31. Arianne

"There's no better feeling than your pussy squeezing the living shit out of my cock," Jax says finally, when breath has returned to his lungs.

His arms are wrapped tightly around me, pinning me against his chest.

I chuckle as I break free and sit back up. I must look a hot, sweaty mess, but by the way Jax looks at me, telling me with his eyes that he treasures me, I feel beautiful.

Without thinking, I rock gently back and forth in a move I know will get him hard again in a minute.

Strong fingers dig into my hips. "Can't get enough of you, Ari."

"Good. I hope to keep it that way."

"You might kill me on the way there, but I'll die a fucking happy man."

The crackle of the baby monitor makes us both look to the unit on the side table.

"Dadadada," Lola babbles cheerfully. And so she should. She kept us awake from three until four am. Until she did a massive fart that made us all laugh, then passed out asleep.

"Fuck," Jax groans. "I wanted to do that again."

"I'm all yours later. Why don't you go give her some breakfast while I shower, and then I'll take her to the store with me while you do whatever you're meant to be doing today."

He reaches for the back of my neck and pulls me to him, kissing me firmly. "What I'm meant to be doing is you."

I lift my hips and let him slide from within me. "What we want and what we need aren't always the same thing."

Halo puts an arm behind his head that makes his bicep look incredibly strong. "I want you, and my cock needs you."

"Stop making excuses and go look after our…" I pause.

"What?" Halo says.

"I nearly said ‘our daughter.' Is that weird?"

He rolls to the edge of the bed and stands before pulling me into his arms. "When your parents were here, I told her I'm going to be her dad. And I already called you her mom. So, no, I don't think it's weird to call her our daughter. I like that."

Jax kisses the top of my head, then my cheek, then grabs my ass.

"Nooooo," Lola squeals through the baby monitor.

"For fuck's sake," Jax says.

"Good luck with that." I take the opportunity to escape his grip and head to the shower.

An hour later, I pull into the lot. It's wildly busy. The store has one of those wild sampler alleys you can walk through before heading in. People are milling around on the side of the lot that is closed off to cars. It takes a hot minute to find a parking space, and both Lola and I are a tad sweaty by the time I find somewhere to park.

"It's hard to believe it's September, isn't it, Lolly?" She's pulled her sandal off, and I decide to just remove the other. The last thing I need is for her to lose one in the store.

I pop her in a cart and walk her through the sampler alley. We manage to pick up a kid's fruity yogurt in a tube and a couple of crackers, which I hope will keep Lola occupied while I shop. Otherwise, she gets grabby, pointing at everything she wants.

I reach into my purse to grab the list and realize I left my wallet on the table next to the door.

For a moment, I debate going home to collect it, but parking was such a nightmare.

Instead, I do something I would never have done two months ago. I call Jax.

As it rings, I remember the first time I came to the store, bumped into Gwen. I was terrified at the thought of what Jax might do if I interrupted his day.

"What's up, kitten?" he asks.

I hear the sound of the water running in the background. "Were you just about to shower?"

"Yeah. But did you need me?"

"I left my wallet on the table by the door. It's okay, I'll come home and get it. I mean, I drove here without having my license with me, so I'm sure it?—."

"I got it, babe. Are you waiting to check out?"

The tightness in my chest releases. When Rae stayed over, we ended up talking into the night. She told me that PTSD after abuse is real. And that the muscle memory of fear is strong. "Barely even started. Half the lot is closed off, and parking was a nightmare."

"So, shop. I'll shower. And I'll be there as soon as I'm done. I'll find you inside."

It's hard to think of what to say as an overwhelming feeling of being cared for swamps me.

"Ari? You there?"

I shake my head and smile. "Yes. I'm here. Thank you. Was just processing that I asked for help, and you said you'd come without there being any punishment for asking. Guess I'm growing."

"Kitten," he says. His voice is ripe with emotion. "Of course I'll help you. All you ever have to do is ask. I'll be there within thirty minutes."

It's a big shop. I like to meal plan. And there are items we need to stock up on for the laundry room. Plus, I promised I'd pick up some beer for Jax.

Knowing Jax is thirty minutes away, I take my time.

"You are in such a good mood," I say to Lola. "You must have had the best sleep last night. Except for when you kept me and Daddy awake with what I'm guessing was a tummy ache."

The word daddy falls off my tongue easily, and it makes me grin.

"Da da?" she says, looking around.

"He's not here, sweetheart. But soon."

I manage to distract her enough to place some bananas into the shopping cart as deftly as I can. If she sees them, she'll want to eat them, and I have no means of paying for one yet. I grab some grapes and apples and all the vegetables I need. For dinner tonight, I'm making chicken and a Greek salad. Jax wrinkled his nose at the idea of feta cheese, but I told him to trust me, that he'd enjoy it.

I cruise the meat aisle, grabbing what I need. Thanks to careful consideration of prices and sales, I manage to pick up some ribs that Halo could barbecue for us one night this week. If he's away, I can always toss them into the freezer.

When I get to the cereal aisle, I see the oatmeal he uses on the upper shelf. Lifting on to my toes and stretching doesn't help. I look up and down the aisle to see if there is a store employee anywhere close by.

The aisle is busy with shoppers, but I don't see the flash of a uniform anywhere. There is a man nearby reading the back panel of a cereal box. Checking my watch, I see it's only a few minutes until Jax arrives. I could just wait. But I'm already grateful enough that he's driving my wallet over.

What kind of killer reads nutrition labels?

A cereal killer.

The thought comes to me, and I can't help but laugh at my ridiculous pun.

"Excuse me," I say. "Would you mind getting the oatmeal down off the top shelf for me, please? I can't reach it." I act out trying to reach, which is so embarrassing. He can probably see I'm not tall enough.

"Sure thing," he says, dropping the box he was looking at back onto the shelf. "I don't know why they build these shelves so high in the first place. Which one?"

"The one in the green packaging."

He grabs me one and hands it to me. "You know, the blue one has fewer additives."

"It does? This is the one my boyfriend"—I love that term—"uses."

He taps the top of the packaging. "Yeah. And I also read somewhere it can have traces of glyphosate in it, like a residue from weed killer."

"Ew. Would you mind swapping it for the blue one, please? Oatmeal is oatmeal, right? I don't think he'll mind swapping."

The man takes the green package from me and grabs a blue package. His fingers brush against mine in a way that makes me uncomfortable.

"Get the fuck away from her." Jax's voice booms up the aisle.

I turn. "No. It's not a problem. He was telling me about the additives in cereal."

But it's like Jax doesn't see me. He looks furious, and worse, his hand is inside his cut, in the same place I know his gun hangs from his holster.

He pushes me and Lola behind him. "So, you've finally decided to stop hiding," Jax says, and none of it makes sense.

The man grins, and now that I look closely, I see the resemblance. The stranger is a little older, his hair a little more gray at the temples. But the eyes are the same.

"Thought I'd come and find out what Dad liked about New Jersey so much." He glances at me. "Must be the women." His eyes seek me out and run up and down my body.

Jax moves, but I grab his arm. "Don't, please," I warn. "There are too many people."

"You should listen to your woman, there. There's only one of you and considerably more of me."

Shoppers begin to hurry out of the aisle. I want to follow them, and yet I'm not willing to leave Halo here alone.

"She and her daughter are nothing to do with you and me," Halo says. Piecing things together, I'm guessing he's making Lola mine because he hopes his brother doesn't know about her.

"I'll be the judge of that," Daryll says.

Halo lunges for him, but two men step up on either side of Daryll. "You're a fucking coward. Face me head-on. You and me."

Store security guards appear at the end of the aisle. Thankfully they have a cop with them. Lord knows what good fortune brought a cop into the store, because there is no way they had time to call for one.

Daryll seems to notice them too. "Good seeing you, Brother. You need to take better care of what's yours. I'd hate to see something happen to them." He turns and hurries down the aisle, eventually blurring into all the people. Jax begins to follow.

"Jax. Please. Get me and Lola home." It's the only thing I can think of saying to stop him.

"Fuck," he mutters as he wraps me in his arms. "Come here. Did he hurt you or Lola?"

I shake my head. "He was actually really nice. Until he wasn't."

"Let's get out of here," Jax says, lifting Lola out of the cart, then passing her to me. "I need my hands free. But you'll do whatever I say as soon as I say it, right, kitten?"

My heart is racing at an unbelievable rate. "But what about the groceries?"

"Fuck the groceries." Jax grabs his phone from his pocket. "Having you both safe is way more important than food. And it's clear he didn't come to the store alone."

He dials a number, and there's a pause. "King. West is here. He approached Ari when she was with Lola at the store."

Another pause. "I fucking know that. Would have chased him, but I don't know how many of his men are here. Couldn't leave Ari and Lola alone without backup. I'm getting them to the car to drive them to the clubhouse. Then someone will need to bring me back to my bike."

As King replies, Jax says quietly, "Where is your car?"

I point down the aisle, even as I scan the area, looking for Daryll. Fearful that the men who killed my sister might be close by. I feel sick at the thought I likely just spoke with Mercy's killer.

When we get to the car, the tires have been sliced. All four of them are flat.

"Fuck that," Jax says down the phone. "I need a pickup for me and the girls, and a tow truck for the car or four tires."

Jax encourages me to crouch between cars, and I do as he says immediately. Lola begins to sniffle.

When he hangs up, he joins us and cups my cheeks. "Whatever this is, I'm going to get us out," he says.

"I know. I trust you. End this for us. Whatever it takes."

Jax removes his weapon from his holster. "You have my word."