Chapter 18

Holly

Jax was nose to nose with Kent, who was so furious he was practically foaming at the mouth. I pulled Luke up against me and wrapped my arms around him as he started to cry.

“It’s okay,” I whispered, trying to sound brave for him, “It’s okay. I promise.”

Kim slid across the couch to hold on to both of us, and we all stared at the two men, waiting for the inevitable violence to begin.

“I’m not going anywhere,” Kent spat, turning away from Jax and falling back down into the dining room chair. He kicked his feet up on the table, and the beer cans bounced upon the wood. “I’m staying right here with my woman and my son. You’re the one who’s gonna get the fuck out.”

“She’s not your woman,” Jax said.

“You bet your fucking ass she is, Bryan. She’s always been mine. I know the shit the two of you used to pull behind my back. I’m not a moron. But she chose me. She followed me to Philadelphia. She left your sorry ass here to rot with your fucking MC buddies. She didn’t want to get caught up with a bunch of criminals. She’s always been better than you.”

I wanted to tell Kent how wrong he was, but my voice was caught in my throat. His words, however, seemed to have no impact on Jax, who remained where he was, expression unchanged.

“Get up,” Jax said.

“No.”

Jax moved faster than I’d ever seen anyone move. Before any of us had any idea what was happening, Jax had the front of Kent’s shirt in his fist and was hauling him to his feet. Kent was a drunken, stumbling mess, and Jax used it to his advantage as he dragged Kent out of the dining room and into the hall.

“Holly,” Jax called, “Stay where you are. I won’t be long.”

I listened to something break in the hall as Jax shoved Kent out the front door. A woman somewhere out in the hall yelped in surprise.

I bit my bottom lip and looked at my sister. “Stay here with Luke. I have to go with them and make sure neither of them does something stupid. Okay? Promise you’ll stay here?”

Kim nodded. “Promise.”

“No, Momma,” Luke whimpered, clinging to the front of my shirt. “Don’t go.”

“I have to, Luke. I’ll be okay. Don’t worry about me. Neither of them will hurt me.”

“Don’t go.” Luke started to cry.

My heart broke as I pried his fingers loose from my shirt and left him and my sister on the couch. I rushed out into the hall to find one of Kim’s neighbors, a red-headed woman, standing with her hand on her chest as she stared around the corner and down the hall.

I ran by her, and she caught my elbow. “You best stay here, dear. I’m going to call the police. Is anyone in the apartment hurt?”

“No,” I said hurriedly. “Everyone is fine. Don’t call the police. My friend is handling it.”

“The one in the plaid?”

“The leather,” I said.

Her eyes widened in surprise.

“Don’t be so judgmental,” I said, brushing by her and jabbing the elevator button. “Did they take the stairs?”

The red-headed woman nodded. “I don’t think ‘take’ is the right word. Your friend sort of dragged the other down them.”

“Good,” I muttered as the elevator door chimed and slid open. “Don’t call the cops. Everything is under control.” The doors closed as the woman nodded at me.

Even though the ride to the first floor was only seconds, it felt like forever. I wrung my hands as I waited for the doors to open, and once they started to, I squeezed through. I ran across the foyer, slipping between a man in his bathrobe and a woman I assumed was his wife. They both yelled at me to stay inside.

I could see Jax out on the lawn. He was looming over Kent, who was on his ass in the grass, staring defiantly up into Jax’s face. They were yelling at each other, that was for sure, and I was shocked to see that there was no blood.

Yet.

I made for the door and the man in the robe stopped me. “Stay inside. Those two came through here like bulls in a china shop. It’s not safe.”

“One of them is my friend.”

The man blinked. “The one in the leather?”

I nodded. “I was in trouble. He came to help me. Please make sure no one calls the police? We can handle this on our own. I know it’s not conventional, but it’s what works. Okay?”

The man’s eyes flicked back and forth between mine, but eventually, he conceded. “I’ll hold off for now. But if it starts to get bad …”

“Whatever,” I said, “That’s fine.” Then, I raced outside and down the steps to the lawn.

Jax looked over at me and raised a hand. “Stay where you are.”

I stayed. My bare feet were on the edge of the concrete path and the grass and it separated me from them like crime scene tape. Despite the distance, I still wanted to say my piece. I had confidence now and the comfort of safety. Jax would never let something happen to me. I finally had an opportunity to speak my mind and my truth without fear of setting Kent off. If he lost it, Jax would handle it.

“Kent,” I started, my voice more commanding than I had ever heard it. “You are going to leave and never come back here. You can see Luke once a month in a public place, and I have to be present. If you ever pull anything like this again—”

“Me and my entire MC are coming after your ass,” Jax finished for me. “And if I see your face around here again, I’m not going to take it easy on you.”

“Go fuck yourself,” Kent growled, getting to his feet and brushing dirt and grass from his jeans. “I’m not going to be kept away from my son.”

“You kept yourself away from him!” I yelled.

Both men turned to stare at me. Fury was building inside my chest, and I needed to get it out. “You had your chances, Kent. I gave you hundreds of them. I pleaded with you to stop drinking, and I told you what would happen if you didn’t. I warned you for years before I finally had the nerve to get the hell away from you. You’re an angry drunk. You’re a mean father. And you never, ever treated me right. I deserve better than you and so does Luke, and I’m done lying to myself to keep you happy. You will never get me back. Not ever.”

Kent and Jax were both staring at me. Jax had a weird smirk on his lips, almost like he was impressed by me finally standing up for myself. His confidence in me felt really fucking good. I put my hands on my hips and straightened. “Go home, Kent. And try not to drink yourself to death. Luke is still going to need you in his life.”

I thought I was being more than fair. I thought Kent would see the reason and the mercy in what I was offering him.

But when his hands balled into fists and his sneer shifted from me to Jax, I knew how wrong I had been.

“Kent, don’t!” I shrieked.

But it was too late.

Kent had snapped. His rage gave him tunnel vision, and at the end of that tunnel was Jax.

Kent buried one fist in Jax’s side, who grunted with the impact and staggered back a step. I took a step out onto the grass. Jax held his ribs and let out a fierce snarl that froze me in place. I retreated back to the pavement and watched, body shaking with nerves, as Kent wound back to strike again.

Jax was too fast and too angry to be caught unaware again. He slipped by Kent’s fist, which had been barrelling toward his face, and dealt my ex three quick punches to the gut that dropped him to his knees. Once he was down, Jax knocked him flat on his back with a strike to the jaw and pressed a boot to Kent’s chest.

He leaned over and the two of them exchanged words I couldn’t hear. A few seconds later, Jax lifted his foot and Kent rolled to the side. He scrambled a few feet across the grass, staggered to his feet, and then jogged over to the sidewalk where his Dodge Charger was parked. He shot me a dark look before getting into the car and driving away.

I ran across the grass to Jax and threw my arms around his shoulders. He wrapped his arms around my waist and held me to him as I cried against him. “Thank you,” I sobbed.

He kissed the side of my head and then released me to cup my cheeks in both hands. He looked me straight in the eyes. “You swear he didn’t lay a hand on you? Or Luke or Kim?”

“I swear. He didn’t hurt us. He just terrorized us all night while he got piss drunk. I don’t know what would have happened if you didn’t come. I was so scared.”

“I’ve got you,” Jax said, his voice soothing and soft. “You’re all right. Everything is all right. Come on, let’s get you inside away from all these assholes who wanted a show.”

I nodded as he wrapped an arm around my shoulders and held me to his side as we walked back up the path and steps. A crowd had gathered in the foyer, and the man in the robe opened the door for us. Jax thanked him with a nod and steered me through the throng of apartment residents toward the elevator. We got on, and I started sobbing again as soon as the doors closed and we were alone.

Jax let me cry. He hugged me close as I sobbed and rested his chin on my head. He didn’t say anything. He just let me grieve until the doors opened, and then I was able to pull myself back together.

Still tucked under his arm, we returned to Kim’s apartment to find her and Luke still curled up in the corner of the sofa. When they saw me come in through the kitchen archway, both of them launched off the sofa and ran to me. Luke wrapped his arms around my legs, and my sister raced by me to hug Jax, who stood awkwardly in place for a moment before Kim apologized and stepped back, wiping the tears from under her eyes.

“It’s okay,” Jax said.

I crouched down in front of Luke and hugged him tightly. “Everything is fine now. We’re all safe. Are you okay?” I held his face in my hands.

Luke’s bottom lip trembled, but he nodded.

I hugged him again and kissed his cheek. “You’re such a good boy.”

There were a dozen things I felt I needed to do in that moment. I needed to feed my son. He needed to eat. He also needed to sleep. So did I, and so did Kim. Now that the danger was gone, I was acutely aware of how hungry and exhausted I was. I had been up all night long, sitting in fear, worrying for hours that Kent was going to hurt my family.

Now that the threat was gone, I was afraid I wouldn’t have the strength to even stand up.

But there were other things I needed to do. Primarily, I had to introduce Luke to Jax. I didn’t want to wait and do it later. I wanted to get it over with and show Luke that Jax wasn’t someone he had to be afraid of. He was a friend. Someone to be trusted.

I looked up over my shoulder at Jax and saw his hand resting on his ribs.

Somehow, I stood. “Are you hurt?”

Jax shook his head, and his hand fell from his side. “No. I’m fine.”

“You’re sure?” I didn’t believe him. I had seen it when Kent hit him.

But Jax smiled, and the softness of his eyes put my mind at ease. “You and I both know I’ve seen worse.

I couldn’t argue with that. Jax’s lifestyle put him right smack dab in the middle of fights that were much worse than anything Kent could deliver.

Much worse.