Britt gathered her long back hair, twisting it upwards, putting her light brown jawclip in her hair to hold the updo in place.

The air conditioner is busted in the warehouse. Yeah, they had the windows open, but it's nothing like air conditioning. You never know how convenient ac is until it's gone. It felt like it was 90 degrees in there.

She pushed open the doors of Cara Cara , feeling a brisk breeze hit her with an unlit cigarette in between her teeth.

When she made it outside, Melanie was sitting on top of the picnic table next to the parking lot .

"Hey, what brings you back to your former neck of the woods?"

"I really need to vent to my best friend," I replied in a shaky voice.

Britt knew that tone. That was the tone where Mel was about to break down and cry her fucking eyes out.

"Mel, what's going on? What happened?"

"Jax and the club got arrested last night. It's a three million dollar bail to get them all out."

" Holy shit, three million dollars! Who the fuck has money like that lying around. I have never even heard of someone's bail set that high," Britt walked back and forth in front of the picnic table.

"Going in armed to take out a man whose been making their lives miserable at a god damn christian dinner tends to set a bail that high."

"What?"

"Yeah. The asshole set them up. "

I reached into the front zipper of my purse, pulling out a half empty pack of smokes and my bright yellow lighter.

"I don't know what the hell I'm going to do, Britt. I already did the math. We could sell everything we own and empty our bank accounts and still would be nowhere near three million dollars."

I placed a cigarette between the front of my teeth, trying to get the damn lighter to work.

"Here."

Britt reached into her back pocket, tossing me her own lighter.

"Thanks," I lit my cigarette, tossing it back to her.

"I was thinking I could work for a couple of days in front of the camera. Get some money that way."

"No Mel."

"Britt trust me, I hate the idea too, but what other choice do I have? It's either this or rob a bank. With my set of skills, I wouldn't even make it ten feet away from the fuckin' bank before cops slap a pair of cuffs on me."

"Girl, I know you're worried about your guy. Your heart is in the right place with you willing to do whatever it takes to get him out. But, you have to look at the bigger picture here. You swore to Jax you were out of the porn biz and you accepted his real proposal. You shouldn't lay down with a man who isn't your fiance. You would never forgive yourself and you would hurt a man who has been in your life since you were a kid."

My eyes started to water under my oversized black sunglasses.

"You're right. I'm just so fucking lost, Britt. Old ladies aren't supposed to fall apart this easily. I'm a sad excuse for one."

Tears fell down both my cheeks, my breathing becoming uneven.

Britt sat down next to me, bringing me into a tight hug.

"You're not a sad excuse for an old lady, Mel. You're new to the mc world. You might have been around the life for a long time, but you never actually lived in it. Like anything else, it takes time to get used to. Don't let this break you. You should go see Jax at county. It might put you at ease seeing he's okay."

"That's true."

"I got a couple grand in the bank, Mel. "

"Britt, you're saving that money for your dream house. I can't ask you to hand that money over."

"I could always find another dream house. This seems more important than a fucking house, Mel. Think of it as an early wedding present for you and Jax."

"Britt.."

"It's not up for discussion. I'm going to go get dressed and go by the bank. "

Jax was escorted by a guard to the visitation room.

The guard looked in the small window, letting out a loud whistle that echoed throughout the long hallway.

"You got a fine piece of ass, Teller."

Jax shot him a glare, ready to respond.

"You got something you'd like to say?," the guard threatened.

Jax shook his head.

"No."

"I thought so. You have five minutes."

The guard opened the door, causing me to stand up from the table.

The moment Jax's shackles were unlocked and removed from his hands, I ran into his arms.

"Hey darlin'," he whispered in my ear, giving me a kiss against the side of my head.

"Hi."

I pulled out of our embrace, planting a heated kiss on his lips. Jax reciprocated, his skillful tongue grazing the top of mine.

I seperated my mouth from his, keeping my arms around his neck.

"I had to see you. I needed to make sure you were still in one piece," my fingers playing with the ends of his long soft blonde locks.

"I'm glad you did. "

"How are the rest of the guys?"

He let out a weary sigh.

"Juice is in the infirmary. He was stabbed in the yard about an hour ago."

"Oh my god. What about everyone else?"

"The rest of us are okay."

"Baby, I'm going to get you out of here. Gemma and I are pulling the money together."

"You going back in front of the camera," he asked with worry in his eyes.

"No. I thought about it, but I'm not doing it. I made you a promise. I'm only yours."

"I love the sound of that."

I smiled, leaning in for another kiss. The guard came in, pulling Jax backwards by the fabric of his shirt.

"Time's up, lovebirds."

"You said five minutes."

"Your five minutes is up. Time to say goodbye."

Jax and I shot an angry glare at the guard as he started putting Jax's shackles back on.

I pushed the guard out of the way, giving him one more kiss before he left the room.

"I love you. Please be careful."

"I will. I love you. Give our boy a kiss for me."

Gemma walked into the TM office, carrying her purse in one hand while she was carrying Abel's carseat in the other.

I got up from the couch, taking the carseat from her, setting it on the couch, removing Abel from the seat.

"Hey, I've tried calling you. Did you get any of my messages?", I asked.

"Yeah, sorry. I left my phone in the truck. I might have found the solution to our current money problem."

"Really? Who?"

"Elliot Oswald."

"Elliot Oswald? As in the Elliot Oswald?," I sat back down on the couch, holding Abel close to me.

"The one and only. Time will only tell if he will come through."

I nodded, adjusting Abel's onesie.

"How are you holding up, sweetheart?"

"Honestly, I'm scared shitless. You?"

"You have no idea."

"You seem to be holding it together a hell of a lot better than me."

"Years of practice, Mel. You'll see."

"I visited Jax earlier. "

"How are they?", Gemma sat down next to me.

"Juice was stabbed. The rest of them are still standing."

"Jesus Christ. You should get the baby home. I'll lock up here."

" I'll wait until you're finished up here. I'll give you a ride to your place. You should pack a bag and stay over at our house for a bit. I don't want you to be alone, Gem."

"Our house.. You and Jax are finally together. It took you two long enough. Just a heads up, I want more grandbabies eventually."

"Noted."

"I'm glad he's with you, Mel. You're good for him."

A knock on the office door put our conversation on hold.

"Sorry to interrupt. I just wanted you two to know, I posted the bail about twenty minutes ago. They should be home within the hour," Elliot stated, adjusting the suit he was wearing.

Gemma and I stood to our feet at the same time.

" Thank you, Elliot."

"Really, thank you so much," I smiled with tears in my eyes.

"You should thank Tristan."

I looked over at Gemma with a bewildered expression. Who was Tristan and what did Gemma do for her?

"You hear that, Abel? Daddy's coming home," I beamed, bouncing Abel lightly on my side.

"Just keep them out of trouble until the hearing, okay?"

"I'll tie them to the god damn lift if I have to," Gemma replied, getting a light laugh from Elliot.

Gemma and I waited outside for the transport van to arrive while Abel was asleep in her office.

The van pulled up next to the clubhouse. A beaten Clay and the rest of the club followed him inside of the clubhouse, each one of them with sullen expressions on their faces.

An equally beaten Jax walked past the both of us, heading into the garage, shutting the door behind him.

I was ready to go after him when Gemma gripped my wrist.

"He needs to be alone for a while, baby."

Three days later:

"Has he said anything to you," I asked my mother, setting Jax's mac and cheese cheeseburger on the plate in front of me.

"Nope. He hasn't said a word."

"I can't take the silence anymore," I picked up his plate, opening the door to the garage.

"Hey."

"Hi," he continued to focus on tuning his bike.

"I made dinner. Your favorite, mac and cheese cheeseburger. I took notes from the food network. I've already had mine, and let me tell you, almost better than sex."

A small grin reached his mouth, still not looking up at me.

I turned around, about to go back inside.

Do it, Mel. Say what's on your mind.

I turned back around, going down the stairs. I set his plate down on the table next to his tool box and took the tool he was currently using out of his hand, throwing it into the tool box, getting him to finally look at me.

"I don't know exactly what happened Jax, but I can see you're hurting not only physically, but emotionally. I'm not saying you have to open up to me today. I want you to know that you can come to me. Whatever you decide to tell me stays between the two of us. I can see shit with the club is upside down. A stranger can see that. But, I will do my best to always be the one thing in your life that is right side up, you hear me?"

He didn't say anything. He took my hand in his, leading the way up the stairs.

"What about your food?"

He shut off the light in the garage.

"Close the door behind you, Mel."

I nodded, doing what was asked of me.

We both walked past my mom in the kitchen, down the hallway to our bedroom. Jax let go of my hand, locking the bedroom door once it was shut.

He charged at me, giving me a mind numbing kiss.

"Jax, I smell like a barbecue grill. I should take a shower first before we do this. Maybe put something nice on," I stated in between kisses.

"What's the point? It'll be coming off anyway."