All of This Could Have Been Yours

Chapter 8

Thank you all for your patience, I am so sorry it took this long! I had planned on having this ready before the baby was born but she had other plans! Hope you enjoy it! xoxo

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William H Sullivan." Opie grumbled as he sat at the kitchen table to read all the information Juice had pulled on Mae's new beau. "Fucking prick."

Bill graduated from college and immediately went into insurance. He was a salesman for years before diving in and becoming an agent himself. His grades were impeccable and school file was clear, there was no criminal record or even a parking ticket but when Opie got to his financials, the fairy tale of Bill took a hard turn toward unusual and disconcerting.

"Two bankruptcies?" Opie scoffed in disbelief as he looked over the numbers. "Four hundred thousand in debt? Shit, maybe I have this pussy beat in one way."

Through the open window, he heard Mae's car in the drive then her sweet voice speaking in soft tones to Grace as she unbuckled the child and headed up the path. Throwing the papers together, he jammed them away into the china cabinet.

"Morning, ladies." He swung open the door before she could even knock. Grace immediately reached for her father, a singular tooth poking from her gums as she beamed at him. "Come here, mouse." He mumbled as he took Grace into his arms.

"Why do you call her mouse?" Mae asked as she stepped into the house.

"She sounded like one when she was first born." He shrugged trying to deny the emotion the memory stirred in him. "Sometimes now she still squeaks, plus she's tiny."

In awe of the small detail, which he remembered so quickly, Mae nodded quietly and smiled. "So?" She asked timidly. "Did you talk to the guys? Find out who stirred the pot with that guy?"

Looking at her with suspicion, Opie nodded. "Yeah I did, we don't have any beefs, Mae."

"You always do," she said skeptically. "There's always something going on." There was slight malice in her voice; she spoke very matter-of-factly, as she sat at the table.

"We. Don't." At this point, nothing with The League had heated up, and for Opie, there truly was no issue. "I'll take blame for shit Mae but not this, not until I know for sure this shit is on me or the club."

"Guess we'll revisit the topic when you know for sure."

--

"Ambitious," Mae remarked as they parked at the San Diego Aquarium. "You know she won't remember this, right?" Kenny and Ellie moved ahead of them but knew to stop before they were too far away.

Opie rolled his eyes, genuinely annoyed, and led her toward the entrance with just a small bit of pressure to her lower back. "No, she won't, but we will."

Mae smiled little, loving making memories with Opie despite everything, and nodded as they headed into the aquarium as a patched together family.

Watching Kenny and Ellie roam ahead, which was exactly what they expected the two to do, Opie, Mae and Grace moved at a much more leisurely pace.

"She's getting big," Mae said with a small smile. "Pediatrician said she's gaining quickly, it's a good thing, chubby babies are happy and healthy babies."

Patting his stomach, he looked down at her and smiled. "Let's hope she thins out eventually. I don't want her looking like me."

Flicking her eyes up to look at him, she smiled discreetly knowing his size was one of the physical attributes that initially attracted her to him. "Oh stop, you're handsome and she's going to be beautiful. I know you're fishing for compliments."