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Jaxson
Life was a series of peaks and valleys, as Buck’s mama liked to say. It seemed that for the last several years, Jaxson’s life had been mostly ever-deepening valleys. His father’s death, the explosion that had gotten him sent home, and the series of smaller, unfortunate events since—the storm that had delayed his homecoming, the accident that had damaged his bike, the unprovoked attack outside his motel room.
But the tide had turned, and now, it looked like he was finally getting to experience a few peaks.
Like discovering a sister he’d never known he had. Spending the night with the beautiful, passionate woman who’d been hijacking most of his thoughts lately. And now, working alongside Kyle fucking McCullough on his vintage Willie G.
Life didn’t get much better than that.
Jaxson had feared Kyle’s skills had been a product of good marketing and lots of behind-the-scenes help, but the guy was every bit the genius he was cracked up to be. Down-to-earth, too. So much so, that Jaxson even said something about it. Proving just how cool the guy was, Kyle laughed and said his wife, Lina, deserved the credit for that. That before he’d met her, he’d been just another asshole biker with a bad attitude.
That, Jaxson understood. He felt like a different guy when he was with Penny even if he knew it was only temporary. Sometimes, temporary relief was enough.
After the bike was fixed, Kyle showed him and Zeb around. Despite being small, Mo’s was a great shop, and Kyle’s workspace was a mechanic’s wet dream—from the vast assortment of tools and state-of-the-art equipment to the speakers mounted around, providing headbanging heavy metal from every angle.
It reminded Jaxson that he’d dreamed of doing something similar once, though on a more modest scale. He and his father couldn’t have afforded such a sweet setup, but they would have been content, doing what they loved on their own terms.
Unfortunately, those plans had taken a back burner with Bo’s death, but as Jaxson followed Zeb back to Sumneyville, the possibilities resurfaced. Why couldn’t he still do something like that? Sure, it wouldn’t be the same without his father, but he loved working on bikes and classic cars. Loved the rush of gratification and accomplishment that came with a finished piece.
Apparently, Zeb was having similar thoughts. “He’s living the dream, isn’t he?” Zeb commented.
“Yeah. That shop is something.”
“True, but the real beauty is getting to do what he loves and making a damn good living at it.” Zeb chuckled. “Having a smoking-hot wife to go home to at the end of the day doesn’t hurt either.”
Zeb wasn’t wrong. They’d met Lina when she stopped in. She was smoking hot and as head over heels in love with her husband as Kyle was with her. And yet, while Jaxson could appreciate her beauty, looking at Lina didn’t elicit the same tightness in his chest that looking at Penny did.
An ache took up behind his breastbone, accompanied by an image of Penny looking up at him with those big brown eyes as she welcomed him into her body.
He’d never experienced anything like it. It was as if she’d been inside him as much as he’d been inside her.
Jaxson thanked Zeb and then went back to Mel’s. The bed remained rumpled—another visual reminder of the phenomenal way his day had started.
Penny had certainly surprised him. Not once, but twice. The first had been the night before when she boldly told him she wanted him and suggested a one-night stand. The second, that morning, when she’d kissed him passionately, thanked him for a wonderful evening, and slipped out, humming, before dawn.
Best-case scenario, right?
Great sex. No strings.
So, why did he have that empty feeling in the center of his chest?
Jaxson did what he did best when faced with something he wasn’t prepared to deal with. He shoved it deep down and went on with his life.
He packed his minimal belongings and went to the front desk.
“Checking out?” Harry asked.
Jaxson nodded, not feeling the need to share his plans with Harry. Harry had been friendly—at least to his face—but that didn’t mean Harry wasn’t feeding information back to his buddies at O’Malley’s.
“Probably a good thing,” Harry commented casually. “If the locals find out Penny Hoffmeier’s been spending the night with you, things could get ugly.”
Jaxson stilled. “What makes you think Penny’s been here?”
Harry shrugged. “I got eyes, don’t I?”
Jaxson’s room wasn’t visible from the lobby, and Harry didn’t work the night shift, so he hadn’t been around when Penny showed up or when she left in the predawn hours. Perhaps the security camera mounted above the back entrance wasn’t broken, as Harry had claimed.
“You’d do well to keep your eyes to yourself and leave Penny out of this,” Jaxson warned.
“Of course,” Harry said with a smirk. “What happens at Mel’s stays at Mel’s.”
Jaxson left with an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach, mounted his bike, and set off for Sanctuary.
* * *
“It’s complicated,” Cage told Jaxson and Sam and some of the others who’d gathered to hear what he’d found. “I can’t find a record of either birth—at least, not one I can verify. My guess is, Ilsa didn’t give birth in a hospital.”
Jaxson shook his head. “That can’t be right. I’ve seen my birth certificate. I needed to provide it when I enlisted.” He turned to Sam. “Didn’t you need one to get married?”
She shook her head. “In this county, you only need to provide one if you’re underage. But I do have one.”
“Based on the dates of the stuff I was able to find, the certificates were created several months after the births, at different times, and the requests were made by different people. Sam’s father isn’t specified on her birth certificate. It simply says unknown where the father’s name should be. Jaxson’s is just the opposite. His father’s name appears on his official record but not his mother’s.”
“How is that possible?” Sam asked.
“I’m not sure,” Cage admitted, “but I suspect Jaxson’s dad had a friend with some legal pull.” He looked to Jaxson for confirmation.
Jaxson nodded, remembering the older man who used to stop by occasionally. “He did. A judge.”
Cage nodded.
“So, basically, we don’t know much more than we did a few days ago.” Jaxson exhaled. “What do we do now?”
“We have a friend in Pine Ridge who specializes in finding answers, but that could take some time,” Cage said, “and there’s no guarantee he’ll be able to tell you anything more than I have. There might simply be nothing to find, depending on where Ilsa gave birth. We still don’t know where she went after leaving Sumneyville.”
“In the meantime, we could run some genetic tests,” Doc suggested. “That will tell us if you’re related and how closely.”
“Doesn’t that take months?” Jaxson asked.
“Usually,” Doc replied with a smile, “but we have another friend who could probably get it done much faster and without all the red tape.”
Jaxson looked at Sam. He wanted to move forward, but this wasn’t just about him. “What do you think?”
“Honestly, I’m pretty sure I already know how the results are going to come out, but it would be nice to know for certain.”
Jaxson nodded. “Same.” To Doc, he said, “Can you set it up?”
“I’ll give Michael a call now.”
The meeting broke up, and Sam turned to Jaxson as they walked out of the room together. “Hungry?”
“I could eat.”
“Kate always keeps the fridges stocked. Let’s go raiding, shall we?”
“I’m game if you are.”
They made sandwiches, grabbed a pitcher of peach iced tea, and found a quiet corner in the dining room.
“Surreal, isn’t it?” Sam said around a bite of ham and cheese.
It really was. He’d come to Sumneyville to find information about his mother and ended up with so much more.
“Listen, Sam, if this turns out the way we both think it will, then you’re entitled to half of whatever our father left behind. It isn’t much—some property and vintage vehicles—but it’s something.”
Sam waved him off. “Keep it. I don’t need it.”
“But ...”
“Jaxson,” she said, “it’s okay. Seriously. I have everything, including the big brother I always wanted.” He opened his mouth to say something, but she cut him off before he could, “And that’s regardless of what the DNA results say. I feel it, don’t you?”
He nodded, because he did. “How do you know I’m older though?”
“I don’t. But you are definitely bigger.”
He laughed at that. Despite their similarity of features, Sam was a full twelve inches shorter than he was and about half as wide.
“Fair enough.”
“I would like to know more about Bo though. What was he like?”
“Quiet. Kind. Good with his hands.” Jaxson told her about their plans to do custom car and bike renovations. “He was a good man.”
Sam looked doubtful, and he instinctively knew what she was thinking: What kind of good man walks away with one child and leaves another behind?
Jaxson wondered if Sam had been plagued by the same questions he had as a kid, believing that maybe he was the reason the other parent hadn’t stuck around. That maybe he hadn’t been good enough. As an adult, he knew it was a hell of a lot more complicated than that, but as a kid, things were much simpler. Right or wrong. Yes or no. Your parents loved you, or they didn’t.
“He never talked about me or my mother?” Sam asked, breaking into his thoughts.
“No,” Jaxson replied, shaking his head. “When I was younger, I asked about her sometimes. He’d get this really sad look on his face and tell me I was better off, not knowing. Eventually, I stopped asking.”
The more he found out about Ilsa, the more he was convinced his father had been trying to protect him.
Based on Sam’s reaction, her mother had never mentioned him either, which seemed worse somehow. After all, it was possible that Bo hadn’t known about Sam. It was highly unlikely Ilsa hadn’t known she had a son.
“As for you,” Jaxson said aloud, “I don’t think he knew about you.”
“How is that possible?”
“I don’t know, but he wasn’t the sort of man who would have left you behind if he did. You’ll just have to trust me on that.”
Sam chewed on that for a moment, then abruptly changed the subject. “So ... you and Penny, huh?”
He took a bite of his sandwich before he shook his head. “We’re just friends. Acquaintances really.”
“Ah, it’s like that, huh?” Sam asked.
“Like what?”
A small, wry smile curled her lips. “You know, there was a time when I refused to let myself believe Steve and I could be anything more than friends, too.”
It was weird—really weird—to talk with someone who seemed to know exactly what he was thinking with eerie accuracy.
Thankfully, Doc joined them before Jaxson could respond. “Good news. Michael said you could head down first thing tomorrow.”
“Michael Callaghan is a doctor in Pine Ridge, not too far away from here,” Sam told him. “You’ll like him. He and his brothers are former military, too. Big supporters of Sanctuary.”
“Great.” Jaxson polished off the rest of his sandwich and then looked to Doc. Sam wasn’t the only one who was adept at changing the subject. “Did you say something about a gym on-site?”
“I did. A good one, too. There’s even a whirlpool. A powerful one. The jets will do wonders for that stiffness in your back and hips. We had help from some friends who have their own fitness centers. Former military, so they know what’s what.”
“You guys have a lot of useful friends.”
Doc laughed. “That we do. I’m headed over that way now if you want to come.”
“Sure do.”
Sam narrowed her eyes at him. He didn’t have to be related to her to know what she was thinking—that they weren’t done discussing this thing with him and Penny. As far as he was concerned, there was nothing more to say.