Everyone voted for the Ex. So, let me introduce Jim Harrison, the ex-boyfriend. 😌

thirty-four | brown hair | brown eyes |charming smile | nice and polite, at least most of the time | portrayed by Jude Law

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Jax titled his chin up and nodded after Chibs slapped his back and announced that he was going to see Fiona and his daughter Kerrianne.

"Call if you need help, otherwise you know where t' find me", the Scot told Jax, his Scottish accent less noticeable here in Ireland.

"Tell Kerrianne and Fiona that they're always welcome in Charming", Jax said with a slight grin as he saw Chibs' mood increasing by the minute.

Since Jimmy O' was no longer a problem and could no longer stand in Chibs' way when it came to his family, a visit to Charming wouldn't be a problem for the two women. This way Chibs would be able to see his daughter more often.

"I will, Jacky boy", the VP winked before pulling Caitlin into a hug. "Enjoy yer' last days here in Ireland, lass, even if it rains."

"I didn't miss the rain", the redhead chuckled against the Scot's shoulder and then pulled away, smiling. "Have fun with your family. I hope five days are enough."

Smiling, Chibs held his arms out to the side after shouldering his duffle bag that was on the floor next to him. "Aye, better than nothing, right?"

"Right", Caitlin agreed with a hum, watching the older man leave the airport. "I hope he can see his daughter more soon. Must be really hard for him", she assumed with a frown, sighing.

"Well", Jax draped an arm over Caitlin's shoulders while they waited for Gemma and Abel, who had decided to get something to eat at the small airport restaurant. "It's been worse for him before. Has he told you about his family?"

"Not much", she replied with a shrug as she leaned into Jax' side while her arm slipped around his waist. "Just that he didn't seem to have a chance to be with his family for years."

"It was pretty complicated. And it all had to do with the guy who was partially involved in Abel's kidnapping", Jax said with a sigh. Every time he talked about the kidnapping, Caitlin noticed how he automatically tensed up and his facial features hardened.

"Shit, really?", she asked cautiously, nothing but empathy in her tone.

"Yeah", the blonde replied, then nodded while taking a deep breath before placing a kiss on top of Caitlin's head. "But that's history. Abel is with us, Chibs can see his daughter without having to fear for his or her lifeᅳ that's what counts."

"That's true", Caitlin said, her voice firm. "Our families are safe, we don't need more, right?"

She tentatively placed her hand on his cheek and got on her tip toes to reach his lips. She closed her eyes for a moment as Jax pulled her closer to him as he deepened the gentle yet assertive kiss.

"Okay lovebirds, kids are around again", Gemma announced amused as she approached the two of them with Abel holding her hand. The matriarch handed Caitlin a large paper bag. "Is your apartment far away? Otherwise we can eat here before the food gets cold."

"No, it's only about ten minutes by car." Curious, Caitlin peered into the bag and let the smell of Shepard's pie and smoked salmon fill her nostrils, making her mouth water. "Oh that smells so good. Thank you Gemma!"

"That's how you make a woman happy", Jax remarked from the side, his famous Teller grin on his lips. "Buy her food and she'll forget everything else."

The redhead snorted a laugh, but jac wasn't entirely wrong. "Oh please."

"Mommy loves food." Abel's giggle caused them to laugh as the little boy nibbled on a muffin. "And me too!"

With a proud smirk, Caitlin ruffled her son's blonde hair. "We just know what's good, don't we?"

"Yes, we know what's good." Abel giggled again with an enthusiastic nod.

"So I just buy you food and you're happy?" Jax raised an eyebrow in amusement as he shouldered the two duffle bags they had with them.

"It's that simple, yes", she purred against his lips with a wink and tried to reach for a bag over his shoulder to help him, but he didn't let her.

He tilted his head towards the door with a smirk. "Come on, let's leave before the rain gets any worse."

"I really wonder how you can endure this shitty weather for longer than a few days", Gemma commented on the way out, her umbrella already ready to get used. "I've never needed an umbrella in my whole god damn life before."

Caitlin laughed at Gemma's words, shaking her head. "Believe me, you'll get used to it. And if you aren't used to anything else, it's only half as annoying."

"So the rain still doesn't bother you, not even after you've witnessed the amazing californian weather?", the woman with dark hair asked with a grin. "Because I prefer the sun a lot more. No wonder that you're so pale, baby."

"Believe me, I prefer the weather in California too." When the first raindrops pattered down on her as they left the airport, Caitlin just grimaced in displeasure. "Oh yeah, I'm definitely staying in Charming."

"I hope so", Gemma snorted with a laugh before she opened the umbrella and walked towards Jax, who was already looking for a taxi with Abel.

Caitlin took a moment to observe her boys. A smile crossed her face as Jax took a big step to the side as Abel jumped into a dirty puddle and had the time of his life as the water splashed in all directions, ignoring the raindrops that hit them.

Jax zipped up his hoodie, his kutte for the day tucked into one of the duffel bags instead of being glued to his back as usual. A few months ago this was a normal sight for her. That's how she met him without knowing who he was. And now Jax looked almost naked to her without his kutte.

It's interesting how quickly things and personal attitudes could change in such a short time. Nevertheless, her life had changed for the better and she welcomed the new chapter in her life with open arms.

While Jax and Abel were still busy playing with the puddles, Caitlin jogged towards Gemma, who had found a free taxi and had also called out for Jax. After scooping Abel in his arms, Jax joined them shortly afterwards, smiling at his Old Lady before helping his son to buckle up.

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Two hours later, Caitlin was cleaning up the small puddle in the hallway caused by Abel's rubber boots. Her lips curled into a smile as she realized how many times she had to do this before she left for Charming.

But as long as Abel was having fun, she had no problem cleaning up small puddles.

"Babe? What things from the kitchen go in the boxes?" Jax's loud voice reached her from the kitchen.

While Gemma was playing with Abel in his room, Jax and Caitlin had decided to pack some boxes with the things that the redhead wanted to take with her to Charming.

She knew that she definitely couldn't take everything with her, after all they had to send the boxes by mail and that wasn't exactly cheap. So she could only take what was really important and meant something to her.

"Uh, I'll be there in a minute", she hollered back and quickly wiped the mud-covered rubber boots with the damp cloth before getting up from her squatting position.

Just as she turned on her heels, ready to join Jax in the kitchen, there was a knock on the door. Caitlin frowned slightly at the late visit. Unannounced visitors didn't happen often and her dad and Erin wouldn't be here until tomorrow.

Nevertheless, she opened the door and held her breath for a moment when she spotted Jim standing in front of her. With his hands buried in his pockets, his body wrapped in the dark blue wool coat that she still remembered. She had gifted him the coat almost five years ago on his birthday.

"Hello Caitlin." As deep as his voice was, it still sounded gentle and calm, just as Caitlin remembered.

One of her ginger eyebrows shot up as she cleared her throat quietly.

"Jim", she greeted curtly as she folded her arms over her chest. "What are you doing here?"

The man, who was in his mid-thirties, decided to come straight to the point. "I heard that you are moving out. I left some of my valuables in the basement we had at the time and wanted to ask if it was okay if I got them before you're going to hand over the key?"

Caitlin didn't have a problem with that, after all, the things belonged to him and she was the last person who would refuse to give him back his stuff. What was she supposed to do with it anyway? But she still asked herself one specific question.

"Yeah, of course, that shouldn't be a problem", she nodded slightly before tilting her head to the side, her voice a little higher than usual due to her skepticism. "But how do you know that I'm moving out?"

"Oh, right." Jim took a hand out of his pocket and rubbed his thumb along his chin, noticing how skeptical his ex wasᅳ and rightly so. "I wasn't spying on you if that's what you're thinking. A few days ago there was a letter in my mailbox saying that the termination was accepted."

Jim paused to pull the letter from his jacket pocket, which was carefully folded. With a faint smile he stepped closer to Caitlin and handed it to her. "Back then I had to give my new address because of my extra basement compartment. Apparently the landlord believed that I also wanted to be informed about such things because I forgot to deregister my basement compartment at the time."

"Oh." Caitlin's muscles relaxed again. The explanation sounded logical and she knew from back then that Jim had another basement compartment for rent because one had been too small for them. She quickly scanned the lines on the letter before handing it back to her ex. "Uh, I should have the key somewhere."

"Could you get it for me?", he asked as he took the letter and lifted a corner of his mouth when Caitlin's fingers brushed against his. "It's good to see you again. You look good."

Through her green eyes, she looked at him irritated. Him being a head taller she had to lift her head. "Don't do that, Jim. I'll get you your key."

"Caitlin wait." With a sigh, he grabbed her wrist before she could close the door to look for his key.

His warm eyes filled with regret, he ran his thumb over the knuckle on her wrist. "I'm sorry I left you alone back then."

"You just weren't ready." Without hesitation, she yanked her wrist out of his soft, warm hand. She wasn't at all happy about him being here now, let alone coming so close to her. "I'll get your key."

"No, please.." He reached out to her again, but he raised his hands when Caitlin lifted a finger and gave him a warning look. "I'm not here for my basement compartment, that was a lie. I don't care one bit about that."

"Then why the hell are you here, Jim?", she hissed quietly, glancing left and right down the hall to make sure the neighbors weren't poking their noses into other people's business again. They usually love to do that here. "We talked about everything years ago."

"I just wanted to see you again before you moved, okay? Is that so wrong?" Sighing, he slumped his broad shoulders, the outer tips of his eyebrows drooping. "Will you at least stay close?"

"Yes, yes it's wrong." There was a chance she was being pretty rude right now, but she didn't care about that either. "It's none of your business, Jim. But no, Abel and I are moving to California."

"How's Abel?" he asked with a weary smile as he heard the little boy's name, his hands back in his pockets. "Why would you leave Ireland? What about Erin?"

"Abel's fine, not that you ever cared", she huffed, sounding more bitter than she'd intended. "And the rest is none of your business. Shit, I wouldn't even have to tell you how Abel's doing."

"You know that's not true." A little taken back by Caitlin's choice of words, he shook his head almost imperceptibly. "I may not have been ready, but that doesn't mean I didn't care about Abel, Caitlin. I really wanted to try."

"Yes, I noticed that", she spat, her voice dripping with sarcasm. Sighing, she placed her thumb and forefinger against the side of her nose and exhaled loudly. "Please just leave if you're not here for the stuff in the basement."

"Hey, what's goin' on?" Jax placed a hand on Caitlin's lower back as he walked into the hallway after hearing an unfamiliar voice. With a certain arrogance, he looked at the well-dressed man. "And you are?"

"This is Jim, my ex-husband", Caitlin answered before Jim could do so himself, her emphasis on ex-husband. "And he was just about to leave."

"Iᅳ" Jim let out a sigh. He decided not to cause any problems, that wasn't his style. Nevertheless, his gaze adjusted to Jax's gaze, at least as arrogant and skeptical. "Right, I was just about to leave. But now that you know who I amᅳ who are you?"

Caitlin groaned in annoyance. "For God's sake, Jim. Just leave it!"

"I'm Jax", the blonde answered calmly, although the muscles in his tense jaw trembled slightly. "The boyfriend."

Jim clicked his tongue, nodding as he studied the man again. "Makes sense."

"What the fuck does that mean?" Jax asked with a huff, his grip on Caitlin's hips automatically becoming more possessive as she buried her face in her hands and shook her head.

"I'd rather keep my answer to myselfᅳ before someone gets offended." Jim tried his best to smile, it seemed strained yet polite. Faking a smile was something he had to do daily in his job. So, it was no big deal.

One look at Jax was enough to see that the blonde was in a completely different league than him. Jax seemed hotheaded, not well-mannered and wealthy, more middle class. Now Jim was no longer surprised where Caitlin's suddenly different, somehow vulgar choice of words came from.

"What's your problem, man?" Anger ripped through Jax as he pushed his hair back, keeping a close eye on Jim.

"I don't have a problem", Jim lied with a shrug. He had a problem with a woman like Caitlin now being with someone like..that.

His scrutinizing gaze slowly slid back to Caitlin, to whom he gave a wistful smile. "You've changed, Caitlin, I'm sorry about that."

"I can say the same about you." Caitlin's tone was cold as she answered, the tension between the two rising significantly. "The Jim I know would never have judged people."

"Oh, come on." Jim let out a bitter, almost desperate-sounding snort. "You deserveᅳ"

"Better keep your mouth shut", Jax let go of Caitlin and stepped in front of Jim, his piercing blue eyes staring into the eyes of the equally tall man. "You better leave before I forget my politeness."

"And you support this kind of behavior now?" Jim looked at his ex-wife, disappointment written all over his face, then he just shook his head as she disappeared wordlessly into the apartment.

"Leave", Jax snarled, his gaze stern. "And don't come back while we're still here."

"No worries." Jim's lips curled into a smile, but not a nice smile. More one that looked like you had just made a deal with the devil. "I don't interact with people, or rather scum, like you anyway."

Jax tried his best not to let Jim get under his skin. Instead, he just smiled, looking Jim straight in the eyes with satisfaction plastered on his face.

"Well, your ex-wife seems to be more into people like me and not arrogant, condescending men like you. Or whose woman is she now?", Jax asked with the slightest smirk, then stepped back as he saw Jim's facade starting to crumble and his greasy smile fading.

"Stay away from my Old Lady and especially my son." Without paying any more attention to his Old Lady's ex, Jax left the man standing in the hallway and let the door slam shut.

Jim decided not to stoop down to that level. That wasn't him. He was polite, well-mannered and would fight differently. He wouldn't lose his class and decency because of a man like Jax. And yet his male ego and everything inside him screamed at him to knock on the door, wait for the blonde to come out and to punch him in the face. But, of course, Jim didn't do that.

He wouldn't give up on Caitlin that easily. But instead of acting like a criminal, he would use his charm like always.