“Thank you,” Layne said. She had known somewhere deep down that she was pregnant, but now that it was official, she had real reason to be scared. But she also had real reason to be happy.
“Look, I’m telling you without Jax here because I know that if I was pregnant, I would be having some doubts. I can still tell him you’re just sick if you want to, and you can do what you want to do with the baby. I have Mandrake root if you…I mean, I won’t pass any judgement on you.”
“I’ve thought about that, and appreciate your offer. I really do. But I want to keep it.”
Sam exhaled loudly with a smile and shook her head.
“You and Jax are really brave, you know. I admire what you’ve done here. I can’t imagine how much hard work had to go into this. I hope that everything works out the way you want it to. I can’t imagine how hard it will be with a baby in a world like this. Your family deserves a normal life.”
“You and Tobi deserve that too,” Layne said. “And actually, there’s somewhere up north that Jax found. You guys should talk about that. They’re trying to build a real community, at least that’s what I hear.”
“Really?” Sam asked, perking up. “That sounds pretty nice.”
“It’s not bad,” Layne said with a nod. “Thank you for helping me out. If you guys do decide to head up north, please tell me before you go. I can try to help you out as much as I can.”
“I’ll have to talk to Tobi about it, but it sounds really nice. If there’s somewhere better than Hex, I’d love to find it.”
Layne and Sam left the little bedroom and headed to the small living room, where Jax and Tobi were eating and laughing together about old times. Layne smiled; it wasn’t often that she saw Jax loosened up. He was feeling good about bringing the doctor there and she knew his relief was contributing to his giddy mood.
“Layne!” he said, brightening up when he saw her face. Although their reunion had been rocky, she knew that more than anything he loved her. She allowed herself to smile at him and he reached out to her, taking her hands in his. “What’s the verdict?”
Tobi and Jax looked at her expectantly. She glanced over at Sam, who said nothing and let Layne have the moment to herself.
“We’re going to be parents,” she said.
Jax’s face filled with joy and he smiled in disbelief, standing up and lifting Layne in a big hug.
“I can’t believe it,” he said.
“Me either,” she whispered.
“We have to celebrate!”
Layne looked uneasily at Sam, who gave her a small smile that seemed to say, “Go ahead, you don’t know for sure what will happen. You might as well be happy.”
She let herself feel excited for the first time, fingering a little rattle she still had in her pocket. She couldn’t wait to show him everything she had found.
Now that she had officially knew there was a baby on the way, knowing for sure that there was a product of the love she felt for Jax, she felt overjoyed. They would be a family through it all, and maybe, when times were tough, they would be able to inspire each other enough that they would pass quickly.
Jax was heading into the kitchen to bring out the beer, whistling pleasantly to himself. Layne couldn’t have any, which he had briefly forgotten, but she that was fine with her. She was sick of it anyway after all the years of having it as her only hobby and friend, but the other three were thrilled to be celebrating on her behalf.
Jax told Tobi and Sam all about the community he had found up north, and they spent the rest of the night together, laughing and drinking, making plans for the future and catching up on the past. Everything felt like it was going to be okay and they all got to know each other a little bit better, forgetting that they had ever worried about anything at all.
Layne was just about to let herself relax when a sudden knock at the door made her blood run cold. Everybody stopped what they were doing and looked around fearfully.
“Did somebody follow you?” Layne hissed, her heart beating rapidly.
“I don’t think so,” Jax said, standing up and getting the rifle out of the closet. He aimed it, bracing himself as he opened the door.
CHAPTER SEVEN
“Jax, long time no see,” a familiar voice said.
“Kelsey?” Jax asked in confusion, eyeing Tobi’s ex.
“That’s right!” she said, taking the opportunity to shove past him and knock the rifle out of his hands. Kelsey grabbed it and darted through the cabin until Tobi was in her sights. She aimed the rifle and shot it at her, knocking her back onto the couch.
“What the fuck!?” Sam yelled.
“That’s what you get, you cheating whore! And look who I found – the man everyone’s been dying to see. We got them, boys!”
Suddenly, two men from Hex were pushing through the doorway, gripping Jax by the arms and pulling him outside.
“Shark Tooth is going to love this,” the first man said. He was bald and stocky like a body builder. Jax didn’t recognize either of the men, and struggled hard to release himself.
Layne tackled Kelsey, who shrieked as they tugged the gun back and forth.
“You cheated on Kelsey?” Jax exclaimed as he tried to free himself.
Tobi was clutching her arm, which was bleeding profusely.
“Well…it was Sam,” she said weakly, shrugging. Sam and Tobi exchanged a look, which made Kelsey bellow in fury.
Jax shook his head, maneuvering himself so that he tripped one of the men. The bald man fell hard, and Jax was able to squirm out of his grip. With his free hand he struck the other man, who was also burly and had a bushel of thick brown hair.
The women were still grappling for the gun and Kelsey punched Layne in the face. Layne staggered backward and Jax growled in fury, kicking the man who still gripped his arm and twisting it in one of the martial arts moves he learned at Hex. A sickening snap pierced the air and the man howled, releasing Jax, who stumbled and pulled his knife out of its sheath.
Sam was terrified, but tended swiftly and expertly to the gunshot wound on Tobi’s arm. She cried out in surprise when Tobi leapt off the couch and gripped the gun before Layne fully released her grip on it, staring Kelsey.
“Leave her alone,” she hissed.
“Shut up!” Kelsey wailed, breaking down into sobs.
Tobi groaned and rolled her eyes toward the ceiling. She had the gun now and wasted no time in shooting the man on the floor, who was groggily coming back to consciousness and reaching for Jax. He fell limply to the floor and Jax jumped away from them. He crouched at Layne’s side, helping her off the floor. Tobi shot the other man for good measure and he fell to the ground. She tossed the gun back to Jax, sinking down onto the floor with Kelsey, who was inconsolable.
“I can’t believe you followed me here, Kels.”
“What else was I supposed to do?” she asked.
“Seriously? Stalking me is the answer? You know as well as I do that you didn’t love me anymore.”
“But you were still mine,” Kelsey glowered.
“That’s not how it works. And I already told you I left you. I wasn’t joking. You didn’t love me. You don’t love me. This is all spite. Just go home, Kelsey.”
“But…”
“If you really did love me, you’d let me be happy.”
Kelsey stood up, wiping her tear stained face.
“I just don’t know what to do without you.”
“You’ll figure it out,” Tobi sighed, walking Kelsey to the door.
“I just miss you,” Kelsey sighed.
“I think we should kill her,” Sam interjected. Kelsey shot her a bitter look, but said nothing.
“I think so, too,” Layne said, nursing the bruise on her face.
Jax and Tobi exchanged looks. Kelsey was a good person at heart. But she had been too full of grief to think clearly. Still, she was a liability.
“I’m not sure that’s necessary,” Tobi said, looking into Kelsey’s eyes. “Is it?”
“You’re going to be fine,” Jax said. “But don’t make me regret letting you go. You could just as easily end up like those two. Tell them you guys ambushed us on the road and we got the better of you. Not a word about anything else.”
“All right, Jax,” Kelsey sighed, stepping over the bloody bodies on the floor. “I’m sorry about all of this. Oh. Sorry for shooting you, Tobi.”
Tobi laughed scornfully.
“Get out of here and keep your mouth shut or I’ll return the favor,” she said. “Oh, and I think you should probably talk to Loretta…I’m pretty sure she’s had her eye on you since you arrived.”
“Really?”
Tobi nodded and Kelsey looked thoughtfully at the ground. She smiled privately to herself, and with that, Kelsey took off running through the forest, heading toward home.
***
“What the fuck was that?” Sam exclaimed when Jax and Tobi returned to the cozy living room.
“I can’t believe you two just let her go,” Layne agreed.
“She’s mostly harmless,” Tobi sighed.
“It’s true. We were all really good friends back when I was in Hex. I think it will be all right.”
“I think you guys made a huge mistake,” Sam said, shaking her head.
“You never liked her anyway,” Tobi teased, laughing before she winced in pain.
“Shut up and let me take a look at that,” Sam said, changing the subject.
As Sam dressed Tobi’s wounds, the small group sat in silence.
“What are we going to do now?” Tobi finally asked.
“Layne mentioned a place up north,” Sam said.
“There’s no way you can make it up there right now,” Jax said quietly. “Tobi is injured and the weather was unforgiving when I left. I can only imagine it would be worse now.”
They sat in silence and Layne finally spoke up.
“What if you stayed here with us?” she said, snuggling the little puppy close. “We could fix the shed up and make it a nice little house for you two.”
“Are you serious?” Tobi asked, wide-eyed. “Jax, you don’t have to agree to that. It’s a huge risk to take. We can figure something out. Seriously. We may not be welcome back at Hex, but we can find something.”
“Actually,” Jax said, “I think it would be great if we stuck together. There’s safety in numbers after all. And I missed you a lot. Besides, if we’re going to be having a baby, I’d love for it to have a big family.”
“What do you think about it, Sam?” Tobi asked.
“Anywhere is better than the bigots at Hex,” she said, looking down at the ground. The group sat in stunned silence as it became clear that a new arrangement had been made. Sam and Tobi were there to stay.
CHAPTER EIGHT
With Sam and Tobi cozied up in the small living room, keeping the puppy company that night, Jax examined the bruises on Layne’s face.
“I hate seeing you hurt,” Jax said, his eyes stormy. “It’s worse than you can imagine. I don’t mean to treat you like a little kid. I’ve just never loved somebody so much that their pain felt so much like my own.”
“Well you’re going to have to get used to it,” Layne said softly, pulling his strong hand toward her belly and pressing it firmly over it.
Jax gazed at his beautiful lover. She had never seemed more vibrant than she did now as her gentle eyes held his gaze.
“I guess I will,” he agreed, the reality of parenthood now seeming more real than ever. “I don’t want to mess up.”
“We can’t mess up any more than our own parents did,” she laughed. “Who knows what will happen. We just have to do our best in the here and now.”
“Speaking of the here and now,” Jax said, eyeing Layne with a gleam in his eye. “I’ve never wanted you more.”
“We’d have to be really quiet,” she laughed softly. Jax was surprised. He was used to outright rejection.
“Of course,” he said with a grin, pulling her shirt over her head and revealing her perfect body. She was glowing golden from the candles that were lighting the bedroom, and she gasped as his mouth hungrily found her neck, sending sensual shivers down her body. He cupped his hand over her breast, gently stroking her nipple before planting hot kisses down her torso.
Her body filled with longing, a friend she had been missing in the first weeks of pregnancy. She felt bad leaving Jax unsatisfied, but she finally felt ready for him. She wrapped her arms around him and laughed softly as he briefly lifted her, scooting himself between her legs. He easily pulled himself out of his loose pajama pants, and she held back a groan as the head of his penis started massaging her middle, sending shivers all throughout her body. She bit her lip to keep from crying out as he gently stripped her until she was naked, splayed before him. It had been so long since she’d been touched that she was shaking. He rubbed her arms in his strong hands.
“Are you cold?” his deep voice whispered.
“No…”
“Oh,” he said. “Good.”
He lowered his mouth over one of her breasts and tugged it softly with his teeth. She moaned softly, despite her effort to hold back her noises, and squirmed beneath him. He slipped himself up and down her hot folds until his shaft was shimmering with the liquid testament of her longing.
Every inch of her body was on fire as he pushed himself inside, and she gripped his shoulder tightly as his strong, capable thighs pressed against hers. She loved the way he felt. Even when she was mad at him, his body felt unbelievably good against hers. It was impossible to hold a grudge when he made her quake with desire and sent her to a state of bliss she had thought was purely fictional until she met him.
She exhaled softly as he began dragging his shaft slowly in and out of her. It was as if he could sense her urgency, and her desperate desire to come just made him want to tease her more. She buckled against him, silently begging him to go harder, faster, anything that would take her to her climax, but he grinned confidently down at her, his handsome face flawless in the golden glow of the candle. His broad, muscular body paused inside of her for a moment and she closed her eyes. She could feel him pulsing inside of her, and she knew he enjoyed the feeling of her walls closing in on him. It was delicious torture, until finally he rammed hard inside of her and her body was electrified by an unexpected shockwave of pleasure.
“Shhh,” Jax reminded her, a sly grin lighting his handsome face up. She stroked his hard abdomen, letting her fingers linger on his tight muscles as he paused inside of her.
“You don’t mean that,” she said, moving her hips up and sliding herself along the length of his shaft. “You want me to beg and wake up the whole house.”
“The thought had crossed my mind,” he whispered, holding back his own moan of pleasure as she moved her body against his stiff cock.
“Not gonna happen,” she said, shaking her head.
“Not if you just take what you want like that, no,” he replied, suddenly on top of her, pinning her wrists to the bed and pulling himself out of her. She squirmed underneath him, silently pleading for him to enter her again, but refusing to speak. The power was out of her hands and now she would have to wait for it.
“Is this punishment for not putting out for so long?” Layne asked with a grin.
“Nah,” he replied. He allowed his pulsing cock to hover lightly against her, and she pressed hard against it, inviting him inside. He wanted to see how long he could hold out, see if he could make her ask him for what she wanted.
He lowered his hot lips over her nipple and sucked, sliding himself against her clit until she was moaning out loud despite her impressive self-restraint. Finally, her voice, clear and sweet, whispered into his ear.
“Please.”
That was all he needed. He plunged inside her with his full force, lifting her hips off the bed with his hands so he could hammer inside of her as hard as he could. She gripp
ed his shoulders, biting one of them to keep from screaming as waves and waves of pleasure crashed over her body. She could feel every inch of him hard and unbridled in her body, and let him use her however he wanted to.
He rammed his powerful hips against hers until she began to shudder under the force. His strong arms held her still as he felt the hot rush of her orgasm engulf his shaft.
He was still going strong though, and flipped her over onto the bed so that he could see the curve of her back and enter her from behind. She moaned when he curled his arm around her waist and massaged her clit with his broad fingers as he began to slip gently inside of her once again. She hissed in pleasure as his cock burst into her, putting her immediately on the brink of another orgasm before she had fully finished the last one.
She closed her eyes in bliss as he released the pent up frustration he’d felt over the past few weeks, punishing her body with his until she had quaked around his shaft again. Her body squeezed his mercilessly as she came again, until he couldn’t help but hiss. He squeezed her ass as his cock trembled inside of her, and she closed her eyes, uttering a deep moan as his orgasm burst inside of her, enhancing the pleasure of hers. He stayed inside of her, thrusting hard until every last drop was inside of her, and then they collapsed in the bed together breathlessly.
“I really missed you,” Layne said.
Jax kissed her forehead.
“I missed you too,” he replied. “At least with Sam and Tobi here, it’s never going to be so lonely again.”
She smiled at the thought. She really seemed to be hitting it off with Sam, and it was nice to see Jax loosen up around his old friend. Things had definitely just gotten a lot more interesting.
BRICK (Forsaken Riders MC Romance Book 17) Page 120
