Slow Burn.

Chapter 27.

"I never thought I'd live somewhere decked out in all of this chick shit." Jax chuckles as he holds Sadie on his chest as we lay in bed together.

I chuckle, "Maxim posters and Harley mirrors aren't really my style. You can have your share of those things in the garage or the clubhouse." I tell him teasingly before smiling over at Sadie as Abel continues to sleep. I watch Jax interact with his daughter, happy to be around her.

"I wish I could've been there." He admits, looking at his daughter and then back to me. "I wish I was around to see one of my kids born for Christ sake." I hear the pain in his voice, and I reach over to him, brushing a hand over his bicep before leaning down and kissing it. "I feel like such a shitty father. I couldn't even be around for their births, and I'm this absent person in their life. Who knows what can happen and where this is going to go? It scares me."

My eyebrows knit together, and I sigh, "So then maybe we should have a discussion about this if it scares you so badly." I tell him, wanting him to feel comfortable talking to me about things.

"I want out of the club. We can go somewhere, I'll work a 9-5 or something." He tells me and I look at him in shock and confusion, "We can move away from here, start new somewhere and have normal lives."

I feel the air get caught in my throat and I shake my head, "Jax, I can't just leave my dad and Noah. I have the shop to run. I can't just abandon them and my business. I-I, are you sure this is something you want to do? You just got out, that's why you're saying this." I tell him, not knowing what else to say.

"Just think about it, please." He asks me and I nod, promising that I'll at least think about it and consider the option. I hear a small cry coming and Jax chuckles before getting out of bed and carries Sadie with him to go see Abel. Before I know it, Abel is rushing into our bedroom with a big grin on his face, and Sadie is curled up in Jax's chest.

Abel jumps up on the bed and rushes over to me, cuddling into my side as the movie plays on the TV. I kiss the top of his head and smile, holding the boy in my arms. Jax sits on the end of the bed, bouncing Sadie in his lap and I notice something in her hand. My eyebrows furrow together as I analyze what she has and Jax smirks, looking over to me and then back at the ring. "What is that?" I ask him cautiously, not knowing what he has planned.

Jax hands me the opal ring set in rose gold and slides it on my ring finger. "Let's get married, let's do it. Let's take this next step together, and let's make things official." He says and I feel a wave of shock hit me. I let out a happy laugh and look down at Abel and then over to Jax, feeling a rush of joy jolt through me.

"Married? Really? You want that?" I ask him in disbelief as I look down at the beautiful ring on my hand.

Jax nods, "Of course." He says without a doubt. "I love you, Kacey, and I have since I was 16. You've taken Abel on as your own, you gave me a beautiful daughter and you stayed through the thick and the thin. You didn't bail when anyone else would've, and you made this family your own. You took the role of a mother without ever being asked or expected to, and you've supported me in a way that's so unique and loving."

I smile and sit up, nodding. "I'd love to marry you, Jax." I watch as a huge smile comes across his face and he leans over to me, pressing his lips against me.

Kacey Teller, that has a nice ring to it.

---

"You really have us trafficking blow?"

"Nah." Clay replies, "We're just mulling it back, Mayans are chopping and distributing." I shake my head in anger and let out a sigh.

"Jesus fucking Christ."