My grandma before she died told me, Devour life without chewing, and pray that you don’t choke. Could I do that now? Take a chance and pray for the best? “Are you sure your friend needs help?” I hear myself ask without even realizing it.
She smiles then nods. “I’m positive.”
“Maybe I have a concussion,” I mutter, surprised I’m really thinking about doing this. It’s not like me to take unnecessary risks.
“I’ll be here for you whenever you need me, and I know my husband and daughter will do the same, along with Jax.”
Oh, God. Jax. I’m not sure what to do with him, but I need to keep Hope safe, and the farther I get away from my family, the better, not only for her, but for me as well.
“Okay,” I state.
“Okay?”
“Yes, I need to make sure my daughter is safe,” I explain softly.
Her arms wrap around me in a hug and she mutters, “I promise things are going to be better now.”
I’m not so sure about that. I feel like I just went from the frying pan into the fire.
Chapter 1
Jax
“Thank you again for taking me.” Pulling my eyes from the road for a brief moment, I look at Ellie. Her head is resting against the window, her legs pulled up onto the seat, tucked near her ass, and her arms are wrapped tight around them. One thing I’ve noticed about her over the last few hours is she’s always wrapping her arms around herself or tucking her body into a tight ball. It’s like she’s forcing herself to stay together.
“I told you I got you, baby,” I say gently, wanting more than anything to take her hand in mine, but every time I touch her, she freezes up like she’s waiting for me to strike out at her, and I would be lying if I said that didn’t piss me the fuck off. It does; it feels like a slap in the face every time it happens.
“I know,” she whispers, and the tears I hear in her voice cause a sharp pain in my chest.
Fuck.
“This is the turnoff.” Her feet go to the floorboard and her hands to the dash as she sits up taller, moving her face closer to the windshield. We drive up a long dirt driveway with forest and the occasional broken down car on each side. When we make it to the top of the hill, a singlewide trailer comes into view, with junk cars and garbage piled up out front.
As soon as I come to a stop, she opens her door and hops out before I can tell her to keep her little ass in the cab. I don’t even know how I’m going to deal with the range of emotions that have settled over me since seeing her for the first time.
“Fucking Boom,” I mutter, getting out behind her and doubling my steps until I’m able to reach her side, where I wrap my hand around her waist and pull her closer to me. She’s so fucking tiny that the top of her dark head sits right at my chest. So fragile, from her too soft skin to her petite size. And she’s mine.
“Took you long enough,” a very large woman says, opening the front door to the trailer. Her thin blonde hair is pulled away from her face with a headband, and her large, round body is incased in what looks like a baggy dress with long sleeves. I know right away this must be Ellie’s aunt Marlene, her mom’s sister.
“Where’s Hope?” Ellie asks from my side as I wrap my hand tighter around her to keep her in place.
Taking a puff off her cigarette Marlene tosses the butt into the yard while stepping back into the trailer as we come up the creaky wooden steps that lead inside.
“Where’s Hope?” Ellie asks as we step into the small living room. Feeling a shiver slide through her and I give her side a squeeze reminding her that she’s not alone.
“Hope’s asleep in the back bedroom.” Her aunt points down a long hall then looks at me. “Who’s him?” she asks, but Ellie pushes past her and rushes down the hall, ignoring her question.
“Who you?”
Jesus. It takes everything in me to keep my mouth shut. Crossing my arms over my chest, I wait for Ellie, ignoring the woman, afraid of what I’ll say if I speak.
“You a cop?”
Fuck me.
“I’m not a cop,” I growl, wanting to tell her she shouldn’t look relieved by that.
“That niece of mine has always acted like she’s better than all of us. Figures she’d meet a guy who thought the same.”
My fists clench and drop to my sides. I don’t know much about Ellie, but there isn’t a doubt in my mind that she is better than this dump and her fucked up family.
“Jax.”
My gaze goes toward the open mouth of the hall and collides with Ellie, who is holding a little girl in her arms; her face is pressed to Ellie’s chest, her long, dark hair hanging over Ellie’s arm, and her legs wrapped around her side.
“What is it, baby?” I question, closing the distance between us.
“Can you hold her while I get her stuff?” she asks in a hushed tone.
“Sure,” I mutter, and she slips the sleeping little girl into my arms. Her small, warm body presses close to my chest and I lift her higher, adjusting her against me.
“Hurry, baby,” I tell Ellie as her eyes stay fixed on me. “Babe,” I say, and she blinks then turns around, heading back down the hall, and my eyes drop to the tiny girl. I know she’s three from the info Ellie gave me. Her skin is the same cream color as her mother’s. Her cheeks are slightly rosy from sleep, her lips are in a small pout, and her long, dark lashes fan out across her cheeks. She’s beautiful, and she hasn’t even opened her eyes.
“Her dad never even seen her grow up,” Marlene says, putting another cigarette in her mouth.
Looking down at the little girl in my arms, I imagine her being mine and never seeing her. The thought alone causes my heart to bleed and my arms to tighten around her. “Don’t light that,” I growl when she lifts a lighter to the cigarette hanging out of her mouth.
“It’s my house.”
“I don’t give a fuck. You can wait until we’re gone.”
Her face screws up, but she pulls the cigarette out and closes her hand around it.
“Ready,” Ellie says, carrying a large bag over one shoulder then a smaller diaper bag in her other hand. Taking the large bag from her and being careful not to wake Hope, I carry her outside to the truck. Once I have her buckled in the car seat I had my mom pickup when we were still in the hospital, I lift Ellie up into the cab and pull her seatbelt around her.
“Jax.”
“Yeah, babe?” My hands stop and my gaze meets her beautiful brown eyes that are surrounded by long dark lashes.
“I can buckle myself in,” she whispers, and my eyes drop to her mouth. She has a gap between her front teeth that I have become obsessed with since meeting her. Really, I’m obsessed with her mouth. Her lips are plump, the bottom; slightly fuller than the top, the pink so dark that I want to lean in for a taste, just to see if they’re as soft and sweet as they look.
“You owe me for watching Hope,” her aunt says from behind us, breaking the moment and causing a growl to vibrate my chest.
“Stay put.” I growl, clicking her seatbelt into place, stepping back and slamming the door. Once I’m a few steps away, I set the locks and the alarm so I’ll know if Ellie tries to get out then storm up the few stairs into the trailer. Pulling the door closed behind me, the small room turns almost black, the only light coming from a small window in the living room, and a smaller one above the sink in the dirty kitchen.