+++

After her father had swung at her, Alex and her bloodied face heads to the liquor and smoke shop just down the street. She gets the highest proof they sell and a couple of Swishers before she sits herself on the curb in front of the clubhouse. She doesn't want to wail on her old man. She's just been released and doesn't want to let Sig down anymore than she already has. "You alright?" A shy voice asks. Alex glances over her shoulder and sees the Prospect.

"I'm great." She says back, lighting a cigarillo.

"Jax is looking for you." He sits next to her. "He's kinda panicking-"

"Let him panic. I just need to think- clear my head." He nods, his eyes raking over the dried blood on her face and throat with trails that lead to her shirt.

They sit in a comfortable silence for a couple minutes while they smoke the cigarillos before there's more yelling. She turns and sees Jax and Lawrence aiming guns at each other. "For fucks sake." She picks up her paper bag covered liquor bottle and Swishers before heading over to the action. "The fuck?"

"This bastard-" Tig comes out and grabs their guns. "Fuck you." Jax sneers. "You're lucky I don't fucking kill you right here, right now."

"Like you'd have the heart. Even in front of your girlfriend- my daughter."

"Don't call me that." She spits. "You're nothin' to me, old man. Just leave." She flicks her cigarillo at him. Her brain rushes back to the memory of him burning her brothers flesh with his lit cigarettes, she remembers the screaming and the crying that followed. Their father used it as punishment for Nick- only Nick.

That makes her feel like Lawrence.

Her face goes pale and she drops herself to the bench with her head down. Jax reaches to touch her shoulder but he's yanked away by a bony hand. Alex gets herself to her feet and marches toward her father, swinging her fist so hard at him that she could've dislocated her shoulder. The force she puts into it, and the liquor in her system, makes her lose her balance and stumble back against Jax.

Soon enough, there's the sound of the beast coming toward the clubhouse. "Aw shit." Alex mumbles, grabbing a hold of Jax's bicep as she stands behind him, trying to hide her blood stained face. "Jax, I- I can't go back, not twice in the same day."

"They shouldn't be here for you." He whispers back, watching a cop car pull up to the crowd.

"Lawrence Miller, you're under arrest-" David Hale starts but his words die on his tongue when the fuckin deadbeat asshole takes off running. "Hey!"

Alex gets dizzy again and sits back down, her head in her hands. "I can't believe that he's my dad. When people look at me, they see him and all the awful shit he's done."

"I know." Jax mutters. "Oh shit!" He can't help the chuckle that bubbles from his lips. There's applauding as David tasers him.

After a couple minutes of him fighting the Deputy Chief, Lawrence is finally being walked to the back seat of the cop car. "Hey Alex. What happened to you?" She's still covered in blood with a cigarillo between her busted lips.

"Had a family reunion." She shrugs. "Y'know, daddy-daughter type bullshit."

"You did that to her?" David asks Lawrence, Jax nods, his arms crossed as he runs his tongue over his teeth. "You hit your own daughter?"

"She fucking deserved-" He's cut off by a punch to the gut by the deputy chief himself.

"You be safe." David says to Alex. She nods and looks down as he drives off.

"Alex-"

"It's my fault, okay? "She cuts Jax off. "I brought this on myself."

"Let's just get you cleaned up." He wraps his arm around her shoulders and walks her to his dorm. He sits her down on the closed toilet and grabs a few things.

"This is supposed to be the other way 'round." She mumbles as Jax gently wipes away dried blood. "And I'm surprised you're not pissed at me." He just chuckles under his breath. "You're pissed at me."

"Not at you." She rolls her eyes. "I mean you dipped and no one knew where you went."

"I'm not ten. I think I'm old enough to take a walk outside by myself."

"He could've killed you, darlin."

"He almost killed you, again." She scoffs. "He pulls shit like that again, I'll do it myself."

"I'm sorry about what he said about you and your mom." He murmurs, tossing the blood saturated paper towel into the trash. "That was shitty."

"He knocked her up twice and he calls himself our father." She shakes her head as she stands and looks at her reflection in the cracked bathroom mirror. "Asshole got me good." She winces as she touches her wounds. "Good news is, I don't think I need stitches."

"I'm staying with you tonight." He says suddenly. "Until we know your old man is taken care of, you're stuck with me."

She sighs heavily. "I don't need a fucking babysitter-"

"No. You need a fucking friend." Alex rolls her eyes. "C'mon, let's get you home." Jax starts shoving things into a bag before picking up a half empty pack of cigarettes to stuff in his pocket. "C'mon."

She takes his outstretched hand and follows him out to the parking lot. He starts up his bike then they head off back to her place.

+++

"What am I gonna do at work? Everyone'll see what that twat waffle did." Alex shouts from her bathroom. "Make up won't cover it. Ugh!" She throws the towel around her head into the laundry basket then slides into bed with Jax. She had the pull out bed all set up for him but he wanted to sleep with her.

"You're still pretty as hell." She rolls her eyes. "Seriously-"

"I'm gonna have bruises on my face alongside these cuts. This is far from bein' pretty." Jax grabs her arm and pulls her against him, his own tight around her middle. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"Everything." She whispers back, shutting her eyes after flicking the bedside lamp off.

+++

"Woah. What the hell happened to you? I dropped you off yesterday and you look fine now you're back here-" Sig says, looking at her through his glasses.

"I ran into Lawrence." Alex mumbles back.

"Lawrence? Your father, Lawrence?"

"The one and only." She winces.

"Was it like the last time he was around?"

She saw him once between the time he left and now, well Jax saw him. He had beaten the shit out of him, busting her old man's jaw, shoulder and elbow. Unser let him off the hook since he was still under age but threatened him. The bastard came back to Charming to beg the Sons to let him back in after JT died, saying he'd be a better president. Jax saw him later that day and proceeded to beat the fuck out of him after hearing what was said.

When Jax was released he rushed to find Alex to apologize to her for what he did but he never did. She learned about her dad being in town about a month after he left from Sig, he left out the whole debacle with Jax.

"I don't know. You told me he was here then left." She shrugs as she pours a small amount of bourbon in a glass for an older gentleman at the bar. "What happened last time?" Sig chews on his bottom lip, scratching the side of his face. "Is there somethin' I don't know?"

"No." He simply says. "Are you okay? Like seriously?"

"I wasn't expecting him to hit me but I mean I get it." She sighs, running the pads of her fingers over her cheek gingerly.

"You're staying with us until your dad's dealt with-"

"Oh my god, you sound like Jax. He's already stayin' with me until he's taken care of."

"Oh. Good. Y'know I've always liked that kid."

"Jax is the blonde one." Sig pulls a face. "I guessin' you meant Opie."

"What?" Ope asks, leaning against the bar. "Sorry, we've been waiting for half an hour-"

"No you haven't. You just walked in."

"Yeah, a half hour ago." He chuckles. "You've got a bunch of thirsty boys on your hands."

"I'll be right there, honey." She sighs as she ties her apron around her waist. "Excuse me." She nods to Sig then steps out onto the floor to greet the group of outlaws, serving them their weekly beer, wings and deep fried pickles.

And like always they leave a very generous tip.

+++

Alex sits on the edge of the bed as she brushes out her hair, covered in a shirt she stole from Will, he doesn't mind because he isn't here. "Can I talk to you about somethin?"

"Uh, sure." Jax answers, stubbing his cigarette out into the ashtray on her nightstand. "What's up?"

"When was the last time my dad was in town?"

"Why?"

"Just answer the question, Jax."

"A couple weeks after my old man died." He sighs. "He wanted back into the club. He kept telling the guys that he'd... be a better president than my dad." Alex turns and faces him, tucking her long legs under herself. "Piney told me about it later. I saw your old man walking around town and I just... I dunno, I guess I lost it. I kept thinking about what he said about my dad, what he did to you and your mom and brother and I just snapped." He looks down at the 'SONS' rings on his fingers. "I was gonna tell you but I didn't want to see the look that was gonna be on your face- the look you have now." She purses her lips and nods. "I was just so pissed at him and-" she slides her hand to his cheek and kisses him softly, almost lovingly.

He pulls away, kicking his legs over the edge of the bed to hide his flushed cheeks. He blushes harder when he feels a pair of inked arms wrap around his chest and shoulders and a pair of long tan legs around his waist in a hug. "Thank you." She whispers against his ear. He sighs quietly and brings her hand up to his lips to kiss. He runs his hand up and down her shin then clears his throat. "You hungry?" She doesn't wait for a response as she stands in just a t-shirt and heads to her kitchenette.

Just as Jax opens his mouth, her landline starts ringing. "Hello? Jax, who's this? Will, okay." Alex freezes as she listens to the one sided conversation. "Oh, you are, are you?" He gives the girl a look with raised eyebrows. "Interesting."

"Gimme the damn phone, Jax." She says, hitting him with a dish towel. "C'mon now!" She laughs when he elbows her away. "Dude!"

"Call back in a few, William." Jax says into the phone before hanging up on him.

"You ass!" She can't help but giggle as she shakes her head. "What did he say?"

"He said he can't wait to come out but he didn't know who I am."

"That's because he don't know who you are." She shoots back. "Hell, he doesn't know much about me."

"Like what?"

"He doesn't know about my family and about my, uh, frequent 'interactions' with the law-"

"What does he know about you?"

"My name and, uh-"

"You've been lying to him?"

"No. I just haven't been telling him the entire truth." She sighs. "It was nice to just start over, y'know? To be Alex and not Larry Miller's daughter."

Jax nods and rubs her back. "When is he coming out?"

"Couple weeks. That's why I've been bustin' my ass at the bar, so I can afford to house you and him here and cook for all y'all. I know I'm gonna have to take care of you two and probably Donna and Ope."

"He's staying here?"

"I'll offer. Southern hospitality, honey." She shrugs, bending over to flitter through the contents of the fridge.

Jax shakes his head. "You just have to worry about him because I'm not staying here, not with him."

"You don't even know him and you already don't like him!? Why?" She never pegged Jax as the jealous type- especially with her relationship between him and Ope. "You're ridiculous."

"Y'know what-?"

"No what!?" She snaps back. "You have no right to talk about him the way you have." She has him backing against the wall as she walks towards him. "Will is the kindest, warmest, most polite guy I've ever fuckin met. You could learn a thing or two from him!"

Jax glares at her for a second before he grabs her by the throat and kisses her hard, deep and hot. She lets out a squeaky gasp, gripping his shirt and wrist. He grabs her ass and lifts her to sit on the counter, his hands slipping under her top.

Jax quickly moves them to her bed.