Clay Morrow is starting a new phase in his life. After being married to Gemma for years, he's now faced with being alone for the first time in a long time. Gemma has moved on, and though it's amicable, he still has the memories.
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Michael was just putting the last breakfast plate in the dishwasher when Travis walked into the kitchen carrying a bouquet of daisies. Michael smiled for a moment before frowning in confusion. "What's this?"
Travis frowned as he shrugged. "You got flowers."
Michael's smile returned as she took the flowers from him and sat the vase on the counter. She pulled the card from the envelope and bit her lip to keep the little squeal of delight in.
You remind me of daisies. Clay
She tucked the card back into its envelope and then into her pocket as Travis cleared his throat. "Well? Who sent them?"
Michael, knowing how he felt about the club, decided to keep the sender to herself. "A friend." She shut the dishwasher and moved the flowers to the kitchen table before grabbing her bag. "I have errands to run. I'll probably be gone most of the day."
Travis nodded. "I got Elliott coming out to give us a price on re-building the barns."
Michael nodded and waved as she walked out to her car. As she pointed the vehicle to the other side of town, she grinned to herself. She knew that she was too old to be acting like a schoolgirl, but it had been so long since she'd felt this way, she just couldn't help it. She wasn't exactly sure how Clay was feeling toward her, but if the flowers and card were any indications, she was at least on his mind, which was good because he hadn't been off of hers since they met.
When she pulled onto the lot of Teller-Morrow, she saw Juan Carlos unhooking a car from a tow truck. Once she was parked, she walked his way, smiling in greeting.
"Good afternoon, Juan Carlos."
Juice grinned and nodded as he wiped his hands on a shop rag. "Good afternoon, Michael. Can I help you with something?"
"Is Clay around anywhere?"
Juice shook his head. "No, sorry. He had club business this morning."
Michael felt a twinge of disappointment but nodded. "Oh, okay. Well, since I'm here, is there any way that I can get an oil change? My car is due for one and I just don't have time to go to Lodi."
Juice smiled and nodded. "Yeah, sure. It may be a little while until we get to it though. You got someone to come get you?"
Michael shook her head. "I'm free all afternoon. Is it okay if I just hang around here? Would I be in the way?"
Juice shook his head as he waved for her to follow him. "No, of course not. You can wait in the office where there's A/C, although it's a little messy right now. Ever since Gemma left, we really haven't been able to keep up with it."
Once Juice had Michael settled in the office, he walked into the garage and hooked a thumb toward the office, a big grin on his face. "Clay's girl."
Tig and Happy both turned toward the big window dividing the two spaces. Tig whistled low as Happy nodded in approval. "Damn. She's hot."
Juice snorted as he shook his head. "Don't let Clay hear you say that."
Michael sat at the desk for a few minutes, tapping her fingers restlessly on the desk, before she hopped up and started picking up trash. Once that was done, she started making stacks of paperwork. The phone rang and she looked toward the garage but nobody seemed to notice. With a shrug, she answered.
"Teller-Morrow Automotive. What can I help you with today?" She listened for a moment before nodding. "I see. Give me one minute to check." She laid the phone down on the desk and walked over to the door, opening it to three surprised faces. "A Mr. Canton is on the phone, wanting to know about his Chrysler."
A tall bald man answered her with a surprisingly deep, raspy voice. "I just finished it. Tell him to call back in five. I'll get you the work order by then."
Michael smiled and nodded. "Excellent! Thank you!"
When she shut the door again, Tig chuckled and shook his head. "Chipper thing, ain't she?"
Juice chuckled and nodded as Happy took the work order to the office. As he was handing it off to Michael, Clay, Jax, and Bobby pulled onto the lot and parked. They walked over to the garage as Happy came back. Juice grinned and pointed toward the office. "You have a visitor."
Clay frowned before walking over and opening the door. He was shocked to find Michael sitting at the desk, organizing work orders and invoices. He cleared his throat and she looked up, her face breaking into a soft smile that did strange things to his stomach. "You're a surprise."
Michael chuckled. "Well, I came to thank you for the flowers and stayed for an oil change. Juan Carlos said he'd get to it soon."
Clay nodded before grinning and winking at her, seeing her face turn a soft pink. "I'll handle that for you. I'll have it done shortly." He waved a hand at the desk. "You know you don't have to do that, Mikey."
She shrugged, secretly pleased that he had given her a nickname. "I was bored. Idle hands and all that. I don't mind, really."
Clay nodded before turning around and walking back into the garage, shrugging out of his kutte as he went. Tig frowned at him as he spoke. "Whatcha doin'?"
Clay lifted a brow at that. "I'm gonna do Mikey's oil change."
Jax smirked as he lit a cigarette. "Mikey, huh?"
Clay gave him a dirty look as Tig snickered. "I mean, that's cool and everything, but do you remember how to do an oil change? You don't spend much time in here, man."
Clay shook his head as the other men chuckled. "Fuck all of you. Where's her car?"
Juice pointed to a dark SUV and Clay went toward it, trying to refrain from punching Tig.
Clay was pulling Michael's car out of the bay when she walked outside to join him. "How much do I owe you?"
Clay grinned and shook his head. "You cleaned the office. We'll call it even."
Michael nodded as she stepped closer to him. "I've decided to come back tomorrow. There's still some work to be done and you guys are too busy to answer the phones and all." She leaned up and placed a hand on one cheek as she kissed the other. "Thank you for the flowers, Clay."
Clay just stood there in shock as she grinned and got into her car, pulling out of the lot. As he stood there, rubbing his chest, Tig smacked him on the shoulder. "And just like that, the Grinch's heart grew two sizes that day."
As the others laughed, Clay shot him a look. "Don't think I won't shoot you in the dick."
Jax laughed harder at the wounded look on Tig's face. "It's a good thing that you're a good shot then. That would be an awfully small target."
