Damaged - Jax Teller

04. Table Talk

"I see you're still here." Clay greeted her sarcastically. He strutted in the clubhouse with the rest of the members following closely behind him. Why didn't they just roll out the red carpet for him while they were at it. 

She nodded slowly. "Yup!" She didn't know why Clay seemed like he had resentment towards her. He didn't personally know her so how could he even hate her? He stood in front of her, his hands placed on his hips with his head cocked to one side. She knew what he was doing and although he might've been bigger, she wasn't afraid of standing up to him nor was she afraid of him. She stood up as well, her eyes never leaving his. "If you need to talk to my father, you can." 

He smiled like a Cheshire cat and fanned his hand towards her. "Already did, princess. Your ol' man made you seem like a bad ass. Said you knew your away around the feds. Even put his own name on the line." 

"That all he said?" Alyia knew her father liked to brag when it came to her. But in order for Clay and his crew to trust her she knew there was more that was mentioned. 

"Said you could..what were the words Tig?" He asked the man with the bushy hair. 

The Sargent-at- Arms stepped forward as cocky as his leader, possibly even more than Clay. Tig glanced at her up and down and smirked. "Said 'She could take any one of you down if she wanted too.'" A few chuckles from the crew members were heard from behind him. 

Alyia placed her hands on her hips, her jaw taunt, "That's right. I can. But there's more that I could do for you; I can run your numbers, make sure you're good on your booking and money, not only that but I can make sure your name doesn't appear on the screen of any news station out there. Which I know is super important to you and your ..." She chose her words wisely as the men smirked at her. "Club." Clay turned to Jax who was biting his nails, he was trying his best not to smile at the girls confidence. He liked it. A lot. "Look, I get it and I feel more like a broken record than I have ever had in my whole life but I'm not here to make your lives hell or to try and turn you in, and or trick you. I'm here to help you, Clay." 

He shrugged in response. "And what? I'm just supposed to believe you?"

Alyia sighed and rested her hands on the front of her jeans in a more comforting way. "How about a leap of faith?" 

Clays' eyes met hers and they didn't know how to read each other. Both were leaders, one had a patch on their back and the other had just a name. But in the end they were both names that needed to be respected. Alyia already respected their club and what they stood for. She respected their way of life and was now at their beck and call. Clay on the other hand, he had nothing to prove to the woman who stood before him. He could make her disappear if he wanted too. Her father was sick and he sent her here and he wasn't one to pass on some help. If that's what she wanted to call herself. 

He knew it should've been brought to the table to be talked about but her father was a long time friend of the club and any friend of his, is a friend of a club. He smiled, his grin reaching almost ear to ear. He held out his hand and shrugged his shoulders once more. "How about you sit at the table?" With a silent cheer of victory, she placed her small, soft hand inside of his gruff and callused one and with a nod, they both secretly agreed to their own terms. Terms that would later rear its ugly head.  

A small cheer of agreement erupted throughout the members and with Tig going first through the wooden double doors, the rest slowly followed, the only three that were left in the middle of the clubhouse was Jax, Alyia, and Clay. "Shall we?" Jax asked, humor dancing within his eyes. 

"You first, Prince." Alyia voiced, finally breaking eye contact with the President. 

"Prince huh? That's a new one." Jax smirked before swaying his hand towards the double doors where the rest of the crew had disappeared too. "After you darlin'." She smiled towards the Prince himself, walked around his Step-father and strutted inside the confidential room.