3

Little Toy Bikers and a Woman on the Run

Chapter 118 Blues

Jax brushed his thumb across Scarlett's lips.

"Waking up with you is never boring."

She looked at him warily.

"You know you have braids."

"I know," he said, trying not to smile. He shook his head and laughed. "You were so damned funny trying to take them out. I had to fake coughing to cover up laughing."

"You were awake the whole time?"

"After the first one."

"Am I in trouble?"

"No," Jax said.

He arranged the pillows so Scarlett was propped up and her back was supported. He then added a pillow to prop himself up so they could look into each other's faces.

"I remember that I was crying and I swore and yelled at you. I'm sorry I yelled and swore at you. I only swear when I'm really angry."

"I swear because it's part of my vocabulary. You were crying and I bribed you to come back to bed by letting you braid my hair."

Scarlett tried to keep Jax out of her heart by reminding herself that Jax had been with hundreds of women and he knew what to say in any situation. She wasn't special to him.

His laser blue eyes softened to a warmer blue. She tried to keep her heart hard and strong against this onslaught of charm.

"My eyebrows are safe," she said.

"You don't think I was serious about taking a razor to your eyebrow, do you?"

"I was hoping that you were kidding."

"Scarlett, I would never hurt you."

"Knowing me could get you hurt or killed," she said. "A few months ago, I almost got caught. I was late. A couple of people who were going to dinner with me for my birthday were executed. I live with the pain that those loved ones that were left behind experience. Not a day goes by when I don't wonder if I had been on time, maybe I could have saved their lives."

"I know what that's like. It will eat you up and destroy you."

"I don't want you to die because you know me. When I told you to leave when I thought we were going to be attacked, I meant it."

"I know you did. Scarlett, I belong to an outlaw MC. There's a certain amount of danger attached to that. It's part of life. I accept it."

"Death might be the best of it. My psycho ex gave me a puppy. I named him Charlie because he was a Cavalier King Charles spaniel. I'd wanted one for a long time. I loved him. When I would walk him, this woman used to come out and talk to me. We became friends. When I would travel, I'd leave my puppy with her. I think Charlie loved her as much as he did me.

"When I knew I was going to have to run, I secretly gave him to my friend. I told my ex that she was taking care of him while we were on our honeymoon. After I ran, I got a message a few days later. My ex sent me a video. My father grabbed my phone out of my hand and stopped the video. He also changed the passwords on all my accounts and closed them so I could never see the video. He didn't just kill Charlie, he tortured him, cut him into pieces while he was still alive and recorded it. The small clip I saw haunts me," Scarlett's eyes filled with tears.

Jax gently brushed away her tears.

"How could someone be that evil?" she asked.

He leaned down and kissed her with a tenderness she never expected to find in an outlaw biker.