Chapter 32 – Jaxon
I found Madeline in one of the more secluded parts of the club, standing in front of the artwork on the wall. The soft light in the corner cast a warm glow over her,
She was studying the piece in front of her, her arms crossed lightly, completely unaware of the storm she’d left swirling in my head.
Quinn was nowhere in sight — probably off getting ready for her shift or charming some unsuspecting patron out of their next big tip. It didn’t matter. All that mattered right now was Maddie.
I let out a breath and approached her, keeping my footsteps soft so I wouldn’t startle her. As I got closer, I noticed the slight tension in her posture, the way her fingers tapped rhythmically against her arm. She was thinking about something — hard.
“Not much of an art critic, but it’s not bad,” I said, my voice breaking the quiet.
She turned at the sound of my voice, her eyes lighting up briefly before something guarded slipped over her expression. “Hey,” she said softly, her smile small but genuine. “Didn’t expect to see you here.”
“Yeah, well,” I said, stepping closer, “I got the sense you might want a little company.”
Her lips twitched like she was trying to decide whether to brush that off or accept it. She turned back to the artwork, her gaze fixed on the abstract shapes swirling together.
“What’s on your mind, Scout?” I asked, keeping my voice low.
She hesitated, her fingers stilling against her arm. “Just… thinking,” she said finally. “Needed a moment away from the noise.”
“From the noise,” I echoed, studying her carefully. “Or from Quinn?”
Her laugh was soft, almost embarrassed. “Maybe both.”
I nodded, leaning against the wall beside her, close enough that the faint scent of her perfume reached me. “Fair enough. Mind if I join you?”
She glanced at me, her smile returning, and this time it reached her eyes. “Not at all.”
We stood there for a moment, the quiet settling between us like a fragile thread. I wanted to ask her outright — about Sean, about Calloway - but something held me back. Maybe it was the way she carried herself tonight, like there was already too much weighing her down.
Instead, I said, “That piece kind of reminds me of you.”
Her brow furrowed, and she tilted her head to study the art more closely. “Abstract and confusing?”
I smirked, shaking my head. “Not at all. Layered. Bold. A little chaotic, but it pulls you in whether you’re ready for it or not.”
She laughed softly, shaking her head, but the faint flush on her cheeks gave her away. “You’re terrible at this, you know.”
“Maybe,” I admitted. “But I’m right.”
She didn’t argue. A few moments passed, the quiet stretching out like a fragile thread between us. Then she turned to me, tears pricking at the corners of her eyes, her arms still folded tightly across her chest, like she was holding herself together.
For the past twenty-four hours, it had been gnawing at me. Every detail of our night on the Ferris wheel played over and over in my head, like a loop I couldn’t stop. The way her breath had hitched, the way her body had arched for me — everything about it had been electric, raw. But somewhere in the haze of it all, a tiny voice kept whispering,
What if you pushed her too far? What if she didn’t want that and couldn’t say no?
The energy between us had been electric, raw, consuming. But now, in the quiet aftermath, doubt crept in, relentless and suffocating.
There’s a safe word for a reason , you asked her. Didn’t you? You did ask…
I had asked. I knew I had. But what if she’d been too swept up in the heat of the moment to even think straight? What if I’d read her wrong?
The memory of her gasping my name, her body melting beneath my touch, played in my mind like a cruel taunt.
I’d been so sure then — so damn sure that she was with me every step of the way. But what if I’d missed something? A flicker of hesitation, a moment where she’d wanted to stop but hadn’t been able to say it.
Fuck, Jax. You’re overthinking it.
I tried to replay the night in my head, searching for any sign of unease, any moment that could’ve been misinterpreted. Her moans, her whispered pleas for more, the way she’d looked at me after — soft, sated, and full of that quiet confidence that drove me insane.
I straightened, every muscle in my body tensing. “Did I do something wrong? Did I hurt you? Maddie, if I hurt you…” My voice came out rough, guilt and panic lacing every word.
She shook her head quickly, her voice firmer now, cutting through my spiral. “No.” Her hazel eyes locked on mine, steady despite the emotion behind them. “No, it’s not you.”
Relief hit me, but it was short-lived, tangled with the lingering unease that wouldn’t let go of me. My jaw tightened, my hands curling into fists at my sides. I wanted to believe her, but my mind wasn’t ready to let me off the hook yet.
“You’d tell me, right?” I asked, my voice quieter, almost tentative — a tone I hated hearing come out of my own mouth. “If I crossed a line… if I ever—”
“Jaxon.” She stepped closer, her hands reaching for mine. Her touch was firm, grounding. “Stop.”
I blinked at her, unsure if I could.
Her lips pressed into a thin line before she sighed, her thumbs brushing against my knuckles. “If there was a problem, you’d know. I promise you’d know. You didn’t hurt me, Jax. You’ve never hurt me. Don’t make this about something it’s not.”
I searched her face, looking for any cracks, any hint that she was sparing me the truth. But there was nothing — just her steady gaze and the warmth of her hands on mine.
Whatever this was, it was serious. I could see it in the way her shoulders trembled.
“Then what is it?” I asked gently, my voice steady despite the storm building inside me. “Talk to me, Scout.”
Her arms tightened around herself, and she looked down, her braid slipping over her shoulder as she took a deep breath. “It’s Sean,” she said finally, her voice barely above a whisper.
The mention of his name made my stomach twist. “What about Sean?”
She hesitated, her teeth catching on her bottom lip as she finally looked up at me. Her eyes were glassy, her expression a mixture of fear and determination. “He’s… involved in something. Something really bad.”
My jaw tightened, a flash of anger sparking in my chest. “What do you mean?”
Her voice broke as she started to explain, the words tumbling out like she’d been holding them in for far too long. “I know you told me to stop. I tried to, I really did, but… I had some help looking into things. It’s more than a story at this point, baby.” Her voice wavered, her arms tightening around herself. “The club, the people who come through here, Sean…”
She looked up at me, her eyes sprung with tears that she was trying desperately to hold back. “Jax, he’s not who you think he is. He’s been working with Calloway, fixing bets, laundering money. Threatening people.”
The weight of her words hit me like a blow to the chest, the air rushing out of my lungs as I tried to process what she was saying.
“Threatening who?” I asked, my voice low, almost a growl.
Her hesitation told me the answer before she even said it.
“Me,” she whispered, her voice barely audible. “The notes, the call … the guy who grabbed me on the street. It was Sean. He’s been trying to scare me off.”
Something inside me twisted, a cold wave of disbelief washing over me. I shook my head, stepping back slightly as her words hung in the air. “No. Maddie, that doesn’t make sense,” I said, my voice quieter now, but firm. “Sean wouldn’t — he couldn’t do something like that.”
Her expression faltered, the pain in her eyes deepening as she gripped my hands tighter, almost like she could physically make me understand. “I know this is hard to hear—”
“No,” I said, cutting her off. “I’ve known Sean for years. He’s rough around the edges, sure, but he wouldn’t threaten you. He wouldn’t…” My voice trailed off as I tried to wrap my head around what she was saying, the image of Sean in my mind clashing with the accusations she was laying out.
“Jaxon.” Her voice cracked, her hands trembling as she gripped her arms tighter around herself. “I didn’t want to believe it either, but I have proof. It all connects back to him. Tim sent me footage of Sean and Calloway. It’s all there.”
I stared at her, my chest tightening as the weight of her words pressed down on me. “He’s my friend, Madeline. I brought him here, gave him this job — he wouldn’t do this. He wouldn’t hurt a woman, let alone anybody .”
Her eyes filled with tears, and she shook her head, her voice trembling. “I know what he means to you. That’s why I didn’t tell you sooner. But you need to see the truth for what it is.”
I took a step back, my hands dropping hers and running through my hair as I struggled to make sense of it all. “No. No, there’s got to be another explanation. Maybe you’re wrong, or Tim’s wrong, or—”
“I’m not wrong!” she cried, her voice breaking. “I’ve seen it. I’ve lived it. The fear, the threats! They all lead back to Sean.”
Her words hit me like a gut punch, but I couldn’t let go of the image of the Sean I thought I knew. The guy I’d trusted with my life, the guy I’d gone to bat for when no one else would. The guy who was supposed to have my back.
He had said some fucked up shit that had made me furious with him, that was for sure, but he wasn’t capable of this…
I shook my head, trying to make sense of it. “Madeline, you don’t know Sean like I do. He’s reckless sometimes, says things without thinking — but he’s not this guy. He wouldn’t threaten you…”
Her eyes shone with unshed tears, her voice trembling but unwavering. “I didn’t want to believe it either. I fought it every step of the way, but this isn’t just something I’m making up. I’ve seen the proof.”
The desperation in her voice made my stomach twist, but my mind still reeled against her words. “He’s been through hell, Maddie. More than anyone knows. Maybe he’s acting out, maybe he’s making bad decisions, but this? Threatening you? Scaring you? No. That’s not him.”
“Baby,” she said again softly, stepping closer, her hand brushing against my arm. “I’m not asking you to stop caring about him. I’m asking you to see him for who he is. Please.”
Her words were quiet, pleading, but the frustration simmering beneath them was unmistakable. I opened my mouth to say something — anything — but she stepped back, her expression shifting from sadness to anger in an instant.
“Are you really that blind?” she snapped, her voice rising. “To everything that’s been right in front of your face?”
I flinched at the rawness in her tone, but she didn’t stop.
“The threats, Jax. The notes. The man who grabbed me on the street. The way Sean acts — like he’s untouchable, like he can do whatever the fuck he wants because he knows you’ll cover for him. How can you not see it?”
“Maddie—”
“No,” she interrupted, her eyes blazing. “You’ve been making excuses for him, brushing off every red flag, because you don’t want to admit the truth. I get it. I do. He’s your friend. He’s a brother. That doesn’t mean he’s not capable of doing terrible things. Look at me !”
I did, my chest heaving with anxiety as she pointed to herself, her voice breaking.
“I’ve been terrified, and you’re standing here defending him like I haven’t been trying to tell you this for weeks. Like I haven’t been living this nightmare while you keep giving him the benefit of the doubt,” she said, her voice breaking slightly, but it only made the words more powerful.
“Yes. I am misguided. Yes, I can’t let a story go. Yes, I do idiotic stuff now and then because I am stubborn. But maybe in some twisted way, I had a point to keep on going with looking into this crooked shitshow! Now I know who has been doing this — and you still don’t believe me?”
Her words hit me like she’d physically smacked me across the face. Guilt and anger twisting in my chest as I tried to find my footing. “I’m not defending him,” I said, though even to my own ears, it sounded weak.
“Yes, you are.” she shot back, her voice shaking. “You don’t want to believe it, so you’re making excuses. But deep down, you know I’m right. You just don’t want to admit it because it means admitting you were wrong about him.”
I clenched my fists at my sides, my jaw tightening as I looked away. “You think I don’t want to protect you?” I said, my voice low, rough. “You think I don’t care that you’ve been scared? Because I do, Scout. More than you know. But Sean—”
“Sean isn’t the man you think he is!” she said, cutting me off. Her voice dropped, quieter now but no less fierce. “If you really don’t believe me, then watch the footage. See it for yourself. But don’t you dare stand here and act like I’m some clueless idiot.”
The silence between us was deafening, her words hanging in the air like a challenge.
Then, slowly, purposefully, she reached into the pocket of her jacket and pulled out a small pen drive. The sight of it sent a jolt through me, sharp and sudden, like the ground beneath me had shifted.
“This,” she said, holding it up between us, her hand steady despite the tension crackling in the air. “This has everything you need to see. The footage, the proof. Tim gave it to me because he thought I deserved to know.”
I stared at the pen drive, my chest tight as the weight of her words pressed down on me. My instinct was to push back, to argue, to deny it all over again. But the look on her face stopped me cold.
Maddie wasn’t just angry — she was hurt and utterly done with my hesitation.
She held the pen drive out to me, and for a moment, I couldn’t move. My mind raced, torn between the man I thought I knew and the evidence she claimed was on that tiny piece of metal and plastic.
Finally, I reached out, taking it from her hand. The weight of it felt heavier than it should have, like it carried not just proof, but the final blow to everything I’d believed about Sean.
She let go after the drive dropped into my hands, her fingers brushing mine briefly before she pulled back. Her eyes burned with fire, unrelenting and fierce, daring me to argue, to deny her truth again.
But then, just for a moment, she looked away. The fight in her softened as she swiped the back of her hand over her cheek, catching the tears that were spilling down.
“I’m going home,” she said, her voice trembling but firm. Her eyes flicked back to me, sharp and final. “Don’t follow me.”
The knot in my chest tightened, every instinct screaming at me to stop her, to say something, anything. But the weight of the pen drive in my hand was impossible to ignore, and so was the raw pain in her voice.
I opened my mouth, but no words came out. She didn’t wait for me to figure it out.
Without another glance, she turned and stalked away, her shoulders squared even as the tears continued to fall. The sound of her heeled boots against the floor echoed in the quiet space, each step taking her farther from me and closer to a truth I wasn’t sure I was ready to face.
I stood there, frozen, the pen drive pressing into my palm like a brand. My jaw tightened, and I looked down at the tiny piece of plastic and metal, knowing that whatever I was about to see would change everything.
But even as I turned toward my office, her words echoed in my mind.
"I’m going home. Don’t follow me."
For the first time in a long time, I felt helpless. And that was a feeling I wasn’t sure how to handle.