16
Chapter 150 Happy Ending or Not, It's the End
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Jax walked through the door and bolted it behind him before giving Ava a kiss. It felt so normal. Ava couldn't believe he was acting like everything was fine. It didn't make sense.
"How did your meeting go?" she asked. She could pretend too.
"Juice is close to useless. He's so into his wedding and the baby."
"I'm glad he is going to marry Suzy and be a father to his baby."
"I have a surprise for you," Jax said with a big smile. Ava looked at him knowing this had to be the moment when he was telling her he was leaving her. How could he smile about it? She felt a stir of hate.
"What's that?" she asked. Her face felt numb maybe this was what Botox was like.
"I am treating you and Donna to a spa day tomorrow. Opie will take both of you into San Francisco and pick you up. You leave at 10 and get back around 4."
Ava got it then. Jax was going to pack up and leave while she was at the spa. That might be best. She didn't think she could deal with a big emotional scene. Maybe he would just leave the check and a note. There wasn't any point in asking him why because asking why implied there was some reason he could give that she could fix or that he had some valid reason for leaving her. If there was something she could fix surely he would have told her that. And there was no valid reason he could possibly have for leaving her unless he decided that he could never love her and didn't want to be with a woman he didn't love. That might be a valid reason, but it would hurt like hell to hear it.
Jax went to take a shower and change for bed. That was all part of their usual pattern. She was wearing a purple knee length T-shirt that she wore as a nightgown. For a moment, she wondered if wearing sexier clothing to bed would have made a difference. She knew she was losing her mind a little to think that something that trivial would have made a difference.
After his shower, Jax offered to make her dessert. She turned down his offer of ice cream and cookies. She couldn't imagine ever eating again.
They went to bed, streamed some TV and had sex. Ava thought about telling him "no". It didn't matter at this point. He was leaving her, but the sad truth was she wanted to be with him one last time so she could press it into her memory. Her body enjoyed it, but her mind kept repeating that this was the last time. At best, it was bittersweet.
After a sleepless night, she got ready for her spa trip that she didn't want, but it would be easier if Jax just left and there wasn't a big dramatic scene between them. At least she wouldn't have to worry about crying in front of him. She wasn't the kind to resort to physical violence other than a slap. She might slap him. That might be satisfying but she preferred that he left her a note and leave.
"How are you spending the day?" Ava asked Jax. He was eating cereal at the kitchen table.
"We're all going over to help Juice with the apartment renovation so he and Suzy can move in next week."
Ava looked into Jax's blue eyes struck by how smoothly he lied. Suzy told her that she and Juice were going to her family's home to spend the weekend. His lie only confirmed what she knew that he was using her time away from him to leave.
Ava left with Donna and Opie looking back at the house she'd shared so happily with Jax knowing that in a few hours everything was going to change. Donna had never been to a spa and was delighted by Jax's gift.
Ava liked Donna; she'd been an invaluable asset helping her navigate the MC world. And Donna was a kind person. It was nice to make genuine friends who weren't competitive, catty and jealous. Of course her friendship with Donna and Suzy would be over when she and Jax split, not because she thought the women wouldn't want her as a friend anymore, but because she couldn't bear to hear even in passing the mention of Jax's name.
At least Ava didn't have to worry about making conversation. Donna was bubbly and excited talking almost non-stop on the drive into San Francisco. Ava was glad she could just ask questions here and there and make comments.
Opie told them he would be waiting when they were finished at the spa and not to wait outside. The once beautiful city by the Bay had turned into a homeless haven and shooting gallery where drugs were openly bought and used on the streets. The wise city leaders defunded the police exacerbating the situation causing crime to hit all time highs. It was a crime paradise—for hard-working residents not so much. Opie didn't want to take any chances with the women's safety.
Time flies with fun and drags with misery. For Ava, the spa visit dragged into what felt like months or years. She put on a happy face so she didn't ruin the spa experience for Donna who was enjoying every pampering second. Donna was especially excited because Piney was taking the kids for the night and Opie was taking her out for a romantic dinner. She shared that she and Opie were hoping to add to their family.
At last the hellish spa day was over and they returned to Charming. Ava got out of the SUV. Jax's bike wasn't parked outside. It was possible it was parked in the garage or he was gone. She was hoping he was gone because she didn't want to face him. Her taste for emotional drama only went as far as books, movies and TV.
Ava unlocked the door. The doors were always kept locked—all part of Jax's security protocols. He was there wearing jeans, a SAMCRO T-shirt and socks no shoes like it was a normal day at home.
Despite the spa's best attempts to relax her, Ava was tense. She couldn't stand waiting for him to tell her. It was better to get it over with and the sooner the better. She couldn't pretend anymore.
"Did you have a nice time at the spa?" Jax asked.
"Donna enjoyed it," she said stiffly.
Jax looked at Ava and frowned. He expected her to be happy and relaxed.
"Is something wrong?"
"Suzy and Juice went to her family's home today, so I know you lied. I was going to do laundry yesterday when I found the check to me in your jeans pocket. I know you're leaving and divorcing me."
Jax sucked in his breath. All his plans were falling to pieces. This wasn't at all how he planned to tell her.
Ava's eyes filled with tears. She bit her lip willing herself not to ugly cry, not that it really mattered now.
"Ava."
She turned her back on him.
"Just go." She couldn't look at him anymore. Her composure was slipping and she needed him to leave. She would fall apart then.
He took her by the shoulders and turned her to face him.
"I'm not going anywhere. I'm not leaving you. I love you."
"You love me?" she asked softly.
"Do you know what today is?"
"It's Saturday."
"It's our anniversary."
"I didn't know the date," Ava said Remembering the day of her wedding and how she'd so hated the idea of marrying Jax, she'd deliberately not remembered their anniversary. She knew they were married the first week of October but that's all she remembered.
"I wanted to do this on our anniversary. I got the cashier's check from my bank, but I didn't have time to take it to your bank until today. I took it to your bank and deposited it. With Nick's help, I wrote a revocation of our prenup surrendering all my rights to your inheritance. Since I'm the only one who benefited, you didn't need to be part of it. It's properly signed and notarized. There's a copy of it on your desk with the receipt from the check I put in your account. Your father has the sealed original in his safe. I don't want to be a bought and paid for husband. I'm with you because it's where I want to be."
Tears streamed down Ava's face. The emotion of the moment was too much for her. She thought she was losing Jax and instead not only was he staying with her, he was staying with her because he wanted to be with her.
Jax wrapped his arms around Ava so she could rest her cheek against his chest. He stroked her hair and felt his T shirt grow wet with her tears. After a few moments, she was calm again. She lifted her head so she could look at him. He gently wiped away her tears with the tips of his fingers.
"I lied to you because I spent the day cleaning the house, making dinner and decorating."
"Decorating?" Ava asked puzzled. She hadn't seen any decorations.
"I'll show you in a minute. Don't you have something you want to say to me?"
The mischievous sparkle was back in Ava's eyes.
"Like what?" she teased.
"How you feel about me."
"Well, I like you a lot."
"Uh-huh. That's why you looked so heartbroken when you thought I was leaving you."
"It was awful when I found the check and I thought you were leaving me."
"Say the words," Jax demanded.
"I love you."
He lowered his head and gave her a very unHallmark-like kiss their bodies pressed tight against each other.
"Let's go sit down," he said, his arm around her waist as he led her into the living room. "I do have something to tell you."
Ava's heart began to beat faster. She hoped that after the amazing good news that he loved her and was staying with her this wasn't bad news.
After they were seated together on the sofa, he turned to face her. He decided that he had to tell her because he wanted to minimize the secrets between them.
"After that thing with Zobelle, it made me a little crazy. When you were missing and we were trying to find you, that's when I realized I was in love with you. If anything had happened to you, it would have been my fault."
"It would have been Zobelle's fault."
"No," he said shaking his head. "It would have been on me. I started thinking that you would be better off and safer without me. I went to your father and told him that I was divorcing you because it was the only way to keep you safe. I think subconsciously, I wanted him to talk me out of it."
"What did he say?"
"He reamed me out. Told me that as an attorney he listens to lies and bullshit every day and that without a doubt that was the biggest load of poorly reasoned bullshit he's ever heard in his life."
Ava imagined her father saying that and laughed.
"He can be blunt."
"He is the smartest man I've ever met," Jax said honestly. "He told me that even if you were my ex-wife, you would always be in danger because you would always be associated with me. He also pointed out that if we weren't together you would be in more danger because I wouldn't be around to make sure you were safe.
"If you were on your own, I wouldn't know if you were with a guy that would abuse you or rape you. You could be attacked walking to your car after dinner or after a night at a club. I'd have no way of knowing if you were safe if I weren't in your life."
"He's right. I am safer with you."
"Yeah, but I am worry about you all the time," he confessed. He shut his eyes and remembered those frantic minutes when he thought Zobelle and his crew had Ava. "Your father told me that comes with loving someone. He said he felt the same way when you started to drive. He always worried about you getting into an accident or getting hurt when you were out," Jax paused.
"He really worried about me like that?"
"Yeah, he did. Told me it used to make him crazy and then he realized that he had to believe in you and in your ability to take care of yourself. He made me realize that I had to do that too. He said that if I kept thinking about the worst that could happen to you, I'd drive myself insane. You need to know that there is risk that comes attached to being with me."
"There's risk in everything. I worry about you on your bike especially after you almost got killed, but my dad's right. I had to let the fear go. You could have talked to me about this."
Jax smiled ruefully.
"I'm new to all this relationship stuff and I'm not great about talking about my feelings, but I'm working on it."
"You were bound to have a flaw somewhere," she teased.
"Come on, I've got more to show you."
He held his hand out to her, pulled her to her feet and led her into their formal dining room.
"Now I get the decorations," Ava said in awe.
The dining room table was set for dinner with small votive candles, but what took Ava's breath away was the more than a dozen bouquets of roses in various shades of purple from palest violet to deepest purple some arranged in gold vases and others in green vases. Jax was grinning from ear to ear pleased by Ava's awestruck reaction.
"This is just amazing," she said.
"I ordered the flowers a week ago and it took two deliveries to get all the flowers here."
"It's so beautiful."
"Your father is giving us an anniversary gift—a replay of our honeymoon. We leave for Hawaii in the morning. We're only spending a little over a week there."
"Can we go on a bike trip?" she asked eagerly.
"Of course. Maybe you'll take some Hula lessons I can watch and we'll get you a Hula outfit for home use."
She grinned at him
"I'd like that." She hesitated. She had an idea for him but she wasn't sure about mentioning it.
"What?"
"I know it's traumatic, so if you don't want to do it, I'll understand. Maybe I shouldn't even ask you . . ."
"Ask."
"Maybe you could dress up like when you were in prison with chains."
Jax frowned considering her request.
"Are you going to unchain me?"
She nodded.
"I don't know. You want to be alone with a very dangerous prisoner and then unchain him."
She nodded, her eyes wide with excitement.
He chuckled. "I'll do that for you. We'll order the costume tomorrow." Jax had a few fantasies of his own from back when he was locked up. He may not have liked Ava much when he first met her, but that didn't mean he didn't think about having sex with her.
She kissed him. "You're the best."
"Jeeves even booked us into the same hotel in Hawaii. We're going to New Orleans and we'll stay a couple of nights in the treehouse hotel we stayed at before. I thought we could go over to Texas too."
"Can we go to San Antonio and see Riverwalk?" Ava had read a series of romantic mysteries set on Riverwalk and had been eager to see it for herself.
"Yeah, we can go wherever we want. I thought we could also go to Key West. I've always wanted to see it. We've got plenty of time if you don't mind missing Halloween in Charming."
"I don't care as long as I'm with you," she said hugging him.
"I have a surprise waiting for you in the bedroom."
"Uh-huh. I bet you have."
Jax chuckled.
"It's not like that. Maybe later but not now."
He took her by the hand and led her into their bedroom.
It was stuffed with at least six large balloon bouquets of a mix of purple, gold and green balloons. A banner that read "Happy Anniversary" in gold stretched across the wall above their bed. In the center of the bed was a large box about the size for a large printer box wrapped in purple foil paper with a big gold metallic bow.
"You did so much and I didn't do anything for you," Ava said.
"I wanted to do this great big romantic gesture like in your books and movies."
"You are the best husband in the whole world," she said giving him a fierce hug.
"There might be one better," he protested modestly.
"There's just so much and we're leaving tomorrow. I want to dry one of the bouquets of flowers to always keep it but would you be OK if we took the rest of the flowers to St. Thomas so the nurses could give them to patients who don't get many visitors? I just feel bad about them dying without anyone to appreciate them."
"I didn't even think about them all dying. I think that's a great idea. I'll text Elliot and tell him we'll need to leave an hour early because it will take a couple of trips to bring all the flowers."
"About the balloons. Maybe we could give some to Donna and Opie's kids."
"Ope helped me get the balloons home. He got some for the kids already. We could take the balloons to the hospital for the kids."
"Thank you. It's perfect and we won't have the bodies of dead balloons on the floor when we get back."
Jax smiled at the imagery.
"Present time."
Ava had no idea what such a big box could hold. There wasn't anything that came to mind. The box was filled with crumpled purple, gold and green tissue paper with a box about the size of a large shoe box inside.
"Are the colors from Mardi Gras?" Ava asked. It finally occurred to her that the colors held a special meaning.
"Yeah. That was where we really started to fall for each other and it was there we had sex for the first time."
Ava felt her heart grow warm because he remembered where they had first been intimate. And he was right. She had started to fall in love with him in Louisiana.
"You're right. I started to really fall for you there."
Ava opened the smaller box and carefully removed more of the colored tissue paper. The box was empty. She wasn't sure what to do. After everything Jax had done, it seemed greedy to complain about the lack of present, but perhaps he'd forgotten to put the final box inside.
Jax pulled out a small box.
"It's here," he said after enjoying her confusion for a moment. "I never proposed because we didn't have the most conventional of beginnings. There's no point in proposing now since we're married, but I am proposing that we stay married."
"I accept."
"You haven't heard my terms. I expect you to obey me."
Ava looked at Jax trying to determine if he were out of his mind or serious.
"You know that isn't going to happen."
"OK," he said with a grin, "I had to give it a shot. This is my last and best offer. We make decisions together like we have been, but when we're at the clubhouse, you pretend I'm the boss and we can talk about whatever the issue is when we get home."
"I can do that," she said smiling at him. "I would never make you look bad in front of the guys."
"Now that you have accepted my offer, you get the jewelry that comes with it. I didn't want to get you a typical engagement ring since we're not typical and we're married. Close your eyes."
Ava obediently closed her eyes and felt him slip a ring on her finger.
"I designed it for you, but if you don't like it, we'll come up with something else. Open your eyes."
Ava opened her eyes and saw four heart shaped purple stones with their tips clustered together to form a flower with a small round yellow stone in the middle set on top of a white gold diamond cut band that matched her wedding ring. There were even two pear shaped green stone leaves on either side of the flower.
"It's perfect," she breathed staring down at the ring, shocked that Jax had taken all the time to design a ring for her.
"They aren't diamonds. They are all different colors of sapphires because I liked the colors better."
"Mardi Gras colors. Oh, Jax, it's so perfect," Ava said her eyes beginning to tear up again.
"And you better never forget our wedding date again. There are seven stones in the ring and . . ."
"We were married on the seventh," Ava finished, the tears spilling down her face. She'd never been so happy she'd cried before Jax.
"There's no excuse for you to ever forget out anniversary again."
"There is something that you could give me if you don't mind."
"What's that?"
"Your last name. I want to feel like I'm part of you."
Jax hugged Ava. He wanted her to take his name but he wasn't going to bring it up to her until the time was right. He was pleased that she'd suggested it herself.
"Best anniversary gift you could give me," he said. Having her take his last name wasn't about making her his property, it was about them being truly united as one.
"Jax, I was so scared you were going to leave me after my father changed his will. I thought you were just abiding by the terms of the prenup and I've been trying so hard to be perfect so you wouldn't leave me when the time was up."
"I don't need perfect."
"And I love everything you did for me today, but I see now that you show me you love me every day by the way you treat me. You didn't yell at me when I set the toaster on fire or flooded the kitchen. You are always so kind and loving to me. You helped bring my father and me together and I feel like I really have a loving dad for the first time in my life."
"Avs, before you, all I had was the MC. Now, I have a whole full life and it's no longer a life of chaos and turmoil."
Ava looked down at her beautiful ring, her eyes welling with tears again.
"I feel like I'm living in a fairytale," she whispered.
"This is the part where we live happily ever after," he said before lowering his head and giving her another passionate NSFH (not safe for Hallmark) kiss.
Who needed a Hallmark hero when she had her own flesh and blood testosterone leaking man?
"
Author's Note: In every rom com or romance movie or book, there's some kind of mix up or problem that occurs near the end that threatens the happy couple. In a Hallmark movie, that tends to occur when there are seven minutes to the end. The problem is resolved in the next two to three minutes and then there's the happy ending. This check issue was my version of that.
Now about the modern fairytale—here goes.
Once upon a time there was a beautiful young woman named Ava who lived with her powerful and wealthy father TB. They lived in a castle where she was waited on hand and foot by cooks, maids and servants. TB became dissatisfied over his daughter's bad behavior and ordered her to either marry, work or go to school or he would leave her destitute. She married Jax the handsome Prince of Charming who had been falsely imprisoned by an evil government kingdom. TB used his influence and freed the Prince of Charming.
The Prince of Charming insisted they move from the castle and live a life on their own. TB gave them a cottage to live in. Gone were the servants from the castle. The Prince and Princess were forced to cook and clean and take care of themselves.
After getting used to it, the Prince and Princess realized they didn't need a castle or servants to be happy. They loved each other and that's what really mattered.
So this is how the Prince and Princess of Charming left a castle moved into a cottage without servants, maids or cooks and learned to do their own cooking and cleaning and in the process discovered a lasting love for each other. It's a modern fairytale.
Hope you enjoyed the story. I know it's more literary to write a sad ending but this is fanfic. There's enough misery in the world without adding to it. Instead I prefer to try to add some joy. Hope I succeeded even if only for a few minutes.
Check out my other big story under this name Little Toy Bikers and a Woman on the Run that tells a huge big story more like the TV show with lots of different plots. Also check out my MVeneer stuff especially Jax Is Really Alive which may be the only SOA fanfic to bring sci-fi into the mix. I don't like sci-fi much but this story is fun and crazy with dead people coming back to life in a non Zombie way. Even if you hate Tara, you'll like the way I write her.
Thanks for reading. MV