“Just for tonight, babygirl, just for tonight. Sleep now,” he whispered. “Daddy’s got you.”
Tazzy drifted off with his heartbeat steady under her ear. She felt safe and claimed and loved. Secure in the knowledge she always would.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Jaxon waited until Tazzy’s breathing evened out completely. Then he slipped from the bed, careful not to wake her. Pulling back on his clothes as quietly as he could, he stepped into the hallway.
The time he’d spent playing with her had gone a long way toward easing him, but he still had something to get out of his system before it ate all the way through him. If he didn’t figure out a way to get a handle on the anger inside him for everything the General had put him through, put both of them through, he was going to lose everything he’d just gotten back.
He’d managed to resist killing whoever it was that had tailed them tonight. Out of sheer spite for what the General was trying to accomplish, he’d maintained control.
He needed to talk to someone who understood. Someone who saw him as he was now, not who he used to be. It was time to take care of his shit. He stepped into the bathroom to make some calls.
His first call was to Law.
“Hey, brother. Sorry for the late hour, but I need you to watch my house tonight. Tazzy is asleep, but I have something I need to do. No way am I leaving her unprotected. I need you to keep an eye on the perimeter.”
“On my way.”
Jaxon was grateful Law hadn’t asked any questions. Ending that call, he dialed again.
“Ravage, you said you’d meet with me if I ever needed it. Well, I need to meet now. How about the truck stop on the edge of town?”
“No problem. I’ll be there.” Again, no hesitation.
Jaxon kissed Tazzy’s forehead, made sure Lord Nightwing was beside her, tucked her in tight, and left a note in case she woke up. That done, he went to the kitchen to wait for Law. The rumble of Law’s bike pulling into the driveway caught his ear and had him heading outside.
“Appreciate it, brother. I owe you one,”
“I’ll put it on your tab,” Law said with a smirk.
Jaxon should have expected it. Nobody kept track of favors at Sabre. That’s not how they operated.
Law took up a position on the porch. Only then did Jaxon feel comfortable leaving for the truck stop.
Ravage already sat in a back booth with two steaming mugs. The place smelled of fresh brew and late-night grease. Jaxon slid into the seat across from him. He wrapped his hands around the warm mug.
Ravage broke the silence first. “You sounded like you got something on your mind.”
Jaxon stared into the coffee. “After the clusterfuck at the protest today, what the General did to my Little girl, I lost my shit.”
Ravage snorted. “That’s not what it looked like to me. What I saw was a Daddy protecting his Little. You did what you had to do to make her safe. No shame in that.”
“Yeah, well, turned out the General wasn’t done with us. Someone rode my tailpipe all the way home tonight. At first, it looked like they were gonna ram us. Then they tried to pull up beside us.”
“You think they were gonna take a shot at you or run you off the road?”
“No idea, I ended up turning onto a road too narrow for them to follow us. I didn’t get a good look at them. But if it wasn’t the General, it was one of his minions.”
Ravage’s eyes narrowed. “I’ll look into it, see if I can find out who it was. Is that what you wanted to talk about?”
Jaxon studied his coffee, fighting the urge to say yes and leave. “No, I needed to talk about what happened next.”
Jaxon met Ravage’s gaze. “This goes no further than this table, get me? Not to Reid, or anyone else at Sabre. Not your pal Brick. Nobody.”
Ravage propped his arms on the table. “If you don’t think you can trust me, why am I here?”
“I know I can trust you.” Jaxon sighed. “Tazzy’s changed. I know I’m a dick for saying that, but I can’t wrap my head around it. Tonight, she was… more than bratty. She was combative. She taunted me, almost like she wanted to push me too far. I would never go there. She’s Little, for god’s sake. With all the dangers she’s facing right now… because of me… the last thing she needs is me to be one of them. For the first time, I can’t read her. The way she acted? It was like she was trying to push me to let all the darkness come out.”