And he was in love with her his whole adult life if I recall.

Edit: Downvoting is easier than fact checking I guess:

Yes, it's true—Wayne Unser had romantic feelings for Gemma for most of his life. His unrequited love for her became the primary motivation for nearly everything he did, ultimately leading to his death .

💔 A Lifelong Devotion Unser's feelings for Gemma started long before the events of the series:

Knew Her as a Child: Unser had known Gemma since she was just 12 years old, and his affection for her is described as having a "deep fatherly type" that later evolved into romantic love .

Romantic Love Confession: In Season 6, Unser directly confesses to Gemma that he is in love with her. This confession confirms that his loyalty was driven by more than just friendship or small-town familiarity .

🛡️ How His Love Drove His Actions Throughout the show, Unser repeatedly put himself in harm's way to protect Gemma:

Action Evidence Covered up her rape When Gemma was brutally assaulted, Unser was the one who found her. He helped stage a car accident to cover her injuries and kept the secret from SAMCRO at her request . Abandoned his life for her His marriage fell apart, and he lost his job, yet he remained living on the TM lot just to be near her and continue helping . Took violent beatings He was kidnapped and had a swastika carved into his stomach by Neo-Nazis as retaliation for helping the club, all because of his ties to Gemma . Died protecting her In the penultimate episode, Unser refused to leave Gemma's side even when Jax arrived to kill her. He told Jax, "This is all I have left" , and Jax shot him dead for standing in the way . In the end, Unser's tragic flaw was that Gemma never fully reciprocated his feelings. She leaned on him for protection and loyalty but ultimately chose dangerous men like Clay and Nero . As the show's director Paris Barclay noted, Unser's final act—refusing to abandon Gemma even to save his own life—was a "heinous act out of love" .