Jaxson (2 page)

He lunged forward slashing wildly, narrowly missing Jax’s face
. Sione would step in, slashing the blade from side to side while Jax bobbed left and right, dodging the blade.

“First rule of battle: the enemy gets a vote,” Jax declared calmly.

Sione lunged again, sticking the knife deep into the other man’s arm. He tried to yank it loose, but it remained stuck.

A scream rose from Kehau’s throat
.

“Second rule of battle,” Jax said ominously. “Learn to ignore the pain.” His face never broke from that wildly crazy grin.

Kehau’s scream
died as she watched him
step inside the next punch
Sione
threw. His arm curled around Sione’s, just above the elbow, trapping it tight as he rotated, forcing Sione off-balance.
Then Jax formed a fist with his free hand, aimed at Sione’s exposed ribs
. One
…
two
…
t
hree rocket jabs into his rib cage
!
The third time it made a sick, wet
,
meaty crunch
.
He rotated before Sione could even fully register what was going on, and threw him over his body in a flying mare
.

Sione
landed
flat on his back with a WHUMP
.
His fist was still trapped inside the crook of the
injured arm as
Jax dropped to a knee and twisted, taking Sione's arm with him
.
There was a vicious CRACK and a ripping sound that made her eyes water all over again.

The young man
screamed in agony, his arm and shoulder pointing
in
the wrong direction
,
with an extra bend in it that hadn't been there before.

Looking over his should
er
at the trainer holding a phone, Jax spoke once more
.
"Call the police and an ambulance
.
Stupid here is gonna need it."

He looked back down at Sione lying on the ground
,
mewling softly and crying through the pain
.

"I'm gonna kill you
,
" Sione gasped.

Jax didn’t respond at first. Reaching up with his right hand, he pulled the switchblade out of his arm. Blood coated the blade in a dirty red film as a dark patch started to grow on the sleeve of his sweater “You’re supposed to twist the blade as it goes in, that way it doesn’t bind on bone or muscle.”

He looked down at Sione as if speaking to an ignorant child.

“And never buy cheap. Not when lives are in the balance.” A flick of his wrist sent the knife flying through the air. It hit the wall, blade shattering against the concrete like cheap glass.

Jax squatted down beside him, pulling his arm out of the sleeve of the sweater
.
He rotated it in front of Sione's face, displaying intricate
Polynesian
tattoos
etched into the skin of his
massive bicep
.
Sione's eyes went wide
. Jax
noticed this and commented
,
"So you recognize 'em?"

Sione swallowed hard.

"Know what they mean
,
boy?"

A nod
.
Whatever those tattoos indicated, it was not
something Sione wanted to mess with.
Kehau had
to agree
too.

"No matter where you go, I got family on both sides of the bars."
He grabbed Sione by the ear, yanking his head around to lock eyes with him once more
.
"So, anytime you think you're feeling lucky, go ahead and make my day."

"I'm
won’t
do anything
,
" Sione stuttered through
trembling
lips.

"You're damned right
,
" Jax snarled
.
He stepped back and Sione stayed quiet
un
til the police arrived.

One of the gym's trainers had given Kehau a bag of ice for her swelling cheek and she held it there, slowly taking away the burn
and the sting.
Hopefully it could negate some of the bruise
.
Jax answered questions from a police officer in a voice almost too quiet for her to hear
.
At length, the cop seemed satisfied with what he was being told and told
Jax
to have a good day
.
The officer approached her politely
.

"Ma'am, we've taken statements and pulled the surveillance footage as well
.
That boy’s going down for a while
, if
you want to press charges."

"Yes
.
I don't want to be hurt again."

"Good
for
you
.
We'll have detectives in touch with you later this week."
He handed her a business card with his name on it.

She smiled through the pain
.
"Thank you
.
What's his name?"
As she nodded toward where Jax was having his arm looked over by a paramedic
. He'd told Sione “Jax”, but she was hoping to get his full name.

"Jaxson Kuznia
.
Your ex picked a bad man to start a fight with."
He threw a thumb toward the barely-sweating man-machine on the bench
.
"Dealt with guys like him before
.
Pissing them off is stupid
.
Sione’s lucky he didn't get killed."

She considered mentioning the tattoos, then thought better of it
.
Some things stay between God and the
A
ngels.

At length, the police and ambulance left
.
Kehau walked over to where Jax was flexing his arm
.

"Hi."

He looked at her, then stood up languidly
.

"You okay?"
h
e asked.

"Sort of
,
" she said absently as she checked him out.

Up close he seemed even bigger
.
Truthfully, he wasn't any taller than her
five eleven
, but his broad chest and shoulders gave an appearance that suggested otherwise
.
His coal-black mustache ran down
past
his chin in a Fu Manchu and his goatee was trimmed into a thick triangle
, and he had i
ntense black eyes that
seemed to
observe everything, giving away little in return
.
Not like a predator, but whatever hunted predators.

"Can I help you
?
" he asked, snapping her out of the reverie.

"I
…
u
h, my friends and I, we were wondering if you'd like to join us for breakfast back at our place?"
God, why do I sound like a kindergartner
?

He smiled, politely this time
.
"Sure."

"The cop told me your name is Jaxson, what do you prefer to go by?"

"Jax is fine
,
”
h
e assured her as he smiled, with an unusual warmth, and Kehau felt her skin flush
.
Why was this happening
?
After what had just happened, and her promise to avoid men in the near future, what the hell was wrong with her?

“I mean if you don’t want to join us
,
that's okay too
.”

“No but
—"

“It’s totally okay
,
” Kehau blurted out
.
“I mean I got you stabbed!”

Jax cocked an eyebrow
.
“I was about to say that if you let me grab my bag, I’ll follow you over in my truck.”

“Oh
.
Okay.”

He looked at her, a rueful smile on his lips
.
Then he reached out with one hand, pushing a tendril of her hair back behind her ear
.
The rough callous on the pad of his finger brushed her cheek
.
She shivered slightly, hoping he didn’t notice
.
“You’re starting to come down from the adrenaline and everything else.”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s a bodily response to situations where fight or flight is required
.
Your body puts out a bunch of different chemicals all at once
.
The result is that you feel hyper, your skin gets super sensitive
.
Stuff like that.”

A light bulb clicked on in her head
.
“So that’s what it is
?"

Because it sure feels like I want to have sex, and I have no clue why!

“Yeah, no worries, but you’re gonna have a crash when it all ends
.
Everybody responds differently
.
I get the munchies real bad.”

Whatever you say,
Kehau thought as she looked him over
.
The way you went through Sione was absolutely brutal.

He grabbed his duffle bag from the wall, taking a long sip from his water bottle as he walked back toward her
.

What an odd man
,
she decided right then
.
Very odd
.

“I’m ready
,
” he announced.

Kehau barely took note of all this though, as she made her way to the car
.
A new thought had occurred to her
.
Why had he stood up for her
?
What did he expect because of it?

Girls, Girls, Girls

Long legs and burgundy lips

Girls

Dancin’ down on the Sunset Strip

Girls

Red Lips, fingertips.

M
ö
tley Cr
ü
e

For as long as Kehau had known her, Pua was a penny-pincher, the kind Scrooge could take lessons from
. At twenty-four and freshly graduated from college with an MBA, she’d opened her own high-end salon spa, much to her wealthy parents’ disdain. Such plebeian things were beneath their daughter. Pua wanted it for herself though, bad enough that she sold her car and took to living out of a broom closet in the back of the salon to pay her bills.
When
her mother came by one morning and found her living like this, they chose to break the impasse, deciding
it was long past time for Pua to have a place of her own
.
Not a rental either
. A real house.

For once,
Pua
had the good sense not to refuse their generosity, mainly because they were filthy rich and it was only
a ten
minute
easy walk from her Kailua salon. A t
wo
-
story
house
,
with five
bedroom
s
,
and
a massive kitchen that opened onto a l
â
nai
with a sunken hot tub built into it
facing the
Ka’elepulu
pond
. Concrete steps led down into the water whenever she wanted to go kayaking.
Even if it wasn't a mansion, it was
the next best thing to it. The friends always ended their
Saturday morning workouts
t
here.

It shouldn't have been such a big deal, but Kehau's stomach was doing back flips
.
“What the hell is wrong with me?” she wondered aloud
. “It’s just a guy coming over for breakfast.”

The knock at the door startled her, making her jump.

"I'll get it!"
s
he yelled, hoping it was her rescuer from earlier as she opened the door.
He filled the doorway, broad as he was
.

"Howdy
,
"
Jax spoke
in that solid, louder than-normal voice.

"Come on in
.
We normally like to make breakfast," Kehau told Jax as they walked through the house, "then eat in the hot tub and relax for a while."

"Sounds outstanding."

"Do you need to change at all?" Pua asked
as the pair entered the kitchen.

"If that's alright."

"Of course!"
s
he said brightly
.
"Bathroom's over there by the outdoor grill
.
Go ahead and hop in after you change
.
We'll join you shortly."

"Thanks" he said, then strode outside.

Kehau had
completely forgotten about their guest, busy as she was,
until
Carli let out a gasp
.

Jax
was back
.
In these tiny olive green shorts that might as well have been underwear
.
Without the sweater on
that he had worn earlier
, she found herself
correct in her thoughts of his physique.
The thick, dense muscle that covered him reminded her of a major Samoan
wrestler and
actor who had been the center of her fantasies since she was a teenager.

He was heavily tattooed, his arms, back, chest
,
and portions of his shoulders
were
covered with a myriad of designs
. Prominent were the designs on his forearms. From several feet away, she could clearly see the words “STRENGTH” and “HONOR” on his left forearm. When he turned, she saw the “COURAGE” and “DISCIPLINE” written into the right side.

That seems to fit him so well. I wonder where he got the idea from?
The thought scampered through her mind right then:
wouldn't it be fun to trace those designs
on his chest
with my lips
?
Kehau shook herself
.
Oh
G
od
!
Where did that come from
?

Looking at Carli and Pua, Kehau saw they
too
seemed just as distracted
.
Jax sank into the water without a word then leaned back and closed his eyes, utterly oblivious to all of the attention he was receiving
. All three women
sighed for a moment
.
This man was something else
.

"Well you certainly know how to pick your knight in shining armor
,
girly
,
” Carli announced enviously.

The warm frothing water felt good on his sore back, causing
Jax to breathe a sigh of contentment and close his eyes
.
Good workout, good fight, and now homemade breakfast
?
In a hot tub
?
There wasn't any way you could make this day better
!

"Save any room for us?" a sweetly feminine voice declared
.
He opened his eyes and looked up to see all three women in swimsuits and tank tops
,
holding plates and drinks
.
Scratch that, now it's perfect
.
He smiled and sat up.

"Hop on in, the water's warm
,
" he replied cheerfully.

While the three women got in,
he eyed the heaping plates of food.
Loco moco, rice, portagee sausage, gravy over everything, and fresh pineapple
.
Definitely ain't eating from a chow hall
.
He shook his head and snorted at that memory.

"Is something wrong?"

He looked over to see the woman he'd rescued earlier
, looking back, her
wide green eyes
framed
with long dark lashes
.
Must not stare
.
Must not stare
!
giving himself an inner kick.

"No, I was just thinking how nice it is to be eating with island girls instead of mainland wahines."

All three laughed at once
.
"So you mean you don't like a granola for breakfast every day?"

"Sister, does this body look like granola built it?"

"More like you stole the pigs from the luau
,
" Pua said jokingly
.

She had
brilliant red
hai
r, a vibrant hue
, with an elfin build
.
Cute for a night, but not my type
. I'd probably break her in half if I wasn't careful,
Jax decided right then as he barked out a laugh, even if it
was
directed against
him. Good thing Islanders appreciated wit.
"Very nice."
He dug into the food on his plate, devouring it with a cheerful intensity
.

"So what about you
,
" Kehau asked
.
"Where do you work
?
Bouncer
?
Construction?"

"Nah, I like quiet work
.
I'm a consultant."

Kehau's fork paused in mid-air and she looked at him studiously
.

"You're messing with me."

"Nope."
He grinned, looking directly at her
.
"Keeps me busy, but much more relaxed than my old job."

He's smart, hot
,
and probably makes good money
.
Damn it
!
Kehau thought
.
I
just barely got away from Sione. I'm not even cute right now, half my face is bruised,
and here comes Mr
.
Too
-
Good
-
To
-
Be
-
True
.
If I'm really unlucky, he'll be sweet and like kids!

"This food is amazing!" Jax said as he set his empty plate down
.

"You're finished already?" Carli asked in amazement
.
She had the look of a stereotypical California peroxide blond
e.

She d
oes not look like someone I can go out for a burger and fries with
.
Never mind an intelligent discussion
.

Jax half-smirked as he looked in her direction
.
"Old habit from my last job."

"What was that?" Kehau needled
,
"
f
ace painter at a
petting zoo
?"

"Nope
.
Urban reconstruction."

Jax stood to get himself another glass of juice
.
As he did so, he could feel Kehau's eyes scouring the ink that covered his body
.
Wait for it, wait
for
it
,
he told himself
.

"Were you stationed at K-Bay?"
s
he asked.

Yep, she saw it
.

Over his heart, carved in black was the second tattoo Jax had ever gotten
.
An eagle-globe-and-anchor, framed by the words "Fortes Fortuna Jovat" ac
ross the top. Below was the phrase
"Johnny Rocket" in blood red, and the tools of his trade
:
rockets flanking a heavy machine-gun.

“I was
,
” he said conversationally,
though the pride was evident in his voice
.

“My older sister used to date Marines in Orange County
,
” Carli said
.
“They always drove Mustangs and didn't take crap from anybody."

"Comes with the territory
,
" Jax assured her.

"Johnny Rocket
?
Where’s that from?" Kehau asked in between bites.

"It’s my nick name
.
Momma was hungry for a burger and the nearest place was a Johnny Rocket's down the street
.
She waddled over there nine months and a day pregnant, ordered, ate, and delivered me while she was waiting for her
second
chocolate shake."

The three women looked aghast.

"That's crazy
,
” Pua said in an awestruck tone.

"My mother is Tongan
,
” he replied.

"And your father?"

"The only haole that could beat her brothers at arm wrestling."

"
So were you raised on the Mainland?"

"Yeah, I moved here
nine
years ago, liked it so much I stayed
.
What about y'all?"

"
Kehau’s a teacher at HPU,
" Pua informed him.

He pointed at Kehau
,
“
L
emme guess, dance teacher?”

“How did you know?”

“It’s all in the hips, you sway from side to side like you’re doing a hula as you walk along
,
” he announced matter-of-factly
.

He’s checking me out
!
A thrill ran through her
.
She liked having this man check her out
.
Maybe if I’m lucky he’ll keep it up
.
He’s not a drooling idiot
.

Across the hot tub, Jax did his best not to stare at Kehau. Growing up in Arizona and New Mexico had left him with a penchant for dark-haired women with a dusky complexion. Exactly his height, she definitely had curves in all the right places.
And hoo boy, I can stare at those eyes for hours
.
Wonder what she’d do if I started kissing her there and worked my way lower?

“I’m gonna get more POG juice” Pua said, standing up to leave the hot tub, empty pitcher in hand.

“Wait a sec, lemme get the plates,” Carli told her.

In a moment, both women were walking across the l
â
nai, chatting amicably. Kehau tried not to be mad.
This isn’t awkward
.
Not at all
!
I hate
them
both
.
No you don’t,
another part of her mind spoke up then.
You’ve been waiting all morning for this.
Yeah, I'd like to blame them but who am I kidding
?