As the red morning light peeked in through the blinds, Jax stirred in his sleep, tucking his old lady in closer against his chest. He had no idea what time it was, and although his knuckles ached and throbbed, all he knew was that he could stay here forever, nestled in her comfy bed, with its soft sheets and warm blankets, and Allie pressed up against him, still naked from the waist down. He'd gotten her good and tuckered out the night before, putting that theory to the test with very positive results.
And with that thought, and with the way this day was already staring him in the face, he just wanted her.
Somewhere, deep down, he knew maybe it was better to wait until after they'd talked later tonight, and after they knew how things landed with the vote. He had plenty of things to say, and he was sure she did too, but right now, he had a feeling they both just needed this. So, his fingertips drifted down her stomach, slipping over her bare skin and finding that sweet spot he'd gotten to know so well last night. She stirred under his touch and shifted in bed to lay on her back, her eyelids fluttering open. She smiled back at him sleepily before leaning in to brush her mouth against his lips.
"I wanna take this further, baby," he murmured. "Is that okay?"
It was still pretty early, but she caught his meaning almost immediately. She hesitated for just a moment, like her sleepy brain was working overtime right now to decide what she really wanted to do. Of course that was her choice - it always was. He was perfectly willing to let her call the shots when it came to their physical relationship, especially considering that had been working out pretty well for him so far. Somehow, he'd found himself an old lady who was an actual lady in the streets and a bad girl in their bed, and he couldn't have been fucking happier about it.
But then she exhaled softly, and nodded. "Yeah, Jax. That's okay."
That was all he needed to hear. He rolled on top of her, pushing the blankets out of his way to get to more of her.
"When do you have to get up?"
She huffed out a laugh but groped around for her phone on her nightstand to glance at the screen. "You've got a half an hour."
"I can work with that," he murmured against her lips, taking possession of them again and slipping his tongue between her parted lips.
While he wanted to take his time, especially since the first time he'd been inside her hadn't exactly gone the way he'd originally planned, he just needed her. Needed to feel her. Needed to be inside her. His fingers slid underneath her bra and slipped it over her head so that she was completely naked underneath him, and then her hands flew to his waistband to slide his boxer briefs down.
"Bottom drawer in my nightstand," Allie whispered.
"Got it."
He dove for her nightstand, rifling through that bottom drawer until he found what he was looking for, ripped the foil package open with his teeth, and rolled the condom over himself. And then he didn't waste anymore time. He was just done wasting time with her. He'd already done enough of that to last him a lifetime, and he'd be damned if he was going to allow another second go by that he didn't enjoy with her to the fullest.
And as he slid inside her, whatever pieces of himself that had been missing before just fell right into place. This was exactly what he'd been missing all his life. That thing he'd been working toward and moving toward without any real direction was finally right here, in this bed, and his for the taking. And he was gonna fucking take it. So when he felt her tighten and tremble underneath him, he shoved his face into her neck and let himself go. He'd already fallen a long time ago - might as well go all the way. Being with her, like this...he'd just never felt this before. Never felt this connected or whole with anyone else before in his entire life. And maybe that was because he'd always just been waiting for her, whether he knew it or not, whether he'd been willing to admit it or not.
Allie murmured in his ear about needing to take a shower, playfully swatting him away when he made a move to toss her over his shoulder to carry her in there himself, and she grinned at him as she threw a robe on. Jax watched her from the bed, reaching out in one last attempt to pull her back to him before she scurried out of the room, and then he fell back against his pillow and blew out a sigh.
Man, he felt like the luckiest son of a bitch in the world right now.
About 10 minutes later, light buzzing vibrated from over on the nightstand and he scooped his prepay up with one hand, frowning at the caller ID. What the hell was Harrison doing calling him right now? It was way too early in the morning for this shit.
He swung his legs over the side of the bed, running a hand through his hair as he flipped his prepay open.
"Yeah?"
"Hey, man," Harrison told him through the phone apologetically. "Sorry to bother you at this hour, but I think I got something, and I didn't want to sit on this one for too long without talking to you first."
Jax's head shot up at that and his heart pounded in his chest. "Whatdya got?"
"I think I got his location. I'm not 100 percent sure on that, but it's a hot lead. I think I need a week, maybe two, to really nail it down and see what this is. Since I'm not 100 percent on this, I'm good with waiting to meet up if you are. I just wanted to get your go-ahead before I started tracking this lead."
Jax just shrugged, glancing over his shoulder as Allie walked back into the bedroom, still in that robe and now with her head wrapped in a towel. He winked at her, then eased himself off the bed, pulling on his boxer briefs, and reaching for his jeans.
"Yeah, bro. Do what you gotta do. Just keep me in the loop and let me know as soon as you know anything."
"Alright, man. I'm on it," Harrison told him. "I think we're almost there - I just need a little more time."
"Yeah..." Jax just shrugged again, momentarily distracted when Allie slid her robe off and slipped some panties on. "Uh, sure."
"You alright?" Harrison laughed through the phone. "If you need me to -"
"Nah," Jax cut in quickly. "Everything's good. I trust you, bro. You know what you're doin'. Just keep me in the loop."
"Sounds good, man. I'll let you know as soon as I've got it nailed down."
"Alright. Talk to you soon."
Jax snapped his prepay shut and tossed it onto the bed, running a hand through his hair again with a sigh.
"Everything alright, Jax?" Allie called out to him from the vanity on the other side of the room.
"Yeah," he sighed again as he buckled his jeans and pulled his T-shirt on over his head. "That was our PI. He thinks he's got something."
"Oh," Allie's eyebrows lifted into her forehead. "Well, that's good news, right?"
Jax just shrugged, putting his arms through his flannel as he spoke. "I guess. If he's got something. Our guy's been getting moved around a lot, and Harrison's been tailing him for a few weeks but hasn't been able to get a solid location long enough for us to do anything about it."
Not to mention the fact that Darby was still under the protection of a cartel right now, but there was no way in hell he was telling her that. At least not until it was absolutely necessary.
Allie nodded sympathetically, and he found himself heading her way, reeled in by the sight of her pulling another one of those lacy bras over her head and straightening that lacy fabric on her ribcage. His hands shot to help the material slide down her skin, and he just couldn't stop himself from pressing his lips to her neck.
"I like these," he murmured in her ear. "You got a lot of 'em? I think you should wear one everyday."
"I usually do. They're comfortable," she laughed, gesturing to her lace-covered chest. "And it's not like I need a lot of support."
His hands immediately closed over her breasts, giving them a good knead before his head dipped down to brush his lips over the subtle cleavage that bra gave her. "You got nothin' to worry about, baby. This is all I need, right here."
She laughed a little as she gently pushed his hands away. "I appreciate that, Jax, but I do have to get ready for work and actually get there today."
"I know, darlin'," Jax sighed heavily, resting his forehead on her shoulder. "I think I'm just tryin' to put off starting this day for as long as possible."
"I get it. Hey, we can push off that talk until tomorrow. I know you've got a pretty rough day ahead of you, and there's no reason we can't just have a relaxing night tonight, and I don't know, watch a movie or something, just something easy and stress-free."
And while that sounded like a pretty good idea, he was just done wasting time with her. He was done putting off the rest of his life. Besides, if the vote went the way he thought it might, that also might significantly change the things he had to say to her, and they were better off just getting that conversation over with now, instead of putting off the inevitable.
"I hear what you're sayin', but I think we really gotta have that talk. I don't know when I'll be able to get away from the clubhouse today, but I'll let you know as soon as I got an idea."
"Okay," Allie smiled softly.
"And on that note," he exhaled heavily. "I should really get going. If I sit here and watch you get ready for work any longer, I just might be haulin' you back to that bed, so for both our sakes, I think I should probably just get a move on."
She was still laughing when he kissed her goodbye and shut her bedroom door behind him. Then he padded down the stairs, drawn into the kitchen by the aroma of coffee and toast. Dan was perched by the coffee maker, filling up a mug, and then handed it to his...boyfriend? Hook-up? Jax wasn't quite sure what this guy was to him, but he was the same guy who'd been here last week, so it looked like things were going well for Dan in that department too.
"Morning, friend," Dan called out to him in a sing-song voice. "Coffee?"
"Sure," Jax laughed. He couldn't hang around for much longer, but he'd never turn down a cup of coffee. "Thanks, bro."
Dan handed him a steaming mug with a wide grin. "Where's our pocket-sized sleeping beauty? Still asleep?"
"Nah," he huffed out a laugh. "She's gettin' ready for work."
"Ah, I see," Dan nodded, and then gestured to the toaster. "I just have time for toast this morning, if you'd like a piece that is."
Jax just shrugged and snatched a piece of toast out of the toaster, tipping his chin to Dan's boyfriend, or whoever he was. "'Sup, Adrian."
Adrian nodded to him, lifting his coffee mug in greeting. "Hello, Jax."
It was times like these that it was a little hard to believe this was his life now. Last week, he'd been crashing at the clubhouse, in a dirty dorm that pretty much only got cleaned when his mother barged in and did it for him, which was a far cry from the immaculate and beautiful house Allie lived in. Which, he suspected, got cleaned regularly by someone she hired, but, he also figured, good for her that she could afford it and cared whether she lived in a clean house or not. Living in the clubhouse definitely had its advantages in terms of his role as president, just from the proximity alone. But it was also a booze-soaked, pot-filled clubhouse filled with greasy bikers and even greasier women that usually smelled like smoke, sex, and stale beer, particularly after a weekend. He'd all but forgotten that there were other ways to live, and other ways to spend a morning than sidled up at the bar in the clubhouse with a beer and a smoke for breakfast.
He could definitely get used to this. Porn stars and all.
"You know," Jax grinned at them. "I didn't hear you guys sneak in last night. Must've been a late night at the studio, huh?"
"Yeah, well," Dan eyed him smugly. "From the sounds I heard coming from your bedroom last night, you were a little too busy servicing our sweet little Alexandra to know which way was up or down, I'd say."
Jax didn't miss a beat. "This is true."
"I guess the best head really does come from a thug," Dan offered with a shrug, and then jumped right to it. "So now that Allie is your lady friend, or whatever, does that mean I have unlimited access to clubhouse parties? I don't mean to assume or anything, but seeing as how I am your new lover's best friend, I feel like there should be some perks in this whole situation for me too, namely the VIP treatment at your clubhouse."
Jax huffed out a laugh and shook his head. Then, all he could do was clap Dan on the shoulder with a grin. "Hey, bro, you want the VIP treatment, you got it. And the term is old lady, not lady friend."
"Ah," Dan wagged a finger in the air as Adrian chuckled next to him. "That's right. That's right. Allie and I have talked about that before. Why do you guys use that term anyway? It's not like Allie is old, per say, and between you and me, I wouldn't necessarily call her a lady either."
Jax just laughed again, choosing to ignore that last part and focus on the first. "I honestly don't know why that's the term we use. It's just sorta always been that way, you know? But that's what she is to me. What, uh - what did she say about that?"
Dan just cocked a dark eyebrow at him and waved a piece of toast in his face. "If you think you're getting any dirt out of me, you are dead wrong, friend. I'd sooner chop off my favorite limb than spill any details to the likes of you."
"Whoa," Jax held up his hands in defense with a hearty chuckle. "A'ight. A'ight. Read you loud and clear."
Dan made a little show of leaning over the side of the island to make sure Allie wasn't coming down the stairs, and then turned back to face him with a sly glint in his eyes. "But I will say this - and if I find out you told her I said this, you and I are gonna have some words - but anyway, I will say that I've known our little Alexandra for about six years now, and in those six years, I have never seen her quite the way she is with you, like ever. Suddenly, she's out doing things and going places that aren't work-related, going on dates with you and coming home all flushed and happy, spending the night with you and coming down the stairs all flushed and orgasm-y. I've never seen her like this before, and I think that's all because of you. I know our girl puts on a tough front, but she's not quite as tough as she thinks she is. Now, that being said, if you hurt her in any way, I will break into that clubhouse in the middle of the night, put a pillow over your beautiful face, and smother you. A'ight, bro?"
Jax rocked back on his heels, his jaw working through some amusement, and just a touch of annoyance if he was being honest with himself. He'd been hoping Dan would offer up a little more intel than that for him going into the discussion he needed to have with Allie later tonight, but he figured he'd take whatever he could get. And the little Dan had given him was pretty damn good.
"Hey," Jax clapped him on the shoulder again good-naturedly. "You don't have anything to worry about, a'ight, bro? I'm in this for the long haul with her. I'm not going anywhere."
Dan's mouth twisted into a slow grin and he nodded. "Good to hear."
***
Jax gripped the gavel in his hand, took a deep breath, and pounded it to call church to start. With everyone gathered around the table, all with Allie's report in front of them, there was nothing left to do but hash this out once and for all. It was now or never. All he could do was say his peace and hope the vote was with him.
And if the vote wasn't with him, then he had no idea what he was going to do next.
"Alright," Jax blew out a long stream of smoke through his nostrils and flicked some ash from his cigarette into the ashtray next to him. "Everyone's had plenty of time with this now. Anyone got anything they wanna say?"
Piney huffed out a laugh, picking up his copy of the report and tossing it to the middle of the table. "Well, I read the thing like you wanted, prez."
Jax cocked an eyebrow at him expectantly, but his blood was already boiling at the fucking disrespect. Had the old man learned nothing when he'd body slammed him onto the pool table two days ago?
"And I still say we have the lawyer pussy -" Piney held up a hand with a cocky grin when he saw Jax's nostrils flare. "Sorry, we have the lawyer clean this up like she did for Cara Cara. We get rid of the underage girls, put a stop to the backroom dealings, hire some door guys and some body guys, maybe keep a rotation over there like we do at the studio - especially since it sounds like we only gotta keep one guy there now instead of two - and then we're in the clear. I don't get why she's kickin' up such a shitstorm over this, and I don't really care either. This is nothin' that can't be undone, and nothin' we can't handle. I say we go full steam ahead on this one and start pullin' in the profits."
Jax opened his mouth to speak, but Chib's voice halted him in his seat.
"I just...I just gotta think there's somethin' else out there besides this. We're rushin' this, and I don't know if that's the right play. I just think there're too many things we can't always know with this boy-o, too many things we might not be able to control. And if we can't control this, then I don't know, brothers, maybe we gotta sniff elsewhere for now."
Opie nodded tightly as he flicked some ash from his cigarette into a nearby ashtray. "I'm with ya on that one, brother. I think this is a bad play."
"I don't know," Happy shrugged nonchalantly. "I think I'm goin' with Piney and Tig. We need the cash, so we gotta get after it."
Jax's eyes landed on Bobby, who just shrugged. "Everyone at this table knows where I land. My mind hasn't changed."
And then Tig chimed in with a sigh, "I'm not sayin' I like the shit I saw in that report. I mean, we can all agree that it's not good, by any means, and that it's a problem. I'm sure as shit glad she did that audit so we know all this ahead of time. I can't imagine how we'd feel, what we'd do if we'd gotten into business with King and then found all this out after the fact. But I still think, and Jax, I honestly mean no disrespect here, but I still think she's comin' at this from a different angle than we would. I get what she said in the report about..."
Tig trailed off, flipping open the report to a page he'd marked, "unethical and untrustworthy business practices because that's true. The guy's unethical and he's probably untrustworthy, at least for now, but we can lock him down. We did it with Cara Cara. We did it with Caruso. I don't see why we can't do it with this. I just think she's...I hate to say it because I like the girl, I really do, but I think she's just being...a girl about this, you know?" and then he immediately held up a hand in defense. "I didn't mean it like that. But she's an old lady too, right? And she's not gonna want her man touchin' this one with a 30-foot pole for a lotta reasons that are probably legit. But from where I'm standin' right now, she's just an old lady gettin' in our way."
A heavy silence permeated the air, and then, as Tig's eyes darted around the room to gauge the table's reaction, he held up a hand again. "Like I said, no disrespect to the prez's old lady, but that's where I'm at with this one."
Jax smashed his spent cherry in the ashtray next to him and immediately lit up another one. He had a feeling he was about to go through his whole pack of cigarettes before church was over. Ever since he'd gone toe to toe with Allie in her office over this, not to mention the desperate, world-rocking sex that followed, he hadn't really been able to think about much else other than what he was going to say at the table in this moment. At the end of the day, he just had to lay all his cards down and let the chips fall where they may. That was the best he could do for the club, and for his old lady too.
His eyes fell to Juice, giving him a chance to speak, but Juice's eyes were locked on his folded hands in front of him. So, Jax took that as his cue.
"You know," Jax started slowly. "After church a few days ago, when we first started to hash this out, I've been thinking a lot about what I'm willin' to lose if we go forward with this and what I'm willin' to lose if we don't. It's all I can think about, you know? I'm sure you all know how I'm gonna vote, but I wanna make sure it's clear why. So, if we don't do this, we lose the opportunity to profit. We're that much further away from getting the cash flow we need to get outta guns once and for all. We're accepting that it's gonna take longer, and that we're gonna have to run guns longer too."
He glanced out at the table, looking for a reaction and saw a few head nods. Then he charged ahead.
"And if we do this, we lose our lawyer. I'm sure you've all heard about this by now, but she told me yesterday, under no uncertain terms, that if we move forward with King, she's walking away from the club. So, if we do this, we'd lose someone who's gone to bat for us, who's worked her ass off for us, who's brought us some really good fucking ideas that are gonna help us change things, and who's done a hell of a job in giving us advice we really should listen to. And if we do this, I know I'm gonna lose her as my old lady too - maybe not right away, but I just don't see a way it can work long-term if she walks away from the club because of this. And in the end, I honestly don't know if she'd ever forgive me and be able to look at me the same way again."
Jax blew out a heavy sigh as those words hit him hard. They were true. They were fucking true. If they did this, he'd lose the one thing he'd come to need more than he needed just about anything in his entire life. And with that thought, the rest of it wasn't so difficult to push out.
"I'm sorry, brothers, but I'm not willin' to lose that just for some money. And if I really believed this was the right play for this club, and that she was purposefully trying to turn me a certain way for the wrong reasons, I'd accept her resignation as our lawyer and as my old lady today, and I'd be voting a different way. But I'm not willin' to do that because this is the wrong move for this club and she's just doing her job by giving us this advice - the right advice. You can take that however you wanna take it. I know we all want her being our lawyer and her being my old lady to be two separate things, but maybe that's just not possible, at least not this time. And that's fine because I'm just not losing her over this."
He paused at that, gearing himself up for the next thing he needed to say. There was a part of him that wished the first time he was really saying these things out loud wasn't at the table, and that he could say them to Allie first, but necessity dictated that he bring the club up to speed now.
"The only thing I can be at this table is honest," he told them simply. "And if I'm being honest, I look out at this table, and I see my future, you know? This club is my future. This gavel is my future. And the way we move forward affects all of our futures - I've had that on my shoulders every day since we got outta Stockton and I took up the gavel. I want every single man at this table to have a future that doesn't involve guns or blood or bullets or prison sentences. I want every single one of us to be able to go home at night, wherever that may be, and be able to sleep at night too. I want all of us to be safe and not have to worry anymore, patches and families included. I want that for all of us. I really fucking do. And then, if I'm being honest, I look at my old lady, and I see my future there too, you know? I see my future wife, the future mother of my children, all those things. I want that so fucking bad - I want all of it so fucking bad. And brothers, getting into bed with Dominic King does not help us get to any of those futures. It just doesn't. It's gonna throw us in the opposite direction because it's the opposite of what we're tryin' to do here. Because if we do this, what are we really changing?"
He paused there again, to make sure they were all really hearing him on this.
"The way I see it, if we get into bed with King, the only reason we're doing it is for a quick cash grab, and if that's really all we're after, then we might as well stay in guns because nothing will really change. And I don't know about you guys, but I don't feel comfortable gettin' into business with an asshole like King who's just a hand job away from gettin' busted. It just doesn't feel right, and it's not a decision I can live with. So at the end of the day, for me, this is a pretty simple choice. And if I'm being asked to choose between my old lady and some money, then I'm sorry brothers, but I'm gonna choose my old lady, who also happens to be a damn good lawyer that's done everything we've ever asked her to do and then some. So I'm gonna vote nay because that's what's best for me, and because that's what's best for this club."
The room was silent as his words hung in the air. There was nothing more to say. And regardless of how this vote ended up, at least he could go home to Allie tonight, when they finally sat down to talk, and tell her he'd fought for them just as much as he'd fought for the club and hope that would be enough to help her figure out a way to forgive him. His gaze swung to each member sitting at the table and resigned himself with the knowledge that while he'd done his best, it didn't look like he'd swayed any opinions either.
So with a heavy sigh, he prepped himself for the inevitable.
"Alright," he pushed out roughly. "We ready to vote on this or does anyone else got somethin' they wanna say?"
His eyes lifted from the gavel, looking out to the table one last time, and then Juice's quiet voice called out into the void.
"Yeah, I got somethin' to say."
Now, all attention at that table focused on Juice, who sat in his seat with a frown etched across his forehead and his hands folded so tightly in front of him his knuckles turned white. Juice seemed to be aware of this new attention, and he flashed the table a grim smile.
"I thought I knew where I landed on this, and then I had a conversation with our lawyer about it last night."
Juice glanced at Jax apologetically, and held up a hand when he obviously saw the way Jax's eyes flew to him in warning.
"I know, bro," Juice winced a little. "And some of the things I got to say...I'm good with you takin' me out back later and punchin' my lights out if that's what you wanna do because I'm not sorry. I won't lie, when I first saw Jax on that security feed at our lawyer's house, I was fucking pissed. Real fucking pissed. It seemed to me, at the time, that Jax was takin' advantage of his position more than just a little bit and in doin' that, he was takin' advantage of this table too. And I was fucking pissed at her too. I couldn't believe she was actually takin' our money and then doin' that shit. That just didn't seem right to me. And so...I'm not gonna sugarcoat what I did, but maybe I tested her a little bit, okay?"
Jax felt his entire body go rigid in his chair, his eyes locked firmly on Juice with an icy glare. Juice swallowed tightly, and shot him a pained smile.
"I might've uh," Juice laughed a little uncomfortably and shifted in his chair. "I might've gotten a DUI a couple weeks ago."
"You fuckin' idiot," Tig shook his head. "That's number two, isn't it?"
"It is," Juice sighed.
Opie winced at him from where he was sitting. "And that means you're not gonna be able to ride for awhile then, right?"
Juice nodded tightly and pushed out a heavy sigh, running a hand over his shaved head sheepishly. "Yeah."
"So what the hell does this have to do with our lawyer?" Jax bit out, careful to keep the rest of his body calm and still.
Juice huffed out a laugh and held up a hand again. "Alright. Alright. So when she came to the clubhouse Monday morning and I walked her in, I told her about it. Asked her what I'd have to do, what it meant, if she could help, and then I pretty much implied that I didn't want her to tell anyone because I was embarrassed about it - which, to be clear, I am, okay? I am a fucking idiot. I know this. Anyway - prez, did she say anything at all about that to you?"
Jax found himself frowning back at Juice and lifted a shoulder. "Nah. She's never said a word."
Juice nodded with a small grin lifting the corner of his mouth. "I kinda figured that. I guess I was just tryin' to figure out if she'd turn around and tell you, even after it was clear I didn't want her to. I figured it was worth a shot to see - I mean, it's not like I was tellin' her anything that would put the club at risk, or put her at risk. I just wanted to see what she would do. And you know what she did? She gave me her card and told me to text her when I got the paperwork back from the court. And then last night, when I was sittin' outside on her curb, she knocks on my door to bring me a cup of coffee and a folder full of the research she did for me on all those questions I had, and she broke it all down for me, really explaining it to make sure I understood. She even told me I should probably use a lawyer that had more experience with this kinda thing, but that she was more than willing to represent me if that's what I wanted."
Jax didn't even know which way was up anymore. It took him a second to get a good handle on what Juice was really saying here and where he was going with this, but when it really sank in, all he could do was sit there in his chair, feeling knocked right off his feet. God, he fucking loved her.
"Did she, uh," Juice started again, rubbing the back of his neck a little anxiously as he spoke. "Did she happen to mention that I told her what that douchebag," he gestured with his head toward Piney, "said about her?"
Piney and Jax spoke at the same time:
"Who ya callin' a douchebag, you little shit?"
"You fucking did what?"
Juice's lips pulled apart in a wince, and it was all Jax could do to keep his feet planted firmly on the ground, and not leap across the table to strangle the idiot. Of all the aisine things to pull, this was probably one of the stupidest things he'd ever heard. So, apparently, Juice was asking for a beating. That was what was happening here.
"I see now that it probably wasn't the smartest thing I've ever done," Juice offered with another wince.
Jax lifted his eyebrows furiously at him. "You think?"
"Hey," Juice held his hands up in defense. "I wanted to see if she'd tell you after I asked her not to. And did she tell you?"
Jax blew out a heavy breath. At least he had a pretty good idea where Juice was going with this, even if he still had half a mind to body slam him into the nearest pool table.
"No, she didn't."
"That's what I figured," Juice went on with an easy shrug. "And did she tell you we talked in her house when I came in to get that refill on my coffee?"
Jax just shook his head.
"So, after she brought me that coffee and all that research," Juice went on with a tight nod. "I figured I'd might as well go inside and pick her brain about all this shit. I'd heard she threatened to quit on us, and I thought I deserved to know why and hear it from her. And in talking to her...Tig, man, I think you're wrong about where her head is at with all this."
Juice paused there to gesture to Tig, who was hanging on every word he said.
"I mean, I got the feeling from her, and from Jax just now too, that if we go forward with this, her and the prez are probably done. After talking to her, I think Jax is right - I just don't see her forgiving him if we do this. So if she was really coming at this as an old lady, wouldn't she be pushing for the option that keeps her and her old man together, not the one that would probably end them? For her, I don't think this has anything to do with being an old lady at all. I think, even if she wasn't Jax's old lady, she'd still be comin' at this the same way. I think this is just about doin' the right thing, regardless of the consequences for her. And for her, the right thing for us to do is walk away from this deal. When I was talkin' to her last night, I got the impression I was just talking to my lawyer, and that she was talking to me like a client - you know, lawyer-client confidentiality and all that shit. She was just doing her job, doing what we pay her to do. And I don't think she was bullshitting me either. She said a lot of things, but there was one thing that really stood out to me, and I haven't been able to stop thinkin' about it since: she said, and I quote, we should be reporting his ass, not trying to decide if we still want to go into business with him."
Jax felt his lips quirk up into a smile - yeah, that sounded exactly like something she'd say. His gaze flicked to his VP, who was watching Juice with a hint of a smile playing on his lips too.
"And then I got to thinkin'," Juice went on, his voice becoming firmer and more confident with every word. "I was thinkin' about how I'd feel if one of those girls at that club was my sister, and someone knew this shit was goin' on and didn't do anything about it. I think I know exactly how I'd feel because the shit King is doin' at that club is just wrong. It's just fucking wrong. And I just can't see how, if we really wanna earn legit and go legit...I just can't see how this is the way to get there because nothing that guy does is legit. Allie told me she doesn't think we'll ever be able to trust him, and I gotta agree with her. If we can't trust him, we can't do business with him. And now, the more I think about it, I don't even know why we're still sittin' here talkin' about this. Why we'd even bother tryin' to clean something up that's not for us to clean up."
Juice threw his hands in the air in frustration.
"And you wanna know what else our lawyer said that really stuck out to me? She said that, if all of this blows up in our face, and King can't be controlled and just keeps doin' the same old shit and gets caught, the town would find out that we're in the middle of all that and no one would ever want anything to do with us ever again. That shit hit me hard because it's true. So, I guess, at the end of the day, to piggy-back off our prez a bit here, if I'm being asked to choose between our lawyer and some money, at least this time, I'm gonna vote to stick with our lawyer. Because from where I'm standing, she's a helluva lot more trustworthy than Dominic King will ever be."
At that point, Jax couldn't hide the shit-eating grin on his face. Because holy fucking shit. She did it. She really goddamn did it - without even realizing what she was doing. Everything really was going to be okay now. Because of her.
"Alright," Jax gripped the gavel in one hand as he turned his gaze to the table with a grin. "We ready to vote or what?"
***
Allie poured herself another cup of coffee, and then, catching her dad coming right for her from the corner of her eye, hastily set the pot back on the burner, and tried to make a run for it.
"You can't hide from me forever, Allie," Jimmy called out to her.
She winced, pushed out a heavy sigh, and then turned on her heels to face him. "Hey, Dad."
Jimmy narrowed his eyes at her a little and hitched a hand on his hip. "I know why you've been avoiding me, and I'm not sure I like it."
"Uh huh. Okay, Dad. And why have I been avoiding you?"
Now, his lips quirked up in a knowing grin. "Gemma told me she talked to you."
"That's right," she answered coolly before taking a sip from her coffee mug.
"And Gemma told me you said you were okay with everything. And yet, you're still avoiding me."
"Maybe it's hard for me to look you in the eye right now, knowing what you're doing on the side with Jax's mom. Maybe that's weird for me, Dad."
Jimmy just lifted a shoulder. "That woman is wild - and I'd be an idiot if I let her get away, at least not while there's still plenty of fun to be had."
Allie held up a hand, having long ago reached her quota for this kind of talk. "Alright, Dad. I get it. Please, for my sake, do not go into the details of your sex life with Gemma. Ever. I think it would be severely damaging to our relationship if you did."
When Jimmy just threw up his hands, Allie cocked an eyebrow at him.
"You want me to go into the details of my sex life with Jax?"
Jimmy eyed her carefully, his dark eyes narrowing ever so slightly. "Alright. You got me there. I would prefer it if you kept those details to yourself, yes."
"Thank you," Allie nodded with a sly grin. "That being said, Dad, I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings, but this is just...it's a little weird for me right now, and it's a lot easier for me to avoid you than it is to avoid Gemma. It's not like I could even if I wanted to anyway."
Jimmy rubbed a hand over his chin with a grin. "Yeah, I suppose it would be pretty difficult to do the whole avoidance act on your new boyfriend's mom, huh? Especially if it's Gemma?"
"Dad, you have no idea."
"You know, speaking of that, Gemma mentioned she's having a family dinner later this week. Do you think I could get an invite to that little party or would that be too weird for you?"
"Oh my God."
Jimmy just lifted a shoulder, moving past her to get himself a cup of coffee too. "What? Why can't I get an invite? Gemma said it was up to you."
Allie squeezed her eyes shut through another wince. "Just...just let me think about it, Dad."
"Hey, you know, since this is the first family dinner thing you'll be at as the old lady of Samcro's president, don't you think it'll take some of the heat off you if I show up with Gemma? Then all the focus will be on the weird old couple in the room, right?"
It took Allie a second to really catch his meaning, and then she whipped around to jab a pointed finger at him. "What do you mean weird old couple?"
Jimmy opened his mouth to respond, but then his face broke apart into a wide grin and he tipped his chin toward the hallway. Allie frowned, her eyes following his gaze, and then when she saw a familiar slicked-back blonde head moving down the hallway toward her office, she had to bite back a stupid grin. She pushed away the memory of the way his hands, his lips, and his body had felt on her this morning. Definitely not a thought she wanted to have standing right next to her dad.
"You know," Jimmy leaned in to whisper in her ear, "Gemma seems to think her son is madly in love with you. I think I tend to agree, based on what I've seen."
Even though her heart stuttered a little at that, this was starting to become a bridge too far. "You know, Dad, I think we should just put a moratorium on relationship discussions between us for a while. This is all starting to feel a little..."
"TMI?" Jimmy offered cheerfully with a wide grin.
Allie cocked her head to the side as she sidestepped around him to head down the hallway. "I was going to say incestuous."
Jimmy's face fell immediately. Allie, satisfied that she'd made herself clear, held up her coffee mug to him with a laugh, and headed for the hallway, leaving her dad to sit on that for just a second before he started bugging her again about family dinner. So, with her coffee mug in hand, she made her way toward her office, smiling at the way Jax leaned his shoulder into her doorway, happily chatting away with Piper, who was still at work on the mountain of paperwork on her desk.
He must've seen her coming from the corner of his eye because his head turned to her when she was about 15 feet away. Jax's lips twisted into a sly smirk when they made eye contact and he cockily tipped his chin to her in greeting. She felt her eyes narrow at him as she closed the distance between them and he pushed off the doorframe so he could reach for her. He sure was in a good mood right now.
"Hey, baby," he murmured when he slipped a hand on her waist, leaning in to kiss her forehead.
Now, her eyes just narrowed even more. "Hello, Jax. How can I help you today?"
Allie glanced inside her office to find Piper seated in her chair, watching the whole exchange with her eyes glimmering in amusement.
That smirk on his face only deepened as he looked down at her. "You think you could sneak away from the office for a little bit? Maybe like an hour or something?"
"What do you mean?" Allie frowned.
Now the jerk was laughing at her. "You heard me. I want you to come somewhere with me."
"Jax, I can't just -"
His lips curled into an amused smirk. "Come on, now. You won't be sorry. I promise," then he gestured with his head to her office. "Go get your purse - we need your keys."
Before she could protest any further, he took her by the hand and gently corralled her into her office. Piper was already standing on the other side of her desk, helpfully holding up her purse for Allie, and grabbed her coffee mug from her in exchange.
"Have fun!" Piper waved cheerfully.
"I think you should get back to work," Allie grumbled sourly, shooting Jax a playful glare as she spoke. "We have to make up this missed work time somehow."
Jax just laughed, tilting his head to the side, that sly smirk still creeping across his face. Then he gestured to the hallway with a ringed hand. "Come on, you're wastin' precious work time here, darlin'. The longer you stall, the more time you lose."
"Jesus Christ," Allie mumbled under her breath.
He grinned at her again as he lazily draped an arm over her shoulder and led her down the hallway. Unfortunately for them, Jimmy was already headed right for them. He waved brightly to them as they met in the middle, and Jax lifted his arm off Allie's shoulders so he could reach out to shake her dad's hand.
"Jax," Jimmy nodded with a grin.
"Nice to see ya, Jimmy," he tipped his chin to him, and then he glanced down at Allie. "I was just gonna steal Attorney Levy here away for an hour or so, if you're good with that. Maybe I'll even take her out to lunch too."
Allie just rolled her eyes at him.
"Hey, I think that's a great idea," Jimmy grinned, his dark eyes darting from Jax to Allie. "You know, Allie and I were just talkin' about whether I should come to your mom's family dinner later this week. What do ya think about that?"
Jax's eyes widened a little, but he schooled his expression almost immediately, pressing an impassive grin on his face and shrugging. "And where did Allie land on that?"
"Oh, I said it was becoming a little too incestuous," Allie informed him sweetly.
Jax choked on his laugh, covering his mouth with a fist as his shoulders shook with laughter. "I, uh...I guess I'm gonna have to defer to my old lady on this one."
Allie couldn't help the way those butterflies took flight, warming her chest and flushing her cheeks. This was only the third time she'd really heard him say that out loud, and it felt really good to hear. So good. So good, in fact, that she couldn't hide the happy grin that slid across her face. Jax caught it immediately, and he matched that grin two-fold, his navy blue eyes sparkling.
Jimmy's eyes darted between the two of them for a moment, and then just shrugged. "Alright. I suppose that's fair. You two have fun - and hey, you wanna make this a habit? Go ahead and make this a habit. All I ask is that you just make sure the door is locked or that you have your afternoon delight elsewhere and then come back to the office. That's all."
With that, he clapped Jax on the shoulder, who was too stunned by all that to do much else, and then he lifted his other hand to give Allie a light smack on the cheek before whistling past them down the hallway.
"This is getting fucking out of hand," Jax murmured in her ear as he started to lead her toward the studio's front doors. "But hey, now that I've got his permission, maybe we really should start takin' advantage of that. I can be here at noon, on the dot, every day if you want me to."
Allie laughed as they pushed through the studio's double doors and headed out into the parking lot. "Well, we're gonna have to go elsewhere because we certainly can't use my office."
"And why's that?" Jax cocked an eyebrow at her. "I think we've made pretty good use of it so far."
She just huffed out a laugh, shaking off the heat that had fanned out between them. "Because Piper. That's why."
"Can't we just tell her to get lost for a little while? She knows what's up anyway."
"And then make her come back to my office to work the rest of the day after we -" she paused when Jax stopped in front of her car and held his hand out for her keys. "Jax, what's going on? Why are we taking my car?"
He just grinned brightly at her, wiggling his fingers impatiently at her to hand over the keys. "I wanna see your reaction when we get there."
Allie's eyes narrowed at him again. He was clearly up to something, and she didn't particularly enjoy surprises. "And where are we going?"
"You'll see. Come on, Attorney Levy. Gimme the keys."
With a heavy sigh, she dug into her purse and handed over the keys. Allie gingerly slid into the passenger seat, still unsure about all this. Once again, he'd taken all the control away from her. Just breezed into her workplace and whisked her away without a real explanation, and she'd been helpless against him. Again. Just like always. Maybe she'd just have to find a way to get used to this because it wasn't like Jax was going anywhere. And neither was she.
Jax pulled out of her parking space, chuckling when the podcast she'd been listening to on her way into work this morning started playing through her sound system. He surprised her by leaving it on, almost as if he was a tiny bit interested in hearing what she'd been listening to.
"Jax," she tried again quietly. "How did the vote go today?"
He just threw her an easy grin before turning his eyes back to the road. "I'll tell ya when we get there, okay?"
"You're really not going to tell me where we're going and what we're going to do there?"
"No way."
Allie pushed out a sigh, and leaned back in her seat, resigning herself to just going along with this, even though she didn't really like it, and even though he chuckled at her as he turned up the volume on that podcast.
"You don't exactly strike me as the type of guy who'd actually choose to listen to a podcast, especially one about the Supreme Court."
He shot her a cocky grin and a wink, just because he knew he was already getting on her nerves. "I guess I'm just full of surprises today, baby."
And, with that, it was officially time to change the subject, so she reached forward to pause the podcast. If he wasn't going to give her any information, then she also wasn't going to indulge him and make this even more entertaining for him.
"Hey, question for you."
"What's that, baby?"
"Do you like sports?"
Jax huffed out a laugh, turning to her with an amused frown. "What?"
Allie just shrugged. "Well, if we've got some time in between going wherever it is we're going, I figured I'd use it. I realized that now that we're...what is the term we're supposed to use? Dating?"
"We're not just dating, Allie," Jax told her with a smirk. "You know that."
"I know," she huffed in frustration. "But when I need to explain to someone who's outside the club what we are, what do I say? Do I say you're my boyfriend or...? I guess I'm just not sure how all this works."
He took a moment to mull that over, and as he took another left turn, she still had no idea where they were going. "I guess, to anyone outside the club, I'd be your boyfriend. I'm good with you sayin' that, if it's more comfortable for you. And to anyone inside the club, you're my old lady and I'm your old man."
"Ugh," Allie crinkled her nose and shook her head. "I do not like that."
"What?" Jax laughed good-naturedly, reaching over the center console to intertwine their hands together. "You don't wanna call me your old man?"
"That's weird, Jax. When I hear that term, I think of you either as a literal old man, which is weird enough as it is, or you know, old man as in my father, and I think we've established that that particular situation is already getting twisted enough."
"This is true," Jax allowed easily. "And I get it. I'm honestly not sure if I'm ready to see those two together at family dinner this week. I mean, if your dad touches my mom or God forbid kisses her in front of me, in her goddamn house no less, I think I just might lose my shit."
"I'm right there with you. I want them to be happy and everything, but that doesn't mean I need to see them being happy. And you wanna know what else?"
"What's that, darlin'?" Jax grinned at her.
"When my dad was talking to me about family dinner before, he actually referred to them as a weird old couple. Gemma was pretty clear with me that this was just sex between them, not that they're an actual couple. So, there's that too."
"Well, that sounds like somethin' Gemma and Jimmy gotta work out between them. I'm sure as shit not getting anymore involved than I already am," he shuddered a little at the thought, and then glanced at her with a smirk. "So, if you don't wanna call me your old man, for reasons I can get behind, then I guess I'm just your man. How's that sound, baby?"
Her chest warmed and her cheeks flushed again as she bit down on her bottom lip to hide her smile. "I think that sounds pretty good."
He shot her a wink as he took another turn. "So why did you wanna know if I like sports?"
"I don't know," Allie shrugged easily. "I guess I just realized that I don't know those kinds of things about you and I want to."
Jax's lips pulled apart in a sexy smirk. "Alright. That's fair. And, to answer your question, I enjoy football just as much as the next guy, I guess. We've usually got the Niners or the Chargers on in the clubhouse on Sundays, and have a pretty good time watchin' 'em. I also enjoy the occasional baseball game from time to time, although I gotta admit, I usually can't sit through a whole game. Nine innings is a little too long for me, but I like to watch a game every once and awhile. How 'bout you?"
"You mean, do I like sports?"
"Sure," he laughed good-naturedly.
"I don't mind football and baseball," Allie shrugged. "I definitely prefer to go to an actual game, instead of just watching on TV. That's more fun, for sure."
"Maybe we'll have to go to a game then," Jax grinned.
"I think I'd like that," she smiled back. "Okay, so favorite movie? Favorite TV show? Favorite music?"
"Okay, okay," Jax laughed. "I get it. How 'bout I take those one at a time - favorite movie. Let's see...I don't know if I could really choose just one. But if I'm being forced to name off a few - "
"And you are."
"Alright," he laughed brightly again. The melodic sound warmed her and had her smiling back at him. "Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs, Fast & the Furious, The Boondock Saints, Shaun of the Dead, Platoon...I don't know. Is that enough for you for now?"
"Sure," she smiled. These were the kinds of things she wanted to know about him - since she was staring down the rest of her life, these were the things that would help bind them together, to help them form the kind of relationship she hadn't known she'd been looking for until she found it.
"How 'bout you?"
"Well, I, too, enjoy a good Tarantino movie just as much as the next depraved person, but I think if I had to choose, I'd go with Inglourious Basterds or Django Unchained or Once Upon a Time in Hollywood."
"Ah, so you're a new Tarantino fan, huh?"
"Oh, yeah," she grinned slyly. "Brad and Leo all the way."
Jax just rolled his eyes at her and shook his head. "Good thing I know I got no reason to be jealous, darlin'."
"Well, you should probably know that Jack Dawson was my first real and true crush. I had pictures of him from Titanic covering just about every inch of wall space in my room. Just ask Ope if you don't believe me."
He eyed her warily as he took another left turn. "That's alright. I know I still got Leo beat in that department," then he shot her a wink, "Don't I, baby?"
Her lips curled into a grin and she had to bite down on her bottom lip. "You know, if you're not careful, I might need you to pull over for a few minutes."
His eyebrows lifted suggestively as his lips curled into a sexy smirk. "Oh, really? Maybe we should keep talkin' like this. We can push our appointment back a few minutes. Although, if we're gonna pull over, we should just plan on a solid 15 - you know, just to be thorough about it."
"So we have an appointment somewhere, huh?"
Now, his lifted eyebrow turned into a wary one. "You're not gettin' anymore intel outta me until we get there. Don't even try, darlin', 'cuz it won't work. Now, we've established you like Tarantino, and that shitty Titanic movie. What else?"
"Well," Allie offered lightly. "I've always loved the Star Wars movies."
"Even the prequels?" Jax shot back with a grin.
"Hey, they were alright. But I'm definitely an original trilogy girl. I always wanted to be Princess Leia growing up - I think I went as her for Halloween just about every year."
"Yeah, I can see that," he smiled back at her softly. "Well, we've got another thing in common. I, too, have always loved the Star Wars movies. The prequels were shit though, and I'm still on the fence about the new ones."
"That's fair," Allie laughed. "Favorite TV show?"
Jax didn't hesitate. "The Sopranos."
"Well, now you've got something in common with Dan. That is absolutely his favorite show too. I don't hate it, exactly, but I wouldn't say that's my favorite."
"I guess now I've got a few more things to talk to him about when I'm at your house," Jax grinned and then tipped his chin to her again. "How 'bout you? Favorite TV show?"
She didn't need to hesitate either. "The Office. I think I could watch it all day every day - any episode, any season. It's just the best."
"Huh," Jax shrugged. "Never seen it."
"What?" Allie practically shrieked at him. "How is that possible? You know what, don't answer that. Just so you know, I'm not so sure I can be with someone who's never seen The Office."
"I guess we're gonna have to fix that, huh?" he grinned.
"Absolutely, and I think - hey...why are we...what's going on, Jax?
He didn't respond as he pulled into the parking lot at Charming PD, taking the first parking stall he could find, and putting her car in park. Then he blew out a deep breath, and turned to her with a wide, shit-eating grin.
"Jax." Allie started again slowly. "Why are we at the police station?"
He rubbed a hand over his mouth, hiding his smile, before turning to look at her again with glimmering blue eyes.
"Jax..." Allie tried again, her heart thundering in her chest. "How did the vote go?"
That grin on his face only widened. "It was six to two, Allie."
"Six to two?" she exhaled breathlessly.
"Uh huh," Jax nodded, his grin shifting into a smirk as he caught his bottom lip underneath a front tooth. "Six to two in favor of tellin' Dominic King to go fuck himself. Piney and Happy were the only holdouts."
"What the...I don't understand. I thought you said it was going to go the other way. What happened?"
His head tilted to the side, his lips curling into a soft smile. "You happened. It was all you, baby."
"What do you mean?" she frowned back at him, her heart still pounding away in her chest.
"Well, apparently," Jax grinned at her, lazily draping a hand over the steering wheel as he spoke. "You and Juice had a conversation about King last night before all that shit went down. And in talking to you, it sounds like he realized you were right about everything - and that you weren't comin' at this as an old lady. You were comin' at this as our lawyer, and givin' us damn good advice too. I think, in his mind, if you were willin' to quit, if you were willin' to put everything on the line like that because this was what you knew was right, not to mention the way you had his back about all the DUI shit, I think he decided it was worth stickin' with you, instead of taking a stupid risk on a guy like King."
Allie didn't even know where to start. That was too much to wrap her head around all at once.
"And then when it came time to vote," Jax went on with a smile. "Hearing all that swayed Tig too."
Her eyebrows lifted high into her forehead, and she still couldn't quite believe what she was hearing. She'd resigned herself to accepting that the vote was probably going to go the way Jax had thought it would, and up until he walked into the studio, Allie had had a sick pit forming in her stomach all day. Now, all that was gone. Now...everything was going to be okay, wasn't it? Everything she'd been worried about, everything she'd pushed down and hadn't let herself think about...none of that mattered anymore because they'd done the right thing.
"So after that vote," Jax continued, his smirk sliding up the side of his face. "We took another vote, and we decided to take your other piece of advice too," he reached inside his cut and pulled out a familiar set of paperwork, "We decided to report his ass, like you said, and we thought you'd like to do the honors."
Her eyes went wide as she shakily slid her report from his fingertips. "Jax, I..."
"It's your work, your report," Jax shrugged with an easy grin. "It should be you."
At some point, she'd get used to him rendering her absolutely speechless on a regular basis, right? Some day, this would become more normal, wouldn't it? She wouldn't get carried away by the smooth, charming, dangerously handsome man sitting next to her? Maybe that was a lost cause, and maybe, deep down, she knew that was okay too. Still, there was something building in the back of her mind, something she'd pushed away years ago and it threatened to bubble up to the surface if she wasn't careful.
"Come on," Jax gestured with his head.
Allie felt almost robotic as she opened the passenger side door and stepped out onto the pavement with her report gripped tightly in her hands. This was supposed to be a victory for her - this should be exhilarating and all of the things she could see bouncing around in Jax's head as he jogged around the side of her car and draped an arm around her shoulders.
They started moving toward the police station's main entrance, and then her heart just dropped into her stomach. She couldn't help it. Couldn't stop it. Couldn't stop the way her feet stalled in her tracks.
Jax stopped moving when her feet failed on her and he frowned down at her, confusion with just a hint of concern flickering across his face. "You alright, Allie?"
"Yeah," she murmured, trying to nod and push her way through it. But then..."What if they don't believe us, Jax?"
His head reared back like he didn't quite understand what she said. "What do you mean?" he gestured to the report in her hand. "We've got all the evidence we need right there. Why wouldn't they believe us?"
Jax's eyes drifted down to his cut, and then shot back up to her - as if that was the reason why. It wasn't. It was right on the tip of her tongue to explain, but she just couldn't form the words. He was giving her a gift right now, and she was completely ruining it for both of them. There was a time and a place to explain, when she was able to work up to that, and this wasn't it. Today, she needed to focus on the present and this amazing victory Jax and the club had just handed to her on a platter.
Because that's what this was, she told herself. It was a win for every single one of those girls who worked in that strip club, who spent everyday afraid, who spent everyday getting abused and taken advantage of - both mentally and physically. This victory would get them the justice they deserved and set them free.
"Sorry," she laughed shakily and got her feet moving again. "I didn't mean to imply they wouldn't believe us because you're you. That's not what I...it was stupid. Just forget it, Jax. Let's go inside."
He eyed her carefully as they walked up to the police station's double doors, and when he pulled one of the doors open, gesturing for her to pass through ahead of him, his navy blue eyes seemed to see everything in that moment. Everything she'd ever tried to hide, everything she'd thought she had locked down tight in a box way up high in her mind, everything she'd never wanted him - or anyone, for that matter - to see. And now, she could almost see him mentally working through everything she'd ever said, everything she'd ever done, and she wondered if he was zeroing in on what had happened between them last night, when she'd asked him to keep his hands on the counter, and nowhere near her head.
She knew, in that moment, that she should've just kept her mouth shut. But then again, she always seemed to say and do things around him she wouldn't normally say and do. His eyes were the truth serum to her soul, and the balm to all her open wounds at the same time.
Allie flashed him a quick smile as she stepped inside the station, and although Jax smiled back, it didn't quite reach his eyes. She chose, instead, to focus on this moment, the one that so many women never got to have, and she decided to run toward it instead of being afraid of it. So, with renewed confidence, and spurred on by the warm hand on her back, she walked right up to the front desk with Jax at her side.
"Hey, there," Jax nodded to the police officer at the front desk. "Jax Teller. I'm here to see Chief Unser. He should be expecting me."
The police officer nodded, and after making a quick call, ushered them back, where a stocky, balding man stepped out of a nearby office and waved them over.
"Hey, Jax," Chief Unser grinned at him and shook his head a little. "It's been a while. I can only take that to mean you're stayin' outta trouble."
"That's right," Jax laughed as the two men reached out to shake hands, and then Jax gestured to her with his free hand. "This is Allie Levy, the club's lawyer."
"Ah, sure," Chief Unser grinned at her, now reaching out to shake her hand. "Jimmy Sweet's daughter, right? I think I heard something about you workin' for the club. I'm glad to see it's workin' out."
"And then some," Jax told him but shot her a sly wink as he spoke.
"Nice to meet you, Chief," Allie greeted him with a light laugh.
"You too," the chief told her with a smile as he gestured for them to venture deeper inside his office. "So, what brings you two here today? I gotta say I was a little surprised to hear you'd called."
"Well," Jax jumped right to it with an easy shrug, shooting her a quick glance as he spoke. "The club was lookin' to invest in that new expansion Dominic King is workin' on."
Chief Unser frowned, tilting his head to the side. "You mean at that strip club over on the other side of town?"
"That's right," Jax grinned good-naturedly. "And in doin' that, our lawyer here ran a pretty deep audit of the business, did some interviews with the employees, and kicked up some shit we thought you'd be interested in."
The chief seemed to mull over that a little, rubbing his chin in thought. "And why are you bringing this my way?"
Jax just shrugged with an easy grin. "This is our town, too. And we can't have this shit happening in our town."
"Alright. What you got for me then?"
Allie glanced at Jax, but he just smirked and tipped his chin at her, signaling that this was all her show now. She had the control. She had the power. And so, as they sank down into the chairs across from Chief Unser's desk, Allie handed the chief her report, the same one she'd spent hours slaving over, and launched into the explanation, detailing the stories she'd heard from those women, those girls, most of whom had to be underage, and with every word, every syllable, she came back to herself, one piece at a time. Helping those women and those girls was the best kind of victory.
After dropping a proverbial bomb on Charming PD and then walking away, Jax swung an arm around her shoulders as he led her back out into the parking lot. When they stopped in front of her BMW, he slid his arm down so he could put both hands on her shoulders, dipping lower to look her in the eye as he gave her a little shake.
"You alright, baby?"
What she saw swimming in those navy blue eyes told her everything she needed to know. Someday soon, she would need to tell him the things she'd never told anyone out loud, at least not from start to finish. But today was not that day.
"Yeah," Allie swallowed hard, smiling through the tears that pricked her eyes. "I'm alright. Thank you for this, Jax. I don't think you know what this meant to me today - everything's really gonna be okay now, isn't it?"
Jax smiled down at her softly before wrapping his arms around her to pull her tight against his leather-covered chest. His lips found her hair, murmuring to her, "Yeah, baby. Everything's really gonna be okay. I think we still need to have that talk though."
"Right," she smiled against his chest. "We should. Tonight?"
"Sure, Allie. I know I gotta take you back to the studio, but just let me know what time and I'll be there."
He pulled away so he could run his thumb over her cheek and tuck some stray hair behind her ear, and when his lips brushed against hers, his kiss helped some more of those pieces slide back into place. Everything really was going to be okay.