Page 102 of Jax & Knox

"Ainsley, hey, look at me."

I blink, and suddenly she's in front of me, her hands on my shoulders.

"It's not him," she says firmly. "It's not Justin. That's Officer Daniels. He's here to talk to Mason about something unrelated. It's not him."

I nod, but my hands are shaking so hard I can barely hold onto the bar.

"Come on," Tessa says, guiding me toward the back hallway. "Let's get you out of here."

We end up in a small storage room, the door closed behind us.

I sink onto a crate, my head in my hands, trying to breathe.

"I'm sorry," I whisper. "I'm sorry, I just⁠.”

"Don't apologize," Tessa says, crouching in front of me. "You have nothing to apologize for."

"I saw the uniform and I just, I panicked."

"Of course you did," she says. "Ainsley, you've been through hell. It's going to take time to heal from that."

"But what if I never stop being afraid?" I ask, my voice breaking. "What if I'm always waiting for him to show up?"

"You won't be," Tessa says firmly. "Because we're going to end this. Justin is not going to get to you. The brothers won't let that happen. And neither will we."

Before I can respond, the door opens and Lucy steps in.

"Everything okay?" she asks, her eyes flicking between us.

"She's spiraling," Tessa says.

Lucy's expression softens, and she walks over to me. "Ainsley, honey, talk to us."

I take a shaky breath. "I just, I keep waiting for something to go wrong. For Justin to show up. For this all to fall apart."

Tessa squeezes my shoulder. "You've got a whole army behind you, Ainsley. And we're not going anywhere."

I feel tears prick my eyes, and I blink them back. "Thank you."

"Anytime," Lucy says, pulling me into a hug.

Tessa joins in, and for a moment, the three of us just stand there, holding each other.

When we finally pull apart, I feel lighter.

Not completely healed. But lighter.

Later that evening, after Owen is asleep and the clubhouse has quieted down, I sit on the couch in the common room, staring at my phone.

Jax is across the room, talking to Steele and Riot in low voices.

Knox finished his meeting about an hour ago and has been moving through the clubhouse, checking in with brothers, his presence a steady anchor in the chaos.

I glance at the clock. My stomach twists. What if something happened? What if Justin, no. I shake my head, trying to push the thought away. But the fear is still there, coiled tight in my chest.

My phone buzzes. I look down.

Knox: You doing okay?