Jax
The safe house door clicks shut behind us with a solid finality that settles deep in my bones like the heavy bolt of a rifle chambering a round.
This is the one we planned on all along.
A sturdy log cabin nestled in a small clearing just far enough off the main mountain road to appear exposed and tempting, yet close enough to the Alpha Pig for Mike Delaney’s leaked story to feel believable.
Warm amber light spills from the lamps, casting rich golden pools across the heavy timber beams overhead and the thick wool rugs that cover the wide-plank hardwood floors.
I inhale deeply. This place is perfect. Isolated enough to draw them in, but not so remote that my brothers can’t close the distance fast. Bait in the trap, and I’m the steel jaws waiting to snap shut.
I know my team’s out there right now. Brock, Ryker, and the others positioned silently in the snow-laden trees and rocky ridges surrounding the property.
Invisible. Heavily armed. Ready for war.
Their presence is a quiet hum at the edge of my senses, the kind of backup that lets a man breathe easier even when the storm’s coming.
This ends tonight. One decisive, brutal strike against Carlos’s cartel, and Ava becomes truly free.
Free to live without shadows. Free to be mine completely.
She stands in the center of the main room, hugging her arms tight around her small frame.
Fresh snow melts in her dark hair, turning the strands glossy under the lamplight, and tiny flakes cling to her lashes like diamonds.
Even scared out of her mind, she looks so damn beautiful it makes my breath hitch.
I close the distance in three powerful strides and pull her into my arms, wrapping her completely against my chest. She fits me perfectly, her head tucking under my chin, her soft curves molding to my harder frame.
My large hands stroke slowly down her back, feeling every tense muscle beneath the fabric, rubbing firm circles until I feel some of that tightness start to ease.
“Jax,” she whispers against my shirt, her breath warm and shaky through the cotton. Her voice is soft and breathy. “What happens after? If everything goes according to plan… what comes next for us?”
I slide a finger under her chin and tilt her face up gently so those big, trusting eyes meet mine.
The firelight from the hearth dances across her features, highlighting the faint tremble in her full lower lip and the glistening tears already gathering along her lashes.
My thumb brushes her cheek, wiping away a stray snowflake that hasn’t yet melted.
“Then I take you home,” I say, my voice a rugged promise.
“My real house in Timber Creek. Nothing fancy, but it’s solid and built to last. Big wraparound back porch overlooking the mountains, plenty of room for all your bookshelves.
We build a life together there. Lazy quiet mornings where you organize everything in that cute way of yours, humming while you rearrange my kitchen cabinets.
Nights where I keep you in my bed for hours, buried deep inside you until you forget every bad thing that ever touched your life.
Marriage if you’ll have me. A ring on this finger so the whole world knows you belong to me.
Kids if you want them, running around with your smile and my stubborn streak.
Everything, Ava. As long as we’re together. ”
Tears spill over immediately, bright and shining as they track down her flushed cheeks.
She doesn’t break into sobs, just lets them fall freely while that sweet smile blooms across her face like sunlight breaking through storm clouds.
“Yes. I do. I want all of that with you, Jax. So much it makes my heart explode into confetti. A real home. With you growling at the mailman when he gets too chatty and me bringing you coffee while you fix things around the house with those big strong hands. Lazy Sundays tangled up in bed. I want it all. I want you.”
The sight of her happy tears undoes me completely.
A deep growl rumbles in my chest as I crush my mouth to hers, kissing her deep and hungry.
She tastes like warm peach cobbler, sweet honey butter, and the faint salt of her tears, pure Ava and pure addiction.
My tongue sweeps inside, claiming every soft corner of her mouth, swallowing the needy whimpers that spill from her throat.
Her small hands fist tightly in the front of my shirt, pulling me impossibly closer as she melts against my body, all soft curves and eager heat.
I back her up until her hips bump the edge of the sturdy wooden table in the center of the room, then lift her easily onto its surface.
The wood creaks faintly under us as I step between her spread thighs, pressing close.
The kiss turns hotter, more desperate, tongues tangling wetly, breaths mingling in hot little pants.
My hands roam under her shirt, shoving it up so I can palm her full breasts through the thin lace of her bra.
Her nipples harden instantly against my rough palms, and she arches into my touch with a needy little moan that shoots straight to my cock, making it throb painfully against my zipper.
“Fuck, I love you,” I growl against her swollen lips, nipping her bottom one sharply before soothing the sting with my tongue.
She rocks her hips forward, grinding her core against the hard ridge straining in my jeans.
Her fingers thread through my hair, tugging just right, sending sparks down my spine.
The heat between us builds fast and fierce, the same electric, consuming tension that had us fucking wildly in the SUV now crackling even stronger in the warm cabin air.
I want nothing more than to strip her bare right here on this table, spread her open, and bury my cock deep inside her tight, dripping pussy until she screams my name loud enough for the mountains to hear.
But I hold back, barely. Not yet. Not until the threat’s eliminated and she’s finally safe.
We make out like the world might end tonight, lost in each other.
Tongues stroking deep and filthy. Breaths ragged and hot.
My hands grip her ass, pulling her tighter against me as I grind my aching cock against her center through our clothes, letting her feel exactly how hard and ready I am.
Her legs wrap around my waist, heels digging into my lower back as she clings to me.
Soft, desperate whimpers vibrate against my mouth.
The cabin fades completely. There’s only Ava.
Her taste, her soft sounds, the way her body gives itself to me so completely, so trustingly.
My phone pings sharply on the kitchen counter, the sound cutting through our heated haze like a warning shot.
I pull back just enough to reach for it, keeping one strong arm locked around Ava’s waist, holding her flush against me.
The screen lights up with a flood of alerts.
Mike came through perfectly. The story’s breaking everywhere at once.
Headlines flash across the notifications in bold text: “Library Witness Breaks Silence – Exclusive Details on Carlos Cartel.” Social media platforms are already exploding with shares, speculation, and rapid-fire comments.
The location leak is woven in seamlessly, close enough to draw them straight here.
I set the phone down and look at Ava, my jaw tight with purpose, eyes burning with love and lethal resolve. “It’s done. The cartel knows where you are now. They’ll come.”
Her breath catches audibly, but she nods, those beautiful eyes still shiny with tears and love. She cups my face with both small hands, her thumbs brushing tenderly over my stubble. “Then we wait. Together. I trust you, my rogue enforcer. End this so we can start our real life.”
I kiss her again, slower this time, deep and reverent, pouring every ounce of my love, my determination, and my promise into it. My team is close. The trap’s perfectly set. I’m ready to end this once and for all.
Ava’s mine. And tonight the Steel Mountains will run red with the blood of anyone foolish enough to try to take her from me.