It's Hard Not to Hate - An Outlaw Love Story

Chapter Thirty-Four.

"Yeah, I meet with the new doctor on Monday to discuss treatment options. You can come if you want to." Taylor held the phone between her ear and her shoulder as she made quick work of the few remaining boxes that adorned the bed in the guest bedroom. She had finally grown tired enough of the clutter and, deciding two weeks was long enough to have put it off, unpacked her remaining belongings into the empty dresser. "I don't know what I'm gonna do about insurance. I'll have to talk to Jax about it. I'll figure something out." She moved the phone to her other ear and sighed. "Alright mom. I'll talk to you later." Once she hung up she tossed the phone on the bed, jumping a little when she heard Jax's voice behind her.

"Talk to me about what?" She turned to face him as he stood in the doorway in all his glory, a measly mustard yellow towel wrapped around his waist. She licked her lips.

"Huh-what?" She muttered, her eyes wandering down his body before darting up and locking with his. Jax chuckled.

"Is there something you need to talk to me about?"

"Talking is the last thing I want to do right now," she remarked. She approached him gingerly, sliding her hands over his bare chest, savoring the feeling of his hard muscles beneath her soft skin. He arched an eyebrow as she leaned in, connecting their lips, his hands shooting up and tangling in her hair.

After a brief moment Jax groaned, pulling away. "As much as I would love to continue this, I can't. We have church in twenty minutes." Taylor pouted and he kissed her nose. "Later. I promise." She followed him into their bedroom and watched as he pulled on his jeans and a SAMCRO shirt, slicking his hair back with his hands. "So what's up, babe?"

Taylor shook her head. "You're gonna be late. It's not important. It can wait." That was a lie. It was super important, one of the things that was weighing heaviest on her mind, but she wanted to keep putting it off so she could pretend it wasn't an issue. Jax eyed her wearily as he shrugged on his kutte, sliding his knife and his pistol into their respective holsters. "I'm still not used to the fact that you carry weapons with you everywhere you go."

He shrugged his shoulders, kissing her cheek as he slid by her and out into the hall. She stopped and peeked in on Abel, who was still sleeping soundly in his crib, before meeting Jax in the living room.

"When will you be back?" She asked, watching him step into his shoes.

"I'm not sure," he replied. "Hopefully not too late. I'll do my best." She gave him a sly smile and a nod. "Love you." Jax kissed her forehead, heading to the door.

"Be safe."

"Always, babe." With a smirk he was gone.

****

Taylor lazily flipped through the channels, groaning at the lack of quality content that was played on tv during the day. Abel napped on her chest, his head resting on her shoulder, his sweet breath ghosting over her neck. He had been clinging to her constantly over the last few days, but she wasn't bothered by it one bit. She loved it, in fact, knowing it would only be a matter of time before moments like these were a thing of the past.

Pounding on the front door startled her; one, two, three loud knocks ringing out. Abel flinched a little, but his breathing remained steady and soft, and as she pushed herself up and meandered to the door she was grateful that he didn't stir any further.

Her brow furrowed when she opened the front door and came face to face with two men, one wearing a suit, the other a law enforcement uniform. She felt her mind become cloudy as a thousand possible reasons for their presence stirred within her. The dark-skinned man glared at her before clearing his throat.

"Can I help you?" She asked, her voice low. She clung tighter to Abel as she stepped onto the porch, pulling the door half-shut behind her.

"I hope so. I'm Deputy Larkin and this is Detective McCormick; we're with the San Joaquin Sheriff's Department. Is Jackson Teller home?"

"Uh, no he's not," she replied, her skin beginning to crawl as concern settled within her. "What is this about?"

"May we step inside?" The gray-haired detective asked, stepping to the side in an attempt to peer into the home. Taylor tugged on the door, closing it the rest of the way to block his beady eyes from peaking any further.

"Unless you have a warrant I'm afraid the answer is no, gentlemen." She had at least learned something from being married to a lawyer. The man huffed, obviously annoyed, but nodded his head. He reached into his pocket and grabbed a business card, shoving it in Taylor's direction.

"If you could have Mr. Teller call me when he's available, I'd appreciate it. We have some questions for him regarding a homicide we are investigating."

Taylor snatched the card as her body began to tremble. "Sure," she managed to croak. "Have a nice day." With that she re-entered the home, shutting the door behind her before leaning her back up against the cool wood. Sweat formed on her brow as she secured the lock, her heart seemed to be skipping beats. She felt a little dizzy, her palms becoming sticky with sweat as she tried to process what in the hell had just happened.

Taylor walked towards Abel's room, her legs heavy and slow, like she was moving through sludge. She laid him in his crib to finish his nap, grabbing the baby monitor and pulling his door shut before returning to her spot on the couch. She twirled the business card between the fingers of her right hand, her left hand tugging at her hair.

It was times like these she really wished Donna was still around. She had been the best big sister, always had the best advice, always knew exactly what to say. And in a situation like this, one she has likely faced before, she would surely have been able to give her something.

But Donna was gone. There was no one she could talk to about this, no one who could offer her advice. The friends she did have now were involved with the club, and if they were involved in a murder there's no way they would tell her. Her only choice would be to confront Jax, pray he would be honest with her, and pray, with everything in her, that he wasn't a murderer.