CHAPTER FOUR

Friday afternoons always dragged by. The last two hours and seemed like an eternity. Jax thrummed his fingers on the desk and stared at the clock. Tik. Tok. Tik. Tok. He started leaning out of his seat. Only another couple of seconds and…..

RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGG!

The students flew out of the out of their desks like bees from a hive. Jax was no different. He was obligated to working a few hours at the garage this afternoon and maybe run some errands for his mom but after that the weekend was his. He'd debated on asking Opie if he wanted to get blitzed tonight but after he'd seen him duck out of class earlier in the day, Jax figured he'd probably already done that with his dad and the rest of the club last night when Jax had taken off. Oh well, I'll give him a few hours before I hassle him, Jax thought. He made a quick pit stop at his locker to grab his bag and practically ran to the parking lot. When he reached his bike, he threw his leg over the late model Harley and sat down on the worn-in leather seat. He'd just reached back to grab his helmet when he saw Tara Knowles filter out the front entryway.

Ever since he'd seen her this morning in the parking lot he couldn't keep his eyes off her. It was a good thing he'd worn his baggy jeans today. The way her long legs seemed to go on forever in those shorts or the way her shirt hugged her curves. That flannel wasn't hiding anything. Her hair was pulled up in just the right way and it made her jawline sharper, her eyes seemed brighter. If she had makeup on he couldn't tell. She never went out of her way to get his attention like so many other girls did. Most of the time, she seemed to be drifting around the school in her own little world, oblivious to all the noise and drama around her. He'd been trying to find ways to talk to her all day, helping her when she dropped her books (which he never did) or threatening to bust a kids jaw if he didn't switch seats with him in English so he could be her partner. She was attractive in a way he had never noticed before. She was smart. She was funny. She was beautiful. She was a mystery. And she did it all effortlessly.

He had to have her.

As she started crossing the parking lot, Jax realized he had never wanted a girl so bad in his entire life. And for the first time, he had no idea how to approach her either. Sure he could smile and make her blush. But she was so smart and so introverted that he didn't have the first clue as to what she was interested in or how to 'really' talk to her. The only thing he knew much about was motorcycles and some other not-so-legal stuff. He'd never had to "try" to get a girl before. Most of the girls that crossed his path never really had any substance, so it wasn't required. But Tara was different. Jax was always so confident with girls that the frustration and uncertainty of how to handle her was driving him crazy with desire. He didn't know much about her but he knew she wasn't the "hit and run" type. He knew that if he wanted her, he was going to have to work for her. She was the type of girl that was a package deal, a girl that didn't mess around and probably shot for the long haul. And although he didn't know if that was what he was looking for, he also knew it was too late to turn back now.

As Tara started getting closer, Jax stood up and got off his bike. He was right about to call out to her when all of a sudden Cindy McAllister was standing right in front of him.

"Hey Jax," she smiled coyly and played with her long blonde hair, "you think you could give me a ride home?"

He looked around her to see Tara glance his way and then back to the ground. He couldn't read the look on her face but this was not what he wanted.

"Uh, sorry Cindy. I'm a bit busy. I've got to go talk to somebody quick," he said without looking at her.

"That's ok… I can wait."

Now Jax did look at her. She was a very pretty girl; brown eyes, long blonde hair, clothes that were showing enough to get any guys attention. But he'd seen a thousand girls like her before. They practically sold them in stores in California. In fact, a lot of porn stores did. She wasn't what he was looking for and apparently she hadn't caught the hint. He looked back behind her and saw Tara had already passed him and was almost to the road.

"No, really Cindy. I've gotta go. Sorry…"

Without waiting to hear her protest, Jax took off across the parking lot, his bookbag slapping across his back with every step.

"Hey Tara!" he called, "Wait up!"

She had just made it to the sidewalk as she turned to see who'd said her name. He saw the surprised flick of her eyebrows when she saw him running her way and he couldn't help but think of how cute she looked standing there with the sun in her hair.

"Hey," he smiled while catching his breath from his impromptu sprint. "How was the rest of your day?"

She responded with a wide surprised smile, "It was ok. How was yours?"

God, she was beautiful.

"It went..." he laughed and started walking down the sidewalk where she'd been heading. She followed his lead and they had walked a good twenty feet or so before he came up with something else to say. "So, you have any fun plans for the weekend?"

She laughed, "No…not really."

"You gonna to go to the football game tonight?" Football? What the fuck, Teller?

"No. I never really know what to do at those things."

Thank God… "Me either."

They fell into another awkward silence. Why was talking to this girl so difficult? Jax could feel the wind rustling his hair as they stepped off the pavement to cross the street. He chanced a quick look at Tara and saw the wind was playing with her hair the same way. He wondered how soft if would feel under his fingers. What he wouldn't give to reach out and touch it. The sun was still pretty high but the shadows of the trees danced across the sidewalk as they stepped under their branches.

"So what DO you do for fun, Tara?" he asked. It was the only thing coming to mind that seemed on topic.

"Ohhhh….not much. I mostly stay home and read or study. Sometimes I go for walks" She glanced over and must have seen the quizzical look on his face. "I don't really have any friends."

The corner of her lip quirked up but her eyes focused on the ground. The comment took him a bit by surprise, although thinking about it, maybe it shouldn't have. She did seem to be alone an awful lot. In fact, he wasn't really sure that he ever saw her talking to people outside of class.

"Well this town is full of losers anyway so you're probably better for it," he offered with a shy smile. Tara glanced up long enough to smile back. She didn't say anything at first but he could sense the thanks in her eyes. They walked further down the street and rounded a corner. It was a quiet neighborhood and although Jax had lived in Charming his whole life, he wasn't sure if he'd ever ventured around this area before. It was nice.

"What about you, Jax?" she said with a bold, mischievous look that made her eyes sparkle. "What do you do for fun?"

He had to laugh, "Ha! Well… nothing too crazy." That's a lie, he thought. "but Opie and I will party with the club members sometimes, sometimes by ourselves, haha…I like to take my motorcycle for rides in the country though. I like the fresh air and the freedom, just getting out of the city for awhile. Sometimes I'll go with Opie or my stepdad, but a lot of times by myself. You should come for a ride with me sometime."

Holy shit, Teller! Where did that come from? Apparently Tara was just as surprised because her eyes shot up from the ground to look at his face. He couldn't help the giant grin spreading across his face.

"Are you…?" she started. But whatever she was going to say, he saw her visibly change her mind with a slight shake of her head, "Umm, yeah, maybe." She smiled again, "That might be kinda neat. I've never ridden on a motorcycle before."

"Really? Never?" He was ready to turn and sweep her away to his ride when he remembered he'd been so anxious to talk to her that he'd left it back at the school, which reminded him he'd have to start paying more attention to where he was if he was going to get back without getting lost. "Well, I'd love to be your first," he smiled. Oh my God, did you really just say that?! Tara cocked an eyebrow at him with a devilish smile Jax didn't even know she had in her. "Motorcycle ride! Hahaha! I'm sorry! Wow, didn't mean to make that awkward!"

Tara just shook her head and laughed. She stopped suddenly and said, "Well this is my house."

Jax looked up at the simple single story house and wished she'd lived farther away.

"Oh. Well, cool. Hey, if you wanted to hang out sometime this weekend or talk about that paper or something, I don't have to work. Well, I mean, I gotta work for a bit tonight but after that I'm free whenever." Oh my God, I'm fumbling like an idiot…there's no way she's…

"Sure."

Now it was Jax's turn to be shocked, "Really?"

"Yeah, why not? I mean you were nice enough to walk me home," she smiled.

"Yeah, I guess I did," he grinned.

Tara slid her bag off her shoulder and crouched down to the ground to open it up and dig for something. She pulled out a purple notebook and a pen. "Here," she said starting to quickly write something down, "since you seem like you're busier than I am, this is the number for my house. I'm usually home so if you want to do something just give me a call."

She ripped out the sheet of paper and stood up to hand him her number with the notebook still in hand.

Taking the paper from hand, he said, "Cool. Hey, how about I give you my number too? Just in case, ya know, you get bored or want to get a hold of me at all."

Tara smiled back at him and handed him her notebook and pen, "Sure. Why not?"

Jax had no idea what he was doing…he'd never given a girl his phone number before. He always just collected them. But this girl had his head spinning. It was like a whole new ballgame. You'd think he'd never talked to a girl before. He scrawled out his phone number on another page and signed his name with a smile, making himself look a lot braver than he felt. He put the pen on top of the notebook and started to hand it back.

One second he was holding it out to her and the next he felt her fingers brush against his….

All of a sudden there was FIRE in his veins! He could feel the blood surge through his body and electricity race across his skin! His eyes shot open wide and one look at Tara and he knew she'd felt it too. Her eyes were just as wide, eyebrows raised, jaw slightly dropped open, and in that instant of a second both of their breathing had quickened. What was happening? They stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity, her hazel eyes and dark brown hair against her flawless porcelain skin, her chest rising and falling with every breath, it was all he could see…it took everything he had not to drop the stupid notebook and pull her into his arms, to kiss those full lips and bury his hands in her hair. He wanted her. He wanted her BAD. If he hadn't been frozen in place, he might have tried to take her right there on the front lawn. Jax could SEE it in his head, laying her in the grass… sliding his hand under her shirt… grinding his hips between her legs… pressing his face against hers and hearing her moaning into his ear... Tara must have seen it too because all of a sudden she pulled her hand away, the blush was rising in her cheeks. She took a step or two back. No, no, he thought, not away. Come toward me… He felt like an animal, a tiger full of a hunger that was aching in every pore of his body. He wanted to touch her again…

"Jax," her voice was heavy and deeper than it had been a moment ago. It sounded incredibly sexy and hearing his name only heightened his desire. "I should really …uh…get going inside. I've got a ton of homework." She was fumbling through her words as she backed away and it only turned Jax on more. Her eyes were locked on his…He took a step toward her, his heart still racing. "But," she said taking another step back, "if you want to give me a call or stop by later or something, I'll be here."

"Tara…"

"I'll talk to you later, Jax…" She broke her gaze as she turned and ran to the front door.

It must have been locked though because suddenly she was fumbling for her keys. She'd left her bag by his feet. Jax reached down to grab it and slowly approached her from behind while she tried fruitlessly to fit the key into the lock with her shaking hands. He was right behind her and could hear the way her breath was quick and ragged in her throat. He dropped the bag at her feet. His heart thundered in his chest as he reached around her, putting one hand on the door frame to brace himself and another over her hand to steady it as they slowly eased the key into the lock; a simple motion that seemed to promise so much more. Her breathing caused her back to pulse up against his chest and her ponytail brush across his lips. This was the most erotic thing he'd ever experienced and all they had done was unlock a door. Jax could feel his body betraying him as his erection started pressing against the front of his jeans. He knew he had to back away. He knew this couldn't happen. Not now. Not so soon. For once in his life, Jax knew he had to wait even though everything in his body was screaming for him to take what he wanted, just like he always did. He allowed himself a moment longer to lean into her back and subtly breathe in the flowery scent of her hair before letting go of her hand and pulling himself away. He took a few steps back and Tara slowly turned around to look up at him, her chest rising and falling with each shallow breath. Leaning against the doorframe with her eyes open wide, she was suddenly everything he had ever wanted.

"I'll get a hold of you later, Tara. Ok?" His voice sounded husky to his own ears, thick with desire. Tara nodded silently. Her hazel eyes were no longer light and twinkling but dark and burning. Jax had to take another step back. He was too close to the fire, this inferno that had erupted from thin air. Another step back, his eyes never leaving hers…she reached up behind her to place her hand on the doorknob. "Let me know if you need anything," he added for no particular reason.

"Ok," she answered, her voice little more than a whisper.

Jax reached down to grab his backpack he hadn't remembered dropping, their eyes still locked together. Not knowing what else to say, he drank in one last image of the beautiful, timid girl with wide exotic eyes before turning back to the way he'd came and starting down the street. He tried to keep his eyes straight ahead but he'd only made it a short distance before turning back. It was just in time to see her long legs disappear through the doorway. His manhood ached with every step. You're going the wrong way, it seemed to say. Looking back ahead, he realized he was going to get his ass chewed for being gone so long. He was late for work. He was really late for work. Clay was going to be PISSED. But he didn't care. Let him be pissed. It was Friday afternoon, his senses were on fire, and so far as work or his stepdad were concerned, he just didn't fucking care…He'd work late if he had to. All he knew was he had to see her again.

And soon.