Page 15 of Jax

"Are you okay?" Jax asked, glancing over at her with concern in his eyes.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine," she lied, trying to mask the fear that threatened to bubble over. "Just get us out of here, please."

"Got it. Hold on tight," he said, revving the engine and peeling away from the curb.

As they sped off into the night, Mia couldn't help but steal glances at Jax, admiring the way his glasses framed his intense gaze and how his perpetual five o'clock shadow added an air of mystery to his appearance. She shook her head, trying to clear the inappropriate thoughts from her mind. This was no time for attraction or distractions; they were in danger, and she needed to stay focused.

"Let's hope we lost him," Jax muttered, checking the rearview mirror. "If not, I have a few more tricks up my sleeve."

"Tricks?" Mia asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Trust me," he replied with a sly grin. "I'm pretty resourceful when it comes to this kind of stuff."

She tightened her grip on the Baloo stuffie. As much as she wanted to trust Jax, she couldn't help but feel apprehensive about their uncertain future.

And yet, despite the danger, there was something undeniably thrilling about being on the run with someone who seemed to truly care about her well-being.

The city lights blurred past them as Jax expertly steered them through the empty streets. Mia clutched the Baloo stuffie to her chest, her heart still racing from their narrow escape.

"A cell phone," Jax said, glancing over at her. "Do you have one?"

"Uh, yeah," she answered, fumbling in her purse and pulling out the cheap flip phone. "But it's not like a normal one. It's just for customers to call me for private chats. No data or anything."

"Hand it over," Jax said, holding out his hand.

Mia hesitated for a moment before giving it to him. She watched as Jax turned it over in his hands, examining it. Then, without warning, he rolled down the car window and tossed it to the side of the road.

"Hey!" Mia cried out, shocked by the destruction of her only means of communication with the outside world.

"Trust me," Jax said. "It was necessary. They could've tracked us through that thing. We need to stay off the grid as much as possible."

As much as Mia hated to admit it, she knew Jax was right. He was putting himself on the line to protect her, and she had to trust him. She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, feeling the first tendrils of trust weaving their way into her heart.

"Okay," she whispered, more to herself than to Jax. "I trust you."

"Good," he replied, his eyes never leaving the road ahead. "Because you’re my responsibility now, and I'm not going to let anything happen to you."

Silence swallowed the car, the headlights cutting through the inky darkness. Mia clutched her damp clothes and shivered, feeling the tension build between them.

"Sorry about the stuffie," Jax said suddenly, breaking the quiet. "They didn't have Shere Khan. I really wanted to find onefor you. But I think Baloo will be a good friend." He glanced at her with a small smile. "He'll keep you safe."

Mia looked down at the stuffed bear nestled in her lap, its soft fur slightly damp from her wet towel. She shivered slightly, realizing how cold she was in her wet underwear.

“You must be freezing,” said Jax. “Sorry about setting off the sprinklers. I had to create as much of a distraction as possible.”

She nodded. “It’s okay. It worked. I . . . hope the other girls are okay. I think I heard a couple of them running out behind me.”

“That’s good,” Jax replied. “I’d like to help them all. Eventually. Me and my brothers are working on it. But you don’t need to worry about that right now.”

Mia frowned. “Why did you want to helpme, though? Is it true that you know Savannah?"

"Yeah," he replied, his eyes fixed on the road. "I do."

"Are you taking me to her?" Mia asked, hope blossoming in her heart. She missed her best friend more than anything, and the thought of reuniting with her was almost too good to be true.

"Look," Jax sighed, gripping the steering wheel tightly. "We're doing everything we can to stay off-grid. You can't see anyone else yet. The more people we involve, the higher the risk of being traced."

His words struck Mia like a thunderbolt, and she felt her stomach churn with disappointment. But deep down, she knew he was right. They couldn't afford any mistakes. Not when their lives were on the line.

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