Tribulation | Jax Teller

The Prison Clause

It's a quiet Saturday in the Teller household, or as quiet as it can be with two Teller adolescent boys in the house.

Even as Noelle works on cutting Noah's hair, the boys still find a way to be softly scolded by their mother as Jax contains his silent laughter behind his large mug of coffee and newspaper. Besides, Jax finds his boys courageous to act up when their mother is wielding scissors and a clipper in her hands.

Addie, of course, is in her room and actually talking on the phone with Ellie.

Jax thinks today will actually be a good day.

He isn't needed at the garage or the club. After the wild after church party last night, he is pretty sure half the club is comatose from all the booze and pussy. Frankly, he is surprised he is even up and Noelle is even walking as he came home eager for his wife. But he surmises that is what parenthood does to the body as messes with your internal clock and forces you to ignore pleasant aches to watch and attend to your kids.

He is in the middle of reading about another one of Jacob Hale's projects to make Charming commercial when a knock comes from the door.

"I'll get it," Jax announces as he gets up to answer it.

Opening it, he is confused as he finds a man he has never seen before standing on his doorstep. The dark hair man is nearly the same height and probably the same age and is staring at him with a friendly smile although he notices the man eyes his tattoos, especially the one for Noelle, a little longer than necessary.

"Can I help you?" Jax asks gruffly.

"Hi, I'm Leo Graves," the man greets with as he extends his hand. Jax looks down at it, but makes no move to return the gesture.

"That still doesn't tell me who you are," Jax responds with.

Before Leo can answer, the door is opened wider and Jax watches as his daughter greets the man with a hug. And Jax cannot deny the sting in his chest at his daughter's open excitement of this man. Not once since he came home as Addie showed him any type of affection.

He is about to clear his throat when he hears Noelle approaching and she slithers her way up next to him.

He watches even in more disbelief when Noelle greets the man with a hug.

Jax never was a man to get jealous of his wife having simple innocent interactions with men. After all he had tagged her, married her, and knocked her up three times. If that didn't get the message across she was a taken woman he didn't know what would outside of pissing on her to mark what was his.

However, now she was hugging a man he didn't know two shits about, a fairly good looking man at that, who was apparently close to his daughter, and Jax did not like the feelings that were stabbing him in the gut.

He is about to clear his throat when Noelle seems to remember that he is still standing at the door.

"Leo, this is my husband, Jax," Noelle says introducing him as she grabs his hand. "Jax, Leo here is Addie's art teacher."

"It's summer," Jax states bluntly.

"There private lessons," Leo adds.

Jax raises his eyebrows. "You have them here?"

Addie rolls her eyes at this. "No, Dad, I go to his."

That doesn't make Jax feel any better. "So that still doesn't explain why he's here." Jax says with a clear edge in his voice.

"I actually came because I found some things for Addie she might like to use before our next session," the art teacher explains as he holds out a canvas bag for Addie to grab.