BEAUTIFUL BROKEN MESS (Broken, Series #2)(56)

After I almost cause him to pass out because his stubborn ass won’t tap out, we shove away from each other and lie back in the sand, laughing. This is how we’ve always been. If there’s ever any bad blood or distance between us, we fight it out.

“God, this is better than porn,” I hear a female voice say from above. Without moving my body, I turn my neck to see Tatum and Ashley, cheerleaders at our school, gazing down at us. “Can you reenact that, except this time can I lie in between you two?” Tatum asks, while giggling and nudging Ashley.

“Beat it,” Quinn snaps, and the two onlookers grumble and stomp away.

“Thanks, Quinny,” Jax says from the ground. “Have you seen my girl?”

“She’s around,” she states nonchalantly.

I stand up and pull Jax to his feet. I know by now he’s dying to get his hands on Em, and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to see her as well. It’s surprising how Em has wiggled her way into our family without even trying. She’s like a little sister to me now, and when she’s not swapping spit with my brother, she’s actually a ton of fun to be around.

She’s always sending these short, crazy videos to my phone that she randomly films throughout the day. It’s become a source of daily entertainment. Last week, she sent me a ten-second video of her and Quinn trying to rap to a song on the radio. But between the both of them, they only knew one word from the actual song, so the rest was them making up complete nonsense. Yesterday, she sent me a video of Jax singing and dancing in front of the bathroom mirror while getting ready. He obviously didn’t know she was filming. And what kind of brother would I be if I didn’t keep it for potential blackmail material?

We make a complete circle around the groups sitting by the fires without spotting Em. Jax begins walking at a faster clip and is about to make another round when I glance out at the waves and see two figures sitting side-by-side in the sand, the tide hitting their toes. When the person on the left throws her head back laughing, I recognize the familiar blonde hair.

I reach out, smack Jax on the chest with the back of my hand, and point out to the water. He glances over and releases a mega-watt smile at the sight of her. We start walking out toward the two girls and then I freeze, realizing who Em is talking and laughing with. How the hell did that happen?

“Jax, I think she’s with Audrey.”

He halts mid-stride. “What? That’s not possible.”

We hear the girls continue laughing and then Em says Audrey’s name out loud, confirming what I already knew. I’d recognize that body anywhere. They still have no idea we’re no more than twenty feet behind them. While Jax is stressing that those two are talking, for some reason it makes me feel damn good inside to see them getting along so well. I can’t even begin to explain how they got to this point, but I’m sure it’s one heck of a story.

“What the hell do you think she’s telling Emerson?” he grinds out and begins storming toward them. “Why is she here again?” he whispers under his breath.

I immediately reach out and stop him. “Chill out, Jax. Obviously Em’s not upset. Don’t go over there and ruin it by being a possessive *.” He slows his charge, but continues forward. I can tell he’s holding back his emotions when he squats down behind Em and kisses her on the cheek. Em turns her head into his kiss and smiles. Audrey startles backward and then she immediately stands up. Her wide eyes are staring at Jaxon, most likely fearing what he may say, but she still hasn’t spotted me yet. Slowly, she begins backing away.