Jax (Titan #9)(46)

Her eyes narrowed. "I would've helped you into that meeting if you'd asked me."

Jax smiled. "I know. Then again, direct requests never work with you."

She held his gaze. "Give me one now."

"Spend the night with me." Easy. It came off his tongue before he thought about what he should say.

Seven closed the distance, and their stomachs touched. Then the crowded bar faded away as she pushed up, hooking her arms around his neck, and dragging her lips to his ear. "There was never any doubt where I'd be tonight."





CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR


Jax's confident grip on Seven's hand made her insides melt. She never felt the need to be protected and doted on. But when he took her hand in his, walking her out of the bar and down the busy hotel corridor, the hairs on her arms jumped as if they wanted to reach for him. Her head swam, and she couldn't blame that on a little buzz from the drinks. All she'd had were a few sips of a soda.

Tonight would be a test. Mayhem wouldn't allow a random person in the meetup tonight. She was there, and Jax would be her guest, and he'd be allowed there only if it looked real, personal. And it could. After all, they'd spent the last few years flirting. Seven could live a lifetime in the space of one of their kisses. Even if they were playing a part, she and Jax acted real.

Because, for her, it felt real, as though it were more than a random hookup, more than a guy she shouldn't have slept with because his attitude always had acid. She'd seen the real him lately, certainly in her kitchen before he'd brought her breakfast in bed.

That was the scariest part. He didn't do what she expected him to—run away, be the asshole. Then again, he hadn't addressed whatever this was morphing into. They hadn't defined their situations, but this felt leap years beyond a hookup.

Seven should give Jax a thank you and a high five. With the right hum of a kiss or the breeze of his lips, she was sure she would climax, and that was new in her hierarchy of personal priorities. "Where are we going?"

His lust-darkened eyes dropped to her face. "I don't know."

Hawke might have a problem that she'd left her post, but he hadn't said she needed to stay put, just keep an ear to the ground and watch out for Johnny. He hadn't said for how long, either. "Sounds good to me."

Jax stopped abruptly. The hungry, powerful stride taking them to somewhere private paused, and she had no idea why.

"What's wrong?"

"Why didn't Johnny give you bigger shit for bringing me tonight?"

Jax was a smart cookie. She didn't have to bring him there, and the truth was, she didn't want to be away from him. There was no reason to bring him at all. But that wasn't what he wanted to know or likely would ever care about. "Some people don't trust you. I'm supposed to keep an eye on you."

"Some people being Johnny."

She nodded.

"Lots of people have you keeping eyes on others."

"True."

"Why would they do that?"

"Because I'm trustworthy, and I do what I do well."

Jax inched closer as people stepped around them. They stood in the center of a hallway, semi-blocking traffic, but he didn't seem to notice how they impeded the flow. "And what is that? Look out for the best interest of Mayhem?" Jax asked slowly.

"Yes."

"If some don't think that I am, why would you tell me at all?"

"Because I know you, and no one knows how much I've shared with you."

His eyes tightened their focus. "What does this MC mean to you?" He looked away but came back, inquisitive, not as judgmental as she would've expected. "They're criminal. Guns. Drugs. Who the hell knows what else?"

Seven bit her lip, not knowing why she couldn't immediately bat away his question. "Because it's my family. Sometimes you hate the people you love, and you love the people you hate. You disagree with everything they are, and you do everything you can to change it. Mayhem's in my DNA as much as walking away from them was my destiny."

"Do you know how young you are to say things that are…" Jax shook his head and took her hand, starting them again.

"No, I don't."

He slowed but didn't stop.

"I've been on my own. Then I had to take care of others. My kids? They're not mine… even if they are mine. My dad left us to raise Mayhem, not children, and his first and only true love was the MC, not my mom." Seven stopped. "I don't know how old I am. Unless my best friend reminds me. Because age is just a number I left long ago."

He stopped again, and again, they blocked foot traffic in the busy hall. He didn't say anything, just stared. But not because she was crazy or talked as though she were boastful. She felt more as though he were proud or impressed, and it warmed her heart—and turned her on in a way she didn't expect.

"You have everything under control, don't you?" he finally asked.

Ha, he didn't have a clue. "I wish."

His face brightened. "I want to show you something."

They started walking again. "At least we have a plan."

"A dirty one." He squeezed her hand, and suddenly, they couldn't get there soon enough. "You still game?"