Nothing about this meet felt right. I told Clay from the start that we shouldn't have got in bed with these guys but, here we are. We were told to meet just outside of Charming; no cuts and no guns.

"Alright, where are they?" Tig asked.

My phone told me that they were late and my gut was screaming that things were going to get bad. As if on cue, six cars sped onto the road, kicking up dust in their wake.

"Show time." Clay said to me.

The air felt heavy and I clenched my fists. Opie was standing to my right with his hands deep in his pockets.

"Let's get this over with." He muttered.

I nodded and watched them climb out of the cars.

"Fellas, thanks for meeting us." Clay started.

Nothing. They didn't say a word. Just stared us down.

"I don't like this." I whispered to Clay.

He held up his hand and took another step.

"So, what can we do to make this work?" He asked the leader.

The leader shook his head and took a step back.

"We can't." He gestured between himself and Clay.

"But don't worry, I'm fixing this, now."

While he was talking, I was watching his men. They were all standing behind the car doors like they were shields.

Shit. This was a set up. Time slowed down and I could see all the med pulling guns and propping them on the doors. The leader nodded once and pulled his own piece from his back. Before he could pull the trigger, I lunged at Clay and knocked him into the dirt.

"Get down!" I shouted as bullets started flying.

I crawled on top of Clay and covered him with my own body. The shooting didn't last long. We stayed on the ground until they sped off down the road.

"Jesus!" Chibs shouted.

"Anyone hit?" I called as I stood up.

I reached out and pulled Clay to his feet. We locked eyes and he nodded in a silent 'Thanks'.

"Dammit, Jax!" Tig shouted.

I whipped around and saw him kneeling over Opie.

"He's hit. Right side." Tig said as he held his hand up. It was covered in blood.

"Christ." Clay said, dropping beside him.

He started barking out orders, but I wasn't listening. I was seeing red. I ran to my bike and threw on my helmet.

"Jax! Where the hell are you going?!" Clay shouted.

"After them!" I shouted back before racing down the road after those bastards.

I got lucky, the road we were on wasn't used much so I could easily follow their tracks. Of course, we had to meet in the middle of the damn woods. I was going down a small hill when I heard a loud pop. The next thing I knew, I was flying.

I hit the ground hard, rolling as I went. I managed to get out of the way of my bike just seconds before it would've landed on top of me. When I finally came to a stop, my body ached. I pulled myself up on to my knees and took my helmet off.

"Son of a bitch." I said as I surveyed the damage.

I didn't even have time to check on my bike before I was being hauled to my feet. One of them sucker punched me in the gut. I doubled over and the other dick bag pulled me straight by my hair and punched me square in the face. I heard the sick crunch from my nose and knew it was broken. Blood poured down my face and into my mouth. I spit a mouthful on the ground.

"Cheap shot." I said with a smirk.

I was trying to act tough, but really I was hurting and it was bad. The first guy kicked the back of my legs and I dropped to my knees. I heard a gun cock and felt the barrel press against my skull. I let out a slow breath and closed my eyes as I leaned back into it.

This was it. I was going to die. Right here in the middle of nowhere. Obviously, this wasn't the first time I've been in this situation. Hell, in the last year this is the 3rd time I've had my life threatened. In all of the other times, I've never been afraid. I've never cared. But now, I was terrified. My body was trembling and my breathing was rapid.

I was going to die. I was going to die and McKayla would never know how much I really loved her. I'll never see her beautiful face again. Never feel the warmth of her touch or the softness of her lips on mine. I've messed up everything good in my life and now, now I can't even make it right.

Seconds ticked by. Nothing happened.

"Just fucking do it!" I shouted finally.

I clenched my fists and squeezed my eyes as tight as I could and held my breath.

The gun fired to my left. All my breath left my lungs in a rush and I fell onto my hands.

"Not today, Dirtbag." The one with the gun said.

The next thing I knew, I was being hauled up by my arms and led down the road and shoved into a van. My hands were zip tied behind my back and a black hood was pulled on to my head.

The pain in my body was too intense to focus on anything but the throbbing. I knew we were driving fast because I was being jostled around the floor of the van. Finally, after what seemed like hours, the door slid open and I heard a lot of shooting. The van made a sharp turn and I was pushed out. I hit pavement and skid to a stop.

I could hear my name being called and hands on my back. The hood was taken off and I saw I was back at TM.

"Jesus Jax. You alright?" It was Tig.

I just groaned and he cut my hands loose. As he was helping me to my feet, I saw her. McKayla was standing next to Clay, her eyes locked on me. I saw her breathe a sigh of relief before touching Clay's shoulder.

"You need to go, now." She told him.

When he didn't say anything, she continued.

"The shots Clay, the cops gotta be on the way. Get out of here and I'll take care of it." She said.

I watched in awe. She was stepping up and handling this just like Gemma would have. I have never loved her more than I did in that moment. Clay finally nodded and everyone started to clear out. McKayla turned to go inside and that's when I saw it. The left side of her white t-shirt was covered in blood.

"Oh fuck, are you hit?" I called to her.

She kicked her eyebrow up and shook her head. Before I could stop myself I was moving towards her. My hand went to her side and I gently touched it, looking for a hole.

"What? Jax, no. I'm fine. It's not my blood." She said to me.

She touched my face and forced me to look at her.

"It's not my blood." She said again slowly.

I nodded and cradled her face. She leaned into my touch for a moment before pulling away. Opie and Chibs came out and I helped them into our van. Once everyone was gone, I could hear sirens screaming down the street. I glanced at McKayla and unzipped my now torn up hoodie and slipped it onto her shoulders, covering up the blood on her shirt.

"I'll be in the garage." I told her.

She nodded and as soon as I had the door closed, the cops showed up. About 10 minutes later, I heard a soft knock on the door.

"Hey, they're gone." McKayla said.

I opened the door and we just stared at each other for a while. McKayla cleared her throat finally and looked away.

"Come on, let me clean you up." She said softly.

I was too exhausted to say anything. I didn't need to. She reached for my hand and led me into the apartment, her apartment.

After six months of her living there, she had managed to rid the place of the smell of old pussy. I smiled a little and she sat me down on her neatly made bed.

"Christ Jax, what the hell happened?" She muttered as she got out the first aid kit.

I sighed deeply and closed my eyes.

"A God damn shit show." I told her.

When I opened my eyes, she wasn't looking at me. She was soaking a cotton ball with rubbing alcohol and I noticed a slight tremble in her hands. I reached over and covered them with my own.

"Hey, are you alright?" I asked her seriously.

A faint smile ghosted on her face and she nodded.

"You know, I'm actually okay. Really. I'm just glad everyone came out whole, or mostly whole." She said with a shrug.

I nodded and she started dabbing my face. I winced when she touched my nose. She gave me a sympathetic look and gently touched it.

"I think it's broken." She said, more to herself than to me.

"Take your shirt off." She said.

I couldn't help but smirk.

"All you had to do was ask, darlin'." I said halfheartedly.

McKayla rolled her eyes playfully and helped me out of my shirt. She gasped and touched the bruises forming on my skin. I caught her hands again and kissed them.

"I'm good, McKayla. Really." I told her.

She bit her bottom lip and looked down. Suddenly, I had the urge to kiss her. I slid my hands to cup her face and without a second thought, I crashed my lips to hers. I expected her to pull away, but she didn't. Instead, she threaded her hands through my hair and pulled me closer to her. Lack of oxygen kicked in and I had to untangle myself from her. She looked beautiful. Her lips were red and swollen and her eyes were filled with lust.

The pain in my body was long forgotten as I wrapped my arms around her and laid her on the bed. She reached up and pulled off the blood soaked shirt and tossed it somewhere on the floor. I let out a groan. Fuck, she was perfect. McKayla smiled and pulled me back to her. My hands snaked up her sides until I reached her lace bra. I kneaded them and she moaned into the kiss.

"I've missed you." I whispered on her lips.

McKayla pulled away and looked me dead in the eyes.

"I'm right here, Jax." She said.

I groaned and slipped my hands under her bra to touch her rock hard nipples. She gasped and arched her back and pressed her chest against mine.

"Fuck." She hissed.

I smirked and skillfully popped the clasp of the lacy material. I tossed it with the shirt and pulled her right nipple into my mouth. McKayla gasped and I pinched her left between my fingers. I continued my assault on her perfect tits for a bit until she started whining and writhing under me.

"Tell me what you need, darlin'." I told her.

She licked her lips and pushed her hips up to meet mine.

"More. Jax I need you." She said.

Her voice was thick with lust. I chuckled and trailed my hands to her hips and helped her shimmy out of her tight, black leggings along with her panties. I could feel the heat coming from her and it made my cock twitch.

"Please, Jax." She was practically begging me.

I licked my lips and ran my finger along her soaking wet folds. She shuddered and I slowly slid my finger into her.

"Jesus baby, so tight." I said.

McKayla moaned out and gripped the sheets beneath her. Slowly, I built up a steady pace before adding a second finger inside of her tight, wet pussy. McKayla was a mess, moaning and bucking her hips to meet the thrusts. With my other hand, I started rubbing her clit in small circles.

"Jax please!" She shouted. The urgency in her voice went straight to my cock and I couldn't wait anymore. I yanked my fingers from her and she sat up to help unbutton my jeans.

Once they were off, McKayla reached her hand into my boxers and started stroking me softly. I inhaled sharply.

"Jesus." I said under my breath.

McKayla looked up at me and winked before sliding my boxers down. I didn't have time to think before her plump lips were around my cock. I let out a low groan and she took it as a signal to keep going. And fuck did she keep going. She pushed my cock deep into her throat and I was almost seeing stars. Then she swallowed and I had to push her back onto the bed.

"Christ, babe." I said breathlessly.

When I pulled myself together, I hooked my arms under her knees and slid her to the end of the bed.

"You sure about this?" I asked her.

I wanted her more than ever, but I needed to be sure it's what she wanted. McKayla looked up at me with a sexy mixture of love and lust in her eyes.

"Yes, please Jackson."

That was all I needed to hear. I lined myself up at her entrance and slowly pushed myself into her. We both let out a groan and held onto each other. She felt so damn good around me. She was already clenching around me and she was so fucking wet. I almost lost it.

"Fuck, move Jax. Please!" She begged.

I bent down and bit her neck as I started dragging my cock almost all the way out of her before slamming back in. She moaned loudly and reached around to claw at my back. I threw my head back and thrust harder into her. Sweat was covering our bodies, making a lewd slapping sound every time our hips met. Mckayla's breathing picked up and I could feel her getting close.

"Come on baby, let go for me." I whispered in her ear.

I snuck my hand between us and started rubbing her clit fast. That was all she needed.

"F-fuck, I'm c-" and she was gone.

Her eyes screwed shut and her pussy squeezed my cock for all it was worth. I couldn't hold back as a warm tingle ran down my spine. A few more sloppy thrusts and I was spilling inside of her.

Once our breathing had returned to normal and I had her in my arms, I knew this was what I wanted; what I needed.

"I love you." I told her.

It was the first thing we had said since we finished. I honestly expected an argument. I knew she wasn't ready for us to get back together, but I needed to tell her. I needed her to know.

McKayla propped herself up on her elbow and studied my face. She touched my jaw and smiled softly.

"I love you too, Jackson."

I smiled and pulled her onto my chest. She hummed in contentment and absentmindedly drew on my chest.

"I wanna come home." She whispered.

I froze. She felt me tense and looked up at me with a nervous glint in her eyes. I swallowed hard and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear.

"Do you mean it?" I asked her carefully.

I wanted her to be 100% sure that it was what she wanted. She nodded.

"Yes. I miss you and I love you. Jax, you are the only person in this world that I want to be with." She said.

I could feel the sincerity in her voice and I leaned down to kiss her.

"What about-" She cut me off.

The only thing standing in the way of this working out was Tara.

"Jax, I will deal with Tara. I love you and I know she's going to be a part of your life. I'll figure it out."

I breathed out a sigh of relief and kissed her hard. I kissed her with everything that I've been holding in for the past six months.

"Thank you." I whispered against her lips.

She smiled and curled up against me. I pulled the sheets up around us and for the first time in months, I drifted off into a peaceful sleep.