13. Chapter 13 #4
“Yeah.” He decided to stick to the facts. “Tristan and I were the last people out of the building-”
“And I watched Jax double-check that it was shut,” Tristan interrupted, more firm than usual.
“Then what happened?” Owen’s eyebrows shot up as he glanced into the walk-in.
“That’s what we’re trying to figure out,” Jax explained, hoping that whatever he said might lead them there on their own. “We think there might’ve been a break-in.”
“Not a malfunction?” Marci checked the door. “I guess not, it locks fine.”
“Someone broke in here and left the door open? Did they take anything?” Running his gaze over the boxes that still needed to go outside, Owen pursed his lips, and Jax took in a deep breath, trying to steady himself.
“Can we figure that out later?” Winter came back, their quiet diplomacy working on Owen and Marci just as well as it did on the kitchen staff. “We have three weddings today, and the first bride will be here in a few hours.”
“And we’re already ninety minutes late for the morning prep team,” Jax added.
“That’s why I made some calls,” Marci said confidently. “We have a bunch of servers coming in early to help.”
“Thanks, Marci,” Jax tried to put all the sincerity he could in his words and expression. “I know people who’ll sell to us wholesale. I might be able to get some sea bass and filet mignon.”
“I’ll call in a couple of favors too,” Tristan added, patting Jax’s shoulder. “You’re doing well,” he said under his breath, just loud enough for Jax to hear, and it helped him focus.
No matter how heavy, Jax donned the mantle of head chef, gritting his teeth and getting into gear. Was it unfair as fuck that this had happened to him? Yes. Would he deal with it once he solved the more immediate problem? Yes.
He must be growing as a person, because even though he still wanted to slam his fist into a wall, he sucked it up and managed to calm the beast within, planning to restore the missing inventory in less than two hours.
And the first thing he did was assemble The Squad. Twenty minutes later, Ollie walked in, bringing Finn instead of Rain, who was out on a shoot with Mason.
“Ollie and Just Finn to the rescue!” Ollie declared. “How can we help?”
“I need you to get me everything on here.” Jax took a quick photo of the list he’d been curating, sending it to Ollie and Finn.
Checking his phone, Finn’s forehead creased.
“Wow, that’s a lot.”
“And you have a third of it. Go to this place, you can buy in bulk.” Jax sent them a pin as Liam entered the kitchen, and after a quick hug, Jax gave him and Owen the same instructions; however, he sent them to a different store.
Thankfully, Jax’s contacts came through with most of the proteins and Tristan’s made up the rest. Marci and Dylan took the shuttle bus to pick it all up, and after everyone left, Jax tried not to think about how much money this was costing The Pointe.
At least Owen didn’t seem pissed, just shocked and concerned. But Jax wasn’t worried about Owen. He was worried about Angelo, because this weekend had already been a disaster. And if another thing went wrong, Jax didn’t care about growth; he was going to wring Derrick’s neck.
“There’s nothing on the cameras outside,” Tristan came back to the kitchen, settling beside Jax, who looked over whatever prep work they could do, filling in wherever necessary. “And you can’t see the area by the pantry door.”
“Of course you fuckin’ can’t.” Jax took in a long breath that shuddered on the way out. “And if Derrick was outside smoking all the time, he might know that.”
Tristan jerked as his phone buzzed in his pocket. Taking it out, he turned it off, but Jax could read the expression that flitted across his face. Eve had just called.
Before he could add her to the pile of shit, Kate and Emma barged in, also wanting the story, and by the time he’d explained himself again and given them their third of the list, he was more exhausted than he’d been last night.
Even though his most pressing problem was actively being solved, Jax’s mind still spun, and the beast within roared, wanting to be released. Rubbing his eye with the back of his hand, he tried to suppress it.
“I have some good news?” Tristan said, as if he wasn’t sure himself. “Apparently, you’re down a line cook today. Winter passed me in the hall and said that Derrick’s not coming in.”
“I guess he wanted to try and make it worse?” Jax frowned.
“Or maybe he’s too scared to face you after what he’s done?” Tristan said in a low tone as both of them huddled in the corner. “Whatever his reasons, the timing is very suspicious.”
“I’m just glad I don’t have to see his shitty face.” The roar in his mind got louder as the beast started to take over. “’Cause I can’t trust myself not to beat-”
“This is one of those times to be calm.” Tristan’s voice weaved through Jax’s fury, fighting it.
“Shit.” Jax ran his hands through his hair again, trying to come back to himself. “Fuck, fuck , you’re right, but urgh . It’s so hard to be calm.”
“It is.” Those two words were soaked in empathy.
“Really?” Dropping his hands, Jax looked up at Tristan, his rage frozen. “Even for you? You weren’t born this way?”
“No,” Tristan chuckled, pulling Jax close even though he was as stiff as a board. “I used to get upset a lot when I was a kid, but my mother’s always been serene. She taught me how to control my anger, but I took it too far until I met you.”
“That deal we made on our first date?” Jax said into Tristan’s shoulder. “It might be working.”
“I think so too,” Tristan replied, holding Jax tighter. His presence and body heat slowly melted Jax, and by the time the shoppers came back, Jax felt more like himself, ready to hit the ground running.
“Should we put everything in the walk-in?” Owen asked, holding several boxes of fresh fruit.
“Not yet. I’m trying to keep the door closed until it comes up to temperature.” Jax explained as the prep cooks and servers grabbed things and got to work, because they weren’t just in the weeds, they were in a damn swamp.
However, The Pointe banded together, and the teamwork blew Jax’s mind. Sure, he knew he’d face some criticism, and he’d definitely have to own up to what happened, but no one had let that get in the way of executing the weddings as planned.
“The first party is about to arrive,” Marci announced, striding into the kitchen. “How’s everything going?”
“As of now, the cocktail hour will be ten minutes late,” Jax wiped sweat off his brow, but it didn’t matter because he was practically soaked to the skin, and his back throbbed in time to his heartbeat.
“Good,” Marci ran her eyes over him, assessing, before they flicked to the walk-in, and Jax had a feeling that she knew what was going on, or she knew as much as he did. “Nice job, Head Chef Fiorelli.”
That had Jax standing a little straighter, because Marci had a ninety-nine percent approval rating and a compliment from her meant a lot.
“Thanks, Marci.” He gave her a heartfelt nod, turning his full attention back to the task at hand, flitting from station to station and becoming the oil that kept the gears of the kitchen turning smoothly.
Not only did it distract him from hunting Derrick down, but it also made the clients happy.
None of the parties noticed the massive issues behind the scenes; in fact, many of the guests complimented the food.
But Jax was too stressed out to enjoy any of it and too shaken to care about much by the end of the night.
Shutting down the kitchen with Tristan, Owen, and Marci, all four of them thoroughly checked the newly filled walk-in and adjusted the cameras, deciding to talk about everything in the morning because exhaustion had settled in.
Silence reigned as they rode home, and Jax was grateful that Tristan gave him space and time to wind down. He also ran a shower for Jax the minute they stepped inside, and once Jax was under the steaming water, he instantly felt more human.
Washing up, he was rinsing the soap away when Tristan appeared, turning the temperature down a notch before joining him.
“Wha-” Jax had seen Tristan naked a bunch of times already, but it still constantly derailed him. Between his height, the delicious hair on his chest, and his huge cock, Tristan was a banquet of man , and Jax took him in, his dick standing at attention.
But he didn’t get to look for long, because Tristan carefully spun him until he faced away.
“Can you brace yourself on the wall?” The low tone of Tristan’s voice had Jax instantly obeying, and he pressed against the tiles, the water hitting his left side.
Before he could wonder what was happening, Tristan’s fingers were running over Jax’s tattoo, tracing it, as if he were continuously fascinated by it.
Zoning out to the touch, Jax hummed as Tristan eventually made his way south, dropping to his knees and rubbing his large hands up and down the back of Jax’s thighs.
And then those hands traveled up, gently prying Jax’s cheeks apart, and Jax gasped.
“Tristan-” was all he got out before something wet licked his entrance, circling it several times. After that, all Jax could do was groan, because Tristan’s devilish tongue swirled around and around, softening him up while slowly going deeper, teasing him until his knees wobbled.
“Mmmm?” Vibrated into Jax’s body, and Jax reached down, but Tristan pushed his hand away, wrapping fingers around Jax’s neglected cock.
A high-pitched cry echoed off the walls, and Jax realized it came from him as Tristan assaulted him from both sides.
Pumping him with a death grip while spearing him deeply, Tristan twisted and pressed his slippery tongue until Jax hit the wall with the side of his fist, coming so hard he lost coherency.
He could feel Tristan’s large hands steadying him, keeping him upright until his legs came back.
“U-Um, thanks?” He leaned against the wall, glancing down at Tristan’s cock, which looked like it was spent. “Wait, did you-”
“You make such delicious noises, it didn’t take much,” Tristan admitted, showing him his covered hand, which he quickly washed off.
Jax flushed again, loving that this filthy, possessive side of Tristan was only for him.
Bending, Tristan kissed his shoulder. “Now you should be nice and relaxed.”
“You shouldn’t be so good at that. I’ll get addicted to it.” Limber and loose after his dose of oxytocin, Jax allowed Tristan to shut off the water and dry him off.
“That isn’t a problem, I’ll do it any time you want.” With a wink, Tristan gave Jax another towel for his hair and made sure he was comfortable in bed before bringing him some tea, once again ruining him for all other men.
Taking a sip, Jax hummed as warm vanilla washed over his tongue. “Mmm, I like this.”
“It’s decaf Vanilla Comoro.” Tristan drank from his own mug, settling on the bed next to him.
“Thank you for today,” Jax said, starting to feel the gummy he’d taken on the way home. “I wouldn’t have been able to handle everything without you.”
“I think you would’ve done well with or without me, but I was happy to help.” Tristan kissed his temple. “How do you feel?”
“Better, but still stressed. I’m not looking forward to talking about the Derrick situation with Owen and Marci tomorrow. And probably again with Angelo.”
“It’ll put a stop to things.”
“Yeah.” Taking another long sip, Jax placed his mug down, reclining on the bed and carefully stretching his limbs.
“S-Sorry,” a yawn overtook him. “The gummy is working.”
“That’s okay,” Tristan’s low voice carried Jax under, and he felt lips kiss his brow. “Sleep. You’ve earned it. ”
He had earned it. He’d kicked ass today, and even though he’d have to explain himself tomorrow, it wasn’t like things could get any worse.