Poppy stayed quiet as he shared their location and a few key details of what had just happened. At first, she thought he might be talking to his brother, but then—
“Call Declan and fill him in.” A slight pause. “Hell no, we’re not waiting. I don’t think these guys had reinforcements, but I’m sure as shit not hanging around to find out.” Another pause, this one accompanied by an assessing glance her way. “She’s good. I’ll let you know when we get to the cabin.”
Bypassing any sort of formal parting words, Jax ended the call and slid his phone back into his jacket pocket. “That was Ivan. He’s going to handle everything.”
“Won’t you get into trouble for leaving the scene of an accident?” She was pretty sure that was illegal.
Really? The guy just killed four men. Don’t think a traffic violation is high on his list of things to be concerned with.
“Dec will take care of that end for me.” He sounded confident as he pulled his damaged door closed and put the car in drive. “I need to get you the hell out of here.”
“How did they know where we were?”
“Good question.” He gripped the steering wheel tightly.
Jax got quiet then, his tight expression and hyper-focus a sign that his mind was working overtime to try to figure out the answer.
Looking out her window, Poppy caught a glimpse of the dead driver as they took off down the road. As they drove away, leaving the carnage behind them, she couldn’t keep from thinking about what could have happened.
To her. To Jax.
I just want things back the way they were. No blood. No violence. No men trying to chase her down for the sole purpose of killing her.
Her life may not be the most exciting or special, but it was hers. Or at least, it used to be.
She turned to Jax. Studied the features of his strong, stoic face.
He’d killed for her. On two separate occasions, the man stewing in the seat beside her had risked his life to save hers.
Poppy thought about how incredible it was that he was willing to sacrifice himself that way for a woman he barely knew. But then she remembered his military past, and it all made perfect sense.
Jax wasn’t trying to be the hero. He didn’t do what he’d done for glory or recognition. He put himself in harm’s way for her because that’s the kind of man he was.
Selfless.
Protective.
Just.
Those traits weren’t something that could be taught. They were simply a part of who he was.
For all his boisterous charm and fuck-the-world attitude, Jax Monroe was a hero. A man willing to die to protect the innocent.
I’m not the man for you, Poppy.
His earlier claim pushed to the forefront of her mind. He’d sounded so certain when speaking those declarative words. But Poppy wasn’t so sure.
Because the more time she spent with the larger-than-life man, the more she started to believe…
He’s the exact right man for me.
12
“I’m so sorry.”
Jax looked away from the crushed metal thatusedto be his driver’s door and front fender to focus on the woman standing next to him.
Poppy had handled the whole car chase/shoot-out combo remarkably well, once again impressing him with her inner strength.