I'm Your Bully (Bully Book Series 1) (6 page)

“I don’t understand you.”  Emma’s blond hair was gently blowing in the wind and a couple of cars flew past, one honking their horn at them. 

“I want you to promise me something Emma.”

              “Okay.”

              Jax loved that Emma agreed before she knew what he was going to ask her.  He hadn’t ruined everything yet, he thought with relief.  “If anyone ever tries to hurt you, I want you to tell me.  Okay?”  Emma nodded and Jax grinned up into her face. 

              “One more thing before I get up off my knees, this pavement is killing me even through my jeans.”  A smile curled a corner of Emma’s mouth and Jax’s eyes ate it up. 

“I’ve never seen you in a skirt before and I have to say, you have very sexy thighs from down here.”  Emma started laughing when Jax wrapped both of his arms around her at the knees and hugged.

“Friends?” he asked before they parted.

              “Friends,” Emma replied. 

+

A week later Emma found herself rushing home from shopping to rapidly stock the shelves and refrigerator with fresh food. Standing in front of the mirror Emma checked her lip gloss. Taking a deep breath she pushed open the creaky screen door letting it slam behind her as she headed toward the party next door. 

As Emma walked out onto her front lawn, she saw Jax’s car parked in his parent’s driveway, a repeat of the day he doused her with water flashed before her eyes.  Paul and a few of his other friends were looking at Jax's old black Chevelle. Jax was nowhere to be seen.

Emma hesitated.

"Hey Emma," called Paul. 

A spurt of pure anxiety burst inside of Emma.  She could deal with Jax on her own but his friends were a whole other matter.  Paul was waving her over and she could feel sweat start to bead on her face.  Emma half walked, half ran back toward her house. Slamming inside she bolted for the stairs.  Panic climbed inside of her as she climbed the stairs two at a time. 

Stopping in the doorway of her room, it occurred to her that becoming friends with Jax was the dumbest thing she’d ever done. When he’d asked her a few days ago to come to his party, she’d reluctantly said yes.  Now Emma wished she’d lied and said she was too busy.  There was no way she hadn’t just made a complete fool of herself.  Emma had the vision of her back peddling on the lawn all the way to her front door.  I’m sure that was a real laugh for them, she thought as she wiped the sweat off her brow.

A week ago saying they were “friends” was one thing, being the butt of his cronies jokes wasn’t something Emma could stomach anymore.  Especially not in front of Jax.  Jax’s friends would never accept her. 

Emma moved toward the bathroom to cool her face with water from the sink. Slowly walking from the bathroom to her bedroom window she looked out into the yard toward the house next door.  She was afraid to see Jax and all his friends outside pointing and laughing in the direction of her house.  Fear began to consume her thoughts. 

A ring tone startled Emma as she gazed out of the window.  Swinging around searching for the source she found it on her bed.  A slender black cell phone was chiming over and over.  Picking it up she hit the talk button and immediately a deep warm voice filled her ears, "Why aren't you here?" 

"Jax did you break into my house and leave this phone?" she asked incredulously. 

Jax laughed, "Sort of, didn’t you see the little ribbon I put on the case all by myself?" 

Emma saw the bow that she had knocked off in her haste to answer the phone. She sat down on her mattress with her back against the wall looking at the bow in her hand. 

"I want you to have it, I hate not being able to reach you and had an extra phone added to my plan for free."  The tone of his voice sounded like Jax was trying to be nonchalant about it, like it was no big deal.  What Emma read into it was he wanted her to accept it, and not say no. 

Guilt started to grow in her belly for thinking she couldn’t be his friend.  At the same time Emma couldn’t get over the feeling that this was all a joke and she was going to be the butt of it no matter how sweet Jax seemed to be. Not sure if she should accept the phone she joked, "So, can I call China a bunch and run up your bill?" 

"Only if I’m in china and you’re calling in your panties."  He teased back. 

"Thanks for the phone but I’d rather have my glasses back," she said quietly. 

"You can send me sexy pictures, and all kinds of naughty texts." He paused when she didn’t respond, "I just want you to talk to me, and I want to make sure you get home safe at night if I can’t be there with you," Emma could hear the worry. “I'll even take selfies in my boxers.  I’ll make some super sexy duck lip shots for your pleasure.” 

"Okay,” she shook her head as she relented, her mind filled with visions of hot sexy Jax in his underwear against her better judgment.

“That’s it, okay? Damn I’m losing my touch! Most girls would be thrilled to have my duck lips I’ll have you know!”  He teased trying to sound offended while he distracted her from the glasses topic. They were his hostage and it would take a siege on her part to get them back.  He really hoped she would form a battle plan to retrieve them someday. 

"Are you going to tell me why you ran from my friends? Paul said he tried to call you over, but you wouldn’t talk to them."  

"I'm ....I was..."she kept starting and stopping not sure what to say or how to explain.

"I want you here. Don’t you know you’re my girl?" Jax said in a low voice in her ear.

              "I...I’m not," she stammered in reply on the verge of tears.  She'd never been anyone's girl, never heard those simple words spoken in her direction before and she was desperately afraid to believe him. 

+

"I want you here. Don’t you know you’re my girl?" Jax froze as soon as the words popped out his of mouth.

Fuck, had he just said that she was his girl… what had happened to being friends?  Where the hell had that come from...not his head, okay, okay one of his heads, but not the one that actually conversed in anything other than primitive demands.  Okay, maybe both of his heads actually weren’t all that articulate sometimes, especially when they didn’t communicate before his mouth went and said some dumb shit. 

             
Jax missed everything she said after that, he had been in the middle of scaling the tree outside her window when she started to cry. The sound of her crying tore something up in Jax’s chest.   Quickly climbing up toward Emma’s window he looked through it to see her sitting on that old mattress looking small and sad. Her head was down as she toyed with the ribbon he’d put on the phone.

"Open the window," Jax's voice was a command. The debate between intelligence below the belt and above it was over when he heard her tears. 

Emma looked up from her bed and saw Jax perched outside her window in the tree.  His dark hair had a twig stuck in it and his expensive jeans now had a rip in one of the knees.  Sighing, Emma rubbed her wet eyes, got up, and let him in.  Immediately Jax’s arms were around her.  He didn’t say anything just folded her into his embrace and tilted her head up with a finger under her chin.  Kissing her tears away, his mouth was gentle and sweet. 

Emma started a little at the gentle caress of Jax’s mouth, her heart going into a crazy rhythm.  She stood still in his arms unmoving, barely breathing afraid he would stop.  Afraid he would continue.

Jax kissed the corner of her mouth and when she gasped at the contact he covered Emma’s lips with his own.  His tongue flicked her bottom lip and then he gently sucked her top lip.  Putting pressure on her chin Jax slid his tongue inside the wet cavern of her mouth.  His tongue was stroking and playing with hers.   

Jax pulled away and said, "You are coming down stairs if I have to drag you down the tree with me." The steely look in his eyes said he was determined.

Emma dropped her head against his chest and mumbled, "I’m not sure I’ll fit in.  They never liked me before. I'm not like the girls you hang out with, I’ll just bore everyone."  Emma pressed her face harder into him feeling it burn with mortification.

"Baby, look at me." He made her look him in the eye by pulling back slightly and bending his knees.  "It should be the other way around.  They’re not good enough for you."

+

Emma sat beside Jax in a folding chair, watching everyone as they drank.  Declining the many offers of beer or a cooler, Emma began to worry that people would start thinking she was a prude.  She wasn't, Emma had just learned the hard way at a young age to distance herself from people who drank because of her father’s vile temper. 

Jax didn’t notice anything at first.  This was his element and he was totally relaxed sitting back in his chair casually draping his arm around her.  Emma was nervous and would jump each time his fingers grazed the soft skin of her arm.  Jax lazily touched the skin at the base of Emma’s neck as he surveyed the crowd of his friends and strangers.  The muscles in Emma’s neck went tight each time he slowly dragged his fingers across her bare skin.  Her spine was ramrod straight in her chair. Emma didn’t look like she was having a good time. Jax frowned and eyed her from time to time trying to figure out what was wrong. Jax thought maybe it was his casual touch but the more he observed her reactions, the more he got suspicious something else was up.

Moving his big body toward Emma, Jax began pressing a kiss to her cheek.  He then casually slid his hand into her hair pulling it back enough to kiss the side of Emma’s neck.  She seemed to only get tenser at his touch so Jax finally whispered in her ear, "Baby, what's wrong?"  Jax made sure his lips touched her ear as he spoke because he couldn’t help but tease a little. 

Emma shuddered and her nipples hardened underneath her thin shirt, making her cross her arms over her chest when she noticed his stare. Immediately her eyes went to a small rowdy group near the fire pit. 

"The drinking," she quietly said.  Emma wasn’t going to pretend it wasn’t bothering her.  She couldn’t.

He crowded closer so no one would hear, "because of your dad?"  She nodded slightly and Jax was relieved.  "I'll stop for tonight.  I’ve had enough anyway, just drink water with me, baby." 

Emma couldn’t help the smile on her face.  He wasn’t mad at her for ruining his fun.  Emma shook her head slightly her thoughts whirling. Who was this man?  Was he the asshole of her past, the joker, or this serious eyed stranger? "I don’t want to ruin your party. I could just go home?”  Emma’s nerves got the best of her and she blurted, “Your touching me is making me nervous.” 

Not giving her any mercy Jax smoothed a hand across her thigh as he leaned over to whisper, "Never be afraid to tell me what's bothering you."  He slowly stroked his hand on her bare thigh to just under where her shorts ended, "I’ve been sitting here drinking like a jackass trying to figure out why you were so freaked out.  I'm glad to know. I might drink sometimes, but I’d never hurt you, I promise.”  Jax leaned in and whispered in her ear, “I like making you a little nervous.”  Jax nipped her ear gently before he pulled back slightly. 

Moving quickly Emma kissed his cheek impulsively before he could pull completely back. A kiss a girl would give her brother.  Jax laughed and grabbed her around the waist pulling her on to his lap.  At first Emma didn’t relax against Jax until he wrapped his arms around her middle pulling her back against his chest.  When Jax felt all the air deflate out of Emma’s lungs in a big whoosh, he smiled happily as he rested his chin on her blond head.  She smelled so sweet and felt so soft in his arms.  Contentment settled deep in his gut. Emma made Jax feel more like a grown man than any other person ever had.  She made him start thinking about things like the future.  Like how she would look in his bed all wet and wanting him. 

Emma was so fragile in some ways, Jax wanted to shelter her from the world. He wasn’t stupid enough to think she was weak though.  Deep down he knew Emma had a backbone of steel.  She had taken a lot of shit from the world and him but she didn’t let it break her down.  Emma might be small but she was resilient.  If Jax played his cards right, Emma might actually believe he was serious about her being his girl.  At this point there wasn’t anyone else Jax wanted sitting in his lap, just Emma. Jax hummed happily in his throat as he kissed the top of her head and playfully poked her in the side until she giggled.