Page 100 of Jax & Knox

Knox is already up, I can hear him moving around downstairs, his footsteps deliberate and controlled. Jax is in the shower. The water runs longer than usual, and I wonder if he's trying to wash away the tension I can feel radiating through the walls.

Owen is still asleep in his crib, his soft breathing the only peaceful sound in the house.

I pull on one of Jax's T-shirts and a pair of leggings, then pad downstairs barefoot.

Knox is in the kitchen, standing at the counter with his phone pressed to his ear. His jaw is tight, his shoulders rigid. He's wearing his cut, which he rarely does this early in the morning unless there's club business. When he sees me, his expression softens slightly, but the tension doesn't leave his body.

"Yeah," he says into the phone. "I'll be there in twenty."

He hangs up and sets the phone down, then crosses the room to me. "Morning," he says, his voice low.

"What's going on?" I ask.

He hesitates, and that hesitation tells me everything I need to know.

"Knox," I say, my voice sharper. "What's going on?"

He exhales slowly, his hand coming up to cup my face. "Justin's been spotted. Close."

My stomach drops.

"How close?"

"Close enough that we're tightening security. Mason's calling an emergency meeting at the clubhouse. I need to go."

"I'm coming with you," I say immediately.

"No," Knox says firmly. "You're staying here with Owen. Jax will stay with you until I get back."

"Knox—"

"Ainsley." His voice is gentle but unyielding. "I need to know you're safe. Please."

I want to argue, but the look in his eyes stops me.

He's terrified.

Not for himself.

For me.

"Okay," I whisper.

He kisses me, hard and possessive, then pulls back. "I'll be back soon. Lock the doors. Don't open them for anyone except me or Jax."

"I will."

He kisses me again, then grabs his keys and walks out the door.

The sound of his bike roaring to life echoes through the quiet morning, and then he's gone.

I stand in the kitchen, my heart pounding, my hands shaking.

He's close.

Justin is close.

By the time Jax comes downstairs, I've already fed Owen and dressed him in a onesie covered in tiny dinosaurs.