Witness

30| Identify (pt. 2)

I focused on the rough feel of his hands rubbing my back, the way his thick, muscular arms were crushing me to his ridiculously hard chest and abs. And I thought about his intoxicating scent when I was finally able to take a full breath.

"I've got you," he soothed.

"Thank you," I gasped, loosening my grip around his neck. I didn't lift my head yet, though; I may have been able to take a breath, but I didn't want to let go. Not yet.

"You're okay," he repeated, never stopping his soothing motions on my back.

I'm not sure how long we stayed this way; probably only a few minutes, but I enjoyed every second of it... of being held this way by Jaxon. Maybe I should have been embarrassed by my meltdown, but I didn't care. Not right now, and not with him.

"It's pretty late," Jax said after another minute. "We should get to our hotel. Are you going to be okay?"

I nodded, finally pulling away as he loosened his grip on my back. He slid one arm down so that he could grab my leg, and then the other one so that he could lift me back up onto the seat. I hadn't realized before, but he really had been holding pretty much all of my weight, and he didn't shift or complain even once.

Once he had me placed back into the car and my emotions were relatively in check, he closed the door and rounded back to the driver's side.

"Hey," he said, forcing me to look at him with a palm under my chin.

He used his thumb to catch a fallen tear. "You did well today."

I sniffled as another tear hit his thumb. "Thank you... for being here for me."

He nodded, dropping his hand and turning on the car. "Of course."

We fell into a comfortable silence as we made our way to the hotel. Thankfully, it wasn't too far away since it was already getting dark, but we still had about an hour until we got to where we were staying. There were closer hotels, but we wanted one that at least got us a head start on our way back to California.

Despite the nap I had earlier, the anticipation and adrenaline from today had left me feeling dead tired, and with the panic attack, I was struggling to keep my eyes open.

Once my mind calmed down enough, I drifted into a deep sleep.

I didn't wake up again until I felt myself being lifted from my seat. My eyes fluttered open to reveal that Jaxon was holding me to his chest. He nudged the door closed behind him as he turned towards the hotel.

"Jaxon?" I asked, "Why didn't you wake me?"

"You've had an exceptionally taxing day. I figured I'd let you get some sleep."

"But... you hate carrying me," I said with a yawn.

"Correction— I hate carrying you when I'm pissed at you and/or you're drunk. This," he said, bouncing me up and down a little in his arms, "isn't half bad."

"Well, I'm awake now, so feel free to set me down. Don't we need to go get the key?"

"Nope, I already checked us in," he admitted.

"You left me alone in the car?" I questioned.

"Oh relax," he said, "it was only for a minute, and I had eyes on the car the entire time."

I chuckled as he continued carrying me towards the room. "What about our bags?"

"I brought them in already."

"Oh my god! You left me twice!" I teased.

"Again, relax. I'm not gonna let anything happen to you," he smirked.

I rested my head on his chest. "I'm so tired."

"We're almost there," he said.

A few doors later, he eased me onto my feet so he could open the door for us. I wandered inside, knowing to take the bed farthest from the window. I had a momentary flashback to my first night ever meeting Jax and having to share a hotel room with him.

As high as my emotions were today, they were nothing compared to what I had felt that night. A big part of that, was knowing that I had Jaxon. I didn't know it then, but he had become so important to me. I was definitely falling for him... if I hadn't already.

I went straight to the bathroom, pulling my blonde locks into a messy bun on the top of my head before washing my face and brushing my teeth. When I returned, Jax had put on some movie on the hotel TV, and he had changed into some comfy shorts and a white t shirt. I subtly scanned his body as he laid on top of his comforter, his pillows fluffed up behind him.

He was so massive the double bed looked more like a twin.

I settled into my own bed, glancing over at the clock.

"Is 9:30 too early to go to bed?" I asked.

Jax shrugged, his lips twitching into a grin. "Not when you had such an emotionally exhausting day."

"Okay good," I yawned, rolling over so my back was to him.

"Goodnight, Emery."