The guys are quiet for a beat, and I worry I look like some sort of sappy dumbass. Then Jax brushes his fingers through my hair, drawing my attention to him.

“You don’t need to thank us, sweetheart,” he says. “We want to be here with you, okay?”

I press my lips together, my heart thundering in my chest. Whenever Hunter calls me baby, I give him shit for it. It kind of seems like our thing. He teases me with the word, and I throw it right back in his face. But when Jax calls me sweetheart, it doesn’t seem playful. No, it feels meaningful and makes my heart flutter inside my chest, like some stupid little dumbass. Perhaps it’s because he kissed me? I’ve never been kissed before that, so who the heck knows?

“Well, thanks for wanting me here.” I smile at him, and it feels real and weird, but nice.

He returns my smile then cracks the window open, letting the cool night breeze gust in. And that’s how we spend most of the drive—cruising with the windows cracked open, music playing from the stereo. Jax keeps his arm around me, while Hunter drives with one hand resting on the shifter. It might be the safest I’ve ever felt in my life. If only it could’ve lasted. Because, as we reach Crossing, I grow uneasy.

The building that’s allegedly a rundown bar is literally in the middle of nowhere. Neon and fluorescent lights offer a bit of light, but not much. And since no lampposts are nearby, and fields and the railroad tracks surround the bar, the area is blanketed by darkness.

People are loitering outside, and a few trucks, cars, and motorcycles are parked in the gravel parking lot. Most of the people outside look rough. Then again, I know I look rough, too, so I try not to judge. Plus, my father always came off as rough around the edges, and he was—getting into an occasional bar fight. He even taught me how to fight, something I’m feeling good about at the moment.

“Do you see his truck anywhere?” Hunter asks Jax as he turns into the parking lot and parks a ways away from the entrance. The headlights light up the parking lot a bit, revealing that we’re being watched by a group of people outside, smoking.

I must tense because Jax leans over and whispers in my ear, “Relax. We’re not going to let anything happen to you.”

While I appreciate his promise, I feel the need to stress, “I know, but I can also take care of myself. I know I messed up with the whole bridge thing, but only because I was caught off guard and outnumbered.”

“And that’s okay. I just want you to know that we have your back, okay?” His breath dusts across my ear as he speaks, and I involuntarily shiver, my shoulder lifting.

I cross my fingers that he didn’t notice, because holy hell, embarrassing.