her, skin against skin. He kissed her deeply and she leaned up into the kiss, parting her lips and allowing his tongue entrance as his hands moved down her body, feeling her tremble at his touch. He slipped his hand behind her back, pulling her up slightly as he pulled on the string keeping her bikini top tied to her. She ripped it off as it came undone and quickly pulled him back to her as one of his hands found her freed breasts. He rubbed his thumb over her nipple, feeling it harden immediately at his touch. She whimpered as he broke away from the kiss, bending over to take the nipple in his mouth, nipping at it lightly while his other hand worked its twin.

She reached down, fumbling with his belt buckle and zipper before finally releasing them both. He looked up at her, her eyes darkened with lust, silently begging him to fuck her, and he kicked off his jeans and boxers before moving back to her. His hand moved lower, cupping her pussy through her bikini bottoms, rubbing his fingers against her as she trembled at his touch.

"Opie, please," she whispered. He grinned, looking down at her.

"Please what?" he asked, his voice husky. She whimpered as he continued the gentle strokes on her pussy.

"Stop teasing me," she moaned. He shoved her bikini to the side, inserting his fingers into her, taking pleasure in how wet he'd made her as she gasped. He watched her squirm underneath him and the need to be inside of her, to feel her wrapped tight around him, intensified. He removed his hand, tugging on the strings of her bottoms as they fell apart and placed himself at her entrance. He paused, looking down into her eyes. He could feel the rapid beating of her heart, see the look of intense need written in her eyes, but knew he needed to ask the question before continuing.

"Are you sure?" he asked softly, and as soon as she nodded her head he thrust himself into her.

"Oh God," she moaned as she felt him fill her. He paused, allowing her to adjust to his size before he pulled halfway out, easing his way back into her. He continued gently as he felt her hips buck under him, urging him on. He kissed her before cupping his hands under her knees and pulling them up so they rested on his shoulders and picked up his pace, pounding into her. Her hands flew up, gripping the headboard as he watched her bite her lip, struggling to contain her screams.

He reached down, his thumb finding her clit and he slowly drew circles around it as he continued thrusting into her. Her eyes widened before rolling back in her head, a guttural moan escaping her lips as he felt her pulse around him as she came, her hips bucking underneath him. It was too much for him and he felt his own release building to the surface before emptying himself into her.

He rolled over and she curled into him as her breathing began to steady and her heart rate returned to normal. She never wanted to leave his side, but knew that people were probably already wondering where they were.

"We should get back downstairs," she finally said, her finger tracing the tattoo on his chest and his arm circled around her. He looked up at her, nodding, running his hand down her arm.

"Yeah, you're probably right," he mumbled, not really wanting to face Clay and Jax after what just happened. He felt like it was a betrayal. He needed to talk to them about it, but with Stacey leaving in just two days, was now really the time to start something up with her? She'd be gone for five months, with her step dad and brother hovering around, knowing if he was fucking around with croweaters. Would she expect him to wait for her? A voice inside his brain told him he should have thought of that before he fucked her.

He patted her arm and she climbed off him, grabbing her bikini and tying them back on before throwing her hair in a ponytail. Opie rolled out of bed, getting dressed, one eye on Stacey.

"I'll, um, go get the washing machine going," she said, grabbing her wine-stained cover up and his shirt from where she left them on the floor and hurried out of the room. He followed several minutes later and walked downstairs to find Jax, Gemma, and Clay in the kitchen.

"Where have you been?" Jax asked, eyeing him suspiciously, "And why are you wearing my shirt?" Opie glanced down.

"Right, um, Stacey and I were… talking. And she spilled wine on my shirt, so she went to wash it and told me to grab one of your shirts," he said truthfully. 'And then I fucked your sister,' he thought, before shaking it away.

By the next day, Opie and Stacey had still not talked about what had happened between them and Stacey began kicking herself for what an idiot she'd been to think that that was going to be the start of something more. She'd seen Opie with the croweaters; he was almost as bad as Jax. Was that all it was to him? Just sex? She knew there were obstacles where she was concerned – Opie wouldn't start anything without getting the okay from Clay and her brother – but she thought he might have at least tried. She also knew she was leaving the next morning, and starting a new relationship long distance was definitely not ideal.

But it wasn't like she was never coming back. It was only five months. Surely, if he really liked her and wanted to be with her, he'd ask her to wait for him while she was gone. They could keep in touch and then pick things back up when she got back.

But he didn't ask her. He barely talked to her. She was getting ready for Gemma to drive her to the airport and they'd stopped by the clubhouse so she could say good-bye to everyone. Opie watched as she ran around to everyone, tear-filled hugs and goodbyes and promises to keep in touch hovering in the air. And then she walked up to Opie, a shy smile on her face.

"Well, I guess this is it," she said, hoping this would be the moment he'd sweep her in his arms and tell her he'd think about her every second, and he'd talk to Clay and Jax, and they'd be together when she got back. But he didn't. He just nodded.

"I guess it is," he said, his expression giving nothing away to how he was feeling, "Have fun, Stace." She frowned.

"Have fun?" she repeated, "That's all you're going to say to me?" Opie looked at her, confused.

"Have...a lot of fun?" he said.

"Okay, yeah - I'll have a lot of fun," she said. He frowned slightly, the meaning of her words hanging in the air.

"Well, not too much fun," he muttered.

"Why not?" she asked, prompting him. He looked at her, his shoulders sagging as he looked behind her at Clay and Jax. He just shook his head.

"Nothing," he muttered, "Have all the fun you want." He kissed her briefly on the forehead and walked off, leaving her standing, her heart breaking in two.

-Present day-

Opie's eyes were trained on the door to the clubhouse after Gemma announced Stacey would be there soon. He and Stacey hadn't spoken again since he'd left her standing in almost this very spot and his heart broke as he thought about that day. He should've explained more to her about why he wasn't trying to start something right then. Explained to her how he felt about her, how she made him feel. About how it was going to take time. How he needed to talk to Jax and Clay. But he hadn't said any of those things. It was easier to just let it all go and tell himself they'd talk when she got back from Ireland.

The door opened and he watched as she walked into the clubhouse beaming at everyone. She looked better than he remembered, wearing jean shorts and a black v-neck, her long, dark hair cascading around her shoulders in their characteristic waves.

"Welcome home!" everyone shouted, moving forward to engulf her in a hug. She shrieked in delight, her smile growing wider as she saw Juice run up to her. He threw his arms around her, lifting her up and spinning her around as she laughed, giving him a huge hug. It was then Opie noticed the man who walked in behind her. He was young, about the same age as Stacey, clean shaven with short blond hair. He was tall and broad-shouldered, filling out the button down he wore casually over a pair of jeans. Stacey glanced back at the man, smiling at him in a way she used to reserve only for Opie. When the crowd around Stacey had dispersed, Gemma came running up to her and Stacey threw her arms around her mom.

"I want you to meet the guy I told you about," she said to Gemma when they'd pulled apart, turning and grabbing the man's hand, moving him farther into the room. He didn't seem as nervous as most would be to be surrounded by a bunch of burly bikers. He walked up to Gemma with a confident swagger that would rival Jax's. He smiled at Gemma, holding his hand out as Stacey said, "Brad, this is my mom, Gemma. Mom, this Brad, my boyfriend."

A/N I hope you liked it! I'm still working on Crushes and Conspiracy with AFSpouse on our joint account: Kristinmw AFSpouse, but we're not really sure if people are reading it/liking it/ etc, so we decided to work on some other solo projects in the mean time.
I'd also like to recommend the story she's working on now: Doctor Feelgood. I'm loving it so far and it's definitely worth checking out :)

I pretty much covet reviews and they really make my day, so if you have a second, I'd love to hear what you thought!