❛ I know we've never got along, but I am really sorry this has happened, Gemma. ❜

chapter thirty.

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THE NEXT MORNING, Scarlett wakes up with a jolt and her fists curl around the bedding to keep herself grounded. Ever since the accident, every morning was the same. A nightmare caused her to shoot up in her bed panting and shaking. This time is slightly different, though, as she isn't in her bed. She catches on immediately when she feels the duvet under her palms; the same duvet she gripped onto when she would be underneath Jax Teller.

Her head whips around the room, desperately trying to figure why she's ended up in his bed again. Her eyes land on Jax in the corner on his armchair, his head is tilted as he sleeps quietly, still in his clothes from the previous night. That causes her to look down at her own body, and she too is fully dressed in her clothes from the night before. She lets out a small sigh relief, thankful that drunk Scarlett didn't end up having sex with Jax Teller.

Slowly and quietly, she pushes the covers away from her body and moves her legs off the side of bed. After running a hand through her hair as her temples vibrate, she forces her hung over body to stand from his bed. She stills, a sudden sense of dizziness coming over her. She stands frozen with her eyelids squeezed shut as she attempts to recollect herself properly so she can leave his damned room.

"What the hell are you doing?" Jax grumbles, his croaking early-morning voice causing her eyes to fly open in surprise. Her head snaps to him, noticing that he's staring at her with a puzzled tired look.

"Why did I just wake up in your bed, Jackson?" She mutters.

He sighs, repositioning on the seat before he speaks, "I found you last night, right outside my door so drunk you fell asleep on the hallway floor. I gave you my bed," He motions to himself and the slightly uncomfortable seat he's sat in, "And I took the fucking armchair."

Her eyes narrow, "Why?"

"Cause I knew you'd hate me even more if you woke up in bed next to me," He explains.

She nods slowly, knowing that he's correct. She finally moves again, stepping towards the door and that's when she finally realises that she's missing her shoes, "You take my shoes off?"

"Didn't think you'd want to sleep in them," He grumbles, taking Opie's advice to be careful with her and give her time by only replying with simple answers. A few days ago, he would have taken this opportunity to try to get him forgive her. Now he knows that will get him no where. He points down the shoes beside the door, "They're there."

She glances at him in confusion. Not sure why he's acting so different, "I can see that," She hums and bends down to collect her shoes. As her fingers pinch her boots together so she can pick them up, the pain from her knuckles comes back. She winces, transferring her boots to her other hand before inspecting her fist.

He looks over at her, "You gon' tell me what happened?"

Her head shakes, and she lowers her hand to the doorknob to pull it open, "I'd rather not. I'm gonna go now," She mutters awkwardly before rushing out of the room.

Scarlett trudges down the hallway, coming to a sharp halt as she enters the large room in the clubhouse. Her jaw drops as she takes in the devastation laid all across the room. Bikers are sleeping on eve her surface possible, each of them with multiple woman snoring on top of their beer bellies. Smashed bottles and broken objects scatter the floor, along with confetti and food.

"Walk of shame?" Juice's voice croaks from the bar.

She turns to him, spotting Chibs snoring at his side, "Fuck off," She snaps, before motions to the old man who's drooling on the wooden counter as he sleeps, "Wake him up, please."

Juice elbows Chibs in the side roughly, causing him to raise his head and groan loudly as he looks over at Juice, "What the fuck are you doing, lad?"

Raising his hands in a surrender, Juice motions towards Scarlett and says, "I just did what she told me to."

Chibs rolls his eyes at the younger man before turning his head to look over at Scarlett. His brows furrow as he takes in her tired expression and he notices her combat boots in her hands while her socks are the other things keeping her feet protected from the bile and rubbish littered all over, "Letty? The hell you doing here?"

"She slept in Jax's room," Juice snorts.

Chibs jumps down from the counter, his eyes wide, "You what?"

Scarlett grinds her jaw, stepping over a few sleeping chicks to reach the two men. She drops her boots on the bar with a thud before glaring at Juice, "How do you know that?"

"I watched as he carried you into his room," He replies.

Her head tilts, "You're telling me that you knew I was drunk off my face, and you let him, out of all people, carry me into his room? Why the fuck wouldn't you just take me home yourself? Or put me in your room? Or just not make me have to wake up in the same room as him?"

Juice shrugs, "I knew he'd take care of you."

Chibs hums in agreement, "Jackie Boy would never do anything to hurt you, Letty."

Scarlett snorts, "Is that so?" She picks her boots once more, turning and walking across the room to the clubhouse door. She turns to face the two men before pointing around at the disgusting room, "Please clean this up before I come for my shift later on. I am not cleaning up grown men's party remains."

Juice rolls his eyes, "Yes, mom."

"We'll try, lass," Chibs smiles gently at her.

"Thank you," She beams back at them, "Love you both." Then she disappears from the clubhouse, digging her phone out of her pocket to call someone to pick her up.

Inside, Juice slowly turns to look at Chibs, "Did she just say love you?"

Chibs shrugs, waving him off, "Make the most of it. She might never say that again."

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    LATER THAT DAY, Scarlett stands in the middle of a hospital room, stood beside Alex Moore, with her mouth open whilst she stares at Gemma Teller, who is positioned uncomfortably on the table in a hospital nighty, looking over at the younger lady in slight distain.

"What the hell happened, Gemma?" Scarlett questions in complete shock.

Gemma Teller is showered in bruises and cuts. The hospital nighty covers her torso, but her legs, arms, neck and face remain uncovered. And it's obvious that every little movement hurts. Both her eyes are swollen, and two large cuts dig into her skin across her lip and under her left eye. It's obvious Alex has already patched up as many of her wounds as possible, as tape covers the cuts and most of the dry blood has been cleaned up.

"Why did you call her?" Gemma's glare turns to Alex, "I would have preferred anyone but Scarlett Miller."

Alex pulls his gloves off, "Because she might be able to give you advice on how to hide the real reason for your state from your husband."

Scarlett's brows furrow further, and she repeats, "What the hell happened?"

Gemma licks her lips, wincing as her tongue runs over the deep cut, "Use your imagination."

She was clearly beaten by someone, most likely a man for her injuries to be so severe. But it's very unusual for men to not have another motive for beating a woman up late at night. Usually they want something else, leading to rape. As well as that, Scarlett had entered the room just as Gemma closed her legs and sat up straight. She'd heard Alex mention something about a few tears leading to Gemma's face falling further. That was enough for her to connect the dots.

Slowly, as final realisation dawns on her, Scarlett's face falls and her nostrils flare furiously. It's common knowledge that she doesn't particularly like the woman in front of her, but not a single soul should have to experience that. Scarlett let's out a breath, "Jesus fuck, Gemma. When did this happen?"

"Her and Unser showed up at my house very early this morning. I won't give you all the details but she needed to be brought here," Alex explains.

"Unser knows what happened to you?" Scarlett's head tilts, "Shouldn't he be doing something about it?"

"I don't need anyone knowing," Gemma croaks, "Not the Club, or my husband."

Scarlett sighs gently, "What about Jax?"

"Especially not my son," Gemma's head shakes, "No one."

"Fine. I won't tell anyone," Scarlett agrees, completely understanding the feeling of secrecy at such a time like this. She moves closer to the table, "What are you gonna tell everyone when they see your face?"

"I'm pretty sure Unser is sorting it out," Alex answers, knowing that Gemma isn't feeling very talkative at the moment. He grabs his phone and moves to leave the room, "I'll check what he's doing."

Scarlett nods slowly in understanding before facing Gemma once more. She looks at the older lady sympathetically, not an ounce of hatred is seen in her eyes for once. Her hand moves forward and lays over the back of Gemma's, which rests on her lap. Gemma glances down at it for a moment before turning her hand over and curling her fingers properly around Scarlett's hand, squeezing tightly for comfort.

"What's with the sudden change of heart?" Gemma mumbles, completely a stranger to Scarlett's soft, kind side.

"I know we've never got along, but I am really sorry this has happened, Gemma. No one deserves this," Scarlett bites her lip, "I'm surprised you let Alex have a look down there," She chuckles loosely, "You're much braver than me."

Gemma smirks lightly, "Just another man to see my pussy. Plus, I'm fairly sure that he's some sort of queer." Gemma meets her eyes, swallowing thickly before she mutters, "Thank you, Scarlett."

Scarlett shrugs, "I'm gonna make sure this thing stays a secret until you're ready to share. If you need anything, let me know. I'll always help."

Alex re-enters, pocketing his mobile with Unser following after and both men file inside before the door clicks shut behind them. Scarlett moves to step away but Gemma squeezes her hand, pulling her back into her spot.

"Oh! I'm sorry," Wayne winces when he notices Gemma's entire. He nods awkwardly at Scarlett, "Hey, Scarlett."

"Hey, Wayne," She returns.

Gemma looks at him, her brows furrowing in concern as she recognises her guilty face, "What is it?"

He swallows, "Clay's here."

Scarlett's face pulls up in a grimace whilst Gemma's jaw clenches and she snarls out, "You son of a bitch."

"I told him you were in a car accident," Unser rushes out to avoid a harsh scolding, "Ran your caddy into a concrete barrier out by the utility shed," He notices the looks of pure confusion from the two woman and Alex, and he throws his arms up in a shrug, "Take my head off if you want. I just didn't see any other way to see this. He don't know about nothing else."

Scarlett licks her lips, "That was actually a good idea, Wayne," She slips her hand away from Gemma, "I best go talk to him and explain my reasoning for being here and explain everything else."

Gemma glances at her, "What's your excuse gonna be?"

Scarlett steps towards the door, pulling it open and shrugging, "I have a few in mind."

"Scarlett," Gemma calls, bringing the younger woman to a stop, "I don't want to see him yet."

"Actually," Unser speaks up again, "They're all here."

Gemma's head snaps to him.

He continues, "Jax and the guys."

"Jesus christ," She scoffs, "Is there anyone you didn't tell?"

"We'll handle it," Alex motions between him and Scarlett as they both begin to leave once more, "We'll try keep them away for as long as we can. But you know what your husband and son are like."

"I'll handle them," Scarlett reassures before the door swings closed behind them both and they head for the waiting room.

Before they even reach the other's, Jax marches around the corner, coming to a halt when he spots Alex and Scarlett moving towards him. He waits until they reach him and his face pulls up into slight disgust as he watches them together, sharing a quiet conversation.

"Jax," Scarlett breaths when she sees him.

"The hell are you doing here?" He questions, not giving her time to reply before his gaze moves over to Alex, "Is my mom okay?"

"She's fine," Alex nods, "Just a few cuts and bruises."

Scarlett folds her arms defensively over her chest, "And to answer your super polite question, Jackson, I'm here for your mother too. I was with Alex when she got in. I thought it best to come and make sure she was okay."

Jax's jaw grinds, "With him? What does that mean?"

Scarlett rolls her eyes, practically sleeping the jealousy dripping off the blonde biker, "Hanging out. Spending time with him. Keeping company. Together. Do you need any more definitions for with, or have you got the idea?"

As Jax opens his mouth to reply, the rest of the guys round the corner with Clay leading them, and Abel's nanny, Neeta, rushes behind them with the baby in her arms. Immediately, Clay is facing Alex with a worried expression.

"What's going on? She okay?" He questions.

"Yeah," Alex sighs, trying to ignore the glare he's receiving from Jax from the side of him, "When she hit the barrier, she took a pretty good shot to the face. There's some swelling. A few more tests are needed, but she's definitely going to be fine."

Clay let's out a sigh of relief, "So, nothing serious?"

Alex smiles with reassurance, "No."

"Can I see her?" His brows raise in curiosity.

Alex pauses, and Scarlett pushes in to answer, knowing the doctor obviously isn't as great at immediate excuses. She says, "It's gonna be a little while yet, Clay. You'll be able to see her soon."

Clay's eyes slowly roll over to land on her, and his head tilts, "What you doing here?"

She smirks sarcastically, "Well," She glances momentarily at Jax, "I'm glad that the Teller family are so thrilled to see me. But I'm here for Gemma. I was with Alex when she arrived here. I thought it would be best for me to make sure she was okay," She explains.

His eyes narrow momentarily before he grunts and pulls Jax off to the side harshly, giving her time to move towards the rest of the guys and get pulled into hugs by each of them. Finally, she ends up with Chibs' arm around her shoulders and he glances down at her.

"What's this about you and doc, then?" He teases.

She glares up at him warningly, "Don't even start."

"Be careful now, Chibby," Tig joins in, his voice laced with a teasing tone and the smirk on his face proving that he's very clearly trying to annoy her, "Never know what she might do."

"Yeah, I'm still tryna figure out who she punched last night," Juice jumps in, motioning down to her red knuckles, "I've asked around."

Luke throws his head back as he laughs loudly, "You guys are the noisiest fucks known to man."

Opie chuckles from beside him before he nods in agreement, "You're all lucky it wasn't one of you she right hooked."

Scarlett points at him as she hums, "Damn right."

"The feds raided Luann's studio," Cheif Unser's voice causes the group to turn and face the older man as he stands with his phone open in his hand. At his words, Luke's body tenses and he pushes away from the hospital wall, "Asset seizure," Wayne continues to explain, "Wiped her out."

Luke swallows, "Everyone okay?"

Unser hums, "As far as I know, yeah."

"Okay," Jax sighs, spinning on his heels to face the guys, "Me and Ope, we'll go deal with Otto."

"Ope goes with Tig," Clay insists, "Take Bobby, he could use the fresh air."

Scarlett snorts quietly, peering around Half-Sack and looking at the old man sprawled out on the hospital gurney snoring his head off.

Jax narrows his eyes in annoyance, "I'll handle it alone." He sends a glare to Clay before receiving a reassuring pat on the back from Ope as he passes before turning the corner and disappearing.

. . .

bit of a short chapter
i don't want to post this rn but this book needs updating sooo here it is

my laptop is broken atm so until it's fixed, i can't update properly
so be patient babes

word count,
2854

not proof read