You Aren't From Around Here

Chapter 16 - The Aftermath

I am sitting in the garage office nervously filing some paper, just trying to keep my mind off of whatever Jax is doing. When Gemma finally gets off of her phone call.

"So he wouldn't do anything stupid, would he?" I ask fearfully.She looks at me, rolls her eyes and smiles.

 "Honey, if there's one thing I know for sure if Jackson wants to get something done, he will get it done. He might not think it all the way through, like his old man would have. John Teller, that man was a thinker, he would think a problem to death, he would think about it so long that people would forget there even was a problem. But Jax has my fire, my temper, he doesn't always think like John. He will think later, when it's done. And that's when he's most dangerous. And today we can't have him dangerous the club has some business they gotta take care of. But once they get back. Baby, if you play your cards right you got that man right where you could take his heart." She looks as if she wants to say something else, but the sound of motorcycles returning to the lot draws her attention away.

Clay is walking across the lot to meet them. I stand to go see what happened, when Gemma grabs my wrist.

"Sit, let him come to you. Don't make it so easy." I ease back into my chair, as Gemma pushes another huge stack of files at me.

"Here, keep busy, we never have decent help in here. At least not anyone who can alphabetize things without singing. Let me go check on them." She struts out across the parking lot where the men are in a heated discussion. I return to my filing, the office is in a horrendous disarray she wasn't joking about it being a mess. The filing system, if you could call it that, some accounts were filed by first name others by last name and others just randomly shoved in places. I notice Gemma and Clay walk into the Clubhouse as several others head back into the garage bays. When the door suddenly opens and Jax walks in. A huge smile on his face. Then my eyes take in his face, his left eye is almost completely swollen shut and his lip has definitely been busted since I last kissed it several hours ago. I guess he must have seen a brief glimpse of terror in my eyes, as he smiles even bigger and says.

"If it's any consolation I didn't even lay a finger on the other guy." As he saunters across the office, dropping casually into the couch, sliding a pile of motorcycle manuals onto the floor. He motions for me to sit, and as I step towards him, he pulls me down into his lap.

"Oh Jax, what happened? Who did this to you? Does it hurt?" I ask, looking up at him.

"Darlin', not one bit, it was all worth it. Well I got some good news for you? Steve is in jail, seems he caught an assault charge. A concerned citizen had heard about a policeman in town about a missing woman and went to the station to see if he could lend a helping hand and it seems that policeman's hand was the only one lent."Jax smiles.

"You didn't?" I say in shock

"Yes ma'am. I pulled him close, whispered in his ear, you will never lay a finger on Katelyn, you will never see her again and I may have called him a few choice names. He took the bait and swung like a champ, let him get a few in just so they had to hold him. Hopefully Katie will wake and identify him. Now as for you." He pulls me tight kissing me deeply, then wincing a bit from his swollen lip. I pull away and stand up.

"Come on, let's go find you some ice. Gemma says y'all have to go out soon." I smile and offer him my hand to help him off the couch.

As we walk out of the office he puts his arm around my shoulders.

"You know you are one tough bitch, cause that man can fucking hit, and we were in a cramped office. I would hate to see what he could do full out, and you are such a tiny little thing. It's amazing he hasn't killed you." Jax says.