Jax meandered back to the hall. He was in no mood to be a part of the festivities now that Amelia had left but he had to stay until the end. It was expected of him as the Second.
He'd barely entered the hall when Stephanie, the fiery redhead, was at his side.
"What do you want now?" he asked not even trying to act interested in a conversation with her. He'd been watching her throw herself at every Beta to try and find a mate. Something that she would never get right with him. Straight after she tried with Blake.
"Can't I just come over to say 'Hi' again? Is it such a crime?" she fluttered her eyes at him and he had to stop himself from doing an eye-roll. She was so fake and he saw straight through it.
"I don't have time for idle chit-chat. Especially after the stunt you pulled earlier. I would prefer it if you didn't touch me as you had earlier. It is unnecessary and embarrassing for you. You know how I feel about you. There will never be an 'us', so please remember that," said Jax as he left her side to go stand by the other Betas to speak about pack issues.
Stephanie huffed off in the direction of her friends. They had seen the entire conversation between her and Jax. Stephanie felt embarrassed but refused to show it.
"How did your chat with Jax go?" asked one of them, even though she knew that it didn't go according to Stephanie's plan.
"It went swimmingly, thank you." Lied Stephanie who kept her head held high, she refused to be disregarded like that. Jax would be hers. Even if it was the last thing that she did. Her father will help see to that. He simply had to. He was her last resort.
Stephanie's father, Magnus Taite, was a high-ranked Beta and was just below Jax in the pecking order. He wanted nothing more than for his daughter to mate with Jax. But Jax wanted nothing to do with her.
This angered Magnus, but he knew that he and his daughter would hatch a plan that would work, and come hell or high water they would make damn sure that Jax and Stephanie ended up together.
"He seems to be hanging around that new girl far too often. Emily… Aria… I don't even know what her name is. She's so insignificant," said Stephanie angrily to her father. "I don't know what's so special about her. She isn't even pretty. She's nothing compared to me." Stephanie stamped her foot like a two-year-old having a tantrum and demanded that her father hatch up a plan that she and Jax mate. And soon!
Stephanie kept her eye on Jax for the rest of the evening. She could see that something was off about him, but she just shrugged that off. She thought that he was either tired or stressed. If only she knew the truth.
Jax went through the motions at the celebration. He most definitely didn't want to be there without Amelia. She was the whole reason he went in the first place. He would do anything to spend more time with her.
Blake noticed that his Second wasn't himself. "Is everything okay, Jax?" asked Blake, concerned that something to do with the pack had him worried. Blake knew Jax's telltale signs.
"Oh, no. Nothing at all. Just feeling a bit wound up and tired, that's all. It's been a long day and I've had a lot going on." Jax lied. He didn't want to admit that not having Amelia there was the reason for his mood.
Blake wasn't blind. He had noticed how much time Jax had been spending with Amelia and it pleased him. He was happy to see that someone had eventually caught Jax's eye, but he also knew that Magnus was going to be pissed as he wanted Stephanie to mate with Jax.
All Blake had to do was sit back and watch the shit show. He knew that someone was going to get hurt in the process and his money was on Jax for coming out on top.
Jax made his way over to the bar and asked for a Cola. He smelt her before she even spoke and his entire demeanor changed.
"Hi again," said Stephanie in a voice that grated Jax. "Oh, I see that you're off the heavy stuff tonight. Only Cola for you? I'm in the mood to celebrate, so I think I'll have some white wine please." Stephanie stood as close to Jax as she could, on purpose smiling as sweetly as she could possibly muster, which was difficult for her for sweet was nowhere in her nature.
What was this woman trying to prove? Thought Jax as he humored her and ordered her a white wine. It was however when she took hold of the bicep of his left arm that she'd gone too far. It took all of Jax's willpower not to rip his arm away from her hand. But he was cleverer than her, he picked up the wine with his left arm, she, therefore, had to let go for him to stretch to where the glass was. And as soon as he'd given her the drink, he turned to leave.
"Wait!" called Stephanie after Jax, standing on her tippy toes and waving her hands. But Jax made as if he couldn't hear her over the music and just kept on walking. He was only too happy to get away from her and he couldn't do it fast enough.
All that Jax wanted to do was walk over to Amelia's cabin and check in on her, but he knew that he shouldn't. She was probably fast asleep by now in any case. He physically ached for her. A feeling that had him baffled. He'd never experienced it before. It was as if a part of him was missing. A part that he couldn't function without.
Jax put down his half-drank Cola and made for the exit of the hall. Stephanie came after him and he turned around and said "not now Stephanie!" That stopped her dead in her tracks. Jax had never spoken to her like that before. She was shocked and embarrassed. She gave him one last look and then turned to go back to the celebration. Back to her friends. Back to where she felt as if she owned the room.
Jax was deep in thought as he walked back to his cabin. He slowly replayed everything that had happened that day. How he saved Amelia, how he rushed her to the Salutaries, how he waited outside until he no longer could, keen to go in and check on her. She had engulfed his entire day and his heart with it.
Both Amelia and Jax's lives had changed within twenty-four hours. They had no control over what happened and as far as Jax was concerned, it was the best day of his life.
Jax couldn't get the picture of when he first saw Amelia out of his mind. It was as if it was burnt into his memory and would never go away. Her delicate hands, how scared she looked as she hid behind the bush, and how she felt when she eventually allowed him to go close enough to her to inspect her wound. But what struck him the most was her beauty. He had never seen anyone as angelic as she. His heart exploded the very first time she let him touch her wound. Her goosebumps at his touch didn't go unnoticed. Had she felt the same way too? Or was he grasping at straws?
Jax walked at a slow pace, in no rush to get anywhere except away from Stephanie. Oh, how that woman grated on him. She was so pushy, no wonder none of the males want to mate with her. She was winey and a total bitch to every other female except her little click. All of which Jax thought might secretly hate her too but were too afraid to admit it.
He just hoped that someone new would catch her eye. That she would leave him well alone. Her attention wasn't what he wanted…he wanted Amelia's.
Stephanie was first all gaga over Blake and followed him around like a puppy dog everywhere he went. He looked to his left… there she was. He looked to his right… there she was. It eventually worked so on his nerves that he had to have words with Magnus to ask her to stop bothering him. He had no interest in mating with her and she should respect her Alpha and keep her distance.
If only Jax could tell Magnus the same thing. He probably could, but he wasn't sure that it would go down too well. A fight would surely ensue. He could always speak with Blake about it. But was he sure that he wanted his Alpha in the middle of his love life? That would just seem too weird, even though Jax and Blake had a very strong bond. Speaking with him about this would be taking it too far.
Jax was so absentminded that he walked right past his cabin and found himself outside Amelia's. I should go in and check on her. He thought to himself but then refrained from doing it. The last thing that he wanted was to kreep Amelia out. He just wanted to fix her but he didn't know how, and it was killing him.