Rescuing Jules (Lawless MC Book 1)
Page 19
I met the guys in the hall. I pulled the door shut and faced Locke. “Jules isn’t ready for me to leave her just yet. Go ahead and take out the trash. You can give me a rundown later.”
“You sure?” Locke asked.
I sighed, but I was making the right call. “Yeah. I need to be with her. I trust you guys.”
Locke slapped a hand on my back. “We got it, brother. We’ll take care of it for you.”
Opening the door after they walked away, I saw Jules curled up in a ball on the bed, sound asleep. I knew I could sneak away and deal with shit in the shed, but I really needed to be wrapped around her right now. Not only for her sake, but for mine as well.
I toed off my shoes and carefully climbed in behind her, not wanting to wake her. I just laid there, breathing her in. Looking up at the ceiling, my mind ran through the many different outcomes this day could’ve had and my chest tightened with the fear.
Just then, she turned into me, placing her head on my chest. I wrapped my free arm around her and she burrowed into my side. Her arm wrapped around my waist. Her eyes were still closed and her breathing still steady. Her body and soul sensed I was here.
I ran my fingers up and down her arms softly. Trying to force my body to relax, I concentrated on the positive and left the rest of that shit outside. She was safe, she was here, and she was healthy. Well, minus drugs in her system.
Waking up, I found an empty, cold spot where Jules had been. Just as I started to panic, she walked out of the bathroom.
She smiled. “Hey. You were sound asleep, so I didn’t want to wake you.”
I pushed myself up. “I didn’t even realize I was that exhausted until I laid down next to you.” I rolled over, pulling her down onto the bed and into my arms.
She was quiet for a minute and picked at the comforter. “Will you tell me?”
“Tell you what?” I knew what she wanted, but I wasn’t really sure how much to share. I’d checked my phone and read the long text from Viper earlier.
The guys had definitely taken care of business.
Jules frowned. “What happened to Gia?”
Taking a deep breath and glancing at the phone again, I opened my mouth but she interrupted me.
“She’s dead, isn’t she?” Tears gathered in her eyes.
“Yes.” I sighed and pulled away so I could look in her eyes. “Gia and Ernie were behind everything with John. I knew she was angry, but I didn’t think it was enough to hurt you.”
“Because my dad is her dad?” I gave a quick nod. “Did you know?” she whispered.
I wouldn’t lie to her. “Yes, I did. I had to make a choice, Jules. It was her or you. She wasn’t going to leave you alive. Her end game was to kill you.” I pulled her face to mine, touching our foreheads. “That, I couldn’t handle. So, I did what I had to and I told the guys to eliminate the threat.” I watched to see her reaction, but she just stared at me. “Jules, I would say I’m sorry, I know she was your best friend. But you are my life, and I would choose you every time, no matter what or who is on the other end.”
I prayed she understood, because I couldn’t stand the thought of her hating me or resenting me. I did what I had to. For her. It was always for her.
Jules
Over the next few days, I thought about asking exactly what happened with Gia, but deep in my heart I knew I wouldn’t be able to handle it. I knew what she did, and I knew I hated her. After all, she was behind it all. At least, in a way. My kidnapping and the trafficking. The photos of me. All the stalking Ernie did for her and not just what John ordered him to do. She’d played it like some sick and twisted game. In the end she didn’t win. I tried not to think about the fact that John was still on the run.
It was hard to wrap my head around. The Gia I knew was supposed to be my best friend. We grew up together. Somehow, some way, the world twisted her into something dark and dangerous.
Walking through the compound, I looked around at my family, relaxing and finally taking a breather after the last few months. I knew we all needed one. Even though we hadn’t found John, we would.
I noticed my mom and Locke talking in hushed tones in the corner of the kitchen. The look of anger and annoyance on her face told me I didn’t want to be a part of that conversation. Grace, Ezra, Faith, Mac, and Viper were playing pool while Leah was reading in the chair next to the table. Those two were never too far apart from one another.
Arms wrapped around me and I froze momentarily. I knew who it was, but I couldn’t help it. I was getting better and better every day, but I still had a ways to go. Leaning back into him, I smiled as he kissed my temple.
Dom whispered in my ear. “Go get ready. I have a surprise for you.”
I spun around and smiled. “What do you have planned and what should I wear?”
“I’m not telling you. And wear some girlie shit,” he said with a smirk.
“Fine, I’ll go put on some girlie shit.” I placed a chaste kiss on his lips. He growled low and a tingle hit me right in my core.
I was unsure where we were heading until he pulled up to the lighthouse. He took my hand and led me up to the top of the lighthouse, just like before. He held me tight as we looked at the spectacular sunset.
Then he turned me in his arms. “Jules, when I almost lost you, it nearly killed me not knowing if I’d ever get to truly love you the way you deserved to be loved. I never thought I’d find someone so special. Someone I couldn’t breathe without. But I was wrong. You walked into my life and destroyed every thought I ever had about not needing to love someone. I thank God every day that I get one more chance with you, and I will never let one day go by without letting you know that this Prince Charming is nothing without his Cinderella.”
Getting down on one knee, he pulled out a small velvet box. Opening it, he took out a beautiful princess cut diamond ring. My hands flew to my mouth as my heart flipped and raced.
His beautiful eyes, full of love, looked deep into mine. “Juliane Isabella Galenti, will you please be my Cinderella and love me forever?” He took my hand and slid the ring on my finger.
I couldn’t stop shaking and crying. “Yes! Absolutely!” I squeaked through my tears.
I heard clapping and looked down to see my mom at the base of the lighthouse, Locke a few feet behind her, keeping guard. He was blushing, of all things. I couldn’t help it. I giggled.
Mom called up to me. “He wasn’t kidding when he said he wanted to marry you right away, was he?”
I loved seeing her happy, after watching the sadness in her every day. Despite everything my dad had done, we still missed him. Finding out the truth about my dad had truly broken me, and if it hadn’t been for Dom and the rest of my family, I wouldn’t be where I was today. Forgiving him was hard, but he was my father. And he should’ve been here with us, sharing in this moment. Tears of a different kind slipped from my eyes.
Knowing what I was thinking, Dom grabbed my hand and pulled me into an embrace. “I am sorry, baby,” he whispered. There was a tightness in his voice. The little time he spent with my dad, he’d developed some respect for him.
Looking down at my mom, I saw her wipe her eyes. She was battling the same thing I was. After a few minutes, we left the lighthouse and I met her at the bottom.
I took her into my arms and she squeezed me tight. “Oh, honey, your dad would be so proud of both of you.” She pulled back and touched the side of Dom’s face. “I am proud to have you as a son, sweetie. I know you’ll protect our princess.” She kissed his cheeks.
With all of us sniffling, they both looked at me, and Dom wrapped his arms around us both. “I promise you both that I will protect you. Nothing will happen to you again. I promised Sal before he passed that I would keep you safe, and I’ll keep that promise.”
Heading back, despite how happy I was, I still had the nagging sense of terror. Like any moment, something would pop up and destroy that happiness. I looked over at Dom. “What about John?” I asked, unable to keep my f
ear at bay.
Dom gave me a look like he was trying to determine how much to tell me.
“I want to know.” I demanded quietly.
He nodded, his lips a thin line. “John is totally off the grid. The bastard is lurking around, but just out of reach. We have some leads, but right now we’re just going to go on with life and wait for him to show his hand.”
Looking down, I fumbled with the hem of my shirt. I couldn’t fight the fear. When and where would he finally show up?
Dom grabbed my hand. “Babe, don’t worry. We’re ready for him and we will stay ready. I will bring that fucker down.” He kissed my hand and gave it a small squeeze.
I smiled, swallowing the terror and latching onto the trust I had in the man I loved. We’d made it this far. We could get through anything. I determined right then to not let John win. We’d go on with our lives and be happy.
We’d be the ones winning.
Epilogue
Jules
6 months later
Things had settled down a little at the compound. We knew the threat could always come back, but we were prepared for it. We were all still on the lookout for John. We all knew he was coming. But the atmosphere of the compound had changed.
The best news was that Leah spent a lot of time at the clubhouse lately, even though she was told she could go home. I wasn’t sure if it was because we hadn’t found John yet or if it was because she and Viper were still getting to know each other. Watching him with her, I knew he’d protect her with his life. Either way, they were getting closer.
Mom seemed to be doing better. She was spending a lot of time with Locke lately. I was a little worried because she didn’t really know what to do with herself. For so long she was a wife and mother, not really living for herself. All that had changed now. Dad dying had been hard on everyone. But she seemed to be moving past it.
Storm hadn’t been home. Convincing her to stay at New Day a little while longer wasn’t very hard. She wasn’t crazy about the idea of being home. We found out at a group session one day that John had her the longest amount of time. The torment she went through had been unbearable agony. She was still fighting through it and the thought of being out in public caused a real issue for her.
The only men she really trusted were Dom and Smokey. And she’d started to trust Duke, though how much remained to be seen. The doctor had said she suffered from PTSD and panic attacks, as well as social anxiety. Possibly with therapy, and family and friends rallying around her, we could get her through it. Dom thought he might know a way to help her and he was trying to work it out.
We tried every day to overcome our fears and not let what happened get us down. We’d found our happiness where we knew it thrived, with family and friends. We were finding the light to chase away the shadows and get us through the darkness.
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