Chapter Eight

We walked in silence to his house-correction-mansion. 

The wood paneling and giant clear windows reminded me of ski resorts I had visited with my dad. 

There was what I assumed was staff cleaning as we walked into the front room. They didn’t look up or acknowledge us as Jax pulled me towards the stairs. 

I looked around in awe at the beyond gorgeous house. The white marble flooring stretched into all the visible rooms and up the stairs. The stairs had two sets to walk up one of each side, the stairwell framing the entrance to the living room. 

We stopped at the stop of the stairs. It split in three directions. We could continue straight which led to a common area with a few white couches and a beautiful blue rug in-front of a fireplace. There were two doors on the left wall and on door on the right, all the doors were closed  so I had no idea what they led too. 

To the left and right were two long hallways, doors lining them both. 

“Meghan’s room is in the east hallway and mine is in the west. Which shower do you want to use?” Jax asked me. 

“Is Meghan home?”

He shook his head “I hope not. I would have a lot to explain” 

“Ok your shower then” 

He gave me a mischievous smile.  I rolled my eyes. “By myself” 

Jax gave me a small chuckle. “I know.. go. I’ll go grab something for you to wear in Meghans closet. Last door on the right” 

I opened the door expecting to find just a bathroom, but it was a bedroom instead. I could see the bathroom across the room. Jax’s room was the size of maybe the entirety of Sabine's house. 

Majority of it was white like the rest of the house, it seemed to be the continuing theme throughout. White sheets with little blue pillows sat onto what I assume was a king size bed. There was a light wood desk in the corner of the room that stood out against the overwhelming white but complemented the room as a whole. I wandered into the bathroom and groaned at the size, again it was larger than anything I’ve ever seen. 

There was a giant shower that could accommodate multiple people inside as well as a jacuzzi style tub. The toilet had its own little room inside the bathroom that could be closed off. Shutting the bathroom door from the bedroom and locking it, I walked to the shower and thanked heaven that it was a simple turn knob with a simple H and C for the water temperature. I had feared I was going to have to ask Jax to turn on it. 

The warm water washed over and I realized how gross I felt from the waterfall. A sticky film had coated me. A soft knock at the door made me realize that the shower was made completely of glass and the water wasn’t hot enough to generate steam to cover it. 

“Jax don’t come in!” I yelled, trying to cover myself. 

The door opened slightly and before I could tell again. A woman’s small petite head popped in, looking down. 

“I’m going to put clothes on the counter for you.” She said quietly. 

I didn’t answer her as she walked in, not looking my way once and put a neatly folded pile on the counter. She also grabbed two towels from under the sink and put them near a bench close to the shower. 

I let out a thank you as she left. 

I quickly finished my shower and dried off. Rummaging through his cabinets, I found a bottle of lotion and a brush. 

I noticed that he had picked up a pair of dark Jeans, a white t-shirt with a dark green jacket. There was also a pair of pretty modest underwear and a bra. I had half expected Jax to pick out a pretty skimpy outfit. The underwear were a little tight for my liking and I didn’t quite fill out the bra. The jeans fit perfectly to my surprise, given that the underwear clung so tight I swear it was cutting a line across my cheeks. The white tshirt hung a bit big but it didn’t matter since the jacket covered a majority of the shirt. 

Jax was patiently waiting on his bed when I walked out of the bathroom. He had changed as well and his hair was tossed messily around his face as it was wet.  He flashed me a smile while taking in my outfit. 

“Ready to go?” He asked. 

“You don’t need to shower?”

He shook his head causing his  hair to fling droplets everywhere. 

“Nope used Megan’s.” 

“Then yeah I’m ready.” I said, as he hopped off the bed.

There was already a car pulled in the driveway when we got there. A beautiful black SUV, the kind you see cops drive in the movies. Jax opened the passenger door for me to get in, I gave him a small smile. 

The car ride was pretty peaceful. He had reached over half way and held my hand. My fingers are entangled in his lap. His thumb makes slow strokes along my thumb. He asked about my old school and my friends. I told him about soccer and some of my best friends that I missed dearly, even after only a few days. I told him a part of it was because of how isolated I felt. The no service in town really cut me off from everything I knew. He told me about how the isolation kept the town safe from unwanted visitors, especially tourists with no understanding how the town works. We walked about him somewhat, what his favorite color was (baby blue), what his favorite food was (spaghetti) and he asked me the same questions in return. I had noticed that any time we brought up his family, he was quick to change the subject about me.  It didn’t seem like it took us an hour to get into the city.

Letting go of my hand, Jax pulled into a small parking lot with a singular building in it. I opened the passenger door before Jax was able to come all the way around the car and he growled softly.  I rolled my eyes at him, reminding him I’m capable of opening doors. 

He led me to the cafe with his head in the small of my back, sending shivers across my body. 

“Hi! Welcome to Country Style! Did you guys want a table or booth?” A perky hostess greeted us. 

“Booth,” Jax said. I hadn’t cared either way. 

I slid into one side of the booth and stopped halfway before relaxing Jax was following me into the same side. 

“You’re not going to sit across from me?” I asked in confusion. 

He paused for a moment, looking like he wanted to tell me no before sliding into the seat across from me. 

The hostess grabbed our drink order and left us menus to decide what to order. Jax didn’t touch his. 

“Already know what you want?” I asked. Now that we were actually at the cafe I had butterflies in my stomach, realizing the date had officially begun. The car ride had seemed so casual and natural, I hadn’t gotten nervous till now. 

“I get the same thing everytime” he replied 

“Come often then?” I teased. 

His eyes narrowed a bit. “Usually alone if that’s what you mean” 

I smirked, hitting a nerve I didn’t actually mean to hit. 

“Welcome! I see Kara is getting your drinks. Have you guys decided on your food?”

A waitress came up to the table. She was pretty averagely cute. I wouldn’t say she was gorgeous. But she had a nice figure and pretty blue eyes. Her makeup definitely enhanced the blueness. 

“Biscuits and gravy with a sunny side egg on home style potatoes.” Jax said quickly. 

“Same thing” I replied, his eyebrow quirked up at me. 

She smiled, taking our menus from us and walking away. 

“I really couldn’t decide by the time she came. I didn’t realize how hungry I was, everything sounded good.” 

Jax shrugged “I usually know what I’m talking about anyway” 

Rolling my eyes, I looked around the cafe. It was definitely styled to be comfortable and inviting. There were only a few tables and booths that made me think it definitely wasn’t a busy cafe. 

Jax, grabbing my hand across the table, snapped me back to him.

“So about the waterfall…”he started off. 

My cheeks flushed red as I thought back to him pressed against me. I could feel how hard he had gotten. 

“I was your first kiss?” 

I felt my entire face heat up and I went to pull away, but he held onto my hand. 

“You don’t have to be embarrassed Hayley” 

He assured me. 

“Easy for you to say. You’re not the inexperienced one here” I squeaked out. My throat had dried up because of my embarrassment. 

Jax let go of my squirming hand and I let them fall into my lap, refusing to look up at him.

He sighed. “I’m more worried I pressured you… I can be…overwhelming…”

I snorted unintentionally at his comment, I dared to look up at his eyes that were flashing a dangerous gold. 

“Sorry. That wasn’t funny. You’re being sincere. It’s just easier for me to laugh at this instead of take it serious” I said. 

“Look. I don’t know why I’m so drawn to you. But I am. “

I nodded at him. I felt the same. It’s only been a few days and I felt like I have known Jax a lifetime. It was nothing I’ve experienced before. 

“So I need you to stop me or tell me if anything is too far like you did and I’ll never push it, okay?”

He was looking at me sincerely and I knew he meant it. I trusted Jax more than anything I’ve ever felt I’ve trusted someone and I had no idea why. 

The waitress brought our food and it was as delicious as Jax said it would be. He asked if I wanted to explore the city instead of heading back, but I didn’t really want to. I wasn’t really interested in the city, I just wanted to spend time with Jax. While he paid, I decided to use the restroom. 

Before I reached it, a hand grabbed my elbow pulling me into the corner of the hallway by the restroom doors. 

I yelped in surprise and was quickly covered by the hand. 

“Shh.” She said, I realized it was the waitress. “He will hear you.” 

She moved her hand off my mouth and let go of me. 

“Jax? He’s paying right now.”

She shook her head. “Jax is a regular. He comes all the time, which by the way he’s never brought a girl before. So you must be pretty special.”

She peeked around the corner before continuing in a hushed voice. 

“There’s a man in the corner. White skin. Dark hair. Wearing all black. He’s been watching you since you guys have arrived,”  She warned,“Look two of my friends have gone home with him before and I have never seen them again. I haven’t seen him since but sometime tells me he’s really interested in you.”  

My heart started to race at her words. I looked around the corner and caught a glimpse of the man she was talking about before another waiter blocked my view. 

“Please take me seriously, ok?” I heard the urgency in her voice. “My friends have not come back. And I know he has something to do with it”

I nodded. She gave me a sad smile before disappearing into a door that I assumed led to the kitchen.  I decided to skip the bathroom, suddenly wanting nothing more than to be near Jax’s side. 

Walking toward the front, I glanced towards the corner again. 

The booth sat empty and the man was now gone.