Chapter 10
JAX
“Brother, you need to get used to it if you want her to be yours long-term,” Razor warned him with an amused smile. “When women get something in their head, it’s hard as shit to get it out. Your woman is just as stubborn as the rest of them.”
“She’s not my woman. Yet,” he added absently as he continued to stare at Saylor as she talked and laughed with Glitch and Karissa on the couches toward the back of the room. She had her feet curled up under her and her body aimed toward the two women, who were in the same positions. On the one hand, he liked seeing that she was getting along with them, but at the same time, he was pissed they were preventing him from straightening things out with Saylor. Not only about the two of them, but he wanted to know more about her ex and how shit got to be this bad. He had a feeling there was more to the story, but until he could get her talking, he would have to wait.
“Tell me why her,” Razor invited. Jax looked at him, arching a brow in question. Razor waved his beer toward the women on the couch. “What about her makes you want to finally give up your bachelor ways? Especially a woman you just met today? I’m not one for knowing I want a woman right away like Fury, but with Karissa, I wanted her so much that no other woman existed until I finally pulled my head out of my ass. Are you willing to give up every other woman for her?”
Jax looked back at Saylor, even as his mind processed Razor’s question. What was it about Saylor that had him so tied up in knots? Like his friend said, he barely knew her, and this wasn’t like him. He never cared about a woman beyond a good lay when the urge struck, and maybe the odd conversation if he felt like it. Nothing like this. Nothing like the deep obsession with the woman that was setting his guts in knots and making his mind churn in a dozen different directions. And after only a few freaking hours! That was what boggled his mind more than anything else. How the hell did one woman grab him by the balls so fast that he couldn’t figure out how to make her let them go? Or if he even wanted to?
Even now, he was pissed she was ignoring him instead of talking to him like he asked. But yet, it pleased him that she wasn’t afraid to stand up to him and tell him like it was. He had never been attracted to the shy, quiet type. Mostly because he didn’t need her crying at him all the damn time if he was an ass. Some would call that sexist, but he didn’t care. Everyone had their preferences, and this was his. If that made him an asshole, fine.
Here he was, though, back again to the same question with no answers. Why this woman?
Finally, he sighed and told Razor, “I don’t fucking know, brother, but I can’t seem to tell my head to let her go and keep on moving with my life. Even knowing that she might not stay, I want to lock her in my room and keep her there until I can convince her to give me a shot.”
Razor chuckled. “Damn, you got it bad,” he grinned. “Welcome to the club, brother. I felt the same way with Karissa, and I bet the others would say the same about their women. Doesn’t always make sense, but when you know, you know. Now you just have to figure out how to make it work for you, and how to convince her of it. Be prepared for a lot of headaches, though, because if she’s anything like my woman, she’s not going to make this easy.”
Yeah, he already knew that. And that should probably worry him, but as he looked at the woman across the room, all he felt was determination. She thought she was going to push him away, and he was determined to show her otherwise.
“You look like you’re ready to go over there and carry her away,” Ink chuckled as he came to stand with them. “From looking at her when she came down earlier, though, the two of you were already having a great time.”
Razor snickered. “He was, until she let him know she was only trying to prove a point,” he told Ink. Jax glared at him, which his best friend ignored. Typical.
Ink shook his head. “Man, I don’t know why you want to waste your time on one woman. Especially one that’s already causing trouble. I’m all for hot babes, but the crazy ones seem like way too much effort, if you ask me.”
“As someone who’s allergic to any kind of effort with a woman, why doesn’t that surprise me?” Jax replied drily. “When was the last time you fucked anyone other than a club girl?”
“Fucked a woman who came into the shop yesterday,” Ink replied with a careless shrug. “She was alright, but she gave sloppy head. Still, enough to get my rocks off, and I sent her on her way with a smile. She’s leaving town for some new job, so it was no strings, and I don’t have to worry about her causing problems.”
“You’re a pig, Ink,” a feminine voice said in disgust. They all turned to find Harlow with her lips twisted in a scowl, her son asleep in her arms. Steel was across the room at the bar; Jax figured they just got here, because the man was never far from his little family if he could help it.
Ink shrugged again. “I’m a man that knows what he doesn’t want and isn’t ashamed to hide it,” he corrected her. “Some women are okay with meaningless sex.”
“Sure, but you were only concerned about getting your rocks off and then not seeing her again,” Harlow reminded him scornfully. “I can’t wait for the day that a woman knocks you right onto your ass. It’s going to be hilarious to watch you eat crow.”
Ink scoffed. “Babe, that will never happen. I avoid entanglements at all costs, and that’s not going to change. But you can give ol’ Jax here some pointers about his new woman all you like. He probably needs them.” And with that, he was off and heading across the room.
“If he ever does end up chasing after a woman, I hope she makes him crawl,” Harlow grumbled.
Jax and Razor shared a knowing look. Ink would probably be the very last of them to change. He was so stuck in his ways, but none of the women knew the reason why. A few of the brothers did; after one too many beers by the firepit one night last summer, Ink had told them. Which was exactly why they didn’t push him when it came to who he slept with.
“Figured you two would have gone home to bed by now,” Razor remarked when Steel made his way over, beer in hand, and a bottle of water for Harlow. He smiled at baby Harley, who was watching his dad with a big grin. There were times that he was his father’s mirror image, with a hard expression and an unsmiling pout, but lately he’d been acting more like his mother with bubbly smiles and happy laughter. “Come see Uncle Razor, buddy,” Razor said, setting his beer down on the table and holding out his hands.
Harlow smiled and handed him over. “He’s the reason we’re back. He wouldn’t settle for either of us. I finally gave up. Hopefully he’ll sleep through the night after a little activity.”
Jax smiled at the baby as he grabbed at Razor’s beard and hair, enraptured. “I’m surprised. Normally he sleeps for Steel doesn’t he?” Jax remarked. “I thought it was Savage who was having a hard time getting his kids to sleep.”
“Normally Harley will sleep for Steel, but some nights he just doesn’t want to. So here we are.” Then Harlow snickered. “ Savage is the one who insists on trying to get the twins down every night by himself, trying to give Royal a break, but in the end they just want their mother,” she told him. “I think Savage is getting upset and a little hurt by it.”
“He’ll get over it,” Jax predicted. “They’re infants. Of course they want their mother.”
“Try explaining that to Savage,” Harlow laughed. “Now, if you’re content to keep him, I’m going to let him stay with you and have that male bonding experience while I go and have some girl time.” Then she went up on her tiptoe to kiss Steel before heading toward the couch.
“Your woman tell you anything else?” Steel asked him bluntly as he took another sip of his beer.
Razor snickered, then winced when Harley gripped his beard and gave it a strong yank. “Oh, she told him things alright,” he grinned. “But nothing to do with her problem. More like she wasn’t about to belong to him or anyone else around here.”
“You’re worse than the women,” Jax huffed, annoyed.
“Sounds like someone needs to grow a pair of balls and figure his shit out,” Steel drawled. “But if you ask me, she sounds like a lot of trouble. You sure you want to get involved with that?”
Jax glared at him. “She’s not trouble,” he tossed back. “She’s in trouble, there’s a difference. And if we want to talk about trouble, have you met your Old Lady? She’s as much trouble as the rest of them.”
“She’s nowhere near,” Steel scoffed. “Compared to Karissa or Glitch, my woman is a pussy cat.”
Jax rolled his eyes. “Why the hell are we discussing this shit?” he demanded, done with the whole conversation. “How about we agree that all the women are pains in the ass in one way or another, and leave it at that?”
“Is that so?” a mild voice asked from behind them. Jax shut his eyes briefly in resignation, while Steel and Razor both winced. They all turned, and Jax saw the women gathered there, all of them but Karissa looked majorly pissed off. Saylor just looked amused about the whole thing.
“And just how are we pains in the ass, Jax?” Karissa asked him mildly, her dark eyes staring him down and letting him know that he was about to be in a world of pain if he didn’t watch his answer. “Please, enlighten us.”
Jax looked at Razor and Steel, both of whom were standing back and letting him take the full heat. Fuckers. He looked back at the women and decided that if he was going to bury himself in shit, he was going to do it feet first. He looked at Karissa pointedly. “You tried pushing your man away and acting like some kind of hero to handle your shit on your own instead of trusting us. Not to mention, you tried to kick his ass multiple times. So, literal pain in his ass, in your case.” Karissa narrowed her eyes but didn’t disagree. He looked at Glitch next. “You wouldn’t stop pranking your man and acting like you were going to slash his throat at the least provocation. And if I remember correctly, you were also a pain in his ass when you were messing with his system constantly.” Glitch glared at him. He turned his gaze to Harlow, who just arched a brow. “And you, you didn’t tell your man, or any of us, about the problems with the club girls and just let them abuse you instead. So, while you’re not a literal pain in your man’s ass, in that instance you were, and you can’t argue it.” Harlow winced at the reminder. “So, yes, you are all pains in the ass at times. Would you like me to continue?”
Saylor let out a low chuckle. “You’re an idiot,” she told him when his gaze moved to hers. “Did you really just stand there and tell these women why you think they are pains in the ass? And you think they’re going to take that lying down? You’re going to be their next target, for sure. I’m almost happy to be here to watch it all unfold.”
Jax narrowed his eyes at her and gave her a sly smile. “Feeling left out, baby?” he taunted.
Saylor’s smile was cool and all but dared him. “I think you barely know me, and you weren’t complaining an hour ago. But if you want me to be a literal pain in your ass, baby, I’m sure I could find some toys around here to make that happen for you. I’ll even be nice and use some lube. You know, since you obviously haven’t had much practice.”
He heard his brothers behind him laughing, but he didn’t pay them any attention. His whole focus on the blond in front of him. “Try it, baby,” he invited silkily. “We’ll see how far you get.”
“Ugh. Seriously? I thought we would have been too early for all that kinky talk,” another voice called in disgust, making them all look over to see Wren and Winter, their faces twisted in annoyance, and yes, disgust. Behind them, Scarlett and Rogue looked resigned to the fact that there wasn’t much they could do about what they overheard.
Saylor snickered, and Jax narrowed his eyes at her. She just grinned at him and turned back to the twins. “It seems Jax here thinks all you women are pains in the ass,” she told the girls, who both turned scowls back at him.
Ah, shit.
Rogue shot him a look that clearly told him he was an idiot, while Scarlett looked displeased. The twins, however, had a look in their eyes that made his gut quiver. He saw how they went after Rogue, and he definitely didn’t need them going after him. He had two options, and he was going to take the easy way out. Instead of replying, he moved, threw Saylor over his shoulder and headed for the door, even as she snarled at him and slapped at his back. “You asshole,” she seethed. “That pain in your ass is about to become a reality the minute you put me down. My foot is going to go up so far up it, you’ll need it to be reconstructed.”
“I like her,” he heard Wren say with a laugh behind him.
“Jesus,” Rogue grunted.
He tuned it all out as he hit the door of the clubhouse and walked outside. He nodded when he saw Ice and Fury chatting, but both stopped to stare as he walked past. “You good, brother?” Ice called out to him, a lilt of amusement in his tone.
“Why don’t you fucking ask me that?” Saylor demanded, and he could feel her planting her hands on his lower back to press herself up enough to lift her head. “Jax, if you don’t put me down, I swear to God I’ll be putting not only my foot but anything else sharp and pointy I can find up your ass.”
He heard Fury and Ice choke. “Oh, shit,” Fury laughed. “You sure you don’t need back-up, brother?”
“I’m good,” he called calmly over his shoulder as he headed for the warehouse. He walked up the steps when he reached it, careful to make sure Saylor didn’t bump her head, and then turned the knob and walked in, kicked the door shut and locked it behind him.
Now came the fun part of setting her down and not letting her make good on her threat.
He had half a mind to just take her into the bedroom, but instead, he headed for the couch and dropped her on it, quickly grabbing her wrists when she lashed out at him, and then blocking her knees when she tried to use them as well. She glared up at him, and he was sure she was ready to bare her teeth at him. Before she could speak, however, he said firmly, “We’re talking, Saylor. That’s it.”
He could all but hear her grind her teeth as she glared at him. “What the hell do we need to talk about?” she snapped. “I’m not doing the whole ‘you’re mine’ conversation again. Should I have said that I was going to screw the entire clubhouse, no, but I’m not taking it back either. You don’t own me, you don’t control me, and that’s final.”
He could admit he was heavy-handed in his approach earlier, and that was pure jealousy taking over. “You’re right, and I’m sorry,” he told her calmly. Her eyes widened, clearly not expecting that response. Carefully, he released her and stepped back, staring down at her. He gave her a wry smile. “Just because I’m a biker doesn’t mean I don’t know how to apologize.”
She narrowed her eyes at him. “No, but that was such a quick turnaround that I’m right to be suspicious,” she countered. “Why the sudden change of heart?”
He sighed and moved to sit down in the old recliner; it had been here so long, he was sure it came with the building. He sat forward, bracing his arms on his thighs and regarded her calmly. “Because you have me so tied up in knots that I can’t think straight,” he admitted.
Her eyes widened further. “How the fuck can that be?” she demanded. “We barely know each other.”
“Who the fuck knows?” he shrugged. “Around here, the guys all seem to find their women and just fall. Probably something in the air or the water or some shit. But I just know that when I look at you, I don’t see a stranger passing through.”
She blinked at him for a long moment, until finally, she looked down at herself and said dramatically, “I told you to cool it with the pussy magic. Now look what you’ve done!”
He couldn’t help but laugh. This woman was something else. She looked at him with an amused smile. “Babe, there is no doubting that your snatch is addictive, but it’s not all I’ve noticed about you.”
“And what was?”
“That you’re sharp as a tack, sexy as hell, and have no problem speaking your mind.”
“From the sounds of things, that’s every woman here. So I’m not that special.”
Jax leaned back in the chair. “Look, I don’t have all the answers. I’m just as confused as you. I don’t do relationships. I fuck and fly. Quick and easy, everyone’s happy, and nothing to worry about. But here you are, and in less than twelve hours, you’ve flipped my life upside down. I’m not real sure I’m happy about it either.”
Instead of getting offended at his statement, she cocked her head and replied, “Then it’s good I’m only here for a week, isn’t it?” His only response was to watch her, silently. She huffed out a sigh. “Look, Jax, I think you and I need to come to an understanding. Otherwise, we’re going to be doing this shit all week, and I’m not having it. Also, you need to stop putting me over your shoulder. I told you, my ribs are still healing from Leon’s beating, and doing that only irritates them.”
Guilt hit him hard. “Shit, I’m sorry,” he replied, straightening. “Why didn’t you say anything?”
She gave him an incredulous look. “When the hell have I had a chance, when you were acting like an overgrown caveman?”
He winced. She was right. He never gave her a chance to speak. Shit. He was fucking this whole thing up. It was yet another reason why he never bothered with relationships. He was not going to be good at them. Doubt hit him, and he tried to push it down. Now wasn’t the time for that. He’d handle that shit later. “I won’t do it again,” he promised her. “I really am sorry, Saylor. If you had told me that shit earlier when we were out at the lake, I wouldn’t have done it.”
She shrugged. “I was kind of in the moment then,” she sighed. “Look, life is short, so how about we just leave the shit from earlier behind? No more picking me up, no more fighting, and for the next week we continue on like normal people and be cordial and friendly. Deal?”
He wanted to grin at that, but managed to hold it back. He had no intention of this situation going back to being platonic, but he could work on that. And maybe it would give him time to figure out why the hell this woman had him acting like every other shacked up brother in the club. “Fine,” he said with a nod.
“Good. Now that that’s out of the way, what do we need to talk about?”
“I want to know more about your ex.” He eased back into the recliner and watched her.
She arched a brow at him. “What else is there? I told you and everyone else earlier all about what happened.”
“Yes, but I want to know how you met him. What made you go out with him? Did you notice anything else about him that might be helpful?”
“Why are you asking me this now, and not when we were in your Church or whatever it was?”
“Kind of hard to ask questions when I’m trying not to puke from the knee to the balls,” he replied drily.
“Oh, right,” she said sheepishly. “Alright, fine, I’ll tell you what you want to know.”