7

Chapter 481 Make Her Feel Safe

"

Jax took Scarlett and her father to the steakhouse she'd taken him to the night he'd gone to her motel room banging on the door fearing that she was the dead blonde that had been found dead in the woods. That was a night he would never forget. He barely knew Scarlett and he thought he'd lost the opportunity to ever get to know her. He hadn't realized it, but he was already beginning to fall in love with her.

That night, the three of them had a nice dinner. Jax was always struck by the easygoing, relaxed relationship Scarlett had with her father. He wished he had that sort of relationship with Gemma. Lately, it just seemed she wanted to dictate his life and she expected him to snap into line and do what he was told.

He intended to finish the conversation he'd been having with Gemma over her domineering and overbearing attitude. He also needed to talk to her about how she'd told Scarlett that he was hers. She'd made herself look bad in front of the MC and she'd had no right to claim ownership over him.

People weren't property and he sure as hell wasn't her property. Giving birth to him didn't entitle her to complete control over his life for the rest of his life. She'd had her turn controlling his life; it was time for him to have control.

Those plans changed when Gemma went home sick. He didn't see any point in trying to talk to her when she was complaining that she was sick. There would be time to have it out with her next week. It gave him a little more time to think over some of the things Decker had said to him.

Setting limits and consequences might work with most rational human beings, but Gemma was in a whole different category. She was in the God category and expected to be treated accordingly. He was supposed to do what she said without question. He hadn't done that when he lived at home; he had no idea why she thought this would work now with Scarlett.

Jax sat next to Scarlett and across from Decker at dinner. He very discreetly rested his hand on Scarlett's thigh while they waited for their salads. He would gently stroke her inner thigh. He was taking more revenge on Scarlett for her comment to her father that she didn't want to kiss him good-night because she didn't want to get him all stirred up. He knew he was getting her stirred up because her face was flushed. Finally, she pinched his hand and he quit. He chuckled.

"What's so funny?" Scarlett demanded. She was perfectly aware of why he was chuckling; she was just playing him a little.

"I was just remembering something Tig said to me. He told me he thought your meatloaf was better than Gemma's and she just happened to overhear," Jax said innocently, his blue eyes sparkling with mischief.

"Uh-huh," Scarlett said skeptically.

"If you two can't behave, I'll have to have one of you sit on my side with me," Decker said with mock sternness.

Jax and Scarlett laughed.

"I've always wanted to say that," Decker explained.

"I was so perfectly behaved, he never had a chance to correct my behavior," Scarlett said primly.

"I could tell you things," Decker said to Jax shaking his head.

"My dad is just trying to see if he can scare you," Scarlett said.

"I'm sure I was a much worse kid than Scarlett," Jax said, "and I believe her behavior is always on point."

Scarlett smiled at Jax and patted his leg.

Shifting plans kept Jax and Scarlett from their romantic weekend, but Decker and Scarlett also changed plans. Decker decided to volunteer to help search for Louise and Scarlett was going to work at the police department again. Decker and Scarlett wanted to help find Louise and both hoped they might learn something that would help them hunt Violet's killer. At the least, they were hoping they might make some useful contacts. Decker's search for a house was pushed to Sunday and into Monday if necessary.

Sack would drive Scarlett to the police station and pick her up when she was finished with her volunteer work. She didn't want him to have to sit in a car in the parking lot all day when she was safe inside the police department. Jax gave his approval.

Since Jax might have to leave at a moment's notice to go with SAMCRO and deal with Esai, there wasn't much Jax could do. He would just have to face it; it was time to tackle his house. He hadn't spent much time there and it needed cleaning and he needed to do something about making it more habitable.

Decker had worked in construction even going as far as earning his contractor's license. He used to flip houses for a living and he offered to give Jax some advice before he went to join the volunteers in the search for Louise.

"My house is kind of a disaster," Jax said with a laugh as he opened the door for Decker.

"I know what that's like. Has Scarlett seen your home?"

"I'm afraid it will scare her off," Jax said with a grin.

"Scarlett's tough. You won't frighten her off that easily. All she needs is to feel safe. She also needs a clean bed and a clean bathroom and she's good."

"I bought the house about two years ago and it was in bad shape. I've had a new roof put on and a new fence, but that's about it."

"I can give you some options. Let's start in the kitchen," Decker said.

Jax's appliances were a rainbow assortment with a yellow stove, a green refrigerator and a white dishwasher. The counter tops were stained and worn, the cabinets were dark brown oak. The kitchen floor was avocado green and white vinyl.

"The biggest cheapest change is always paint," Decker said. "Next, you could spend more and do flooring. Start with kitchen tile," Decker said as he walked through the house.

"I wanted to make it nice enough for Scarlett."

"Scarlett loves you for you," Decker said slapping Jax on the arm. "Clean up the place a little and it will be fine. You could really change the place a lot with paint and new flooring. It would look like a new house."

"Except the kitchen," Jax said.

"You don't have to do everything at once. Your cabinets are in good shape. I'd paint them and replace the counter tops. I don't think I'd do quartz counter tops unless you love them."

"I don't know what they are."

"I didn't either until I started flipping houses. It's newer and more expensive than granite. I'll have my real estate agent pull some comps for your house and look at what kind of counters they have in homes in the area. Any money you put into your house, you want to get back out. The biggest mistake people make is over improving their houses for their neighborhoods and then they lose money if they want to sell. You buy a $150,000 house in a $150,000 neighborhood and spend $150,000 on improvements doesn't mean your house is worth $300,000. Real estate math doesn't work like that. Buyers are going to want a $300,000 house in a $300,000 neighborhood."

"Makes sense. You want to make improvements that will make you money when you sell the house. So, I should start with paint?"

"Yeah. I'd paint. The problem is once you paint, the carpet and vinyl will really look shabby with the new paint. I can give you estimates on what different things cost. Kind of like a menu. I've got a program on my laptop. You can do things over time and I can help you do some of the work. I enjoy doing construction when there's not a deadline. You could do paint, new appliances and flooring at a pretty reasonable cost. I know some great sources for materials. I'd also recommend you decide what furniture you love and get rid of the rest even if that doesn't leave you with a lot of furniture."

Jax was seeing his house with new eyes. He liked that Decker was going to give him options on what he could do in his house and the cost of the changes. He had been saving the money Scarlett insisted on paying him for driving her to her physiotherapy appointments. Putting some of that money into his house seemed like a smart investment. He was beginning to think about making it nice enough for Scarlett to live with him permanently.

"Most of my furniture is from garage sales my mother would happen to be driving by. I told her not to get a bunch of stuff, but she has problems with listening."

"She sees you as a kid and you're a man. Sometimes parents need a wake-up call. When Scarlett went to college, I was so worried that she would trust the wrong guy or get drunk and end up in a bad situation. I just had to have faith in her and have confidence that I'd raised her to be careful.

"It's something that is different when you have a daughter. When you walk out to a dark parking lot, you don't fear being jumped and raped. That's something that women face every day. They have to always be aware of their surroundings and be ready to defend themselves. It's not fair and it's not right, but it's a fact of life women deal with all the time. Until I had a daughter, I never even thought about things like that."

"I never really thought of that either. With both the Kohn thing and this Esai thing now, I know what it's like to worry about Scarlett even though I know I'm keeping her safe."

"She feels safe with you," Decker said. "I'd recommend you get a security system primarily to give you time to arm up if you hear the alarm. Lets you sleep a little deeper when you don't have to listen for an intruder."

"I never thought of it that way. I will definitely get an alarm system."

"I can help you with that."

"Hey, thanks."

Decker turned to leave.

"If you're planning on having Scarlett spend the night, probably ought to get a new mattress first," Decker said. He winked at Jax.

Jax laughed. That sounded like something JT would have said to him.

"She can help me pick it out."

"Great idea," Decker said slapping Jax on the arm affectionately. "I'll see you tonight."

Jax looked around his house excited for the first time about making some improvements to it with Decker's help.