Chapter 2 - Bonding
Vey sorry this took me forever, seriously the show is sooo good that its hard to trump it! So i apologize if this isnt very good...it def isnt as a result of a lack of inspiration.:)
Chapter 2Courtney curled her toes into the smooth white sand, as the cool breeze whipped around her, wrapping her sarong around her legs. The sun was setting beautifully into the ocean; she had never seen anything more beautiful. She looked around for any sign of Jax, but he was no where in sight.
"'Where the heck is he?" she muttered to herself.
After the little episode this afternoon, she had given the silent treatment all day, declined his offer of a candle-lit dinner, and balked at his offer of a "long walk on the beach", seriously, how much more cliché, could he get?
It infuriated her even more, when he gave her that you-know-you-want-to smile of his, and laughed her protests off as he wandered out on his own, seemingly unaffected by her rejection. After stewing in her anger, and conjuring up numerous scenarios for a clean yet painful death for Jax for about an hour, she decided to settle down with a nice book and enjoy a nice quiet evening. Eventually, she admitted to herself that the book was boring, the quiet was driving her crazy, and she did miss the laughter and excitement Jax brought with him. She decided to wander aimlessly on the beach, and maybe shell "accidentally" bump into Jax, however it appeared that had proved futile as well.
With resignation and frustration, she started back towards the house, muttering to herself angrily on how Jax could just disappear, sure she told him to get lost, but she didn't actually think he would get lost!
Sounds of uninhibited laughter coming from behind a cluster of trees to her right broke into her reverie, apparently through her haze she had neglected to notice a small group of people clustered around a small fire on the beach.
The sight that confronted her on her arrival shook Courtney to her core. Jax sat surrounded by about seven eager young children, eyes fixated on him, drinking in his every word. On his lap sat a little girl of about five, her dark curly head resting on his chest, with her thumb in her mouth. As he related a tale of one of his many adventures, she watched in awe as their eyes grew wide with excitement and anticipation, Jax's words taking them to places they had only dreamt of.
He noticed her presence, and winked at her, then proceeded to wrap up his tale, then shooing the reluctant and protesting children home, declaring it way past their bed time. He placed a tender kiss on the head of the little one on his lap; as he set her down to follow her brothers and sisters.
Once the children left, Courtney took a seat beside him on the log he had been sitting on.
'I see you decided to leave the house after all" he said with a smile. Courtney laughed and turned to face him.
"You were very good with them. They didn't even realize I was there, how did you do that?"
"Learnt from the best; my father, also, I do this every time I visit her, the children love it, so do I. A lot of them never get to leave this Island you know? I like to bring a little bit of the world to them; I guess I've gotten used to it. It also appears they find my company far more appealing than some do." He said teasingly
The lack of a witty comeback shocked him, and then he realized that eyes were glistening with tears. He placed a hand softly on her back
"What's wrong Courtney? Did I say something wrong?" he inquired softly. She shook her head and smiled through her tears to reassure him
"It's just...I remember when I was a kid, my mother would drag me to a family reunion at my grandmas every summer, I don't know why, she hated her whole family. But, anyways, wed go down to Virginia, and my whole family would be there. It was horrible, they're all so much alike, and they all hate each other. There'd be hours of fighting and arguing, and I always felt so different from all the kids. They'd all known each other so long that I was kinda like an outsider you know? Anyways, I hated it, but the last night, my grandma would gather all us kids around, and shed tell us stories of when she was little, and all the amazing things she went through. And just for that one moment, we were a family, bound together by these stories. I promised myself then, that I would carry on that tradition with my own kids. I always imagined that id share times like these with my family you know? me and my husband, and our kids, on the beach, sitting around a warm fire, sharing stories. Watching you just brought back those feelings and memories that's all".
A solitary tear stole its way down her cheek, and she quickly brushed it away.
"I'm such a mess!" she proclaimed
"No...No you're not" Jax said, as he rubbed her back slowly "Look, I'm sure there's a ;pt of joy in having kids of your own, but the bond between parents and their children isn't borne out of biology, its made from unconditional love, and kindness, and heart, and you have all those things Courtney, any child will be lucky to have you as their mother."
Courtney smiled and placed her palm softly against his smooth cheek and whispered softly
"You'd make an amazing father too".
Jax lowered his head slowly till he felt his lips touch hers; smooth and soft. His kiss was gentle yet probing, and sent chills down her spine, her breath caught in her chest and she responded with ardent fervor, as she ran her fingers through his hair. His arms snaked behind her and pulled her closer against him, till she was virtually sitting his lap crushed against his hard chest; she could feel his heart beating against hers.
A panicked voice coming towards them broke through the moment, and jarred them reluctantly from each other, Courtney nervously scooted off his lap in embarrassment and rubbed her palms nervously against each other. Jamal, a steward from the estate came into view, panting breathlessly.
"Ma'am, a lady called for you...Carly...she was crying, she said you had to come home right away....she said she's scared, and she needs you! She said I had to deliver the message right away ma'am"
A familiar jolt of panic cut through Courtney like a knife as both she and Jax hurried behind Jamal to the estate, she hoped it was simply a case of Carly overreacting as usual, but she felt a sinking unsettling feeling in the pit of her stomach that just won't go away
Carly threw back another glass of scotch, and slammed the glass on Courtney's kitchen table, tears cascading down her cheeks unabashedly. She'd be damned if shed let Sam and her baby ruin the family she had fought so hard to keep together, no, shed die first